[...] and every one knows that some young bucks among the epicures, by continually dining upon calves' brains, by and by get to have a little brains of their own, so as to be able to tell a calf's head from their own heads; which, indeed, requires uncommon discrimination.
So, by dining upon whale brains, the "young bucks" themselves acquire more brains... as a result of which they become more and more discriminating... to the point that they can then distinguish a calf's head from their own heads.
Seems clear enough to me: The author is claiming (quite facetiously, I might add!) that dining upon whale brains increases the diner's I.Q.!
And the hypothesis that this passage may have alluded to some neurological disease spread by eating brain matter (vCJD)? Preposterous!
Regards,
Trumpinator is correct in his interpretation! = I have an education filled with the writings of dead white men’s words. You know, the good stuff.
As you say.