47 



or Hiniipbnck-fiii. Thn wholesale dealers in Baleen, in 

 the 'London Directory,' are called ]l'luite-Jin Mercltants, 

 and whalebone occurs under tl»c name of Whale-tin in the 

 Price-current. In the 'London New Price-current' for 1843, 

 the South Sea Whale-Jin varied during that year from 

 X'200 to £305 per ton, and there is no price named for 

 Greenland IVh ale-Jin. 



Bal.ena. The Baleen or Whalebone, is narrow, elongate, 

 linear, or very gi-adually tapering, fringed on the inner 

 edge with numerous fine, soil, flexible fibres of a nearly 

 imiform length, consisting internally of a thin series of 

 several scries of fibres, covered on each side b_y a thick coat 

 of enamel. 



Scoresby describes these animals as having a slight beard, 

 consisting of a few scattered white hairs, surmounting the 

 anterior extremity of both jaws. — Arct. Regions, i. 458. 



The fins or bones of each series together, are called a 

 " side of bone," the largest are in the middle, from whence 

 they gradually diminish away to nothing at each extremity: 

 the largest fin on the side is called the " sample blade." 



Through the kindness of Messrs. Smith and Simmonds, 

 and Mr. Smith of Messrs. W. Westall & Co., Whale-fin 

 Merchants, I have been enabled to examine and compare 

 ninnerous species of the Baleen received from the different 

 countries, and to compare their peculiarities as exhibited 

 during its preparation. 



The)' know in the trade three distinct kinds. I. The 

 Greenland, from Greenland, Davies' Straits and various 

 parts of the North Sea, whicli is the best. 2. The South 

 Sea, or Black Jish whale-Jin brought by the South Sea 

 Whalers. And, 3. The North West Coast, or American 

 whale-Jin, which was first imported about five years ago, 

 and at first sold for a high price, but it has now fallen, and 

 is considered as only a large kind of South Sea ; but from 

 the examination I have been able to make, 1 should be- 

 lieve that these three kinds are each produced by very 

 different species of whales. 



The Greenland has the hair on its edge generally strip- 

 ped off, and is clean and bright when it is brought here ; 

 but this may be from the care the North Sea whalers take 

 in collecting and cleaning it (as described by Scoresby, 

 Arctic Regions,!. 418), and the bones arebi'ought home 

 in bundles about 100 weight each. On the other hand, 

 the North West Coast and the South Sea, has the hair left 

 on the edges, appears to be brought home in bulk, and is 

 always covered with an ashy white soft laminar coat, looking 

 like the rotted external layers of the enamel. This coat 

 has to be scraped off with large knives before it is used or 

 prepared, — and the surface after the scraping is not so po- 

 lished and resplendent as that of the Greenland " fins." 



The three kinds are very different in shape. The outer 

 edge of the Greenland is curved considerably; in that of 

 the North-uest coast, it is much more straight ; and in 

 that of the South Sea, almost quite straight. Figs. 3, 4 

 and 5, in Plate I, represent the three difl'ereut kinds in the 

 same position, and on the same scale, being one-four- 

 teenth of the natural length and breadth. The fil)res on 

 the edge in the Greenland and Margined Wliales are \ cry 

 fine, flexible and long, forming only a thin series; in the 



South Sen, they arc rather coarser; but in the North-tcest 

 Coast, much tliiekcr and coarser ; quite bristly, and much 

 more so towards the apex ; and they are more erect, and 

 form a thicker series. 



The Whalebone is boiled for about twelve hours, to ren- 

 der it soft before it is divided into strips — it then divides 

 very easily. The smaller pieces, when softened, are split 

 by a small machine into very narrow strips like bristles, and 

 used for bristles to make brooms, &c. &c. 



For every purpose the Greenland " fins " are preferred, 

 and last much longer, this is even the case with tlie 

 false bristles ; and they will alone do for the finer work, 

 such as the strips for platting for bonnets, the platting to 

 make ladies riding-whips, or the covering of telesco])es and 

 other tubes; the white strips for these purposes being 

 taken Irom pale longitudinal lines on the enamel of the 

 Greenland fins. 



The Right Whale. Balaena Mysticetus. 



Tab. \,f. 4. Baleen. 



The Baleen is very long, varying from 9 to 12 feet, 

 linear, tapers very gradually, and of nearly the same mode- 

 rate thickness iioui end to end, and covered with a po- 

 lished grey or greenish black enamel. The internal fibres 

 occupy a small part of the substance and are of a fine 

 uniform texture, and are black ; while the enamel which 

 forms by far the greater part of the substance is generally' 

 blackish ; but it is sometimes, especially on the inner side of 

 the " fin," paler in longitudinal stripes. The fibres on the 

 edge, like the internal fibres of which it is a continuation, 

 are very fine and black. The " fins" or pieces of Baleen, 

 are flat, or as the merchant calls them "kindly," so that they 

 produce straight pieces fit for the better kind of parasols 

 and umbrellas, &c., when cut into strips. 



Some twenty-five years, a ship arrived with the " fins " 

 taken from one " fish," which was peculiar for all being of 

 a yellowish white colour, and for having the fibres as well 

 'as the enamel of this pale colour. There is a single " fin" 

 of this animal, nearly 9 feet long, now in possession of Mr. 

 Brunies, (6, Percy Circus, Spafields). It agrees in every 

 other respect with the common Greenland Baleen, so that 

 probably the fish was an albino. 



A .specimen of the Greenland whale, 41 feet long, was 

 stranded in Caernarvon Bay, May 4, 1846, and towed 

 into Liverpool. 



The North West Whale. (Balaena Japonica) .' 



Tab. \,f. 2. Baleen. 



The Baleen is nearly as long as the Greenland, varying 

 from 7 to 12 feet long, and is slender ; but for the same 

 length it is nearly twice as thick in the substance, and it 

 gradually diminishes in thickness towards the ends. 



The enamel, when the outer coat is removed, is not so 

 polished as that of the Greenland, and when cut through, 

 the centre fibres are thicker, tubular, and occupy about 

 ■J to ^ of the thickness, much more in proportion than 

 they do on the Greenland fins, and the enamel and fibre 

 are coarser in texture and much more brittle. 



The fins or blades of this Whalebone are generally 



