Fishy Tales
Fishy Tales
Mermaids have been
seen by sailors for centuries. The basis of all mermaid
myths is supposed to be a creature called a Manatee:
a kind of walrus! Mermaids used to be shown in
funfairs until recently. It all began in 1817 when a
"mermaid" was bought for $6,000 by a sailor in
the South Pacific. She was eventually sold to the great
circus-owner Barnum. She was exhibited in 1842 as "The
Feejee Mermaid". It was said that she earned Barnum $1,000 a
week. The thousands who saw this mermaid must have been
disappointed. She was cleverly made by a Japanese fisherman. A monkey's
head had been delicately sewn to the tail of a
large salmon. The job had been so skillfully done that the join between
the fish and the monkey was invisible. Real imagination must
have been required to see this revolting creature as a
beautiful mermaid combing her golden hair!
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