The Richmond palladium. (Richmond, Ind.) 1906-1907, 1907-02-17
Whales May Disport Them
selves in Presence of Visit
0rS at Jamestown Show.
WOULD BE A NOVELTY
PROPOSED METHOD OF CAPTUR-
ING THE LEVIATHAN OF THE
DEEP CONSIDERED RATHER
CLEVER.
(By W. II. Bright.)

/ Only short distance out in the
Atlantic ocean from Cape Charles and
Cape Henry that guard the entrance
1 to Hampton Roads and Chesapeake
4 Bay, schools or whales may be seen
/ by passengers on almost any Atlantic
liner or other ship that passes. They
are of the Atlantic or Biscay, or right
whale species, and often venture so
/ close to vessel that they could east
/ ly be harpooned. They grow to an
enormous size, some OF them being
fully sixty feet long.
Once upon time there was man
who said, There is nothing new I'M
der the sum-" but that was long
time ago, and the old gentleman had
no idea of the modern genius, and
many new things which have appeared
since then or have appeared for the
first time as everything has to do,
which amounts to the same thing.
And, now comes the latest thing III
the form of an application for a con-
cession at the jamestown exposition,
to exhibit two or three large whales
This latter day Barnum proposes TO
build a stockade in Hampton Roads
abutting on the exposition grounds
that will inclose about ten acres, Dulld
a broad walk on the top OF the heavy
piling, that visitors may enter at one
gate, walk around the corral, and
pass out at another gate. In this
stockade he proposes to imprison two
or three large whales for the ediflca-
ton of the visitors as they pass around
the semi-circle.
This is certainly some thing that has
never been attempted before at any
exposition. First, because the whales
could not have been taken to previ-
Gus expositions alive if they had been
caught. and if they had been caught
and taken to the exposition alive they
could not have been kept alive for
want of their native salt water. In
this case, however, the leviathan OF
the deep can not only be Landed IN
the stockade in Hampton Roads, con-
tanning about 10 acres OF their accus-
toned salt water, but may disport
themselves in plain view or Vlsltors
without any serious inconvenience 10
themselves.
When asked how he was going to-
get the whales, the promoter SilDiy
remarked: That's easy. L snail SIM
plv charter powerful sea-golns tug,
rig up drum near the stern or the
vessel. connect it with donkey ten
gine) by friction gear and run onto
the drum a thousand or two feet or
the best rope used in harpoohlnS
whales, except that instead OF mar
noon on the end of it | will nave
lasso. 1 will then run out into shoal
or school of whales, select the one
want and daily with him till | get the
vessel close enough and swish will go
the larriat over the whale, s nhead and
tighten up. OF course. the Whale at
this new sensation will start 10 run
away. and l will give him slack Tor
few seconds, when | will gradually put
on the brake, making the pull for MIN
harder and harder till he gets tired OF
the sport and Stacks up or turns
about AS soon as there is any slack
in the rope / will take it up by the
donkey and the tug will be signaled to |
go ahead slowly. If the whale comes
along all right, well and good, but If
he gets obstreperous and goes to run
away again. I'll let him run and slack
him ND as before. When he is finally |
tired out, as he will soon be, he will
come along quietly into Hampton
Roads and into the stockade where he
will be turned loose and the entrance
closed. the larriat removed, and there
you have 1T.
1t certainly would be novelty that
few exposition visitors would miss
seeing. 1t now seems that the only
thing in the way of this unique at
traction is securing the proper site.
and it is thought that may be arranged
in time for the opening of the expo
sition, April 26.