370 CETACEA. 



whale is sometimes very large : from a moderate-sized one twenty-four 

 barrels of spermaceti and one hundred barrels of oil were procured. It 

 is used in medicine, and in the preparation of candles. 



The Sperm Whale in its movements resembles the Dolphins more 

 than the Right Whales, and in speed nearly equals the Rorquals. When 

 swimming quietly, it glides at the rate of three or four miles an hour 

 under the surface of the water, but when excited, it rushes through the 

 sea with violence, the strokes of its powerful tail sending the water in 

 waves on every side. It is remarkable for assuming at times a perpen- 

 dicular position, the head or tail just projecting above the water. When 

 alarmed, it sinks straight to the bottom ; when sporting, it raises first 

 one, then the other pectoral fin above the surface, and leaps clear out of 

 the sea, falling again with a splash that sends the foam mast-high, and 

 can be seen for ten miles. These movements are usually attributed to 

 the attacks of parasites ; but this seems an erroneous supposition, as the 

 Sperm Whale suffers less than others from such enemies. The members 

 of a troop of Sperm Whales usually arrange themselves in a long line, 

 dive and rise simultaneously, spout at the same moment, and at the same 

 instant disappear beneath the water. When they are sleeping, they lie 

 motionless, rocked by the swell, or keep the head out of water, so that to 

 the spectator it seems the end of a huge timber, or the neck of an enor- 

 mous bottle bobbing up and down. They breathe at very regular 

 intervals, the spouting is directed forward, and is on an average only 

 three feet high. Scammon pursued a sperm whale for five hours, and 

 noticed that it regularly blew fifty-five times at intervals of ten seconds 

 at each appearance, and then remained fifty-five minutes under water, 

 going at the rate of three miles an hour. The sense of hearing of the 

 sperm whales is dull, that of sight pretty good, that of touch or feeling 

 excellent, as the skin seems provided with nerves which convey the 

 slightest impression. 



The sperm whales, very unlike the dolphins, avoid the neighborhood 

 of vessels, and it often happens that when surprised, they are almost 

 paralyzed with terror, and remain motionless. This is especially the 

 case when a female is the first to be wounded, whereas if an old male is 

 struck, the whole herd at once take flight. 



Sometimes, however, a " large whale " will become belligerent, and is 

 then a most fearful antagonist, using its tail and its huge jaws with equal 

 effect. One of these animals has been known to drive its lower jaw 



