148 A YEAR WITH A WHALER 



works and set on fire, making a flaring yellow 

 blaze which lighted the ship from stem to stern 

 and threw weird shadows everywhere. The 

 beacon not only gave us plenty of light to work 

 by, but advertised the brig's good luck to any 

 ship which happened in sight of us. In the 

 blubber-room, holes were cut in a blanket piece 

 and rope yarns, having been rubbed upon the 

 blubber, were coiled in the hole and lighted. As 

 they burned they lighted the oil from the blub- 

 ber. These unique lamps had all the oil in a 

 ten-ton blanket piece to draw on. It was only 

 the wick that ever gave out. New strands of 

 rope yarn had to be provided from time to time. 

 Three or four of these lamps blazing and splut- 

 tering made the blubber-room bright. 



Working night and day, it took three days 

 to cut in and try out the whale. While the work 

 was going on, the decks were so greasy that we 

 could run and slide anywhere for long distances 

 like boys on ice. After the whale had been tried 

 out and the oil casks had been stowed below, we 

 fell upon the decks and paint work with lye and 

 water. Hard work soon had the ship looking 

 as bright as a new pin. 



