The New York herald., 1922-01-08
Valiant Southampton Vets
Cut Tow Line Six Miles
Out and Are Saved.
ONE CRAFT yANQUISHED
Monster Is Of Good Sort as He
Hits One Hunter With Bit
ten Out Part of His TAIL

That pesky whale whah has kept
the retired sea captains ST the south
shore OF Long Island on the run for
the last three weeks bedevilled them
again yesterday. Three boat loads of
cap'ns went after him this time and
Southampton. But he up with his
fluke and batted one or the veterans
into the ocean, almost drowning him
and putting one of the boats out Of
the chase.
Then the whale. harpooned by a
dead shot in the second boat, rushed
straight out to sea. towing the boat
and it's crew and carrying them six
miles due south before they decided to
quit and Gu. the tow line.
The third boat load of cap'ns, which
was to have been a sort of reserve for
the other two. lowered around off shore
until night fell hoping the whale
wouldn't come back which he didn't.
But all the whalers agree that one
thing is certain and that Is they can
identify the whale the next time they
see him. because some predaceous sea
monster has bitten off part Of his tall
In one of his lunges yesterday the
whale elevated the tail In the air above
one of the boats. and a whaler whose
veracity has never been questioned
along the whole South Shore declared
later:
II cud a reached right up and ketched
holt or the tail. In fact, / did reach
on tta
note that quite a section of the tall
was missing"
Overheard, Harpoon and All.
The man whom the tail swished into
the ocean was Silas Edwards. He keeps
vegetable store in Southampton ard
didn't want to go whale hunting, but
was persuaded because Of his mastery
OF the harpoon. He was poised at the
bow of the boat ready to strike when
the whale Call of seventy feet long)
heaved against the boat and at the same
time slapped II with fiuke. Edwards
lu .ched into the water. harpoon and
all.
The whale dived al The same in: ant.
and the suction created by his. { cent
carried Capt Edwards down so far that
his mates thought for while he'd
never come up. But they kept rowing
around. and presently he reappeared.
He was stunned. but able to swim. They
pulled him aboard, took him home and
put him to bed. where he said last
night that he was now a retired whale
hunter
The fishermen Of Water Mil. two
miles east of Southampton. started for
the whale first. after Bill Bennett. skip
per of tho life guard station. had bel
lowed Thar she blows along the
coast. Three weeks ago when n whale
appeared off Southampton, the gray
boards of Ainagansett had to go down
the shore fifteen miles to attend to Il.
The men of Southampton. accepting
this as sort OF reflecting on their honor.
had vowed that they'd 20 after the
next whale themselves.
So while the two Water Mill fisher
men, Cap'ns Mort and Herb Bennett.
with Arthur Bennett and Courtney
Rogers. were bending to the oars or
their Jersey boat an alarm sounded
through the Village of Southampton.
causing all the vamp whalers TO sniff
the breeze and pile down to the beach.
There they seized one Jersey boat AMI
one whaleboat The latter had been
lying on the sand for five years. No
body knew whether II would hold water
or not. but in they got. and 1t did.
In the whaleboat, out TO face the