NavList:

This particular "fish story" was making the rounds in many nautically-oriented groups back in April and May of this year.  And Gary LaPook posted a version in the summer of 2015. Here's what I said about it this April:

"Naturally this is a joke, a tale of whimsy, a fish story, and it should not be taken literally. But suppose we do take it literally. How many problems can you find? The origin of this millennial story dates back to at least 1990, and probably earlier, but it's modelled on a yarn by Mark Twain. Twain sailed the globe in 1895/96 and published his book "Following the Equator" in 1897. He makes a couple of whitty comments about the equator and dateline, e.g.:

While we were crossing the 180th meridian it was Sunday in the stern of the ship where my family were, and Tuesday in the bow where I was. They were there eating the half of a fresh apple on the 8th, and I was at the same time eating the other half of it on the 10th and I could notice how stale it was, already.

"

Could a captain achieve anything like the story as stated in 1899?? Would anyone have believed it back then??

Frank Reed