150 THE NATURAL HISTORY OF 



swallow the shark, one of which was vomited entire by 

 a spermaceti whale on being struck by a harpoon in the 

 Greenland Seas, where it is most commonly found. The 

 shark was four yards long, and on opening the stomach 

 of the whale, several fish's bones were found in it, and 

 some of a large size. 



This whale inhabits chiefly the Greenland Seas and 

 Davis's Straits in North America ; has been occasionally 

 seen in the German Ocean, and on the European shores 

 to the southward. In 1784, a considerable number of 

 them were cast on shore on the coast of Lower Brittany 

 in France. The following are the dimensions of one of 

 them taken at the time : — 



Feet. Ins. 



Total length 144 6 



From the anterior extremity of the snout to the eyes . . 8 



From the eyes to the pectoral fins 3 



From the pectoral fins to the organs of generation .... 19 7 



Length of the tail 6 9 



Distance of the lobes of the tail 10 



Circumference of the greatest thickness 34 8 



Length of the upper jaw 5 



lower jaw < 4 6 



Opening of the mouth 3 10 



Breadth of the snout 5 



The organs of generation resemble those of quadru- 

 peds. The penis of the whale is enclosed in a sheath, 

 and is sometimes eight feet in length. On each side of 

 the genital organs in the female are placed the mammae, 

 about four or five inches long. It is said to swim with 

 great velocity, and to rise very high above the surface of 

 the water. It is at this time that the fishermen take 

 the opportunity of striking him with their harpoons ; and 

 it often happens that the parts of the body which have 

 been wounded become gangrenous and fall off before the 

 animal dies. 



