Page:The History and Travels of Hector Maclean, Late Sailor.pdf/18

 vers, and will overtake a Man in an Intant if he run traight forward, but if he ling to a Side he may eaily ecape this Monter, as the cales that cover its Body (which are impenetrable to Bullets) hinder it from turning itelf peedily: It reembles a great Log of Wood, and People are thereby deceived, and very often come within the reach of its Leap, before they are aware; and Numbers have this been devoured by it. Its Teeth are large, hharpſharp [sic], and terrible; and it as well as the Shark, lifts its upper Jaw to uch an extent as devour a Man at a mouthful. They abound in the Wet Indies, and are with great difficulty killed, and are only to be lain with a Musket hot through the Head, as this one before related was, by a Leith Carpenter. They are very dangerous too to thoe who divert themelves by wimming in thoe parts of the World, which I think it my duty the more to caution Travellers againt.

When lying at Anchor in Nancy Bay, PotomackPotomac [sic] River in Virginia, we went up a Creek with our Flat (called in Scotland a Lighter) and returning down the Creek loaded with Tobacco to our Ship, the Tide being againt us, we came too in the Mouth of the Creek; and oberved a Negro coming off in his Canoe, which is hollowed out of a Log of Wood, and formed like a Boat; he made fat his Rope to a tateſtake(?) [sic] of wood in the middle of the River, which tands like a Perch to direct the Chancel; Here he began to Fih, but the Day being hot, he trerched himelf down on his Belly in the bottom of the Canoe, and fell aleep, which we could oberve from our Flat. The Freh coming down, and the Tide being out, the Sturgeons were jumping above the Surface of