Whalers in N.Z. history

Press, 19 February 1983, Page 16

Whalers in N.Z. history

The Whale's Wake. By Harry Morton. University of Otago. 1982. 396 pp. Illustrations. $3B.

(Reviewed by Mervyn Palmer) More than a century and a quarter ago. the significant era of whaling in and around the islands of New Zealand came to an end when large-scale colonisation was still only in its infancy. It was less the scale of whaling in New Zealand, and more the time when it occurred, that was so important ip the evolution of the nation.

Dr Harry Morton succeeds very well in the task of providing a balanced and detailed account of the impact and the nature of whaling as it affected New Zealand. He records the local influence of this international industry without ever overstating the case. It would be easy, as he warns, to inflate the significance of whaling for this part of the world, well beyond the boundaries that the hard evidence draws. Perhaps, if there is a fault, it is that the author treads too firmly on the soft pedal. The value of the author's study lies in his ability to show not only the way of the whalers pursuing their employment, but also the effects of whaling and whalers upon the contemporary economic and social lives of two peoples learning to live together in the early stages of nation-building. Harry Morton is both a man and an author of wide experience. His academic training and practice as an historian has

made him a discerning and critical sifter of the mass of material which provided his sources. In addition, his breadth of

life's experiences has ensured that the book he has produced projects a practical appreciation of his subject with a style equally appealing to the general reader and the specialist. He demonstrates convincingly that a substantial book, based on an academic treatise, does not need to be heavy weather for its readers. While the method of annotation provides substantial back-up for the text, it is impressively unobtrusive. The source list of ships' logs consulted, together with their location, is a small masterpice of collected information and the bibliography will, without doubt, be of great value to others who will wish to follow, like Harry Morton, in "The Whale’s Wake." The illustrations are thoughtfully selected and in some examples there is evidence of triumph for reproductive technology over the challenges of difficut original material. An appealing addition to the work is provided by the author's wife. Peggy Morton, as illustrator: the little drawings at the end of each chapter are as informative as they are charming. "The Whale's Wake" is a major contribution to our published fund oi knowledge about the history of Australia. New Zealand, and the Pacific, and it is likely to remain a prominent reference on its subject for many years to come.