HISTORICAL INTRODUCTION 



55 



Figure 20. Japanese harpoon gun 

 firing five harpoons simultaneously, and 

 used for hunting Pilot Whales. [Omura, 

 1 953-) 



Pilot Whale appears so frequently and in such great numbers that 

 Pilot-whaling is an important trade. This is the case, above all, on the 

 Shetland Islands, the Orkneys, and particularly the Faroes, where Pilot 

 whaling" has a history that can be traced back to 1584. Between that year 

 and 1883, i.e. in a space of 300 years, about 117,000 Pilot Whales were 

 caught here, and their capture continues to represent a good source of 

 revenue for the local population to this day. During July 1947 alone over 

 a thousand animals were caught, and a special winch was used for hauling 

 the carcasses out of the water. Similar sights can be seen in Dildo (Trinity 

 Bay, Newfoundland), where 3,000-4,000 Pilot Whales may be caught 

 annually. Mink breeders here depend a great deal on the catch. In Japan, 

 the animals are pursued with small boats, and are killed with a harpoon 

 gun that fires five harpoons simultaneously (Fig. 20) . 



In the Arctic, and seldom far from the icy northern polar seas, we find 

 the Narwhal (Fig. 7), a spotted dolphin some 13-18 feet long. The males 

 have the peculiar 'unicorn tusk' which we have discussed earlier. Though 

 Narwhals have occasionally stranded in North Sea countries, they do not 

 as a rule occur farther south than 70^ N., loughly the latitude of North 

 Cape. But even so far north the Narwhal is far from safe, for the Eskimos 

 go out in their kayaks and catch every Narwhal they can lay their hands 

 on. They are not so much interested in the meat, most of which they feed 

 to their sledge dogs, or in the oil, as in the animal's skin which contains a 

 great deal of vitamin C, just like the skin of the Greenland Whale which is 

 valued for the same reason by the inhabitants of Eastern Siberia. Vitamin 

 C is essential to human health, and since man is one of the few mammals 

 which cannot manufacture it internally, he must find it elsewhere. In 

 Western Europe, the chief sources of this vitamin are potatoes, vegetables 

 like cauliflower and Brussels sprouts, and fresh fruit such as strawberries, 

 oranges and melons. Clearly, the Eskimos have no means of cultivating 

 these plants and so must get their vitamin from animals, which are 



