WHALING IN COOK STRAIT.

Shannon News, 7 August 1928, Page 2

WHALING IN COOK STRAIT.

HUMP-BACKS CHASED AT FIFTY MILES AN HOUR.

SIGHTS AND SMELLS OF TORY

CHANNEL

Probably the landsman's knowledge of how whaling is carried out is hazy. It is also likely that he knows less about the industry as carried out off the New Zealand coast than he docs concerning the large-scale ventures of Norwegians and others in the Antarctic, because a good deal has been written on the latter, both in the Press and in books describing the voyages of Avha'lhig vessels. Consequently the information given by Mr F. W. Vosseler, president of the Tararua Tramping Club, in the course t of his lecture 1 in Levin on Friday evening, is full of interest. The main topic which ,the 'lecturer had in hand was mountaineering, but he also spoke of sport in. this country, and thence the transition was simple enough to whaling, which, although a commercial proposition, contains sufficient thrills cajid dangers tc satisfy all sporting, instincts. Mr Vosse-. ler has been an active spectator in this pursuit* so he was able to give his hearers vivid impressions, of it, besides showing on the serpen lantern slides made from original photos. The. whaling season commences in May and ends in August, and during that period a large number are killed The whale hunted in and around Cook Strait is the. hump-back, with an average weight of 50 tons. • Mr Vosseler stated that there were two parties on the €ook Strait 'whaling ground. The members of one party were descendants of original whalers in New Zealand waters; and he showed a photo of a grandson of "Worser" Hebberley, after whom Worser Bay is said to have been named. Sons of "Worser" were also whaling last year. Each of the two parties had four vessels, comprising three launches and a mother ship. The lec"turer gave a thrilling description of the races between the parties which take place when a whale is sighted, six fast vessels being after it.' The whale !would probably "sound," i.e., go under water, where it Avould remain, travelling very fast, for six or sevejn minutes. On the whale reappearing, all the vessels would race .after it again in an endeavour to get the first harpoon in. As a whale was worth a great deal of money; the competition was very keen. Tile chief danger in whale-hunt-ing arose from the fast speed.at which the launches travelled and the mamie; in which they had to be manoeuvred ! when. close to a whale; The lecturer spoke of the. great sense, of fear shown by the whales, which evidently had many enemies. He stated that the launches, which were flat-bottomed; travelled at a maximum speed of 50 miles an hour, and this gave one the impression of travelling much faster than if he were doing the same speed on land. The men on the launch could only see straight ahead and immediately behind, beeause the vessel threw up a mountain of water on each side. It I had been the speaker's privilege on more than one occasion to have a passage on a whale-launch, and he had been allowed to take the wheel. The whalers would leave Tory Channel ; .a< daybreak and go to the middle of the Straits, where they might toss about.all dav, returning to port just hel ore dusk. A party might be out for four or five days without seeing a whale, 'and then they might sight eight or nine in an hour or two.

Pictures were shown of the various operations involved in catching a whale and towing it home. A harpoon gun was used, the range of which was only 15 or 20 yards. After the'whale has been secured, air is pumped into its body to enable it to float. The colouring of the hump back whale is peculiar, the top being black and the under-side white -with various markings, resembling numbers and signs, these being caused by barnacles. The lecturer remarked that the whales frequently came into shallowwater to rub the barnacles off. He stated that several times the party which he accompanied-came fairly close to Island Bay and Lyall Bay, and in one chase they were not : far off Kapiti Island.

•Interesting views were shown of the w'orks in Tory Channel, and in one of the scenes there, were two whales on the skids. Mr Vosseler stated that the blubber, from which the oil is extracted, was cut and torn from the carcases by machinery. From 10 to 20 tons of oil wa.s obtained from a whale. After the blubber was removed; there remained, perhaps, 40 tons of flesh and bone. Nearly all.the settlers in the surrounding districts would come in their boats to secure some of the red meat, which, when salted, was like corned,Jbeef. The callers said they took the meat away for their dogs, but it was noticed that they were very careful to keep it clean. Mr Vosseler mentioned that it was quite a common experience; to find that a whale's tongue had been injured, this probably being the w T ork of the '' killer' ? whale. A view of a whale's mouth was shown which was rather awe-in-spiring. The lecturer remarked that it would ta'ke half a dozen small boys comfortably. He was referring to a dead whale, of course; for the animal is not addicted to a diet of.human flesh, as the dreaded shark is.

Scenes taken about the whaling station were very striking. In one of them there was a whale on the skids. Mr Vosseler stated Jhat the carcase was of 50 or" 60 tons, and that, after being stripped of its blubber, it would be hauled down the skids and probably towed out to sea. The works, he added, smelt most fearfully; in fact he thought that the odour was the tallest that he wa s likely to experience in his life. All the water adjoining the station was oily, and it was positively dangerous for any new-comer to attempt to walk across the skids, though the whaling men never seemed to fall over. The characteristic smell was everywhere in the vicinity; it stayed in the nose, mouth and lungs of the visitor for days, and the fish in the neighbouring water were unfit to eat because they were so strongly flavoured with whale oil.