FISHERIES OF ALASKA, 1908. 69 



seconds after the discluiige the bomb explodes. On the shaft of 

 the liarpoon are barbs, wliich expand on entering the whale, niakmg 

 it next to mipossible for the harpoon to be dra\\Ti out again. 



As soon as struck the whale sounds and goes to the bottom, some- 

 times strikijig it with such force as to drive good-sized rocks into its 

 ])lubbcr. The animal has inmiense strength and will at times tow 

 the steamer several miles before begiiming to weaken. As soon as 

 the line slackens it is snubbed around a heavy steam winch on the 

 deck just ahead of the bridge, after which the wounded whale is 

 played in much the same manner that a fish is played by the expert 

 angler, a continual strain being kept on him, slacking sometimes to 

 avoid a wild rush, but alwa^'s reeling in slack at every opportunity. 

 The whalers claim that the whale does his hard fighting for freedom 

 deep down, sometimes sulking for many minutes on the bottom. 

 The stram soon begins to tell on him, his rushes growing shorter 

 and less vicious, and finally he rises to the surface, lashing the water 

 white in his struggle. Should he blow blood when he reaches the 

 surface, the whalers know he is mortally wounded, and wait until 

 he dies, but if he blows clear and is quiet the pram, a peculiar spoon- 

 shaped boat adapted fi'om a Norwegian model, is lowered and rowed 

 alongside and a long lance is driven into him until he blows blood, 

 which shows an mternal hemorrhage, from the effects of which he 

 soon expires, rollmg over on his back in his last struggles, and then 

 sinking to the bottom. 



The line is now rapidly hove in until a heavy strain shows that 

 the slack is in and the weight of the whale is showmg, when the line 

 is run through a heavy iron block at the foremast head, this mast 

 being heavily rigged m order to stand the tremendous strain. Fathom 

 by fathom the Ime comes in until at last the dead body is alongside. 

 A chain is attached around the tail and the which then heaves the 

 tail out of the water, causing the animal to hang vertically head 

 downward from the bow. The steamer is then forced ahead at full 

 speed, to bring the body to the surface. The lobes of the tail are 

 then severed and brought on board. In order to make the carcass 

 more buoyant air is blown into the abdominal ca^dty by means of 

 a Westmghouse air pump. 



Should the whaler not be read}^ to ri'turn to the station imme- 

 diately, a buoy, \Wtli the ship's flag attached, is secured to the whale, 

 and both allowed to go adrift wliile the steamer continues its hunt, 

 sometimes as many as three whales being brought in at one time, all 

 with tlieir tails out of the water and hoisted to the bow. 



Upon arrival at the station the whales are attached to a buoy in 

 front of the slip, from wliich a line is taken and the animal hauled 

 into the mouth of the shp between two cribs filled with rocks, which 

 act as guides to keep it centered and at the same time to ballast the 



