The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1892-12-20
TUB WHALING FLEET.
Graphic Description of the Chase
Among the Ice FlOGS.
The Catch for the Season of 1892.
From Our Own Correspondent.
BRIG Percy EDWARD, I
Oakland Creek, Nov. %, 1929

July 10, 1892, there has been little to
chronicle that is any different from
the usual whaling season with the
exception of the unusual absence of
ice and extremely warm weather in
the months of July and August.
The heavy foes of ice that were
so menacing to the whaling feet in
the spring were driven to the far
north, where they in time succumb-
ed to the warm rays of the near set
ting sun. We sailed from Port Clar-
ence and pushed north as fast as the
winds permitted, rounding Point
Barrow with not single cake of ice
in sight, and on to the eastward to
that little known land which lies to
the eastward of Point Barrow. 1t
was not until we had reached
Franklin's Return Reef that we en-
countered any ice, and this was so
rotten" (as the whalemen term ice
which is melting fast) that we easily
pushed through it; it being only a
few miles wide and much broken up.
We passed out of U. S. waters and
into Her Britannia Majesty's with
out seeing ice or whalers.
On the third day we were in
British waters we were gratified by
! the call of stinker off our lee beam
which required some pretty ma
neuvering to distract the attention
of the bark Alaska which was in
company with us and nearer to the
dead whale than we were. We sue
ceeded in getting boat down and
fastening to him before the bark S
people knew what was up. We ran
down to the whale and the officers
were beginning to calculate the
amount of bone i'll his head, when
the dreadful stencil of decaying flesh
told us we were close to him. To
our. great disgust he turned out to
be a :" calf that had been killed by
the Bonanza's boats, they having
mistaken him for grown whale.
We ran alongside another an hour
later that had been cut in two by
some other ship, and as the body was
still warm he had been killed the
previous evening. At 10 am. we had
the pleasure of hearing the first cry
of 'Blow!" from the crow's-nest of
the Percy Edward, but there were
SO many vessels around and so many
boats down that we did not lower.
Anyhow we did not see one that was
at all inclined to linger They were
all going fast, putting one in mind
of the clerk of a Honolulu business
house running with the usual late
letter to catch the steamer.
After sighting Herschel Island we
in company with the bark Hunter
made an effort to reach Cape
Bathurst, point never before reach
ed by steamer or sailing vessel, but
were unable to on account of head
winds. We, however, went north a
few hundred miles, but not seeing
any whales shaped our course for
Herschel Island. If ever the North
Pole is to be reached 1899 was the
year to do it in, as there was no ice
to hinder one from going to Lat. so
i n. But as we were not looking for
the north pole but for bowheads we
did not attempt it. Yet we were so
close to the Magnetic Pole that one
of 'Ritcher's" compasses would not
move till the ships course was alter
ed four points, and then would go
with a run and make the officers be-
lieve that they were poor judges of
the points of compass by going
four or five points the other way.
My observations of the eccen-
tricities of the compass were soon
cut short by whales being around.
We lowered day after day and at
last succeeded in capturing one, a
female, making desperate struggle
for her life, but gunpowder and ton
lite bombs were too much for her,
and after | hour 30 minute strug-
gle she rolled over on her back dead
with eight bombs in her. She had
succeeded in soaring some of the
crews of the three boats into such a
state that one young Englishman
was on the point of Jumping over
board, but he was detained by the
officer of the boat, as he was needed
at his oar to keep the boat clear of
the whales "hukes" (taiD, as she did
thrash them around violently for q
few minutes in her death struggle
spreading great CONSERVATION among
the "greenhands," After cutting the
whales head off and getting it stow
ed below, we began to work west
with number Of steamers, the rest
of the sailing vessels having gone
west some time before.
We passed Point Barrow in a gale
of wind from the northeast, amid &
dreadful snow storm, barely seeing
the land as we passed on our way
toward Herald Island We sue
ceeded in capturing another whale
which did not afford us much excite
ment, as the boatsteerer Ga Hawai-
lam who struck him seemed to know
just where to put his tomb and iron
which was the death of Mr.. Whale
He only made few violent flour
ishes with his fukes in close prox
unity to the boat and then sounded
to die Is fathoms under water. w,
were not in luck this season, only
having caught two whales making
$500 lbs. of bone. The length o.
our last whale by actual measure
ment was 81 feet from the extreme
tip of his ilukes to his nose. W.
kept off for home on Oct 7, the da,
after the wreck of the bark Heller
Mar, Captain Thaxter, in which tn,
captain and all his crew with tn,
n.yaA,Nt,a,, 81 1