VARIETIES OF OILS. ] 



UNDULATORY FORCES. LIGHT. 



103 



showing that the illuminating power is modified by cir- 

 cumstances. This table has been constructed on the 

 scale of thirteen sperm candles of standard value, be- 

 cause they represent the light of an Argand burner con- 

 suming five cubic feet of coal gas per hour. 



VARIETIES OF OILS EMPLOYED FOR ILLU- 

 MINATING PURPOSES. 



Animal Oils. (a.) Sperm oil. This, as we have 

 already said, is the fluid portion of the head-matter 

 which is remold from the cranial cavity of the sperma- 

 ceti whale (Physeter macrocephalus). The oil is usually 

 separated from the spermaceti by cold and pressure ; 

 and after having been purified by means of a little weak 

 sulphuric acid, or alkaline lees and water, it is sent into 

 commerce. Sperm oil is of a pale colour; it has but 

 little odour, and it shows no disposition to congeal in 

 cold weather, or to resinify on exposure to the air ; it is, 

 therefore, well suited for illuminating purposes. 



(b.) Common whale oil, or, as it is sometimes termed, 

 whale train-oil, is derived from several species of whale ; 

 as the common whales (lialitncc), the finned whales 

 (BalceHopterai), and the narwhales (Ifotuxlons). Most of 

 the oil consumed in this country is furnished by the 

 common Greenland whale, the Balcena mysticetus, large 

 numbers of which are annually captured by the whalers 

 igland and America in several of the Arctic Seas. 

 Tli.-y are taken in the Greenland seas ; in Davis' Straits ; 

 along the coasts of Spitzbergen, Iceland, and Norway; 

 off Labrador ; in the Gulf of St Lawrence ; around 

 Newfoundland ; in Baffin's and Hudson's Bays ; and in 

 the neart northward of Behring's Straits. The baltena is 

 also found in more congenial climates, as on the coast of 

 Ceylon, and in the China Sea. 



In the early days of whaling, when the animal was 

 found in great numbers immediately around the shores 

 of Spitzbergen, the Dutch formed a settlement on that 

 island, and performed there all the operations of prepar- 

 ing the bone and extracting the oiL They gave the 

 name of Smeerenberg (from tmetren to melt) to their 

 settlement ; and to so flourishing a state did the fishery 

 arrive, that, during the busy season, every species of 

 luxury could be obtained at the village, although it was 

 situated within a few degrees of the pole. This was the 

 condition of things towards the close of the 17th cen- 

 tury. But it appears from a narrative of the voyage of 

 Ohthere the Dane, given by King Alfred in his transla- 

 tion of Orosius, that the pursuit of the whale was prac- 

 tised by the people of Norway at least as early as the 9th 

 century. We have no account, however, of the way in 

 which the animal was captured, nor are we informed as 

 to the object of the pursuit whether it was for mere 

 si>ort, or for some useful purpose. It is very probable 

 the business of hunting the whale was not carried out 

 upon any systematic plan, but was confined to such 

 Accidental encounters as opportunity offered. As early 

 as the 12th century, the inhabitants of the coast sur- 

 roiiinling the Bay of Biscay were undoubtedly engaged 

 in the capture of the whale for commercial purposes; 

 and they are generally regarded as the founders of this 

 species of enterprise. At first their operations were 

 confined entirely to the neighbouring bay ; but as the 

 whale became scarce, the Biscayan mariners extended 

 se.-in-h farther and farther from their shores, until 

 they reached the coasts of Iceland, Greenland, and New- 

 foundland. "Thus," says Mr. Dewhurst, "was com- 

 menced, in the course of the ICth century, the northern 

 whale-fishery, as pursued in modern times. In 1.V.I4, 

 the English made their first whaling voyage ; and four 

 years afterwards the merchants of Hull fitted out several 

 ships for the purpose : about the same time the Dutch 

 were tempted to engage in the trade ; and soon after- 

 wards the Hamburgers, the French, and the Danes were 

 occupied in the same pursuit. " 



The whale is captured by means of harpoons, and, 

 when dea<l, it is drawn to the side of the ship, and flensed 

 or cut up. This is effected by means of spades and 

 powerful knives, the blubber being cut into cross pieces 



of about half a ton each, which, after being hoisted on 

 deck, are subdivided into small strips, and then forced 

 into the bungholes of the storing casks. The blubber is 

 the true skin of the animal ; and it consists of a net- 

 work of intersecting fibres, which enclose the liquid fat. 

