THE GREENLAND WHALE 



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dangling strips, which are even on one edge and fringed on 

 the other, cause the mouth of the Whale to look as though 

 it were lined with a coarse hair mat. The length of the 

 baleen gives some idea of the size of the Whale's mouth, 



BALEEN OR WHALEBONE. 



A. A back view of the whale's skull, with the baleen flakes (TV) 



spreading out from the upper bones (m) of the skull. The lower 

 jawbones (J) are shown as removed from the skull. 



B. Baleen flakes with fringed edges. 



C. Three flakes on a larger scale set side by side. 



D. Baleen cut across and magnified under the microscope. 



and it is not without reason that sailors assert, that a ship's 

 jolly-boat with crew complete could row into the cavernous 

 aperture without touching its sides. 



The use of the baleen is to strain the myriads of small 



