36 THE WHALEMAN'S ADVENTURES. 



first notice the poor animal had of the prox- 

 imity of his powerful captors, and the sudden 

 piercing of the barbed harpoons almost to 

 his vitals, made him flounder and run most 

 furiously. 



The boat spun after him with singular swift- 

 ness, now diving through the seas and tossing 

 the spray, and then lying still whi]e the whale 

 sounded ; anon in swift motion again, when 

 the game arose, for the space of an hour. 

 During this time another boat " got fast" to 

 him with its harpoons, and the captain's cruel 

 lance had several times struck his vitals. He 

 was killed, as whalemen call it, that is, mortally 

 wounded, an hour before he went into " his 

 flurry," and was really dead or turned upon his 

 back. 



The loose boat then came to the ship for a 

 hawser to fasten round his flukes ; which being 

 done, the captain left his irons in the carcass 

 and pulled for the ship, in order to beat to 

 windward, and, after getting the fish alongside, 

 to " cut him in." After the whale was thus got 

 hold of, and the mammoth carcass secured to 



