472 



their young. It is therefore unnecessary to add, 

 that their true arrangement must be in the same 

 class ; but so strongly is the vulgar or popu- 

 lar idea respecting these animals impressed on 

 the mind, that to this hour they are considered 

 as Fishes by the mass of mankind ; who, npt hav- 

 ing either time or inclination to become scientifi- 

 cally acquainted with the objects of creation, find 

 some difficulty in conceiving how a Whale can 

 be any thing but a fish. It should also be added, 

 that in compliance with this popular prejudice, 

 even Willoughby was induced to admit the 

 Whales into his Ichthyology, Mr. Pennant to ex- 

 clude them from his work on quadrupeds, and 

 still more lately, Dr. Bloch to insert the Porpoise 

 in his History of Fishes. 



Much confusion and inaccuracy has prevailed 

 with respect to the exact determination of the 

 species in this tribe, and it is chiefly to the ex- 

 ertions of modern naturalists and physiologists 

 that we owe our principal knowledge of the sub- 

 ject : the descriptions given by the ancient writers 

 being often very vague and unsatisfactory. The 

 excelient observations of the late Mr. Hunter, 

 published in the Philosophical Transactions, have 

 contributed much to the anatomical history of 

 Whales ; while the more exact discrimination of 

 the species has been chiefly owing to Linn^us^ 

 Fabricius, Pallas, Schreber, Sic. 



