Marine Biological Laboratory if brary
Woods Hole, Massachusetts

(VOYAGES - OF - EXPLORATION

Ld

Collected
by
Newcoms STHOMPSON Mon TgomeRY
(1907-1986)

Philadelphia architect, nephew of
Thomas Harrison Montgomery (1873-19{2),
MBL investigator, and Priscilla Braishin

Montgomery (1874-1956), MBL Ibrarvan.

Gift of thar sons Hugh Montgomery, MD.
and Raymond ‘B. Montgomery ~ 1987.

Re a
1s i

iP

PLATE XVU.

—— = = =
al Design by James Waddel Esq? He Engraved by WeDLizars Edinburg!

amitage Hill,

: IDA WN G FIRS oF rum WELAIJE IFT SHERRY.

Lidiniurgh Published by Constable &¢ LIE 20.

AN

ACCOUNT

OF THE

ARCTIC REGIONS,

WITH A
HISTORY AND DESCRIPTION

OF THE

NORTHERN WHALE-FISHERY.

BY

W. SCORESBY Jun. F.R.S.E.

ILLUSTRATED BY TWENTY-FOUR ENGRAVINGS.

IN TWO VOLUMES.

1 VOL. II.

EDINBURGH:

PRINTED FOR ARCHIBALD CONSTABLE AND CO. EDINBURGH:

AND HURST, ROBINSON AND CO. CHEAPSIDE, LONDON.

1820.

P. Neill, Printer.

&

CONTENTS or VOL. IT.

NORTHERN WHALE-FISHERIEKS, &c.

Page
CHAP. I—Curono.iocicat History of
the Northern Whale-Fisheries, - 1
CHAP. II.—Comparative View of the Origin,
Progress, and Present State of the Whale-
Fisheries of different European Nations, 96

Sect. 1. Whale-Fishery of the British, - 98
2. Whale-Fishery of the British Colonies in

America, - - 134

3. Whale-Fishery of the Dutch, - 138

4. Whale-Fishery of the Spaniards, French,
Danes, Germans, Norwegians, Prussians
and Swedes, - 161

CHAP. III.—Situation of the early Whale-
Fishery,—Manner in which it was conduct-
ed,—and the Alterations which have sub-
sequently taken place, : - 172

CF.AP.IV.—Account of the Modern Whale-
Fishery, as conducted at Spitzbergen, 187

Sect. 1. Description of a well-adapted Greenland
Ship, with the additional strengthenings
requisite for resisting the Concussions of
the Ice, = = 187

2. Proceedings on board of a Greenland Ship,
from putting to sea to her arrival on the
Coast of Spitzbergen, - - 199

vi CONTENTS OF VOLUME SECOND.

Sect. 3. Observations on the Fishery of different —

od

ont aa

16.

17.

latitudes and seasons, and under different
circumstances of ice, wind and weather,

- Description of the Boats and principal In-

struments used in the capture of the Whale,

. Preparations for the Fishery, =

. Proceedings on Fishing Stations, -

- Proceedings in capturing the Whale, 2

. Alterations produced in the manner of con-

ducting the Fishery, ‘by peculiar circum-
~ stances of Situation and Weather, «

a. Pack-fishing, =

b. Field-fishing, -
c. Fishing in crowded Ice, or in open Packs,
d. Bay-Ice-fishing, -
e. Fishing in Storms, -

f: Fishing in Foggy Weather, Z

. Anecdotes, illustrative of peculiarities in the

Whale-Fishery, =

. Proceedings after a Whale is killed, -

. Process of Flensing, _ -

- Process of Making-off, =

. Laws of the Whale-fishery, ~

. Remarks on the Causes on which Success in

the Whale-fishery depends, -

- Anecdotes illustrative of the Dangers of the

Whale-fishery, “ =
a. Dangers from Ice, =
b. the nature of the Climate,
Cc. the Whale, ~
Proceedings in a Greenland Ship, from lea-
ving the Fishing Stations, to her arrival in
Britain, 0 a
Legislative Regulations on the Importation
of the Produce of the Northern Whale-
fisheries, - A

hs

Page

207

221
230
236
240

257

ib.
259
266
268
272
273

276
292
298
304
312

333
340
341

346
356

369

378

CONTENTS OF VOLUME SECOND. Vii

Page
CHAP. V.—Account of the Davis’ Strait

Whale-Fishery, and a comparison with that
of Greenland, with Statements of Expen-
ces and Profits of a Fishing Ship, - 882
Sect. 1. Some account of the Whale-fishery, as at
present conducted in Davis’ Strait, and
on the Coast of Labrador, - ib.
2. Comparative View of the Fisheries of Green-
land and Davis’ Strait, - 390
3. Statements of Expences and Profits on some
Whale-fishing Voyages, > 393
CHAP. VI.—Method of Extracting Oil and
Preparing Whalebone, and Remarks on the
uses to which the several products of the
Whale- Fishery are applied, en. SOT
Sect. 1. Description of the Premises and Apparatus
used in extracting Oil out of Blubber, 397
2. Process of Boiling Blubber or Extracting
Oil, - ~ 400
8. Description of Whale-Oil, and Remarks on
the cause of its offensive smell, “ 408
4. Description of Whalebone, and of the Me-
thod of Preparing it, - - 415

- 5. Remarks on the Uses to which the Oil,
Fenks, Tails, Jawbones, and other pro-
duce of Whales are applicable, > 420

CHAP. VII.—Narrative of Proceedings on
board of the Ship Esk, during a Whale-
Fishing Voyage to the coast of Spitzbergen,
in the year 1816, : - 438

Vill CONTENTS OF VOLUME SECOND.

APPENDIX.
Page
No. Ie-Abstract of the Acts of Parliament at present in
force for the Regulation of the Whale-fish-

eries of Greenland and Davis’ Strait, 491
I].1. Some Remarks on the most advantageous
Dimensions of a Whale-Ship, - 506
2. Additional Notices respecting the Fortifica-
tions of a Greenland Ship, - 508

Tl.—Schedule of the Principal Fishing Apparatus
necessary for a Ship, of 300 tons burden or
upwards, intended to be employed in the
Greenland Trade, ~ - 509

IV.—-Manner of Mustering the Crew of Whale-
Ships, with some account of the Affidavits,
Certificates, &c. required by Law, = 512

V.—Account of a Trial respecting the right of the
Ship Experiment, to a Whale struck by one
of the Crew of the Neptune; Gale v. Wil-

kinson, - = 518
VI.—Signals used in the Whale-fishery, - 521
1. General Signals, - - 522
2. Particular Signals, - 524

VII.—Account of some Experiments for determining
the Relations between Weight and Measv

in certain quantities of Whale-Oil, - 525
VIII.—Some account of the Whale Fishery conducted
in the Southern Seas, - - 529

I1X.—Observations and Deductions on the Anomaly
in the Variation of the Magnetic Needle, as
observed on Ship-board, ~ 537

X. Explanation of the Plates, rn ” 552
INDEX, - ~ n “ = - 561

ACCOUNT

OF THE

NORTHERN WHALE-FISHERIES,
&e.

CHAPTER I.

@HRONOLOGICAL HISTORY OF THE NORTHERN
WHALE-FISHERIES.

Ix the early ages of the world, when beasts of
prey began to multiply and annoy the vocations of
man, the personal danger to which he must have been
occasionally exposed, would oblige him to contrive
some means of defence. For this end he would na-
turally be induced, both to prepare weapons, and
also to preconceive plans for resisting the disturbers
of his peace. His subsequent rencounters with
beasts of prey would therefore be more frequently
successful ; not only in effectually repelling them
when they should attack him, but also in some in-
stances in accomplishing their destruction. By ex-
VOL. II. A

a WHALE-FISHERY.

perience, he would gradually discover more safe and
effectual methods of resisting and conquering his
irrational enemies; his general success would be-
get confidence,and that confidence at length would
lead him to pursue in his turn the former objects
of his dread, and thus change his primitive defen-
sive act of self-preservation into an offensive ope-
ration, forming a novel, interesting, and noble re-
creation. Hence we can readily and satisfactorily
trace to the principle of necessity, the adroitness
and courage evidenced by the unenlightened na-
tions of the world, in their successful attacks on the
most formidable of the brute creation; and hence
we can conceive, that necessity may impel the
indolent to activity, and the coward to actions which
would not disgrace the brave.

If we attempt to apply this principle to the ori-
gin of the schemes instituted by man, for subduing
the cetaccous tribe of the animal creation, it may
not at the first sight appear referable to the exi-
gence of necessity. For man to attempt to sub-
due an animal whose powers and ferocity he regard-
ed with superstitious dread, and the motion of
which he conceived would produce a vortex yfficient
to swallow up his boat, or any other vessel in which
he might approach it,—an animal of at least six
hundred times his own bulk, a stroke of the tail of
which might hurl his boat into the air, or dash it
and himself to pieces,—an animal inhabiting at the

CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 5}

same time an element in which he himself could
not subsist ;—for man to attempt to subdue such
an animal under such circumstances, seems one of
the most hazardous enterprises, of which the inter-
course with the irrational world could possibly ad-
mit. And yet this animal is successfully attacked,
and seldom escapes when once he comes within reach
of the darts of his assailer.

In tracing from a principle of necessity the pro-
gress of such a difficult and hazardous undertaking,
from its first conception in the mind to its full ac-
complishment ; in the existing deficiency of authen-
tic records, much must be left to speculation. The
following view may at least be considered as plau-
sible.

It seems to be the opinion of most writers on the
subject of the Whale-Fishery, that the Biscayans
were the first who exercised their courage in waging
a war of death with the whales, and succeeded in
their capture. This opinion, though, perhaps, not
correct, as will hereafter appear, is yet a sufficient
foundation for investigating the probable origin of
this remarkable employment. These people, like
the inhabitants of almost all sea-coasts, were em-
ployed, principally, in the occupation of fishing.
AA species of whale, probably the Balena rostrata,
was a frequent visitor to the shores of France and
Spain. In pursuit of herrings and other small
fishes, these whales would produce a serious destrucr

AR

4. WHALE-FISHERY.

tion among the nets of the fishermen of Biscay and
Gascony. Concern for the preservation of their
nets, which probably constituted their principal pro-
perty, would naturally suggest the necessity of dri-
ving these intruding monsters from their coasts.
With this view, the use of fire-arms, or, supposing
the capture of these animals by the Basques and Bis-
cayans to have been effected prior to the invention of
gunpowder (A. D. 1330), which was probably the
case, the use of arrows and spears would naturally
be resorted to. On shooting at the whales, either by
means of the bow or the musket, they would doubt-
less be surprised to find, that, instead of their be-
ing the ferocious, formidable, and dangerous ani-
mals they had conceived, they were timid and in-
offensive. ‘This observation would have a ten-
dency to supply them with such additional confi-
dence and courage, that the most adventurous, from
motives of emulation, the prospect of profit, or even
from a principle of fool-hardiness, might be induced
to approach some individual of the species, and even
dart their spears into its body. Perceiving that it
evinced no intention of resistance, but that, on
‘the contrary, it immediately fled with precipitation
to the bottom of the sea, and that, on its return to
the surface, it was quite exhausted, and apparently
in a dying state; they might conceive the possibili-
ty of entangling some of the species, by means of a
cord attached to a barbed arrow or spear. If, to the

SS Se ee ee

CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY: o

end of this cord they attached one of the buoys
used in their common fishing occupations, it would
point out the place of the wounded animal, fatigue
it in its motions, and would possibly goad it on to
produce such a degree of exhaustion, that it might
fall an easy prey to these adventurous fishermen.
One of these animals being thus captured, and its
value ascertained, the prospect of emolument would
be sufficient to establish a fishery of the cetaceous
tribe, and lead to all the beneficial effects which
have in modern times resulted,

Historians, in general, it has been observed, have
given to the Biscayans the credit of having first suc-
ceeded in capturing the whale upon the high sea.
Those authorities, indeed, may be considered as un-
questionable, which inform us, that the Basques and
Biscayans, so early as the year 1575, exposed them-
selves to the perils of a distant navigation, with a
view to measure their strength with the whales, in
the midst of an element constituting the natu-
ral habitation of these enormous animals; that the
English in 1594, fitted an expedition for Cape Bre-
ton, intended for the fishery of the whale and the
walrus (seahorse), pursued the walrus-fishing in suc-
ceeding years in high northern latitudes, and in
1611 first attacked the whale near the shores of
Spitzbergen ; and that the Hollanders, and subsc-
quently, other nations of Europe, became participar

6 WHALE-FISHERY.

tors in the risk and advantages of these northern ex-
peditions. Thus, according to these writings, the
Basques and Biscayans, then the English, and af-
terwards the Dutch, were the nations who first prac-
tised the fishery for the whale. Some researches
on the origin of this fishery, carried on in the north-
ern seas, however, will be sufficient to rectify the
error of these conclusions, by proving, that the
whale-fishery by Europeans may be traced as far
back, at least, as the ninth century *.

Oppien, in his treatise de Piscatu, has left some
details of the ancient whale-fishery, which, however,
we shall pass over ; because he seems to refer prin-
cipally, if not altogether, to the smaller species of
whales of the genus Delphinus. We, therefore,
go on to authority which is more respectable.

The earliest authenticated account of a fishery
for whales, is probably that contained in Ohthere’s
Voyage by Alfred the Great. This voyage was un-
dertaken about the year 890 by ONTHERE a native
of Halgoland, in the diocese of Dronthein, a per-
son of considerable wealth in his own country, from
motives of mere curiosity, at his own risk, and un-
der his own personal superintendence. His enter-
prise was communicated by the navigator himself to
King Alfred, who preserved it, and has handed it

* Nok.

A. D. 890. ] CRONOLOGICAL HIsTory. 7

down to us in his translation of Orosius*. On
this occasion, Ohthere sailed to the northward along
the coast of Norway, round the North Cape, to the
entrance of the White Sea. Three days after leav-
ing Dronthein or Halgoland, “he was come as far
_ “ towards the north, as commonly the whale-hunt-
“ ers used to travel {.” Here Ohthere evidently al-
ludes to the hunters of the walrus or seahorse; but
subsequently, he speaks pointedly as toa fishery for
some species of cetaceous animals, having been at
that period practised by the Norwegians. He told
the King, that with regard to the common kind of
whales, the place of most and best hunting for them

* The work of Orosius is a summary of ancient history,
ending with the year 417, at which period he lived. He was
a Spaniard and a Christian. To this translation, Alfred add-
ed, of his own composition, a Sketch of Germany, and the va-
luable Voyages of Ohthere and Wulfstan, the former towards
the North Pole, the latter into the Baltic Sea. The principal
MS. of Alfred’s Orosius, which is very ancient and well writ-
ten, is preserved in the Cotton Library, Tiberius, b. 1. In
1773, the Honourable Daines Barrington published the An-
glo-Saxon Orosius, with an English translation. His MS.
was a transcript formerly made of this——Turner’s Anglo-
Saxons, vol. ii. p. 282, 283, and 284,

+ Hackluyt’s Voyages, vol. i p. 4. Turner’s History of the
Anglo-Saxons, vol. ii. p. 288.-296, reads, “ Three days was
“ he as far north as the whale hunters farthest go.”—** Da
“ ves he sva feor nord sva sva hovel huntan fyrrest farad.”

8 WHALE-FISHERY.

was in his own country; whereof some be 48 ells of
leneth, and some 50, of which sort, he affirmed, that
he himself was one of the six who in the space of
three (two) days, killed threescore*. From this it
would appear, that the whale-fishery was not only
prosecuted by the Norwegians so early as the ninth
century, but that Ohthere himself had personal
knowledge of it. But when he affirms, that him-
self, with five men, captured 60 of these whales in
two days, when it is well known that fifty men, un-
der the most favourable circumstances, and in the
present improved state of the fishery, could not have
taken one-half, or even one-third of that number in
the same space of time, of any of the larger species
of whales,—we are naturally led to question the
authenticity of the account, as far as relates to this
transaction; and in questioning one part, throw a
shade of doubt over the whole narrative. As, how-
ever, the voyage of Ohthere is a document of much
value in history, both in respect to the matter of it,
and the high character of the author by whom it
has been preserved, it were well to examine care-
fully this circumstance, before we decide on a point
so important. Hitherto I have followed Hackluyt;
but if we refer to the oviginal, we shall find, that
Hackluyt himseli, is probably, in this instance, the

* Hackluyt’s Voyages, vol. i. p. 4

890. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. r)

occasion of the apparent inconsistency. ‘Turner, in
his “ History of the Anglo-Saxons,” gives a copy in
the original language of this part of Alfred’s Orosius,
taken from the principal manuscript preserved in the
Cotton Library. In reference to this passage, where
the remarkable exploit of Ohthere is recorded, he ob-
serves, that the Saxon words of this sentence have
perplexed the translators. He has ventured to give
it some meaning, by supposing, that syaa is an er-
ror m the manuscript, and should be f va; by
which alteration the passage reads, “ On his own
“ Jand are the best whales hunted ; they are 48 ells
“Jong, and the largest 50 ells. There, he said,
“that of (fyxa) some fish, he slew sixty in two
days *.” Thus, the whale here referred to, might,

* The words of the original are, “ Ac on his agnum lande
* is se bets’ta hweel huntath tha beoth eahta and feowertiges
* elna lange, tha mestan fiftizes elna lange, thara he sede
thet he syxa (or fyva) sum of sloge syxtig on twam dag-
“ num.” Turner’s Anglo-Saxons, vol. ii. p. 292. note.

The Honourable Daines Barrington, in the account of
Ohthere’s Voyage, published in his “ Miscellanies,” translates
the passage, containing his exploit in the whale-fishery, in the
words, “ That he had killed some six ; and sixty in two days ;”
but, conscious of the unintelligibleness of the sentence, he ob-
serves in a note, that “ Syxa,” he conceives, “ should be a se-
* cond time repeated here, instead of syxtig or sixty ; it would
*‘ then only be asserted, that six had been taken in two days,
* which is much more probable than sixty.” (p. 462.)

10 WHALE-FISHERY.

possibly, be that species of Delphinus, so frequent-
ly driven on shore in great numbers at Orkney,
Shetland, and Iceland, in the present age; where,
in this way, a few small boats have been known to
capture even a larger number than Ohthere speaks of,
in one day. If so, though it does not contradict or
explain away the fact, of larger whales having been
likewise hunted and captured, it removes the objec-
tion as to the improbability of the exploit recorded,
and enables us to adhere with greater confidence to
our authority of the great antiquity of the whale-
fishery by the Norwegians.

In various ancient authors, we have accounts of
whales as an object of pursuit ; and by some nations
held in high estimation as an article of food. Pas-
sing over the notices of these animals by the classic
authors as objects of peculiar dread, or as prognosties
of peculiar events, I proceed to the consideration of
those which mention the whale in the way of fish-
ery or capture, as my more immediate object *.

* For the following researches relative to the ancient history
of the Whale-fishery, up to the middle of the sixteenth cen-
tury, I am chiefly indebted to a “ Mémoire sur l’Antiquité de
* Ja Péche de la Baleine par les Nations Européennes,” by
S. B. J. Norex, Paris, 1795, 12mo. The greater part of the
references I have compared with the originals ; and where
the spirit of the language has been altered by the translations,
I have endeavoured to correct it.

1100.~1200.| CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 1]

A. Danish work *, which, there is reason to sup-
pose, was written about the middle of the twelfth
century, but, at any rate, of a date much earlier
than that which we assign to the first fishery of
the Basques, declares, that the Icelanders, about
this period, were in the habit of pursuing the whales,
which they killed on the shore, and that these is-
landers subsisted themselves on the flesh of some
one of the species +. And Langebek does not hesi-
tate to assert t, that the fishery of the whale (/val-
JSangst) was practised in the most northern coun-
tries of Europe, in the ninth century.

Whether the Normans, in the different invasions
which they made on France, might have carried the
method of harpooning and capturing the whale
thither, or whether these processes, as I have before
suggested, were known and practised by the fisher-
men inhabiting the Bay of Biscay before their in-
cursions, is uncertain; nevertheless it would ap-
pear, that the French were not unacquainted with
the business at a very remote period. Under the

* Kongs Skugg-sio, 121.

+ The whale here referred to, is probably the species of
Delphinus, usually called Bottle-nose, which is yet occasion-
ally driven on shore by the inhabitants of Shetland, Orkney,
Feroe, and Iceland.

t Langebek, Rer. Dan. hist. med. evi, ii. 108.

12 WHALE-FISHERY.

date of 875, in a book, entitled the Z7anslation and
Miracles of St Vaast *, mention is made of the
whale-fishery on the French coast. In the Life of
St Arnould, bishop of Soissons +, a work of the
eleventh century, particular mention is made of the
fishery by the harpoon, on the occasion of a miracle
performed by the Saint. Some Flemish fisher-
men had wounded, with strokes of their lances, a
large whale, the capture of which they believed to
be certain, when suddenly, regaining his strength,
the animal struggled so violently, that he was on
the point of escaping from them. At this critical
juncture, they considered their only resource was to
invoke the Saint, say their /égendaire, and pro-
mise him a part of the fish, if he would be propitious
in assisting them to subdue it. The offering was
happily accepted ; and, to their joy, the same instant,
the whale is said to have suffered them to approach
it, and without further resistance was killed, and
drawn to the shore at the will of the fishers.

At this period, we have different authorities for
supposing, that a whale-fishery was carried on near the
coasts of Normandy and Flanders. We find, in the
eleventh century, a donation of William the Con-
queror, to the Convent of the Holy Trinity of Caen,

* «< Tyanslation et des Miracles de Saint Vaast.”

& “ Vie de Saint Arnould, Evéque de Soissons,”

1145.] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 13

of the tithe of whales captured at or brought to
Dive *; and in a bull of Pope Eugene ITI. in 1145,
we find again a donation in favour of the church of
Coutances, of the tithe of the tongues of whales +
taken at Merry, a gift which was confirmed to this
church by an act of Philip, King of France, in
1319. Though there seems nothing in the words
of these acts against the idea, that the whales here
spoken of were fished for in the sea, but, on the con-
trary, they rather convey a belief, that the Normans,
familiarised in the north with these hardy enter-
prises, never hesitated the repetition of them in the
Channel, with a superiority of means and of courage
derived from experience ; yet, as hitherto, there is
nothing decisive as to a fishery having been actual-
ly carried on by the French, I do not feel myself
competent to speak positively to the point.

* « Decimam Dive,—de balenis et de sale,” &c. Gall. Christ.
xi. instrum. 59.

+ ———_——“ Apud Merri, decimas linguarwn cenarum que
* capiuntur inter Tar et Tarel fluvios, &c.—decima lignarum
* crassi piscis totius ripparie# maris,” &c. Gal. Christ. xi. instr.
240.-273. There are two serious errors in the text of these
two charters. In the first we must read celarum, instead of
cenarum ; and, in the second, linguarum, instead of lgnarum,
for establishing the sense, without which they will be unintelli-
gible. ‘These charters likewise indicate, that the people of
Normandy were in the habit of eating the tongues of whales.

14 WHALE-FISHERY.

The great D’Aussy, who has given a valuable
work on the private life of the French*, quotes a
manuscript of the thirteenth century, where mention
is made of the flesh of the whale bemg used for
food. He also quotes a fable+, tending to prove
the same point; and as he makes it appear, that
the flesh, and particularly the tongue, was publicly
sold in the markets of Bayonne, Cibourre, and Béariz,
and that it was esteemed as a delicacy; it is pre-
sumed that it was sold in its fresh state, and that
they took the whales at a little distance from the
coast, in the manner practised in Normandy. In
support of this opinion, it may be observed, that
Edward III. King of England, had a revenue of
6/. Sterling, upon every whale taken and brought
into the harbour of Béariz; which, in 1338, was so
considerable, that it became the subject of petition
by Peter de Puyanne, Admiral of the English
fleet stationed at Bayonne, and it seems was
awarded to him, in consideration of his services in
the capacity of Admiral, in which he was employ-
ed tf.

ik

“ La Vie privée des Francais.”

t “ Bataille de Charnage et de Caréme ;’—“ La Vie privée,”
Xe. vol. ii. 66. 68.

+ Rymer’s Foedera.” Tom. v. p. 46. 12, Edw. III.

