Semi=weekly graphic., 1899-06-10
WHALER'S FRIEND.
THE KILLERS" OF TWo-FoLD BAY
 WHICH HELP THE FISHERMEN.


 A Strange and Terrible Fish, and Its Pecu1-
 far Characteristics to Whales and
 Sharks But Will Never Injure AIan-It
 Has Enormous Strength.
 Two-fold bay, a magnificent deep- water harbor on the southern coast of New South Wales, is a fshermans paradise, though it's fame is but local, or known only to outsiders who may have spent day there when travelling from Sydney to Tasmania in the steamers which occasionally put in there to ship cattle from the little township of Eden. But the chief point of interest about TWo-fold bay is that 1t is the rendezvous of the famous killers" (orca gladiator), the deadly foes of the whole race of cetaceans other than themselves, and most ex- traordinary and sagacious creatures that inhabit the oceans depths. From July to November two schools" of killers may be seen every day, either Cruising to and fro across the entrance of the bay or engaged in Titanic con- bat with whale-a right" whale, "humpback" or the long, swift 'fn- back. But they have never been known to tackle the great sperm whale, except when the great creature has been wounded by his human enemies. And to witness one of these mighty struggles is worth travelling many thousand miles to see; it is terrible, awe-inspiring and wonderful.
 The killer ranges in length from ten feet to twenty-five feet. Their breath ing apparatus and general anatomy is much similar to that of the sperm whale. They spout, breach" and sound" like other cetaceans, and are of the same migratory habit as the two schools which haunt Two-fold bay, always leaving there about November 28 to cruise in other seas, returning to their headquarters early in July, when the humpback and fnback whale make their appearance on the coast of New South Wales, travelling northWard to the breeding grounds on the Hampton shoals, the coast of New Guinea and the Molueeas.
 The head of the killer is of enormoas strength, the mouth being armed in both jaws with fearful teeth, from two inches to three inches long and set rather widely apart. In color they show an extraordinary variation, some being all one bue-broWn, black or dull gray; others are black, with large ir~ regular patches or streaks of pure white or yellow; others are dark brown with black and yellow patches.
 And now comes the curious and yet absolutely truly described part that the killers play in this ocean tragedy. The killers, the moment the whale is dead, close around him, and, fastening their teeth into his body, bear him to the bottom. Here they tear out his tongue and eat about one-third of the blubber In about thirty-six to forty hours the carcass will rise again to the surface, and as the spot where he has been taken down has been marked by buoy, the boats are ready waiting to tow him ashore to the trying-out works. The killers accompany the boats to the head of the bay and keep off the sharks, which otherwise would strip off all the remaining blubber be- fore the body had reached the shore.
 The killers never hurt a man. Time after time have boats been stove in or smashed into splinters by whale, and the crew left struggling in the water. to be rescued by the pickup" boat, and the killers swim up to them, look at-aye, and smell them-but never touch them. And wherever the killers are, the sharks are not, for Jack Shark dreads a killer as the devil dreads holy water. "Jack" will rush in and rip off a piece of blubber if he can, but he will watch his chance to do so.