DESCRIPTION OF A NARWAL, I47 



seas which wash the coast of Boston, in lat. 40^ 

 evidently meaning Boston in America. As Dr 

 Shaw has mentioned the occurrence of one at 

 Boston in Lincolnshire, and as La Cepede re- 

 ceived his drawing and description from Sir 

 Joseph Banks, I began to suspect that they refer- 

 red to one and the same specimen, and that the simi- 

 larity in the name of the place had occasioned the 

 mistake. In order to satisfy myself on this subject,, 

 I made known my suspicion to Sir Joseph Banks, 

 who, in a letter, dated 19th January 1809, politely 

 communicated the following information, which 

 completely confirms the truth of my conjecture. 

 When speaking of the Zetland narwal (which I 

 had mentioned to him) he says, " I agree with 

 " you in thinking it the same species as that des- 

 " cribed by La Cepede, whose information was 

 " wholly derived from me and adds, " that a 

 M note under the drawing, stated it to have been 

 " taken at Frieston, a village near Boston in Lin- 

 " colnshire. The animal, when found, had buried 

 " the whole of its body in the mud of which the 

 " beach there is composed, and seemed safely and 

 " securely waiting the return of the tide. A fisher- 

 " man going to his boat, saw the horn, which 

 " was covered up, and trying to pull it out of the 

 *' mud, raised the animal, who stirred himself 

 u hastily to secure his horn from the attack." 



How are we to account for such carelessness 

 and inaccuracy in La Cepede ! 



3C Qe 



