McGinty and the Wilkers

…In the corner by the window sat a knot of old Wilkers (sea slang for whale milkers) brooding over their beers.

They eye me cautiously, like a winter squall, as I approach the bar. I wait for the bar-keep and notice that the walls of The Rotten Catch are liberally decorated with antique whale-milking paraphernalia … huge leather harnesses and old suction cups with their hand-operated pumps…

A large hooked pole with twelve rubber prongs catches my eye…

“This Whale Girdler was used by the late McGinty Moffitt in his World Record attempt to milk a pod in 6 hours 32 seconds … only his unfortunate drowning foiled his brave attempt.”

The other item to catch my eye, and nose for that matter, is the beer…