100 ox A SKELETON OF A WHALE FN THE 



'rildlllpsdirs -pcciliicii."' S(i l';ir ;is ;i ] i| ic;l 1'^, Mr. Hillings \[{\\\ 

 lu'vcr seen llic N'ci'iiiiuit >|n'ciiii('ii. at lca,^l liail iii»r studied if. 

 ])r. \\'liit('a\'('s write-: " 'I'lic idcutiticat ion dt" the Milo-end 

 >])('ciiiicii. and uf that iVniii ( '<ini\\all, with IlcliKja rcriitonhnia, 

 it inu-t \h' I'cnicinhcrfMl. i< suhdv on liic authoritv (if Mr. l>il!- 

 iiiiis. It sci'iiis to iiic tlial the s|)('('iui('iis from those two local- 

 ities aiid the <kulK et<-.. tViuii Pakenliani, which are all that I 

 have seen, ai-e at any I'ate all ret'erahle io the same species. And 

 1 do not s<'e how they are to Ije dist iniiuished from the present 

 /A Icuras." 



'Die (piestion whether the Vei-mont specimen is lis Thonip- 

 poii (h'ciihMh a new -pecies or Irinris. has usutilly been docideil 

 l»y writer-; in favor of the li\-in_ii,' s])ecies. Thompson's reasons 

 lor s(^paral iiii: it fi'oni Iciicas were, a diH'ei-ence in dentition, in 

 size ()+ niaxilhiry hones and s(ime minor points. None of these 

 are sufficient, con-iderinii' the individual vai'iation within the 

 same sjx-cies of many cetacea. .\s has Ix-en previously noticod. 

 the jx-riotic is les< |ik(dy to vai'v in dill'ere.ii individmils of the 

 same s])ecies than any oth'T l)one. After a study of this hone, 

 ]\fr. Andi-ews writes, •' I have com))ared the \)u\\v. with the oar- 

 ])oiies of several sjiecimens of Delj)]! ina /ilcnis Iciicns. The 

 resendilance, except in si/e, is very close indecnl. The hullate 

 jiortiii'.i of ilu- pcriotic in your si>ecinien i-^ somewhat smaller in 

 j>r(tpoi-tion to the whole leniith than in Del pJt'in(ij)l('V\if< h'licds. 

 The inlei-nal auditory mealu- is also slightly diH'erent in shape. 

 However, I heliexc thai these characters ai'c open lo a sli<ih1. 

 indi\-idnal xariation. The ditference in size seems to me an 

 imporiani one, a^ it prohahly iiidicates that your animal, if 

 adult, is a -mailer animal than f)cl />li liui jtlrfus Ictiats. A com- 

 parison with the pcriotic of a \ery youni;- individual of DcJplnn- 

 aplcruM h'ltcds -hows this hone in the hitler to he coiisiderahly 

 lariior than in your specimen.'" 



'Idle author \-isitc(| the Amei'ican Museinn, Xow York, twice 

 for tlie i)nrpose of comparing the fossil hoinos Avith those of 

 recent skeletons, and then went to the Xational ]\rnseum. Wash- 



