LIFE ON A NORWEGIAN WHALER

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 74, 18 June 1927, Page 17

LIFE ON A NORWEGIAN WHALER

Ferocious Sharks De vomit 60-Ton Humpbacks ami Thirty Miniates,, . „ Whaling Thrills Off West Australian Coast, <,

(Written for. THE SUN by BERNARD C. RYDER, F.R.G.S.)

; T certain times ot the ;/V y year, the humpback whales travel to the WriljwV tropical waters ot the rWj-Jjt-jBT north-west coast of Australia, and return dow..

the coast with an addition to the family circle. They can be plainly seen from the deck of a vessel cruising northwards, rising together and blowing a Prince of Wales feather, with the calf making but a feeble imitation of the mighty cascade that its proud parents throw into the air. All along the coast line, tlie spray from their “blow” hangs over the water like the smoke from a cigarette in the still morning air, and they travel along in their hundreds rising and tossing their huge fluke tails in tlie air as they dive to feed, or try to rid themselves of the great barnacles that

have attached to their bodies, during their long rest in the Antarctic. The sight is an inspiring one, for the bull whale, despite his huge and ungainly shape, is extremely agile, and he curves and twists in the water with the cow and calf emulating his evolutions, just as a flock of birds will follow one another in flight. But directly they catch sight of the vessel their little eyes staring upward, they throw their tails skyward and sound for fully 15 minutes, to reappear perhaps a quarter of a mile away. Through the kindness of the Norwegian Bay Whaling Company, I was permitted to go tc sea on the modern whaling vessels used by the company, and spent many exciting days chasing whales and noting the process of reduction of a whale to oil. Leaving the tiny wharf in a launch, We made for a supply ship inside the reef and there awaited the return of a whaler with its capture, and as soon as it slipped its cargo of two pumped up whales, we embarked on the whaler, and met the harpoonist and crew. Mountainous green seas curved and Ir.-oke on the reef, while great valleys ot water rolled towards the whale chaser, as she towards the passage leading to the open sea. The harpoon gun mounted for’ard dipped right under and the screw propellor raced as it met no resistance in the

air. Spray lashed Into our faces, as we hung on to whatever was handy, and tlie vessel bucked and rolled Into great caverns of water, until it steamed into comparatively calm sea. We were now on the track of the whales, and the vessel cruised here and there looking for the tell-tale sign of a “blow.” The monotony grows upon one as the rattle of the rudder chains never seems to cease, but all is bustle and excitement as the Norwegian look-out man points his Anger and yells “Thar she blows.” He has earned his dav’s pay in locating the “blow” If the whale is harpooned. The vessel swings round and goes in the direction where a tiny spray hovers on the surface of the water. The look-out man points and we can see below us a long, curved body moving slowly along. It is now

that the man at the harpoon takes .the limelight, and he soon has his gun trained on the whale. The latter, unconscious of all danger, is feeding below, but soon he must come up to blow, throwing out the water he has taken in and retaining the fish life that forms liis staple diet. The harpoon, weighing over a hundredweight, is loaded with an explosive bomb head, which goes off three seconds after it penetrates the whale. Foideid alongside the head of the harpoon are three grapple hooks which are flung out when the head bursts, and resist all efforts of the whale to dislodge. A Wonderful Shot All is excitement on the vessel as the grey shape starts to come to the surface, moving here and there with surprising agility for its tremendous size. The gunner speaks to the engine room through a tube placed alongside his gun, and gives directions as the whale moves upward. The vessel Is backed away, but the whale slips along at a tremendous speed and reappears some 60 yards away. For a moment we get a wonderful sight of this mighty mammal, his huge body glistening in the sun as he spouts. Then, catching sight of the approaching vessel, he lifts his great tail preparatory to sounding, but the gunner training his eye along the barrel fires. There is a deafening explosion as the harpoon speeds through the air. We

can see it plainly, carrying its maximum amount of rope, for the shot is a long one. It is a near thing to missing, but as the whale sounds, we can hear a muffled explosion, and the harpoonist smiles, as he knows the sound is a hit.

Hundreds of Sharks Attracted The whale soon reappears and as it rises to the surface it throws up a quantity of blood: its bellowing is pitiful to hear. The humpback whale is said to be the otly one of its kind that utters a sound. The great length of rope is taut as the whale pulls frantically, the while it throws up blood in terrific quantities. Down on deck, the men are making ready with ropes and compressed air, waiting for the mammal to be brought alongside. The strain on the rope is eased as tlie whale again sounds, but it is a last effort, and it comes to the surface to lash its tail in a dying attempt to rid itself of the rope and the harpoon that lias blown a great hole inside it. Winches are started and slowly the whale is brought alongside the boat. This is the signal for vast hordes of sharks, which appear from all directions, leaping on the whale and tearing great lumps of blubber from its side. They are there in their hundreds, and the water is like a boiling cauldron as they lash their tails in their mad blood-lust. Eight and ten-feet sharks tearing in a frenzy at a whale, a sight never to be forgotten. The whale is soon lashed alongside and its tail lopped off as an impediment to the vessel’s progress, for that portion has no commercial va.lue. A long tube is thrust into the whale, an engine is started, and, as the vessel picks up her speed, the whale gradually grows in dimensions not unlike a balloon as the compressed air is pumped into it. If this precaution were not taken the whale released from the side of the vessel,’ would sink. When blown up sufficiently a plug or rope is pushed into the hole to prevent the escape of the air, and all speed is made for the whaling station.

Quick Work With a Fifty-Footer Through the opening in the reef we go, the vessel dipping and plunging until we -wonder how the whale is retained. On nearing the station, the whale is passed over to a small Jaunch which takes it close to the cutting-up platform, and we follow the procedure with interest. A steel hawser is' passed round the whale, which is then slowly dragged up a slope to the platform. It is a terrific monster fully 50 feet long. Its weight is in the region of 60 tons. As it is drawn slowly along the platform a number of Norwegians armed with great flensing knives commen ;e stripping the blubber from the body, and leave but the carcase, which is carried up a further slope to the digestors. Blubber, almost a foot thick, is carried by an endless chain and conveyed into great tanks where it is boiled down for the valuable oil it contains. The bone is crushed and ground into fertiliser, and as we walk round a few moments later, there is no sign of the whale that but a short while ago was disporting itself in blissfuil ignorance of its fate. The whalebone is rarely used, modern fashion having long outgrown this old-time necessity. The procedure from the time the whale is harpooned to the time it is converted into oil, seldom occupies more than half an hour, that is, if the whale has been secured within easy access of the station. At times the whaling vessels go many miles in search of whales, and often secure two at one time. Whales invariably go in pairs, the cow and the bull, and when the male is taken, the female will rarely desert him. It is a fatal affection that the female lavishes upon her mate, and she is poorly rewarded for her devotion. The calf is allowed to go, as it would wield but little oil. For some six months in the year the pursuit for the whales goes on, until their migration to the southern waters is over. It is a hard life, but it has its thrills.