260 HISTORY AND DETAILS OP WHALING. 



twelve feet long, is said to vise its muscular tail, which is near- 

 ly half its own length, to inflict terrible slaps on the whale ; 

 though one would be apt to imagine that if this whipping were 

 all, the huge creature would be more frightened than hurt." 



A sperm whale was killed off the coast of Peru several years 

 since, whose sides were found to be greatly bruised, and por- 

 tions of the blubber were reduced nearly to a fluid state. Two 

 thrashers probably attacked the whale, one on one side of it, 

 and the other on the other, and beat him in tbe manner above 

 described. This fact shows that thrashers are not only able to 

 injure the whale, but most likely by repeated attacks even to 

 kill it. 



" The sword fish, in the long and bony spear that projects 

 from its snout, seems to be furnished with a weapon which 

 may reasonably alarm even the leviathan of the deep, especial- 

 ly as the will to use his sword, if we may believe eye wit- 

 nesses, is in no wise deficient." 



Thus sharks, thrashers, and sword fish, in pursuit of the 

 whale, and meeting him at every turn, and in all directions, 

 must be powerful antagonists, even with the monster of the 

 deep ; and it is not at all unlikely but that, in the conflicts 

 with him, they finally conquer and destroy hiin. 



But there is another, and, without doubt, the most powerful 

 and persevering enemy with which the right whale has to con- 

 tend. This is a fish about sixteen feet long, and called by his 

 appropriate name, " Whale Killer." A company of these fish 

 attacking the whale will almost surely overcome and kill him. 

 Besides, the whale appears to be sensible of the superiority of 

 his enemy. 



Though the whale can and does frequently elude and out- 

 strip the velocity of the fastest boats of the whalemen, yet, 

 when attacked by " killers," he seems to lose all power of re- 

 sistance, and submits, without any apparent effort to escape. 

 The "killers," in their relish to fight the whale, have been 

 known to attack a dead one which whalemen had harpooned, 



