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—Besides their oars, whale boats also came equipped with a sail
which could be used if the wind was favorable and the quarry were a
long ways away. The sail could be used likewise to return to the
mother ship if, again, the wind was right.
Many whalers preferred using the sail to “go on” a whale. Later,
when whales understood what the sound of splashing oars meant, using
the sail was the best way because it was quieter than oars. If the
wind wasn’t right then the men could use paddles which were, again,
quieter then five splashing oars |