86 OLD WHALING DAYS. 



direction along the top of the water, so that they may 

 be seen from three to half-a-dozen times, though only the 

 upper part of their shining black bodies. First the snout is 

 to be seen, and from the " blow-hole " is forced the breath ; 

 then the black fin, or sword, and the hinder parts of the 

 back make their appearance. The tail is only seen $hen 

 the creature dives under. The Dutch name it the 

 " Nordkaper." The Americans call it the " Killer." The 

 Norwegians "Whale-catcher," and the English call it the 

 " Sword-fish." It is confirmed by the least prejudiced 

 whalers of the present day, that they are the whale's 

 greatest enemies, following and attacking it in droves. The 

 sword-fish in the northern latitudes are unlike those in the 

 south. The former have a large triangular fin on the middle 

 of the back, with which it torments the whale from below. 

 Their appearance made our captain determine to proceed 

 at once to Cumberland Gulf. On arriving there we went 

 up the north side, and were taken in tow by the Isabel up 

 a fiord, called by the natives Panatung. It was not quite 

 dark when we entered it; a bright moon was shining, and 

 we hoped to get an anchorage close to the outside. 



The Fiord was not more than half a mile wide, and the 

 land was very high on each side. All hands were on deck, 

 but soundings could not be obtained at sixty fathoms. This 

 was the first time a ship had been in this place. The 

 Isabel continued to tow us at the rate of about one mile per 

 hour. There were no signs of being able to bring up. At 

 daybreak, we saw a low sandy point, which we supposed to 

 be the end of the Fiord. However, we steamed round it, 

 and brought up about seventeen miles from the outside. 

 The next day I was ordered to take my boat, and try to find 

 how far it extended, as it appeared to run many miles 

 inland. Having provisioned the boat for four days, we 

 started at three a.m., and set our sail with a nice breeze up 

 the narrow channel. We passed several points of land, and 



