614 NATURAL HISTORY MISCELLANY. 
AMBERGRIS. — I find in the American Cyclopedia the following account: 
“Tt is a morbid secretion of the liver of the Spermaéeti Whale, found 
floatin h a, sometimes on shore; it is found in the intestines of 
whale that was exceedingly Jean; on cutting into the whale, the lower 
portion of the intestine was cut off, and some st balls floated out, but 
only a very small portion of it was saved. In the schooner Estella, 
of this port, killed a lean sperm whale, from w chee they took sixty-six 
pounds of ambergris, BU on the arrival of the vessel, sold for $64 per 
pound. On another voyage, in the following year, the same schooner 
captured a whale, from piee they took twenty-three pounds nine ounces, 
found where whalers have been fortunate ois to pus ambergris in 
whales. There is no doubt that they sometimes let carcases go that con- 
tain more value in the intestines than the whole blubber is worth. This 
substance, accumulating in the intestines, causes a stoppage so that noth- 
would contain a large amount of that valuable substance, and it would 
pay well for the trouble of taking in all whales met with on the water, if 
the cause of their death is unknown. 
The food-of the sperm whale is mostly the-large squid; it is the opinion 
they accumulate and finally cause a stoppage. ‘This they infer from 
a that they find these bills (as they call them) with the ambergris. — 
N. E. Atwoop, Provincetown, Mass. 
OULTING OF THE SHRIMP (Mysis).—I enclose a few Shrimp “moults,” 
whereof the most enormous quantity drifted ashore on Thursday, August 
13, 1868. They were left by the tide in windrows, at the mouth of the 
or miles i 
the enclosed as of possible interest. They seemed all nearly of a size, 
and probably, therefore, of a uniform age. I was not aware before re 
the reticulated cornea of the eye was shed with de skeleton, si possi sibly 
others share my ignorance.—W. C. Jounson, Newburyport, 
Nest or THE BELTED KINGFISHER. —I notice from articles in the Sep- 
tember and June numbers relating to the Belted Kingfisher, that M 
agre 
saying that I have always found the holes from four to six feet in ¢ z 
and never to the depth of eight feet, as. Mr. Endicott says, and with the = 
ception of two cases, both of which PRA in clay banks, straight 


