第116章 PORT PEGASUS(1)

The wind still holding steadily in the old quarter, our skipper got very restless.He recalled his former exploits, and, firing at the thought, decided then and there to have a trip round to Port Pegasus, in the hope that he might meet with some of his former good luck in the vicinity of that magnificent bay.With the greatest alacrity we obeyed his summons, handling the old barky as if she were a small boat, and the same morning, for the first time, ran out of the Straits to the eastward past Ruapuke Island.Beautiful weather prevailed, making our trip a delightful one, the wonderful scenery of that coast appealing to even the most callous or indifferent among us.We hugged the land closely, the skipper being familiar with all of it in a general way, so that none of its beauties were lost to us.The breeze holding good, by nightfall we had reached our destination, anchoring in the north arm near a tumbling cascade of glittering water that looked like a long feather laid on the dark-green slope of the steep hill from which it gushed.

We had not been long at anchor before we had visitors--half-breed Maories, who, like the Finns and Canadians, are farmers, fishermen, sailors, and shipwrights, as necessity arises.They brought us potatoes--most welcome of all fruit to the sailor--cabbages, onions, and "mutton birds." This latter delicacy is a great staple of their flesh food, but is one of the strangest dishes imaginable.When it is being cooked in the usual way, i.e.by grilling, it smells exactly like a piece of roasting mutton; but it tastes, to my mind, like nothing else in the world so much as a kippered herring.There is a gastronomical paradox, if you like.Only the young birds are taken for eating.They are found, when unfledged, in holes of the rocks, and weigh sometimes treble as much as their parents.They are exceedingly fat; but this substance is nearly all removed from their bodies before they are hung up in the smoke-houses.They are split open like a haddock, and carefully smoked, after being steeped in brine.Baskets, something like exaggerated strawberry pottles of the old conical shape, are prepared, to hold each about a dozen birds.They are lined with leaves, then packed with the birds, the melted fat being run into all the interstices until the basket is full.The top is then neatly tied up with more leaves, and, thus preserved, the contents will keep in cool weather an indefinite length of time.

Captain Count was soon recognized by some of his old friends, who were delighted to welcome him again.Their faces fell, however, when he told them that his stay was to be very brief, and that he only required four good-sized fish to fill up.Inquiry as to the prevalence of sperm whales in the vicinity elicited the news that they were as plentiful as they had ever been--if anything, more so, since the visits of the whalers had become fewer.There were a couple of "bay" whaling stations existing; but, of course, their success could not be expected to be great among the cachalots, who usually keep a respectful distance from harbours, while they had driven the right whales away almost entirely.

No one could help being struck by the manly hearing, splendid physique, and simple manners of the inhabitants.If ever it falls to the lot of any one, as I hope it will, to establish a sperm whale fishery in these regions, there need be no lack of workers while such grand specimens of manhood abound there as we saw--all, moreover, fishermen and whalers from their earliest days.

We did not go far afield, but hovered within ten or fifteen miles of the various entrances, so as not to be blown off the land in case of sudden bad weather.Even with that timid offing, we were only there two days, when an enormous school of sperm whales hove in sight.I dare not say how many I believe there were, and my estimate really might be biassed; but this I know, that in no given direction could one look to seaward and not see many spouts.

We got among them and had a good time, being more hampered by the curiosity of the unattached fish than by the pugnacity of those under our immediate attention.So we killed three, and by preconcerted signal warned the watchers on the lofty points ashore of our success.As speedily as possible off came four boats from the shore stations, and hooked on to two of our fish, while we were busy with the third.The wind being off shore, what there was of it, no time was to be lost, in view of the well-known untrustworthiness of the weather; so we started to cut-in at once, while the shore people worked like giants to tow the other two in.Considering the weakness of their forces, they made marvellous progress; but seeing how terribly exhausting the toil was, one could not help wishing them one of the small London tugs, familiarly known as "jackals," which would have snaked those monsters along at three or four knots an hour.