N A T U R A L H I S T O R Y of N O R W A Y.
It is feldom heard that* they db any‘harm; for tho,! tombm.
of them foinetime^eoffie up elbfd to the fitog?boats<, ypt they
fwim away as-.foon as the people ftrike the edge of the boat
with the oar: this little alarm drives them aWay, onlefefLt.be at
the time that they .pair together, and then it is faid they will
come up to the boats with more boldnefe ; fothat they mud row.
off to avoid danger, I {hall particularize‘the manner in; which
they are caught on the coaft of Spitzberg and Greenland*. and
in Davis’s Streights, by thofe {hips that annually go thither,
and part their men into feveral boats, in order to kill them with
harpoons. This is described at large by feveral authors, but no
where more accurately than in Frederick Marten’s Travels - in:
Spitzberg- and Greenland, cap. viii. p. i io & fequ. It ;is very,
well known that their fat, and what is called Whale-bone^ which
the fafhion;rin this •cfentwy' fcas~kbaght "*Bto gftsa* efteem, arfe
very profitable articles td thofe who are concerned in the Whale,
fifhery. That neither their femen nor the brains yield ambeagreafe,
asOl. Magnus imagined,- is certSn j but the brains of the famous
Hval-Rav, or Sperma-CetL Whale,: yield the fined fperma.ceti,
as is ohferved by Th. Bartholin, in Medic.; Domed. Danor. p®
2,97 fo Tho’ die. Whale is of foch a rhondrous fize* he is often
much harrafled by (mailer Fifties,. whidr he cannot wholly! efeapev
The anonymous author of that account, which is annexed .tot
the Danifh traMatmai of Mr. Peirere’s Defcriptim: *>£ Jcekady
treats [p. 108) of a Fifli that has {harp horns on his: back ; and)
QhTerves, that with thofe weapons it tears open the- Whale’s
belly, by running under him, and then priffi^ hlihf4f ttp clofe
to him. There are feveral Birds whklr,pui&e''and^^y ithef-
Whale by the neife they make* ami will, fall upon him, and) bead
him with their beaks, when he comes to the furfasce of the
water. I and told by ow apothecaries, that the os fepisb- jn them
(hops, which the peafents here call hvakkisel, and find Heating
upon the water, is the back-bone of a. Fifh which (half be
defcribed in the following fheets, called'Sputp or. B.lek;fprute,
the Tuk-ftfh, or Sepia; which, .like the Whalerlice, dicks-
clofe to him, burrowing into bis fteftiwhen he gets to a rock,
to {cratch himfeif, he then kills them ; but their ykeiefbns ftill
remain fattened to his skin, and leave the os fepix above-
mentioned; The Spekhnggeren, or Vahnen, is alfo a fmall
Fifh of about four feet long,' and which fhall afterwards be
* "the fame is affirmed by Ol.-Wormius, iii Ms Mufeutn, p; .g t y n t h tlus addition,
that not all Whales, blit”thofe fort Chat are called Dogl}pgv; have fperma ceti iivtheir
fcull: this opinion is again c6fi‘tradjift^,d by X|V^0^rfts fjaffaeus, S?e J^hliotheque
Germanique. T . xv. p. 162, . . i f . j-t nr ‘
1 ' treated
N A T U R A L H I S T O R Y of N O R W A T. i z i
treated pjQ ^plagues , tfee -Inhale; JJf ith bis (harp and tears
great pieces of flefh p£^hiin. «jakjftg
a mod melancholy and frightful thus bittenpin order
to free hipffelf^from thefetropblefonie companions, but wilt leap
% ^n^dtr^l&'htj^litj. In thefe leaps he fometimes raifes him-
felf quite perpendicular above thafurface oLthe water* .and then
plunges.himfeif down, with fuchs/violence into, the: d'eep5 that
if ||is head drik^ .rajgauiftji any of ^hofe hjd4e%,^ksri that, are
in the fhaflows, he features his skull,;and;fotoes [i§ftmtlyi floatk|g
up/again.^dead*;j.s:ftyvidhis w e * t h i s
yrofl^E^tgreaif-iasltp he;exempt.©dualities,[and mif fcxtojiga;
and no .enemy fo inconfiderable, that|.4fi fhpuld jb^jen^ir^ly
defpifed. ■ ttjh ■ - ' ' ■;
i}r 3|§fi.de.s :;this W^ale - of enormous i Lefe forts.
we., fincf on this cdfift,; yarioUs .fmaffoCES*.. all of the- fame.^trib.® 3
as- theaTseq^adji ipr;Bu§cjb-.^ads.’di WjtalOivvyhighji^-dl^inguifhsd
by a high., buhsh; which . t j p j a n f .
load dCc h a y w h i c h ,bas< latefy^e,fn/fete|i a%:Sund5
jnxr, and. i&, all Giver v - It is remarkable
of ’the T^oldquah that, they-foy^lp j
aawd get nhdef"th^hl> l:.^hei;Sp3fiha-fajs|alj| isijfilfh
'feenih^O3 it. 1 is about tw^|yg fe|i,| k)ng?1 and (is tRe fa»llcd' of -all
belly ; this, .produces two; oyoang ones, . a^; a; birth, which | foflow
the; dam,,; ha^iging fp-tbeoSeafS-ruhder .thejbread^j! Mr* (/yi4helnr:.
■ ^risBpnji'Emnider; hf the parifli :cfr;Mahgg*f phpm( Taq^gj’ejafjly
obliged., as wglltaS yh§ pubii^ fpr,. many tpb^rva|ipn^ qH -tbe
fubjeflts of Birds and^Fifhes, relates, that he (onte© ;fa'w a tfiUa#
Whale of about 2,2 or 43 feet long, which) had a pr.qmyiewt
pyd fnout,; foi|me‘dr fomjsthing. lik^ thet heal? of- a-Goofed! thfil^e
was nevdj; feennhefhre hy ^lUm^ eft? any. pf the:. people.; that ;we(6
fp^aatbrs With: him, WhiAd % am writi^qOi^ilns/u^^} Lhiave
.another; aeooUnt alfp font ,rne; of the . fajpe. iqyf pf Fifh j.. I fhall
call it . . ipdrat^-^idt,
tpnej o§ thb uncominon fort, I;]apaj,t§hf? .■ j'WSf; ftken; at j£skevigmj
near Fridfichfhald, in the year 1750, by forpe of Col. Koloiorn-
fen’s men.; ft was Ippgth, ]an'da y6uhg.one.of. fik fegt
dong, was fcakea* out of its body. The beak makes .‘this : Whale
differ mod ' ftcm others, ;thp’ the whdfe1-' fhap'e i^ fhiSiewhat
■ ; Suridfitoef’ tbe^fitilng1 Wnii^s 4ft baught;iiij! ^e’fifetrren,
vvho A e the
to;'idie' lbore;1- and. there' he falls.an'edy:prey■ to'tE'erh':1' They!'yield;;
'deal of' tralh‘^it,di®th,e;ftefli' is nSt'lfl'tHted.
”.....' .difere'nt.