1315. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 15

Whilst the Norwegians, Flemings, French, and
probably the Spaniards of Biscay, seem to have
thus early subjected to their necessities or ambi-
tion, the largest animals in the creation, the Kng-
lish, it is not to be expected, remained long be-
hind. We possess, indeed, few documents, which
relate to any very early attempts to capture the
whale by the English; and those we have, leave
us rather in doubt whether the whales therein re-
ferred to, were such as were run on shore by acci-
dent, or whales attacked and subdued upon the
high sea. By an act of Edward II.* a. p. 1315,
im an agreement with Yolendis de Soliere, La-
dy of Belino, he reserves to himself the right
of all whales cast by chance upon the shore ;
and, by a subsequent act, (A. D. 1324.) the wreck
of whales throughout the realm, or whales or
great sturgeons taken in the sea, or elsewhere,
within the realm, excepting certain privileged
places, were to belong to the King +. Another

* Rymer’s Foedera, tom. iii. p. 514. and 515, An. 8,
Edward II.

+ “ Item habet warectum maris per totum regnum, bale-
“nas et sturgiones captos in mari vel alibi infra regnum, ex-
** ceptis quibusdam locis privilegiatis per Reges.” Cotton,
MS. 17. Edward II. ¢. 11.

16 WHALE-FISHERY.

act recorded by Dugdale *, expresses, that Henry
TV. gave, in 1415, to the Church of Rochester,
the tithe of whales taken along the shore of that
bishoprick.

The whale-fishers of the sixteenth century, who
most distinguished themselves by their habitual
success in capturing those formidable creatures
which constituted the objects of their pursuit, were
the inhabitants of the shores of the Bay of Biscay.
On the French side, the fishers of Cape Breton,
of Plech or Old Boucaut, the Basques of Béariz,
of Gattari, St Jean-de-Luz, of Cibourre, &c., and
the Biscayans, on the side of Spain, are all un-
derstood to have been actively engaged in at-
tacking the whales, whenever they appeared in
the Bay of Biscay+; and with almost uninter-
rupted success. The animal, however, captured
by these people, was not the great Mysticetus
or common whale, but a species of Fin-whale,
probably the Balena rostrata of Linneus, as ap-
pears both by the testimony of the Dutch {, and by

* « Henricus rex Anglorum, Anselmo Archiepiscopo, &c.
* Sciatis nos dedisse S. Andree de Rovecestra, &c.—Et deci-
“mam Balenarum que capte fuerint in Episcopatu Rofen-
* si.”——Monas. Angl. 1. 30.

+ Noel, Mémoire, &c. p. 11.

¢ “ Nieuwe Beschryving der Walvisvangst en Haringvissches
ry,” vol. i.

1500,-1600.] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 17

the known habits of the common whale, which has
never yet been seen in the Kuropean seas, as far as
I can learn, but only in or very near the regions of
ice. Besides, the food of the mysticetus does not
seem to occur in the necessary profusion except in
the Polar Seas. The fin-whales, on the contrary,
which feed in general on herrings and other white
fish, find large supplies of food in most parts of the
North Sea and Atlantic Ocean.

At first, these animals used to present themselves
in the Bay of Biscay, at a certain season every year,
when they were attacked by the Biscayans. At
length, however, when the capture of them became
a particular object of industry, and the whales were
disturbed and became less abundant, with a desire
also, it appears, of enjoying a more uninterrupted
fishery, the Biscayans insensibly became bolder, and
being good navigators, anticipated their return by
pursuing them when they left the Bay, until they ul-
timately approached the coasts of Iceland, Green-
land and Newfoundland*. ‘The Icelanders, now at-
_ tracted by a prospect of a new branch ef commerce,
fitted out vessels, and uniting their energies with
those of the Biscayans, conducted the whale-fish-
ery on so extensive a scale, that, towards the end

B

* Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 1.

18 WHALE-FISHERY.

of the sixteenth century, the number of vessels an-
nually employed by the united nations, amounted
to a fleet of 50 or 60 sail*.

The first attempt by the English to capture the
whale, of which we have any satisfactory account,
was made in the year 1594. Different ships were
fitted out for Cape Breton, at the entrance of the
Gulf of St Lawrence, part of which were destined for
the walrus-fishery, and the remainder for the whale-
fishery. ‘The Grace of Bristol, one of these vessels,
took on board 700 or 800 whale-fins or lamine of
whalebone, which they found in the Bay of St
George, where two large Biscayan fishermen had
been wrecked three years before. This is the first
notice I have met with of the importation of this
article into Great Britain f.

However doubtful it might have appeared at one
time, whether the English or the Dutch were the
first discoverers of Spitzbergen, the claim of the
English to the discovery and first practice of the
whale-fishery on the coasts of these islands, stands
undisputed +.

* Beschryving, vol. i. p. 1.
+ Hackluyt’s Voyages, vol. iii. p. 241.

¢ The Dutch allow that the English preceded them to the
Greenland or Spitsbergen whale-fishery, four years.—Beschry-
ving der Walv. vol. i. p. 2.

1550.-1600.| CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 19

Out of the several attempts which had been made
to find a passage on the north of Europe or Ameri-
ca to the East Indies, arose the Archangel trade ;
for the prosecution of which, the Russia Company
was established under an advantageous charter.
The active prosecution of this trade, and the annual
fishery about the North Cape and Cherry Island,
for the walrus, so inured the English to these bois-
terous and frigid regions, that, on the retreat of the
objects of their pursuit, they extended their voyage
(which had usually terminated at Cherry Island) to
the northward, along the coast of Spitzbergen,
where they resigned the capture of the walrus and
seal, for the more important fishery of the whale.

The discovery of the Greenland whale-fishery, it
therefore appears, was not a circumstance that im-
mediately resulted from the prior discovery of Spitz-
bergen, but it arose out of the enterprising charac-
ter of the adventurers, employed in commercial spe-
culations at this period; which character would,
most undoubtedly, have led them to follow the ob-
jects of pursuit, when they retreated to the north-
ward, independent of the existence of these islands.
Hence, whatever importance is attached to the dis-
covery of these barren lands, the value of the disco-
very is eclipsed by that of the whale-fishery in the
prolific seas adjacent ; as it in a short time proved

‘the mest lucrative, and the most important branch

Be

30 WHALE-FISHERY.

of national commerce, which had ever been offered
to the industry of man.

The merchants of Hull, who were ever remark-
able for their assiduous and enterprising spirit, fit-
ted out ships for the whale-fishery so early as the
year 1598*; which they continued regularly to pro-
secute on the coasts of Iceland and near the North
Cape, for several years; and after the re-discovery
of Spitzbergen by Hudson in 1607, they were
among the first to push forward to its coasts.

Captain Jonas Poole was sent out on a voyage
of discovery in the year 1610, by the “ Company
« for the Discovery of unknown Countries,” the
“ Muscovy Company,” or the “ Russia Company,” as
it was subsequently denominated. When unable
to proceed farther to the northward, he returned
to Spitzbergen, and employed himself some time in
killing sea-horses, in order to reduce the expences of
the voyage. Having observed a vast number of
whales on the coast, he mentioned it to the compa-
ny after his return, who, the next year, fitted out
two ships for the fishery; the Marie Margaret of
160 tons, under the direction of Thomas Edge,
factor, and the Elizabeth of 60 tons, Jonas Poole,
master. HKdge had six Biscayans along with him,
expert at killing whales, and his ship was fur-

* Elking’s View of the Greenland Trade and Whale-fishery,
p- 41.

1611. ] SPITZBERGEN FISHERY. 2]

nished with the requisite apparatus for the fishery.
About the 12th of June they killed a small whale,
which yielded twelve tons of oil, being, according to
Captain Edge, the first oil ever made in Greenland.
Whilst they were busily engaged killing sea-horses
in Foul Sound, and preparing the oil, a quan-
tity of ice set in, whereby the ship was driven on
shore and wrecked. The men being now totally
destitute, the Elizabeth having parted company be-
fore this accident, took to their boats on the 15th of
July, and proceeded along shore thirty or forty
leagues to the southward. Two boats parted com-
pany off Horn Sound, and shortly afterwards fell
in with a Hull ship, which happened to be on the
coast, and gave the master intelligence, that they
had left 1500/7. value of goods in Foul Sound.
He therefore proceeded to the place to get the goods
belonging to the company, as well as to kill some
morses for himself. Meanwhile, Captain Edge,
with two other shallops, had put off shore in lat. 774°
for Cherry Island, and landed there with a N. W.
storm on the 29th of July, after being fourteen days
at sea. Here, they were so fortunate as to find the
Klizabeth, just on the point of weighing anchor for
England; which ship having made a bad voyage,
Edge ordered her back to Foul Sound, to take
on board the goods left there. They left Cherry
Island on the Ist of August, and arrived in Foul
Sound on the 14th, where they found the Hull ship

29 WHALE-FISHERY.

and the rest of their men. Captain Edge now or-
dered the cargo of the Elizabeth, consisting of sea-
horse hides and blubber taken at Cherry Island, of
little worth, to be landed, and the oil and whale-
fins procured by his own crew to be taken in. In
performing this, they brought the ship so light that
she upset and was lost. Captain Edge then agreed
with Thomas Marmaduke, master of the Hull ship,
to take in the goods saved, at the rate of 5/. per ton,
which being done, they set sail homewards on the
21st of August, and arrived in Hull on the 6th of
September, from whence the company’s goods were
shipped for London*.

This was the first instance in which the Russia
Company embarked in the whale-fishery at Spitz-
bergen t.

Though the English had thus by rapid steps dis-
covered and established a whale-fishery on the coasts
of Spitzbergen, of vast national as well as private

* Edge’s “ English and Dutch Discoveries,”—Purcnas’s
Pilgrimes,” vol. iii. p. 467.

+ Anderson, in his History of Commerce, under the year
1597, mentions, that the Russia Company now commenced
the fishing for whales near Spitzbergen. It is evident, how-
ever, that the Spitzbergen fishery did not commence so early
by several years ; and it is probable that the voyage of Edge,
in 1611, was the first of the fishery on this coast.

1612. | SPITZBERGEN FISHERY. Q8

value, yet they had an opportunity of reaping but
httle benefit from the trade before other nations
presented themselves as competitors.

Such a novel enterprise as the capture of whales,
which was rendered practical, and even easy, by
the number in which they were found, and the con-
venience of the situations in which they occurred,—
an enterprise at the same time calculated to enrich
the adventurers far beyond any other branch of
trade then practised—created a great agitation, and
drew towards it the attention of all the commercial
people of Europe. By one impulse, their mer-
eantile spirit was directed to this new quarter, and
vessels from various ports were engaged, and began
to he fitted for the fishery. In the next year, how-
ever, when the Russia Company sent two ships.
the Whale of 160 tons, and the Sea-Horse of 180
tons, to the fishery, three foreign ships only made
their appearance. They consisted of one from Am-
sterdam, commanded by William Muydam, and
another from Sardam, intended only, it seems, for
the taking of sea-horses; and a Spanish ship from
Biscay, fitted for the whale-fishery *. The English,
jealous of the interference of the Dutch ships which
they encountered during the voyage, (who now, as
on many former occasions, followed them closely
wherever there was presented a prospect of emolu-

* Dr Bry’s Ind. Orientalis, tom. il. p. 51.

DA WHALE-FISHERY.

ment *,) would not allow them to fish, but obliged
them to return home, threatening to make prizes of
their ships and cargoes if ever they had the pre-
sumption to appear again on the fishery +. They
conceived themselves to be justifiable in this con-
duct, from the supposition that the discoverers of
Spitzbergen, as they considered themselves, and its
whale-fisheries, were entitled to all the emoluments
to be derived from them. The Dutch vessels }
which, on this occasion, were repulsed from the
fishery, were piloted by a man who had been twen-
ty years in the service of the Russia Company ;
and the Spanish vessel which the same year at-
tempted the Spitzbergen fishery, was piloted by an-

* « Tn most of the new branches of trade discovered by the
* English, in the latter part of the sixteenth, and the former
“part of the seventeenth century, we may observe, that the
** Dutch followed close at their heels. This has been seen in
“ the Russia Trade,—the N. E. and N. W. attempts for a pas-
“ sage to China,—in planting America,—in the circumnaviga-
“tion of the globe,—and in the East India Commerce.”—
Macpnerson’s Annals of Commerce, vol. ii. p. 264.

t Elking’s View of the Greenland Trade and Whale-fishery,
p- 41.

} Most authorities mention only one Dutch vessel as having
sailed to Spitzbergen this year ; but, as De Bry, who mentions
two vessels, wrote his account in the following year, I have
preferred his authority to any other.

1613. ] SPITZBERGEN FISHERY. 25

other of the company’s servants, and procured a full
cargo in Green Harbour. Woodcock, the pilot, on
his return to England, was, on the complaint of the
company, imprisoned sixteen months in the Gate-
house and ‘Tower, for conducting the Spanish ship
to the fishery *. On this voyage the Russia
Company’s ships made no discoveries, in conse-
quence of some quarrelling between the command-
ers; they, however, succeeded better in the fishery,
having taken seventeen whales and some sea-horses,
which produced them 180 tons of oil.

In the following year (1613), the English Russia
Company having received intimation that a num-
ber of foreign ships were fitting for Spitzbergen,
obtained a Royal Charter, excluding all others,
both natives and foreigners, from participating
in the fishery; after which they equipped seven
armed vessels, under the direction of Captain Ben-
jamin Joseph, in the Tigris of 21 guns, for the
purpose of enforcing this prerogative, and monopo-
lizing the trade.

Though the foreign adventurers were apprized of
the resistance intended by the English, yet they
all persisted in their object, and proceeded openly
on the voyage; excepting some vessels from Biscay,
which put to sea under pretence of being bound to

* Purchas’s “ Pilgrimes,” &c. vol. il. p. 467.

26 WHALE-FISHERY.

the West Indies, to carry out men to Lima, by
order of the King of Spain; but eventually made
their way to the coast of Spitzbergen. Thus, in the
course of the season, there appeared in the fishing
country two Amsterdam ships, furnished with
twelve Biscayans, as harpooners, boat-steerers, and oil
manufacturers, and two more from other ports of
Holland; together with a pinnace, partly manned
with English, fitted from Amsterdam, for the
walrus-fishery ; one ship and a pinnace also ar-
rived from Dunkirk, one from Bourdeaux, one
from Rocheile, three from St Jean de Luz, and
some Spanish ships from St Sebastian. These
vessels being successively discovered by the English
in their various retreats, were attacked in the way
they had reason to anticipate ; and after the greater
proportion of the blubber or oil, and whale-fins,
which they had procured, was taken from them, most
of them were driven out of the country. Even
four English ships, fitted out by private indivi-
duals, were likewise driven away, to which, in
common with the foreigners, the Russia Company’s
people attached the name of interlopers. Some
French ships only were permitted to fish, in consi-
deration of their paying to the English a tribute
of eight whales; and one ship belonging to the
same nation, which had been successful in the fish-
ery, was allowed to retain half of the blubber it
had taken, on condition of reducing the other half

1613.} SPITZBERGEN FISHERY. )

ad
into oil for the English, who were not so well ac-
quainted with the process of manufacturing: this
article as the French. The Dutch vessel which
had English seamen on board, was captured and ta-
ken to London *, together with the greater part of
eighteen and a half whales, which their other ships
had procured, occasioning a loss, according to their
estimation, of 130,000 guilders+. The English,
however, were far from being gainers by these trans-
actions ; for whilst engaged in making reprisals on
their competitors, they neglected their own voyage,
whereby their ships returned home 200 or 300 tons
dead freight, and occasioned a loss to the company

* The Dutch, in their"modern publications on the whale-
fishery, are silent on the subject of this capture ; as also is
Captain Edge, who has given us an account of the early fishery
of the English, in Purchas’s Pilgrimes, &c. in which he him-
self was engaged. I therefore presume, that the prize, on
its arrival in England, was restored to its proper owners.

+ “ Beschryving der Walvisvangst,” &c. Deel i. p. 25., and
* Ind. Orientalis,” by John Theodore de Bry, a. pv. 1619,
where we have a ful] account of the transactions above referred
to, in a chapter entitled “ Descriptio regionis Spitzberge ;
« addita simul relatione injuriarum, quas, An. 1613, alii pisca-
“ tores ab Anglis perpessi sunt: et protestatione contra Anglos,
‘qui sibi solis omne jus in istam regionem vendicarunt.”—
tom, iii. p. 47, 62.

28 WHALE-FISHERY.

of three to four thousand pounds*. But though
the Dutch made a dreadful outcry against the pro-
ceedings of the English, we find the latter afford-
ing assistance and protection to some of the crew
of a Dutch vessel who had been separated from
their ship in a fog, whilst engaged, in opposition to
the orders of the English Admiral, in conveying
away from the land the produce of a whale they had
taken +: and we also find, that while the Dutch
were highly indignant at the opposition received
from the English, yet they themselves assumed the
same right over some Spanish vessels which enter-
ed the Sound where they lay, by prohibiting them
from fishing, and forcing them to depart f.

The Dutch, who constantly exhibited an uncom-
mon degree of perseverance in all their commercial
undertakings, were not to be diverted from partici-
pating in so lucrative a branch of commerce, with-
out a struggle, made an attempt, im 1614, to con-
tinue the trade, notwithstanding their discourage-
ment, on a plan so extensive, as to combine the
resources of the principal cities and sea-port towns
of the United Provinces. In the first instance,

* Purchas’s “ Pilgrimes,” &c. vol. iii. p. 467.
+t De Bry, tom. iii. p. 59.

* Idem, vol. iii. p. 58.

1614. j SPITZBERGEN FISHERY. 29

however, the plan was only got to bear in Amster-
dam, where a company was established. In consi-
deration of repeated petitions to the States-Gene-
ral, setting forth the great expences incurred by
the merchants composing this company, in disco-
vering the countries situated in the polar regions,
and in commencing a whale-fishery therein, they
obtained a charter for three years, granting them
the right of all the fisheries, and other emoluments,
included between Nova Zembla and Davis’ Straits,
and excluding all other ships of the realm from in-
terference, under the penalty of confiscation of the
ships and cargoes *.
With this encouragement, they immediately sent
to Biscay for additional harpooners, to assist and in-
structthemin thefishery; erected boiling-houses,ware-
houses, and cooperages, to be in readiness to reduce
the fat into oil, in the event of a successful fishery ;
and, for the security of their ships, they sent along
with them, four ships of war, of thirty guns each,
which, together, amounted to a fleet of eighteen
sail. This fleet was so formidable, that the English,
notwithstanding their pretensions to an exclusive
claim to the fishery, having only thirteen large
ships present, and two pinnaces, though furnished
with artillery, were obliged to allow the Hollanders
to fish without interruption. The English got but

————$———

* Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 2, 3.

30 WHALF-FISHERY.

half laden, and the Dutch made but a poor fish-
ing *,

King James seems to have entertained the same
opinion with regard to the title of his subjects, to
the sole occupation of the Greenland W hale-fishery ;
or, at least, he wished to establish such a title,
since, in the course of the same year, he sent Sir
Henry Wootten, his ambassador extraordinary, to
treat with the Commissioners of their High Mighti-
nesses the States-General, concerning the intrusion
of the Hollanders into the English Greenland fishe-
ry, together with their interruption of our East In-
dia Commerce ft.

In 1615, the Russia Company fitted out but two
ships and two pinnaces for the whale-fishery, while
the Dutch sent out eleven, together with three ships
of war. Three Danish ships of war, piloted by one
James Vaden, an Englishman, lkewise appeared
on the fishery, with the object of exacting tribute
from the English fishermen, on the score of a sup-
posed title, on their part, to the right of the fishery.
This absurd claim was answered by the English
with their usual argument of Sir Hugh Willough-

* Purchas’s Pilgrimes, vol. iii. p. 467. ; and Churchill’s Col-
lection of Voyages and Travels, vol. i. p. 565.

+ Anderson’s History of Commerce, a. p. 1614; and Mac-
pherson’s Annals, vol. ii. p. 275.

1617.) | SUCCESSFUL FISHING. $1

by’s prior discovery of Spitzbergen. An uncom-
mon quantity of ice, with foggy weather, so pes-
tered the fishers this season, that the English got
entangled, and lay fourteen days beset. ‘They re-
turned home, as before, half laden; while the
Dutch made a successful fishery *.

Captain Edge, in the Russia Company’s service,
had eight ships and two pinnaces under his com-
mand, in 1616. “ This year,” says Edge, in his
account of the English and Dutch Discoveries
to the North +, “ it pleased God to bless their la-
“pours, and they filled all their ships, and left a
* surplus behind, which they could not take in.”
They had 1200 or 1300 tons of oil by the 14th of
August; and all the ships arrived in the Thames
in September in safety. The Dutch had four ships
in the country, which kept together in obscure
places, and made an indifferent fishing.

Fourteen sail of ships, and two pimnaces, were
equipped for the fishery, by the Russia Company,
in the year following. They killed 150 whales;
from whence they extracted 1800 or 1900 tons of
oil, besides some blubber left behind, for want of
casks; and all their ships returned without acci-
dent +.

* Purchas, vol. iii. p. 467. ; and Anderson’s Commerce, A. v.
1615.

+ Idem.

t Idem.

32 WHALE-FISHERY.

The superiority of the Dutch, in point of num-
bers, prevented open broils in Greenland, during
two or three years; but the spirit of jealousy still
existed, and again burst forth. Captain Edge,
who had under his direction the whole of the Green-
land fleet, went on board of a Dutch ship, which
he met in the country, and showing him the King’s
commission, ordered the captain to depart, telling
him to inform his comrades, that if he met any of
them on the coast, he should take from them what-
ever fishing they had made. Kdge treated the
captain courteously and then allowed him to de-
part, on his promising to seek two of his companions
and return home ; in place of which, however, meet-
ing with a Hull fisher, he was induced to return back
and commence the fishing in Horn Sound. Edge,
on hearing this, sent his Vice-ddmiral to attack
them, and take the produce of their fishing from
them; but before lie arrived, the Zealanders being
aware of his approach, freighted two ships and sent
them off, leaving one ship with some casks of blub-
ber, and two whales and a half unflenched. The
blubber was seized, together with the cannon and
ammunition in the ship, to prevent reprisals on any
of the Fnglish fleet, which the Zealander, being well
armed, threatened. This blubber, however, preved
a prize of little or no value to the English, as they
had already procured more blubber and fins than

1618. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 33

than their ships could carry *. The cannon and
some other articles were restored to the owners on
the arrival of the ships in England.

The Dutch, determined, in spite of the opposi-
tion received from the English, to pursue a com-
merce which promised such. striking personal, as
well as national, advantage, in 1617, procured a
renewal of their charter for four years, whereby
were incorporated two or three companics, formed
in different States of the United Provinces. This
charter interdicted any other persons in the country
from participation in the trade, under the penalty
of 6000 guilders for each ship, together with the
confiscation of the vessel and cargo. From the
substance of this charter, it appears, that the Dutch
had, prior to this period, resorted to Jan Mayen
Island, for the purpose of fishing for whales f.

With a view to make the whale-fishery trade
more general, King James, who had then suceeeded
to the threne of England, in 1618, granted a pa-
tent, whereby he embodied a number of English,
Scots and Zealand adventurers. This charter, how-
ever, appearing to militate against the privileges of
the Russia and East India Companies, who had
been at the greatest expence in the discoveryand esta-

VOL. Il. c

* Purchas, vol. iii. p. 467,-8.

+ Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vel. i. p. 6.

34 WHALE-FISHERY.

blishment of the fishery, was annulled, notwithstand-
ing that shipshad been purchased, provisions contract-
ed for, and other considerable preparations made by
the different parties, for commencing the fishery. The
Russia and Kast India Companies being therefore
still allowed to monopolize the trade, with their
joint stock, equipped thirteen ships and two pin-
naces for the Greenland fishery.

But on this occasion the event proved most un-
fortunate; for the Zealanders, exasperated by the
rescinding of the Scottish patent, the seizure of
their oil, and other insults, appeared in the country
with twenty-three well appointed ships. ‘They pla-
ced themselves in the most frequented bays where the
English fished, and setting on watch a great number
of boats, prevented their success. ‘Towards the end
of July, ten sail being collected in the harbour at the
Foreland, where lay two English ships and a pin-
nace, a division of five in number attacked them,
killed a number of their men, shot away their
sails, and overpowered them. ‘They then plunder-
ed them of their cannon and ammunition, burnt
their casks, and made prize of oné of their ships for
their indemnification. The rest of the English were
dispersed, and most of them returned home empty
as they were *.

* Purchas, vol. iii. p. 469.; Beschryving der Walvisvangst,
vol. i. p. 26.

