Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1885-08-19
A TALE FOR THE MARINES
The Yarn that a Guileless Old
Sea Captain Spins.
How Big Whale Towed Boats Grew
Many Miles to Land.

A flag with perpendicular bars of
red and white floats over the roof of a
large building in town, says a Nan
tucket (Mass.) letter to the New
York San. The building Is the Gus
tom House, so called through tradition,
for no vessel ever enters this port from
foreign lands now, and there can be
no customs to collect. 1t is conducted
by number Of suLerannuated old
sea captains, who smoke all day and
weave tremendous sea yarns for the
benefit of any city man who may
chance along. One weatherbeatel old
salt told prize story lately and now
the others are racking their brains for
something to surpass him, lie said;
81 left Nantucket on May Is, 1871,
as second mate of the snug bark Anna
SnowdOD, Capt. Keziah Coffin, bound
for the Pacific Ocean. Pm not going
to tell you of our trip around the
Horn, although that was rather lively
and we did lose two men overheard,
but will get right down to the bottom
facts of what started in to tell. We
had already killed two big whales, and
were poking around about four hun
dred miles north of the Sand wiCh Is
lands, when we sighted big fellow
ALLOWING not mile away. The first
mate and myself put off in two boats,
but / had the likellest crew, and
struck the whale Grst-struck him
hard, too, because he was spouting
blood in five minutes Just then we
saw another whale and the first mate
put out after that one. The bark
tried to beat up in our direction, but a
squall came on and we lost sight OF
her. The waves were so big that we
should have been capsized if we had
not kept to the leeward of the whale,
which we had killed before the sQuall
struck us. Its big carcass formed a
sort of brcakwater. Besides that the
oil that ooled from its wounds seemed
to quiet the waves. We were afraid
some big waves would throw the
whale on top of us, but by keeping the
oars going we managed to stay at a
safe distance.
"When the storm passed over not a
sign of the bark was to be seen. There
we were anchored to whale ont in the
middle Of the Pacific Ocean, with not
more than two days ratiOns of bread
and water for the seven men in that
little boat. We waited all that day in
hopes of seeing the ship, and at night
we burned some blubber on the back
of the whale, but no help came. When
morning came and no sail could be
seen, we knew that there was no hope
of finding our vessel again, and there
was nothing to do but topull away
in the direction of the Sandwich Is
lands, trusting to reach them before a
violent storm should overwhelm US.
We cut our harpoons out of the whale,
because we didn't know when we
might need them. There is one of
them in the corner there now. Guild
ing the boat with compass which |
always carried with me, we pulled
away for the Sandwich Islands. We
made forty miles that day. and the
men were terribly tired We slept by
watches, off and on, and by pulling
now and then perhaps gained ten
miles during the night. The next
day the men were worn out, aud the
sun was 50 hot that they could not
work their oars. Our chances of
reaching land seemed very poor.
Toward noon | was standing on the
bow of the boat looking around in
hopes of seeing sail, when l saw a
lin.back whale come to the surface not
more than 200 yards away. 1t was no
use to us now, but the whaleman
instinct was too strong within Inc to
be resisted.
"Giye way l cried. There she
blows
"Ipicked up harpoon, and as the
prov of the boat almost touched the
whale l drove the point deep into its
side. 1t failed to reach u vital point,
and away the big fellow wcot, The
line ran out SO fast at first that it made
the rail smoke, and | raised the hatcbet
ready to cut it, for feared the whale
would draw us under. Put the strain
slackened after little until there was
only moderate pull, and giving the
end twist around rOwlock let the
whale tow us along
"'This is better nor rowing said
one.
"'Yes, and he's going in the right
direction said another.
"They were quito right. The whale
was taking us in tho right direction
we wished to 60 at the rate Of fully
twenty miles an hour. We bowled
along merrily all that afternoon, and
about E o'clock we heard hail, and
saw, not far away, the mates boat.
"IIold on + they cried.
"We can't. Throw us a line,' re.
piled.
ave caught their line as we swept
by, and then the wha had two boats
in tow. The men in the other boat
/ were worse off than we had been, as
they had pulled longer. They had
given up hope when we came along
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