Oct., 1889. the fin whale fishery in north lapland. 
285 
the factories, and are allowed to cut away huge pieces of the 
meat while the whale is being cut up ; this they deposit in 
large tubs and add salt to it, to preserve it for winter con¬ 
sumption. They are not allowed to take the fat of the whales, 
but, nevertheless, if the foreman turns his back for a moment, 
they immediately pounce on the nearest lump of oily fat and 
carry it off in triumph. 
Various dangers are incurred by the Norwegian whalers ; 
explosions of gunpowder on board sometimes occur and cause 
serious damage ; sometimes, too, the shell of the harpoon 
does not burst till the boats are alongside of the whale for 
lancing. In this way boats occasionally have been smashed 
in, and the crews placed in great danger. Whales occasion¬ 
ally do considerable damage, even to the steamers, by 
charging viciously, and, when we consider their enormous 
power and great activity, we can easily see that this is a 
serious form of danger. Besides these, various other risks 
are incurred which 1 need not mention. 
In the course of a single paper I cannot expect to give 
more than the merest sketch of the whale fishery of these, 
regions. The subject is one full of interest to the naturalist, 
as a vast amount with regard to the habits of the whales still 
remains to be discovered, and a few only of the Northern 
species of whales have been properly figured. Mr. Cock’s 
papers in “The Zoologist ” have done much towards draw¬ 
ing attention to this subject, and he has entered into detail 
upon many points to which I have been able to refer only in 
the briefest manner. His account of last year is not as yet 
published, but we may look forward to it with interest. Other 
attractions drew us awav from the coast, after somewhat short 
visits to a few of the whaling stations. A journey into the 
interior of Lapland, up the Pasvig River to Lake Entire, had 
irresistible attractions; and, by the time we had returned to 
the coast, the whaling was over for the year. The factories 
were closed and deserted by the men, though one factory, 
which I visited again in Vardo on my return journey, pre¬ 
sented nevertheless a verv animated scene, as thousands 
upon thousands of seagulls, skuas, duck, and other sea birds 
were congregated there, on the beach and in the water, 
apparently busy enough over clearing away the rejected 
remnants of the season’s spoils. 
I append here for those interested in the subject a list of 
a few of the more interesting English papers dealing with the 
Northern Bahenopteridse:— 
A. II. Cocks: Papers on the “ Finmarken Whale Fishery,” Zoologist, 
1884, pp. 366, 417, 455 ; 1885, p. 134; 1886, p. 121 ; 1887, p. 207 ; 
1888, p. 201. 