1618. | CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 35

In this conflict, it appears that the English were
either overpowered by numbers, or, being discoura-
ged by the unexpected attack, did not fight with
their accustomed coolness and valour. They fired
short, according to the Dutch account, and were
defeated, while the Dutch had the opportunity
of satisfying our countrymen, as they observed,
that they were as little deficient in personal cou-
rage as in diligence and zeal, to carry on their trade.
These dissensions were viewed by the Govern-
ments of the two nations, with a happy degree of
moderation, though it does not appear that they
took any measures to prevent the recurrence of such
events. On the arrival of the Dutch fleet with
their prize in Holland, the States-General present-
ed the English captain with a remuneration, and
judiciously liberated his vessel *.

The occurrence of these mortifying circumstances,
together with the arrival of the vessels of other
powers on the fishing stations, which tended to di-
vide the quarrel, had the effect of producing a con-
ference between the captains of the rival nations, for
the consideration of the best method of adjusting
their differences, and preventing the liability to fu-
ture disturbances. The English, at this time,
claimed the exclusive right to the fishery, while
the Dutch and the Danes asserted an equal title.

C2

* Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 26.

36 WHALE-FISHERY.

The English grounded their claim on the supposed
discovery of Spitzbergen by Sir Hugh Willoughby,
in the year 1553 *, and on the discovery and _ esta-
blishment of the fishery about which they contend-
ed. The Dutch denied, and with justice, Sir Hugh
Willoughby’s discovery, and rested their claim on
the discovery of these islands by Heemskerke, Ba-
rentz and Ryp, in the year 1596. And the Danes,
supposing Spitzbergen to form part of West Green-
land, which was at an early period possessed by
them, asserted this as a sufficient title.

Finding the determination of this point 2 matter
of great difficulty, while it now appeared of less
importance than they had at first conceived, having
found that the whole coast abounded with fine bays
and commodious harbours, each of which were e-
qually resorted to by the whales, and equally well
adapted for carrying on every operation relative to
the fishery, they agreed at length to a division of
these bays and harbours, which were to be consider-
ed as the independent possession of those to whom
they were allotted.

The English had such influence as to obtain, not
only the first choice, but the privilege of occupying

* This claim of the English was fully answered by D. Peter
Planei, “ a very learned cosmographer,’ who proved that Sir
Hugh Willoughby never reached so far north as Spitzbergen.
His protest against the claims and conduct of the English, is
included in De Bry’s “ Historica Descriptio regionis Spitzber-
*« ge,” published in his Ind. Orient. tom. iii. p. 60.-62.

1618. | CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 37

a greater number of bays or harbours than any of
the rest. After the English, the Dutch, Danes,
Hamburghers and Biscayans, each in succession,
made a selection, in the order of their arrival on, or
their supposed claim to the fishery.

The English chose for themselves some of the
principal southern bays, most free from ice, consist-
ing of Bell Sound, Preservation or Safe Harbour
in Ice Sound, and Horizon Bay, the whole situated
on the south of the Foreland; together with a small
bay behind the northern part of the Foreland, which
they called Knglish Harbour, and another more re-
mote which still bears the name of English or Mag-
dalena Bay *.

The Hollanders, obliged to take up their quarters
farther to the northward, chose the Island of Am-
sterdam, with two bays adjoining, one on each side;
and a third, which they called Hollander’s Bay,
formed between the island and the main.

The Danes, who followed next after the Holland-
ers, contenting themselves with more circumscribed
possessions, established themselves between the Eng-
lish and the Dutch. Their principal place of re-
sort they called Danes Island and Danes Bay.

When the Hamburghers resorted to the fishery,
they discovered a small bay to the northward of the
Foreland, situated near the Seven Ice Bergs, which

* Histoire des Péches, tom. i. p. 15,

38 WHALE-FISHERY.

being lessencumbered with ice thanmany others, they
took possession of for their fishing station, and nam-
ed it after their native city.

Lastly, The Spaniards and French, though among
the earliest visitors to Spitzbergen, found, on their
arrival, in the year when the division was made, all
the bays on the coast already disposed of and occu-
pied ; they therefore fixed themselves in an unclaim-
ed situation, on the northern face of Spitzbergen.

Thus we perceive the origin of the names of the
different places called English Bay and English
Harbour, Hollanders Bay and Amsterdam Island,
Danes Island and Danes Bay, Hamburghers Bay,
Biscayners Point *, &e.

These arrangements having been adopted, the
fishery was subsequently carried on with greater
harmony. Lach nation prosecuted the fishery ex-
clusively in its own possession, or along the sea-
coast, which was free for all. It was understood,
however, that the ships of any nation might resort
to any of the bays or harbours whatever, for the
convenience of awaiting a favourable wind, taking
refuge from a storm, or any other emergency; the
prosecution of the fishery in the bays belonging to
other nations, being alone prohibited. The better
to secure the fulfilment of this part of the ar-

* Anderson’s Commerce, a. dD. 1618 ; also Beschryving der
Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 5, & 26.

1618.] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 39

rangement, it was agreed, that whenever a boat was
lowered in a strange harbour, or happened to row
into the same, the harpoon was always to be remo-
ved from its vest, so as not to be in readiness for
use *,

All the early adventurers on the whale-fishery,
both English and others, were obliged to be in-
debted to the Biscayans for their superintend-
ence and help. The office of harpooner + requiring
great experience as well as personal courage, was
only suited to the Biscayans, who had long been
inured to the dangers and difficulties attendant on
the fishery of the fin-whale. The Biscayans were
likewise looked to for coopers, “ skilful in setting
“up the staved cask.” At this period, each ship
carried two principals; the Commander, who was
a native, was properly the navigator, as his chief
charge consisted in conducting the ship to and
from Greenland; the other, who was called by the
Dutch Specksynder, or cutter of the fat, as his
name implies, was a Biscayan, and had the unlimi-
ted controul of the people in the fishery; and in-
deed every operation belonging to it was entire-
ly confided to him. When, however, the fishery

* Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i.

+ The harpooner is the person who strikes and kills the
whale-

40 WHALE-FISHERY.

became better known, the commander likewise as-
sumed the superintendence of the fishery. The
office of specksioneer, as it is called by the Eng-
lish, was nevertheless continued, and remains to
this day, though with a more limited preroga-
tive. The specksioneer is now considered the prin-
cipal harpooner, and has the “ ordering of the fat,”
and extracting or boiling of the oil of the whale ;
but he serves entirely under the direction of the
commander of the vessel.

It has been observed, that the merchants of Hull
were among the most enterprising of the British
subjects, in equipping ships for the whale and wal-
rus fisheries of Spitzbergen and the adjacent islands ;
besides which, they distinguished themselves by the
discovery, on the part of the English, of Jan May-
en Island, called by them Trinity Island, and by es-
tablishing a whale-fishery there at a very early pe-
riod. The Russia Company wishing to monopo-
lize the whole of this branch of commerce, disputed
the right of the Hull merchants to participate
in it; and wished to debar them from visiting
even this secluded island. In consequence, how-
ever, of a proper representation of the facts, King
James at this time (1618) privileged the corpora-
tion of Hull with a grant of the Jan Mayen Island
whale-fishery*.

* Anderson’s History of Commerce, a. D. 1618. ; Macpher-
son’s Annals, vol. ii. p. 292, .

1623. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 41

Though the joint speculation of the Russia and
Kast India Companies, in the Greenland whale-
fishery in 1618, proved unsuccessful, they, neverthe-
less, made a second trial the following season, by
equipping nine ships and two pinnaces; but a boat
with ten men, belonging to one of the ships, being
lost, one of the ships cast away, and five fail-
ing of success, so discouraged them, that they
agreed to relinquish the trade,

After this determination, four members of the
Russia Company compromised with the Society,
and fitted out, on their own responsibility, seven
ships in the year 1620; but on account of the num-
ber of Flemings and Danes in the northern har-
bours where they resorted to, they were induced to
remove from station to station, and were disappoint-
ed of a full lading. Their united cargoes amounted
to 700 tons of oil. In 1621, the same number of
vessels being sent out, succeeded rather better, ha-
ving procured 1100 tons of oil; the next season
they had very bad success; and in the year 1623,
the last of their union, they procured 1300 tons of
oil. One of their largest ships was unfortunately
lost this season, and twenty of the men perished*.

In the mean time, the Dutch pursued the
whale-fishery with more vigour than the Eng-
lish, and with still better effect. It was no un-

* Purchas, vol. iii. p. 470,

493 ' WHALE-FISHERY.

common thing for them to procure such vast quan-
tities of oil, that empty ships were required to take
home the superabundant produce*. Such an impor-
tance, indeed, did they attach to this speculation, that
the Dutch Companies always solicited, by petition,
a renewal of their charter previous to its expiration ;
and of such value was it deemed in a national point
of view, that for a number of years they were encour-
aged, by the fulfilment of their wishes. In 1622,
in consequence of a petition to this effect, the char-
ter of the Amsterdam Company was renewed for
twelve years, and the charter of the Zealand Socie-
ty was extended about the same time, whereby the
latter were allowed to establish themselves in Jan
Mayen Island, and to erect boiling-houses and coop-
erages in common with their associates 7.

The Dutch having now incorporated a consider-
able and opulent company, and possessing the en-
couragement of the Prince of Orange’s commis-
sion{, they were enabled to protect their own fish-
ery, and to secure themselves against interruption
from other nations. For which purpose, as appears

* Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 28. ; and Church-
ill’s Collection of Voyages and Travels, vol. ii. p. 471.

+ Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 7,-10.

{ Maurice de Nassau was Prince of Orange at this time.

1630. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 43

from a subsequent charter*, they erected forts and
dwelling-houses in different parts of their posses-
sions.

The privileges of these companies, furnishing
them with the opportunity of aggrandizement, to
the exclusion of all other persons belonging to the
United Provinces, produced a considerable degree

of discontent, when the fishery, towards the expira-

tion of these last charters, was in its most flourishing
state. Hence, it became the general wish of those
excluded from participation, that the trade might
be entirely laid open. 'To effect which, therefore,
towards the time of the expiration of the Amster-
dam and Zealand charters, the merchants of some
of the other provinces petitioned the government
against their renewal. These petitions having fail-
ed, the Frieslanders, who, in particular, were wish-
ful to embark in the whale-fishery trade, made a re-
presentation to the States-General of Iriesland to
this effect. In consequence of which, inquiries,

agreeable to their suggestions, began to be made re-

specting the legality of benefiting any part of the
community of a republican country, to the exclu-
sion of the rest. The result placed the legality of

* The whole of these charters I have by me, in the Eng-
lish and French, as well as in the original languages. I
find them, however, like most law documents, so redundant,
and, on the whole, so uninteresting, that I shall not encum-
ber my pages with the translation.

———

44 WHALE-FISHERY.

the proceeding in a light so equivocal, at the same
time that the claim of the memorialists relative to
their right to participate in the fishery, was so
equitable, and their arguments of the unbounded
and natural freedom of the seas, so appropriate,
that the States-General of Friesland were induced
to grant a charter to a company formed in that
province, which endowed them for twenty years with
similar privileges, as those of the other companies of
Holland*.

When, on the strength of this charter, the Fries-
landers, in the year 1634, had prepared three ships
for the fishery, to prevent disturbance, and to secure
themselves against future litigation, they perceived
a necessity for procuring the sanction of the Zealand
and Amsterdam Companies, to their right to parti-
cipation. ‘The States-General of Holland having, at
their request, given a verbal acknowledgment to their
charter, the two ancient companies gave instructions
to the commanders of their ships to respect it also.
To prevent also, as far as practicable, the possibility
of unpleasant consequences, arising from the inter-

* This period of time, it seems, was reduced to eight years, on
the union of the Frieslanders with the other fishing companies
of Holland ; so that the freedom of the fishery, for every one,
was declared at their expiration in 1641,-2. Beschryving
der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 10,—12.

1630,-1634.] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 45

ference of the Frieslanders’ ships with those of the
other companies, in the course of the year, they con-
tracted together and formed a triple union. The
principal conditions of this union were, that the
Company of Friesland, for the use of their vessels
in the concern, should be entitled to all the privile-
ges of the ancient companies, with the use of all
their bays and harbours; and that they should re-
ceive one-ninth of the produce of all the ships of
the united companies as their share, out of which
they were to allow the Amsterdam Company 10
per cent., probably in consequence of these being
the original adventurers ; that the influence of each
company in matters of dispute, should be in the
proportion of six votes to Holland, two to Zealand,
and one to Friesland ; and that in case of any new
discovery being made, the discoverer should be en-
titled to all emoluments to be derived therefrom for
five years, and then it should revert to the use of
the general concern*, The whole of the articles of
union amounted to twenty-four, but the preceding
are the most important. Though it appears, that
the interests of the three companies were united in
1634, the formal contract was not completed and
signed until the 23d of June 1636. The Holland

* Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 13,—15.
Idem, vol. i. p. 18.20, contains the charter whereby the
Zealanders, Hollanders, and Frieslanders were incorporated.

46 WHALE-FISHERY.

and Zealand Companies were the more willing to
incorporate the Frieslanders along with them, from
the hope, that this union would effectually prevent
any other towns from joining in the trade. In this,
however, they were disappointed ; for, at the solici-
tation of different persons, it was found necessary to
allow all who were in readiness within a certain li-
mited time, to unite themselves with the concern.
For the use of these additional adventurers, the
ancient companiesappropriated a part of their posses-
sion, lying in the South Bay on the Main, where
the Haarlingers erected their boiling-house*.

While the Dutch followed the whale-fishery
with perseverance and profit, they were successfully
imitated by the Hamburghers and other fishermen
of the Elbe, but the English made only occasional
voyages. Sometimes the Russia Company sent
out ships, at others, private individuals belonging
to London, but more frequently the merchants of
Hull embarked their property in the Spitzbergen
trade.

About this period, when the fishery was chiefly
pursued in the very bays where the ships lay at their
moorings, it was found a matter of convenience and
dispatch, to erect various buildings for the accommo-
dation of the coopers employed in making and repair-
ing casks, and for the seamen who were engaged in re-

* Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 17.

1630,-1634.] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. A7

ducing the blubber into oil, together with suitable
erections for performing this operation. ‘The erec-
tions of the Dutch were the most considerable ; but
even the English, though their shipping in the
trade had never been very numerous, had, we learn,
several substantial buildings on the margin of Ry-
nier’s River in Bell Sound; among which, were a
a cooperage firmly built of timber, and roofed with
Flemish tiles, 80 feet in length and about 50 in
breadth ; a considerable boilers’ lodging-house ; and
boiling furnaces with chimneys of brick*.

The adventurers in the whale-fishery, conceiving
that considerable advantages might be derived,
could Spitzbergen be resorted to as a permanent re-
sidence, were desirous of ascertaining the possibili-
ty of the human species subsisting throughout the
winter in this inhospitable climate. The English
merchants, it appears, offered considerable rewards,
together with the supply of every requisite for such
an undertaking, to any person who would volunteer
to pass the winter on any part of Spitzbergen; but
not one was found sufficiently hardy to undertake
the hazardous experiment. Such, indeed, was the

* These buildings were erected originally by the “ Fle-
“ mings, in the time of their trading hither,” as appears from
Pelham’s “ Miraculous Preservation and Deliverance of Eight
“‘ Englishmen, left by mischance in Greenland 1630,” publish-
ed in Churchill’s Collection, vol. iv. p. 750.; and a verbatim

copy in “ Clarke’s Naufragia,” vol. ii. p. 163,-206.

48 WHALE-FISHERY.

terror with which the enterprise was viewed, that
certain criminals preferred to sacrifice their lives to
the laws, rather than pass a year in Spitzbergen.
The Russia Company, it is said, procured the re-
prieve of some culprits who were convicted of capital
offences, to whom they not only promised pardon,
but likewise a pecuniary remuneration, on the con-
dition that they would remain during a single year
in Spitzbergen. ‘The fear of immediate death in-
duced them to comply ; but when they were carried
out and shown the desolate, frozen, and frightful
country they were to inhabit, they shrunk back
with horror, and solicited to be returned home to
suffer death, in preference to encountering such ap-
palling dangers. To this request, the captain who
had them in charge humanely complied; and on
their return to. England, the company interceded
on their behalf and procured their pardon *.
Probably it was about the same time, that nine
men, who were by accident separated from one of
the London fishing ships, were left behind in Spitz-
bergen: all of them perished in the course of the
winter, and their bodies were found on the ensu-
ing summer, shockingly mangled by beasts of prey.
‘The same master who abandoned these poor wretches
to so miserable a fate, was obliged, by the drifting

* Pelham’s Narrative.

1630,-1634.] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 49

of the ice towards the shore, to leave eight of his crew
who were engaged in hunting rein-deer for provision
for the passage home, in the year 1630. These men,
like the former, were abandoned to their fate ; for,
on their proceeding to the usual places of resort and
rendezvous, they perceived with horror, that their
own, together with all the other fishing ships, had
departed. By means of the provisions procured by
hunting, the fritters of the whale left in boiling the
blubber, and the accidental supplies of bears, foxes,
seals and sea-horses, together with a judicious ap-
plication of the buildings which were erected in
Bell Sound, where they took up their abode, they
were enabled not only to support life, but even to
maintain their health little impaired, until the ar-
rival of the fleet the following year *.

The preservation of these men, revived in the
Dutch the desire of establishing permanent. colo-
nies, and confirmed them in the idea of the possi-
bility of effecting this desideratum. It was, how-
ever, necessary that other trials should be made, be-
fore the project could be carried into execution.

In consequence, therefore, of certain encourage-
ments proclaimed in general throughout the fleet,
seven men volunteered their services, were landed

VOL. IL. D

— ee

* Pelham’s Narrative in Churchill’s Collection, vol. iv.
and Clarke’s Naufragia, vol. ii. p. 179.

50 WHALE-FISHERY. -

at Amsterdam Island *, furnished with the needful
articles of provisions, clothing, spirits, fuel, &., and
were left by the fieet on the 30th of August 1633 +.
About the same time, another party, likewise con-
sisting of seven volunteers, were landed in Jan
Mayen Island, and left by their comrades, to endure
the like painful service with the former. On the
return of the fleet in the succeeding year, this last
party were all found dead {, from the effects of the
scurvy ; but the other which was left in Spitzbergen,
nine degrees further towards the north, though they
suffered exceedingly from their privations and un-
usual hardships, all survived§. Encouraged by this
partial success, for it appears that the melancholy re-
sult of the experiment at Jan Mayen was as yet un-
known to the Spitzbergen fishermen, 1t was proposed
that another party should repeat the experiment in
the ensuing winter. Accordingly, other seven vo-
lunteers were landed as before, supplied with every
supposed necessary, and quitted by their comrades,
on the 11th of September 1634. Before the close of
the month of November, the scurvy made its appear-

* Amsterdam Island lies on the N. W. of Spitzbergen, in
lat. 77° 44’ N. long. 9° 51’ E.

+ Churchill’s Collection, vol. ii. p. 413,
$ Idem, vol. ii. 415,—-425.

§ Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. ii. p. 26,-31.

1635. | CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 51

ance among these devoted people, and by the be-
ginning of March, had, by its dreadful ravages,
destroyed the whole party *. The names of each
of the fourteen men who suffered in the two
trials, are perpetuated ; but of the names of those
who successfully encountered the severities of the
arctic winter, I have not met with any notice. Nei-
ther does it appear what were the encouragements
which stimulated those hardy adventurers to un-
dertake the hazardous enterprise, though it is very
evident the inducements must have been consi-
derable.

In the year 1635, the Russia Company was en-
dowed by Charles the First, with the exclusive
right of importing the oil and fins of whales.
This indulgence was merely a confirmation of the
proclamation of the 17th of James the First, with
the restriction, that the fishery should be prosecuted.
by this company in its joint stock capacity only +.

The bold and unconscious manner in which the
whales resorted to. the bays and sea-coasts at this
period, their easy and expeditious destruction, the
consequent regularly productive state of the fish-
ery, together with the immense herds in which
the whales appeared, in comparison of the number

D2

* Churchill, vol. ii. 427,-8.; and Anderson’s Commerce,
4. D. 1634; also, Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. ii. p. 31.

+ Anderson’s Commerce, A. D. 1635.

52 WHALE-FISHERY.

which was killed,—encouraged the hope that the
profitable nature of the fishery would continue un-
abated. This consideration induced the enterpri-
sing Dutch to incur very great expences in making
secure, ample and permanent erections, which they
gradually extended in such a degree, that at length
they assumed the form of a respectable village, to
which, in reference to the use that it was designed
for, they gave the name of Smeerenberg *.

The result did not, however, justify the sanguine
expectations of the Greenland Companies ; for the
fishery, as it soon appeared, had already attained
its ace +, and began to decline so rapidly from the
year 1636-7, to the termination of the companies
charters, that their losses are stated, on some occa-
sions, as having exceeded their former profits [. To
the system of extravagance which they had adopted,
with the vast expence which they incurred in the
the construction of buildings, in a region where most
of the materia’: had to be imported, is attributed
the subsequent failure of the Dutch chartered com-
panies.

‘Towards the expiration of the charters of the uni-
ted Dutch Greenland Companies in the year 1642,

* Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 27,-28. The ,
word Smeerenberg is probably derived from the Dutch words
smeer signifying fat, and bergen, to put up.

+ Forster’s Discoveries in the North, p. 426.

t Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 29.

1635. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 53

their renewal was attempted by the interested par-
ties; but in consequence of the people of Overyssel,
Utrecht, Guelderland and others, having, by their
representatives, most strenuously resisted the mea-
sure, and petitioned for liberty to embark in the
whale-fishery trade; their High Mightinesses the
States-General conceived that the renewal of the
charters would not only give general dissatisfaction,
but would likewise be inimical to the commercial in-
terests of the United Provinces, and therefore caused
the trade to be laid entirely open to all adventurers*.
This determination produced an effect so happy, that
in a short time the trade was increased almost ten-
fold. The number of ships annually sent out by
the chartered companies, would appear to have only
amounted to about thirty, while, on the dissolution
of the monopoly, the influx of shipping into the
whale-fishery commerce was so great, that in a few
years they accumulated to between two and three

hundred sail +.

é

* Beschryving, vol. i. p. 21.

+ De Witt, in his “ Interest of Holland,” mentions that the
Greenland Whale-fishing trade increased ten-fold, on the dis-
solution of the monopolizing companies. Now, as the Fries-
landers, who fitted three ships, were considered as forming
one-ninth part of the united companies, the fleet of the whole
would probably amount to about twenty-seven sail, to which,
adding the Haarlingers, and other additional adventurers, we
may consider the Dutch Greenland Fishery, during the latter

54 WHALE-FISHERY.

Prior to the time when the trade was laid open,
the Jan Mayen whale-fishery, like that of Spitz-
bergen, had attained its maximum*. The fish-
ermen, by much experience, having become very
dexterous in their profession, while the whales, yet
unwary, assembled around this barren island in vast
profusion, produced such a prodigious destruction
among them, that it is confidently affirmed, that
one of the northern company’s ships, commanded
by a William Ys, made two voyages, and took
home two complete cargoes, of 1000 barrels of oil
each, in one year +. After this time, however, the
fishery at Jan Mayen began to fall into decay.
The whales, incessantly annoyed, withdrew to re-

years of the monopoly, as employing at least thirty vessels.
If De Witt be correct, therefore, a ten-fold increase will make
the fleet in subsequent years to have increased to three hun-
dred sail. And, as these ships were double manned, they must
have carried about sixty men each, which, multiplied by 300,
the number of vessels employed, gives the total of their crews,
18,000 men! Lieven Van Aitzina, quoted by De Witt, indeed
says, That the Dutch Whale-fishery employed upwards of
12,000 men, at the same time that the English did not send a
single ship, which was about the period referred to. It is
therefore probable, that the above estimate may not be very
wide of the truth. See Macpherson, vol. ii. p. 290.; ‘and
Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol, i. p. 28.

* Forster's Northern Discoveries, p- 422.

t Beschryving, vol. i. p. 28.

1653. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 55

gions farther to the north, and even took shelter
among the ice. This island, in consequence, fell
rapidly into disuse, until it was at length, for the
purpose of whale-fishing at least, abandoned alto-
gether.

