196 HISTOEY AND METHODS OF TBE FISHERIES. 



Prof. G. O. Sars, who visited Captain Foyu's station iu 1874, says that the kind of whale 

 captured almost exclusively is the blue whale (Balcenoptera Kibbuldi). A smaller whale (probably 

 Balcenoplera laticeps) is also abundant, but, being smaller and less fat than the blue whale, is not 

 captured. Two other species of whales are said to come there iu small numbers during the season 

 of the herring fisheries, Balcenoptera mmculus and the Megaptera hoops. 



The condition of the whale fisheries of Norway in 1881 is told by United States Consul Gade, of 

 Christiania, in a report dated January 7, 1882. He says : " The floating ice iu 1881 extended much 

 farther to the south and nearer to the coasts of Norway than usual. It was even found between 

 15 and 20 Norwegian miles north of the North Cape. This circumstance was not without its 

 influence on the temperature of the year, as the summer was unusually cold, but at the same time 

 the opinion has been expressed that it was advantageous to the whaling on the coasts of Finmark, 

 which was very considerable. It is supposed that ice drove such a supply of food into the fiords of 

 Finmark that whales, fish, and sea birds were drawn there in crowds. During the month of 

 March the Varanger Fiord is said to have offered a splendid spectacle ; several thousand whales 

 flocked iu and carried on the wildest antics. The sea was covered with columns of spray, and the 

 heavy sound of the whales breathing could be heard as far as Vadso. The whale is, however, 

 protected during this month, and the fishing could only begin at the end of May, from which time 

 it continues through the summer. Two hundred and eighty whales were caught in 1881, the 

 largest number ever killed iu one year oil' the Norwegian coasts. Some of the whales were described 

 as having a length of 90 feet and a circumference of 40 feet. Such whales are not met with every 

 day, but neither are they of exceeding rarity. 



"The whaling business in Norway increases and engages larger capital every year. Whalers 

 are now fitted out from several ports in Southern Norway, as well as from ports east and west of 



"The whales taken in Finmarken belong to the two species: Blaahvalen (Balcmopiera Sibbaldi Gray), yielding 

 90 hectoliters of oil, and Finhvalen (Balaenopteramusculus), yielding 45 hectoliters; the Knolhval (Megaptera loops 

 Fabricius) is also sometimes taken. 



"The steamers used are built of iroD, have a burthen of 32 E. T. nette and an engine of x!."i to '>"> nominal horse- 

 power. The length is 22.5 to 26.7 meters, the breadth 4 to 4.3 meters, and the draught 2.5 to 2.8 meters. They are 

 rigged as fore and aft schooners. Below deck are ouly the engine, the cabins, and a place for the cordage, as the whales 

 are always towed ashore either by the steamer or by a tugboat. The crew consists of nine men, viz, the captain, one 

 gunner, three engineers, one steward, and three sailors. The speed is 9 knots. 



"The guns used are muzzle-loaders, of steel, with steel-coils and mounted on swivels. The length 1.2 mcreisand 

 caliber 0.078. The charge 0.34 kilograms. They are fired at a distance of 20 to 40 meters. The gunner tries to hit 

 the whale between the ribs as near ^he spinal column as possible. 



"The gun-harpoon used was invented by Mr. Svend Foyn about 1860 and patented till 1882, when the patent ran 

 out in Norway. It consists of: The shell, 0.104 meters iu diameter, length 0.319, and charge 0.5 kilograms; the barb 

 holster, length 0.319; the pole, length 1.307. 



"The shell is screwed to the barb-holster, which contains a glass filled with sulphuric acid. To the pole is 

 attached the rope, 0.143 in circumference and 733 meters long, with a ring running on the pole. The weight of the 

 rope, which is of hemp, is about 1,450 kilograms. 



"When the harpoon is to be used, the barbs, that are pivoting, are secured to the pole by rope-yarn, and the 

 shell screwed on the holster. As the number of barbs are 4, the shell and the holster, that turn in the ring at the 

 eud of the pole when they are free, now form with the pole a solid mass. When the harpoon penetrates into Ihe 

 whale the rope-yarn slips off, the barbs turn as to make an angle with the holster, crushing the glass tube, and Ihe 

 sulphuric acid, that commuuieates with the powder in the shell through a channel in the screw, makes it explode. 



" Most whales sink. When they do not sink, several whalers-are of the opinion that the respiratory organ is tilled 

 with coagulated blood, impeding the inhaled air to get out again. Tlic reason for this theory is that there comes very 

 little blood through the nostril of a whale that do not sink. No hand-harpoons arc nsi <!. 



"The manner iu which the fishermen kill the whale by means of arrows and cross-bow is the following: When 

 a whale enters a bay the passage is barred with a strong net. and the whale shot. They let him go for two or three 

 days inside. The arrows contain no poison, but later investigations have led to the discovery of a peculiar bacilla 

 that lives ou arrows already used, and which poisons the blood. Old arrows (of iron) arc only esteemed, and now we 

 know the reason why. After some days the whale becomes d\ ing. ami is dispatched with knives and harpoous. The 

 flesh is eaten, with exception of the parts round I lie \\ouniis, where is formed a tumor. The whale ordinary taken in 

 this manner is the Vaagchval (Balcenoptera i-tixtmtii Fahiiuius). The number may amount to 15 to 20 a year." 



