THE WHALE. 35 I 



clear out of the water, like a trout after a fly. This movement is techni- 

 cally called " breaching," and the splash of the creature as it falls back 

 into the water may be heard for miles. The length of the tail in the 

 larger whales is about five or six feet, but it is often more than twent}" 

 feet in breadth. The skin of the whale is devoid of hair, and is of very 

 peculiar structure. The true skin constitutes the blubber, which is never 

 less than two inches in depth, and in some places is nearly two feet 

 thick ; it is as elastic as caoutchouc, and in a large specimen will weigh 

 thirty tons. 



The whales are compelled to rise to the surface to breathe; their 

 respirations are technically called " spoutings," because a column of 

 vapor is ejected from the " blow-holes " or nostrils, and spouts up to the 

 height of about twenty feet. These blow-holes are on the upper part of 

 the head, so that very little of the carcass need be exposed during the 

 operation ; in fact, only the upper portion of the head and part of the 

 back are visible. The "spoutings" can be heard for a considerable 

 distance, and indicate to the fisher the presence of their victim. These 

 "spoutings" at intervals would not be of any avail to oxygenize the 

 blood unless the organs of respiration had been modified to meet the 

 peculiar circumstances in which the whales are placed : the whales 

 therefore are furnished with a large reservoir of arterial blood, which is 

 contained in a mass of vessels lining the interior of the chest and the 

 adjacent parts, and which are capable of holding a sufficient quantity of 

 fresh blood to support life for a considerable period. 



The spout is not formed of any liquid water ; it is composed at one 

 and the same time of hot air issuing from the chest, of a certain quantity 

 of vapor of water, mixed with this air, and of greasy particles. So, 

 when the temperature is rather high, the sea calm, and, above all, when 

 the sun is near the zenith, this blowing, or spouting, is invisible. When 

 the vapor from this blow-spout is disseminated into the air, it dissolves — 

 all disappears : there falls nothing but a few little drops of greasy matter. 

 These drops, diffused over the surface of the water, and joined to the 

 exhalations of the skin, leave on the surface of the sea long trails of oily 

 spots, which show the way by which the whale has passed. Of course 

 there is always a certain quantity of water, which has penetrated into 

 the aerial canal terminated by the blow-hole, and this water is mixed in 

 a state of minute subdivision or particles, with the respired air, and dis- 

 seminates itself in the atmosphere, like the pulmonary moisture. 



