280 The Story of the New England Whalers 



the fires on the next voyage. As the oil came 

 from the blubber, it was dipped into tanks to 

 cool and then run into the barrels and stowed 

 in the hold. 



Steam whalers have been fitted with tanks 

 heated by steam to try out the oil. In the Nor- 

 wegian fishery the lean parts of the whale are 

 steamed to extract the oil, and the refuse is made 

 into fertilizer. 



At all times, cutting in a whale was hard work. 

 It was work that had to be done as rapidly as 

 possible, too. Trying out the blubber was not 

 so hard, though on a ship where the master was 

 overbearing and cruel it could be made most 

 disagreeable. 



Slocum, previously quoted, says of the work: 

 "Cutting in and trying out the blubber is a prosy 

 job, and nasty is no name for it. All hands 

 strip down to a shirt [he was in a warm-water 

 whale ship], a pair of overalls rolled up to the 

 knees, showing a pair of bare shins and sockless 

 feet in large brogans, and in we go grease 

 from head to foot day and night until the 

 whale is all cut safely on board. It gives you 



