The Parker post., 1914-06-20

~ "a tai horizon! Recollections Of
Nv Iii the old-time, off-shOre whal-
ing at Monterey come to
mind. Whaling is no longer to be ac-
counted an extinct profession, as is
taking the walrus or buffalo, and up
on the coast of Labrador, even now,
they are making ready for the spring
catch of whale. Not little whales,
either, but fellows so large that we
recall a ships captain once seating
himself comfortably in the mouth OF
one about to be dissected on the dock.
Of course you've read and read OF
whales and, probably, when you
crossed the Atlantic you may have
seen a whale or two blowing in the
distance, but unless you have gone to
the far north, the chances are you've
never really seen a whale at close
range
Naturalists place the whale as the
largest Of known animals and they
will tell some strange facts anent him.
For example, the head of the whale
forms nearly one-half the body. II
our own heads were in like proper
ton, fancy the queer looking crea-
lures we would be. The nostrils,
again, are on the top of the head and
vary-sometimes one, sometimes two.
More than this, they do not serve as
organs of smell, but only as respira-
tory openings, through which the wa
ter, taken in while the animal is be-
meath the surface, is elected.
Has No Voice.
Though living on animal food, the
stomach is complex, consisting of
from four to seven apartments. Queer
ly enough, this giant creature has no
voice
Nor is that ALL One of the impor-
tant products of whaling, prior TO the
introduction of the metal stave, was
the whale bone. In certain varieties
of the whale there are several longi-
tudinal rows Of horny plates, from
which this came. These plates are set
cross-wise and hang from each upper
jaw into the cavity of the mouth be-
low, which, to make place for them,
is also destitute of teeth. When the
mouth is shut these plates are in
closed on the outside of the upper
lip and the tongue lies between the
two rows. These plates, which are
fastened at their base in the roof
of the mouth, are hardly more than
one-fourth of an inch apart, and their
inner edges are fringed. This curious
device is admirably suited to the wants
of the animal. 1t lives on small ma
rine crutacea and mollusca and is said
never to take in anything larger than
a herring. Indeed, its throat is so
small that it cannot swallow larger
objects 1t swims along in the water
where myriads of these minute ami
mails are moving and ingulfs whole
shoal of them at once. The water is
strained off, as through a sieve,
through the spaces between the
whale-bone, and is discharged at the
sides of the mouth, or through the
blow-holes, but all the animals, even
the minutest, remain in the mouth.
Thus, by this capacious net the
whale is enabled to make a meal suit
ed to his enormous bulk, though his
prey consists of creatures often not
larger than insects.
Whaling has been the theme of the
writer of romance and adventure
since time immemorial, but as a mat.
ter of fact, the method of it has
changed little. At the big modern
whaleries great black painted steam
ers go out in search of whale other
wise methods are as of old. AS soon
as a whale is sighted by the lookout
the vessel bears to- and dories, car
ried aboard for the purpose, are re-
leased and rowed cautiously as pos
sible, toward the whale. When close
enough to suit his purpose, the har-
pooner, who has position in the Prov
of the vessel, shoots his great iron
bar into the head of the whale.
Instantly the infuriated whale
makes off, releasing the long harpoon
line behind him. By and by he must
come up to breathe and by that time
the other dories are at hand and ready
to dispatch him. In some cases an
explosive is fired into the head of the
whale, but the whalers do not seem
to take kindly to this modern inno-
vation and it is not generally prac-
tised
Working up the whale presents the
interesting modern aspect of the
story and to see this one needs to