The whalers
\”Thar she blows!”
That was the cry that sent the men of an old-time whaling ship into
action—the cry that meant a whale had been sighted. Quickly, boats
were lowered onto the sea. Each boat had a crew of men to row, and a
harpooner. It was the harpooner’s job to drive his long spear into the
whale’s body. Pulling hard at the oars, the boat crews hurled their
crafts through the water toward the whale. Hunting these giant creatures
was their work.
But it was dangerous work, for boats could be smashed and men injured
and drowned. When the boat was near enough, the harpooner hurled his big
spear. Then began what American whalers from Nantucket called \”The
Nantucket sleigh ride.” The harpoon was attached to the boat by a long
rope. As the wounded whale swam to get away, it towed the boat through
the water at tremendous speed.
In time, the whale tired and slowed. The whalers then killed the great
creature with spearlike weapons. Its body was towed back to the ship and
cut up. The fat was boiled down into oil and stored in barrels.
Whales have been hunted for thousands of years. Prehistoric people
hunted them for their rich, red meat. Later, whales were hunted for
their fat and bone as well. About 150 years ago, whale oil was widely
used for lamps and for making candles. This was the time when hundreds
of ships hunted whales
in all the seas of the world. The whaling crews were often away for four
or five years at a time.
Today, most countries protect whales. There is a limit to the number
that can be killed. Even so, many kinds of these big, marvelous animals
may soon be extinct.
(above) The picture shows a whale hunt from long ago. (right) The
harpooner threw a harpoon, or long spear.
