Evening Republican, Volume 20, Number 301, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 December 1916 — HUNTING THE WHALE [ARTICLE]

HUNTING THE WHALE

A hundred years ago whaling Fas Mug in New England. Many stories of whalers and whaling have been writ ten, but no fiction has ever done justice to the courage and daring, the heart-breaking labor, the terrible privations and the heroism which were part of the day's work of the Yankee whalemen —who were really founders of American commerce, says a writer in the Boston Herald. A Hyatt Verill’s new book, “The Real Story, of a Whaler," gives a true and unvarnished idea of the whaleman’s life. In addition to the perils of the sea to which merchant sailors are expoked, says the author, the whaleman faces innumerable dangers absolutely unknown to other seamen, and yet the losses among whaling vessels and their crews were no greater than inother professions of the sea. Many of the ships went forth time after time on cruises of several years’ duration, sailed to the parts of the world, braved the elements of the frigid and the tropic zones on every sea, held their own most creditably thru several generations of skippers, and are still strong, staunch and seaworthy today. Many an old whaleman sailed forth from New Bedford or some other port in the saraye ship thruout bis long life, and never had a mishap never lost a man on all his voyages.

One Nantucket captain, over 80 years of age, boasted that in the years he had been whaling—he commenced as a boy—bis ship had never touched bottom, that not a man had ever been lost or -abandoned his vessel, that no man had aver been off duty over a week on account of illness or injuries, that he bad never lost but one spar, that he had never returned without a full cargo of oil, and that he bad nevpr passed a day at sea without gping aloft himself, save in the heaviest gales. This man was not exceptional; there, were scores, yes hundreds, who would say as much, for the Yankee whaling captains were unequaled seamen, bora navigators, and never shirked their duty; but thru fair weather or foul, thru calm and storm, amid vast icefloes or roaring breakers, courageously followed their quarry round the world and back.

Of all dangers which beset the whaleman, perhaps the least expected was that of a whale ramming the ship itself, and yet this happened many times, and many a ship was sent to the bittom by a maddened whale smashing in her planks with the tremendous force of his massive bulk and enormous strength. But of all the shipwrecks caused by running onto a whale, that of the ship Union, of Nantucket, Capt. Edward Gardner, is the most noteworthy and interesting. The Union sailed* from Nantucket for Brazil on Sept. 19, 1807, and when twelve days out and while proceeding under easy sail at a speed of seven knots, she suddenly brought up against a whale. The shock was so great that those on board thought the vessel had run onto a rock until the animal was seen and a hasty examination showed that the planking on the starboard bow had been smashed in and two timbers had been broken. The pumps were started, but the water rapidly gained and the crew prepared to leave the ship. The accident occurred at 10 o’Mock st night—lt was no doubt owing to the darkness that the whale was not sighted—and by midnight the boats were lowered and\ pulled ' away from the sinking vessel. A heavy sea was running and the crew of sixteen men were scattered among three boats. Fearing that the boats might become separated in the darkness, and in order to give more shifts at the oars, one boat was abandoned and the men were divided equally in the two remaining boats, which then Beaded for _ the Azores, over 600 miles distant

By October 2nd the men managed to rig up sails, but during the next two days the wind rose to a gale, the extemporized sails were carried away and the two boats were lashed together and allowed to drift. Owing to the haste in whlih the men left the ship, very few provisions and an insufficient supply of water had been pet in the boats, and by October 4th the men were put on rations consisting of but three quarts of water and eighteen small cakes for the whole company for each twenty-four hours. Starvation was staring them in the face, their thirst was terrible, and their case seemed hopeless, when, on October Bth, they sighted the island of Flores and landed safely after being adrift for seven days and eight nights, during which time they had rowed, sailed and drifted for 600 miles. Sometimes stories of a “mad whale" were spread among the whalers—tales Cf some of exceptional ferocity and courage—a whale warrior who destroyed lives and boats and invariably oscaped, and when at last some vessel enptured such a fighter and identfled Urn by the irons found In his body, the report was circulated among all the whalers far and near. Such an accident was reported by the ship Hector of New Bedford. In October, 1832, the boats were lowered and started after a large whale, but brfore they were within striking distance the creature turned, stove one of the boats and threw its occupants into the sea. The captain’s boat hurried to their rescue, but the furious. dgMirig whale dashed at it, seised It in his enormous, armed Jaw, and chewed and smashed 'it to pieces. The mate, struggling in the water, was then seized by the creature, and, altho bitten and chewed and badly wounded, he was finally rescued alive, * S