The Dutch being at war with England in 1653,
and having neither men nor ships of war to spare for
the protection of their whale-fishery, this lucrative
branch of commerce was obliged, for the season, to
be suspended, In the war of 1659, as well as in that
of 1665 and two following years, the fishery was also
conditionally prohibited. As at such times their
unemployed fishing officers might be induced to en-
gage in the service of foreign nations, and thus carry
the trade abroad to the disparagement of their
own country, a proclamation was issued, prohibit-
ing, under severe penalties, all commanders, har-
pooners, boat-steerers, &c. from embarking in the
whale-fishery trade in the ships of any other nation
during the war ; the exportation of fishing utensils
was also prohibited and carefully guarded against ;
and such ships as were occasionally allowed to pro-
ceed to the fishery, under adequate protection, were
prevented from landing their cargoes in any foreign
country, under the penalty of 6000 guilders for
each ship, security for which was demanded from
the owners, before they were allowed to put to sea,

* Beschryving, vol. i. p, 21,

56 WHALE-FISHERY.

The Dutch whale-fishery continued to flourish
for many years after the trade was laid open. Be-
tween the years 1660 and 1670, four or five hund-
red sail of Dutch and Hamburgh ships were year-
ly visitants to the coast of Spitzbergen, while the
English sometimes did not send a single ship*,
The trade, after this, began gradually to decline.
The whales, which were so constantly and vigorous-
ly pursued, in a great measure left the bays, reced-
ed to the sea, and eventually to the ice. The fish-
ery, in consequence, became more precarious. H1-
therto it had been so regularly successful, as to
amount almost to a certainty, but now it proved oc-
casionally unsuccessful. Not only so, but the danger
resulting from the ice, which the fishers were now
obliged to encounter, was the occasion of frequent
losses among their shipping. Notwithstanding this
alteration in the trade for the worse, it only declin-
ed in a comparative point of view; for in conse-
quence of the adoption of a system of frugality and
retrenchment, they were yet enabled, on the whole.
to realize very handsome profits.

The magnitude of the Holland and Hamburgh
fishing concerns, could not fail to attract the attention
of surrounding nations. ‘The British Government

* In 1669, the English sent but one ship to the Greenland
Whale-fishing, and none in the year before-—Macpherson’s
Annals of Commerce, vol. ii. p. 544.

1672. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 57

‘saw with regret, such a profitable and valuable spe-
culation entirely laid aside. ‘They saw its import-
ance as a nursery for hardy seamen, as offering em-
ployment for a great number of ships, while the
requisite equipments would require the co-operation
of a number of artisans, tradesmen and labourers ;
and, above all, they saw its importance in a nation-
al point of view, where valuable cargoes might be
procured without first cost, excepting the expences
of the voyage, while, on the contrary, great sums
of money were annually sent out of the country and
paid to foreign nations, for the purchase of those
very articles which might be had out of the sea.
To encourage, therefore, the renewal of the whale-
fishery trade, an act of Parliament was passed in
1672*, whereby the rigours of the navigation act
were dispensed with, and its essential properties so
modified for the ten following years, that a vesse!
for the whale-fishery, being British built, and having
a master and one-half of the crew British subjects,
might carry natives of Holland or other expert fish-
ers, to the amount of the other half. As a further
encouragement, the oil and whalebone imported were
exempted from all duties, though the colonies were
to pay 6s. per ton for oil, and 50s. per ton for such
whalebone as should be imported in their own ship-
ping, and half that duty, if taken thither by Eng-

© 25th Char. II. c. 7.

58 WHALE-FISHERY. |

lish shipping. But the oil imported by foreign
ships, was to be charged with 9/. Sterling per ton,
and the whalebone with 18/. per ton of duty. In
consequence of this encouragement, some few pri-
vate attempts were made to revive the trade; but
they, it seems, were attended with such indifferent
success, that in seven years the trade was again
entirely discontinued *.

From 1672 to 1674, as likewise in the year
1691, the Dutch whale-fishery was suspended, in
consequence of war}.

The act for the encouragement of the English
whale-fishery at Spitzbergen, was continued in 1690
for four years longer}; but as this did not effect the
equipment of a single ship, the plan of a joint-stock
company was again resorted to, as promising the
most probable prospect of the renewal of the trade,
and its prosecution with vigour and success. Ac-
cordingly, in the year 1693, Sir William Scaven,
and forty-one persons more, having subscribed a
joint capital of 40,000/. were incorporated by
act of Parliament § for a term of fourteen years, un-

* Anderson’s Commerce, a. p. 1672.

+ Beschryving, vol. i. p. 21.
{ 2d William and Mary, c. 4.

§ Idem, act 4th & 5th ¢. i7.

1695. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 59

der the name of “ The Company of Merchants of
** London Trading to Greenland.” The privileges
of this corporation principally consisted im an ex-
tension of the indulgences granted by 25th Car. II.
ce. 7., among which, the permission to engage two-
thirds of the crew of each fishing ship from foreign
countries, in consequence of the great scarcity of
English harpooners and other fishing officers, was a
prominent article.

The shipping interests of Holland having now
become most extensively engaged in the whale-fish-
ery, occasional accidents from the ice and other ca-
sualties among such a number of vessels, were un-
avoidable. It became, therefore, an object of im- _
portance to those concerned, to establish some laws
for the disposal of the property saved from wrecks.
Hence, a code of laws, which had been originally
drawn up by the Greenland adventurers in 1677,
was, in the year 1695, sanctioned and confirmed by
the States-General *. 3

The London Greenland Company thinking
their originial capital of 40,000/, too inconsider-
able to fulfil their extensive designs, in the in-
terval between the time of their incorporation
and the year 1708, increased their subscriptions

* Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. 1, p. 22,~24.

60 WHALE-FISHERY.

to 82,000/*. In the mean time, the Parliament
exempted all their importations from every custom, -
duty, or imposition whatever}. Notwithstanding,
this company, from their great capital, the indul-
gence of engaging so many foreign seamen skilled
in the fishery, and other privileges, had every ap-
parent chance of pursuing the trade. with the best
effect, especially when it is known, that at this pe-
riod the whales were yet occasionally met with in
great plenty ; yet, from various losses, combined pro-
bably with unskilful management, they were so un-
fortunate, that some time before the conclusion of
their term, their whole capital of 82,000/. was ex-
pended}. This amazing loss, together with former
failures, so intimidated other persons from embarking
in so hazardous a speculation, that even the exten-
sion of all the privileges of the chartered company,
together with a free trade to all adventurers §, were
not sufficient, for a length of time, to encourage the

* Anderson’s History of Commerce, a. v.°1696. Elking, in
his View of the Greenland Trade, 2d edit., Introduction, im-
plies, that 45,000 /. of this subscription only was paid.

+ 7th & 8th Gul. III. c. 33.
~ Anderson’s History of Commerce, ® D. 1696.

§ 1st Anne, c. 16. § 1.

1697. | CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 61

subjects of Great Britain to make any vigorous at-
* tempt to renew the fishery.

The failure of the latter Greenland Company ap-
pears themore surprising, when we are informed, that
in the early part of their term, namely, in the year
1697, the foreign whale-fishery was universally suc-
cessful. ‘The superintendent of the Dutch fishery
at this time remarks, that when lying in one of the
bays with his ship, the Four Brothers, having a
cargo of seven fish on board, a richly laden fleet
assembled at that place, comprising 121 Holland-
ers, whose cargoes consisted of 1252 whales; 54
Hamburghers with 515 whales, 15 Bremeners with
119 whales, and 2 Embdeners with 2 whales: in
all which fleet, there was not one clean* ship. The
least number of fish taken by any one of the Dutch
ships was three, and many had procured full cargoes.
This entire squadron, therefore, comprising a fieet
of 192 ships, carried home the produce of 1888
whales +.

* The term clean is applied to those ships which have met
with no success in the whale-fishery.

+ Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 5.—I find various
accounts of the success of the fishery of this year ; the differen-
ces in which, are probably occasioned by including the ships of
certain ports and states among those of other nations, or exclud-
ing some of those which properly belonged to them. Ac-
cording to the “ Histoire des Péches,” the number of ships

62 WHALE-FISHERY.

Elking, in his “ View of the Greenland Trade
“ and Whale-Fishery,” attributes the singular fail-
ure of the London Greenland Company, to causes
which have been generally overlooked. ‘They are
the following :

1. Their ships were commanded by persons un-
acquainted with the business, who interfered in the
fishery ; whereas, “the chief harpooner ought to
“ have commanded” at this time.

2. Their captains had fixed pay; whereas they
should have been paid in proportion to their suc-
cess in the fishery. Hence they had no encourage-
ment to pursue the fishery among the ice, but fre-
quently retired to some harbour in Spitzbergen,
and amused themselves with hunting deer; the tal-

assembled in the Bay alluded to, was 188 ; the number of fish
taken by the Bremeners, was 190; and the number of fish
which the whole fleet had on board, amounted to 1959. This
corresponds more nearly with another account, now before
me, which runs as follows :

The cargoes of 121 Dutch vessels produced 41,344 puncheons of oil.

47 Hamburgh, - 16,414
12 Bremen, - 3,790
4 Danish, - 1,710
2 Swedish, - 540
2 Embden, - 68

‘The total cargoes of 188 ships, consisting of
1968 whales, produced

According to Zorgdrager, the Dutch shipping employed in
the whale-fishery this season consisted of 111 sail, which cap-
fured 12742 fish.

t 63,866 puncheons of oil £

1697-1703.] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 63

low, hides and horns of which were allowed them
. as a perquisite, and left their boats to seek whales
where few, if any, were to be found.

3. The blubber they happened to take home, was
slovenly and wastefully managed in boiling, and the
fins were ill cleaned: hence, when their goods were
offered for sale, they fetched only an inferior price.

4, Their lines and fishing instruments were in-
jured or spoiled, for want of care, and many arti-
cles embezzled; whereby the company was repeat-
edly put to the expence of renewing them.

5. They fitted their ships extravagantly; paid
an exorbitant price for their boats and fishing ap-
paratus ; and paid great sums for incidentals, much
of which might have been saved.

6. The last ship they sent out was unfortunately
wrecked in the ice, after a successful fishery, having
taken eleven whales ;—a misfortune which accele-
rated the ruin, and increased the mortification of
the company, insomuch that they were discouraged
from persevering any longer *.

The direct importation of Greenland produce
into Kngland being inconsiderable, its importation
from Holland, or other foreign states, was permit-
ted ; whalebone, however, was required to be brought
into the country in fins only, and not cut, or in

* Elking’s View, &c. p. 46.

64 WHALE-FISHERY.

any way manufactured; nor could it be landed be-
fore the duty chargeable thereon was secured or
paid, under penalty of the forfeiture of the goods,
and double their value*. And, by a subsequent
statute, other penalties were declared against per-
sons having foreign cut-whalebone in their posses-
sion, or masters of ships importing the same +.

From the year 1715, to 1721, one year with an-
other, 150 tons of whalebone were imported yearly
into London only; even when the price was 400/.
per ton. The whalebone whieh was at the same
time imported into other ports of Great Britain
and Ireland, may, at a moderate estimation, be
supposed to be 100 tons more; the value of which,
100,0002., was annually paid to foreigners for
whalebone, at this period t.

It was not, it appears, until the whale-fishery
was on the decline at Spitzbergen, that the Davis’
Straits fishery was resorted to. ‘The Dutch sent
their first ships thither in the year 1719.

The shipping employed in the Greenland and
Davis’ Straits whale-fisheries, in the year 1721,
from a list published in London at the time, with

* oth & 10th Will. IIT. c. 23. § 12. & e. 45.

t 4th Anne, c. 12. § 6.

t Elking’s View, &c. page 65.

1723 j CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 65

the object probably, of stimulating the British
subjects by the example of foreign nations, appears
to have amounted to 355 sail: 251 of these ships
were fitted out from different ports in Holland ;
55 from Hamburgh; 24 from Bremen; 20 from
the ports in the Bay of Biscay; and 5 from Bre-
men in Norway *.

At this time, an attempt was made by a com-
pany of merchants, belonging to Bergen, to es-
tablish a trade with the Esquimaux, in Davis’
Straits, when they likewise made a feeble effort to
carry on a whale-fishery in that quarter. For this
latter purpose, one ship was dispatched, which,
meeting with a severe storm near Statenhook,
where there is a dangerous current, was dismasted,
and nearly upset. Notwithstanding her crippled
state, she arrived at Bergen in safety. Two years
afterwards (1723), the same company sent out an-
other ship to Davis’ Straits, which, after wintering
there, returned home the following summer, with
120 barrels of blubber, procured from one whale,
which, with the whale-bone, sold for about 540 7.
On another occasion, this company’s fishing ship
returned home clean, when, at the same time, their
trading vessel procuring a bad freight, they relin-
quished both these speculations +.

VOL. II E

* Anderson’s Commerce, a. D. 1721.

+ Crantz’ Greenland, vol. i. p. 304.

66 WHALE-FISHERY.

When, by the lapse of some years, the unfa-
vourable impression produced on the minds of spe-
culative persons, by the immense losses suffered
by English adventurers in the whale-fishery, had
partly worn off, the propriety of attempting this
trade became a subject of conversation among the
Directors of the well known South Sea Company.

This subject was introduced, it appears, by Hen-
ry Elking, a person who had had long experience
in the trade *; who suggested it as a most desir-
able speculation to the then sub-governor of the
South Sea Company, Sir John Eyles; and so im-
pressed him with the opinion of its practicability,
that he proposed it to the company in January
1721+. The proposition was received and discus-
sed with considerable warmth ; and though it was at
length carried, some members, “ without whose con-
“ currence it was impossible to proceed {,” again ex-
pressed their doubts, and withheld their complete
sanction. In consequence of this, Sir John Eyles ad-
dressed a letter to Mr Elking, requesting him to lay
before the Court of Directors, in writing, the argu-
ments and principles upon which he considered that
this company might succeed in the fishery, when so
many persons before them had totally failed. E1-
king, therefore, drew up his tract, entitled, “ A
“ View of the Greenland Trade and Whale-fishe-

* Elking, p. 19. + Idem, p. 12. } Idem, p. 13.

1724.] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 67

“ry, with the National and Private Advantages
“ thereof*;” wherein he attempted to show “ How
“the Whale-fishery is, and ought to be perform-
“ed ;"—“ by whom it is chiefly carried on,”
“and how much to their advantage ;’-—* A brief
“ View of the Karly Fishery; and what have been
“the Causes that all the attempts of the English
“ to retrieve it, were unsuccessful ;’—*“ and a full
“ proof that England may retrieve the Trade, and
“ are able to carry it on to greater advantage than
“any other Nation ;’—*“and all the known Objec-
“tions to the contrary, answered and removed +.”
His reasoning on this subject proved eventually so
satisfactory, that, after various re-considerations,
and the loss of much time, their debates closed, at
one of the general courts of the company, held in
1724, with the adoption of a resolution, that the
whale-fishery should be attempted t.

The British Legislature held out encourage-
ments to this company, similar to those offered to
former adventurers. By act of Parliament, all the
produce of the Greenland Seas was exempted from
the existing duties during seven years, from Christ-
mas 1724, on the condition of its being imported
in British ships; the commander, and at least one-

E 2

* London, 1722, 12mo, 2d edit. published in 1725.
t+ Idem, p. 20.

* Anderson’s Commerce, A. B. 1724.

68 WHALE-FISHERY.

third of each ship’s company, being British sub-
jects *. Two years afterwards, by another act of
Parliament, the same privileges were extended to
speculators in the Davis’ Straits Whale-fishery,
which fishery, had, since the year 1719, been car-
ried on by the Dutch, with such success as to en-
courage its continuation, and induce about one-third
part of their shipping employed in the whale-fish-
ery to resort thither +. This act expressly includ-
ed the exemption, not only of the produce of the
whale from all custom whatever, but likewise the
fat, skins, and tusks of the seal, bear, walrus, or
any other fish or creature caught in the Seas of
Greenland or Davis’ Straits t.

The South Sea Company not being able to com-
menee the whale-fishery the same year in which
they had adopted the resolution to that effect, caused
a fleet of twelve new ships of about 306 tons bur-
den each, to be built in the River Thames for the
purpose, equipped each vessel with the necessary
supplies of cordage, casks, and fishing instruments,
and engaged for their use the Duke of Bedford’s
wet-dock at Deptford, where boiling houses and
other conveniences were constructed §. In the en-

* 10th Geo. I. ec. 62.
+ Reste’s Histoire des Péches, tom. iii. p. 208, &e.
{ 12th Geo. I. c. 26.

§ Anderson’s Commerce, a. p. 1724.

1725. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 69

suing spring (1725), the fleet being all in readiness,
put to sea, and returned safe with 251 whales. The
proceeds of this .voyage, though so moderate as
scarcely to be sufficient to pay the expences of
wages, provisions, and interest of the capital enga-
ged, were yet superior to those of any succeeding
year, during the period in which the company pur-
sued the trade *. This cargo would have made a
saving voyage, and even have afforded a tolerable
profit, if procured by the same number of Dutch
ships; but owing to the extraordinary expences to
which the English were subjected, they carried on
the trade with much less chance of success than any
of their contemporaries. One additional expence,
and that a very prominent one, was occasioned by
their being obliged to procure their fishing officers
‘from foreign ports, the English at this time being
entirely unacquainted with the trade. Excepting,
therefore, a few natives of Scotland, who were indu-
ced to leave the service of the Dutch, on the com-
mencement of the South Sea Company’s fishery.
and engage in their employ, the whole of their har-
pooners, boat-steerers and line-managers, were pro-
cured from Fohrde in Holstein. These men, from
their superior pay as officers, and the expences of
their passages, which the company were obliged to
bear, regularly cost them about 20/. each man.

* Anderson’s Commerce, a. D. 1725.

70 WHALE-FISHERY.

Thus, 152 foreigners employed in the first voyage,
cost 3056/. 18s. 3d., while above twice thew num-
ber of British subjects cost only 3151/. 15s. 5d. *

In the year 1730, the company’s ships were in-
creased to twenty-two sail. The combined cargoes
of this fleet consisted only of twelve fish, and their
year’s loss, in consequence, besides wear and tear,
was 89211. 5s. 9d. +

The next year the same ficet was sent out, where-
of one of the ships was lost, the remaining twenty-
one sail captured but fourteen whales ; consequently
this voyage was little better than the one prece-
ding {.

‘The company’s ships were at this time provided
with a new invented gun for shooting a harpoon,
which enabled the possessor to strike the whale at
a much greater distance than he could possibly ef-
fect by hand. This instrument was productive of
little advantage. It was with great difficulty that
the Dutch harpooners could be induced to make
use of it; these men, like the older fishers of the
present day, having a particular aversion to adopt
any new plan, however excellent, conceiving the me-
thod which experience had established, to be the
most effectual for ensuring suecess; so that, with

“ Anderson’s Commerce, a. D. 1725.

* Idem, a. p. 1730. , +. Idem, a. p,. 1731.

1733. | CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. “1

these people, the introduction of any new system was
ever deemed an innovation, while the mere cireum-
stance of any plan or contrivance being out of the an-
cient practice or form, was generally of itself suffi-
cient to prevent its adoption. In a ship, however,
fitted out by Messrs Elias Bird and Company, about
the year 1733, the prejudices of the harpooners *
were so far overcome, that the harpoon-gun was the
means of taking two of the fish out of three, which
constituted the vessel’s cargo f,

The South Sea Company having persevered in
the whale-fishery with indifferent or bad success for
eight successive years, whereby they sunk a vast
sum of money, being hopeless of redeeming their
losses, abandoned the whale-fishery after the season
of 1732. A short time before this, they had soli-
cited Government for a bounty to assist them in
the speculation, and enable them to continue it.
This request was subsequently complied with, but

* As this occurred eight or nine years after the revival
of the whale-fishery by the South Sea Company, it is very
possible, that Bird’s ship was furnished with some English har-
pooners, who had been bred in the service of the company.
These men were not likely to be so strongly prejudiced
against new inventions as the Dutch were; consequently, the
harpoon-gun would, in their hands, meet a fair trial, and its
importance be duly appreciated.

+ Anderson, A. D. 1731.

72, WHALE-FISHERY.

not until they had determined to abandon the trade.
The bounty first offered to adventurers, consisted in
an annual award of 20s. per ton on the burden or
tonnage of all British whale-fishing ships of 200 tons
and upwards *. 'I'wo ships sent out by private in-
dividuals, alone enjoyed the benefit of this bounty ;
but yet it appears without deriving any advantage
from the voyage.

The Bergen Greenland Company, at this time
again resolved to renew the Davis’ Straits trade + ;
but whether it was confined to the traffic with the
Esquimaux, or it likewise extended to the whale-
fishery, does not appear; at any rate, this trial, like
their former, seems to have been so imbecile, as to
merit but little of our curiosity as to the event.

In 1736, a London ship, which visited the whale-
fishery, procured a cargo of seven fish t; a degree of
success which was fortunately different from that
of most of the antecedent English whalers. At the
same time, 191 Dutch ships captured 8573 whales.
A successful attempt was also made in the whale-
fishery the following year from Ireland, a number
of fish having been killed in the neighbouring sea,

sufficient to supply several counties with oil and
bone ).

* 6th Geo. IT. c. 33. + Hist. des Péches, tom. iii.

$¢ Anderson, a. p. 1736. § Gent. Mag. vol. vii. p. 703:

1
1749.] | CHRONOLOGICAL HIsTory. 73

Five English Greenland ships in 1739, fitted out
by private gentlemen, obtained 11} whales *.

The encouragement of duty-free imports, and a
bounty of 20s. per ton on the whole tonnage of the
vessels employed in the northern whale-fisheries, not

‘being found sufficient to induce any extensive em-
barkation in the trade, the act of Parliament en-
titling adventurers to these privileges was extended
in the year 1740 to the 25th of December 1750,
with the addition of 10s. more per ton as bounty, and
the protection of fishing officers from being impres-
sed into his Majesty’s service. ‘These additional en-
couragements were stipulated to continue only du-
ring the war with Spain.

A heavy storm occurred on the coast of Spitzber-
gen, in the month of May 1746, in which thirty
Dutch vessels and three English were wrecked, and
several others sustained material damage +.

The importance of the whale-fisheries in a na-
tional view, became more and more evident to the
British Legislature, who, therefore, to encourage
still more its prosecution, enacted, in 1749, that the
original bounty of 20s. should be increased to 40s.
per ton. By this act, ships of not more than two
years old, built in the British colonies in America,

* Gent. Mag. vol. ix. p. 495.

t Idem, vol. xvi. p. 328.

74: WHALE-FISHERY.

were, under certain stipulations, entitled to the
same bounty as British built ships, provided they
sailed before the Ist of May from America, and
continued fishing until the 20th of August, unless
they had procured a certain quantity of blubber,
and provided also they returned from the fishery to
some port in Great Britain. Foreign Protestants
also, who had served three years on board of any
British whale-fishermen, and had fulfilled the regu-
lar forms of naturalization, were, during their re-
sidence in Hingland, by this act, endowed with the
same privileges in the whale-fisheries, as the natives
of Britam themselves *.

This season the fishery in Davis’ Straits was un-
commonly prosperous. Iorty-one Dutch ships took
205 whales, making 8704 casks of blubber; four
Hamburgh vessels took 252 whales, and some others
were likewise successful +.

About this period, the Hudson’s Bay Company
were in the habit of importing into England a
trifling quantity of the produce of the whale, from
their establishment in Hudson’s Bay f.

* 99d Geo. II. c. 45.
+ Gent. Mag. vol. xix. p. 427.

{ Robson, in his “ Account of a Six Years residence in Hud-
‘* son’s Bay,” p. 65., mentions these imports, and states, that
the price of whale oil in the year 1742, was 18/. 13s. per ton:
in 1743, 14d. 8s. ; and in 1744, 10/. 1s. per ton.

1755. | CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. "5

The effect of the bounty of 40s. per ton, toge-
ther with the other inducements held out to spe-
culators in the whale-fishery, was such, that imme-
diately after the passing of this last act of Payrlia-
ment, the British whale-fishery began to assume
a respectable and hopeful appearance. ‘The mer-
chants of Scotland began to participate with the
English, in the year 1750.

The combined fleets of England and Scotland,
in the year 1752, amounted to forty sail; in 1753
they were increased to forty-nine sail; in 1754 to
sixty-seven sail *; in 1755 to eighty-two sail, and
the year following to eighty-three sail, which was
the greatest number of ships employed in the trade
for the twenty years following, while the least num-
ber amounted to forty sail during the same period.

