In our last Mirror we gave a very correct engraving and description of the compound animal now exhibiting at the west-end of the town as a Mermaid. We also gave a general history of Mermaids, or of the evidence on which their existence is founded, from an early period down to the commencement of the last century. That history we shall now bring down to the present day.

Valentyn describes a Mermaid he saw in 1714, on his voyage from Batavia to Europe, sitting on the surface of the water, with its back towards them, the body was half above water, and was of a grizzly colour, like the skin of a codfish, it had breasts, and was shaped like a woman above the waist, and from thence downwards 'went tapering off to a point.

In the year 1758, a Mermaid is said to have been exhibited at the fair of St. Germains, in France. It was about two feet long, very active, sporting about in the vessel of water, in which it was kept, with great agility and seeming delight. It was fed with bread and fish. Its position, when at rest, was always erect. It was a female, with ugly negro features. The skin was harsh, the ears very large, and the back parts and tail were covered with scales. M. Gautier, a celebrated French artist, made an exact drawing of it.

Another Mermaid, which was exhibited in London in 1775 (for the one now shown is neither the first nor the second with which John Bull has been duped), was said to have been taken in the Gulf of Stanchio, in the Archipelago, by a merchantman trading to Natolia, in August, 1774.

Its face, say the accounts of the day, is like that of a young female ; its eyes a fine light blue; its nose small and handsome; its mouth small; its lips thin, and the edges of them round like that of the codfish; its teeth are small, regular, and white; its chin well shaped, and its neck full. Its ears are like those of the eel, but placed like those of the human species, and behind them are the gills for respiration, which appear like curls. Some are said to have hair upon their head; but this has only rolls instead of hair, which, at a distance, might be taken for short curls. But its chief ornament is a beautiful membrane or fin rising from the temples, and gradually diminishing till it ends pyramidically, forming a foretop like a lady's head-dress. It has no fin on the back, but a bone like that of the human species. Its breasts are fair and full; the arms and hands are well proportioned, but without nails oh the fingers; the belly is round and swelling, but there is no naval. From the waist downwards the body is in all respects like the codfish; it has three sets of fins one above another below the waist, which enable it to swim erect on the sea.

In the year 1794, a Mermaid, as it was called, was shown at No. 7, Broad-court, Bow-street, Covent-garden; it was said to have been taken in the North Seas by Captain Fortier. This nymph of the sea, a woman from the head down to the lower part of the waist, and a fish from thence downwards, was three feet long, having ears, gills, breasts, fins, shoulders, arms, hands, fingers, and a contiguous scale covering the fish part. The existence of this animal is firmly believed in the northern parts of Scotland, and in the year 1797, a school-master of Thurso affirmed, that he had seen one, apparently in the act of combing its hair with its fingers. The portion of the animal which he saw was so near a resemblance to the form of a woman, that but for the impossibility of a female so long supporting herself in the waves, he should have presumed it to have been one. Twelve years afterwards, several persons observed near the same place a like appearance.

The next publication in which we find any account relative to the Mermaid worthy of notice, is Dr. Chisholm's Essay on the Malignant Fever of the West Indies, published in 1801. The Doctor speaks of it as follows : " I probably hazard the implication of credulity by the following note: In the year 1707, happening to be at Govenor Van Battenburgh's plantation, in Berbice, the conversation turned on a singular animal which had been repeatedly seen in Berbice river, and some smaller rivers. This animal is the famous Mermaid, hitherto considered as a mere creature of the imagination. It is called by the Indians mene mamma, or mother of the waters. The description given of it by the Governor is as follows:?The upper portion resembles the human figure, the head smaller in proportion, sometimes bare, but oftener covered with a copious quantity of long black hair. The shoulders are broad, and the breasts large and well formed. The lower portion resembles the tail-portion of a fish, is of immense dimension, the tail forked, and not unlike that of the dolphin, as it is usually represented. The colour of the skin is either black or tawny. The animal is held in veneration and dread by the Indians, who imagine that the killing it would be attended with the most calamitous consequences. It is from this circumstance that none of these animals have been shot, and, consequently, not examined but at, a distance. They have been generally observed in a sitting posture in the water, none of the lower extremity being discovered until they are disturbed; when, by plunging, the tail appears, and agitates the water to a considerable distance round. They have been always seen employed in smoothing their hair, or stroking their faces and breasts with their hands, or something resembling hands. In this posture, and thus employed, they have been frequently taken for Indian women bathing." Mr. Van Battenburgh's account was much corroborated by that of some gentlemen settled in Mahaycony and Abary.

At Sandside, in the parish of Reay, in the county of Caithness, there was seen, on the 12th of January, 1809, an animal supposed to be the Mermaid, The head and the chest, being all that was visible, is said to have exactly resembled those of a full-grown young woman. The breasts were perfectly formed; the arms longer than in the human body, and the eyes somewhat smaller. When the waves dashed the hair, which was of a sea-green shade, over the face, the hands were immediately employed to replace it. The skin was of a pick colour. Though observed by several persons within the distance of twenty yards, for about an hour and a half, it discovered no symptoms of alarm.

In 1811, a young man, named John M'Isaac, of Corphine, in Kintyre, in Scotland, made oath, on examination, at Cambletown, before the sheriff-substitute of Kintyre, that he saw, on the afternoon of the 13th of October, in that year, on a black-rock on the sea-coast, an animal, of the particulars of which he gives a long and curious detail. He states, that the upper half of it was white, and of the shape of a human body; the other half, towards the tail, of a brindled or reddish-grey colour, apparently covered wish scales; but the extremity of the tail itself was of 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 spread its tail like a fan; and, while so extended, the tail continued in tremulous motion, and, when drawn together again, it remained motionless, and appeared to the deponent to be about twelve or fourteen inches broad ; that the hair was long and light brown ; that the animal was between four and five feet long; that it had a head, hair, arms, and body, down to the middle, like a human being; that the arms were short in proportion to the body, which appeared to be about the thickness of that of a young lad, and tapering gradually to the point of the tail; that when stroking its head, as above mentioned, the fingers were kept close together, so that he cannot say whether they were webbed or not; that he saw it for near two hours, the rock on which it 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, it tumbled clumsily into the sea; a minute after he observed the animal above water, and then he saw every feature of its face, having all the appearance of a human being, with very hollow eyes. The cheeks were of the same colour with the rest of the face; the neck seemed short; and it was constantly, with both hands, stroking and washing its breast, which was half immersed in the water; he, therefore, cannot say whether its bosom was formed like a woman's or not. He saw no other fins or feet upon it, but as described. It continued above water for a few minutes, and then disappeared. The Minister of Campbeltown, and the Chamberlain of Mull, attest his examination, and declare that they know no reason why his veracity should be questioned.