138 THE WHALE AND 



Sparks from Loggerhead. Line Foul. Captain Overboard. 



that, as it rubbed around the loggerhead, sparks 

 of fire flew from it in a stream. As the differ- 

 ent coils run from the tub, they sometimes, 

 when not well laid down, get " foul" or tan- 

 gled, in which case there is great danger, for, 

 in attempting to clear it, a turn will get by ac- 

 cident around an arm or a leg. As any one 

 can see, there is little hope for the unhappy man 

 thus entangled, for, unless the line be cut in- 

 stantly, either the limb is lost or the man goes 

 overboard. 



A few years since, one of the most active and 

 energetic of our whaling captains was thus tak- 

 en overboard by the line, and had the singular 

 good fortune to survive to tell the story. The 

 whale was sounding very swiftly when the line 

 became entangled. The boat-steerer, who was 

 at his post in the stern of the boat, tending 

 the line, instantly threw the turn off the log- 

 gerhead, and the tangled part ran forward and 

 caught in the bow. The captain was seen to 

 stoop to clear it, and then at once disappear- 

 ed. The boat-steerer seized the hatchet, which 

 is always at hand, and chopped the line, witl: 

 the faint hope that when it slackened the cap- 

 tain could extricate himself. 



