The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1891-10-15
MADAGASCAR JACK.

Look ont Tor big sperm whsle will
The stump Of . barpoon 10 bis hump. and
about fifty fsthoms OF line towing
Astsrnl
Ayl Look ont for Msdsgsrcsr Jack.
Hes rogue. Ye may know bin by The
hosssboe mark on bis bead Give him 4
vide berth hes msn,ailler
We bad hove to, to deliver letters and
have chat With the crew OF the old vhal
er. Cicero. OF New Bedford, then command
ed by Captain Jack.
The Cicero bad been three years on the
Indian Ocean grounds, and was homeward
boudd when We fell iu with ber. She bad
eighteen hundred barrels OF oil under
matches, and more than fourteen thousand
pounds OF bone, 60 the crew told us. Ours
was then 'clesn ship" She was pam,
ed the Draper. and wss outbound for the
same waters
was then young man Of twenty years
and was bost,s,eerer on board the Drsp'
er, Captain Law ton, Of New Bedford.
Captain Lswton had sent bost aboard
the Cicero with the letters. and we laid
by her for an hour or two; giving the Cap
tain and crew home news and getting 10
formation from the whaling grounds. II
was pleasant weather. and the vessels
were brought within easy hail Of each
other.
remember they told MS Of new isl
and" or at least OF one not down on the
chart. in east longitude about fifty eight
degrees. twenty minutes, south latitude,
twenty two degrees, fifteen minutes; and
as our boat was pulling back to the ship
and we we're about to part company, the
second mate OF the Cicero stood sit and
told us about the whale. Then one OF the
men, forward, added the remark given
above.
Whalemen in those days often warned
each other Of sighting" or rogue
whales. In the earlier days Of the whale
fishery comparatively little difficulty was
ex perienced in taking the leviathans OF
the deep In their dying throes they
8 omeiimes stove 10 or capsized the boats,
bat rarely made direct, persistent at
tack upon them.
At last, however, the constant persecul
tious OF mau seem to have developed sg-
eresslye traits in the barassed cetaceans.
Boats, and even the whale ships; were
ssysgely attacked ard sometimes sunk by
whales
While the more prudent and. generally
the older shippers we're inclined to avoid
dangerous whales. there we're always bold
spirits among the younger men. particu'
larly to young mates. who desired TO dis'
themselves and their ships by
rogue" for to clear, the seas
OF one OF these destroyers was justly rank
ed as q great exploit.
II was from the Cicero that we first
heard Of Madagascar Jack" and after.
ward the Drysde, which we fell 10 with
near Mauritius, gave us further tidings OF
a certain croes whale with an iron 10 his
back and white scar on his head
Bu, the Draper did not meet him. nor
with much else 10 the way Of whales. In,
deed, during the first year ont, and sailed
for home two years aiterward with light
fare.
NY next cruise was in the Acasts, OF
Sag Haib Dor, Captain Harlow, which re
turned on account Of the illness OF the
Captain and was Withdrawn, and it was
not until three years after, when was on
the Dread, Captain Wyiord. that l fret
saw Madagascar Jack. !"
We went through Supds Straits and
cruised on the Ipdisn Ocean grounds for
eight months. There We took twenty one
hundred barrels OF whale oil, but thus fsr
not . cask Of sperm. Wyford was an eld'
erly man who did not nov enter vhsle'
boat himself. Some. indeed. hold that
the master ought never enter one. But
we had second mate Who made mp in
pluck and daring for anything the Cap
tain lacked.
bsve cruised in . good many ships;
but never saw Cliff Andrews match ~ .
wbsiesmau.
one morning during the tenth month
OF our cruise whale was sighted 10
mis-, soon after dsyliebt In fact. We
heard him spoutiDg before We saw bin.
But the Captain would not order the boats
down .ill the men bad their breakfast. and
the delay chsied Address
We ate our breakfast 10 . few minutes.
and two boats were lowered. Meantime
the Whsle after blowing few times. hsd
gone down TO feed
TIE Captain said thst We should not
see bin tgsin Tor al hour; but sc
pulled tfi TO the spet shere be bad lsst
been heard bloaine. AID then Icy by on
our oafs.
Mr. Cummings. the fnt mate, vas 10
ole beat srd Apdrews 10 the other. We
Ilstere6 std vttehed fer long snile.snd
meat hile The uisi Lifted little, although
the surface Of The ses ~ss stiil dim.
Apdrevs declared that Se had lost the
shaie, ..like pack Of dnf'es'ss who must
peeds s.ua ourselves With bfeskfast. shat
ever beiid.e." but whiie be ssfreiting.
,Le ~hsls saadenly bfesehsd. scarcely
cable. length from where se lay.
lie bad been down iong time. hs
big. ,qusre head broke water like small
ncun;sin. and be ble~ heavily ss be iarn
ed. We ssw Lis head distinctly. There
sss = ~ semi,eifeulsr vhi,ish mark % ii.sl1
or eight fee, seross. and - be rolled We