TRIBE SEEKS ITS 'SHINN' BONES

A Long Island Indian tribe wants the giant bones of the monster whale that washed up on a Hamptons beach this week.

The Shinnecock Indians hope to use the skeleton of the 60-foot-long fin whale lying on the Southampton beach in secret tribal ceremonies and to display it in their museum.

"Whales are a significant part of our history," said Lance Gumbs, chairman of the Shinnecock Indian Nation, which has a reservation in Southampton.

The tribe has received the blessing of the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation, which today begins an autopsy on the 120,000-pound carcass.

It now will seek permission from the National Marine Fisheries Service.

Bill Hoffmann

Copyright, 2004, New York Post