Morris tribune., 1885-09-09
Supplement.
CAPT PEAKS STORY
The Capture of a Whale in heavy gale of
wind

contents of an old Boston paper, We
turned instantly to the shipping news,
and our eyes caught the following:
Lost off Marthy's Vineyard in the
gale of Tuesday, the whaling bark
Sarah. of New Bedford, Capt. Peaks.
The Sarah was two days out from
New Bedford and was cap
sized during the gale. Three men be-
longing to the crew, were taken from
the wreck by q pilot-boat."
This article brought back to us
host of recollections of the dead
captain and his little old fashioned
bark. We had known him for some
wears, and as he was considered one of
the finest whalemcn then sailing from
New Bedford, we looked up to him
as a sort of hero, and one of no mean
order at thai. Whalemen who sailed
from New Bedford in 1870 remember
him as u young man of medium height
broad shouIdered and active with
bright blue eyes, and Il massive head
that possessed q covering ofcoarse red
hair. One little bald spot about the size
ola silver dollar gave an odd look to
this very red pate, and was often the
cause of a joke amongst his friends.
The writer remembers his explanation
gifts requirement upon one occasion.
81 got the hair worn off in that spot
when l was boy, on my first voyage
hunting around the bottom OF my
chest after my OUTFIT In explanation
we might say that greenhands sailing
from New Bedford often complained
of the rather limited amount Of cloth
ing they received at the beginning of
voyage, and it got to be q current
remark amongst them "that what one
didn't find in his chest, he could al
ways find in his bill."-CaptainP Peaks
was capital story teller, and we
have often listened TO him while re-
lating some of his adventures with
Sperm whales. We remember OH one
occasion listening to story of his
and we will try and give it to our
readers. 1t was as follows:
s'In 1869 or thereabout | was second
mate of a little New Be dford bark
named the Edward Everett. Jake
Black, of Edgarton, was master, and
Rob Macy, of Nantucket was chief
mate. We were cruising OFT Juan
Firnandez on the coast of Chilli. 1t is
very rough place in the months of
July and August, and most OF the
whalemen had left that point for
fair cruising on the "oft shore
ground" about 500 miles west from
the coast of Peru. We had taken 300
barrels of oil after leaving Conception
Bay, and were anxious to make
big haul, so as to be "hige catch"
when he should go into port IN De-
cember. But the weather was fear
full, I never saw anything like it be-
fore or since, and so it bad been de-
cided that if the weather did not inn
prove in another week, we would
square Yards and run for the "otf
shore ground"
It had been blowing very hard all
the night before. and when morning
broke it found us laying under very
short sail. with decks as white as the
constant breaking OF the
seas over the weather rail could make
them, all of the watch on deck were
sitting under the house aft trying to
keep dry Otto the windward Juan
Fernandez some twenty miles distant
was plainly to be seen, and between
US and the land flashed and gllstened
in the morning sun as rough sea as
1 eyer saw. 1t was a choppy sea too
one that you know is capable of rails
ing racket, and one that us sailors
dread more than anything else. hae
ordered one of my watch into the
rigging TO see if he could make ou
any sails near us. The mans fee
hardly touched the sheer pole wher
he shouts one, "Mr. Peaks, there's
hundred barrel Sperm whale, righ
under the vessels STERN" and sur'
enough not fifty yards astern of thu
vessel, was as handsome an old square
head as you ever saw. He was head
ing off before the wind, and the blu
waves rolled and rippled over his lon'
brown body, and never
wave broke near him. In his wax
was streak ten yards wide, which ex
tended to windward some little dis
lance, and I know from the rate @
speed lac was running that he cOul
not have been on top of water Ions
I Jumped to the cabin companio
way and shouted to the captain, tia
there was a hundred barrel whal
under the stern. He awoke from OF
of sound sleep, and not knowing th
state of the weather, yelled back
me ito hoist and swing and lower III
boat and see if couldn't spike hill
before he went down." I hesitated
moment, it was blowing heavy ga
of wind and I did not know if coul
get my boat clear of the bark withol
swapping her, but the next momen
] was giving the orders to clear ava
the waist boat, and in three minut'
more we WeTeA 70 ,yator ond ,ro
LDS WdGCI duu We
pulling for the whale. How we ev
got clear of the bark is more than
can tell, seemed as though there WI
Providence in it, but we did, and v
were no sooner clear of the stern
the vessel thana big wave came rus
ing Oh Us as if to swamp us. But v
pose on it, and shot away by its fore
dashed to leeward, the foam swashil
on either side of the boat, regul
whirlpool ofspray and seeds. N
boat, thirty-foot cedar, one
Leonard's make, with high gunwal
and possessed of the floating qualiti
of cork rose and fell on every wav
and as we rose on the crest Of eat