Catodontid^ MAMMALIA.- 
•DeLPHINIDjE. 
201 
minute particles of water previously lodged in the chink 
or fissure of the nostril, and also from the condensation 
of the aqueous vapour thrown off by the lungs. The 
spout is projected at an angle of 136°, in a slow and 
continuous manner, for about three minutes, and may 
be seen from the mast-head in favourable weather at 
the distance of four or five miles. When the whale is 
alarmed or “ gallied,” the spout is thrown much higher 
with great rapidity, and differs much from its usual 
appearance. Immediately after each spout the nose 
sinks beneath the water, scarcely a second intervening 
for the act of inspiration, which must consequently be 
performed very quickly, the air rushing into the chest 
with astonishing velocity. There is, however, no sound 
caused by inspiration, and very little by expiration, in 
this species ; in short, nothing of that loud noise called 
the “draw-back” in the finback and other whales. Ten 
seconds is occupied by a large bull sperm whale in 
making one inspiration and one expiration ; during six 
of these the nostril is beneath the water. At each 
breathing time the whale makes from sixty to seventy 
expirations, and remains, therefore, at the surface ten 
or eleven minutes. When the breathing time is over, 
or, as the whalers term it, he has his “ spoutings out,” 
the head sinks slowly; the “ small,” or the part between 
the “ hump” and the “ flukes,” appears above the water, 
curved with the convexity upwards ; the flukes are then 
lifted high into the air, and the animal having assumed 
a straight position, descends perpendicularly to an un- 
kiiovm depth. This last act is called “pecking the 
flukes,” and those who are on the look-out call loudly 
when they see it — “ There goes flukes.” The whale 
continues thus hidden beneath the surface for one 
hour and ten minutes ; some will remain an hour and 
twenty minutes, and others only for one hour ; but 
these are rare exceptions. Mr. Beale gives us very 
graphic accounts of the mode of capturing tlie Sperm 
whale, which, when excited, seems to be a truly 
formidable antagonist. Perhaps, however, the most 
stirring incident, amongst the many' daring encounters 
which have from time to time been recorded, is that 
given by the Kev. Henry T. Cheever, in his little rvork 
entitled “ The Whaleman’s Adventures in the Southern 
Ocean,” which is edited by that distinguished naviga- 
tor and cetaceologist, the Rev. Dr. Scoresby. Thus 
runs the terrible story : — “ The most dreadful display 
of the whale’s strength and prowess yet authentically 
recorded, was that made upon the American whale ship 
Essex, Captain Pollard, which sailed from Nantucket 
for the Pacific Ocean in August, 1819. Late in the 
fall of the same year, when in latitude 40° of the South 
Pacific, a school of sperm whales was discovered, and 
three boats were manned and sent in pursuit. The 
mate’s boat was struck by one of them, and he was 
obliged to return to the ship, in order to repair the 
damage. While he was engaged in that work, a Sperm 
whale, judged to be eighty-five feet long, broke water 
about twenty rods from the ship, on her weather bow. 
He was going at the rate of about three knots an hour, 
and the ship at nearly the same rate, when he struck 
the bows of the vessel, just forward of her chains. At 
the shock produced by the collision of two such mighty 
masses of matter in motion, the ship shook like a leaf. 
VoL. I. 26 
The seemingly malicious whale dived and passed under 
the ship, grazing her keel, and then appeared at about 
the distance of a ship’s length, lashing the sea with fins 
and tail, as if suffering the most horrible agony. He 
was evidently hurt by the collision, and blindly frantic 
with instinctive rage. In a few minutes he seemed to 
recover himself, and started with great speed directly 
across the vessel’s course to windward. Meanwhile the 
hands on board discovered the ship to be gradually 
settling down at the bows, and the pumps were ordered 
to be rigged. While working at them, one of the men 
cried out — “ God have mercy ! he comes again !” The 
whale had turned at about one hundred rods from the 
ship, and was making for her with double his former 
speed; his pathway white with foam. Rushing head 
on, he struck her again at the bow, and the tremendous 
blow stove her in. The whale dived under again and 
disappeared, and the ship filled and fell over on her 
broadside, in ten minutes from the first collision. After 
incredible hardships and sufierings in their open boats, 
on the 20th December the survivors of this catastrophe 
reached the low island called Dudes, in latitude 24° 40' 
south, longitude 124° 40' west. It was a mere sand- 
bank, nearly barren, which supplied them only with 
water and, very scantily, sea-fowl. On this uninhabited 
island, dreary as it was, three of the men chose to- 
remain, ratlier than again commit themselves to the 
uncertainties of the sea. Tliey have never since been 
heard fi'om, the island being seldom visited. On the 
27th of December the three boats, with the remainder 
of the men, put away together for the island of Juan 
Fernandez, at a distance of two thousand miles. The 
mate’s boat was taken up by the Indian of London, on 
the 1 9th of February, ninety-three days from the time 
of the catastrophe, with only three survivors. The 
captain’s boat was fallen in with by the Dauphin of 
Nantucket, on the 23rd of the same month, having only 
two men living, whose lives had been eked out only 
through that last resort of hunger in the wretched, 
which words shudder to relate ! Out of a crew of 
twenty, five only survived to make the ear of the world 
tingle at their strange eventful story.” 
Several other forms of Cachalot exist, which are consi- 
dered by Dr. Gray and others as entirely distinct species. 
These are the Mexican Sperm Whale (Caiodon Colueti ) ; 
the Short-headed Whale {Kogia which occurs 
in the neighbourhood of the Cape ; and the Black-fish, 
or High-finned Cachalot {Physeter Tursio), which is 
undoubtedly distinct. This latter species, according to 
the testimony of Mr. Barclay, communicated to Mr. 
Bell, is frequently seen off the coasts of Zetland in sum- 
mer. It was first described by Sir Robert Sibbald, 
who compared its long perpendicular dorsal fin to the 
mizen-mast of a ship. The specimen from which his 
description was taken was cast ashore on tlie Orkney 
isles in the year 1687. 
Family III.— DELPHINIDAE. 
Under this head naturalists have included a great 
number and variety of cetacean species, which are col- 
lectively recognized by their double rows of teeth, or, in 
other words, by teeth in both jaws. They have smooth 
