CETACEANS. 217 



human aid could avail in this instance, the boats re- 

 newed their attack on the harpooned whale, which was 

 soon after killed and taken to the ship, whilst the mis- 

 chievous Cachalot made off, after he had been pierced 

 with many lance-wounds. The chief mate of the British 

 South-Seaman Lyra,* when in the cruising ground of 

 Japan, in 1832, was also swept from his boat and de- 

 stroyed by a blow from a whale ; and similar casualties 

 are too numerous, and uniform in their results, to 

 permit a more particular notice. 



Some Sperm Whales appear reluctant to employ 

 their tail when attacked, but prove active and dangerous 

 with their jaws. Such individuals often rather seek 

 than avoid the attacking boats, and, rushing upon them 

 with open mouth, employ every possible art to crush 

 them with their teeth, and, if successful, will sometimes 

 continue in the neighbourhood, biting the wreck and 

 oars into small fragments. When thus threatening a 

 boat, the whale usually turns, and swims upon its back, 

 and will sometimes act in a very sluggish and un- 

 accountable manner, keeping its formidable lower jaw 

 suspended for some moments over the boat, in a threat- 

 ening attitude, but ultimately rolling to one side, and 

 closing its mouth harmlessly ; nor is it rare to observe 

 this whale, when pursued and attacked, retain its mouth 

 in an expanded state for some minutes together. Such 

 threatening demonstrations of the jaw, as well as some 

 others with the flukes, occasionally compel a boat's 

 crew to leap into the water, and support themselves 

 by swimming or clinging to oars until the danger has 

 passed.f 



* Formerly a man-of-war, and consort of the Alceste. 



t Upon speaking the American ship Augusta, in the South Pacific, 

 in 1836, we found on her deck a boat, which had shortly before been 

 nipped completely asunder by the jaws of a harpooned whale. Fortunately, 



