66 THE WHALES 



the giant squid, enormous specimens of which are found in 

 its stomach and in that of other toothed whales. Dolphins, 

 white whales, and others prey upon fishes, seals, and any 

 living thing. 



The sperm whale is a tropical species, found in large 

 schools. It has a single blow hole near the extremity of 

 the snout. The teeth are large, conical, curved, and fit 

 into orifices in the upper jaw, and constitute a trap that 

 has easily crushed large whale boats. The most valuable 

 product of this whale is spermaceti, a clear, fatty liquid 

 found in the head and in various places throughout the 

 body. Another valuable article of the sperm whale is 

 ambergris, used by perfumers. It is supposed to be a 

 secretion formed about the bills of cuttlefishes in the in- 

 testines of whales ; it is sometimes found floating on the 

 surface. 



The throat of the cachelot is large enough to admit the 

 body of a man, that of the whalebone whales being very 

 small. The eye is small. The ear even of the mighty 

 rorqual, which is one hundred feet long, is but a quarter of 

 an inch across. The rorqual is the largest of living animals, 

 few in the ancient history of the world exceeding it. 



The male cachelot is a conspicuous object at sea, rising 

 very regularly to respire. It throws up a " spout " which 

 can be distinguished five miles away, and which often has 

 the appearance of a huge fountain on the surface of the 

 ocean. This is due to the fact that the whale allows its 

 breath to escape violently just before it reaches the sur- 

 face, causing the intervening water to be hurled violently 

 upward, and materially adding to the volume of the 

 "spout." This whale spouts a number of times, about 



