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Rh been seen by any naturalist? Is it the Southern whale in which the Dutch whalers have thought they have recognized their 'North-Caper'? Has it disappeared since this fishery was established, like so many other kinds which have been annihilated within historic times? There is need of facts to dissipate these doubts; the best arguments do not suffice. But can one ever hope to find them for these delicate and difficult questions? In these uncertainties, zoologists, not knowing whether to think Cuvier right or the Iceland fishermen, were in great commotion some years since in respect to an event which happened in the Gulf of Gascony. This was in January, 1854. It is at this period of the year that the ancient whales arrive there regularly to take their winter station. A mother-whale, accompanied by its cub, made its appearance at St. Sebastian one day in January, and fortunately the young whale was captured. The Museum of Pampeluna made the acquisition of it. Eschricht heard this news at Copenhagen; nothing passed in the world of whales that he was not informed of. 'It is my Biscay whale,' said he; 'the species still exists.' He trembled at the idea that the treasure might escape him. He arrived at Louvain nearly at the same time as the letter by which he informed me of the news; announced to the Institute of France the motive of his passage to Paris; arrived at Pampeluna, made his way at once to the coast, and buried himself in the midst of the shore in the study of the bones of the head and of the vertebrae of this precious relic. The victory was his. This whale differed completely from that of the North. It was really a remnant of those ancient legions which once on a time visited these latitudes in numerous bands, and which have since deserted these places. On our coast the whales stranded since the beginning of this century have been far from numerous, and we could easily enumerate them. Several years since,. . M. de Selys-Longchamps mentioned them in his Belgian 'Fauna.' There are but two balenoptera; the one of Kessels, found dead at sea in 1827 by the Ostend fishermen,