Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-12-28
DRIVING IN WHALES.
Exciting Battles of Shetlanders With
Monsters of the Deep.
WOMEN HELP In THE BUTCHERY
Pretty Little Shetland Ponies In the Land
They Love Best.
MAKING KELP OUT OF TIE sEAwEED
CORRESPONDENCE OF THE pIspATcH.l

LEhW lCk, Oh HETLAND, Lee. To- w hat-
ever their condition in the past. it would be
difficult to find any lowly people more gen.
orally prosperous and comfortable than are
the Shetland Islanders at the present time.
Their industries are kelp-gathering and
burning, sheep raising, Matchmaking OF
hosiery and other goods, whaling and the
universal fshiag.
The mineral wealth of the islands has so
far been of little Importance. At Sand
lodge. opposite Mousa Island and its famous
Pictish tower, there Is an abandoned copper
mine with idle and rusting machinery.
Over against grim Fitful Head 1 found
another abandoned mine, where, in search
for copper, thousands of tons of iron pyrites
had been thrown into the sea. Chromate
quarries at Baltasound, in the North Isles,
have remained untouched for years; while
in Bressay Island are slate quarries, but the
states are too heavy for modern houses, and
the thicker strata are utilized for paving
stones, Lerwick being paved with "Bressay
flags" The manufacture of kelp was
formerly carried on extensively, and still is
means OF subsistence by manv. This
kelp-gathering and burning, which is still a
source OF livelihood on the Arran Islands,
ireland, on the west coast OF Scotland at
Three, in the Argyleshre Hebrides, and IN
many places on the Shetland coast, Is dan
gerous and destructive of health.
WHAT KELP IS.
Though the. word "kelp" is often applied
to seaweed, it is really the product from the
burning ofseaweed, from W which the alkali soda
once SO largely used in the manufacture of
glass and soap was obtained, and from which
iodine is still secured. The seaweeds are
called by natives "tangles." They are de-
tached from the sides of rocks, and frequently
great storms sweep fortunate piles of the
clammy stuff in upon the ledges of the gios.
They are gathered, stacked, matched and
dried for several weeks, and in the autumn
are burned in rude open pits or ovens along
the shore, the ashes fusing into solid sub
stance of the density of freestone, which is
broken up before being sent to the market.
Kelp gathering furnishes many picturesque
scenes along the desolate shores, as women
and children are largely employed.
The hosiery and other knit woolens which
come from the hands OF Shetland women are
famous. They are as ceaseless knitters as
those of Connemara and Donegal, in Ire
land, and produce fabrics of wondrous deli
cacy of texture. The preparation of the
yarn has much to do with the lightness and
softness of their work. Fleeces are never
shoIn. The cruel practice of "rueing," or
removing the wool from sheep by pulling it
out by the roots, in handfulls. is still preva-
lent The finest wool is thus procured. The
finest collection of knit goods ever produced
| in the islands was presented to the Princess
of Wales on her marriage in 1868. This
season a large shawl was sold at Lerwick for
| So. 1t only weighed 25s ounces.
DRIVING WHALES ASHORE.
Oflate years Shetland's interest in whal-
| ing has been principally confined to driving
the monsters ashore. This exciting work is
often tremendously profitable. In 1845 a
shoal of 154O ''ca'ing" whales were driven
ashore in Quendale Bay, the southernmost
bay of Shetland, lying between Sumburgh
and Fitful Heads; and In June of the pres
ent year shoal of several hundred was
success ully la5ded on the east coast. Until
| quite recently these shore whalers were lilly
| requited for their captures. The financially
omniverous landlord, called the "laird"
here, true to his octopus instincts claimed
the right, up to 1889, to tax the poor Shet-
lands one-half OF the entire proceeds of all
whales driven into shoal water opposite, or
upon the shores of their domains; "a sort of
riparian right on the Almighty for what
was sent to save man from starvation on ac-
| count of rents and other burdens imposed by
| the laird himself" an old Shetlander ex-
| planned to me. 80
AS the value of the blubber will average
So per ton, the ''laird" often thus secured
from $1,000 to $1,000 as his right in a
single catch. From 1889 to 1888 the "lairds"
were considerate enough TO rob the whalers
of but one-third. In September of that year
the claim was resisted in the courts; the
whalers won their cause; and the "lairds"
have since been compelled to content them
| col, ruif ha of ,-;t
Messing, rather than profting by the hazard
| Gus work.
| GETTING READY FOR A DRIVE.
| When a drove of "ca'ing" whales appear
| on the coast the news spreads like oil drops
OH marble. AS the whole town of st. Ives,
| Cornwall. goes mad when shoal of pitchers
is sighted, so does every live Shetlander de-
sert every other vocation, even to a wedding,
to Join in the "drive." A rush is made by
the men for the boats, while women and
children wildly collect guns, ammunition,
harpoons, scythes, lances, knives and even
bags of stone, indeed anything portable
which may assist in the hoped-for destruc-
tion. The whalers make all haste and
splendid cunning in getting between the
whales and the open sea. Their fleet of all
manner Of craft then gradually closes in
upon the "pack'tor "drove," directing by
the splendid maheuvers of the different boats
the course of the whales to a shallow bag.
So expert are these Shetland whalers in
driving that shoal of whales is seldom
lost, if time is given for forming the drive"
we'll outside the "drove." Ii the whales
once enter the chosen bay, their pursuers
come to close quarters, and then the conflict
begins. Finding the water becoming
shallow the terrified whales endeavor to
| make for the open sea, but are met at every
point by a perfect walls of boats, altogether
filled with hundreds and sometimes thou
sands of men seemingly desperate in their
efforts at capture; and the bowling, shout
ing, screaming, lashing of the water, dis
charge of firearms, stone-throwing, and
rushing to and fro OF the equally desperate
whales, form as exciting scene as One ever
witnessed outside a genuine field of battle.
BUTCHERED BY THE WOMEN.
/ Occasionally a few break through the
line and escape. AS rule the school is
| doomed. Once driven into shoal water
where they can only founder in mighty
struggles, or high and dry on land, where
they often toss themselves in their mad ef-
forts to escape, their butchery, which is
always a savage and sickening sight, pro-
ceeds with wonderful dispatch. In this
bloody work the hardy and powerful Shet-
land women take a gleeful. and almost
frenzied part. The chief industry of the
Shetlanders must always be that OF fishing.
Cod, ling and herring are taken.
The struck" system, that barbarous
ipiquity still prevalent in some portions oil
our own country, which formerly kept Shet.
landers in precisely the same abhorent con-
dition of slavery as that suffered by the
miners of Peunsylyania Indiana and