^ BOWHEAD'' FISEING. 193 



snout, the internal channel running in a slightly diagonal 

 direction downwards, and back through the skull to 

 the lungs. So when he spouts, the breath is projected 

 forward diagonally, and, from some peculiarity which I 

 do not pretend to explain, expends itself in a short, 

 bushy tuft of vapour, very distinct from the tall vertical 

 spout of the bowhead or right whale. 



There was little or no wind when we sighted the 

 individual I am now speaking of, so we did not attempt 

 to set sail, but pulled straight for him " head and head." 

 Strange as it may appear, the Mysticetus' best point of 

 view is right behind, or "in his wake," as we say ; it is 

 therefore part of the code to approach him from right 

 ahead, in which direction he cannot see at all. Some 

 time before we reached him he became aware of our 

 presence, showing by his uneasy actions that he had 

 his doubts about his personal security. But before he 

 had made up his mind what to do we were upon him, with 

 our harpoons buried in his back. The difference in his 

 behaviour to what we had so long been accustomed to 

 was amazing. He did certainly give a lumbering splash 

 or two with his immense flukes, but no one could 

 possibly have been endangered by them. The water 

 was so shallow that when he sounded it was but for a 

 very few minutes ; there was no escape for him that way. 

 As soon as he returned to the surface he set off at his 

 best gait, but that was so slow that we easily hauled 

 up close alongside of him, holding the boats in that 

 position without the slightest attempt to guard ourselves 

 from reprisals on his part, while the officers searched 

 his vitals with the lances as if they were probing a 

 haystack. 



Eeally, the whole affair was so tame that it was 



