Introductory xiii 



to continent millennia before the peoples of western Europe had 

 so much as put a mast in a coracle. Not until the lateness of our own 

 times is appreciated, can any real concept of the past be obtained. 

 And when we come to the history of the whales, we have to start 

 thinking in altogether different terms again. In order to gain a 

 proper perspective, therefore, let us turn from contemplation to 

 action and follow the whale. 



