The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction, Vol. 20, No. 577 | Page 6

feet; the girth of one is 11 ft. 7 in.
and its branches extend 50 feet; the girth of the other is 8 ft. 7
in.--Chester Chronicle.
* * * * *
GIGANTIC WHALE.
The skeleton of the whalebone whale which was cast ashore at North
Berwick last year, and whose measurement so far exceeds the ordinary
dimensions of animated nature as positively to require to be seen before
being believed, is now in course of preparation, and we believe will be
set up in such a manner as to enable scientific men to examine it with
every advantage. The baleen (commonly called whalebone) has been
prepared with infinite care and trouble, and will be placed in its original
section in the palate. If there be one part more remarkable than another,
it is the appearance of the baleen, or whalebone, when occupying its
natural position; the prodigious quantity (upwards of two tons), and, at
the same time, mechanical beauty connected with every part of the
unique mass, rendering it beyond the power of language to describe, or
give the slightest idea of it. The skull, or brainbone, was divided
vertically, with a view to convenience in moving the head (this portion
of the skeleton weighing eight tons). This section displayed the cavity
for containing the brain; and thus some knowledge of the sentient and
leading organ of an animal, the dimensions of whose instruments of
motion fill the mind with astonishment, will at last be obtained. Results,
unexpected, we believe, by most anatomists were arrived at. The cavity
(a cast of which will be submitted to the anatomical public) was gauged

or measured in the manner first invented and recommended by Sir
William Hamilton, and under that gentleman's immediate inspection;
the weight of the brain, estimated in this way, amounts to 54 lb.
imperial weight. The brain of the small whalebone whale, examined by
Mr. Hunter (the specimen was only 17 feet long), weighed about 4 lb.
10 oz.; the brain of the elephant weighs between 6 lb. and 7 lb.; the
human brain from 3 lb. to 4 lb. The total length of the whale was 80
feet; and although Captain Scoresby mentions one which he heard of
which was said to measure somewhat more than 100 feet, it is
extremely probable that this measurement had not been taken correctly.
The whale examined by Sir Robert Sibbald, nearly a century ago,
measured exactly 78 feet; "fourteen men could stand at one time in the
mouth; when the tide rose, a small boat full of men entered
easily."--Scotsman.
[The total length of the whale found dead on the coast of Belgium, in
1827, and whose skeleton was exhibited in London, during last year,
was 95 feet.--See Mirror, vol. xviii. p. 104.]
* * * * *
FALLS OF THE GENESEE.
[Mr. Fergusson, in his Notes made during a visit to the United States
and Canada, in 1831, thus refers to the Genesee Falls, engraved in No.
562 of The Mirror, p. 97 of the present volume.]
Rochester is well known to all who take an interest in America, as a
remarkable instance of what may be done in the way of transition, and
as exhibiting in its streets a perfect sample of the progress from stumps
to steeples. It is certainly an interesting place, and presents a busy scene
of manufacturing and commercial enterprise. My time being limited, I
immediately procured a cicerone, and proceeded to walk over the town,
concluding with the banks of the river, where there is a powerful fall
upon the Genesee, about 90 feet in height, forming a most romantic
scene, and which may be fairly denominated the parent of Rochester, as
the mill power which it supplies has brought the whole affair into
existence. There are also sulphur springs and baths in the town of some

repute.
A splendid aqueduct carries the canal here across the river by ten
arches. It is also at present in contemplation to unite the Genesee and
Alleghany rivers, by a canal of more than 100 miles in extent, and
which would open up a valuable trade with the upper part of the Ohio
Valley. I have no doubt that it will be carried into effect, or perhaps a
railroad substituted. Close upon the verge of the precipice at the fall, is
observed a small islet or green knoll, from whence poor Sam Patch
took his final plunge. Sam, it would seem, was no subscriber to the
tenets of the Temperance Society, for upon this occasion his
perceptions were far from being clear; and having neglected to spring
in his usual adroit style, the unlucky wight never again appeared. The
interest which this poor creature excited, both here and at Niagara, was
astonishing. His very exit (than which nothing could