WHALE HUNTING WITH GUN AND CAMERA 



purpose of lancing. Every time the mate endeavored to 

 lance the calf intervened, and by holding its tail toward the 

 boat and smashing it down whenever they approached, kept 

 the stabber at bay for half an hour. Finally the boat had 

 to be recalled for fear of an accident, and a fresh bomb 

 harpoon was fired into the mother, causing instant death. 

 The faithful calf now came and lay alongside the body of 

 its dead mother, where it was badly lanced but not killed. 

 Owing to its position it was found impossible to kill it, so 

 another bomb harpoon was fired into it. Even this did not 

 complete the tragedy and it required another lance stroke 

 to finish the gallant little whale. 1 



Captain H. G. Melsom tells me that in Iceland a 

 female humpback was killed, and her calf would not 

 leave the ship which was towing its dead mother but 

 followed the vessel until it was close to the station. 



Humpbacks have a bad reputation among the Nor- 

 wegians and it is seldom that a boat is sent out to 

 lance a whale of this species. The gunners say that 

 there is too much danger in the flukes and long flip- 

 pers and that sad experience has given them a whole- 

 some respect. Usually, if the animal is too "sick" 

 to require a second harpoon it will be drawn close 

 up beside the ship and lanced from the bow. 



From personal experience I have only negative evi- 

 dence to offer as to the fighting qualities of this whale 

 for, although I have seen a great many killed, never 

 did one give much trouble. They certainly cannot 

 drag a vessel as a blue whale or finback will, and ap- 

 parently do not like to pull very hard against the 



"The Mammals of Great Britain and Ireland." By J. G. 

 Millais. Longmans, Green, & Co., p. 238. 



70 



