Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1861-11-15
GEzS : = VALE.


ture Of a whale is from an interesting volume
entitled, Life and Adycature in the South
Pacfc, which has just been published by
Harper and Bros.
The morning of the I'D commenced
with light breezes from the northeast !;
pleasant weather Suddenly, about 4.
NJ, the monotory was broken by ;hc vel
come cry from the masthead.
''T-h-e-r-e she blows! There she
blows -
Where away -
''four points off the lee bow, sir.
How far off,
About two miles, sir. y
What does it look like?'
Sperm whale. sir
AYE, aye; sing cut every time you
heller. I"
By this time the captain was aloft. and
on taking view with=his spy glass at the
'spouts. . singing out, Sperm whales !
Call. all hands; bear hand there, and
get your boats ready" "
AYE, aye, sir, is the reply. All hands
are called, and the different crews stand
by their respective boats, all eager for the
fray, and expressing their determination
to capture whale before returning to the
ship, taking fer their motto, "a dead whale
or stove boat
q over away the boats !" shouts tho
captain, as he descends to the deck
They are instantly lowered, followed by
the crews, and now comes the tug of war
Each boat sets her sail, and the men pull
in good earnest. While they are skimming
the waves the whale is still spoutmg, and
all are anxious to reach him before his
spoutings are out. It frequently happens
when in pursuit, thas. just at the moment
the buat-steerer stands up to strike the
whale, he suddenly deseends but expert
eneed whale-man can generally tell the d.
rection they take while down by The posi-
tion OF the fukes when going down. The
boats are then pulled in the direction the
whale is supposed to have taken. They
also judge Of the distance the whale will
go under water by the velocity of the an
imal when last seen. After the beats have
pulled what is judged to be tie proper Dis
tance they ''heaye up, or cease pulling.
A large whale when not CALLED or fri. ht-
ened generally spouts from sixty to sew
enty times before going down and remains
down from fifty to sixty minutes The
boats have now got close on. Those left
on board the ship are watching with breath
less anxiety, occasionally exclaimjng, "Oh
pull boys do pull!'' Meantime the men
in the boats are bonding backs to it, but
the bow boat has the advantage, she is the
head bgat Mr., X, is jumping up and
down in the stern, crying ''once more, my
hearties give it to her a few more strokes
and We Lave him; pull my children -
Thus one moment coazing and the next
scoldng; but no one heeds him, as all are
bent upon taking the whale. ''Staad up, ;"
shouted he and the boa .teerer rose
to his feet, grasped his iron, as the boat
neared the monster, Give it to bim -
is the next cry, and chocli into the sock
ct went the frs: iron, followed as quick
as thought by the second. One deafening
cheer and the cry responded over the wa
ters, 1--WE are fast! We are fast - TIE
sea, which bat a moment before lay still
and quiet, with scarcely ripple on its
even surface. is now lashed to foam by
the writings Of the whale ''Stem all -
shouts the officer. The boat IS immediate
ly backed, aud removed from present dan
ger the officer takes the bow of the boat,
and the boat-steerer3 takes the steering oar
to manage the boat; TIE whale is sound
ing, and the line is running through the
groove in the head Of the boat, with tie
rapidity Of Lightning, and as it passes
round tie logger; cad it ig'ites by The
heat produced by friction, tut the tub
oarsman is. continually dasbiug water upon
it in the line-tub. The whale sounds deep
and the line is almost out q signal is made
to other boats, which are coming down.
They come near enough, and ben on their
lines but presently it ceases running cut
and slackens; the whale is coming to the
surface again All hands commence to
haul in the line as fast as he rises, and the
boat steerer coils it away as fast as it is
hauled in, ia the stern sheet. He soon
comes to the top Of water. and the boat is
gradually hauled up to him. Another boat
now fastens, and he again attempts to
sound but being weakened by the loss of
blood, he is soon at the surface again
The boats now drew aloRgsidc, and the Of
feer of the first boat prepares his lance =
He darts it for his vitals Gust below the
fns) and the first one proves fatal, for in
a moment be shows the ''red flag )" the
blood flows thickly from the spout holes in
a thick dark stream the sea is stained for
1900 i:-L.. II 49, no, :, tbo Lo.t.