VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 101 



by the sailors that the whale was generally van- 

 quished ; and that they kept aloof till such time ' 

 as the saw-fish, eating the tongue, relinquished the 

 carcass, which they made their prey. 



A species of crab, vulgarly called the whale- 

 louse, the Oniscus ceti of Fabricius, if not the 

 most dangerous, is perhaps the most troublesome of 

 the whale's enemies. We scarcely took any whales 

 but had one or two of these vermin fastened to 

 them. The Oniscus ceti is about the size of a small 

 crab, and is covered with remarkably hard scales. 

 Head similar to that of the Pediculus humanus, 

 with four horns, two of which serve as feelers ; the 

 other two are hard, curved, and serve as clinchers 

 to fix the animal to the whale. Underneath its 

 chest, the Oniscus has two carvers, like scythes, 

 with which it collects its food ; and behind these 

 are four feet, that serve it for oars. It has six 

 other clinchers behind, which rivet it so closely to 

 the whale, that it cannot be disengaged but by cut- 

 ting out the entire piece to which it is joined. The 

 Oniscus is jointed in the back like the tail of a lob- 

 ster, and the tail covers it like a shield when feed- 

 ing. It fixes itself upon the tenderest part of the 

 whale's body, between the fins, on the sheath, or on 

 the lips, and in this position tears pieces out of the 

 whale like a rapacious vulture, 