The British whale-fishery being now pretty firm-
ly established, the Legislature wisely directed its
attention to the method of effecting, by this com-
merce, the most important national advantages ;
hence, at the same time that it encouraged the ad-
venturers in the trade by bounties, it took the op-
portunity of occasional enactments to introduce va-
rious new regulations, as well as limitations to the

* The number of ships on the fishery this year (1754), from
different nations, was 227; viz. 67 British ; 132 Dutch; 17
Hamburghers ; 6 Danes; 2 Bremeners; 2 French; and 1
Embdener.—Scots Magazine, 1754.

70 WHALE-FISHERY.

original acts, in which the perpetuity of the trade.
and the economical application of the bounties were
generally prominent objects. Thus, in the year ,
1755, an act of Parliament for continuing, explain-
ing, and amending the several previous acts for the
encouragement of the northern whale-fisheries, con-
tained the following additions.

“ That every ship employed in that fishery, shall
have on board an apprentice, indentured for three
years at least, for every fifty tons burthen, who
shall be accounted as one of the number of men
who, by law, ought to be on board such ship.

“. That no ship employed in the fishery, above the
burthen of 400 tons, after the 25th of December
1757, shall be entitled to a larger bounty than a ship
of 400 tons would be entitled to. And,

“ That ships under 200 tons burthen, shali here-
after be entitled to the bounty of 40s. per ton, the
same as those of 200 tons and upwards, are entitled
to it by former statutes*.”.

Parliament, the same session, empowered the
Treasury to pay the bounty to the owners of three
ships fitted out from London to the whale-fishery,
but unavoidably lost in the ice; and at the same
time declared it lawful in future, for owners of fish-
ing ships to insure the bounty+.

The British whale-fishery of 1758 was very un-
successful, the weather was very stormy, and seve-

* Anderson’s Commerce, A. D. 1755. + 28th Geo. IL.

1764. | CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. "7

ral ships were lost ; in 1762, it was also indifferent;
and in 1764 it was again bad; many of the British
ships returned home clean, and few of them made a
saving voyage. "The Dutch, at the same time, fish-
ed with little better success.

From this time (1764), the advantages and regula-
tions attached to the northern whale-fisheries were
continued, by act of Parliament, to the 25th of De-
cember 1767, from thence to the end of the follow-
ing session of Parliament, and afterwards to the
25th December 1770*.

The King of Prussia interesting himself in the
Greenland whale-fishery, caused some ships to be
equipped from Embden in the year 1768+.

Some new regulations were introduced in Parlia-
ment in 1771, for the whale-fishers; the principal fea-
tures of which consisted in the extension of the privi-
leges of the next preceding acts, to every British built
substantial vessel, manned, provided, and sent out,
agreeably to the usual requisitions, for a term of five
years ; after which, the other privileges being the
same, the bounty was to be reduced to 30s. pe7 ton
for another term of five years; and to 20s. per ton
for a third term of the same duration. The whole
awards and bounties of this act were then, that is
in 1786, to terminate. It was also involved, that

* Ath Geo. III. c. 22. ; and 8th Geo. III. ec. 27.

+ Ency. Brit. Art. Celology.

78 WHALE-FISHERY.

every vessel of 200 tons claiming the above boun-
ties, should be provided with four boats and thirty
men, including the master, surgeon, and four ap-
prentices ; and that every ship of 200 to 400 tons
burthen, should carry an additional boat and six
men, for every 50 tons above 200.

Similar advantages, under certain restrictions,
were extended, as on former occasions, to British
Americans adventuring on the same fisheries *.

The liberal extension of the encouragements
thus offered to adventurers in the whale-fisheries,
was not carried in the House of Commons without
considerable debate. A retrospect of the state,
progress, and success of the British fisheries was
produced, from whence it was apparent, that with-
out Parliamentary encouragement, the trade could
not be pursued but with great loss to the merchants;
and that a more extended act than had usually been
passed, would be productive of advantage, by seeur-
ing to the adventurer such a continuation of the
bounties, as would be sufficient to induce him to in-
cur the extraordinary expence attending the equip-
ment of ships adapted for this trade +. At the same
time it was shewn, that during the twenty years,
ending in 1769, since the bounty of 40s. per ton
took place, there had been paid to the owners of

* 11th Geo. III. c. 38.

+ Macpherson’s Annals of Commerce, vol. ii. p. 511.

1771. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 79

the British whale-fishermen in England, the sum of
475,0311. 4s. 1d., and in Scotland, 138,230/. 5s. 10d.
During this period, the number of English ships
(including repeated voyages,) engaged in the trade,
amounted to 786 sail, and their burthen to 247,218
tons, and, at the same time, the number of Scotch
ships was 229, and their tonnage 70,523.

This season (1771) 121 Dutch ships procured
14,320 barrels of oil, the produce of 500 whales.
Three of these ships were lost after having captured
fifteen whales.

The consumption of whalebone in the stiff stays
used by the ladies, was at this period very great ; in
consequence of which, notwithstanding the increas-
ed importation from Greenland, Davis’ Straits and
the St Lawrence, this article still maintained a
high price.

The method of shooting harpoons at the whale,
from a sort of swivel-gun, was, in the year 1772,
reintroduced. Indeed this instrument had been so
Jong laid aside, that the present was considered as
a new discovery, and probably was the sole invention
of the manufacturer. The Society of Arts, af-
ter having witnessed two experiments with the
harpoon-gun, which fully satisfied them of its ef
ficacy ; with a view to testify their approbation
of the instrument, and to encourage the use of it,
presented the inventor with a premium of twenty

50 WHALE-FISHERY.

guineas *. Still farther to prove its utility, the so-
ciety ordered six of the guns, and twenty-four
harpoons, to be put on board of the Leviathan,
one of the London whalers, and the same on board
of the Rising Sun; and to encourage the use of the
instrument, the same society offered a premium of
20/. for the most satisfactory account of taking
whales by the gun-harpoon; and, since this period,
it has been in the constant habit of offering rewards
to harpooners for taking whales by the same means.

In the year 1774, a company of merchants being
associated in Stockholm, for the purpose of attempt-
ing the whale-fishery, were not only encouraged by
the Swedish Government with the exclusive right
to the fisheries of Greenland and Davis’ Straits, for
twenty years, but were likewise assisted with the
loan of 500,000 dollars, at an interest of 3 per
cent.+ ; thus evincing the powerful impression which
the King of Sweden had incommon with others, of
the high national importance of this branch of com-
merce.

In an act passed for the encouragement of the
Newfoundland fisheries in 1775, the bounties and
other privileges awarded to the British whale-fish-
ermen, were extended to the Irish #.

* Transactions of the Soc. of Arts, vol. ii. ; and Scots Maga-
zine, vol. xxxvi. p. 392.

+ Macpherson’s Annals of Commerce, vol. iii. p. 557.

+ 15th Geo. III. ¢. 31.

1781.] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. gl

The Danes resumed the Greenland whale-fishery
in the year 1775 *.

Whales having been discovered in various regions
of the globe, and other establishments having been
made besides the northern fisheries, all of which, in
some degree, received the encouragement of the
British Legislature, though not in the same pro-
portion ; and the different fisheries being subject
to different regulations, under different acts of
Parliament, it was found necessary to distinguish
between them, and draw a line of separation. <Ac-
cordingly, the latitude of 59° 30’ north was fixed
as the southern limit of the Greenland seas; which
seas, therefore, include the whole of the navigation
north of this parallel, contained between the Ame-
rican coast on the west, and the European and Asi-
atic coasts on the east and north f.

The reduction of the bounty to 30s. per ton from
the year 1777 to 1781 inclusive, was found to pro-
duce such a remarkable diminution in the number of
ships employed in the northern whale-fisheries, that
it was deemed necessary to increase it again to 40s.,
instead of reducing it still further to 20s. per ton,
as was specified in a former act of Parliament.
Thus the number of ships fitted out of Britain in
the year 1775, was 105 sail, and the following year,

VOL. IL. F

* Ency, Br’. Art. Cetology. t 20th Geo, III. c. 60.

82 WHALE-FISHERY.

when the bounty was still at 40s., 98; but in 1781,
after the bounty had been reduced during five years
to 30s. the number of ships decreased to 39. In
the same way, but in a greater proportion, the ship-
ping increased, on the advance of the bounty again
to 40s. per ton, which took place in 1782, so that,
in 1786, they amounted to 185 sail.

As it was occasionally found to be a matter of
some difficulty to procure the number of men re-
quired by law for the whale-fishing ships, at the
ports where they were fitted, the above act of Par-
liament, besides renewing the highest bounty, per-
mitted the ships to procure in Shetland or Orkney
a part of their crew, not, however, exceeding two
men for every 50 tons burden, and to land them at
the same place on their return from the fishery *.

The revival of the whale-fishery was attempted
by the late King of France, in his dominions, by
equipping, at his own expence, six ships from the
port of Dunkirk in 1784. This adventure was at-
tended with tolerable success. By the way of en-
larging the trade, and enhancing the probability of
success, assistance was procured in 1786 from Nan-
tucket, near Halifax in North America, several fa-
milies belonging to which island, in consequence of
the offer of peculiar immunities, were induced to
settle at Dunkirk +.

* 22d Geo. III. c. 19. + Ency. Brit. Art. Cetology.

1786. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 83

“ In the year 1785, the King of Denmark grant-
eda bounty of about 30s. Sterling per ton to all
vessels in the Greenland and Icelandic fisheries,
on the condition of the ships being fitted out and
their cargoes sold in a Danish port. Foreign built
ships were employed, foreigners were encouraged
' to promote the view, and even foreign manufac-
tures necessary for the Greenland fishery, were
allowed duty free *.”

With an act of the British Parliament of 1786,
were connected several additional regulations, re-
lative to the bounties offered to the Greenland and
Davis’ Straits whale-fishers ; in which, the former
acts being embodied and improved, it was rendered
altogether so full, that it has ever since been con-
sidered as the fundamental act. By this statute,
the bounty was again reduced to 30s. per ton for
the five ensuing years,—ships of 150 tons burden,
if manned and equipped in proportion, were en-
titled to receive it,—no ship, after the year 1791,
however large, was to receive a bounty for more
than 300 tons, unless employed in the fishery
prior to the passing of this act. The act like-
wise declared and described how the vessels, to
be properly qualified, were to be owned, built and
navigated, and from what ports they might pro-
ceed,—it required, that each ship be visited by
the proper officers of the customs, and surveyed, to

F2

* Oddy’s European Commerce, p. 525.

84 WHALE FISHERY:

ascertain her suitableness and proper equipment, and
certificate thereof to be given to the Commissioners
of the Customs,—the owner and master then ma-
king oath of the nature and object of the voyage,
and that it is “on no other design or view of pro-
« fit *,” than the capture of whales and other crea-
tures inhabiting the Greenland seas, and the master
having given bond for his faithful dealings,—the
Commissioners are required to grant licence for the
ship to proceed. Each ship to be properly equip-
ped, must be furnished with a certain number of
officers, seamen, greenmen } and apprentices, boats,
harpoons, lines, and other fishing stores, in propor-

* It is remarkable, that this clause should have existed ; and
much more so, that it should have been inserted after the pass-
ing of acts for the encouragement of discoveries of a northern
passage into the Pacific, and a near approach to the Pole,—
when it is considered, that by this clause, the whale-fishers,
who, it was believed, could the most conveniently attempt
such an enterprise, were the only persons prevented from pur-
suing such a “ design or view of profit.” The insertion of this
sentence has evidently been intended, to prevent ships sent
on other trading voyzges from being benefited by the bounty
act ; and not to prevent attempts to make such discoveries as
the Legislature offered premiums for accomplishing. In fact,
the two acts, as they thus stand, if not incompatible, are at least
inconsistent. Lately, however, this inconsistency has been
pointed out to Government, and an exception has been intro-
duced into the master’s and owner’s oath, as to any rewards
offered by Government for the making of discoveries. (58th
Geo. III. c. 15.)

+ Greenmen are such seamen or landsmen as have not be-
fore been to the fishery.

1786. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 85

tion to its tonnage, and a sufficient quantity of
provisions for the voyage,—must sail, unless in cases
of unavoidable necessity, by the 10th of April ;
and unless a certain specified success has been obtain-
ed, must remain within the limits of the Green-
land seas until the 10th of August ;—survey again
to be made on the ship’s return,—master and mate to
make oath of their faithful attention to the provisions
of the law; and must produce a log-book kept during
the voyage, and make affidavit of the truth of its
contents :—the ship then becomes entitled to the
bounty, and the cargo is permitted to be imported
free of duty. The act further states, that ships fitted
out from Ireland may have bounty,—the bounty may
be insured,—the ship’s crew are protected during the
voyage, and the officers in the coasting trade in
winter,—the extent of the Greenland seas specified,
—the Commissioners of the Customs to lay before
Parliament, annually, an account of the ships em-
ployed in the fishery, with a statement of their suc-
cess, &c.: And the act concludes with the appro-
priation of penalties,—defence to actions,—and the
award of treble costs to defendants, where the plain-
tiff is non-suited *.

By accounts laid upon the table of the House of
Commons this session, (1786), it appeared, that the

* 26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 1. to 21.—This important act, as far
as it is yet in force, is given, in a condensed state, in the
Appendix to this Volume, N°. I.

86 WHALE-FISHERY.

bounties granted for the encouragement of the Bri-
tish whale-fisheries carried on in the Greenland seas
and Davis’ Straits, from the year 1733, when boun-
ties were first given, to the end of 1785, had
amounted to 1,064,272 /. 18s. 2d. for England, and
902,158/1. 16s. 11d. for Scotland.

The limitation of the bounty to 300 tons, was
found to be a necessary measure, in consequence of
some very large vessels being sent out, with a de-
sign to enhance the benefit derived from the na-
tional bonus, without possessing the smallest ad-
vantage over vessels of more moderate dimensions,
in their suitableness for the fishery. From a list
published about this time, it appears, that in 1788,
255 British ships sailed for the whale-fishery, of
which 129 were of a burden under 300 tons, 97 of 300
to 350 tons, 16 of 350 to 400 tons, 11 of 400 to
500 tons, 1 of 565 tons, and 1 of 987 tons *.

This season the French fitted out two ships for
the Greenland fishery +.

* These ships were fitted out of the following ports, viz.

From London, 91 From Exeter, 2 From Bo'ness, 4.
Hull, 36 Whitehaven, 2 Glasgow, 4
Liverpool, 21 Stockton, 2 Montrose, 3
Whitby, 20 Scarbro, 1 Dundee, 3
Newcastle, 20 Leith, 6 Greenock, 2
Yarmouth, 8 Ipswich, 5 Grangemouth, 1
Sunderland, 8 Dunbar, 5 Queensferry, 1
Lynn, 6 Aberdeen, 4

+ Oddy’s European Commerce, p. 525.

1792. | CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 87

In 1789 an alteration took place in the regula-
tion of the British fishery, relative to the time
which the fishermen were obliged to stay in the
Greenland seas, unless they procured a certain spe-
cified portion of success, by an enactment, that
after the vessel had remained sixteen weeks in the
Greenland seas, (reckoned from the time of sailing)
she was at liberty to return home, and became en-
titled to the bounty, notwithstanding her success
might be less than the limited quantity *. By the
same act, masters of fishing ships were prohibited
from permitting any indentured apprentice to quit
his service before the expiration of hisapprenticeship,
under the penalty of 50/. for each offence, unless
legally discharged or turned over; and no ship was
to be entitled to bounty, unless the name of the ship
were inserted in each apprentice’s indenture f.

The acts for encouraging and regulating the fisher-
ies in the seas of Greenland and Davis’ Straits, were
continued in 1791 with some trifling additions, for
one year more.

The following session, the above and preceding
regulations and indulgences were re-enacted, with
the reduction of the bounty to 25s. per ton, from
the 25th of December 1792 to the 25th of Decem-
ber 1795, and from this period until the expiration
of the act in 1798, to 20s. per ton ; at which latter
rate it has continued ever since. By this act, ships

* 20th Geo. III. c. 53. + Id. § 5, 6, & 7.

88 WHALE-FISHERY.

not fitted out under the regulations for obtaining
the bounty, if British vessels, and owned by Bri-
tish subjects, &. were declared at liberty to fish
for whales, and import the produce duty free, the
crew to be protected during the voyage, and the offi-
cers in the winter season, in every respect the same
as ships fitted out for the bounty. Whale-boats
being of a construction adapted for the purpose of
smuggling, were ordered to be laid up during the
intervals of the voyages*.

Such great progress was made in the whale-fish-
ery carried on by the Nantucket whalers, in vessels
fitted out of Dunkirk, that instead of two ships
which adventured in 1788, in the year 1793, 40 sail
were equipped from this port. ‘This trade, as then
established, was profitable, and promised considerable
national benefit; “‘ in consequence, however, of the
revolution, together with the peculiar state of the
country since that period, it was suspended,” some
of the conductors of it returned to America, and
the trade has not been yet revived}.

During the war in which Great Britain was at
this time engaged, the manning of the Greenland
fleet was found to be a matter of such particular
difficulty, that the indulgence of making up the com-

* 32d Geo. III. c. 22.

Tt Macpherson’s Annals of Commerce, vol. iv. p. 285.

1795.] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 89

plement of the crew to the amount of three men for
every 50 tons burden was granted ; and the pri-
vilege of furnishing the requisite number of men,
was extended to the Frith of Clyde and Loch
Ryan, as well as the Shetland and Orkney Islands.
These men being landed at their respective ports
on the return of the ships, and a certificate thereof
procured from the officers of the customs at the
place, the bounty was to be granted, the same as if
the whole crew had accompanied the ship through-
out the voyage*.

In 1795, an act for a limited time was passed, en-
couraging inhabitants of the United Provinces (who
had before been employed in the whale-fishery, or
in certain occupations connected therewith,) to come
over and engage in the whale-fisheries from Eng-
land, endowing them, under certain restrictions, and
after certain oaths made, with the same advantages
as British subjectst.

The acts for the encouragement of the British
whale-fisheries, as amended by the 32d Geo. III.
c. 22. were continued in 1798, 1799, 1800, and in sub-
sequent years, with little variation to the present
time, except as to the following particulars.

* 34th Geo. III. c. 22.

tT 35th Geo. III. c. 56.—This act was revived and continued
by different subsequent acts, until 25th March 1811, when it
expired.

90 WHALE-FISHERY.

Until the year 1797, British built ships wholly
owned by his Majesty’s subjects, usually residing in
Great Britain, Ireland, or the islands of Guernsey,
Alderney, Jersey, Sark, or Man, registered, fitted
out, and navigated, agreeable to the regulations of
the 26th Geo. IIT. ¢. 41. and subsequent acts, were
permitted to import into Great Britain, the produce
of whales, seals, or other creatures, living in the seas
of Greenland and Davis’ Straits, or the seas adja-
cent, after certain oaths made by the master, &c.
Sree of all customs, subsidy or other duty ; but at
the time of passing the tonnage-duty act of the 38th
Geo. IIT. c. 76. an impost of 16s. 10d. per ton, was
laid on train oil or blubber, fish-oil, or oil of seals,
or other creatures living in the seas; and 3 per cent.
ad valorem, on all other produce of the British
northern whale-fisheries. In this act, the ambigui-
ty and impropriety of considering train oil and
biubber as similar articles, when the proportion of
blubber to oil is as four to three*, occasioned a very
inequitable application of the duty; for the north-
ern whalers, who brought home their cargoes in
blubber, paid the same duty per ton as the south-
ern whalers, who brought theirs home boiled into
oil ; consequently, the former paid more duty by one-

* The proportion which blubber bears to oil, has always
been considered by the Legislature, as the number 3 to 2 ; but
it is found by experience, that four tons of blubber will gene-«
rally produce three tons of oil.

1803. | CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 91

fourth than the latter. This inequality was rectifi-
ed by an act passed the 20th of June 1800, whereby
blubber was permitted to be boiled into oil, under
the inspection of the proper officers, and such oil
admitted to entry, and the duty paid thereon *.

An act for granting to his Majesty certain duties
on goods imported into, and exported from Great
Britain, &e. includes a duty of 20s. 3d. per ton on
train oil, fish-oil, or oil of seals, or other creatures
living in the seas, not otherwise enumerated; 1s. 9d.
per cwt. on whale-fins; 1s. each on undressed bear-
skins, and 2d. each on undressed seal-skinst+. But
this act being superseded the following year by the
consolidation act of the 43d Geo. IIT. ¢. 68. seems
not to have been universally enforced on the pro-
duce of the whale-fishery t.

* 39th & 40th Geo. III. ¢. 51. § 1.

+ 42d Geo. III. c. 43. table (A.) inwards.

{ The following are the duties which were imposed or
Greenland produce by this act.
Duty. Drawback.

L Ss. D. L 3S OD.

Train oil or blubber, or fish-oil of British
fishing, the ton of 252 gallons, (on oil), 0 15
(on blubber 2) 0 10
Ditto of foreign fishing (on oil) per ton,21 0 0 14 0 0
Whale-fins of British fishing, (per ton)
of 20 ewt. - - 1 10
Ditto of foreign fishing, (per ton) 120 0.0 90 0.@

DO

i)

92 WHALE-FISHERY.

By the consolidation act of 49th Geo. III. c. 68.,
the duties on the produce of the Greenland and
Davis’ Straits fisheries, underwent different altera-
tions; the duty on oil of British fishing was redu-
ced from three farthings per gallon (15s. 9d. per
ton) to one farthing, with the addition of 1s. 9d.
per ton in time of war*.

The following are the alterations, additions, li-
mitations, emendations, &c. which have recently
been adopted in Parliament, for the regulation of
the northern whale-fisheries.

In 1802, the number of fishing officers to be pro-
tected from the impress during the voyage and in
the winter season was limited ; ships completing
their crews in Orkney or Shetland, allowed to take
two men for every 50 tons; and owners unavoid-
ably absent, permitted to make the necessary affi-
davits, required before the sailing of their ships,
in the presence of a justice of the peace+t. In
1803, whale-oil, blubber, and fins, &c. permitted to
be landed and warehoused, without the duties being
first paidf. In 1806, whale-fishing ships allowed
to complete their crews, not exceeding three men

* For the particulars of this act, which contain the duties
now leviable on the produce of the fisheries, see the Appen-
dix, N°. I. to this Volume.

+ 42d Geo, III. ¢. 22. § 2, 3, 4

$ 43d Geo. III. c. 132. § 4 & 5. tab. D.

1815. ] CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 98

for every fifty tons, in certain ports of Orkney, Shet-
land, &c. the act to continue in force until the sig-
nature of preliminary articles of peace*. In 1809,
certain affidavits were required from the master,
and proprietor or consignee, of the whale-fishing
ship and cargo, to prove that the articles therein
imported were taken by the crew of the said
British built vessel, manned and navigated accord .
ing to law, owned by British subjects, &c. other-
wise the cargo to be charged with the duties of
foreign produce}. In 1810, act 26th Geo. III. c.
41. with the various emendations, &c. continued to
25th March 1815}. In 1815, the foregoing acts con-
tinued until the 25th of March 1820; and also
the northern whalers permitted to complete their
crews in Orkney or Shetland, Wc. in the same pro-
portion and manner as in time of warj; and in
1818, the obnoxious oath, required to be taken by
the masters and owners of the fishing ships, that
they proceeded “on no other design or view of
“ profit,” than taking whales, &c. was modified, and
an exception made as to the making of discoveries,
or seeking after any rewards offered by Government,
for “ more effectually discovering the longitude at

* 46th Geo. III. ¢. 9.§ 1 & 2.
+ 49th Geo. III, c. 97. § 37. t 50th Geo. III. c. 11.
§ 55th Geo. III. ¢. 39.

94 WHALE-FISHERY.

“ sea, or encouraging attempts to find a northern pas-
“ sage between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and
“ to approach the northern Pole *.”

Scarcely was the peace of Europe established, be-
fore the Dutch Legislature proposed a bounty for
the encouragement of the whale-fishery from their
dominions. No ship was fitted in 1815, and only
one in each of the three following years, though the
bounty was extremely judicious and liberal. The
encouragement offered in 1815, was as follows : Each
ship fitted for the whale-fishery from Holland, was
entitled to 4000 f. on the outfit, during her three
first voyages, and 5000 f- more, if she returned clean.
If she procured a cargo of 100 quardeelen of oil, she
was entitled to no additional bounty; but for every
quardeel+ she fell short, an additional bounty of 50 f.
was due. Thus, a ship with 10 quardeelen of oil,
received 4500 f. additional bounty ; with 20, 4000 /';
with 30, 3500 f’; with 40, 3000 f.; with 50, 2500 f. ;
with 60, 2000 /, and soon. Hence, a clean ship be-
comes entitled to a bounty of 9000 f + equal to about
750/., and a ship with 100 quardeelen of oil, to 40007.

