Note 112 — Chapter V

During my stay at Messa, I saw two enormous jaw-bones of a whale erected in the form of an arch, and on enquiring how they came there, was informed that they had been there (min zeman) from time immemorial, and that the fish was thrown on the shore, having a man in his belly, whose name was recorded to be Jonah. Having laughed heartily at this whimsical story, I was surprized to find my informant not only very serious, but desirous to impress my mind with a belief, that there was no doubt of the fact. It has been handed down, said he, by tradition, and nobody but a Christian would doubt the fact! See Brookes’s Gazetteer, title Messa.