fell in with a school of whale; took about 100 barrels of oil. Saw no more until off the coast of Japan. While on our way we took fish of many kinds, caught many dolphins, one of the beautiful inhabitants of the sea. "The general length of this fish appears to be about two feet. In its shape it bears little resemblance to the representation of it seen on vases and in marine emblems and armorial bearings, but is very similar to[98] the white salmon-trout of the Otsego. When swimming in the water its colors appears exceedingly delicate and beautiful. The head, back, and upper part of the sides, vary from the hues of burnished steel to that of deep azure and mazarine blue, shading off in the under parts in pea-green and light yellow. One was struck with a harpoon and brought on deck, and we all hastened to witness the reported splendor of its colors when dying. We found them to be as truly beautiful as they have been described; consisting of rapid transitions from the deepest purple approaching to black, through blue, green, gold of different hues, and several shades of silver, to an almost snow white, and then to purple again. The sight however was painful, from a kind of sympathy with the beautiful sufferer, we could but feel that the gratification of our curiosity was at the expense of its life. The colors soon became less and less brilliant, and in five minutes entirely disappeared." The flying fish also attracted much attention. Many of them were taken as they flew on deck. They are of a slender proportion, about six inches long; they sometimes spring into the air even to the height of sixteen or eighteen feet, and swim horizontally through the air twenty or twenty-five feet, when they again fall into their native element. When under the surface they are incessantly pursued by dolphins, and while in the air they become the prey of sea gulls and other sea fowls, which are hovering over the sea in quest of food. A person ignorant of their nature would suppose them birds of small size, for like swallows they move by thousands in a right line, and always in a direction opposite that of the waves. [99] At the island of Niphon we took several whale and blackfish; we also spoke several whale ships while cruising there. One day while in company with the ships, we saw a large school of whales at a distance. The boats were immediately lowered and all gave chase. We only took one, while some took two or three. One was taken along side and preparation made for boiling the oil. While in the midst of it a heavy squall arose from the northeast blowing like a perfect hurricane, threw our ship upon her beam ends, and sent the oil out of the pots, which were full, on to the men, severely scalding them.