314 ANTARCTIC CRUISE. 



of fatigue, and to make every one willing to encounter any difficulty 

 to effect a landing. 



20th. This day, on board the Peacock, they witnessed a sea-fight 

 between a whale and one of its many enemies. The sea was quite 

 smooth, and offered the best possible view of the whole combat. 

 First, at a distance from the ship, a whale was seen flotmdering in a 

 most extraordinary way, lashing the smooth sea into a perfect foam, 

 and endeavouring apparently to extricate himself from some annoy- 

 ance. As he approached the ship, the struggle continuing and be- 

 coming more violent, it was perceived that a fish, apparently about 

 twenty feet long, held him by the jaw, his contortions, spouting, and 

 throes, all betokening the agony of the huge monster. The whale 

 now threw himself at full length from the water with open mouth, 

 his pursuer still hanging to the jaw, the blood issuing from the 

 wound and dyeing the sea to a distance around ; but all his fiounder- 

 ings were of no avail ; his pertinacious enemy still maintained his 

 hold, and was evidently getting the advantage of him. Much alarm 

 seemed to be felt by the many other whales around. These 

 " killers," as they are called, are of a brownish colour on the back, 

 and white on the belly, with a long dorsal fin. Such was the 

 turbulence with which they passed, that a good view could not be 

 had of them to make out more nearly the description. These fish 

 attack a whale in the same way as dogs bait a bull, and worry him 

 to death. They are armed with strong sharp teeth, and generally 

 seize the whale by the lower jaw. It is said that the only part of 

 them they eat is the tongue. The whalers give some marvellous 

 accounts of these killers and of their immense strength, among them, 

 that they have been known to drag a whale away from several boats 

 which were towing it to the ship. 



There was a great quantity of animalculse in the water, and some 

 large squids (Medusas), and quantities of shrimp were frequently seen 

 about the icebergs ; these are no doubt the attractions which bring 

 whales to frequent these seas. 



The last two days we had very many beautiful snow-white petrels 

 about. The character of the ice had now become entirely changed. 

 The tabular-formed icebergs prevailed, and there was comparatively 

 little field-ice. Some of the bergs were of magnificent dimensions, 

 one-third of a mile in length, and from one hundred and fifty to two 

 hundred feet in height, with sides perfectly smooth, as though they 

 had been chiselled. Others, again, exhibited lofty arches of many- 



