“In the case of a small Sperm Whale the brains are accounted a fine dish.”
“in flavor somewhat resembling calves’ head, which is quite a dish among some epicures; and every one knows that some young bucks among the epicures, by continually dining upon calves’ brains”
Cavles’ head, clearly differentiated from a whale’s brains, else there would be no point in saying in effect: calves’ head somewhat resembles calves’ head.
He was giving his landlubber readers a comparison of whale brains, to which they would have no familiarity, to calves’ head which they would.
In the absence of universal refrigeration, it’s very unlikely a whale’s brain would be edible by the time it made landfall from a 3 year whaling voyage, isn’t it?
All the whalers brought back was some baleen, carved sperm whale teeth and barrel after barrel incorruptible rendered whale oil, no slabs of whale steak, brains, or livers.
Although Melville does mention that locally caught right whale tongue was regarded as a delicacy in the king’s court, even that was hardly common fair his readers would know.