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Of the Monstrous Pictures of Whales

           Idonotwishtoseeminelegant,butthisunsightlywhalelooksmuchlikeanamputatedsow;and,asforthenarwhale,oneglimpseatitisenoughtoamazeone,thatinthisnineteenthcenturysuchahippogriffcouldbepalmedforgenuineuponanyintelligentpublicofschoolboys.

           Then,again,in1825,BernardGermain,CountdeLacepede,agreatnaturalist,publishedascientificsystemizedwhalebook,whereinareseveralpicturesofthedifferentspeciesoftheLeviathan.Allthesearenotonlyincorrect,butthepictureoftheMysticetusorGreenlandwhale(thatistosaytheRightwhale),evenScoresby,alongexperiencedmanastouchingthatspecies,declaresnottohaveitscounterpartinnature.

           Buttheplacingofthecap-sheaftoallthisblunderingbusinesswasreservedforthescientificFrederickCuvier,brothertothefamousBaron.In1836,hepublishedaNaturalHistoryofWhales,inwhichhegiveswhathecallsapictureoftheSpermWhale.BeforeshowingthatpicturetoanyNantucketer,youhadbestprovideforyoursummaryretreatfromNantucket.Inaword,FrederickCuvier’sSpermWhaleisnotaSpermWhale,butasquash.Ofcourse,heneverhadthebenefitofawhalingvoyage(suchmenseldomhave),butwhencehederivedthatpicture,whocantell?Perhapshegotitashisscientificpredecessorinthesamefield,Desmarest,gotoneofhisauthenticabortions;thatis,fromaChinesedrawing.AndwhatsortoflivelyladswiththepencilthoseChineseare,manyqueercupsandsaucersinformus.

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