THE WHALE FISHERY. 241 



Tbc harpoons, hand-lances, and boat-spades, are usually called "craft," and the other imple- 

 ments "gear." Each boat has its own crew, consisting of the "header," "steerer," and four oars- 

 men, and its own gear and craft. 



DIMENSIONS OF THE WHALE-BOAT. According to early records the length of the whale-boat 

 used in 1724 was 20 feet; and from the statements of our oldest builders we learn that it was 

 increased to 25 feet before 1800. Mr. James Beetle, of New Bedford, tells me that in 1827 he 

 built boats from 27 to 28 feet long, and that they remained of this length until 1840. Meantime, 

 however, the boats carried by the smaller class of vessels were 25 feet long. During the decade 

 of 1840-'50 Mr. Beetle made whale-boats 36 feet long, with. 7 pulling oars, for the whaler Sallie 

 Aim, of New Bedford. That vessel used the boats in Delago Bay whaling, but they were employed 

 chiefly for towing and were finally condemned, being too heavy and unwieldy. Mr. George W. 

 Hogers, boat-builder, of New London, tells me that he made 9-oared whale-boats 38 feet long, 6 

 feet beam and 2 feet and 2 inches deep amidships. These boats were used by the ship Hannibal, 

 of New London, Captain Eoyce, for capturing sulphur- bottom whales near Spitsbergen and Nova 

 Zeinbla. These, however, are exceptional lengths. In 1860, when the Arctic fishery made a suc- 

 cessful footing, the length of the whale-boat was increased to 28 and 29 feet, and since that time 

 to 30 and occasionally to 31 feet. The 28 and 29 foot boats are now more generally used, and it 

 may be said that the largest boats are used in the Arctic fishery, and the smallest ones in the 

 Southern fishery. The small schooners generally carry 28-foot boats. Mr. Eben Leonard, boat- 

 builder, of Long Plain, Mass., tells me that the usual dimensions of whale-boats are as follows : 

 The 28-foot boats are 6 feet 2 or 3 inches wide and 26 inches deep; the 29-foot boats, 6 feet 4 or 

 o inches wide and 27 inches deep, and the 30-foot boats 6 feet 6 inches wide and 27 or 28 inches 

 deep. Ho also tells me that he has made whale-boats 30 feet 6 inches long, 7 feet wide, and 28 

 inches deep, but the large boats are not popular. Capt. J. W. Beaty, in 1880, sent me the fol- 

 lowing dimensions of the Proviucetown whale-boat: Length on top, 28 feet; length on keel, 20 

 feet ; keel, 4 inches in rocker; width of boat, 5 feet 8 inches; depth, 26 inches. Forty-eight timbers 

 are used iu the straight-keel boat, and fifty-eight in a center-board boat. The keel, gunwales, 

 timbers, stein and stern post, are made of the best white oak, and the outside planking of half- 

 inch white cedar with galvanized fastenings. The boat has two sets of ribbons made of oak, 

 and twelve knees made of white oak or hackmatack steamed. 



BOAT WORK AND MATERIAL. White oak, yellow bark or gray oak, cedar, spruce, and 

 northern pine are employed in the manufacture of the whale-boat. Mr. James Beetle, of New 

 Bedford, the oldest whale-boat builder in America, speaking of the New Bedford boat trade, tells 

 me that the white oak, from which the stems and the timbers are made, and the cedar for the 

 planking and ceiling, arc obtained principally from Bristol County, Massachusetts; the yellow 

 bark oak, although found in Massachusetts and Khode Island, is for the most part obtained from 

 Connecticut, in the region between Hartford and Norwich. The boat-builders claim that the 

 timber from that section is better suited for their work as it is free from knots for a length of 30 

 feet or more. Cedar is invariably used for the strakes. It is not so hard as oak, but more durable ; 

 and although it " splinters" when dry, it is tough and leathery when wet; besides it has the nec- 

 essary qualification of lightness. 



THE SAIL AND SPEED OF THE WHALE-BOAT. The locomotive appliances of the whale-boat 

 are common to all small craft, embracing oars, sails, and paddles. The steering-gear consists of 

 an unusually long and heavy oar and a light rudder; the former is used when "laying the boat 

 on the whale," and the latter when sailing free. The tireless, never complaining motor, steam, 

 has been employed in the larger craft, such as launches and schooners, for " going on to whales," 

 SEC. v, VOL. ii 16 



