It was formerly supposed that the Greenland whale was an inhabitant of the south ern as well as of the northern parts of the world ; but the SOUTHERN' or CAPE WHALE (B. australis) is now regarded as a distinct species, the head being smaller in propor tion than that of its northern congener, and the color a uniform black. It attains the length of 50 or 60 feet. It is usually found in comparatively shallow water near coasts. It occurs not only in the colder parts of the southern hemisphere, but throughout its temperate regions, and its range extends into the tropics. It has been taken even as far n. as Japan. Its capture is prosecuted to a considerable extent, particularly on the coasts of south Africa and New Zealand, although this whale-fishery i4 not nearly so important as that of the northern seas. Several other species of &them/ have been described, but they are imperfectly ascertained and characterized, specimens not often coming under the observation of competent naturalists in a perfect state. The nord kaper of the Icelanders has by some naturalists been described as a distinct species, although it is more generally regarded as a variety of B. mysticetus. It differs, how ever, from the common variety in having the body more slender and the head proper', clonally smaller; the upper jaw very round, deep and broad; and the plates of baleen comparatively short. It is of a gray color; the lower part of the head of a brilliant while. It is said to be more active and more fierce than the common whale, so that its capture is attended with greater danger.
The species of the genus megaptera are called HUMP_ -BACKED WHALES, and by whale fishers ordinarily They have a rudimentary dorsal fin, in the form of an elevation of the back. There are several species, but some of them are very imper fectly known. ..1i. longimana, so called from the length of the pectoral fins, is found in the North sea, and is included in the British fauna. if. the BERMUDA HUMP-BACKED WHALE, occurs chiefly about the Bermudas, from which its baleen is extensively imported. Another species, .3f. peeskop, occurs at the cape of Good Hope.
The genus balanoptera, physalus, or rorqualus is distinguished by having a dorsal fin. See lionquaL.
All the species of these genera are objects of pursuit to whale-fishers, although the Greenland whale is that winch they prefer.
Important as the whale is to civilized man, both for the oil and the whalebone which it yields, it is still more important to the rude natives of arctic regions, as the Esquimaux and Greenlanders, who use its oil for food as well as for burning, and to whom its flesh also is a chief article of food; while its bones and baleen are used for making tents, sledges, boats, harpoons, and spears; the sinews supply a substitute for twine or thread; and the membranes are used instead of glass for windows. There is no essential difference in the way in which the capture of whales is prosecuted by the rudest tribes and the most civilized nations. The whale-fishers approach the whale in boats, and attack it by harpoons to which lines are affixed, following up and repeating • the attack, until its strength is exhausted, taking advantage of the necessity which it experiences of coming at intervals to the surface to breathe, and finally killing it with lances, which are thrust into the most vital parts.
In its most simple form, the harpoon is an iron spear about 5 ft. in length, with a much flattened point, having sharp cutting edges, and two large flattened barbs. Many modifications have been made, the most important perhaps being the go n-harpoon.
The ordinary harpoons are attached to a long line at the opposite end to the barbed point, and when the boat is near enough to the whale, the man whose duty it is darts or plunges the weapon with all his force into the animal's side. In its fleeing from the attack, the line is rapidly drawn out of the boat, until the creature is tired, and rises to the surface for air. The boat. follows, keeping as much of the line as possible, until, exhausted by pain and loss of blood, the animal succumbs. It will be seen that much depends upon the sharpness of the blade-like edges of the barbs, and their power to hold . when in; hence many ingenious devic'es of movable barbs have been contrived, which . close on the shaft of the instrument in going into the animal's flesh, but open outward as soon as there is any strain on the shaft. The gun harpoon is a short bar of iron with the barbed spear at the end, and a ring with chain for the attachment of the line; this is fired from a small swivel cannon attached to the whaler's boat. However well the har poon may be fixed in the animal's body, its death and capture are still very difficult matters to accomplish, and take much time. To obviate this, a very ingenious expedient was suggested by sir H. Christison, the eminent toxicologist of Edinburgh university, that glass tubes containing prussic acid should be so placed in the shaft of the harpoon that the moment the cord or line was pulled tight they would be broken in the animal's body, and occasion instant death. This plan has been tried with great success, but has
