Not
infrequently the process of getting very close to an enraged
animal many times larger than the boat itself would result in the
boat being smashed.
As time progressed and technology advanced, so
the "bomb lance" was invented. This was a large and
extremely heavy gun not unlike a shotgun that fired a heavy-weight
missile that penetrated the whale and exploded hopefully killing
the whale and rendering it unnecessary to proceed closer and use
the hand lance. Like much new technology, this was very unpopular
at first, the "kick" of the heavy missile in one
direction could easily knock the firer over backwards or even
overboard in the other direction.
An engraving from "The
cruise of the Cachalot"
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