The right whale is so named because it is the right one to hunt as it often swims close to shore and is quite docile, not afraid of approaching boats, and floats when killed. As such, right whales have been hunted nearly to extinction and are classified as endangered by the entanglement of fishing nets and lobster traps, as illustrated.

            The right whale is the second largest whale in the world, next to the blue whale in size, and both are on display at the New Bedford Whaling Museum. Right whales were first sighted along the New England coast by Pilgrims on the Mayflower, even before they landed at Plymouth in 1620. In the years to follow, the first settlers along the Long Island coastline reported Indians hunting right whales with harpoons made of whalebone and tied with a rope made of strips of tree bark.

            Native American Montauk and Shinnecock tribes both shared in the rise of so-called offshore whaling. The coastline industry peaked there in the year 1726 when 86 right whales were harvested in the sound and shipped to Boston.

            In Puritan religion, whaling on the Sabbath was not permitted and those sighted on Sunday could not be harvested.

            Right whales were often found beached after a storm, and one-third of the monetary take from such a find went to the person who found it; one-third went to the town, and one-third went to the church.

            When the Dutch took over New York from the English, the government decreed that the growing whaling income should be taxed and paid to the Chamber of Commerce. However, the whaler’s local representative, Samuel Mulford, strongly objected, and he went to London in both 1704 and 1706 to plead that King James give perpetual rights to fish coastal waters without interference.

            My wife, Jan, is descended from Mulford on her mother’s side of the family. Although he appeared before the House of Lords dressed as a humble plainspoken commoner, he won his case. The offshore industry continued to be lucrative for residents. However, in 1712, Captain Christopher Hussey, a whaler out of New Bedford, was blown far out to sea and discovered a pod of sperm whales, which would revolutionize and relocate the industry to the island of Nantucket.

            It also turns out that the first lighthouse keeper there was Richard Pinkham, my wife Jan’s paternal great, great, grandfather. Consequently, his name is mentioned amongst Nantucket’s history and heritage with other family names such as Coffin, Macy, Starbuck, and Folger.

            Richard Pinkham was also the first to chart Nantucket waters and mark the channels through shoals and sandbars that would allow ships to enter with barrels of spermaceti from the sperm whale, which was worth its weight in silver, and which would eventually light up the world as candlewax.

            Today only about 400 right whales are left in the world, and every year the number of right whales decreases from entanglements with fishing nets and lines from lobster traps. Right whales are dying faster than they can reproduce. A bipartisan bill just passed in Congress on October 18 entitled “Save Right Whales Act” that would provide funding for conservation and research, and a firm called Ashored Innovations in Nova Scotia has also devised a rope-less lobster trap. Both are steps in the right direction for the hope of the right whale, and hopefully will save it from extinction.

By George B. Emmons

            Mattapoisett’s Florence Eastman Post 280 of the American Legion has a new Commander.

            After many years of service as the local chapter’s guiding force, Michael Lamoureaux retired from those duties in October when Rachel Perron, Commander in the U.S. Navy Reserves, was elected.

            “Frankly, I’m terrified,” Perron said with a chuckle as she began the Veterans Day celebrations at Old Hammondtown School. But Perron is accustomed to taking on challenges and executing difficult duties.

            Perron has seen active duty, having been deployed to Afghanistan, and currently is a higher education instructor at the Northeast Maritime Institute in Fairhaven. 

            Perron asked the audience to seek out veterans, to ask them to tell their stories.

“Talk to these selfless Americans,” said Perron. “They have stories to tell.” She then invited Chaplain Richard Langhoff to lead the group in prayer. 

            Quoting from a poem written by John Maxwell Edmonds in 1944 and displayed at the military cemetery situated on the eastern frontier of the Himalayas in Kohima, India, Langhoff read “…We gave all our tomorrows that you might have today.” He said veterans represented the highest ideals of freedom, justice, and peace.

            Next came a tradition that many look forward to each year, the reciting of the Gettysburg Address by veteran George Randall. Continuing the tradition handed down through his family, Randall’s voice was clear as he spoke Lincoln’s words, “…That these dead shall not have died in vain – that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom – and that government of the people, by the people, and for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” He received a standing ovation.

            Local veterans’ agent and Post member Barry Denham said he hoped that one day the observation of Veterans Day would cease, but that would only happen if war would cease. He commended Perron on her election as Post Commander and also spoke to the beauty of the Star Spangled Banner, which had just been sung by The Showstoppers, whose voices rose throughout the ceremony singing several pieces. 

            Also adding elegance and meaning with patriotic music were performances by the Old Hammondtown School chorus led by Willow Dowling, and the school’s band under the direction of Christian Dow.

            At the commencement of his time at the podium, guest speaker Naval Captain Steven Gardiner shared that he was struggling a bit with his speech.

            “I don’t like talking about myself… [or] being in the limelight,” he confided. Gardiner, whose many achievements include senior staff positions in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Guantanamo Bay, has studied at both the U.S. Naval and Army War Colleges and has received the Meritorious Service Medal. He retired in 2018 after 31 years of service. Today, Gardiner serves as a member of the Massachusetts Marine Academy’s onboard operations program.

            “In thinking about a thirty-year career,” Gardiner said, and paused. “Well, it’s not about me: it’s about all the people who served with me.”

            He spoke to the courage so many demonstrated, like one rescue swimmer Gardiner said spent nine hours searching for a helicopter pilot.

            “As I reflected upon those faces from three decades worth of various crews… I came to realize that these people are the ones worthy to focus on here today – not me – because I served with great and memorable people,” said Gardiner.

            As a Naval Aviator and Vietnam veteran, Gardiner said he learned to “take care of my people” and a senior officer once taught him “how to constructively use mistakes as a positive teaching moment.”

            Gardiner also remembered the pain and sorrow of watching a wounded Kurdish security staff member perish from a chest wound, and the families of service personnel whose sacrifices should not be overlooked.

            “The common thread in all was that we raised our hands, sworn an oath, put on a uniform and stepped off… to serve something greater than ourselves,” said Gardiner. In a follow-up, he added words spoken by one of his current colleagues: “So, even though we sailed in harm’s way, I don’t need thanks because the world’s greatest Navy gave me more than I gave it.”

Adding to the solemnity of the event were Mattapoisett Police Officers Felix Perez and Jeremy Young who formed the color guard, balanced by the youthful exuberance of the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts.

            Denham commented that the 2019 observances were enjoyed by a “record number of people,” and the crowd demonstrated their pleasure with rousing ending applause.

By Marilou Newell