32 THE WHALEBONE WHALES OF THE WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC. 



some have said that the whale has no arms. But the one which I saw, was of the 

 manner I have said, for I went with the others in the caravel, where came also 

 Father Lorenzo Mai-tino, canon of the church of Castiglia delV Oro; and the pilot 

 was John Cabezas ; and with us came also a gentleman named Sancio di Tudela, 

 with many others, who are alive and can testify the same thing, because I would 

 never wish to speak of such things without witnesses. By estimate, and as it 

 seemed to me, each arm of this animal might be 25 feet long and as thick as a 

 barrel and the head more than 14 or 15 feet long, and very much thicker and the 

 i-est of the body more than as much again. 



"It raised itself up and tliat which it showed in height was more than five 

 times the height of a middle-sized man, which makes 25 feet. And the fear was 

 not a little that all had when with its leaps it came alongside our vessel, because 

 our caravel was small. And from what we could surmise it seemed that this 

 animal felt pleasure, and made holiday of the weather which was approaching ; for 

 soon there arose in the sea a strong west wind, which was much to our advantage, 

 for sailing along in a few days we reached the town of Panama." ' 



Fi'om the size and shape of this whale and especially from the length of its 

 pectoral fins and its manner of putting its head out of water, there is strong prob- 

 ability that it was a Humpback whale. 



In 1539 Francis Ulloa cruised along the Pacific coast of Central America, 

 penetrated the Gulf of California, and passing out of it again proceeded to Cerros 

 Island. In his passage around Cape St. Lucas he encountered a large school of 

 whales, which he i-efers to as follows : 



" Before we came to this point of the haven of Santa Cruz [in the Gulf of Cali- 

 fornia] by six or seven leagues, we saw on the shore between certaiu valleys divei'S 

 great smokes. And having passed the point of this port our Captain thought 

 it good to launch forth into the maine ocean, yet although we ran a swift course, 

 about 500 whales came athwart of us in 2 or 3 skulles [schools] within one houre's 

 space, which were so huge, as it was w^onderful, and some of them came so neere 

 unto the ship, that they swam under the same fi'om one side to another, whereupon 

 we were in great feare, lest they should doe us some hurt, but they could not 

 because the ship had a prosperous and good winde, and maile much way, whereby 

 it could I'eceive no harme, although they touched and strooke the saine."^ 



In the account of Viscaino's voyages along the outer coast of Lower California 

 in 1603, given by Torquemada,' it is mentioned that the Baia de Ballenm, or Bay 

 of Whales, was so named by the explorer on account of the numbers of whales 

 seen there. This was in July, 1602. 



There are, according to H. H. Bancroft, but four voyages to be comprised 

 under the title of early voyages for the discovery of California. These are Feri'elo's 

 voyage, 1543; Drake's voyage, 1579; Gali's voyage, 1584; and Viscaino and Agui- 

 lar's voyage, 1603. An exanjination of the accounts of the first three fails to reveal 

 any mention of whales, but in Viscaino's voyage of 1603 these animals were en- 



' Ramusio, Navigationi et Viaggi, 3, p. 156. 



' Op. cit., pp. 353-354. Translation from Hakluyt, 3, pp. 423-424. 



■ ToRQUEMADA, Monarchia Indiana, i, 1723, p. 702. 



