133 
dying,*the noise occasioned by the whale’s 
lashing the water with its tail and fins* 
is heard to a very great distance. 
As soon as a whale is killed, it is tow¬ 
ed by the boats to the ship, and being 
made fast by tackles placed at the nose 
and tail, is immediately stripped of its 
blubber. This process is by Greenland 
sailors termed flinching , and is very speed¬ 
ily performed. The harpooners and their 
assistants cut the blubber into long 
stripes, which are hoisted into the ship, 
cut into smaller pieces, and thrown into 
the hold, from whence they are again 
brought upon deck to be pared and bar¬ 
relled up. In flinching , the whale is turn¬ 
ed round by a tackle made fast to the 
fins. 
The process of paring and barrelling up 
the blubber, is termed making ojfl and is 
performed at leisure times when the crew 
are not engaged in the pursuit of live 
whales. The blubber being brought upon 
