San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1882-09-07
A SUCCESSFUL WHALE HUNT.
The Chase and Capture OF Levlathan In IN, d.
clac, on Monterey, Cal.
From the San Francisco Chronicle.

| Tie thAso anu 'Aptuio VI u Le'athan In the pa.
einc, on Monterey, Cal.
From the San Francisco Chronicle.
When within two hundred yards q,
the whale we saw that the little blacL
thing by the monsters side was her calf
Capt. Mariana seeing fair mark Quick.
ly fired the swivel gun. A sharp re-.
port followed aud the boat quivored nm.
der the shock for full half minute
Following the sound the harpoon could
be seen cleaving the twenty iathoms az
space between the boat and the wbale
in which il was buried ont of sight inst
below the right fore fin. Following and
attached to the steel missile was some
two hundred feet OF the stout line coiled
in the bow, which bore the appearance
of a flesh of dark-brown tightening as
it zgzagged through the air after lis
powerful motor. The wonderful leyia.
than lay almost motionless for period
of twenty-five seconds, as il unable To
comprehend the nature of the attack.
and then, with snort, like the puff of
locomotive, she descended beneath
the surface ut rate that made the ma.
nilla line smoke and emit sparks OF fire
as il ran out over the bows.
Suddenly the movement stopped; the
men bent to their ores, ready to pull in
either direction at the first sight of an
uprising on the part of the invisible
monster. Capt. Mariana peered unea.
sy into the blue deeps forward, the boat.
steerer performing similar office
astern. "Pasha pratrisl" Back alb
suddenly shouted the captain, and five
oarsmen sent the boat astern just in
time to clear by couple of fathoms
the black, ugly hulk of the infuriated
whale, as it rose to the surface and
spouted twin columns of water forty
feet in the air, q bucket or two of the
briny fluid seeking out the back of the
reporters neck for a resting place as it
descended. Before the animated water.
spout could repeat the dose the boat
was out of range; both of his fre.ex.
tinguishipg apparatus and his terrible
hukes were now beginning to thrash
the water with violence that created
cloud of foam.
This performance lasted for two or
three minutes, during which the captain
was unable to obtain safe shot at the
whale with the bomb-gun, which is
raised to his shoulder more than once
only to lower it again in despair. Sud-
denly the tail ceased it's exercise, and
the next instant jerk was felt that
buried tho bow of the boat in white.
cap caused by the lightenipg-like de-
scent of the whale. Barely had the
stanch craft righted itself after the
shock than q second tug was felt, and
before the despairing reporter could Of.
fer up fear-inspired prayer the boat
was dashed through the water at ter.
rible rate. The speed was frightful,
and for ten minutes the water stood in
a wall fully eighteen inches above the
forward gpnwale on each side of the
boat, the velocity preventing even
single drop from entering the interior.
At the end of the time mentioned
fully four miles of the distance between
where the animal was struck and the
head of the bay had been covered, and
the speed of the living tug began to
slacken Through exhaustion. Finally it
ceased altogether, and after spouting
a strong jet of bloodr red tinge the
stricken mother once more sounded.
Her stay underneath the waves was Of
short duration, and on reappearing on
the surface her movements were only
sufficient to keep the gigantic carcass
ahoat Pulling up to within five faith
oms of the whale the men rested on
their oars. Ten seconds later Capt.
Mariana had his chance; a second ex-
plosion was heard and the rubber
winged bomb buried itself in the mass
of bluSber. Scarcely had the smoke
cleared away from the bow when the
1nuffied bomb, exploding in the historl'
cal residence OF Jonah, sounded the
death knell of the old humpback. The
victims huge bulk once more became
animated and the deadly hukes lashed
the water as the whale struggled IN the
throes of death. The waterspouts
changed into blood spouts and grew
smaller and smaller as the struggles be-
came more contracted until finally with
one last effort the leviathan rolled on
its back and expired. The reporter
heaved a sigh of relief and heartily
Joined in the crews shout of victory,
which was answered from the other
boats, by this time only few fathoms
distant.