The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-03-25

In our knowledgeU of the skeleton VI the cetacea, there
are many regrstable gaps, not only by reason
of the frsqurnt impericctons Of the skeletons
accessible. bu, aL.D by sheer lack Of material
In the case Of manyforms particularly among the
dolphins
The nua, Of Mr Bedda RI = twelve chapters Is
Devoted 10 the external form Of whales. the most
obvious Characteristic Of the group Is Their
arcs and occasionally colossal bulk. lie begins
with this salient REGULARITY The cetacea vary In
length from barely four feet 10 al much as, 30
or So feet, butt their Dimensions have
been grossly exaggerated by modern writer's
A. we'll Las by the ~anci,nts. IL IL averrrd by MI
Beddard to DO an indisputable fact that no crea
turs known TO science ever existed which was
LARGER than the largest whale; even tn. colossal
dinosaurs Of the secondary epoch fell some feet
abort Of one spscies Of cetaceA. Actual length
measurements have been swollen by taking into
Account The bulVtng sides Of the cetaceans, and,
with this help, some astounding dimensions
have received the sanction OF persons not espe
cially credulous. Pllny held that In the Indian
Seas. a ash called r 1.1nd, or whirlpool, Is so long
and broad as 70 take up more length and breadth
than two Acres Of ground Nine hundred feet
ia another measurement given By the same writer
on natural history. A Norwegian reported TO
King Alfred that rhs best whales caught In his
own country were AZ much as fifty yards long
CLAUS Magnus allowed 900 feet in length n GER
tain -hnrsute- whales, but. when he comes to
recorded fact, he Is moro careful about his meas
urments. In a section Of his well-known work
he says that a "mons,rous fish" stranded on the
northern shores OF England In the year 1882.
or another seen on the Norwegian shore, was
90 feet in length. a measurement which may have
been accurate, since II seems To have been q Bal
eno psr,a sASaidii, which Is known 10 reach
IS feet In length.
Assuming that the whales are tho largest OF
all animals. mammalian or other. which have
ever existed, we are interested In seeking the
,easms for their excess OF bulk over the rest Of
the animal world. Mr.. Beddard points out va
riou, CAUSES which seer, To have contributed
10 The acquisition Of q mighty frame. In tho
first plaza, the medium in which the animal lives
mus, havc had SOMETHING TO do with II. Aquatic
creatures. naturally, have less difficulty IN sus-
tanning a colossal bulk than have animals which
live in a less dense medium. We observe, In
fact. . distinct relation between size and habitat.
The blue SHARK st,ains . length Of %
feet: specimens Of CeVcho~odon have been meas-
ured over 40 feet in length whls. OF the genus
Rh,nodon. examples Of SO, 90 or even 70
feet In length. hAve bssn described On Via other
hand, purely volAnt animals, such A. bats, birds
and pterodactyles have far greater difficulty In
sustaining themselves In the air: hence, thee
classes OF animals are relatively small. Mr..
B>daard can believe in Aspvornn. but he can
not accept the legendary flying Roc. The middle
position is occupied by mammals. which require
more muscular effort 10 stand or crawl than do
aquatic creatures. but not nearly 80 much as do
aerial. Their size Is In correspondence ~ their
habitat. The mastodor and the grs4 Ground
sloths were larger than any pterodactyi or bird.
but not 80 large ~ whales. The dinoeSurs are
thought by some . have been at least partially
aquatic, and 10 have trequrntsd marshes and
estuaries. Yet, whether or no they were purely ter
~res,rial, they did not acquire the same colossal
Dimensions as do some whales, unless . newly
discovered dinosaur he an exception, II Ii also
10 be noted that size seems 70 DO propsruonabls
10 the completely Of a creatures Organization
The simplest Of all living creatures. ths psotozoA
are, a, the same time, the smallest. Vutebrates
srow 10 q larger size than invertebrates, and
mammals. as represented by whales. are the
riants Of the animal creation Other circumstances
favorable to large increase In as are freedom
from foes and abundance Of food, together with
the facility Of procuring It, II Is only 81 the cost
of great expenditure Of force that the ttgsr or
lion hunts down an antelope or deer. whereas
the whale gulps in huge mouthiuls Of whale
food" with ease and comfort Protected by ts
thick covering Of fat, It does not readily fall .
victim to any foes. indeed. the only powerful
enemy that it has Is the Killer whale. ONO, and
IL is not always that 8 Greenland whale euecumbs
70 a shoAl Of those marine tigers.
II.
Next 10 the bulk Of whales. their shape In their
most striking characteristic In the popular mind.
They are all 'lshlile,- with taponnR body.
biz hukcs, one pair OF paddles, no apparent YES.
uges Of hind limbl, no external ear. tiny sysa.
and black. OF black and white colorauona. One
rea son for uniformity Of shape In the cas- Of whales
Is obvious, namely. that they live under uniform
conditions, whereas terrestrial mammals live
under widely varying conditions. Whales no. only
oil live in the sea or In Overs but they spend
d great deal Of their time below the surface. and are
nearly all animal feeders. Ii seems. moreover.
that a diversity Of temperatures has bu, little
effect In producing differences among the cetacea,
for it is q well-eetabllshed fac, that the majority
Of whales range freely over wide stretches Of ocean,
the same species occurring In such widely separated
localities as Tasmania and the coast Of Britain.
II is welEknosn thai the fuLes Of the whale.
which form Its tail, nre set at right angles 10 the
plane Of tho body, and not vertically. as In fishes.
II has been noticed that tho two halves Of the
tail I'm have surface, which are not preci sely
parallel TO ZACH other, They have, In fact. a
screw like forr:, one half being convex upward,
the other corcave. capt Scoresby observed
Of the Gr~enland whals that It Is by means o,
thet.l principally th,, the whale advances through
the water, Tho greatest velocity u produced by
powerful strosos against the water, impressed al
ternately upward and downward, but a slower
motion. 1t Is believed V effected hy cutting u,