The Boy With the U. S. Fisheries | Page 7

slap
with his tail an' the poor fellow was right under it."
Colin was anxious to start the old whaler on some yarns of the early
days, but as the boat was nearing the ship he decided to wait for an
opportunity when there would be more time and the raconteur would
have full leeway for his stories.
"Forty-five-footer, sir," called Hank, as they came up to the ship. "Gray
devil, sir."
The captain lifted his eyebrows in surprise, for he had not thought of a
California whale so far north, but he answered in an offhand way:
"More sport than profit in that. Did you have a run for your money,
Colin?"
"I certainly did, Captain Murchison," the boy answered.
"All right, tell me about it some time. Hank, you're on board just in the
nick of time. I found out what the trouble was with the carriage of the
gun and repaired it while you were amusing yourselves out there. Get
in lively, now, there's work to do."
The men scrambled on board rapidly, and the boat was up in the davits
in less than a minute, while the yards were braced round, and under sail
and steam the Gull headed north.

"There's four whales in sight, Hank," said the captain; "humpbacks, I
think, and two of them big ones."
"If they'll bunch up like that, sir," the gunner said, "we may make a
good trip out of it yet."
"I hope so," the skipper answered, and turning on his heel, he went to
the poop. Thither Colin followed him and told him all the story of the
whale. The captain, who was an old friend of Colin's father when they
both lived in a lumbering town in northern Michigan, was greatly taken
aback when he found how dangerous the boat-trip had been, but he did
not want to spoil the boy's vivid memories of the excitement.
"I suppose," he said, "that you want to go out as gunner next time."
Colin shook his head.
"I'm generally willing to try anything, Captain Murchison," he replied,
"but I'm content to let Hank look after that end."
"Hank's an unusual man," the captain said quietly. "I rather doubt if any
other man on the Pacific Coast could have won out with a gray whale.
I'd rather have him aboard than a lot of mates I know, and as a gunner,
of course, he's a sort of petty officer."
The canvas began to shake as the boat turned on its course after the
whales, catching the skipper's eye, and he roared out orders to shorten
sail.
"Clew up fore and main to'gans'ls," he shouted; "take in the tops'ls.
Colin, you go and furl the fore to'gans'l, and if the men are still busy on
the tops'l yards, pass the gaskets round the main to'gans'l as well."
"Aye, aye, sir," the boy answered readily, for he enjoyed being aloft,
and he clambered up the shrouds to the fore-topgallant yard and furled
the sail, taking a pride in having it lie smooth and round on the top of
the yard.

"What's the difference between a 'finback' and a 'humpback,' Hank?"
asked the boy, after the canvas had been stowed, the vessel under
auxiliary steam having speed enough to keep up with the cetaceans,
"are they 'right' whales?"
"Neither of 'em," the gunner replied: "there's two kinds of right whale,
the bowhead and the black, and both have fine whalebone, an' that, as
you know, is a sort of strainer in the mouth that takes the place of teeth.
Humpbacks an' finbacks are taken for oil, an' they look quite different.
A humpback is more in bulk an' has only a short fin on the back, it's a
clumsy beast an' throws the flukes of the tail out of the water in
soundin'. Now, a finback is built more for speed an' has a big fin on the
back--that's where it gets its name. The big sulphurbottom is a kind of
finback, an' is the largest animal livin'. I've seen one eighty-five feet
long!"
"Where does the sperm whale come in?" asked Colin.
"It's got teeth, like the gray whale," was the reply, "but you never find it
in cold water. Sperm whalin' is comin' into favor again. But those two
over there--the ones we're after, are finbacks. You can tell by the spout,
by the fin, by not seein' the flukes of the tail, an' by the way they play
around, slappin' each other in fun."
Three hours were spent in the fruitless chase after this little group of
whales. Then Hank, who had been standing in the bow beside the gun,
watching every move of the cetacean during the afternoon, suddenly
signaled with his hand for "full speed astern," by this maneuver
stopping the