The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1894-10-09
WHALING WEAPONS.
THE OLD SPEAR HAS BEEN Sue
CEEDED BY SuRER MISSILES.

n OmDlnatiOn Dart and POWerful BOND
That Generally Raises a Commotion in
the Interior of the Biggest Whale En-
countered-How 1t Works.
Not the least interesting of the articles
disgorged by the whaler of today are the
weapons with which the blubber hunters
slay the leviathans Of the deep. Whalers
who keep pace with the times use neither
the old harpoon nor the heavy bomb throw
ing gun that succeeded 1t. A combination
Of both enters into the latter day weapon,
and its use requires such muscle, nerve
and accurate Judgment that something Of
the glory and emoluments of the ancient
harpooner are once more attached to the
successful boat header.
Two weapons are employed in killing.
Whalers call the first one a "darting gun"
1t is queer looking contrivance, mounted
on wooden shaft from eight to ten feet
long, and bearing more resemblance to u
clumsy three tined fork, with the tines of
unequal size and length, than anything
else. The central tine is the gun, and the
others are respectively the harpoon and the
trigger. But the harpoon is not called a
harpoon; it is 'toggle iron," slender
iron pike some 2l19 feet in length, with a
loop near the butt to which the whale line
proper is made fast. Half dozen inches
from the point a hinge is set in by rivet
When closed for penetrating this hinge
presents sharp, cutting edge and grad
ual slope that offers no impediment to the
irons movement through the blubber.
The slightest resistance from the rear,
such as a pull on the line, opens this hinge
or toggle joint to right angles, and the
lower end of the hinge presents broad
concave surface that holds the iron from
being withdrawn save by tearing a path
out through the flesh equal to the length
of the hinge-some five inches. This iron
penetrates much deeper than any other
portion of the gun" and by it the whale
Is held in leash and followed in event the
bomb fails to do its work.
The central tine of the huge fork is the
gun proper, and queer looking gun it is.
A copper cylinder an inch to an inch and
half in diameter firmly fastened to lit
tie square metal box on the end of the
shaft is all that is visible of the mechan-
ism, and there is nothing to suggest gun
about either cylinder or box. There is a
little door set in the box, however, and
when that is opened lock and trigger are
disclosed, which connect with the third
tine. On the inside of the box the trigger
fires an ounce of powder in the butt of the
cylinder, and this propels the bomb from
ba nf = ha ind 4 1na Yi,,,a
that it ignites five second fuse leading to
the chamber of the bomb.
The bomb looks more like brass rail
road spike without head than an imple-
ment of destruction. 1t is slightly larger
than a railroad spike, however, and is
charged with tonite 1t is usually strong
enough to create fatal commotion in the
interior of the largest whale afoat.
An understanding of the simple method
of the cumbersome affair is not matter
of difficulty. The bow is the location of the
whaler who plays the part of the harpooner
of old. His object is to bury his ponderous
weapon just back of the fin. Twenty-Five
feet is considered long cast, but there are
few much sought after giants who can
add ten feet to this distance without losing
anything of their accuracy of aim The
keen toggle iron, pushed by the weight of
the other hamper, penetrates the soft blub-
ber to depth of four or five feet before it
releases itself from the loose rings used to
hold it to the head of the wooden shaft.
The gums" penetration amounts to
just sufficient to steady it before the third
tine or trigger performs its part. This
trigger is blunt iron rod of just sufficient
length to come in violent contact, end on,
with the whales hide when the copper
cylinder serving as a gun barrel is directed
fairly against the target The pressure on
the rod touches off the trigger; this ex-
plodes the powder charge, and the powder
charge speeds the bomb after the toggle
iron into the whales vitals, the five second
fuse burning as it is dragged through the
outlying blubber.
The damage up to date is trifing, speak
ing from whales standpoint, but when
that expl osion of tonite occurs in his inner
consciousness it is usually sufficient to put
any thoughts Of future existence out Of
his head. Not always, though. The bomb
may not 90 near vital spot or the fuse
may not ignite the tonite, and there is an
anxious minute or two while the monster
goes below, impelled by the shock Of his
wounds. If he comes up in furry" as
whalemen call the death agony, well and
good, but if there is an intelligent vigor in
his movements, betokening desire for re-
venge or escape, there is another bomb
waiting for him. This one is from a.
pound gun, for which the head killer in
the bow has exchanged his darting gun.
The latter, by the way, is all recovered but
the bomb. The powder charge rids it of
the bomb and the toggle iron and the gun
and the trigger remain fixed to the wood
en- shaft, which is connected with the boat
by q few fathoms Of light line.
The real whale line is fast to the toggle
iron, buried deep in the monsters fat, and
it goes whirring out of its tub to such linn
itless lengths that there is no possibility Of
the whales dragging the boat down with
him. 1t is light line, but tough, and a
whale could tow boat around by it all
day without fear of its breaking
The guns reserved for the finishing bomb
are of two patterns. One is an extremely
heavy affair, bordering on being young
cannon, and is mounted on swivel in the
bow, while the other is large edition of
the cutoff shotgun, with a cushion Of rub
ber in the stock to save the shoulder of the
man who fires it. The bombs are Of the
same character as those used in the hand
propelled darting gun, but are larger and
more symmetrical in shape, and are feath-
cred with rubber, arrow fashion, to insure
their voyaging end on.
A bomb costs about 81. rs loaded, and the
whaleman doesn't care if it takes half a
dozen of them to kill if they only get the
bowhead. The bowhead's jaw contains
1850 pounds of bone on the average, so
that there is profit over the cost of an
extra bomb or two, especially when bone is
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