The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1886-08-15
1.-THE BOMB LANE.
HOW IT IS USED IN WHALE HuNr-
ING AZ MONTEREY.
u Company of Mhafe KILLER. ON the Pa
ellie Coast Shooting "a Leyiathsn-Ar
hhs"iag Iim~-A Monster in Agony
Last Shot.

A"' -'oAttieg " LdIlLg company
about the oldest institution 81 the kin,
on the coast, AMI the stock proves a Yer
TAR Investment 20 the holders. who are IN
Whale killers themselves The business
= ONCE, store room, and eating and sleepin.
+. apartments u the company are in whit.
adobe building in the western suburbs
, anu hall mile further south is a hiyI
eiin' Wherein IL the eompany's lookout
ne Il armed with powerful glass. AMI d
Tall mast " rugged with halyar,is for hoist
ing signal when game is sighted
: The hunting topls consist Of three Of
The regulation dpuhl, pointed boats in ,,se
, BY whaiers the world over. five long oar.
: u each boat, 40 fathons of line smoothly
: eoliea Ia tubs IN the bow, and two guns Ia
eaeh b'dt. lie larger size of the two has
The pt"i1'rtIotiS Of 4 young cannon and is
hio'ii4tri On pivot The missile dis
char-,e't ir',fn II l. II steel bar four feet in
length AMI provided with a folding barb
tha' ultnN "ut when the Larpoon buries
its"i IN the whale This takes the place
Ot t'se nd time harpoon, and is much
mole "tttaln and effective The lighter
gun l. Hired from the shoulder. and looks
IKE iifSe sized fowling piece Il has a
one ami IA hall inch bore. II i, used 10 nut
the hhi,hlhs touches on the whale after
thr harloIh has made him fast. and the
hethod l. to fire an explosive bomb into ,
vital spot. The bomb il one and n half
.hches Ia diameter by eighteen inches
long, the butt end being winged with rub.
Der tips, after the manner in which an
arrow Is feathered. to SECURE guiding
power
| UNCONSCIOUS OF DANGEE
! IL was early morning when the white
signal nuttered To the top of the staff Of
the mast on the cliff, and having pre
viously obtained permission To ioin the
hant with Capt Mariana, the quarter
master was speedily seated ia The stern
sneets, awaiting the signal 10 shove oil.
1his was soon given and six miles 10 the
northwest the three boats came up with
their game, which proved 10 be unusually
iarge specimen of the California gray VA
rely Inc gigantic fish rolled lazily about
on Top of the water all unconscious OF i'm.
pending danger, and did not even dcirn 10
hotice the approach Of the boats that
came upon either side and behind her A
huh'irrd icct away the men lay ON their
oars and Capt Mariana over his swivel
gun The men bent over their oars, with
every nin Gle ready to pull or back water
AZ the slightest hostile movement on the
part oil the enemy. II was a moment that
seemed nm age Of awful suspense to the
green hand, but suddenly the captain had
Iair mark presented, and pressed the
trigger The boat quiycrci under tho
shock accompanying the report. and the
eye could plainlj catch the flash Of the
narpo"h rs II cleaved the mir and buried
user out VI sight somewhere in the right .
shoulder. Attached to the steel missile
was the stout MANILA line coiled in tho
Vow ana II bore the appearance Of a flash
OF Drown lightning as IL ziuzapped
through the air after its powerful motor
Inc whale hardly seemed To compre
mend the trouble that had oyertakcn her
q trst, and II was fully half "A minuts no.
'ore she emitted an angry snort and
started Tor the bottom at a rate that made
'he line smoke and emit sparks ~ it ran
over the bows Both the captain aud the
Doat steerer peercd uneasily into the clear
depths AS the line stopped running ont.
and minute later the former shouted.
Hack all Back hard" The five ashcn
blades bent and quiyered with the strain
put ON them but 1t was none too much, az
Inc boat was scarcely dozen feet away
When the huge bulk of the Infatuated
whale rose to the surface and spurted
Twin columns Of brine high in the air.
MONSTER IN AGONY.
Before the animated waterspout could ,
repeat the dose the boat was ont Of range. =,
Doth OF the fire extinguishng apparatus ,
Ind the terrible iiukes that soon com. !
nenced to thrash the water into foam
hef 'ohtortIohs were 50 violent that tho
'apfain could not get in shot with bis ;
'omb gun, which he raised aud lowered ,
iaii dohen times without pulling the ,
figger FINALLY the flukes quit their ,,
hfashlhg, and like flash the leyiathan ,
lasied away at terrible rate, burlinv .
ne boat : bow between two walls Of /,
water iully eighteen inches high, hut the !,
peed was such that scarcely a drop en-. :
cred the boat This gait was kent M for !"
good ten minutes, aud then the speed :.
ohimenctd To slacken, and the wounded
Monster SWAIN easily and quietly ON top I
I the water !.
Ihe living tug came 10 u total standstill +
I last, and, pulling around 10 u broad,hle y
osltion, the captain was given his op
optunity The second explosion was fol
owed by the whistling Of the rubber i
hinged bomb, which buried itself I'm tho n
reat mass 1T the blubbrr. Scarcely had Ii
ne smoke cleared away from the bow be n
,re the hlutflcd boom of the bomb ry- /,
lodihg IN the historical residence of a,
onah sounded the death ku,Il of the poor /,
ii whale. The victims huge bulk crew -
minated again, but only for a moment :,
he tlukes thrashed violentl, for few -,
'conds while the waterspouts became +,
nged a warm rel Struggles and spo,ts
pcame more and more contracted, until. IN
nth last final effort, the inwar,ly q,
ouhdrd monster rolled over and px /,
lred. The other boats made fast. and a -,
ard pull Of three hour. landed the prils ~,
the beach, where 1t il To be cut IN 10 -,
an Francisco Alta o.
GOtrrn,nrnt Corral In War Times. ~
The government corral, near the Wash. W
gtoh observatory. was one of the war
xhtS Al the tniumpurptnpnt ,f tS,q