30 THE WHALEBONE WHALES OF THE WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC. 



was transfeiTed largely, if not wholly, from the Humpback to tlie Right whale, 

 but of this there is no evidence. 



In 1902 Professor A. E. Verrill published a brief statement regarding whales 

 at Bermuda, citing the early I'ecords and adding a few data of recent date. The 

 baleen whales which he includes as having been seen or captured about the 

 islands are a Humpback, a Finback, and a Right whale.' 



WEST INDIES. 



Two comparatively early explorers of the West Indies, Rochefort (1658) and 

 Du Tetre (1667), have some little to say regarding the cetaceans of those waters. 

 Rochefort in his History of the Antilles, after mentioning the marine monsters 

 found in those parts, and describing two species of Marsouins or porpoises, has 

 an article on "whales and other monsters of the sea," from which the following: 



" Those who travel about these islands sometimes see whales in their journey- 

 ings, which throw up water fi-om their blowhole to the height of a pike, and 

 which only show ordinarily a little of their back, which resembles a rock above 

 water. 



" Ships are also sometimes accompanied for quite a long time by monsters 

 which aie of the length and breadth of a boat (cltalouppe), and which seem to 

 find pleasure in thus showing themselves. The sailors call them Morhous or 

 Souffleurs (puffers), because that from time to time these prodigious fish put a 

 part of their head out of water, to take breath, and then they blow and scattei- 

 the water from in front of their pointed snouts. Some say that it is a species of 

 large porpoise." '^ 



These whales would appear to be Finbacks, though it is possible, of course, 

 that the reference is to some species of ziphioid wliale, perhaps ZipJiius cav- 

 ii-ostris, or that various kinds of whales aie confounded. 



Du Tetre in his General History of the Antilles (1667-71) speaks first of the 

 "great number of whales, of puffers (Souffleurs) and of porpoises" about Mar- 

 tinique and then devotes a section of his work to whales. In this section he 

 throws some light on the Souffleur, but haidly enough to make it certain what it 

 really is. The matter is as follows : 



" Whales are seen about these islands [Antilles] from the month of March to 

 the end of May more fi-equently than in all the rest of the year. They are in heat 

 and copulate at this time, and one sees them roaming about pi'incipally in the 

 morning, all along the coast, two, three or four, all in a school, blowing and as if 

 syringing from their nostrils two little rivers of water, which they blow into the air 

 to the height of two pikes, and in this effort they make a kind of bellowing {meu- 

 glenunP) which may be heard for a good quarter of a league. When two males 

 meet near one of the females they join battle and give themselves over to a danger- 

 ous combat, striking the sea so hard with their fins and tail that it seems as if they 

 were two ships engaged with cannon."^ 



'Verrill, A. E., The Bermuda Islands. Trans. Conn. Acad., w, 1902, pp. 682-688. 



' Rochefort, C. de, Hist. Nat. et Morale des Isles Antilles, ist ed., 1658, p. 179. 



" Du Tetre, J. B., Hist. Gen. des Antilles, Tom. 2, Traitd 4, " Des Poissons," 1667, p. 196. 



