WHALE FISHERY OF NEW ENGLAND 



15 



frequent thrusts these early hunters actually worried the life out of 

 the whale. 



Way mouth's Journal of his voyage to America in 1605 gives the 

 first description of the Indian method of whaling in canoes on the New 

 England coast from November to April, when spouters generally 

 abounded there. "One especial thing is their manner of killing the 

 whale" runs the quaint description "which they call a powdawe; 

 and will describe his form; how he bloweth up the water; and that 

 he is twelve fathoms long: that they go in company of their king 



Early method of bringing whales on shore by means of a windlass. 



with a multitude of their boats; and strike him with a bone made in 

 fashion of a harping iron fastened to a rope, which they make great 

 and strong of the bark of trees, which they veer out after him; then 

 all their boats come about him as he riseth above water, with their 

 arrows they shoot him to death; when they have killed him and 

 dragged him to shore, they call all their chief lords together, and sing 

 a song of joy; and those chief lords, whom they call sagamores, divide 

 the spoil and give to every man a share, which pieces so distributed, they 

 hang up about their houses for provisions; and when they boil them 

 they blow off the fat and put to their pease, maize and other pulse 

 which they eat." 



The Esquimaux at this time were very much more advanced than 

 the Indians, and showed their ingenuity by inventing the "toggle" 

 harpoon, which is in use to this day, and which was improved upon 

 in 1848 by a Negro in New Bedford called Lewis Temple, who made 



