Ocean between Europe and America. 13 



the ocean, quite covered. Of infers I faw in 

 the channel, when we were in fight of the IJle of 

 Wight feveral white butterflies, very like to the 

 Papilio Braffictz Linn. < They never fettled, and 

 by their venturing at fo great a diftance from 

 land they caufed us juft aftonifliment. 



SOME common fics were in our cabbin alive 

 during the whole voyage, and it cannot therefore 

 be determined whether they were originally in 

 America, or whether they came over with the 

 Europeans. 



OF Cetaceous fijh we met with Porpeffes, or as 

 fbme failors call them Sea-hogs * (Delpbinus 

 Phocxna Linn.) firft in the channel, and then 

 they continued every where on this fide the 

 Azores, where they are the only fi(h navigators 

 meet with ; but beyond thefe iiles they are fel- 

 dom feen, till again in the neighbourhood of 

 America we faw them equally frequent to the very 

 mouth of Delaware river. They always appear- 

 ed in (hoals, fome of which coniifted of upwards 

 of an hundred individuals ; their fwimming was 

 very fwift, and though they often fwam along 

 fide of our fhip, being taken as it were with the 

 noife caufed by the (hip cutting the waves, they 



* The name of Porpejfi is certainly derived from the name Per- 

 eopefce, given to this genus by the Italians \ and it is remarkable 

 that almoft all the European nations confpired in calling them 

 Sea-hogi, their name being in German Mecr Schwein ; the 



Swedijh) and Norwegian, Marfuin, from whence the French bor- 

 rowed their Marfouin. The natives of Iceland call them Suinbual* 

 i. e. a Svoine-ivhalej and fo likewife the Slavonian nations have 

 their S-ivinia Morjkaya. Whether this confent arifes from their 

 rooting the fand at the bottom of the fea in queft of Sand-eels and. 

 Sea-worms like fwine, or from the vaft quantity of lard furround- 

 ing their bodies, is uncertain. F. 



however 



