The Lebanon express. (Lebanon, Linn County, Or.) 1887-1898, 1891-02-27
BEHIND An OCEAN HORSE.

9@NtHAt6 AhH QQ@tuN tIONtQ1g
We were in the Japan sea. cruising
for right whales.
Bedford, Capt. Williamson old sea
dog. with fists like the knots of an oak
tree and a tremendous breadth oi
shoulders.
This man had the reputation of hav-
ing captured the largest whale ever
caught in these seas-a hump backed
fellow which on being tried out
yielded 40 barrels of oil.
The skipper was proud of his fame
as a skillful whale-hunter, which. IN
fact. was well deserved. He could
throw the barbed iron further than
most men, and was always cool and
self-possesSed in moments of the great
est peril. whether it was during his
fights with the monsters of the deep
or with the angry elements.
1t was close. sultry day. Far and
near the surface of the sea lay un-
broken by a single ripple.
A yeiiowish vapor or haze had. how
ever. for some hours been noticed TO
windward. 1t seemed to rise slowly
and to spread gradually over the blue,
unelouded coneave above US. The
sun. meanwhile had assumed a singu-
lar appearance It had turned to a
fiery red color. and was surrounded by
a green and blue ring, which seemed
to revoive round and round it.
Finally a hollow. humming noise
was heard. as if some brazen instru-
ment was being blown by unseen beings
far above our heads.
At the same moment. from aloft, like
the wild CRY of some distant sea-bird,
we heard the voice of Hindok-the
kanaka boafsteerer. who kept a look
out at the mainmast head.
There bows! e-there-there
blow-ow-sr'
Whereaway?n yelled Williams,
through his speaking trumpet.
THE same moment the Drowned
faces of all the men on deck were
turned aloft.
Three points Of the -bow-two
miles otf-a try right whale. sir. There
blowsi blowsi blows"
Jali all hands!f roared the captain.
This was done and all hands below
came bounding on deck.
Stand by the boatsi" was the next
order.
The at-steere~s-Young active fell
lows. all of them-sprang into their re-
spectiVe boats to get their lines and
craft in readiness.
Lower awayf ordered old Will
haIns. with lightning celeritv making
his way to the deck
The four boats dropped splashing in
to the sea and the next moment away
they went after the whale
In about half an hour we Law on our
oars waiting for the whale to come up.
HIndok stood in the bow, scanning
the ocean with his eagle ewes. He was
as overlooking a specimen of an island
er as was ever seen. His frame was
tall and supple. his arms long and
sinewy. his shoulders of great breadth.
and his chest round and deep.
do You see anything. yet?'' in
quired Williams.
Nothing vet see sir" answered the
islander. casting a dubious glance
around him.
Tie haze had filed all the air and
the suns light was darkened omin-
ously.
The humming noise previously al
luded to had grown louder, and we
could all see great line of white water
tearing down toward US from wind
ward.
Suddenly Hindok. pointing ahead.
whispered:
There. dat fellow. sirr'
Your oars. men, hissed the cap
tain through his set teeth.
We seized the oars. and the boat
glIded swiftly and noiselessly toward
where the ripples ahead showed that
The whale was coming up.
We had not got halfway there, when
Ipcame the leviathan, shooting straight
rom the sea- his whole monstrous
orm revealed, his fins outspread like
air of wings.
A moment he remained poised ap-
arently on the very end of his fiukes;
zen down he came. striking the sea
ke thunderbolt. and sending the
ray flying in white. binding shower
around him.
Now, Hindok-give it to himI''
Sreamed Williams.
A line of steel-blue light went
trough the air, then another, and we
ere fast
1indok had put both irons in the
lie at the distance of six fathoihs.
"a a backward rush the monster
n struck the boat. The vapor
his spout came into our faces,
be boat. thrown over upon her
ard gunwale. was nearly cap
n went the whale the next mo-
nunding, and away went the
4 drawn by lightning, with the
inning and drumming round
rhead, and her gunwales near
level with the water.
at the same moment the
ack us.
md us the wind howled with
y. and the foam and spray,
nding us. drenched every
skin, The ocean seemed
white, boiling water, in
agged boat was buried so
were nearly swept from
while the tub oarsman,
was to bail. vainly en-
Yep the craft dry.
iarEened with the fy-
d scud, which, in torn
blown hither and thither
demons come to seize us
own to the depths below. J
came up, and We
the order