Democratic Sentinel, Volume 9, Number 6, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 6 March 1885 — The Narwhal’s Horn. [ARTICLE]

The Narwhal’s Horn.

In the upper jaw of the young narwhal are lound two small tusks, which in the female regularly remain undeveloped throughout her life. In the male the left tusk prows into a spirally grooved rod, sometimes attaining the length of ten feet. A large narwhal’s tusk has no small commercial value, for the ivory is very hard and solid, will take a high polish, and keeps its beautiful whiteness a long t me. Several ingenious speculations have been made in regard to the use of this remarkable growth; killing fish for food and breaking breathing-holes through the ice are two uses suggested which fail to account for the long tusk being confined to the males. The females certainly can not live on air alone, nor without air, and they can not count on always having a male near to wait upon them. It is more probably to be accounted for by the same reasons which explain the possession of horns, tusks or mane by the males only of some land mammals. Rarely the right tusk is developed instead of the left, and sometimes the female has a weapon like that of her mate. One female has been taken with both tusks developed, one being seven feet in length, the other five inches longer. Like his fellowgladiators of the sea, the narwhal will occasionally thrust his gigantic foil into the side of a ship, where it usually breaks off, and, fitting the hole like a plug, seldom causes a leak. Narwhals are generally seen in herds of fifteen or twenty; they will come close about a ship, apparently from cu l iosity, and it is one of the most entertaining sights of the northern seas to watch them plunging about, spouting spray from their blow-holes,.and clashing their long weapons toget) er as if fencing. lar Science Monthly. Science destroys some of the most cherished popular delusions. Catgut is derived from sheep; German silver was not invented in Germany, and it contains no silver; Cleopatra’s needle was not erected by her nor in her honor; Pompey's pillar had no historical connection with that personage; seal-

ing-wax does not contain a particle of wax; the tuberose is not a nose, but a polyanth; the strawberry is hot a berry; Turkish baths did not originate, in Turkey, and are not baths at all; whalebone is not bone, and contains not any of its properties.