“The flukes of a big humpback just disappearing below the surface on the starboard side.”
“It’s no use to bother with these fellows; there is no feed and we may stay here all day without killing; we’ll go over toward Fanshaw, and see if we can’t find another bunch.”
Two hours of steaming brought us in sight of Storm Island and far over near the shore we could see several spouts. Now and then flukes would show as one of the animals went down, indicating to my satisfaction that some, at least, were humpbacks. When we neared the whales I left the bridge, making my way forward along the deck to the harpoon-gun, and with camera ready braced myself against a rope. The steamer was pitching furiously and it was all I could do to keep my feet, but clinging to a line with one hand and shielding the lens of my camera with the other, I awaited the reappearance of a whale that had gone down on the starboard side.
Suddenly the gunner shouted, “There he comes!” and pointed over the bow where the water was beginning to smooth out in a large, green patch about thirty fathoms away.
Before I could focus my camera, the whale had burst into view, sending his spout fifteen feet into the air. Evidently he saw us for he was down again in a second, only to reappear several fathoms astern. Time after time he showed himself, never near enough for a shot but keeping me busy exposing plates.
After about an hour another humpback appeared beside him and together they seemed to be enjoying to the fullest extent the game of tag they were playing with us. Once the larger of the two threw himself clear out of the water, showing even the tips of his flukes, and fell back with a splash which sounded like the muffled clap of two great hands. Again he thrust his head into the air and, whirling about, I caught him with the camera just before he sank back out of sight.
“The captain swung the vessel’s nose into just the right position and they appeared close beside the starboard bow.”
For over an hour the game of tag continued, but once, when the whales had been down an unusually long time, the Captain swung the vessel’s nose into just the right position and they appeared close beside the starboard bow. The roar of the gun almost deafened me and instinctively I pressed the button of the camera, but a wave had thrown the steamer into the air at just the wrong time and the harpoon struck the surface several feet below the whale. Both animals went down churning the water into foam, and when next we saw them they were close together, far astern.
Although the chase had been an aggravation to the whalers, I had reaped a harvest of pictures and had exposed every plate in the holders. While Sorenson, the gunner, was reloading the gun, I descended into the hold, substituted fresh plates, and packed the others in the pasteboard boxes. My work was hastened by the sudden stopping and starting of the engines which proclaimed that another whale had been sighted and the chase already begun.