534 THE BLACK-FISH. 



The natural timidity of the Cachalot is very remarkable, considering the gigantic 

 size of the animal and the formidable array of teeth with which it is armed. Any 

 strange object perceived by this creature throws it into a state of excited trepidation, 

 during which time it performs several curious antics, and is said by the sailors to be 

 " gallied." When uneasy, it has a strange habit of slowly sweeping its tail from side 

 to side upon the surface of the water, as if feeling for the object that excited its terror. 



When thoroughly frightened, and especially when roused to energetic action by the 

 painful sting of the harpoon, the Cachalot darts along the surface of the water at an 

 astonishing rate, its speed being often from ten to twelve miles per hour. As it pro- 

 ceeds in its rapid course, the alternate upward and downward strokes of the tail cause 

 its head to sink and emerge alternately, producing that mode of swimming which is 

 technically termed " head-out." As the lower part of the head is compressed into a 

 kind of cut-water shape, there is less resistance offered to the water than if the creature 

 swam entirely below the surface, as is its wont when undisturbed. It is conjectured 

 that the enormous amount of oil and spermaceti which exists in the head of the 

 Cachalot may be intended for the purpose of lightening the head, and enabling it to 

 lie more easily upon the surface. 



The " spoutings " of the Spermaceti Whale are very peculiar, and can be recognized 

 at a distance of several miles. It generally lies still while spouting, but sometimes 

 proceeds gently along the surface. Firstly the " hump " becomes perceptible as the 

 animal rises, and at some forty or fifty feet distance the snout begins to emerge. From 

 the extremity of the snout is ejected a continuous stream of water and vapor, which 

 lasts for about three seconds, and is thrown forward at an angle of forty-five degrees. 



The intervals of time between the " spoutings " are as regular as clockwork, and 

 their number is always the same in the same individual. The snout sinks under water 

 as each spouting is finished, and emerges for the next respiration. Sometimes a 

 Cachalot is alarmed before " the spoutings are out," and dives below the surface. 

 In such a case, the animal soon re-appears in another spot, and completes the number 

 of the respirations. The interval of time between the spoutings is ten seconds in the 

 " old bulls," and as the animal makes between sixty and seventy of these curious res- 

 pirations, the time which is consumed in oxygenizing the blood is ten or eleven 

 minutes. 



Having completed this business, the creature then lowers its head into the water, 

 flings its tail in the air, and disappears into the far depths of the ocean, where it re- 

 mains about an hour and ten minutes. The number and force of these " spoutings," 

 together with the time which is consumed by respiration, and the period of the stay 

 beneath the surface of the water, are extremely varied, according to the age, sex, and 

 size of the individual. 



The Spermaceti Whale does not seem to choose any particular portion of the year 

 for the production of its young, but is found at all seasons in charge of its offspring. 

 Moreover, young Whales, or "cubs," are found of all sizes and ages, simultaneously 

 roaming the seas, either in company with their parents or turned loose upon the world 

 to shift for themselves. There is but a single cub at a birth. The milk of the animal 

 is exceedingly rich and thick, as, indeed, is the case with the milk of all Whales. 



This animal is very widely spread over the world, as it is found in almost every por- 

 tion of the aqueous portions of the globe with the exception of the Polar Seas. Sev- 

 eral of these creatures have been discovered off our own coasts, and a few have been 

 stranded on the beach. A Cachalot measuring fifty-four feet in length was driven 

 ashore in the Frith of Forth in 1769, and its appearance off the Orkneys is said to be 

 no very uncommon occurrence. 



The BLACK-FISH has been separated from the genus Catodon, and placed in the genus 

 Physeter, together with one or two other Whales, because, although they possess the huge 

 truncated head and heavily-armed lower jaw of the Cachalot, the spout-holes are removed 

 from the extremity of the snout and placed upon the middle of the top of the head. 

 These spout-holes are separate, but are covered with a common flap. The pectoral fin 

 is moderate in size, being about four feet long, and rather triangular in its form, and the 



