212 The Story of the New England Whalers 



drawn within reach of the shoulder, when the 

 lance was thrust into the ' whale's vitals and 

 "churned" up and down. 



Among the earlier colonial laws that now 

 serve to amuse the student of history was one 

 providing a penalty for every instance when a 

 whale was "foolishly lanced behind ye vitals." 



Another weapon used in the earlier part of 

 the fishery was the boat spade. It consisted of 

 a flat, triangular, chisel-like blade, five or six 

 inches wide on the cutting edge, and perhaps 

 twice as long, which was secured to a six-foot 

 handle by means of a socket. It was provided 

 with a line by which it could be recovered if 

 dropped overboard. Nothing ever done by 

 American whalemen shows the reckless courage 

 of the race as well as the use of the boat spade. 

 For when, as the boat was drawn in alongside, 

 the man in the bow saw the whale raise its tail 

 in air for a dive, he slewed the boat in under 

 the uplifted flukes and drove the spade into the 

 root of the tail and cut off so many of the tendons 

 and muscles as utterly to disable the monster. 



"There is one case on record," says James 



