An octagonal shaped piece of board about 15 inches in diameter used to slow down a whale after it had been harpooned. Also know as a "drag," a drogue was attached to the harpoon line and thrown overboard, making it harder for the whale to swim and tiring it out. This illustration is an etching by J. Ross Browne, from his book Etchings of a Whaling Voyage, published in 1846.