The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1904-04-06

~o~ of the romance that In by
gone years surrounded whaler's life
has disappeared. the loss in romance
has been more than balanced by the !
| Increase In danger and hardship which |
confront those who follow the indus. |
try at the present time; ut least. those |
who seek the whale in his far nor |
tEern Businesses. over the bleak Arctic
seas. where the whaling fleet now |
| principally operates.
| Ii is doubtful IL this hazardous in.
dustry Is one.tenth as extensive now
as it was forty, or even thirty. years
ago, but, such rs IL is, II divides with
the cod fisheries Of the Newfoundland
banks the distinction Of being sea
faring pursuit most beset with hard
ship and peril.
The life of the whaler has long been
familiar. having been the theme OF
many song and story, but less Is
heard OF 1t now, whalers being 80 few.
Yet in the remnant of the old fleets
that formerly made New Bedford IN.
nous the world over are to be found
grim surviyals of the storlcd past and
reminders of new risks run. that com
merce may still have the whale oil
and whalcbone II demands.
Although some OF the present
whalers are still owned in New Bed
ford and elsewhere, San Francisco
is nowadays their headquarters, from
which port they fit out for their long
voyages, and to 1t they return-when
they return at all-from their period
OF exile in the frozen North.
This period is an elastic one, depend-
Ing principally upon the seasons
catch II this be n good one, the wha-
Ter, II she can get away south before
the winters ice closes In upon her,
sails for Frisco in gratitude to lay up
for the winter, after discharging her
cargo, In the soft mud of Oakland
Cheek or the Potrero, until the ap-
proach Of spring puts her in commits
sion for another cruise.
II the catch be not good, however,
the unhappy whaler makes for some
refuge ON the northern coast OF the
continent before the ice pack closes in
and the long Arctic night settles down,
there to await in darkness. cold and
ireariness for the dawn and the thaw
which will herald the second summers
work. These refugees are inlets or
bays, In which the ship may lie. fro
q zen In, but protected by intervening
land from the irresistible crushing
, foes that move In the open. The fa'
, yorite Ravens are at Herschel Island
, Bailey Island and Franklin Bay, all
we'll to the eastward of Point Bar
. row, in the Arctic Ocean. Here, from
r October to May. sometimes less, some
q times longer, the imprisoned whaler
remains. her people condemned to an
, exile more trying than that of CON
victs.
;. There is popular fnllacy to the
A effect that it is the glad cry from tbs
! masthead of "There she blows" which
thrills the whale ships master and
n crew when TIER Frey is sighted. This
4 Is not the cry, which, instead, is merely
r the stentorian. prolonged crescendc
4 monosyllable "Blo-o-o-w" preceded usu
;, ally by a long, audible inhalation. The
n magical effect of this has been toe
;. often described, and the thrilling pur
suit of the whales in the ships boats
with its exciting incidents and toe
! frequent tragedies, where the loss OF
. men is regarded as far less moment
\ than the loss of whale, as the old
N song says, Is too familiar to be re
N described. 1t is the same now as OF
= old, save that explosives are now gen
!. orally used, which quicken the mon
n ster's death and usually brlefen boil
n the chase and the conflict
The steam whaler is a vessel o.
special design. She has full sal
!, power, is generally bark rugged. ant
!, only uses her steam power for enter
. Ing and leaving port or In picking hel
way through the devious passages II
the ice or In other narrow waters. Un
u like most other steamers, her engines
u and boilers are well aft, the smoke
y stack being placed between the mail
'e and mizzen mast. BY having the ma
chinery aft not only Is the heat from
" the boilers of greater use in warmin'
n the living quarters, but more and bet
10 ter located stowage room for the car
n go ia secured.
d. The smokestack In its peculiar posi-
rs ton, the huge wooden davits for tn
IN boats, instead OF the usual slende
ID iron ones; the numerous long, slende
S. graceful boats, and many other char
h acteristics, noticeable only TO the ey
II. of the seaman, stamp her character a
IL once.
1t whalers carry very large crews, ow
g. ing to the peculiar nature OF the
~ work. A steam whaler includes In he
Re complement her master, or captain
N five or six mates, one for each whale
y boat; the same number of boat-steei
til ers; a cook, steward, cabin bo
and steerage boy; a carpenter
IN cooper, two engineers, two fremer
rs and from twenty-five to thirty sea
il men--between fifty and sixty all told
as The crews of whalers receive n
s. wages They work on what is terme
10 "lay," that is, their remuneration
ly In the form of Il percentage OF tn
-. ootoh on N sliding scala The bOnr