Los Angeles herald., 1907-09-29
An American Industry That is
Rapidly Becoming a Thing
Of the Past.
Of the Past.

made the frst one in Honolulu.
This was 40 or more years ago and 1t
marked the last stage Of development
along that line. the first being the sword
lance. the second the lance-bomb. With
these instruments 1t was necessary to go
alongside the whale and required the ut
most skill In placing the lances In just
the right place. With the gun the ap-
proach was less close and yet, despite
the gun there are today whalers who dis
dain to use anything save the sword
lance.
The process of cutting in" and try
ing OUT a whale is almost exactly the
same as 1t was 80 years ago, except. as
stated, the steam whalers use steam in
stead Of the fires.
There is one incentive. however. that
keeps and will always keep a few whale
men afioat and that is the high price Of
whalebone. The industry is divided into
three classes-those who hunt for sperm
whales alone, those who hunt for sperm
and right whales and those who hunt for
right and bowhead whales.
The length of a whaling voyage nova
days varies from four months to three
years whereas in the palmy days YES
sci rarely returned in less than four years
and was frequently gone Ave. The old
timers went In search of both the right
and the sperm whales and as the habitat
of these species is widely separated the
cruises of the early whalemen necessarily
involved traversing the warm and cold
seas alike. At the present time there are
but few craft that combine the two
kinds OF whaling.
The officers and crew Of whaling bark
number about 38 men. Instead of being
given hxed wages, the old way Of ship
ping on shares is yet in vogue. Each
member of the crew, from the highest to
the lowest, goes on "lay." When the
voyage has ended, the catch figured out,
the expenses Of the vessel deducted and
all debts made good the "divvy" is
made and each receives his pay accord
ing to his lay. The lay Of the captain
may be one-fourteenth while that Of the
cabin boy may be as little as one two
hundredth and fftieth, this portion being
known gs the ''long lay"
The fitting out of whaling bark that
is to be gone on a cruise of three or four
years is not a simple task. 1t is true
that they can put into ports now and then
to replenish their stores, etc., but they
have to start well provided against the
ordinary contingencies Of those who go
down to the sea In ships.
For the vessel there is the dockyard
overhaul and she is carefully gone over
from stem to stern and from keel to
truck, every seam caulked and painted,
the copper on her hull renewed in neees-
sary places, her topsldes painted. her
decks smoothed, her rigging, runring and
standing, oyerhauled, set up and renewed,
her spars examined and q hundred and
one things done In order that she may
leave port in as good condition as possi-
BILE.
There are times, too, when they need
much attention for now and then they
limp home from voyage In which Father
Neptune has pretty nearly handed them
over to his son, Dayy Jones. But. so long
as they come home laden with oil and
each member OF the crew receives hand
some lay there ia little to complain Of
and the ship yard men are not sorry.
When the whaler has been dropped from
the ways glistening with fresh paint and