Milford chronicle., 1896-09-04
Broke HIS WHALE TO HARNESS.
The Animal Was Reared ON Bottle, and
the Iscst WIS Not DlneuIt.

Fhe Animal Was Reared on a Bottle, and
the Rcst Was Not DlnicuIt-
In the North sea lives whale that has
no equal in the waters Of any other ocean,
according to tho doubtless yeracious yarn
spun Icy Captain Black, who is just back
from Pop on island, Alaska, where he Is
connected With the customs department at
Sand Point. This whale, whose name,
BulshOy In the Aleut tongue, means big
in bone and large CT tail, was captured
when a calf, IL the spring Of 1894. 1t was
then Is months old and about 10 fcot long,
1t was corrallcd in Pirate Cave bay, the
entrance TO v..iich Is not more than 100
feet wide, across which a strong Alre net
was stretched by John C. Whitley, the store
keeper at the island
Whitley and his native servant, Efteha,
made an. attcinpt to feed i3ulshOy and were
successful Whitley rugged up a walrus
bladder, to which he attached six or seven
feet OF garden hose -Four or five gallons
Of cows milk were poured into the walrus
bladder bottle, and Whitley and Efteha
rGddlcd alongside Of the pup in II bidarka,
or native canoe. BY dint of ccaxing, the
Indian persuaded Bulshoy to take to the
bottle, and when the men started for the
shore the whale followed, and from that
time on Was ready to go wherever the boat
went. For the next six weeks he was fed
twice "a day, until at last the mammal
would como when called from any part Of
the bay ard could bc handled with i'm
punity. While the training was going on
Whitley had made o set of harness for his
ret and announced that he was going to
drive him to san Francisco Friday, Sept
20, 1855, for tie first time probably in the
history of the world 4-year-old 20 foot
whale was successfully put in harness.
When Whitley and Efteha, after hitching
up the new boat puller, started for the
shcro Bulsiioy, as usual, started the BIZ
darkn, and in doing So made the discovery
that everything was not as 1t should be-
Thon he reared and plunged at u lively
rate, lashing ont with his tail until the
water boiled in his Efforts to free himself.
But the harness held, and there was no
shake OF to it. For two whole days Bull
shuy liucked and refused TO come ut the
call of Whitley or the Alcut. Hunger, how
over, brought him to his bottle, and on the
third day, as the Indian was out on the
bay in his bidarka, BulshOy came meekly
alongside and Legged for his much delayed
breakfast, which was given him.
From that day on Bulshoy was trac-
table, and Whitley could haul on the guy
ropes or reins attached TO the harness with
out the whale standing on his head and
disappearing.
Oct. /, 1865, Whitley and Etehn took the
longbcat belonging to the station, and at
taching towline to the harness band,
just in front Of the fore ripper, began
cruiso around tho bay. In n surprisingly
short Uimo Bulshoy would pull the boat in
any direction desired.
May 81 of this year Whitley and his Aleut
took the net from the mouth Of tho bay,
and according to a prearranged pro-
grammc, struck out into the deep water
for Oonga island, 10 miles away. This
voyage, the first Of its kind since the crea-
ton Of tie world, was made without a
mishap. They nfterwuId made a voyage
from Pop Of to Karluk island and from
there will drive Bulshoy south by cay
tagcs-Portland (Or) Letter in st. Louis
Globe Democrat.