His CAPTORS. 131 



Dimensions of a Cub. A Marine Wonder. 



The one thought to be the dam prudently 

 made off a mile and a half to windward, while 

 we got the cub alongside the ship about eleven 

 o'clock. His proportions were respectable for 

 a youngling thirty-nine feet long and nineteen 

 feet round ; his head seven feet from its tip to 

 the spout-holes, and three feet wide just behind 

 the same, and three feet thick to the inside 

 roof. The thickest of the blubber was eight 

 inches. His fins were each five feet long, and 

 he was six feet across the throat. They rifled 

 him of his blubber and bone in the way already 

 described, and some time before evening the 

 refuse scrap-matter of his blubber was burning 

 brightly under the try-works, and affording all 

 the fuel for trying out. 



Just after sundown that evening, while we 

 were lying to, and the try- works were blazing, 

 there was seen going slowly by the ship, a rod 

 or two off, a large sun-fish. The captain cau- 

 tiously lowered his boat, and, paddling lightly, 

 was up with him, and had effectually darted 

 his cruel iron before danger was suspected. 

 Finding it impossible to hoist him into the 

 boat or warp him along, they made fast anoth- 

 er iron, and came to the ship with the tow-line, 