* 58th Geo. III. c. 15. § 1. & 2.

+ The quardeel of oil contains 12 steeken Dutch, or 60. 27
gallons English.

} Reckoning the value of the florin,=20d. English, 9000 f-
is Just equivalent to 750/. Sterling.

1815,-8. | CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY. 95

or 3331. 6s. 8d. 'The Government also permitted.
the introduction of British officers into their ships,
the art of the whale-fishery among the Dutch ha-
ving been long on the decline.

96 WHALE-FISHERY.

CHAPTER II.

COMPARATIVE VIEW OF THE ORIGIN, PROGRESS,
AND PRESENT STATE OF THE WHALE-FISH-
ERIES OF THE DIFFERENT EUROPEAN NA-
TIONS.

|: ee now, so far as my materials extend,
brought down the account of the northern whale-
fisheries in chronological order, it may not be amiss,
before entering upon the practice of the whale-fish-
ery, to give a short retrospect of the establish-
ment of this trade, and of the progress made in it
by different nations. ‘This view of the subject, be-
sides enabling the reader to draw a comparison of
the perseverance and abilities evidenced by the dif-
ferent powers engaged in this adventurous employ-
ment, will likewise admit of a variety of interesting
tables and deductions, which could not with such
propriety be introduced into the chronological his-
tory.

The first intimation we have of the human race
being found sufficiently courageous and enterpri-

COMPARATIVE VIEW. yi

sing, to attack the mysticetus, is derived from Al]-
fred the Great’s account of the voyage of Ohthere
the Norwegian, performed in the ninth century.
Though at the first sight, there may appear some
inconsistencies in Ohthere’s narrative, yet with the
explanation I have already suggested, I conceive,
that the account of the prosecution of the whale-
fishery by the Norwegians, at this early period, may
be considered in the main’ points as authentic.

Four or five centuries later, we learn from various
historical notices, that the whale-fishery, as a gene-
ral occupation, was practised by different nations of
Europe, particularly the French, Spaniards, Fle-
mings, and probably the English; and that, in the
course of the sixteenth century, the Basques and
Biscayans had established a successful fishery for
the fin-whales on their own coasts, and subsequently
pursued them, first to the coast of Iceland, where
the co-operation of the Icelanders was procured, and
ultimately to the neighbourhood of Greenland and
Newfoundland.

Fach of the nations which have at different times
attempted the Greenland fishery, will meet with a
share of our attention, and will be considered in the
order of their arrival on the coast of Spitzbergen.

VOL. I. G

OS WHALE-FISHERY

SECT. I.

Whale-Fishery of the British.

Tue Greenland or Spitzbergen whale-fishery of
the English, claims our first attention, both on ae-
count of its greater antiquity, and its present supe-
riority over that of other powers.

At what period the English first embarked. in the
fishery of the whale, as an occupation, is not very
certain. Several ancient charters, acts and grants
of the realm, speak of whales taken or captured,
as well as of whales stranded, particularly an act of
Edward II.; but whether the fishery was then
practised, or these words were introduced, on the sup-
position that it might be prosecuted, is not easy to
determine. We well know, however, from unques-
tionable authority, that, attracted by the prospect
of an occupation, though hazardous, at once novel
and advantageous, the English, towards the close of
the sixteenth century, procured the assistance of
some Biscayans, fitted out some ships, and first com--
menced the whale-fishery near Newfoundland. The
fishery for the walrus, seal, and some species of
whale, about the North Cape and Cherry Island, in
which they were shortly afterwards engaged, toge-
fher with the frequent voyages of discovery, under-

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—ENGLAND. aay)

taken at the expence of the Russia and East India
Companies, were the means of leading them to the
coast of Spitzbergen, soon after its re-discovery by
Hudson in 1607, where they soon relinquished the
eapture of these smaller animals, for the more pro-
fitable fishery of the mysticetus.

They did not, however, immediately abandon
the design of making discoveries ; for we find that
one or two discovery vessels were generally attached
to evety whale-fishing expedition sent out by the
Russia Company.

The first expedition of this company was parti-
cularly unfortunate, as far as concerned their ships,
as they were both wrecked. ‘The first was driven
on shore by the ice in a rocky bay at Spitzbergen,
and the other upset and sunk. ‘Their crews were
all saved and taken home, together with the most
valuable part of the produce of their fishing, by a
Hull ship, which providentially happened to be on.
the coast of Spitzbergen at the time. Captain Jo-
fias Poole, who, at the time of the loss of the second
vessel, was in the hold, had a most miraculous
escape. ‘The vessel having been brought too light,
she suddenly heeled to one side, the few goods in the
hold slid to leeward, and the water began in-
stantly to pour down the hatches. Poole strugeled
to get upon the deck, but was twice beaten back by
the falling of casks and the force of the water,

which rushed in torrents upon him; but at length,
; G 3

100 WHALE-FISHERY.

though with broken ribs and other serious wounds;
he was enabled to extricate himself from the vessel,
and was picked up by one of the boats, and his life
preserved.

In the fishery at Spitzbergen, the assistance of
Biscayans was still required, as well by the English
as by the other nations of Kurope, which speedily
embarked in the same speculation ; and it was some
years before any of them ventured on the fishery,
relying on the strength of their own unsupported
abilities.

Scarcely had the English established themselves
in the Spitzbergen whale-fishery, before the Dutch
and Spaniards followed their example; and after
them immediately succeeded the French, Danes
and Hamburghers.

The Russia Company, in consideration of their
having originally discovered and established this
commerce, and likewise of having incurred consider-
able expence in sending out ships on voyages of
discovery to the Polar Seas,—deemed: themselves
entitled to the sole right of the Spitzbergen whale-
fishery ; and hence it was, that when the Dutch
appeared as their competitors, the first year they
drove them out of the country, and the second, be-
ing confirmed in the right to a monopoly of the
trade, by Royal Charter, a. D. 1613, they equipped
an armed flect, and drove out of the country fifteen
sail of ships belonging to different nations, some of

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—ENGLAND. 101

avhich they rifled, not excusing even their own
countrymen, and permitted some French ships only
to pursue the fishing along with them, on the con-
sideration of a tribute of eight whales, which the
French agreed to pay to them.

The two years next following, their success was
indifferent ; but in 1616 and 1617, they procured
superabundant cargoes; twenty-two ships and four
pinnaces which they employed in the two years, ha-
ving made upwards of 3100 tons of oil.

The East India Company, who had joined the
Russia Company in various northern voyages of
discovery, whereby they are. said to have incurred
an expence of 120,0002., likewise joined them in
the Greenland fishery; -which branch of commerce
was, for a short time, prosecuted by:the two com-
panies in combination. They fitted out thirteen
ships in the year 1618, which proved an unfortunate
adventure ; for the Dutch being exasperated at the
seizure of their oil and fishing utensils on three se-
veral occasions, had assembled an armed fleet, with
the ostensible view of protecting their fishery ; but
finding a favourable opportunity for making reprisals,
they attacked the English, killed a number of their
best men, and captured one of their ships, which,
however, on its arrival in Holland, was liberated by
the Dutch Government. These differences between
the English, Dutch, and other powers, were at
length settled, by making a division among the dif-

102 WHALE-FISHERY.

ferent nations, of the nwmerous bays and harbours
in Spitzbergen, which were convenient as fishing
stations ; the first choice and greatest proportion of
which were allowed to the English.

By this time, the English alone had discovered
the bays and harbours along the west coast of Spitz-
‘bergen, and the land to the northward of 80°;
Witches Island, and others as far north as 79°;
Hope Island, Edges Island, and various others to
the eastward *.

A second bad fishing voyage having been made
by the united English Company, they were induced
to relinquish the trade. MKour members of the
Russia Company then took it up on their own ac-
count, and sent out seven ships in 1620, eight
ships in 1621, and nine in 1622, which procured in
the three years 3100 tons of oil; but they had in-
different or bad suecess the year afterwards, and the
produce of the whales, on account of the great
quantity imported by the Dutch, becoming less va-
luable, they likewise abandoned the speculation.

At the time the fishery was in its most. flourish-
mg state, when the Dutch fished: with such success

i

* Purchas’s Pilgvimes, vol. iii. p. 462,-473.—T hus it appears
that the English, and not the Dutch, as is often believed, were
the explorers and surveyors of the whole, or, greater part of
Spitzbergen, and the adjacent islands; the principal exami-
nation of this country by the Dutch, which, indeed, consisted
only of a part of the west coast, having been performed, on its

‘Arst discovery, by Barentz and Heemskerke.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—ENGLAND. 108

that they realized immense profits,—the English,
when they sent out vessels, were so commonly un-
successful, that little incitement was offered to the
commercial part.of the nation, to hazard their pro-
perty in the business.

The grant of the whale-fishery to the Russia Com-
pany was renewed in 1635, by Charles the First, but
it does not appear that any revival of the trade was the
consequence. ‘Thus this trade, which some nations
found to be particularly advantageous, was so nearly
laid aside by the British, that for a number of
years they made no spirited or effectual attempt to
revive it; but merely sent a few occasional ships,
and sometimes had none on the fishery, when the
Dutch and Hamburghers employed between three
aud four hundred sail. The Legislature, fully im-
pressed with the importance of the speculation, in
1672, gave a general encouragement to adventurers,
by allowing the inrportation of Greenland produce
free of duty, and by granting a limitation of the ri-
gours of the navigation act, whereby the speculators
might avail themselves of the assistance of expe-
rienced foreigners, to the amount of one-half of the
crews of the ships employed in the fishery. This
had the effect of producing a few private attempts
to revive the trade, but still it seems with such ge-
neral ill success, that after seven years it was again
abandoned. As the Greenland trade then sunk
entirely into disuse, the plan of a joint stock com-

104 WHALE-FISHERY.

pany was once more resorted to, as offering one of the
most probable means of effecting the wishes of the
Government in its renewal. Accordingly, towards
the end of the seventeenth century, a company of
forty-two persons, who had subscribed 40,0007. for
the purpose, were incorporated by act of Parliament,
. for a term of fourteen years, and endowed with va-
rious privileges. ‘Though the company made use
of their privilege, in employing a number of foreign
fishermen, equipped several ships, increased their
subscriptions to 82,000/., and thus had every ap-
parent chance of success, yet, before the termination
of their charter, their capital, we are informed, was
totally expended, and their trade and expectations
completely blasted.

‘The whale-fishery commerce again lay dormant
for several years, when the South Sea Company,
after a length of time spent in discussion and in-
decision, took it up, and, in the year 1725, sent a
fleet of twelve new ships of 300 tons burden each,
to Greenland, and afterwards increased it to twen-
ty-two sail. After they had persevered for eight
years, in which time a very large sum of money was
lost, this company, like all the former adventurers,
found it necessary to give up the trade, _

The almost universal failure of the English in the
whale-fishery, to this period, and the general good
success of their contemporaries, has excited much as-
tonishment. About the time that the English

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—ENGLAND. 105

joint-stock company sunk a capital of 82,000/., the
Dutch, in the course of ten years, included be-
tween 1699 and 1708, equipped 1652 ships, which
caught 8537 whales; the produce whereof sold for
96,385,120 florins, of which, the sum of 4,727,120
florins, was clear gain*. And, at the same time
that the South Sea Company suffered vast loss in .
their whale-fishing speculation, the Dutch almost
invariably were gainers by it.. To attribute the dif-
ference which thus existed, between the success of
the Dutch and the Knglish, to a deficiency of per-
sonal courage or natural intellect on the part of the
latter, would not be an agreeable solution, neither
would it be altogether correct; nevertheless, it is
very evident, that the spirit and energies of the
Dutch, were, in general, both better directed and
better followed up. Indeed, the result of their fishing
proves, that the character given by historians, of the
Dutch in the seventeenth century, must be correct ;
namely, that this nation was, at the period alluded
to, one of the most hardy and enterprising in the
world,

Various opinions have been suggested as to other
causes of difference in the success of the English
and Dutch whale-fishers. Some of these will be
considered.

* Histoire des Péches, vel. i. p. 297.

106 WHALE-FISHERY.

I. The interest of money in Holland was, at this
time, much lower than in England.

Il. Their export trade in articles the produce
of the Greenland seas, occasioned their enrichment
at the expence of other nations, and the value of
oil and whalebone was kept up, by not being allow-
ed to accumulate in the market at home.

III. Their seamen and fishing-officers were chief-
ly natives; this exempted them from the great ex-

pence of hiring foreigners, to which the British, un-.

til after the establishment of the bounty system,
were constantly subjected*.

IV. The Dutch built their ships at a cheaper
rate than the English, and practised greater fruga-
lity in their equipment f.

V. They suffered little loss with an unsuccessful
voyage, as the different. tradesmen who supplied
their ships with provisions and stores, were in the
habit of venturing their goods on the success of the
voyage, receiving nothing if the vessel returned clean,
but a very large profit if she procured a full cargot.

Had the Dutch possessed all these advantages. in
reality, their superiority to the English in the fish-
ery, would be no longer surprising. Some of these

ra

* Macpherson’s Annals of Commerce, vol. iii. p. 130.
+ Elking’s View, &c. p. 49,-50.

~ Macpherson, vol. iii. p. 130.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—ENGLAND. 107

points, however, are not correct, as appears from the
statements of Hlking, in his “ View of the Green-
“land Frade and Whale-fishery,” who attempts to
prove, that the English “ are able to carry on the
“fishery trade to more advantage than any other
“nation.” The first point of advantage the Dutch
have been supposed to possess over the British, E1-
king does not allude to. As to the second, while he
admits the fact, he shows it may be equally applied
to the benefit of the British*. The third he de-
nies, observing, that the Dutch have not a sufficient
number of seamen among their ewn subjects, but are
obliged yearly, to have many thousands of the most
necessary and skilful hands from Jutland, Holstein,
Scotland, Norway, Bremen, Oldenberg, &c. who, af-
ter the fishery is over, carry the money they have
earned back with them, and thereby serve to impo-
verish the. country in one way, while, by their
services, they enrich it in another. The fourth
point, Hiking likewise combats. If their ships be
cheaper than the English, he contends, that they
are all less durable and not so strong +. He denies
that they can fit them cheaper, having scarcely any
article suitable for building or equipping a ship which
is the produce of their own country. Hence, they
must import iron, timber, planks, masts, hemp, tar,
and almost every kind of provisions, all of which,

* Elking, p.'57. + Idem, p. 50.

108 WHALE-FISHERY.

either Britain or the colonies produce *. Besides,
wages of seamen, he declares to be lower in England
than in Holland. In the former, they are hired
for 245. or 26s. per month; in the latter, their
ordinary pay is 16 to 18 or 20 guilders per month,
which is from 30s. to 40s. Sterling +. On the
other hand, he also shows, that the English have
many advantages over the Dutch, particularly as far
as regards the ease with which the ships may be
loaded and discharged, compared with the Dutch,
who have much expence in this respect |; and, on
the whole, he concludes, that the English might
save at least 50/. per ship on every voyage, which
the Dutch are obliged to pay j. The fifth point
being equally practicable in Britain as in Holland,
requires no reply. If Elking’s view of the subject
be correct, therefore, we are brought again to the
point where we commenced, and must attribute the
inferiority ef the success of the English in the fish-
ery at this period, to a deficiency in the qualifica-
tions of the persons commanding the ships, or to
the unskilfulness of their crews; to their want of
perseverance and confidence; or to their energies
being ill applied, or imperfectly followed up. And
that some, or all of these causes, then operated in
producing the effect, appears from the present state

* Elking, p. 51. t+ Idem, p. 53. + Idem, p. 54.
§ Idem, p. 55.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—BRITAIN. 109

of the fishery. The Dutch are now as much be-
hind us in the whale-fishery, as they were, at the
period referred to, our superiors.

Every encouragement which had yet been offered
by the British Government to adventurers in the
whale-fishery, being found inadequate to effect its
establishment on such a scale, as to become of any
national advantage, trial in 1733 was made, of a
plan originally proposed by the South Sea Compa-
ny; which was, in addition to other privileges, to
incite the merchants to speculate in the trade, by a
bounty of 20s. per ton, on the burden or admea-
surement of the ships engaged in it. As the trade,
however, still continued very feeble, the bounty, af-
ter seven years, was increased to 30s. per ton, and
yet only from three to six sail of ships continued to
be employed until the year 1749. This being the
case, a farther increase of 10s. per ton was made to
the existing bounty; in consequence of which, the
English fishery began to inerease and flourish, and
the merchants of Scotland began to participate in
the trade. The acts of Parliament, by which these
bounties were secured to adventurers, were after-
wards subjected to various revisions and limitations,
for the purpose of the more economical application
of the money thus expended. The trade being
then, to appearance, fully established, it became a
subject of parliamentary discussion,—the propriety
of retrenching the expence to which the nation had

110 WHALE-FISHERY.

become subjected, by the liberal encouragement
given to the whale-fishers in the way of boun-
ties. This expence was found to be very great. In
twenty years, included between 1750 and 1769,
613,261/. 9s. 11d. had been paid in bounties to
British whale-fishers ; the average number of vessels
employed during that period being 3975 from Eng-
land, and 112% from Scotland, and the average sum
paid annually in bounties to both, being 30,663 1.
1s. 6d. This great expenditure, together with the
belief that the imtention of Government in the ef-
fectual establishment of the fishery was fulfilled,
oceasioned the bounty to be reduced to 30s. per
ton; but the number of British whale-fishermen
having diminished from 98 te 39, in the course of
the five years following, the bounty was again raised
to 40s.

“ It was afterwards found, however, that so great a
bounty was neither necessary to the suceess of the
trade, nor expedient with regard to the public.
In 1786, therefore, the acts conferring the said emo-
luments being upon the point of expiring, the sub-
ject was again brought under the consideration of
Parliament ; and it was proposed to continue the
former measures, but with a reduction of the bounty
from 40s. to 30s.” In proposing this alteration, it
was stated, “That the sums which this country had
paid in bounties for the Greenland fishery, amounted
to 1,265,461 1; that, in the last year (1785), we had —

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—BRITAIN. 11]

paid 94,8587. and that, from the consequent re-
duction of the price of the fish, the public at pre-
sent paid 60 per cent. woon every cargo. In the
Greenland fishery, there are employed 6000 seamen,
and these seamen cost Government 13/. 10s. per
man per annum, though we were never able to ob-
tain more than 500 of that number to serve on
board our ships of war. Besides, the vast encou-
ragement given to the trade, had occasioned such a
glut in the market, that it was found necessary to
export considerable quantities of it, and thus we paid
a large share of the purchase-money to foreign na-
tions, as well as for our own people, besides supply-
ing them with the materials ef several important
~ manufactures.” This proposition was opposed by
several members, but was finally carried; and the
propriety of the measure became very soon appa-
rent. At that time, the number of ships em-
ployed from England in the whale-fishery to Green-
land and Davis’ Straits, amounted to 162, besides
23 from Scotland *. ‘The proposed alteration took
place the following year (1787); and notwithstand-
ing the diminution of the bounty, the trade in-
creased ; the number of ships fitted out of Bri-
tish ports the same year, amounting to 250, and
the next year to 255 ; “ the cargoes of which, in 1788,

* Encyc. Brit. 4th edit. Art. Cetology.

112 WHALE-FISHERY.

consisted of 5989 tons of clean oil; 7654 ewt. of
whalebone, besides 13,386 seal-skins *.”

—*

* « The quantity of whale-oil imported into Great Britain,
im the year 1787, was,

Tons. Hds. Galls.

From Greenland, - 9905 1 5
Southern Fishery, 2184 Ae 425
British Colonies, 3447 O 43

West Indies, Q 43
States of America, 230 1 36
Denmark, = - er: 0
France, - - Za RSN Aaa
Ireland, - - nit, 3 9)

Total imported, 15,809 0 31

rom these and other places, the quantity of train oil im-
ported into Great Britain in the succeeding years, was,

In Tons. In Tons,
1788, - 15,677 1795, Prize, 166
1789, - 14,127 1796, - 11,437
1790; = tebe ee Prize, =" 80G
1791, - 10,740 1797, - 13,599
1792, - 10,739 Prize, - 8
1793, = 11,661 1798, “ 12,132

Prize, ~ QA47 1799, - 12,990
1794, - 10,899 Prize, - 292
Prize, 5 101 1800, - 13,236
1795, - 10,024 Prize, = 33

Of the above was British produce, and exported according te
the official rates,

In In
1797, - 17,600 ¢. 1801, - 61,892 1.
1798, - 28,510 1802, ~ 147,868
1799, - 31,334 1803, - 41,228 +”
1800, - 105,770

+ Oddy’s European Commerce, p. 533.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—BRITAIN. 113

At length, when the British had become well ac-
customed to the whale-fishery, and the trade was to
appearance so firmly established as not to be affect-
ed by any trivial alteration of the bounties, this
emolument was, in December 1792, reduced to 25s.,
and in 1795, to 20s. per ton, at which rate it has
subsequently continued. Some alterations have,
however, occasionally taken place in the acts rela-
tive to the bounties, and a small duty has been im-
posed upon whale-oil, fins, and other produce of the
Greenland seas.

Thus, by means of national support to the
whale-fishers in the form of bounty, was effected,
what no other incitement was calculated to accom-
plish, namely, the establishment of the northern
whale-fisheries by British subjects, on a basis so
firm, as to secure to the nation every advantage
which could be expected from such a trade, in the
most permanent way.

It has been seen that, in point of ability for con-
ducting the whale-fishery, the British, in their early
attempts, excepting a few of the voyages of the
Russia Company’s ships, were universally eclipsed —
by the Dutch ; and that, notwithstanding the Eng-
lish led the way to the haunts of the whale in the
northern regions, and set the example of capturing
this animal as an occupation ;—yet their labours
were attended with such ill success, and their exer-
tions were in consequence so much relaxed, that

vOL. I. H

114 ‘ - WHALE-FISHERY.

instead of becoming experienced in the trade, they
soon lost the little advance which they had made
in the art, while they were under the direction of
the Biscayans; and, in consequence, were long un-
der the necessity of hiring a great number of
foreigners, to assist them in the fishery. This obli-
gation of the British to employ the Dutch as fish-
ing-officers in their ships, was probably the oceca-
sion of a popular mistake, that the Dutch were the
first whale-fishers at Spitzbergen. But, after the
bounty system had been established a few years,
the British became as expert in the fishery as the
Dutch, and the two rival nations probably exer-
cised an equal talent for many years afterwards.
The talent for the whale-fishery among the Dutch,
however, was on the decline ; and in consequence of
the imitation of their manner by the British, in the
middle, and indeed so late as the ninth decade of
the last century, the energies of the fishermen were
never brought into action. ‘The Dutch, from in-
dulging a habit of coolness, became inactive, and
the British too closely copied their example. About
the close, however, of the century, two or three of
the captains of the whale-fishing ships, men of
abilities, commenced a system of activity and pér-
severance, which was followed by the most brilliant
result. Instead of being contented with two or
three large fish, and considering five or six a great
cargo, they set the example of doubling or trebling

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—BRITAIN. 115

the latter quantity, and were only contented, so far
as to relax their exertions, when their ships could
contain no more. Thus arose a striking epoch in
the history of the fishery. The ease, coolness, and

inactivity of the Dutch, were superseded by the
~ system of perseverance and exertion, which has con-
tinued increasing ever since, until, at the present
day, it has become very general throughout the
fishery.

As the Greenland and the Davis’ Straits fisheries
have met with similar encouragement from the Bri-
tish Government, are regulated by the same laws,
and prosecuted in a similar way, they have gene-
rally, im the preceding pages, been considered in
combination. ‘The fishery of Spitzbergen, or the
Greenland fishery, as it is generally called, having
preceded the fishery of Davis’ Straits about a cen-
tury, must be considered as solely treated of during
that interval after its establishment. Irom the
various publications by the Dutch on the subject
of their whale-fishery, I can trace their “progress
and success in the most satisfactory manner, from
their first establishment of a fishery at Davis’
Straits, in 1719, down to the year 1795; but the
precise year in which the English commenced it,
or the degree of success they met with in their first
attempts, I have not been able to ascertain.

