'gutting in' and *trying out' 137 



hatch to the blubber room to be cut into the smaller 

 *horse pieces' ; and these in turn were sent up to the deck 

 in tubs to be chopped into even smaller pieces by the 

 man known as the mincer who worked at a wooden 

 bench. 



The try-works were already belching wood smoke and 

 the two try-pots now received the minced blubber. 



When the last of the blubber had been removed the 

 captain ordered that the whale be cast off. As the 



"Vke try-works 



chains were slipped from its tail Thomas watched the 

 white carcass, now relieved of its buoyant covering, sink 

 into the depths like a disappearing ghost. It was pursued 

 to the last by the insatiable sharks. 



Spreading her sails the Meribah departed from the scene 

 of the slaughter and pointed her prow once more to 

 Australia. 



All through the night the try-works blazed and the 

 stench of burning flesh fouled the air as the fires were fed 

 with the fritters of the boiled whale blubber. 



