alarmingly as his "bridle" ran along
the main line. Another one was secured in the same way, then the game
was indeed great. The school had by this time taken the alarm and
cleared out, but the other boats were all fast to fish, so that didn't
matter. Now, at the rate our "game" were going it would evidently be
a long while before they died, although, being so much smaller than a
whale proper, a harpoon will often kill them at a stroke. Yet they were
now so tangled or "snarled erp," as the mate said, that it was no easy
matter to lance them without great danger of cutting the line. However,
we hauled up as close to them as we dared, and the harpooner got a good
blow in, which gave the biggest of the three "Jesse," as he said, though
why "Jesse" was a stumper. Anyhow, it killed him promptly, while almost
directly after another one saved further trouble by passing in his own
checks. But he sank at the same time, drawing the first one down with
him, so that we were in considerable danger of having to cut them adrift
or be swamped. The "wheft" was waved thrice as an urgent signal to the
ship to come to our assistance with all speed, but in the meantime our
interest lay in the surviving Black Fish keeping alive. Should HE die,
and, as was most probable, sink, we should certainly have to cut and
lose the lot, tools included.

We waited in grim silence while the ship came up, so slowly, apparently,
that she hardly seemed to move, but really at a good pace of about four
knots an hour, which for her was not at all bad. She got alongside of us
at last, and we passed up the bight of our line, our fish all safe, very
much pleased with ourselves, especially when we found that the other
boats had only five between the three of them.

The fish secured to the ship, all the boats were hoisted except one,
which remained alongside to sling the bodies. During our absence the
ship-keepers had been busy rigging one of the cutting falls, an immense
fourfold tackle from the main lowermast-head, of four-inch rope through
great double blocks, large as those used at dockyards for lifting ships'
masts and boilers. Chain-slings were passed around the carcases, which
gripped the animal at the "small," being prevented from slipping off by
the broad spread of the tail. The end of the "fall," or tackle-rope,
was then taken to the windlass, and we hove away cheerily, lifting the
monsters right on deck. A mountainous pile they made. A short spell was
al