76 R. BROWN ON THE GET ACE A OF GREENLAND. 



latter were beyond all computation ; hour after hour did they 

 travel to the northward, never pausing to feed, but all seemingly 

 intent on reaching the opening of Lancaster Sound. A few days 

 subsequently not one was to be seen, as previously there had been 

 no signs oi their presence. This was undoubtedly a very rare 

 scene ; and the question which must suggest itself is, where could 

 such a number of these huge animals have come from ? The 

 Whale is capable of travelling at a very fast rate when irritated 

 by wounds or impelled by fear of its enemies. I was told by the 

 late Cnpt. Graville, of the screw whaler "Diana," a proverbial!}' 

 experienced and truthful man, that a Whale was struck near the 

 entrance of Scoresby's Sound, on the east coast of Greenland, by 

 the father of the late Dr. Scoresby (with whom Mr. Graville was 

 a follow cnpprentice) ; but, being lost, it was killed next day near 

 the entrance of Omenak Fjord, on the west coast, with the 

 liarpoons freshly imbedded in its body. This was adduced in 

 proof of the existence of an inlet in former times (as, indeed, 

 represented on the old maps) across Greenland between these two 

 points. Unless the whole story was founded on a misconception 

 (an event less likely from the searching investigation which 

 took place at the time), we can scarcely believe that the Whale 

 could have reached the west coast by any other means ; for, even 

 allowing the greatest credible speed, it comes scarcely within the 

 limits of possibility that it could have doubled Cape Farewell and 

 reached 70° N. latitude within the interval mentioned. The rate 

 at which a Whale travels from place to place whilst feeding, or 

 under other ordinary circumstances, may be stated as being about 

 four miles an hour. Like most of the Cetacea, it generally travels 

 in a course contrary to that of the wind. lUfood consists, for 

 the most part, of Entomostraca and Pteropoda, but chiefly of the 

 former, and especially of Cctochilus arcticus, Baird, and Cctochilus 

 septentrionalis, H. Goodsir, Aiyacticus hronii, Kroy., &c., which arc 

 chiefly found in those portions of the sea of the olive-green 

 colour described by Scoresby. This appearance had seen shown* 

 to be produced by vast quantities of Z>z«^ow«cc^, chiefly Melosira 

 arctica, on which the " Whales' food " subsists. It is not, I am 

 of opinion, compatible with facts to suppose that the Right 

 Whale's food is composed in any part of Fishes proper, except, 

 perhaps, a minute individual wliicli may now and then accidentally 

 find its way into its stomach with the mass of maidre (as th(3 

 Whale's food is called). Many of the old whalers contend other- 

 wise, and will adduce measurements of the diameter of the gullet 

 in proof that m-uch larger animals than Acalephae, Pteropoda, or 

 Entomostraca could be received in the stomach. I have never 

 measured the orifice of any oesophagus which exceeded 2\ inches 

 in diameter, though as these observations were generally made on 



* On the Nature of the Discoloration of the Arctic Seas, see Seemann's 

 Journ. Botany, Feb. 1868 ; Trans. Bot. Soc. Edinburgh, vol. ix. ; Quart. Journ. 

 Micr. Sci., Oct. 1868; Das Ausland, Feb. 27th, 1868; Petermann's Gcogr. 

 Mittheil., 1869 ; and a reprint in this "Manual." 



