190 The Story of the New England Whalers 



take any course save the one directly forward. 

 . . . And it is also endowed with a backing 

 power which is simply marvellous when we con- 

 sider the enormous weight moving forward with 

 great speed." 



It is told of the whale of the northwest coast 

 that it "practises a ruse de guerre by hollowing 

 its back, causing the blubber to become loose 

 or 'slack/ as it is termed, and preventing the 

 harpoons from entering. Many a boat steerer 

 has been dismayed by this manoeuvre, and al- 

 though the harpoon may have been thrown 

 with all the force that could be summoned, the 

 impetus was inadequate to penetrate the relaxed 

 blubber and flesh." (The Whale Fishery.) 



Whales are gregarious and gather in vast schools, 

 as noted especially when migrating; that is to 

 say, they did so in the days when there were 

 enough whales to form such schools. In estimat- 

 ing the number of California gray whales seen 

 along the Pacific coast in the migrating season, 

 Scammon says (Marine Mammals of the North- 

 west Coast) : " It has been estimated approx- 

 imately by observing men among the shore 



