Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-04-20
STORIES OF WHALES.
NANTUCKET SEA CAPTAINS
EARLY EXPERIENCES
Very Rapid Sailing in MISUNDERSTANDING
Some Fast Swimming Fish-A
Collection of Yarns.

! NduIuCEeO Iuluu USluS very active ana
original the mariners no doubt used the
opportunity in winding up the wonderful
yarns that they subsequently reeled off in
the captains room in Nantucket town.
When they were gathered there it was a
point OF honor, of course, with each vet
eran not to let any one tell bigger yarn
than his own. They were oil. moreover,
very exact and circumstantial In their
nautical details. Every story had the fla
vor of tar and truth.
One day in the captains room the con-
versation turned upon the swiftness with
which boat could be drawn through the
water by whale which had been har-
pooned. By and by the talk began to verge
upon the wonderful, and then Captain
A was the first of the yarn spinners to
be stirred up.
"Ahem" said he, there was a whale
that we tackled off the Galapagos islands
that'd ask no odds, 1 reckon, OF your FLYNN
Dude nor any other railroad train. We
was in latitude dogs. 10 min. south, Ion
gitude 81 degs. s min. west, with calm
sea. when we see her blow. We lowered: 1
went out with the boat, and we throwed
in three irons. Away she went! An il
you'll believe me, gentlemen, we went
through the water SO fast that presently
we had to cut the line and wait for our
breath to come and catch up with us.''
The assembly nodded appreciation. There
was little silence, and Captain b, tax
ing a fresh guild, which gave his voice a
sort of cotteny thickness, proceeded to tell
his story.
''In the year 1872" he said, wed about
done with the seasons catch, and were
lookin' about little in As deg. north, 1873
deg. Is min. west, on hazy day in Sep
TENDER, somethin' the same as this one
we're a-havin'. 1t was Just six bells when
we had chance to fasten on to one of the
biggest whales l ever see She was bow
head and about eighty feet long. Off she
started, like ball from a rife. Breath!
why, we weren't a-breathin'; we didn't
stop to think about breathin', boys. If we
could keep together without brcathin' we
considered we were dom well. Sonnet him
queer seemed to be jerkin' all the time at
the top of my head and the sides Of my
face; and what should l see but that the
hair was a-nyin' right of o. my headl
That's what it was a-doin', boys; and be-
fore that whale went down there wasn't
man in the boat that had hair on his
head nor u bris5ie on his face"
"Blowed 'em off, chs" said Captain c..
sShck and clean, john" said Captain
b. "The speed took every hair of'n
our heads and left US as bald as marlin
spike"
That's tolable fast" said Captain
c., but it don't come up with the ex-
perience ! had with vicious Gnback in
49, off the South Shetlands. We was in
SO degs IS min. south, CO dogs. 2 min. west,
when we lowered and fastened to the beast
] speak Of He was a ganey critter, long
and slim, like race horse. Away he went,
and away we went. We hung on to oUr
hair and our whale at the same time, and
we KEEP our breath in spite of it; but the
fust thing we knew we heard the nails be-
gin to fly out of our boat"
The company Strengthened up and looked
at one another.
"On we went" Captain c. continued,
"clingin' for dear life; but we was goin' so
fast, gentlemen, that-an' | don't never
expect my word to be took in Nantucket
egin if you don't believe me-the friction
of the water drawed every nail and bolt
out O. that boat, so's't she fell to pieces and
left US sprawiin' in the water. And if
there hadn't a'be'n fair wind, so's't the
ship overhauled us a couple CT hours after
ward, while We was a-hangin' on TO the
loose tfmbers that the boat was made Of
we never'd "a sighted Sankaty Head agin."
The company was now thoroughly
aroused. The emergency called for really
distinguished and original liar, and happily
the company possessed one in the venerable
Captain D., who had sailed in all known
seas and in every manner Of whaling and
merchant craft. On Nantucket or off isl
and, there was never his rival at yarn.
Him." said he calmly, and waited 4 mo-
ment, chewing with his front teeth reflect
lively. Eyes, l guess it was '45-or, no,
twas &c, for l remember the night before
we see the reflection of the great fire in
Nantucket"
1he-refection-o' the-great-fre"
There was general gasp around the
circle
And you was in what part o. the world,
cap'n?" asked one.
"On the northerly edge OF the Pacific
Sagasso, in about 20 north, $50 west" said
Captain D. without finching. We
were on our way back from Behring. We
had sighted the seaweed drift TO the south
lard, when we see, little to the vests ard,
q monster the like of which l never sea
before nor since. She locked about half
a mile long, and she bumped her back up
along the water once in about ships
length. Yes, boys, it was a sea serpent,
an no mistake. But in those days want
afraid of nothing. | ordered a boat low
cred, and ! went off in her myself. The
serpent never made sign Of noticin' US
until we was pretty close alongside. and
then, like flash, and Joe Fclger put
couple of irons into heF.
Il tell you, no mortal man never see any
thing like the spsed that that sea serpent
went off to the north ard 1t makes me
ketch my breath to think on It. Lishtnin, :.
would compare with it about the way the
'Sconset train compares with lightnin'.
But we hung on, gentlemen, and then the
thing occurred that I'm a-tellin' We about.
Happenin' to look back, see what was
seemingly our own boat-which was an
extra large green painted whaleboat-fol-
lerin' along behind US. l looked again
down to the boat that we wus a-settin' in,
and there she was right under US, TO be
sure, safe and stanch, but without shred
o. paint on her. An now I'll tell We what
mad happened; we had been goin' SO fast
that the speed had drawed the boat clean
out of her paint and left the paint follerin'
after us with the momentum
1t needed no announcement to make the
audience acquainted with the fact that the
entertainment was done for the day The
party in the captains room silently ad-
journed for supper.-Boston Transcript