Connecticut western news., 1881-11-23
TWENTY MILES OF WHALES.
Schools of Spermers Impede the
 Progress of Steamship.

Progress of a Steamship.
 Speaking of his last trip from New York to Havana, Captain Smadburg, commander of the iron steamship New port, said that never before had he wit messed such an adventure as there befen his vessel. When off the capes of Della ware there was encountered the largest school of whales he or, he believed, anybody else had ever seen. They were regular sperm whales. the most valuable known to commerce, and the school was from quarter to half mile wide, and fully twenty miles in length. There was millions of them-enough to load down every vessel in the port of New York. The weather was very pleasant, the sea smooth, and nearly all the pas sengers were on deck. Of course, said the Captain, everybody was amazed as well as delighted at the extraordinary exhibition. The whales were of all sizes, from babies to great fellows sixty five and seventy feet in length. Sud denly severe shock shook the steamer, and it was found that it had run on one of the whales-fully sixty feet in length striking it at right angles nearly in its middle. The headway of the vessel was not perceptibly diminished, although the shook threw every one from his feet. As the vessel struck the whale he threw up his fukes, and perfect deluge of water fell upon the deck. The sharp bow had cut the monster in two, the head coming up on the starboard and the tail on the port side.
 As the parts drifted astern, the sea was reddened with blood. The whale would have yielded 300 or 400 barrels of oil. No damage was done to anything except the steam steering gear, which was thrown out of order, the concussion having closed some of the valves. There was no alarm created, as the vessel is a staunch iron one, and there was no danger of starting any of the plates, for the whale was not coming head on, but was lying directly across the steamers path. An examination was made, and the vessel proceeded on her course, at the rate of fifteen knots an hour. The whales were seen everywhere as far as the eye could reach. When the severed head of the monster came to the sur face, it shot up six feet in the air, caus- ing astonishment among all on board the vessel.
 Ten minutes afterward another and severer shock was experienced, and the Newport had run over another and still larger whale. The mate was standing at the bow, and declares the spermer was struck squarely and cut in two, as the first one had been. The head sank and afterward rose on the port side, but the body passed under the ship. The vessel was shaken from stem to stern, and the body of the whale struck the propeller as it came from beneath the ship. The engineer rushed on deck, thinking 8 rock had been struck. The course of the vessel was then changed, and they ran out of the school without striking any more whales.
 Referring to the Eessex, whaling vessel which was sunk some time ago by an infuriated whale, which ran into and crushed the side of the vessel, the captain said that the heads of sperm whales were very hard, and could easily stave in the side of wooden vessel; but he did not think they could make any impression on the thick iron plates of craft like the Newport. When the Newport was placed in the dry dock, there was no sign of the collision to be seen, and she went into the dock merely to have her bottom repainted, as is done twice year.