O44 THE OCEAN. 
‘bunch of the neck; from hence the body is nearly 
straight to within one-third of its length from the 
tail, where there is a larger prominence called the 
hump; it now rapidly tapers away to the tail: the 
whalers distinguish this tapering part by the name 
of “the small,” and the broad horizontal tail, as ‘‘the 
flukes.” The whole of the upper portion of the 
square and bluff head is occupied by a cavity, tech- 
nically termed “the case;” which is not covered by 
bone, but by a thick, tendinous, elastic skin, and 
lined with a beautiful glistening membrane. This 
cavity is filled with a clear oil, which, after death, 
cools into the substance well known as spermaceti. 
Some idea may be formed of the capacity of the case, 
from the fact that, in a large Whale, it will frequently 
be found to contain ten large barrels of this valuable 
product. Immediately beneath the case is placed 
“the junk,” a thick triangular mass of tough elastic 
substance, which also yields a considerable quantity 
of spermaceti. The fins are comparatively small, and 
are situated a little behind the mouth; they do not 
appear to be used in giving motion, which is effected 
by the tail, but in balancing the body, and support- 
ing the young. 
The general colour of the animal is very dark 
grey, nearly black on the upper parts, but more sil- 
very beneath. Old males usually have a large spot 
of pale grey on the front of the head, when they are 
said to be grey-headed. The motions of these enor- 
mous creatures are exceedingly curious: when mov- 
ing perfectly at leisure, the Whale swims slowly 
along, just below the surface of the water, effecting 
