JUMBO—SERPENT.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 43, 20 February 1929, Page 18

JUMBO—SERPENT.

(By Albert Kiger. I'uriri Street, Avondale .South, Agod 16.)

"It shows 'ero," said the old sailor looking up from his illustrated paper, "an elephant 'oisted aboard a ship by a crane."

"That reminds nit , / , he continued, "of one voyage when we 'ad to ship a full-grown elephant, as part of a general cargo, at a South African port. There j was no cranes in those days, and we 'ad ■ to get 'im across the gangway, mainly by gettin' be'ind and pushin". J don't know W we eventually managed it, for straight off, 1 got a kick in the waistcoat, which prevented me from taking any interest in proceeding for some time to come. 'Owever, wo got 'im into 'his pen on deck some'ow. Still feeling sore in the stummick, I readily agreed with the Old Man when 'e said that shipping elephants was unnatural and always led to trouble. "About two days out we ran into a storm. The storm in itself was bad enough but what was more alarming was the way Jumbo was staggeriir around in 'is pen. 'E evidently 'adn't found 'is sea legs. Then aa one partic; larly large wave struck us what the Old Alan 'ad gloomily foretold 'appened. Jumbo crashed through the wall of 'is pen and rolled across the deck. "What with Jumbo and the wave we stood on our beam ends for what seemed hours, waiting for the next wave to capsize us. I ehut my eyes and was reviewing my evil life when there was a tear in' crash and the deck lifted under me. Surely this was the end. But no, 1 was still alive. L opened my eyes cautiously, expecting I knew not what. The. ship was floating on an even keel and there was a huge gap in the bulwarks where they 'ad given under Jumbo's weight. Even as we floated thus, a wave struck us which, if it 'ad conic a few seconds sooner, would've sent us to Davoy Jones' locker. Aβ for Jumbo, when we last saw 'im, 'e was swimming strongly in the direction of the North Pole.

"The storm was short and severe. When it 'ad finished with ne we were drifting off the Gold, (.'oa ait lninnii ;i mast and our rudder. While the work of repair was going on the Old Man kejit glancing anxiously at the shore. 'V. knew the natives of the Coast both from experience and rumour. Again '© .va.s a prophet of evil for just as we were riggin, a jury mast a fleet of canoes put out from the shore.

"It was a large fleet and tho natives it contained were as bloodthirsty a crew as is possible outside a nightmare. \V'e 'ad no firearms except a pistol the Old Man always carried, so all we could do was keep them off with anything we could pick up. Wo fought desperately but hopelessly. Living up to my usual luck I got a tap over the 'ead with a club just as the real fighting was starting. 'Owever. what with 'is friends crowding be'ind "ini the savage 'ad 'ad no room to swing 'is club so I got off lightly. I came to a few minutes later. Again I opened my eyes cautiously. Again I 'ad a surprise. There was the natives paddling furiously for shore. "I was still pinching , myself to see if I 'ad. really come to when 1 saw something swimming towards us. " 'The sea serpent,' I yells. " 'Sea serpent nothing,' ses the Old Man, 'it's Jumbo returned from 'is Polar expedition.' '•Jumbo swam nearer and the natives yelled louder and paddled 'arder. Then I noticed the Old Man seemed to be enjoying a joke all to 'iniself. I began to think the excitement 'ad gone ti 'is 'ead. " 'No. I ain't laughing at that bump on your nut,' 'ewes in answer to my suspicious glance. 'I've just remembered the natives round 'ere believe ill the existence of a sea monster with the body of a whale and the 'ead of a serpent. Any one as is seen by this creature dies "within three days. A swimming elephant doesn't look unlike a whale with a serpent's 'ead.' "Far up in the 'ills the natives was still running. "Jumbo was just about done in so we got a rope round 'im, bouyed Mm up with the ship's supply of life-belts, and, 'aving fixed up a temporary rudder, towed 'im to the nearest port. '"But the most curious part of the whole business," concluded the old sailor, "we did not hear till some years later. Three days after their attack on us everv one of the natives was dead."