H 2

116 WHALE-FISHERY.

It does not appear, that any attempt was made by
the inhabitants of ScorLaNp in the whale-fishery
of Greenland or Davis’ Straits, until the bounty sys-
tem was established. Some merchants of Edinburgh,
who had formed themselves into a company in Sep-
tember 1749, for the purpose of trying this fishery,
sent out a ship from Leith, being the first from
Scotland, in the following spring. It failed in the
whale-fishery, and brought home nothing but a few
sea-horses. Its want of suecess was ascribed to the
lateness of its arrival on the fishing stations, and to
its having been for some time beset in the ice, at the
distance of only nine degrees from the Pole. The
company, so far from being discouraged by this fail-
ure, sent out two ships the next year ; but the voyage
proved more disastrous than the former, as one of the
ships was wrecked, and the other again returned
home clean. Still, however, they persevered in the
trade, and, determined, if possible, to retrieve the
loss they had already suffered, they equipped three
ships in 1752, all of which returned successful. In
order to encourage this trade, many of the ladies of
Edinburgh got their stays and hoops made of the
whalebone brought home by their own ships *.

The trade soon became more general in Scotland.
A company was formed in Aberdeen, and a new

* Scots Mag. 1749-1752 ; & Gent. Mag. 1752.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—SCOTLAND. 117

company in Edinburgh, and vessels were fitted
from Leith, Aberdeen, Glasgow, Dundee, Dun-
bar, Borrowstounness and Greenock. ‘Their suc-
cess in 1753 was 613 whales, and in 1754, 36 whales,
of which 18 belonged to the Edinburgh Companies.
In 1755, 15 ships from Scotland procured 41 whales,
1 bottlenose, and 1 seahorse; and in 1756, the
fishery was generally successful. Until the year
1763, the whale-fishery from Scotland employed
14 to 16 sail of ships, but for upwards of 20 years
after this period, not more than 10 ships were sent
out annually, and sometimes only 3 or 4. In
1785, the trade began again to flourish, and in the
year 1787, 31 ships were sent out, which caught 84
whales and 6571 seals; the produce of which was
about 2548 butts, or 1274 tons of blubber, being
equal to about 33 or 34 tons of oil per ship; and
in the following season, the same number of vessels
caught 62 whales. Above 200 sail of ships proceed-
ed to the fishery from England at this period.
Between the years 1750 and 1788, 2449 whale-
fishing ships, burden 740,065 tons, were fitted out
from the ports of England, including repeated
voyages, and 430 ships, burden 130,998 tons, from
the different ports of Scotland. The bounties paid
to the owners of these vessels, in the course of the
above interval of 39 years, amounted to 1,335,098.
Is. 2d. for England, and 242,837/. 19s. 2d. for
Scotland. The official value of the produce of the

118 WHALE-FISHERY.

whale-fisheries imported into England in the 41
years, included between 1760 and 1800, was
2,144,3871. 8s. ; and into Scotland in the 32 years,
included between 1769 and 1800, was 381,374l.
10s. 3d. The official value of exports from Eng-
land during the former period, chiefly consisting of
rum for stores, was about 16,0007.

The following table, extracted from Macpherson’s
Annals of Commerce, shows the-number of ships,
and the amount of their tonnage, employed in the
British Greenland and Davis’ Straits whale-fisheries,
together with the sums paid in bounties, during a
period of 39 years.

It will, however, be observed, that the bounties
paid do not always correspond with the tonnage of
the vessels employed. This arises from some of the
vessels having been lost; some having forfeited the
bounty; and others having been of a greater ton-
nage than 400 tons, for the excess above which, no
bounty was paid, after the year 1757.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—BRITAIN. 119

VIEW of the Extent of the British GREENLAND and Davis’ Srrairs

W HALE-FISHERIES.

ENGLAND. | SCOTLAND.
No. of No. of
Year.|Ships Em-/Tonnage.| Bounties Paid. || Year.'ShipsEm-Tonnage. | Bounties Paid.
ployed. ployed.

ie Sins Dena SD.
1750} 19 6,264 10,507 3 3)|1750 1 333 666 0 0
1751); 23 7,360 16,530 19 10}| 1751 6 1,933 3,866 2 11
1752| . 30 9,871 17,231 9 51752) 10 3,137 6.274 2 11
1753, 35 11,814 27,693 0 11/1753) 14 4,294 S.059, 5 0
1754) 52 17,235 31,328 6 91754) 15 4,680 esoor S(O
1755| 66 21,293 45,634 18 8/1755) 16 4,964: 2,929. 5° 0
1756| 67 21,328 42,103 1 O}1756| 16 4,964 9315 5 0
1757| 55 17,221 34,450 0 0} 1757 15 4,530 8,567 13 4
1758) 52 15,399 27,006 6 1/1758) 15 4,499 8,271 13 4
1759| 34 10,337 19,273 18 11759) 15 4,479 8,959 13 4
1760) 40 12,082 20,540 5 6|1760| 14 4,238 8,477 13 4
1761) aoe 9,789 19,247 15 8} 1761 14 4,238 8,477 13 4
1762| 28 8,877 13,358 6 9/1762) 14 4,238 8,045 13 4
1763} 30 9,416 18,465 15 9) 1763; 10 3,109 5,649 0 0
1764) 32 10,261 19,463 16 1)1764) 10 3,140 628100 0
1765| 33 10,099 18,748 17 9/1765 8 2,559 5119 0 0
1766; 35 10,015 19,947 2 5) 1766 9 2,19 5,595 0 0
1767| = 39 12,284 24,537 9 2) 1767 9 2,797 5,595 .0 0
1768| 41 12,802 24,026 18 1/1768 9 25719 5,595.0 0
1769} 44 13,471 24,935 [2 11||1769 9 2,797 5,595 0 0;
1770| 50 14,775 29,240 18 11)/1770 9 ioe 5,595 0 0
1771) = 50 14,700 27,891 7 6/1771 9 2,797 5,595 0 0
1772; 50 15,378 29,089 12 11) 1772 9 2,797 5,595 0 0
1773 55 16,712 31,231 13 9)) 1773 10 3,016 6,033 0 O
1774) 65 19,770 37,863 2 6)|1774 9 2,773 5,547 0 4
1775 96 29,131 54,978 13 10|| 1775 9 Page (3 4,503 0 0
1776 91 27,047 52,028 3 1/1776 7 2,251 4,503 0 O
77) oT 21,917 30,942 5 31777 7 2,251 2,880 15 0
8)! TL 20,291 29,280 8 4) 1778 5 1,587 1,923 15 0
1779) @ .59 16,907 25,294 16 11/1779 3 957 1,435 15 0)
1780} 52 14,900 21,584 12 4/1780 4 1,282 1,923 15 0
1781 34 9,859 14,379 12 4/1781 5 1,459 2,189 5 ;
1782 38 11,122 21,156 2 21/1782 6 1,764 2:1905,.0 0
1783 AT 14,268 27,017 12 6) 1783 4 1,095 2,190 0 0}
1784) 89 27,224 | 53,162 2 11/1784 7 2,047 4,094 10 0
1785] 136 41,74) $4,122 6 2)1785| 13 3,865 7,729 16 0
1786] 162 49,426 | 101,996 9 6 1736 | 2 6,997 13:993 19 4
1787} 219 64,280 95,038 17 1/1787 3 9,057 13,454 19 6

31 8.910 LSseo0 3.0

430 1130,998 | 242,837 19 2

1788} 222 | 63,399| 93,768 0 9/1788

2449 (740,065 11,335,098 1 2

120 WHALE-FISHERY.

From the year 1810 to 1818 inclusive, 824 ships
sailed from England to the whale-fisheries of Green-
land and Davis’ Straits, and 361 from Scotland*.
In the four years ending with 1817, 392 vessels
sailed from England to these northern fisheries, the
amount of whose cargoes was 3348 whales, besides
seals, narwhales, bears and seahorses; and the pro-
duce 35,824 tons of oil, and about 1806 tons of
whalebone, together with a quantity of skins. The
average quantity of oil produced per ship on each
voyage, was 91.4 tons, and about 4 tons 12 cwlt.
of whalebone. From Scotland there sailed in the
course of the same period of four years, 194 vessels to
the whale-fisheries, the amount of whose cargoes was
1682 whales, &c., and the produce 18,684 tons of
oil, and about 891 tons of whalebone, besides skins.

* The number of ships fitted out each year from England
and Scotland, was as follows:

1810 1811 1212 1813 1814 1815 1816 1817 1818

From England,75 76 83 94 97 98 97 100 104

Scotland,22 22 27 43 46 49 49 50 # £53

The number of vessels sent out from each of the different

ports of England and Scotland during the above period of nine
years, including repeated voyages, was as follows:

From Berwick, 16 Newcastle, 43 Kirkaldy, 7

Grimsby, 13 Whitby, 80 Kirkwall, 6

Hull, 481 . Aberdeen 98 Leith, 79

Liverpool, 17 Banff, 8 Montrose, 25

London, 161 Dundee, 68 Peterhead, 62

Lynn, 13 Greenock, 8 ;

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—BRITAIN. 121

The average cargo procured per ship on each
voyage, produced 96.3 tons of oil, and about 4 tons
12 cwt. of whalebone; being the same quantity of
whale-bone, but 4.9 tons of oil more than the aver-
age procured by the English fleet during the same
time*. It therefore appears, that of late years,
the people of Scotland have sent out their full pro-
portion of ships on the fisheries; and with a degree
of success which has been equal, if not superior, to
that of the English fishers.

The British whale-fishery of 1814 was uncom-
monly prosperous, especially at Greenland ; 76 ships
on this fishery having procured 1437 whales, be-
sides seals, &c., the produce of which in oil only,
was 12,132 tons, being an average of 1875 fish, or
159.6 tons of oil per ship! The average fishery
of Davis’ Straits the same season, was about one-
third less per ship. The gross value of the freights
of the British Greenland and Davis’ Straits fleets,
(bounties included,) estimating the oil at 32. per
ton, which was about the average price, and the

* These results together, with all the others immediately
following, which refer to the four years ending with 1817, Ihave
extracted out of an interesting “ Account of the number of
Fish, with the produce of Oil and Bone brought by each ship
from the Greenland and Davis’ Straits Whale-fisheries,” for the
years 1814,~15,—16,-17, made up, with great care, and publish-
ed yearly, by Messrs Devereux and Lambert, London.

123 WHALE-FISHERY.

whalebone at 80/. per ton, exceeds in this one
year 700,000/!

Though the profits to the merchants on this oc-
casion were singularly great, yet, on the average of
the four years, ending with 1817, we find the car-
goes brought from Greenland and Davis’ Straits
were only 93 tons of oil, and 4 tons 12 ewt. of
whalebone per ship, value about 3700/. This,
though a degree of success which would have been
considered as very great fifty years ago, is now,
on account of .the extraordinary increase which has
taken place in the expences of a whale ship, but
barely sufficient to afford an. encouraging profit to
the adventurers. But when we consider, that
while the general profit reaped from the trade was
only moderate, some individuals and concerns have
been almost invariably successful ; it is clear, there-
fore, that some others must have been considerable
losers by this speculation.

In a national view, however, the benefit has been
very different. In the five years ending with 1818,
about 68,940 tons of oil, and 3420 tons of whale-
bone, of British fishing, have been imported into
England and Scotland. If we calculate the oil at
361. 10s. per ton, which was about the average
price, and the whalebone at 90/. and add to the
amount 10,000/, for the probable value of the
skins, and other articles,—the gross value of goods
imported into Britain from Greenland and Davis’

et” > a el

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—BRITAIN. 123

Straits in five years, free of first cost, will appear to
have been near three millions Sterling.

The greatest cargo ever brought into Great Bri-
tain im one vessel from the whale-fishery, was pro-
cured near Spitzbergen, by Captain Souter in the
Resolution of Peterhead, in the year 1814. It con-
sisted of 44 whales, which produced 299 tons of oil,
value, reckoned at 32/. per ton, the average price
that year, 9568/. ; if to this we add the value of the
whalebone and the bounty, the gross freight of this
ship will appear to have been near 11,000/. Other
ships, however, with less cargoes, have made still
greater freights, particularly in 1813, when oil seld
for near 60/. per ton. In this year, the John of
Greenock, commanded by my father, made above
11,000/. freight; and the cargo of the Esk of
Whitby, commanded by myself, sold for near the
same sun. The Augusta of Hull,Captain Beadland,
procured a still greater cargo; and the Lady Jane of
Newcastle, Captain Holmes, which brought home a
larger cargo from the fishery that season than any
other vessel, realized, I believe, the greatest profit
ever made by one vessel in any one season, since the
northern whale-fisheries were practised.

Among the ports of Britain which have been dis-
tinguished for speculating in the whale-fisheries,
those of London and Hull seem to have been the
most early engaged in the trade.

194 WHALE-FISHERY.

From Lonpon, were generally equipped those
vessels sent on discovery, which proved the immedi-
ate cause of the establishment of the Spitzbergen
whale-fishery ; and from the same place the first fish-
ermen were sent out. The joint-stock companies,
which, at different times, embarked their capitals in
the trade, likewise sailed their ships from the Thames.
Between the years 1780 and 1790, London sent
above four times the number of ships to the north-
ern whale-fisheries of any other port in Britain. In
1786, 87 ships sailed from the Thames for Green-
land and Davis’ Straits, and in 1788, 91. In 1810, °
the number of the London shipping employed in
the trade was reduced to 15 sail; in 1811 it was
16; in 1814 it had increased to 20; the three fol-
lowing years it was 19, and the last year (1818), it
was 18 sail. The success of the London fleet was
below the general average, each of the last five
years, excepting 1814.

The merchants of HuLi were among the first to
adventure their ships towards the frigid regions of
the Pole, in pursuit of the whale. They were whale-
fishers on the coasts of Norway and Iceland, before
the discovery of Spitzbergen by the English ; and
if they were not the first whale-fishers at Spitzber-
gen, they were at least on its coasts looking for sea-
horses, in the very year in which the Russia Com-
pany first attempted the capture of the mysticetus.
On this occasion, they were so happy as to be the

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—ENGLISH PORTS. 125

means of saving the crews of two London ships,
both of which were wrecked. The Island of Jan
Mayen was, on the part of the British, the discovery
of the Hull fishers, and when their right to sail to
the whale-fishery was disputed by the Russia Com-
pany, on application to Government by the corpora-
tion, this island was granted them for a fishing sta-
tion.

The Hull whalers have generally been conspicu-
ous for their success in their occupation; and, of
late years, for the number of their shipping.

In 1786, 18 vessels sailed from this port to the
whale-fisheries ; and in the year following the num-
ber was more than double. In the latter year (1787 i)
the tonnage of the 31 ships belonging Hull, amount-
ed to 8160 tons; one of the fleet was lost, and the
other 30 caught 1104 whales, and 7941 seals, which
produced 3583 butts of blubber, and 57} tons of
whalebone. In 1788, the Hull ships sent to the
Greenland fishery, were 29 sail, besides 7 to Davis’
Straits: the whole caught 121 whales, 2997 seals,
19 bears, and 4 narwhales, producing together 2938
butts of blubber, and 46 tons 10 ecwt. of whale-
bone. Two years afterwards, the success of the
Hull ships was much greater, 17 of their fleet ha-
ving taken 125 whales and 12,640 seals, which
produced 1678 tons of oil, and 80: tons of whale-
bone. In 1799, the Hull fleet was particularly
successful; and in 1804, 24 Greenland ships and

126 WHALE-FISHERY.

16 Davis’ Straits ships, procured a total of 397
whales, 23,659 seals, and 51 narwhales, which pro-
duced nearly 4000 tons of oil, and 150 tons of
whalebone. ‘The increase in the Hull whale-fish-
ing concerns, has of late been very remarkable. In
1810, 34 ships sailed from thence to the northern
fisheries; in 1811, 43; m 1812, 49; in 1813, 55;
in 1814, 58; and in 1818, 64.

The amount of produce of the Hull shipping, du-
ring the four years ending with 1817, was in whales,
1785; and the quantity of oil obtained from their
cargoes, 20,891 tons; the average per ship each
voyage, was 91 tons of oil, being about 2 tons less
than the general average of the British northern
fisheries.

The greatest cargo ever brought mto Hull
from Greenland, was procured by Captain Sadler
in the Aurora; and the greatest cargo from Davis’
Straits by Captain Marshall in the Samuels, in the
year 1808: the cargo of the Aurora produced 267
tons of oil, and that of the Samuels 275 *.

Among the English ports, those of Whitby,
Newcastle, and Liverpool, rank next in importance
to Hull, in point of shipping interest in the whale-
fishery.

Whuitey first sent out ships on the Greenland
fishery in the year 1753. The two ships which

* Captain Bennet, Letter.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—ENGLISH PORTS. 127

were at this time fitted out, proving tolerably suc-
cessful, two others were sent along with them each
of the three following years. In 1757-8, four ships
sailed to the fishery ; in 1759 none; in 1760, one;
and from 1761 to 1766, during the war, when the
transport service was more profitable, the whale trade
from Whitby was suspended. Mr Banks, one of the
captains, after the revival of the trade, brought home
65 fish, most of them sizeable, in 10 years*. This
success of G4 fish per voyage, was at this time con-
sidered as a very great average.

In the year 1777, only 9 ships sailed from the
different ports of Britain to the whale-fishery of
Davis’ Straits, 6 of which were from Whitby: one
of these caught 8 fish, yielding 1173 tons of oil,
and the other 5 were likewise successful. ‘Twenty
ships were equipped from this port in 1786, and
the same number the two following years. Their
success in 1786, was 86 size +, and 12 small fish ;
in 1787, 53 size, and 8 smail fish, together with
3048 seals; and in 1788, 45 size, and 11 small fish.
After this period, the Whitby fieet decreased in
number until 1795, when only four ships were fit-
ted out, and it has since been usually fiuctuating
between 4 and 12 sail.

* Charleton’s History of Whitby.

+ A whale is called size, when the longest lamina of its
whalebone measures six feet (in some ports seven,) or upwards,
in length.

128 WHALE-FISHERY.

In the ‘“‘ History of Whitby,” by the Rev. G.
Young, we have some interesting notices respecting
the whale-fishery of this port. The author informs
us, that the number of different vessels that have
been employed from Whitby in this trade, from
first to last, that is, from 1753 to 1817 imclu-
sive, is 53. “ Of this number 8 have been lost in
the Greenland seas, and one burnt in the harbour,
when ready to proceed on her voyage.”—“ The
most disastrous year that has occurred was 1790,
when two ships were lost, and the rest indifferently
fished.” In 1792; out of seven ships that sailed to
the fishery, “ one was lost, four returned home clean,
and the other two had but one fish each.” The
first shipwreck took place in 1771, the last in
1792*. Hence we find, that since that period to
the present, though 178 ships have sailed from
Whitby to the fishery, including repeated voyages,
no loss has happened. “The most successful years
were 1811 and 1814: in the former, 7 ships
brought home 171 whales, producing 1181 tons of
oil, and 35 tons of fins; in the latter, 8 ships
brought 172 whales, producing 1390 tons of oil,
and 42 tons of fins+. The number of ships dis-
patched from Whitby to Greenland and Davis’
Straits, including repeated voyages, in the space of

* Young’s History of Whitby, p. 565. t Id. p. 566.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—ENGLISH PORTS. 129

52 years, comprised between 1767 and 1818, in-
elusive, was 460 sail, and their cargoes amounted
to 2921 whales, (an average of 64 per ship), besides
a great number of seals, bears, narwhales, and sea-
horses. Of this number of whales, considerably
above half have been taken by five ships now in
the trade, of which ships, it may be remarked,
that three of them have performed 124 voyages
to the whale-fishery, without having missed a sin-
gle season since they commenced *. “ In ten
successive voyages, the Resolution,’ (commanded
eight years by my Father}, and two by myself),
“ obtained no less than 249 whales, yielding 2034
tons of oil; and the Henrietta, Kearsley, brought
home, in ten voyages, ending with 1816, 213.
whales, producing 1561 tons of oil +.” In the last
23 years, the Whitby fiect, averaging 71$ ships
per year, have procured 1879 whales, which yield-
ed 17,643 tons of oil: and, in the last fourteen
years, 116 ships, reckoning repeated voyages, have
VOL. Il. I

* The Volunteer has been 47 voyages; the Henrietta 43 ;
and the Lively 34; besides their voyages in the present year
1819.

+ My Father, in 28 voyages, in which he has commanded a
ship on the fishery, has brought home 498 whales ; producing
4246 tons of oil; value, including whalebone, above 150,000.
all fished for, under his own direction, out of the sea!

t Young’s Hist. of Whitby, p. 567.

130 WHALE-FISHERY:

procured a greater number of fish, than fowr temes
the number of vessels did, which sailed to the
fishery, in a former period of 38 years. This fact
is a striking illustration of the improvement in the
talent exercised by the fisners of the present day.
On an average of five years, ending with 1818,
the Whitby whalers have procured 1034 tons of oil
per ship each voyage, being 11 tons more per ship
each voyage, than the general average of the north-
ern fishing during the same period.

Instead of going through with the comparative
view of the fishery of the different ports, which
would be too tedious to be interesting, I shall con-
clude this account of the whale-fishery by the Bri-
tish, with a Table, showing the relative success of
the ships fitted out of different ports, during the
feur years, ending with 1817.

131

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—BRITAIN.

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132 WHALE-FISHERY.

The people of Ir—ELAND have never been dis-
tinguished for any particular exertion in the whale-
fishery. I have scarcely, indeed, met with a notice
of any ships from this part of the United Kingdom,
having been dispatched to Greenland or Davis
Straits; though the British Parliament has, at dif-
ferent periods, encouraged the Irish to embark in
the fishery, by offering them bounties, and putting
them on an equal footing with the British adven-
turers. Some attempts, however, have been made,
for prosecuting the whale-fishery on the Irish coast,
and occasionally, with a considerable degree of suc-
cess,

A Lieutenant in the Army, of the name of
Chaplain, who, during the early part of his life,
had been employed in the Greenland fishery, first
tried the whale-fishery on the Irish coast. He
had received intimation from a brother officer,.
when abroad, that many whales resorted to the
north-west coast of Ireland in the spring of the
year ; on which, being an enterprising man, he sold
his commission and repaired to Ireland. Having
procured two boats suitable for the whale-fishery,
together with the necessary supply of harpoons and
other instruments, he commenced his fishing oceu-
pation, but was able to kill only two whales in
eight years. As the whales were numerous on the
coast, Chaplain imputed his want of success to his
imperfect apparatus, and being unable to purchase

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—IRELAND. 133

what was needful, he applied to the Irish Parliament
for aid, and obtained a grant of 500/.; but dying soon
after, it was never paid. His brother then il aa
the project, but with no better success.

In 1759, two enterprising gentlemen, who lived
on the sea-coast of the county of Donegal, revived
Chaplain’s undertaking. But though they procur-
ed all the necessary assistance from persons experi-
enced in the Greenland fishery, together with a
well adapted vessel, fuily equipped with boats and
other apparatus; and thovgh numbers of whales
were seen, both when they made their first attempt
in 1760, and in the year following, yet they were
unable to take more than one during the two first
seasons in which they persevered in the pursuit.
After having expended 3600/. in the undertaking,
they discovered, that the whale which resorted
to these seas, being of different habits from the
Greenland whale, could not be taken in the same
way. Mr Nesbet, therefore, one of the speculators,
made a trial with the harpoon-gun, and fired both
harpoons and lances at the whales, and with such
success, that they killed three fish in 1762, two of
which were between 60 and 70 feet in length, and the
other above 50; and in the year following, they also
killed two whales of a large size, which was more than
many of the ships, fitted for Greenland at a vast ex-
pence, obtained. ‘The same year (1763), the Irish

134 WHALE FISHERY.

Parliament granted 1500 /. to Messrs Nesbet, to ei-
courage them in this national undertaking*.

SECT. II,

Whale-Fishery of the British Colonies in
America.

WHILE the subjects of Great Britain pursued
the whale-fishery at Spitzbergen to a considerable
extent, and with various success, and while they
performed a voyage so distant, and practised the
arduous operations of the fishery in the Polar re-
gions,—the colonists in America had the advan-
tage of conducting the fishery more immediately at
home. Hence we find many notices of their suc-
cessful labours in this speculation. Their fishery
in 1730 was prosperous, and in 1731, we learn that
the New Englanders employed 1300 tons of ship-
ping in the trade f.

Anderson, in his History of Commerce, men-
tions, that after the coasts of the Gulf and River
St Lawrence fell into the hands of the British, by

* Scots Mag. vol. xxx. p. 510,-511. According to Macpher-
son, the sum granted by the Irish Parliament for the encourage-
ment of the fishery, was 1000.

t+ Macpherson’s Annals of Commerce. A. D. 1730,-1.

