At the mouth of the Nazareth the savage saw-fish is found. It is no doubt one of the most formidable, and the most terrible of the animals that live in the water.
I was quietly paddling in a little canoe, when my attention was drawn to a great splashing of water a little way off. I saw at once it was a deadly combat between two animals. All round the water was white with foam. The cause of this could not be two hippopotami fighting, for in that case I should have seen them.
I approached cautiously, having first made my two rifles ready in case of an emergency. At last I came near enough to see an enormous saw-fish attacking a large shark. It was a fearful combat; both fought with desperation. But what could the shark do against the powerful saw of his antagonist?
At last they came too near my canoe. I moved off lest they might attack my canoe, for they would have made short work of my small, frail boat; and a single blow of the saw-fish would have disabled me. Each tooth of the saw must have been two inches long, and there were, I should say, forty on each side; the saw was about five feet long. In the end, the saw-fish, more active than the shark, gave him a terrible blow, making his teeth go right through the flesh of the shark. Several such blows were quickly delivered, and all became still, the foam ceased, and the water resumed its accustomed stillness. I paddled towards the scene, when suddenly I saw, at the bottom of the river, what I recognised to be a great shark; it was dead, and lay on its back, showing its belly. The body was frightfully lacerated.
The saw-fish had killed its antagonist, and left the field of battle, and only the blood of the shark stained the water.
In the bay of Cape Lopez, in the month of July, I could see whales playing about in every direction, and sending water high into the air.
They come at that time of the year with their young; and the water of the bay being very quiet, they enjoy there the sea, and the young whales get strong before they go into the broad ocean. Very pretty it looks to see them swimming by the side of the big mothers.
Year after year the whales came, always in July; but one year the whalers found them out, and made war upon them; and now, when July comes, they are no more to be seen, for the whale is very intelligent, and knows well the places where he is not safe; so they look out for some other unfrequented bay wherein to play and train their young.
Besides the whale, all the year round can be seen what the sailor commonly calls the bottle-nose, an enormous fish, not so big as a whale, but nevertheless of great size. It is of the whale family.
