120 VOYAGE INTO 



hind than before, and it is hollow, whereinto they put the 

 stick. Before this hollow part the fore-goer is fastened or 

 tyed, that is to say the foremost rope. Those are the best 

 harpoons that are made of clean and fine steel and are not 

 hardened too much, so that you may bend it without snap- 

 ping ; for oftentimes two hundred pounds are lost (for a 

 midling tohale is esteem'd at so much) in a minutes time for 

 want of a good and well temper'd harpoon. The wooden 

 stick is fastened within the iron collet or funnel of the har- 

 poon with packthread, wound all about the iron ', somewhat 

 higher up, about two spans off, there is a hole made through 

 the stock. The harpoon is light behind, and heavy towards 

 the point or before, like an arrow, that is made heavy before 

 with iron and light behind with feathers, so that fling it 

 which way you will it doth always fall upon the point. 

 Through this hole cometh a piece of packthread, wherewith 

 the end of the fore-runner is fastened to the handle or stock 

 of the harpoon, but this is soon torn off, and it serveth for 

 nothing more after the harpoon sticks in the body of the 

 whale ; neither is the wooden handle of any further use, and 

 so it doth soon come out from the iron. 



When the whale is struck with the harpoon, all the other 

 long-boats row out before, and take notice which way the 

 line doth stand, and sometimes they pull at the rope or 

 line. If it is stiff and heavy, the ichale doth draw it still 

 with his might ; but if it hang loose, so that the long-boat is 

 before and behind equally high out of the water, then the 

 men pull in the rope again, and the rope-giver laycth it 

 down in very good order, round, and one row above the 

 other, that if the whale should draw on again, he may have 

 it ready to give him without being entangled. Here is also 

 this to be observed, that if the ichale runs upon the level 

 they must not give him too much rope, for if he should turn 

 and wind liimsclf much and often about, he might easily 

 wind the rope about a rock or heavy stone and so fasten it to 



