Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-09-04
WHALES LEAPS.
Gigantic Jumps Taken by These
Monsters of the Deep.

Gigantic Jumps Taken by These
Monsters of the Deep.
From the Philadelphia Times.
Speaking of jumping" said an old sea-
man who had been watching some boys
playing leapfrog on the sands, "let me
tell you of the greatest jump ever seen.
1t was many years ago. when I was little
more than lad, but I was bow oarsman
on a whale boat belonging to the ship Hen
ry Staples. We had had bad luck for sever
al weeks, when one day we sighted a big
whale and two boats set off in a race to
see who would get there first. It was
fairly smooth, what the sailors call a
white-cap breeze, and our boats fairly
flew over the water. Finally the whale
rose not one hundred yards away. head
ing directly for US. The harpooner stood
with his iron all ready to throw, while
we grasped our oars nervously, prepared
to jump at the word stern ALL that nearly
always came when whale was harpooned.
Not a word was spoken, and suddenly
noun tain of black appeared; it seemed to
shut off the entire horizon. Up it went
until distinctly saw a seventy-foot whale
over twenty feet in the air lowering over
US.
The mate was the first to regain his
senses, and gave the command stern ALL
Just as We were ready to spring overheard
the boat shot back several feet. and the
next second the gigantic animal dived into
the ocean, just grazing us, having COM
pletely passed over the boat in the biggest
leap L ever heard off,
Such gigantic jumps are rare. SIM
liar one was recorded by DIR. Hall. who
at the time was midshipman on the ship
Leander. They were lying in the harbor
of Bermuda, when all hands were attracted
by the appearance of very large whale
that suddenly appeared in the harbor and
= w.,
water fioundering about violently. The
young midshipman Joined a boats crew
that started in pursuit, and just as they
were about to strike the whale disappeared,
sinking out of sight, leaving a deep whirl-
pool around which the boat shot. Before it
stopped up came the whale, having in all
probability struck the bottom. and went
into the air like rocket. so complete
was this enormous leap" says DR.. Hall,
that for an instant we saw him fairly
up in the air, in a horizontal position, at a
distance of at least twenty perpendicular
feet over our heads. While in his progress
upward there was in his spring some
touch of the vivacity with which trout
or salmon shoots out of the water, but he
fell back again in the like huge log
thrown on its broadside, and with such a
numbering crash as made all hands stare
with establishment, and the boldest held
his breath for time. Had the whale taxi
en- his leap one minute sooner he would
have fallen plump on the boat"
Comparatively few people have seen a
large whale, but We can imagine what an
object an animal seventy feet long and
weighing as many tons would make flying
through the air.
Within a week of the writing Of the
present article l was drifting along the
shores of Santa Catalina Island, California,
when SiXty-foot whale almost cleared the
water about thousand yards from the
boat. 1 was about to ask the boatman what
rock 1t was, when the great head descended
and the tail rose into the air as the mon
ster Owed.
Mr.. Scorsby, the famous whaler chroni-
eles a number of incidents of jumping
completely and rising twenty or more feet
into the air.
Many of the inhabitants of the sea are
good jumpers, and some have become fam
Gus. Among them should be mentioned the
tarpon or silver king, a huge fish with
scales that CLEAN like silver, which ccEsti-
tutes the famous game fish of Florida. The
leaps of this beautiful creature are often
astonishing. Several years ago steamer
was rushing down the ST. Johns river.
The captain was sitting on the fore deck
leaning against the pilot house. when sud-
denly there rose in the air beautiful sim
ing fish four feet in length. 1t came like
an arrow and landed in the lap of the cap
tain as neatly as though it had been placed
there
In Pacific waters the tuna an ally of the
horse mackerel, is noted for Is leaps.
Sometimes a school sweeps ND the coast
and the powerful fish, often weighing eight
hundred pounds, are seen in the air in
every direction. They are like an arrow
turn gracefully five or six feet in the air
and come down, keeping the water for
acres in a foam, and, if not the greatest
jumpers they are certainly the most grace
full of the ieaperS of the Sea.