Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1878-07-29
CAPTURING A GRAMPUS.
One OF the Most FerOelOuE and
Formidable Inhabitants of the
Ocean.

One of the Most FeTOeiOuS ana
Formidable Inhabitants of the
Ocean.
Toronto GlObo.l
On Thursday last an unprece-
dented arrival in our harbor (St
Johns, N. F.,) took place. Two
grampuses Of large size were OBJ
served spouting with great vigor
and dashing about in a bewildered,
frantic manner in the waters of the
harbor. They had, probably, been
tempted to pass the narrow en-
trance of the harbor while in pur-
suit Of caplin, which are now around
the coast in enormous shoals. After
a time one of them escaped and
made its way to sea, but the other,
being pursued by a boats crew from
her majcsty's steamship Sirius, with
a view to capture it, headed for the
western side of the harbor, and at
length got entangled in some piles
and became completely powerless,
its tail having become fast between
two stakes. Ropes were passed
around it and it was dragged ashore,
where it soon died. 1t proved to
be a full-sized grampus, twenty-five
feet four inches in length and fifteen
feet in girth at its thickest part.
Its mouth, when opened, disclosed
an array of powerful teeth, forty
four in number, large, conical and
somewhat hooked, those farthest
back being flattened somewhat at
the summit. Its tail is seven feel
in width, and forms a very powerful
propeller. The head is short anC
round, the lower jaw somewhat ben
upward. 1t has three fns-tw,
pectorals, large and oval, and a dor
sal nearly on the middle of it
body. The color of the skin on tn
back is a deep black, the sides an,
abdomen being white. Over tn,
eye is a large white patch.
Thus it will be seen that th
grampus is a formidable animal
5 nearly half the size of the Green
land whale. 1t is seldom seel
around these shores, its fayorlte re
sort being Greenland and Davl
Strait. 1t is sometimes seen il
small herds in the British seas, bu
G it is rarely captured. 1t is on rec
g ord that one was captured in til
e Thames, in 1850, which was "A fee
: in length; two more in 1?,72, an
another in 1888, which measured 3
S feet in length. One was taken i
|, Lynn harbOr in 1929, and was di
/. patched with much difficulty by
t crowd of boatmen. One of thoi
t taken in the Thames, in 1772, wa
e pierced with three harpoons, an
i pulled the attached boat twice fror
Il Blackwell to Greenwich at the raj
+ of eight miles an hour, against til
If tide. SO long as it was alive n
# boat could venture to approach i
c and the dying efforts Of this formid
" able creature were very terrible.
n WAS finally killed opposite Greer
: wich hospital. Had it not bee
is that its tail was caught in the wa
o | have described, between two pos
is near a wharf, this specimen woul
have escaped, as there was no AZ
pliances ready for its capture.
The grampus is u voracious an
q warlike creature, devOuring in
>. mense quantities of cod, herring
n halibut and skate. 1t attacks Il
# porpoises and dolphins, and max
: fierce war on seals, 1t is said thi
, small herd of them frequently a
J.; tack a true whale, tearing lary
,. mouthfuls of flesh with their POI
# orful teeth, like 80 many mastiI
70 around a wild bull, and covering
=. with blood and wounds till the gre
h giant of the deep sucoumbs to
n more agile foes.