354 THE VOYAGE OF THE 'DISCOVERY' [Appx. 



back and belly are dark brown, and the sides have two white 

 patches like an hour glass, sufficiently distinguishes the animal 

 from any other that is known. It is not well to name a beast that 

 has not been captured, but for convenience sake amongst ourselves 

 we called it the ' Hour-glass dolphin.' It never was seen to asso- 

 ciate with the Dusky form, though both occurred in herds about 

 the same latitude and longitude, and both were much the same in 

 size — from eight to ten feet long — and of a similar colouration. 



We saw also a very large number of Rorquals in Ross Sea, but 

 not a single Right whale. When Sir James Ross reported large 

 numbers of the latter in the seas of South Victoria Land, consider- 

 able hopes of a new and valuable whaling ground were raised, and 

 a number of whaling ships left Dundee for the Antarctic. But their 

 hopes were not realised, for no Right whale was either seen or 

 taken where Ross had seen so many. 



The real reason for this has been an open question ever since ; 

 and the explanations given vary between a lack of faith in Sir 

 James Ross's power to identify the Right whale on the one hand, 

 and, on the other, a belief that the animal which had been hunted 

 almost to extermination in more northern waters had disappeared 

 in consequence from the Antarctic ; or, thirdly, perhaps, that it 

 had changed its summer feeding-grounds to seas still less accessible 

 than these. 



Whichever is the true explanation, the fact remains that no one 

 has since seen a Right whale in Ross Sea. It still occurs in the 

 more northern waters, round Chatham and Campbell Islands, 

 and in the Southern oceans generally, but apparently it avoids 

 the ice. 



The Rorqual, on the other hand, is abundant. Hardly a day 

 passed, in cruising along the coasts of South Victoria Land, but 

 one or two, and sometimes a much larger number, were seen. 

 Near the Balleny Islands they were foi- some days particularly in 

 evidence, and the broad, blue slate-coloured back, with its small 

 dorsal fin, was almost constantly in sight, while the spout was to 

 be seen on all hands, a high jet of condensed vapour rising verti- 

 cally for twelve or fifteen feet into the cold grey air. The Rorqual, 

 or Blue whale, as it is called, has a habit of appearing at the 

 surface to blow without showing the dorsal fin at all. This has 

 led to the belief that Sir James Ross mistook it for the Right 

 whale. But as one watches the Rorqual, one sees that before each 

 deeper sounding the dorsal fin comes plainly into view, and it is 