 It encompasses the whole of the body: its thickness 

 varying from eight to twenty inches, though one foot is 

 about the average ; and a single whale will yield from 

 twenty to eighty tons of it. The lips of the animal 

 furnish the best kind of blubber ; and they weigh from 

 one and a-half to three tons each. The quantity of oil 

 so obtained, amounts to about three-fourths of the entire 

 weight of the raw blubber. 



Formerly, it was the custom to extract the oil from 

 the blubber at the places where the whales were caught, 

 but now this process is effected after the fat arrives in 

 this country. The operation is thus managed : The 

 half-putrefied fat is thrown into vats which have a wire 

 grating at the bottom. The tissue is then broken up by 

 pressure, and the oil runs out into a reservoir, which is 

 placed below the vats : that which remains behind is 

 called fi nks. After the oil has settled for two or three 

 days, it is poured off into another vessel, and heated to a 

 temperature of 225. This causes the albuminous mattrr 

 to coagulate, which, with the other impurities, soon 

 subsides to the bottom of the boiler. The fire is now 

 withdrawn, and water is poured into the vessel, in order 

 that the dregs may be more easily separated from the oil, 

 and may not stick to the bottom of the boiler. After 

 standing for some time, the oil becomes clear, and then 

 it is run off into casks. Another mode of extracting 

 the oil is to boil the blubber with water, and to skim off 

 the oil as it rises. The oil may also be obtained by 

 allowing the blubber to putrefy, and thus to release the 

 fluid fat from the cells in which it is contained, la thia 

 manner, by suspending the blubber in bags over casks, 

 the oil gradually drips out, and is col It 



We have already said that the train-oil of commerce is 

 chiefly derived from the common Greenland whale 

 (Haiti na mysticetus) ; but when this creature is scarce, 

 another species of bahena namely, the Balcena Iri'lmi- 

 dica, or nord-caper is sought for; and under certain 

 circumstances the different species of finned whale, as 

 the BaltenopUra gibbar, loops, rorqual, Ac., and even 

 the Moiwdoiu or nanchales may be made to yield train- 

 oil It is not often, however, that the whaler has an 

 opportunity of capturing these creatures ; for they are so 

 swift and shy, that there is great difficulty as well as 

 danger in approaching them. Occasionally they are cast 

 ashore on the northern and western coasts of Europe ; 

 and then they become a source of great profit from the 

 quantity of oil which they yield. Some idea may be 

 formed of the value of these animals by the following' 

 fact : In the month of August, 1827, a large specimen 

 of the BaloMoptera rorqual was found floating off the 

 port of Ostend. It was towed into the harbour by some 

 fishermen; and when cut up, it yielded 40,OUUlbs., or 

 4,000 gallons of oil. The specimen measured ninety-five 

 feet in length, and weighed about 240 tons. 



Lastly, it may be stated that the several species of 

 iloljiliin furnish abundance of oiL They belong to the 

 whale tribe, and inhabit the seas of all latitudes: for 

 they are found in the Arctic Ocean, the Mediterranean, 

 the Gulf of Messina, the Adriatic, and on the coasts of 

 China : in many of which places there are large estab- 

 lishments for their capture, in consequence of their 

 furnishing MI excellent oil for illuminating purposes. 

 To this order of animals belong the common porpoise 

 (Phocaena vulgaris), the round-headed porpoise, or ca'iug 

 whale (Phoccena melas), and the white whale (PhocenM 

 leucas); all of which yield oil in considerable quantity. 

 The common porpoise is captured by the inhabitants of 

 the western islands of Scotland, where it abounds ; and 

 we are told, that about eight gallons of oil are obtained 

 from each individual. The round-headed porpoise is 

 taken in the Shetland Islands, the Orkneys, and in Ice- 

 land; and the white whale in several localities on the 

 shores of the North Sea. 



The oil obtained from these sources, when properly 



