_Steep Hill, Cramlington._
DEAR SIR,--There is nothing surprising in the story of a halibut
devouring a cormorant. As you will see from consulting _Murray_,
halibut means "holy-butt" (or flat-fish), and holy fishes are
possessed of magical powers. When I lived on the coast of Florida
I had a tame tarpon, which could swallow anything--croquet balls,
door scrapers--and once ate an entire cottage pianoforte in
half-an-hour. Here I may add that in my travels in Turkestan I was
attacked by a boa-constrictor, and, though I escaped with my life,
it proceeded to swallow the Bactrian camel on which I was riding.
On the following day, however, when the boa was still in a
comatose condition, I killed it with a boomerang, rescued the
camel and continued my journey without further mishap.