The Irish standard., 1891-06-13

CAPT. CASTLES WHALE.

CAPT. CASTLES WHALE.
a Monster of the Deep Uses q Pilotboat
for Scratchine-Post.
One night the pilotboat Lady Mine,
Capt. Steve Castle, was lying becalmed'
about ten miles southwest of the main
Faralones, says the San Francisco
Examiner. Not ship was in sight,
and the captain improved the oppor-
tunity to shift the schooner's canvas
for her lighter summer suit. All:
hands were engaged on the work, and
to secure more room the yawlboat
used for boarding vessels was heaved
over the side and made fast astern by
six or eight fathoms of painter.
The sea was full of whales, lolling
about on the CLASSY surface, playing
and blowing, and emitting an unpleas-
ant, oily odor, as whales are wont to 40
when the sun is shining, the air is s11ll'
and the water smooth. One particular
" big fellow of the inback variety,
commonly called California grays, man
Tested much interest and came along
side to investigate The first notice OF
his approach was received from ire
mendous hock of small seablrds that
SKINNED along the surface, Tying
down to snatch their food OF parasites
every time the whale came to the sur
face. All the birds flew away when the
whale sounded cables length from
the Lady Mine, and the crew Thought
he had taken his departure. In this
they were erroneous, for ia about two
minutes the schooner set UP a violent
rocking, a huge black bulk suddenly
doomed up alongside, there was sound
as of escaping steam, and half the deck
WAS wet with a. cloud of ill-smelling
spray.
It was an awful big whale for a fin
back. 1T was longer than the Lady
Mine, which measures eighty three
feet.
When he came up he touched the
schooner, but did it very gently, not
with jar or q bump, but with a. slow
upheaval that simply showed the vessel
off sideways and careened her over
little until her round bottom slid Off the
monsters back. The whale appeared
highly delighted. and repeated the per-
formance For two hours he was never
two hundred yards from the Lady Mine,
and half the time when he was above
water the crew could have touched
him by simply extending :s'1ei" hands
over the side. a dozen times he; rubbed
against her side, but always with the
same gentleness that characterized his
first contact, and often his huge fin
protruded above the rail as big as
boat sail.
He was an old bull and his back and
head were literally covered with
barnacles 1t was to rid himself OF
these that he rubbed up against the
boat, the crew soon learned. Several
times IL looked very scary to see the
terrible bulk rising swiftly from the
depths Of clear water, but he was con-
siderate enough to always slacken
speed lust before striking, SO that the
contact amounted to NO more than &
gentle push.
The crew did not mind She whale
using the Lady Mine for q bacxscratch-
err as long rs he continued good natnred
about it, but they did protest against
the odor and finally made an attempt
to drive him away. The boatkeeper
proddetl him with sharp pointed spin
maker boom just as he rose near the
schooner's stern.
Down he went like a flash and in his
furry he preached directly across the
little yaw]'s painter, which was hang
ing slack a foot or SO beneath the sur"
face of the water. One OF his fssulzes
caught the line and as the sever
al tons of blubber and whalemeat went
down the yawlboat went ,. The bow
plunged under with a terrific dash and
the oars and loose bottom-boards' of the
boat few for yards around in all direc-
TONS
! The entire boat was lost to sight for
over a minute, when it popped up like
q cork, full of water, but right and
tight and perfectly uninjured. The
crew used garuished language, bailed
the boat out, gathered UP the gear that
strewed the surrounding ocean, and
hauled che rescued craft aboard.
The whale manifested no anger
whatever, but returned in a few minutes
as if nothing had happened. He rubbed
off q, couple Or three more barnacles as
gently az before, firted his monstrous
tail contemptuously, and took his de-