Gordon Grant

“ It is true, as a recent author contends, that whaling is not properly described as fishing. The whale is an animal, and his pursuit is a form of hunting. In Gordon Grant’s drawings the whole art and craft of catching whales is most lucidly and dramatically set forth. It is sport because the hunters risked their lives when the harpoon left the boatsteerer’s hands to plunge into the whale’s carcase. They were in the most dire peril of a “stove” or a “chawed” boat until the animal’s terrific struggles were ended by the thrust of a lance through his vitals. ”

“ Should the whale run the crew unshipped their oars and faced forward, a turn of the line was made round the loggerhead, and “playing the fish” began. The boat’s tub and loggerhead were the equivalent of the reel on the trout fisherman’s rod, and the same tactics were employed as in trout fishing, except that the boat followed the whale at a speed of fifteen or more knots an hour. ”

“ Efficiency has never been so swiftly or so deplorably justified. At one end of the scale we have Captain Ahab devoting all his life to the pursuit of a mythological cetacean, the White Whale. At the other, in 1932, we have British and Scandinavian whaling factories, twin screw, oil-burning vessels of 14,000 tons, capable of pursuing whales of all species in high speed motor whaleboats fitted with guns and bombs, with air pumps which inflate the dead whale so that it will float until needed. ”

“ Compared to the dramatic action of Sperm whaling, the taking of Right whales was a tame business, but the chase of Bowhead or Arctic whales took men among icebergs and floes where their work was complicated by discomfort and the danger of ships being crushed or wrecked. ”

“ To the watch, bending over the yard with nought between them and oblivion but a slender foot rope, this was no easy task even in a moderate wind. In a gale, with wet or frozen sails, the stowing of this huge expanse of thrashing canvas can be better imagined than described. ”

“ In some cases the ceiling was so low that any man above average height could not stand upright. In heavy weather the deck was never dry, due to leaky hawse pipes and dripping oilskins, and in the tropics it was a furnace. Altogether, the combined odours of unwashed bodies, unwashed clothes, bilge water, tobacco and oil lanterns, made it a noisome habitation. ”

“ These ships have a specially designed stern slipway, up which the entire carcase of a 100 ton whale can be hauled from the water to the blubber deck. When the blubber has been removed the carcase is sawn by machinery into sections and lowered to the meat deck. Nothing of the animal is wasted. A packing factory on board cans and packs the products ready for discharging at a convenient port into freight steamers. Fuel-oil and water, which is distilled on board, supplies a whole fleet of auxiliary whaling vessels. ”

“ They will have become history themselves without ever having become known to the public. If by chance the captain of the Vikingen, of the Viking Whaling Company, Limited, of London, ever meets Moby Dick, he will order full speed ahead on his 4300 horsepower and overhaul the White Whale in a few hours. A few days later he will be in sealed cans.
[Pg xi]
Ships, and especially sailing craft, are the unhappy victims of artists who know more about pretty pictures than ships. They take quite felonious liberties with the craft and the men they depict. ”

“ To kill the whale at a single thrust required the greatest skill, and the boat to be laid on at the right spot.
The mate, awaiting the moment when he could reach the “life,” made repeated thrusts with his lance in order to weaken the victim. ”

“ In modern whaling the operatives are in no more danger than the person who slits the jugular veins of the hogs suspended by their hind legs on a moving chain in a Chicago abattoir. I doubt exceedingly whether these modern whalers will ever have any songs or traditions. ”

“ Here we behold the modern commercial and mechanical genius at its peak. It is so efficient that unless some legislative action is taken, whales will become extinct. In two years these vessels have obtained more oil and have killed more whales than the old American whalers took from the sea in half a century. ”

“ In due course they were emptied and filled with oil, and the cooper’s task was to keep them in good condition, and, if need arose, to construct new ones from the staves, heads and hoops which he had in reserve.
The term “barrel” was only used as a unit of measure:—a cask was spoken of as an eight barrel cask or a whale’s size was reckoned in so many barrels.
An average whaler carried in the neighbourhood of five hundred casks of all sizes, and the keeping of them in serviceable condition involved constant watchfulness and work on the cooper’s part. ”

“ REMOVING THE LOWER JAW OF A SPERM WHALE
Cutting in was always done on the starboard side of the ship, and if possible, to windward, so that wind pressure on the sails tended to lift the side of the vessel and sustain the great weight of blubber coming aboard. ”

“ They feed on the surface—their food being small crustacea or “brit,” which they scoop up with open mouth and strain through the rows of baleen which hang from the upper jaw.
3—BOWHEAD WHALE. The Arctic or Greenland whale. Living in the cold waters of the high latitudes the blubber of this species is much thicker than that of Sperm or Right, one Bowhead rendering as much as three hundred barrels.
The quality of its oil, however, is much inferior to sperm oil, and for years it was hunted for its whalebone alone. ”

“ The sketch shows the cutting stage rigged out, the huge tackle made fast to the jaw, and the mates on the stage disjointing it with their spades.
The jaw had no commercial value whatever. When a particularly large one was taken, stripped, and dried, it made a picturesque gateway for the captain’s garden at home, and the great teeth were used by the crew for their “scrimshaw” work. ”

“ Except when under sail the boat was propelled by five oars, and in order to balance the power from this unequal number, oars of different lengths were used.
Except when under sail the boat was steered by means of an oar over twenty feet long.
The complete equipment of a boat included paddles, harpoons, lances, spades, mast and sail, water and bread kegs, lantern, flares and waifs, and other small gear. ”

“ The stern shown is that of “Lagoda,” a half size model of which has been installed in the Whaling Museum in New Bedford.
[Pg 17]
[Pg 18]
THE DECK
This diagram shows the deck arrangement of “Lagoda” of New Bedford and was characteristic of all square-rigged whalers.
A—B—C—D—E—Boats hanging on the davits. Many ships did not swing a boat in the position of “B.”
In their order the boats were named as follows:—“Bow”—“Starboard Bow”—“Waist”—“Larboard”—“Starboard.” The latter was known as the captain’s boat, though in later years the captain did not leave the ship. ”

“ While the captain repaired his men—“Chips” repaired his boats.
Ships’ carpenters received their training as boat builders, and were prepared, not only to mend them, but had “knocked down” parts stowed below for the construction of new ones.
Whaleboats were very lightly built and subjected to extremely rough handling. Seldom did a whaleship start a voyage with anything but new craft on her davits.
[Pg 103]
[Pg 104]
ASHORE FOR WATER
As the casks were filled with oil, the fresh water supply diminished, so shore parties were sent off with empty casks to be filled and towed back to the ship. ”