THE ANTARCTIC SEAL FISHERIES. 437 



pieces," that are usually from 1^ to 2 feet long, and about 15 inches wide; in thickness they vary 

 from 1 to 4 inches, according to the fatness of the animal. The blubber is now strung upon back 

 poles or piled in wheel-barrows and taken to a running stream, where the sand and blood are 

 washed ofl 1 , and the pieces cut into strips about 2 inches wide which can be dropped into the bung- 

 hole of casks that have been rolled to the spot. If, after stripping the animals, the blubber cannot 

 be immediately cared for, it is buried in the snow or sand beyond the reach of birds, which are 

 continually hovering about, and which devour the carcasses of the slain seals. 



When convenient, as at Heard's Island, it is customary to erect try-works near the shore or 

 running stream, where the blubber can be turned into oil "anil made ready for transportation to 

 the vessel. It is often a work of extreme difficulty to get the blubber to the try-works, for it is 

 sometimes carried several miles over slippery icebergs and rocky shores. 



To prepare the blubber for the try-pot the strips that are now about 2 feet long, and 1 to 2 

 inches in width, are partially cut through at intervals of about an inch, and these strings of email 

 pieces are ready for boiling. 



The blubber of the sea-elephant is harder to boil than whale blubber. From try-works of 

 100 gallons capacity about 900 gallons of oil can be turned out daily. 



Scraps remaining in the try-works are passed through a press to extract any oil that may be 

 left after the boiling process ; after coming from the press the scraps are used for fuel. 



If the blubber is tried out on shore it is often a difficult task to get the casks of oil off 

 to the vessel. To prepare a cask for rafting the quarter hoops are lifted and some beckets put 

 on and the hoops are then replaced. The casks, sometimes to the number of fifteen or twenty, are 

 bent on to the raft line at some distance apart, so that they will not strike one another, and are 

 thus pulled to the side of the tender, which is anchored near the shore. Sometimes the raft-line 

 is over 300 fathoms long. 



Frequently the blubber is tried out on board the vessel, in which case the horse pieces 

 from the animal are transferred from the beach to the tender by means of a raft rope, which is 

 about 3 fathoms long, with an eye splice in one end, to which pieces of blubber are made fast and 

 taken to the edge of the surf. The end of the rope is thrown to a boat just outside the breakers, 

 and the raft of blubber is towed to the tender or vessel. This rafting process is called by the 

 sealers " rock hopping." 



Captain Scammon gives some account of the manner of hunting the sea-elephant at Heard's 

 and Desolation Islands. He says: 



" When parties from different vessels are located on the same beach the custom is for all to 

 work together when killing the animals, as well as when skinning and cutting the blubber from 

 the bodies into ' horse pieces.' These are thrown into one or more piles, after which the men of 

 each party are ranged in squads, and each one, in turn, draws a piece from the heap, until all is 

 disposed of. These divisions are made whenever the animals are found and killed in any consid- 

 erable numbers; and if far from the rendezvous the blubber is 'backed' or rolled in casks to the 

 main depot. 'Backing' is the stringing of eight or ten pieces on a pole, which is carried on the 

 shoulders of two men ; but if a cask is used, three men are allotted to each one of six or eight bar- 

 rel's capacity, to roll which the distance of 2 miles is allowed to be a day's work. * * * 



" While the ship is away, homeward bound, or returning to Heard's Island for another cargo, 

 the tender may be at Desolation Island, picking up what scattering elephants can be found upon 

 shores that once swarmed with millions of those huge beasts; or a short whaling cruise is made, 

 until the time comes for commencing operations at the island. 



"Hunting for the scattering animals about the shores of Desolation Island, between seasons 



