NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (AP) — The New Bedford Whaling Museum is seeking the help of Herman Melville fans around the world to ensure that the 17th annual Moby-Dick Marathon goes on as planned.

The museum in the past has used a federal grant to help finance the event every January, but that funding has been lost.

So museum science director Robert Rocha Jr. sent out a letter this month to previous supporters and participants in the marathon asking for donations.

So far about $600 has been raised. Museum officials tells The Standard-Times (http://bit.ly/WxNzM5 ) it costs about $5,000 for the event. A few bucks from each person would do the trick.