2 JANUARY 1904, Page 23

[TO THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR. "]

Slit,—The following extract from my diary dated Sep- tember bth, 1903, written on board the ss. Chingtu ' soon after leaving Townsville, North Queenslimd, for Hong- kong, may be of interest (see Spectator, December 12th, 1903) :—

"Saw a curious sight at 4 p.m. About • 3 to 4 miles off apparently a great whitish fish throwing itself again and again out of the water, and coming down with tremendous splashes ; looking through a telescope, I could every now and then see a huge fin or half tail of some enormous monster stick up several feet out of the water and remain so for some time ; it seemed to be black, with a light coloured fringe. They told me it was a —I am, Sir, &c., F. W. BENNET, Colonel (late R.E.)

P.S.—What struck me most at the time was the great height the thresher (or whatever fish it was) jumped clean out of the tcater.—F. W. B.