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[[pencil]] 4 [[/pencil]] Tuesday, June 19, 1860 By observations we are now in Lat. 51° - 18' - 00" N Long. 49 - 12' - 17" To-day saw several of the largest size Whale - Balæma Physalis - called "Sulphur-bottoms" by the whalers. It is indeed the [[underlined]] King of fishes [[/underlined]] tho this term applies to the Whale family in general. The Capt. was on the point of lowering when he 1 [[superscript]] st [[/superscript]] saw the spouting of these whales, but on recognition of the species he turned his attention to something else. The Physalis - or Sulphur bottom - is a very difficult kind to capture, the whalers seldom even venturing in their chase. It is less quiet & tranquil in its movements than the Mystecetus or Greenland whale & when wounded becomes furious, making an approach to it dangerous. Its flight when struck by the harpoon is exceedingly [[end page]] [[start page]] [[pencil]] 5 [[/pencil]] rapid & is so long sustained that it is very diffult - generally impossible - to tire it out. For those reasons, coupled with the exposure of great loss of whale lines, harpoons & other gear, [[strikethrough]] it [[/strikethrough]] Capt. Buddington never attempts to approach this whale. The "game is not worth the cost & risk", for the blubber ^[[insertion]] & bone [[/insertion]] of the Physalis [[pencil strikethrough]] is [[/pencil strikethrough]] ^[[pencil insertion]] are [[/pencil insertion]] indifferent in quality & quantity. I had a fine view of these monsters of the deep as they came within pistol-shot of the vessel. It was a grand sight to me to see a fish - [[underlined]] "Is a Whale a fish?" [[/underlined]] - about 100 feet long, propelling itself quietly along through the waters as though it was but an humble Mountain trout. [[underlined]] Kings [[/underlined]] move majestically - with a proud strut to their gait - their heads high up - their ears wide open to catch the loud applause of their subjects, but these Whales, tho a thousand times as large as any [[underlined]] man- [[/underlined]] King & probably many thousand times more valuable to mankind [[strikethrough]] in general [[/strikethrough]] [[underlined]] if caught [[/underlined]], moved [[margin pencil note]] 170 [[/margin]]
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Transcribed pencil notes as in different handwriting and TC will want to know this