Within the Deep | Page 9

suckers. It holds and tears its prey at the same
time. Its staring eyes are like big black lanterns on each side of the head.
The head twists this way and that, so that nothing escapes the glare of
those horrible eyes.
Lurking in the dark depths of the sea, these Giant Cuttles wait for large
fish, Crabs, or even their own relations, to come near. Like hideous,
gigantic Spiders, they are the terror of the ocean caverns. They are so
large that they have few enemies to fear. Indeed, it is surprising that
any animal dares to attack such a monster, but that other giant, the
Sperm Whale, dives deep to the home of the Cuttles, purposely to
attack and eat them.
The Sperm Whale must attack these big creatures in order to get
enough food. He has such a huge, barn-like body to fill, that only these
big Cuttles will satisfy him. Whale-hunters sometimes catch a glimpse

of terrific combats between these giants of the deep. The Sperm wins
the battle, for he is nearly always found to contain great pieces of the
ogre's arms.
Although the Octopus and the Cuttle are related to the Snail and Whelk,
they have no shell. Their bodies are naked. Neither do they grow a
backbone, or skeleton; but, inside the body, the Cuttle has a plate of
chalk, which you may find on the shore. Some kinds have a long strip
of transparent substance, like a large feather. Fishermen use the smaller
kinds of Cuttle as bait. You will find it quite easy to cut out the "beaks"
and "bone" for yourself, or the fishermen will not mind saving them for
you.
EXERCISES
1. What is the meaning of the words "mollusc" and "octopus"? 2. How
does the Octopus capture its prey? 3. How does the Octopus escape its
enemies? 4. What creatures prey on the Cuttle and Octopus?

LESSON VI
THE WHALE
Now and again Whales are washed up on our coasts, and then we can
see how huge is this strange monster of the deep. It is by far the largest
of all living animals. Once on the land it is quite helpless; it cannot
regain its home in the waters, and slowly dies. It is shaped like a fish,
and its home is in the sea, so no wonder it has often been called a fish.
If by chance the Whale is held under water, it drowns. It has no gills,
like those of the fish, to take air from the water; it is a mammal, a
creature that must breathe the free air just as other mammals. Nature is
full of surprises. And here she surprises us with a mammal most
marvellously fitted to live a fish-like life.
The Whale dives to great depths in search of food, and stays under
water for a long time. But it is forced to rise again, and breathe at the

surface. To do this, it need not put its head and mouth out of water, for
its nostril is at the top of the head.
As the Whale forces used-up air from its nostril--or "blow-hole," as it is
called--it mixes with water; this causes a jet or spout of water to rise
some distance into the air. The blow-hole is closed by a stopper or
valve, opening to let the air in or out, but closing to shut out the water.
Some of the Whale family are enormous, and some are small. A large
Sperm Whale may grow to be ninety feet long, and its weight would be
nearly two hundred tons! This huge creature would look like a deep
barge in the water.
These Sperm Whales love to swim in herds, or schools. As many as
three hundred have been seen in one school, old "bulls" and "cows,"
and their young ones swimming together far out at sea. It has been
noticed that they all spout, or breathe, at the same time, and then dive
to great depths. The old ones seem to know that their babies cannot stay
under water as long as a full-grown Whale can, and they all rise at the
same time. These youngsters may be nearly thirty feet long; but they
gambol like so many kittens, twisting and turning over and over, and
throwing themselves into the air. Most Whales are happy creatures,
enjoying their roving life in the free ocean.
You can well imagine that a Whale as big as a barge needs huge
dinners. We should not be far wrong if we guessed that he would need
about a ton of food every day. Where is he to get all that food? It is said
that he feeds mostly on the Cuttle-fish, that giant cousin of the Octopus,
who haunts the dim caverns