CURIOUS CREATURES. 241 



By feeding upon these for several days it had quite 

 glutted itself, having made for itself a channel in the 

 shoaly water. Here, however, the sand was thrown up 

 by the action of the wind to such an extent that the 

 creature found it quite impossible to turn round ; and 

 while in the act of pursuing its prey, it was propelled 

 by the waves towards the shore, so that its back came 

 to be perceived above the level of the water, very much 

 resembling in appearance the keel of a vessel turned 

 bottom upwards. Upon this, Caesar ordered a number 

 of nets to be extended at the mouth of the harbour, from 

 shore to shore, while he himself went there with the 

 Praetorian Cohorts, and so afforded a spectacle to the 

 Roman people ; for boats assailed the monster, while the 

 soldiers on board showered lances upon it. I, myself, 

 saw one of the boats sunk by the water which the 

 animal, as it respired, showered down upon it." 



Olaus Magnus thus writes " Of the fight between the 

 Whale and the Orca. A Whale is a very great fish, 

 about one hundred, or three hundred foot long, and the 

 body is of a vast magnitude, yet the Orca, which is 

 smaller in quantity, but more nimble to assault, and 

 cruel to come on, is his deadly Enemy. An Orca is 

 like a Hull turned inwards outward ; a Beast with 

 fierce Teeth, with which, as with the Stern of a Ship, 

 he rends the Whale's Guts, and tears its Calve's body 

 open, or he quickly runs and drives him up and down 

 with his prickly back, that he makes him run to Fords 

 and Shores. But the Whale, that cannot turn its huge 

 body, not knowing how to resist the wily Orca, puts all 

 its hopes in flight ; yet that flight is weak, because this 

 sluggish Beast, burdned by its own weight, wants one to 

 guide her, to fly to the Foords, to escape the dangers." 



2 B 



