here he found, instead of the queer basket on which he had come to the realm of ryn gu, a large crocodile waiting for him. never had he seen such a huge creature. it measured eight fathoms in length from the tip of its tail to the end of its long mouth. the sea king had ordered the monster to carry the happy hunter back to japan. like the wonderful basket which shiwozuchino okina had made, it could travel faster than any steamboat, and in this strange way, riding on the back of a crocodile, the happy hunter returned to his own land.