An astonishing newspaper report

[Shona]

Spent the afternoon trying to link up all my McIsaacs (thanks Kite!), and found this report from The Times, Friday 29 November 1811.

A young man, named John M'Isaac, of Corphin, in Kintyre, in Scotland, made oath, on examination, at Campbeltown, before the Sheriff-Substitute of Kintyre, that he saw on the afternoon of the 13th of October, on a black rock on the sea-coast, an animal, of the particulars of which he gives a long and curious detail, answering in general to the description commonly given of the supposed amphibious animal, called a mermaid.

He states that the upper half was white, and the shape of a human body, the other half towards the tail, of a brindled or reddish gray colour, apparently covered with scales, but the extremity of the tail was a greenish red shining colour, that the head was covered with long hair, at times it would put back the hair on both sides of its head, it would also speed its tail like a fan, and while so extended, the tail continued in a tremulous motion, and when drawn together again it remained motionless, and appeared to the deponent to be about twelve to fourteen inches wide, that the hair was long and light brown, that the animal was between fur and five feet long, that it had a head, hair, arms and body down to the middle like a human being, at the arms were short in proportion to the body, which appeared to be the thickness of a young lad, and tapering gradually to the point of the tail, that when stroking its head, the fingers were kept close together, so that he cannot say whether they are webbed or not, that he saw it for near two hours, the rock on which is lay being dry, that after the sea had so far retired, as to leave the rock dry to the height of five feet above the water.

He was informed that some boys in a neighbouring farm saw a similar creature in the sea, close to the shore the same day.

The Minister of Campbeltown and the Chamberlain of Mull, attest his examination and declare they know no reason why his veracity should be questioned.