174 NATURAL SCIENCE. march, 



seen spouting, and again descending. Immediately after its first 

 descent there appeared above the surface of the sea what seemed to 

 be the tail-fin of some animal unknown. This supposed fin was 

 raised in a vertical position, where it remained vibrating for some 

 seconds and then suddenly disappeared. In colour it was a pure 

 ghstening white; while in form it appeared to be laterally compressed, 

 with sharp edges and an acute termination. It gave the impression 

 of belonging to some animal which was engaged in attacking the 

 whale beneath the surface ; and I should estimate its height above 

 the water approximately at five or six feet. Soon after the disappear- 

 ance of this strange white object, — which, both to my companion and 

 myself, seemed most weird-like, — the broad black head of what I pre- 

 sume to have been a killer-whale was seen above the water ; and in a 

 few seconds the whale itself again rose to spout. 



"The speed that the vessel was going soon left the whole of the 

 group behind ; and on going forward I was informed by the com- 

 mander of the ship (Captain Rigaud), who had been on the bridge 

 during the scene, that one of the animals, which he described as being 

 black, had leapt clean out of the water. 



"That these black animals, which appeared to be harassing and 

 attacking the whale, were killers, I have no reasonable doubt ; but 

 the question arises as to the nature of the animal to which the strange 

 white tail-like object seen standing above the water could have 

 belonged. My impression at the time was that it must be the upper 

 lobe of the tail of some enormous shark allied to the threshers 

 (Alopecias) ; and this impression has been confirmed by a subsequent 

 examination of the stuffed specimens of that genus in the British 

 Museum. The thresher is, how^ever, a black shark ; while, as pointed 

 out by Dr. Giinther, the minute size of its teeth seems to discredit the 

 common accounts of its attacking whales. Still, however, I cannot 

 imagine to what animal the aforesaid white tail could have belonged, 

 unless to some gigantic shark allied to the thresher, but of a white 

 colour, and probably armed with much larger teeth. If so, we have 

 evidence of a fish at present unknown to science ; and even if I am 

 wrono- in this conjecture, the animal to which the object in question 

 belono-ed would still appear to be unknown, and, in this event, quite 

 unlike any with which we. are now acquainted. 



" The whole scene, weird and impressive as it was both to my 

 companion and myself, suggested how easily a story of the sea-serpent 

 might have originated therefrom. The black head and body of the 

 presumed killer would have done duty for the head and body of the 

 serpent ; while the glistening white object standing perpendicularly 

 above the water would have served for the tail of the same." 



Armoured Whales. 

 The fore""oing narrative shows that we have yet much to learn 

 about even the existing monsters of the deep. Meanwhile, our know- 



