Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1884-09-04
WHALERS IN THE ARCTIC.
Some Interesting Facts from the
Northern Fleet - Many Whales
struck and Lost.
San FrancIscn Rnlletin

The bark Thomas Pope is on the way
down and is expected here about the
25th inst. The Beda brought down,
in total $4,000 pounds of bone and
/ 200 barrels of oil for the Pacific
Steam Whaling company. The Beda
sailed July 25. Seventy-fve whales
had been caught. While men who
have been from childhood on terms Of
familiarity with happening, bomb
lances, and other paraphernalia with
which leviathans are hunted like
aquatic game, say that the season is
yet uncertain, landsmen believe that
the prospects are good from what has
already been done and also from the
fact that the season had hardly opened
when the Beda sailed from the north.
| Whales appear to have been plenty in
the ice, but many of them were where
the ships could not go. Hundreds are
said to have been seen, spouting and
thrashing around, sight suggestive
of interest to landsmen, though bar
rem in a commercial way.
The exasperating fact to the whale
men in the present season is that
about as many whales are reported to
have been lost after being struck as
found their way to the try pots. Why
this should be particularly exasperat-
ing is this: Whales average yield
of about one hundred barrels of oil
each, and not far from eighteen hun
bred pounds of bone With bone
quoted at "a per pound and likely to
go higher if the season fails, the loss
of one whale means a loss of several
| thousand dollars alone. The steam
whaler Thrasher lost seven whales
the Bal9na and Orca each seven.
One vessel reports having seen many
dead whales. The explanation of this
is that the whales were struck" but
the boat steerers' harpoon and per
| haps a bOmb-lance were not fatal.
| When a whale starts for the ice with
a boat dragging after him, the speed
is something terrific. 1t becomes
necessary to cut loose when the sharp
ended boat comes too near the peak
The leviathian keeps on under the
ice, perhaps taking the irons and line
with him, When he dies aud drifts
out again he receives a title more
| forcible than elegant The whalers
will take him under this title so long
as there is blubber, but the oil is not
so good.
There is a little Of the character of
Notwithstanding in Arctic whal-
ing, which the present season we'll
illustrates. The whale runs into the
ice, as the woodchuck into hole, and
the whaler has to wait for the game
to come out. When the Beda left,
the ice had prevented the fleet getting
| further than Point Hope. Ordinarily,
at the corresponding date, the fleet
could have reached Point Barrow.
/ But all above Point Hope is reported
to have been filled with great masses
of grinding pack-ice. The first of the
fleet arrived at the ice April lst, and
at once attempted to enter the pack on
the west.
A steam whaler can go through four
or five feet OF pack-ice, but when it
grows thicker the obstacle is serious.
1.-THE fact is, said a mariner, speak
| ing of the Arctic fleet, that sail-ves
sells can generally do as we'll as the
steamers early in the season. But
| late in the season the steamers have
the advantage, for they can wait and
vet get out The whales were run
ming up to the ice some time before the
Beda started south, but just previous
to her sailing for several days the
weather was thick and the whalemen
were hunting leviathans in fog.
Previous to that the weather had been
clear
The vessels in the Arctic for the sea-
son Of 1854, going up this side of the
land are as follows: Bede, BalRna,
Bowhcad, Orca, Mary and Helen,
Narwbal Thrasher, Rainbow, j.
Rowland, Josephine, Young Phoenix,
! Ohio Northern Light, Fleetwing,
Hidalg0, Abraham Barker, Mars, Ma
poleon, Mabel, Eliza. Hupier, Belvi-
dere, Caleb Eaton, Sophit Johnson,
Henrietta, Yokohama, Atlantic,
Bounding Billow, Mary and Susan,
Stamboul, Francis p, Helen Mar,
Amethyst. Wanderer st. Lucretia,
Gazelle, Pope, Coral, George and
Susan, and Ocean. No accidents of
any kind are reported as having hap
pened to any Of these vessels. 1t is
remarked by one of the shippers,
writing home, that the weather has
been as remarkable for clearness this
season as it was for fog last season. 1t
is considered doubtful by some if a
whale has been ;aught since the Beda
sailed for home. The winter brought
very cold weather, with northerly and
northeasterly winds, bu: the ice was
light in Behring sea, because blown
off shore and destroyed as fast as
made. Therefore the ice encountered
was mostly spring ice. The natives
had very poor success whaling, Only
one was caught by them after the
fleet sailed away last fall, and the
prospect is that the traders will be
disappointed this season.
Some of the steamers going north
took the eastern and some OF the
western route. Those which went TO
the west did not get many, the most
of them being dead whales. The fleet
Tan cot through about the same time,
though early advices reported the
IGazel Coral. George and Susan and