THE WHALE TEIBE. 197 



SO in this species the head is so large as to make one half of the 

 whole. The tongue of this animal is small, but the throat is very 

 formidable ; and with very great ease it could swallow an ex. In 

 the stomach of the Whale scarce anything is to be found ; but in 

 that of the Cachalot there are loads of fish of difierent kinds; 

 some whole, some half-digested, some small, and others eight or 

 nine feet long. The Cachalot is, therefore, as destructive among 

 lesser fishes as the Whale is harmless ; and can at one gulp swal- 

 low a shoal of fishes down its enormous gullet. Linnaeus tells us 

 that this fish pursues and terrifies the dolphins and porpoises so 

 much, as often to drive them on shore. 



Ambergris, so long a riddle to all inquirers, is now found 

 to be produced in the interior of the Cachalot. This substance is 

 of the consistency of wax, inflammable, and gives , out a kind of 

 musky odor. It was once in great repute as a medicine, but is 

 now only used as a perfume. Spermaceti is obtained from the 

 head of the Cachalot, and it is this substance that causes the im- 

 mense size of the head. When the whale is killed, a hole is made 

 in the upper part of the head, and the spermaceti is baled out with 

 buckets. When just procured it is almost fluid, but is rendered 

 solid and transparent by being first drained of its oil, then boiled 

 in water, and lastly set to cool in wide pans, where it soon assumes 

 the white flaky appearance so well known in this country. The 

 layer of blubber is thin, but yields a fine and valuable oil. 



The Dolphin is, like the whale, a warm-blooded animal, 

 suckles its young, and is forced to come to the surface in order to 

 breathe. Its snout is very long, and is apparently used for cap- 

 turing such fish, and other animals, as live in the mud. The 

 length is from six to ten feet. 



The Porpoise. — These animals may be observed in plenty 

 playing their absurd antics off the coasts of the United States. 

 There are numbers of them off the Nore, a place which they fre- 

 quent greatly, as it is the mouth of a river, and they find more 

 food there than in the open sea. They tumble at the surface of 

 the water for the purpose of breaching. The voracity of the Por- 

 poise is very great. It feeds on various fishes, but its great feasta 



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