Finback Whale 



capture. Other whales will not stop until they are hamstrung, as 

 it were, by 'spading.' The spading process is performed by haul- 

 ing the boat near enough to cut the cords that connect the body 

 and the flukes either on top or underneath. A large vein runs 

 along the side of the back, terminating at the juncture of the 

 caudal fin which, if cut, will give the creature its death wound." 

 Another method of bringing the animal to a stop is by lacerating it 

 with numerous harpoons detached from the ropes. "When brought 

 to, it usually remains quite stationary for a few minutes or will 

 roll from side to side, giving the officer of the boat a good 

 opportunity to shoot a bomb lance or use the hand lance with 

 good effect, which soon dispatches it." 



The ship is then brought alongside or, in calm weather, the 

 whale is towed to it and the "cutting in," as it is termed, 

 begins. A cutting stage is lowered down over the animal upon 

 which the men may stand, the tackles are fastened to the carcass 

 and the head is severed and hoisted on deck while the remainder 

 is cut according to a regular system so that the blubber is re- 

 moved in several great masses while the mutilated remnant of 

 the monster floats away or sinks to the bottom. The blubber 

 and baleen are removed from the head later. 



Scammon states that the great bowhead whale will sometimes 

 yield as much as 275 barrels of oil and the right whale 130 bar- 

 rels, while the whalebone of the two may amount to 3,000 and 

 1,550 pounds respectively. 



Whaling has been engaged in since 1712 by vessels from 

 New England ports, especially Nantucket and New Bedford, and 

 in England and Scotland it has been carried on for over a century. 



Guns for .shooting the harpoons have superseded the hand- 

 throwing process and improved harpoons have been introduced 

 carrying explosive bombs which are calculated to kill the whale 

 as soon as they strike, but so wary have the survivors become 

 that in this instance modern improvements will have little effect 

 in hastening extermination already so far advanced. 



Finback Whale 



Baianoptera physalis (Linnaeus) 



Called also Rorqual, Finner. 

 Length. 40-50 feet. 



16 



