206 FISHERIES OF THE ORIENTAL REGION, 



eight feet long, to attack the unwieldy monster and tow him to 

 the shore. The way in which they capture him is as follows. 

 Each morning all the boats put to sea to search for their prize. 

 When a whale is observed, they make a signal to each other, and 

 immediately every one is prepared for the attack. This takes 

 place is small boats, in which six or eight men with small paddles 

 row sitting. A harpooner stands in front with his hai'poon, not 

 of the best kind, which is fastened to the boat with a rattan rope 

 of fifteen or twenty fathoms. On approaching the whale, the 

 harpooner springs on its back, and drives the harpoon, which is 

 fastened to the boat, with all his force into the animal. The 

 whale, on feeling the harpoon, immediately darts away and dives 

 to the bottom, and of course takes the boat with him. The crew 

 remain, swimming until they are taken up by the other boats. 

 The whale is soon obliged to come up, and the boat generally 

 appears with it ; the surrounding boats approach it, and make a 

 second, third and fourth boat fast to the first, in order to impede 

 the whale by the heavy drag. Being thus hindered from making 

 rapid progress, other boats are enabled to run alongside the sea 

 monster and to disable him entirely. The beast is still far from 

 dead when they already crowd upon his huge carcass, cutting and 

 chopping ; when the animal is really dead, he is towed in triumph 

 to the shore, drawn up and cut to pieces. Every one is i-eady, 

 women and children assist, and it is a real holiday for them to 

 dispose of such a sea monster. Every one, small and great, runs 

 with the blubber, which they speedily carry to the mountains, to 

 barter it for maize ; while they all give themselves up to unusual 

 enjoyment." 



" The oil is not boiled out, but the blubber is hung up in the sun 

 to allow it to drop ; the train oil running out of it is then caught 

 in vessels; it is of a nauseous odor, but it is nevertheless made use 

 of by the inhabitants. They find much ambergris floating in the 

 sea ; they also kill many sharks, dry the fins and gather birds' 

 nests, all which productions are sold to the Bugis traders for the 

 Chinese market. The payment is made in arrack, copper work, 

 pai'angs, and iron. The last article is wrought by them for the 

 construction of their prahus, which they call " Kora-Koi'a." 



