Catch That Whale!

You can spot whales in the ocean. And you can read about them in books from bygone centuries. Many authors described these animals as dangerous creatures. Now we tend to think about protecting whales. But people in the past were more interested in killing them. Take Moby Dick for example. This American novel by Herman Melville tells the story of Captain Ahab chasing a great white whale.

Can you think of other famous stories about whales?

Whales: Light, Toys, Piano Keys

Whale oil from blubber (fat) fueled lamps back in the 1700s and 1800s. Whale oil burned brightly. It lasted longer than candles and other types of oil.

But whale parts had many other uses too. Blubber helped machine parts work smoothly. It was a key ingredient in paint. People call whale bone (baleen) the “plastic of the 1800s.” It was used to make dresses, buggy whips, toys, and typewriter springs. Whale teeth were carved into chess pieces and cut into piano keys.

What Replaces Whale Light?

People needed a lot of oil for light. So they caught a lot of whales for blubber. In the end, so many whales were killed that some species nearly died out. Over time, people started burning other oils called kerosene and camphine. Eventually, they swapped oil lamps for electricity.

What if that electricity really can come from wind? The world can run out of whales. But it doesn’t run out of wind.

The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. — John 3:8