met with opposition front the whale-fishers, who have a prejudice against using apoison which they see has such deadly effects: Another mode of employing prussic acid is to inclose a glass tube containing it, in a hollow rifle bullet about 4 in. long, which is fired from a rifle made for the purpose. the bullet containing also an explosive substance con nected with a fuse, which is kindled as the rifle is tired, so that bursts iimmedintely after penetrating the whale, and spreads its deadly contents through the flesh. The bullet is made of zinc, because it breaks into fragments more angular than 1 any other metal. The success of this method has beets found to be perfect, but sailors object to its use, dreading to touch the carcass of a whale which has been killed by so powerful a poison, for a whale struck by a bullet charged with prussic acid only dis appears for about five minutes, and rises to the dead. Strychn' la has been used in stead of prussic acid, and with similar results, The lance used for killing the whale h r, 1 kerally a blade 5 or 6 in. long, and 24. or 3 in. broad, with sharp elating edges, and a Iona wooden handle. ' The ships fitted out for the northern whale-fishery are generally screw steamers, from 400 to 000 tons burden. To protect them from injury ice, they are fortified of with an additional series of planks, iron plates, and a fake or tee stem, on the sides of which are blocks of wood filling up the concavity ii and The stern is also by of half-inch iron; the stein and many timbers and stanchions are added in the interior of the vessel, great strength being a more important requisite than fast sailing. Each ship has generally six or seven boats. from 23 to 28 ft. in length, each capable of carry 6 or 7 men, with 7 or 8 C Vr t. of whale-lines, etc. The crew of a whaler consists of 40 or 50 men, each of whom, from the master to the boys. generally receives, in addition to his fixed wages, a gratuity I 1 for every caught, and a certain sum for every ton of oil produced by the cargo. Each boat carries 2 harpoons „and 6 or 8 lances. 14 hen the ship arrives in the vicinity of a whaling-ground, a look-out is stationed at the mast-head. As soon as a whale i5 discovered, the boats are lowered, and a competition ensues among their crews, all exert ing their utmost strength to reach the whale first. The harpooner is ready, as soon as i the boat is sufficiently near the whale, to hurl his harpoon with all his force; the crew instantly back the boat, and the whale generally plunges in terror to a great depth, sometime earring out more than 200 fathoms of line. It remains below for 20 minutes or more, and wheu it rises, the boats hasten to it again; it is stuck with a second harpoon, and probably, instead of at once descending, it strikes violently with its tail, to destroy its enemies, when great caution is requisite. It cannot now remain long below the sur face, and when it comes up, probably spouts blood through the blowholes. When it is lanced, it sometimes dies almost at once, but sometimes there is a terrific struggle—the water is lashed into foam, and dyed with blood. It not unfrequently happens that instead of dying at the surface of the water, the whale descends, and does not rise again, so that it is lost to the whaler. The carcass of the whale is towed by the boats to the ship, and made fast to the ship's chains. The process of (tensing is then commenced. Some of the crew, having their boots armed with iron spikes, to prevent them from slipping, descend upon the carcass, and cut into the blubber with blubber-spades, remov ing a broad strip or blanket of skin, 20 or 30 ft. long, which is hoisted to the deck by means of a hook and tackle. Great cubical pieces of blubber, of half a ton or a ton in weight, are then cut out, and hoisted on deck. In this way, the process is carried on, the whale being turned over and over, that every part may be reached; till in three or four hours, the whole mass of blubber is removed from it—probably amounting to 20 or 30 tons. Meanwhile others of the crew have descended into the mouth of the whale, and removed the baleen. The remainder of the carcass is then flung adrift, and some times sinks, but often swims, in consequence of incipient putrefaction, to afford food for bears and fishes. The blubber, after being received on deck, is cut into smaller cubical pieces, and subjected at leisure to a process by which the cellular tissue is sepa rated from it. This is called making-off or trying out, and to accomplish it, the blubber is heated in a large pot, and afterward strained, the scraps or crackuels from one pot serving as fuel for another, and the ship being made filthy with smoke, soot, and grease. The product is finally stored in casks, to be conveyed home, and boiled for oil. A ton of blubber yields nearly 200 gallons of oil. A single whale often yields blubber and whalebone to the value of £700 or £800. The whalebone is subjected to no process but that of drying till it is brought home.