GOMPARATIVE VIEW.—BRITISH COLONIES. 135

the reduction of Quebec, the capture of whales,
seals and morses, in this quarter by British subjects,
soon exceeded in extent any former fishery carried
on by the French *. The increase in the whale-
fishery of the New Englanders, at this period, was
very rapid. In 1761 they employed 16 vessels of
about 100 tons burden each; 50 in 1762, and
above 80 in 1763; in consequence of which, such
an increase in the importation of whalebone into
Britain took place, as reduced the price of that ar-
ticle from 500/. to 350/. per ton}. For the en-
couragement, of this fishery, the fins and oil of whales
aught in the River St Lawrence and on the coasts
of British America, were allowed to be imported
into Britain, on payment only of the * old subsidy,”
directed by act 25th Car. Il. ¢. 7, +, of 6s. per
ton on oil, and 50s. per ton on fins §. This encou-
ragement, added ‘to local circumstances, which were
convenient, had such an effect, that in 1767, (three
years afterwards), the American colonists employed
about 300 vessels, estimated at 60 tons, and 13 men
each, in the whale-fishery about the coasts of New-
foundland, Labrador, and the Gulf of St Lawrence.
In the Guif only, they killed 100 of the best whales
in about six weeks, and their success on other sta-

* Ander. Com. a. p. 1763. ; and Scots Mag. vol. xxvi. p. 160.
+ Anderson, a. D. i763. t{ 4th Geo. III. c. 29.

§ Fins, as referring to the whale, is a term used in our acts
of Parliament, in place of whale-bone.

136 WHALE-FISHERY.

tions was likewise considerable *. In 1770, there
were imported into England from the British
American colonies, including Newfoundland, &c.
5202 tons of whale-oil, and 112,971 pounds weight
of whale fins; and into Ireland from the same co-
lonies, 22 tons of whale-oil +.

The act permitting the importation of whalebone,
&e. of American fishing into Britain, was continued
in 1771 until the 25th December 1786, in vessels
navigated according to law, and subject to no other
impost but that called the Old Subsidy |. The
ships of the colonists, if not more than two years
old, were, by the same act.’ entitled to bounties on
their tonnage similar to the British shipping, pro-
vided they proceeded, after due inspection, from
their ports in America before the Ist of May, for
the Greeniand seas, and returmed from thence to
some port in Britain with the produce of their
fishery.

The American whale-fishery, at this period, was
carried on by boats of about six men, and in a great
measure by the Esquimaux Indians, from whom
the colonists were in the habit of purchasing oil
and fins. ‘The oil and fins of the Esquimaux fish-
ing, are stated to have been much inferior to those
brought from Greenland; the oil being adulte-

* Anderson’s Com. a. p. 1767. + Idem, a. D. 1775.
. + 11th Geo. III. c. 38.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—BRITISH COLONIES. 137

rated with a mixture of seal and cod oil, and the
fins brittle *.

“ In order to encourage that great nursery for
hardy seamen, the, Newfoundland fishery,” Par-
liament, in the year 1775, offered premiums to suc-
cessful fishers, as well whale-fishers as others. The
vessels were to be “ British built, of 50 tons burden
or upwards, belonging to Great Britain, Ireland,”
or places subject to the British Crown, and na-
vigated with not less than 15 men, three-fourths
of them, besides the master, being British sub-
jects. Vessels thus conditioned, “ prosecuting the
whale-fishery in the Gulf of St Lawrence, or on the
coasts of Labrador or Newfoundland, and catching
one whale at least, were allowed to import their oil
free of duty; and premiums of 500/., 400/., 3007,
200/., and 100/7., were allowed to the five vessels
which should bring the greatest quantity of oil.
The skins of seals, caught by European British
subjects, were also admitted to be imported free of
duty, in ships legally navigated +.”

In 1780, the British colonies afforded to Ireland
24,489 gallons of oil, of their own fishing; in 1781,
16,466 gallons; in 1782, 22,998 gallons; in 1783,
43,743 gallons, and in 1784, 30,985 gallons of oil {.
The same colonies imported into Britain, in 1787,

* Anderson’s Com. A. D. 1771. + 15th Geo. III. c. 31.

{ Macpherson’s Annals of Commerce.

138 WHALE-FISHERY.

3447 tons of oil *. And in 1794, there were im=-
ported into Britain from the United States, 9'70,628
gallons of oil; in 1795, 810,524 gallons, and in 1796,
1,176,650 gallons of whale oil.

At the present time, the whale-fishery of the
Gulf of St Lawrence is conducted by the inhabi-
tants of Gaspie and others, inhabiting the shores of
the gulf and river. They seldom meet with the
mysticetus, but usually attack a species of fin-whalg,
which resorts periodically to their coasts.

SECT. IIT.
Whale-Fishery of the Dutch.

THe Dutch have been eminently distinguished,
for the vigour and success with which, for the space
of more than a century, they prosecuted the whale-
fishery at Spitzbergen. But though this branch of
their commerce was so generally successful during
such a long period, it was by no means equally pro-

table at all times, from its commencement in the
beginning of the seventeenth century, to its termi-
nation near the end of the eighteenth century. On
the contrary, there were occasional periods of general
loss to the adventurers.

* Oddy’s European Commerce, p. 533.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—HOLLAND. 139

Hence, the whale-fishery of the Dutch is divisi-
ble into several eras, distinguished by some change
of national character, or by their economy or lavish-
ness in the equipment of their vessels; to which
circumstances, the difference in the degree of suc-
cess that resulted from their labours in the different
eras, is to be attributed.

They first entered the fishing stations on the
coast of Spitzbergen with one ship, fitted for taking
whales, and another for hunting sea-horses, in the
year 1612. But on this, as well as on future occa-
sions, they were prevented by the English Russia
Company’s ships from enjoying to the full, the
several advantages which the fishery was capable of
affording.

As the Dutch, as well as the English, afterwards
sent armed fleets to the fishery, the quarrels became,
occasionally, of a serious nature; but after a few
years of hostility, the folly of conflicts, productive
only of mutual injury, became glaring. A plan
was therefore arranged, for preventing their in-
terference with one another in the fishery, by
making a division among the different nations, of
the bays and harbours, suitable for fishing stations,
in Spitzbergen. When this measure had, in a con-
siderable degree, adjusted the existing differences,
the Dutch took possession of their portion of bays
and harbours, and built boiling-houses, warchouses,
cooperages, and other erections convenient for the

140 WHALE-FISHERY.

purposes of the fishery, and for reducing the blub-
ber into oil. These buildings were principally made
at the expence of the joint-stock companies, which
were at different periods chartered by the States-
General, prior to the year 1642, the period when
the trade was laid entirely open to all adventurers *.
The principal edifices of the Dutch were rais-
ed on Amsterdam Island; where the. rapid in-
crease of the shipping employed in the fishery, their
universal good success, and the expectation that the
trade would never fail, induced them to extend their
buildings in such a degree, that the place became
of considerable importance, and was characteristicly
designated Smeerenberg. During the first twenty or

* 1st Charter for 3 years, bears date 27th January 1614,
(Beschryving, vol. i. p. 3,—4.) ; extended in 1617 for 4 years ;
and in 1621 for 1 year: 2d, The charter of the Zealand Com-
pany, allowing them to participate in the trade, bears date
28th May 1622, (Id. vol. i. p. 9.): 3d, The charter of “ the
Greater and Lesser Northern Societies of Holland,” for 12
years, bears date 22d December 1622, (Id. vol. i. p. 6,-8.),;
4th, The Frieslanders’ charter for 20 years, bears date 22d No-
vember 1634, (Id. vol. i. p. 10,-12): 5th, The charter of the
North Holland and Zealand Companies, united with that of
West Friesland for 8 years, bears date 25th October 1633,
(Id. vol. i p. 18,-20.) This charter expired in 1641, and
was not afterwards renewed : 6th, The Frieslanders jomed, by
agreement, with the Companies of Zealand and Holland, to be
partakers of the benefit of their charter for 8 years : this agree-

ment consists of 24 articles, and bears date 23d June 1636,
(Id. vol. i. p. 13,-16.)

san

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—HOLLAND. 14]

thirty years, the Dutch fishery maintained its im-
portance, and was prosecuted with the most splen-
did success. The ships that were on the fishery, be-
ing sometimes incapable of carrying home the ex-
traordinary quantity of oil and fins which they ob-
tained, empty vessels were occasionally sent out for
taking in the superabundant produce *.

After prosperity had invariably crowned their
endeavours for a number of years, the whales at
length appearing to have become sensible of the
danger to which they were exposed from the fish-
ers, commenced their retreat from the bays, and
were afterwards discovered with less certainty, and
consequently captured in fewer numbers. This
circumstance marks the termination of the first
era.

The system of extravagance which had been
adopted in times of prosperity, continued to be
acted upon during the second era of the Dutch
fishery. Heavy losses, arising from the expensive
nature of all their buildings, which, in the final
retreat of the whales from the bays, became pro-
gressively of less importance, the extravagant e-
quipment of their ships, and the increased expence
required for adapting the ships for the sea-fishery,
together with the growing scarcity of the whales,
at length obliged the chartered companies to adopt

* Elking’s View, &c. p. 43.

149 WHALE-FISHERY.

measures of retrenchment, since their former profits,
abundant as they undoubtedly had been, were
ina great measure swallowed up by subsequent
losses. Presuming, it seems, on their former suc-
cess, they neglected to adapt their expenditure to
the then altered and particular state of the fishery.
This period of general loss, consisting only of a few
years, is comprised in the second era *.

The thard era of the Dutch fishery, is distinguish-
ed by the adoption of that system of frugality,
through which, in combination with the exercise of
natural talent, they were enabled to prosecute the
fishery with a splendour and advantage, which
excited the admiration of all the commercial na-
tions of Europe. The chief improvements and pe-
culiarities in the new system are said to have con-
sisted of two measures.

First, The number of men and quantity of stores
required for ships of different dimensions, were ad-
justed with careful minuteness, whereby prior re-
dundancies were detected and discontinued.

Second, The trades-people supplied the ships with.
stores on the principle of bottomry +; that is, the
baker, brewer, sailmaker, ropemaker, cooper, and

* Forster, in his History of Voyages and Discoveries in the
North, mentions that the fishery was in the fulness of its
splendour, from 1614 to 1641, (p. 426.) And B. de Reste, in
the “ Histoire des Péches,” observes, that it was in its most
flourishing state about the year 1630, (tom. i. p. 276.)

+ Macpherson’s Annals of Commerce, vol. iii. p. 193.

GOMPARATIVE VIEW.—HOLLAND. 148

other artificers, agreed to venture their stores on the
success of the voyage; so that, in the event of a
clean ship, they lost the whole or greater part ; but
in case of a full cargo being obtained, they probably
received above twice the value of the articles fur-
nished. ‘Thus, when the fishery failed, the loss to
the proprietors or freighters of the vessels was trifl-
ing, though it is very evident, that, in the event of
great success, their emoluments were less consider-
able.

This fishing which enriched the adventurers by
its ample produce, occasioned no small degree of
activity in the village of Smeerenberg, and in the
Island of Amsterdam in general. Such, indeed, was
the bustle produced by the yearly visitation of two
or three hundred vessels, containing from 12,000
to 18,000 men, being double manned *, that the
place had the appearance of a commercial or manu-
facturing town; and of such consideration was this
village, that the incitement of an advantageous
traffic, drew a number of annual settlers to the place,
for the purpose of vending such stores as brandy,
wine, tobacco, and other commodities in constant
demand,—to whom the exposure to cold, and the
inconveniencies of the voyage, were amply com-
pensated by the considerable profits which they
derived. Not only shopkeepers, but bakers and

* Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 28.

144 WHALE-FISHERY,

other artizans, resorted thither. With the bakers, -
it was customary to signify to the sailors, by the
blowing of a horn, the time when the bread was
just drawn hot from the oven*. Thus the vast
fleets of ships which crowded into the harbour when
the fishery without was suspended, in consequence
of storms, thick weather, or any other circum-
stance +, occasioned the naturally barren and de-
solate shores of Spitzbergen, to assume the ap-
pearance of a populous country. And such was the
flourishing appearance of Smeerenberg, that it was
compared by the Hollanders with their famous set-
tlement of Batavia, which was founded about the
same time.

During the time the fishery was confined to the
Dutch chartered companies, the number of ships
employed in it did not exceed 30 sail on an ave-
rage ; but in a few years, after it was laid entire-
ly open, the annual voyagers from Holland were
increased tenfold; and it is surprising, that the
success of the ships, notwithstanding the num-

* Beschryving der Walvisvangst, vol. i. p. 28.

+ After the boiling-houses at Smeerenberg were disused,
the place continued to be a general rendezvous for such ships
as had made a successful fishing ; to which they retired for the
convenience of packing the blubber in their casks. This, to-
gether with the above-mentioned purposes for which it was
also visited, rendered the bay and harbour at all times crowded
with ships, during the continuance of the-fishing season.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—HOLLAND. 145

ber which crowded into the trade for many years,
was very considerable.
- Great as the importance of Smeerenberg had hi-
therto been, it gradually declined, as the fish re-
treated to a greater distance from the bays, and
the mode of capture was changed. The blubber
being then taken home in its raw state, the boil-
ing-houses first became useless, the coppers were
afterwards taken up, and many of the buildings
wantonly dilapidated. As the place became still
less frequently the resort of the fishers, the huts
and warehouses, many of which had been built at
great expence, progressively shared the same fate.
Such as were spared by the wanton hand of mis-
chief, at length yielded to the silent but certain
operations of time, and fell into a state of decay.
This era, comprising an interval of about 130
years, is one of the greatest importance in the an-
nals of the Dutch commerce. During this exten-
sive period, the Dutch whale-fishery probably ave-
raged 160 sail annually; which fleet but rarely
failed to return a very handsome profit to its own-
ers, was consequently a general benefit to the people
immediately interested in its success, and a univer-
sal source of national wealth during the whole epoch.
The fourth era of the Dutch whale-fishery, is
marked by an apparent change in the national cha-
racter, and by an evident change in the commercial
abilities of the people. From being one of the
VOL. II. K

146 WHALE-FISHERY.

most enterprising and intrepid nations in the world,
they, through the dissolution of their unanimity, by
the presence and influence of French soldiery, and
the consequent introduction of French principles
among them, have greatly degenerated in public spirit
and commercial talent. Hence, of late years, their
energies have been relaxed, and they have been
unable to keep pace with the improvements which
have been adopted in the art of the fishery by the
British, and their success has in consequence been
much inferior. Such is the revolution which has
occurred in the fishery of the Dutch, that their an--
tient superiority over the British is now reversed ;—
the British, in point of fishing talent, being, at pre-
sent, beyond dispute their superiors: And as the
English in the early and middle ages of the whale-
fishery, were commonly under tbe necessity of en-
gaging the assistance of the Dutch, so the Dutch
now, in their turn, find British fishing-officers a
valuable acquisition. About the year 1770, the
Dutch fishery began to decline; during half a
century previous to this period, it had averaged:
182 ships per year, but from 1769 to 1778, the
average was reduced to 134 sail, and about the time
of the American war, to 60 or 70 ships per year *.

~
f

* Oddy’s Commerce, p. 525. ; and Histoire des Péches, vol. i
p. 294 to 316.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—HOLLAND. 147

The Dutch, it may be remarked, have been
more assiduous adventurers in the northern whale-
fisheries than any other nation, having pursued the
trade at all times since their commencement in the
year 1612 to the present, except when the pecu-
liar situation of the country with regard to other
nations, prevented their ships from visiting the fish-
ery; and even then, in times of war, they often
ventured abroad under the disguise of a neutral
flag. Partial or total suspensions of their whale-
fishery were thus occasioned in the years 1653,
1659 (conditionally), 1665, 1666, 1672, 1673, 1674,
1691, 1781, 1782, and during the last war. Ex-
cluding these occasions, when the fishery was in-
tercepted, the Dutch whale-fishery, during a pe-
riod of 125 years, included between 1660 and 1795,
employed 18,992 vessels, which captured 71,900
whales ; averaging 152 ships and 5754 fish, or 32
fish per ship each year.

The Dutch Government has at all periods, since
the discovery of the whale-fishery, encouraged its
prosecution by various edicts of indulgence, but
never by bounties, until the year 1815, when a
premium of 4000 f2 (to be continued for three years)
was offered on the outfit of every ship, and 50060 f-
more if she returned home clean. If she met with
success, 50 f were to be deducted off the second
bounty for every quardeel or barrel of oil she brought
home, thus absorbing all the second bounty, if her

K 2%

148 WHALE-FISHERY.

cargo should produce 100 quardeelen of oil or up-
wards. Previous to this, the encouragements held
forth were principally comprised in the exemp-
tion of all the produce of the whale-fisheries, to-
gether with some of the stores used in the equip-
ment of the ships, from duty. The Government, at
the same time that it encouraged its own subjects
to embark in this trade, for the benefit of the State,
was exceedingly careful that none of the advantages
accruing from it should be divided with other na-
tions. "The means used for confining the prosecu-
tion of the whale-fishery, by the subjects of the
United Provinces, within their own dominions,
were extremely rigorous. No ship was allowed to
be equipped for the whale-fishery by Dutch sub-
jects, from any country or kingdom but their own;
and no barrels, boats, or other implements used in
the fishery, were permitted to be exported or sold
abroad, under the severest penalties: no ship was
allowed to be fitted in Holland for the use of any
foreign power, under the penalties of its confisca-
tion, &c.: none of the produce of the whale-fishery
was allowed to be conveyed from Greenland to any
foreign country to be disposed of, directly or indi-
rectly, (excepting under the usual regulations of
exportation), under the penalty of 6060 florins, se-
curity for which sum was required for each ship be-
fore putting to sea, together with the confiscation
of the ships by which such produce might be ille-

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—HOLLAND. 149

gally conveyed abroad: and no harpooner, boat-
steerer, or other fishing-officer, was allowed to en-
gage in the service of any foreign nation, in time of
war, under severe restrictions *.

The great fishery of the north has not always
answered the expectations of the adventurers ; it is
admitted, on the contrary, that in many disastrous
years, the products were greatly inferior to the ex-
pences. A thousand unforeseen accidents occasion-
ally disappointed the vigilance of the directors of the
different companies and societies of whale-fishers,
and rendered the labours of the seamen, whose de-
partment it was to capture the whales, ineffectual.

Some speculators have imagined, that the fishery
for the whale was, on an average, disadvantageous,
and that, on the whole, it was injurious rather than
beneficial to the State. Others have compared this
branch of commerce to a lottery, in which, while
some obtain large prizes, others suffer still greater
loss ; and, consequently, as in a lottery, there must
be an ultimate loss to the speculators. These opi-
nions seem, however, to be grounded in error, since,
from different careful calculations, it appears, that
between the years 1669 and 1778, the Dutch
whale-fishery was a general source of gain to the ad-

* The greater part of these regulations were in force only in
time of war. °

150 WHALE-FISHERY.

venturers, and of riches to the State. The national
benefit, it is true, has always been diminished by
part of the money expended in stores for the equip-
ment of the fishing ships, being paid to strangers
for foreign produce ; but the greater proportion of
the expenditure reverted to the benefit of the State,
by being paid for articles which were the produce
of the country, and for wages to various artificers
and labourers, who procured an ample livelihood in
,zanufacturing the foreign produce into stores pro-
per for the outfit of the fleet. |
Zorgdrager, whose authority is highly respected
by his countrymen, estimates the expence of fitting
a ship with six boats and all other stores requisite

for the whale-fishery, at 4924 florins 17 sols. His
calculation is as follows :

For casks, = “ 2370f
Boats and all other stores, - W554

| - 4924f:
Wages of 42 men for the voyage, - 8000
Hire of the ship and insurance, . 3000
Provisions for the voyage, - 1523

Sum total of advances for a whale-fish-
ing ship, - - - 12447 %

* Histoire des Péches, vol. i. p. 279. This estimation being
made for a hired ship, might be expected to admit of the de-
duction of the owner’s profits, when the calculation is applied
to-such ships as are the property of the adventurers.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—HOLLAND. 154

Thus, an expence of 10,000 to 13,000 florins was
requisite, before a ship could be sent out and retwn
from the fishery; and this sum was necessarily ex-
pended whatever might be the issue of the voyage.
This estimation does not differ greatly from that of
other intelligent persons. A work, entitled “ Den
Koopman,” (The Merchant,) states the average num-
ber of fishing ships to have been 180 sail, the a-
mount of advances on which, after the rate of Zorg-
drager’s estimation, is 2,240,460 florins. Wage-
naar, another celebrated historian of Holland, gives
a calculation a little different. He estimates the
total advances requisite for the equipment of 180
fishing ships, at 1,800,000/- after the rate of 10,000/°
for each ship. We find the particulars of Wage-
naar’s calculation in his work, called “ Tegenwor-
digen Staat der Vereenigde Nederlanden.” They are
as follow :

BOO HOWNCABSICR «oo 5a 8z 19 fen +s scree son nas qasn soni 108,000 f.
2,700,000 hoops, for repairing old casks, &c....... 43,200
ic SM 0. SI 8 Mince AR De, Si UR 21,600
RPAIVOU tO. Ot COLAO, «WoL NVA .85,000
Making and repairing boats, with their stores,....15,000
Tron-work, nails, smiths’ wages, &C.,.......6.s0eeeeees 5,000
400,600 Ib;:of beef}: 83.020. ee oe sa st etee sis 40,000
2,800 firkins of butter, of 80 or 90 Amst. lb. each, 57,600
220.000 Th.cof, stockefish, 0... <v0. «ns soudestupssowsete tn 12,000
BEOOO Ib sof DisGiitts 6.5 «5-4 sand sntasanineewamesn.cp ce 40,000
72,000 Ib, of soft bread, .......02sessesseoscenecesceers 18,000

Carried forward, 395,500 f°

152 WHALE-FISHERY. |

Brought forward, 395,500 f-

550 ankers of geneva,.......-...-----.+2-2-2eseeeee seers 5,500
Sugar, spices, NC.,.......sseeeceseeeeeeeseeeeeeeeteee eens 3,000
60,000 Ib. of Friesland pork, .......... > RN eee 8,000
T44 O00 Ib. of Cheese,.........2.-concnee spent eeresasons 18,000
20,000 Ib. of Texel and Leyden cheese,............. 1,500
19 ~ * grels of beer, (including excise duty,) .27,000

wks of pease, barley, 8c. &c.,..........26005 40,500
Hermngsiand jealt-fiphyss ..850..227..951 Ge. Beene 3,000

Various cook’s and cabin furniture ; expences

of transporting stores on board, Xc.,...........38,000
Hand money toySea meme sins o a io n's snpidimcloains quryeh 180,000.
Wages of seamen, payable on the return of the

ships, and other incidental expences during

BS WY OS Mec cetnte . oaeh de tos ee len eee eee coe 540,000
For the freight or hire of the ships, at the rate
of 3000 florins for each''ship, ....0000. 0.00.08. 540,000

Sum total of advances for 180 whale-fishing
SIPS s 3.4 sac ov: qdeceiab ope <eScnewamhias ces biuee debs 1,800,000,

The difference in the calculations of Zorgdrager
and Wagenaar, is 440,460 florins on the total, and
2447 florins for each ship. W agenaar’s estimation is,
therefore, about one-fifth less than that of Zorgdra-
ger.

Hence, the total amount of money expended an-
nually by the Dutch in the prosecution of the
whale-fishery, (exclusive of the additional expences
resulting from success in the fishery,) seems to have
heen 1,500,000 to 2,240,460 florins ; and however

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—HOLLAND. 153

disastrous the fishery might be, this sum was al-
ways to be paid. But though it might have hap-
pened, that this sum was on any occasion totally
lost to the adventurers, yet the final loss to the State
was not great, because that proportion of expences
only which was required for foreign labour and
foreign produce, was considered as subtracted from
the national wealth.

As it would be too elaborate and uninteresting,
were I to follow the foreign authors in the whole
particulars of their estimation of the national
loss which accrued from one year’s equipment of
180 ships, supposing no returns from the fishery,
I shall content myself with giving the result of the
whole; and to those who wish for further informa-
tion on the subject, refer them to the originals *.
The Dutch authors divide the preceding table of
Wagenaar’s in the following manner :

1. They extract the value of certain articles which are the
produce of the Provinces, such as butter, cheese, beef,
bacon, pease, oatmeal, &c. to which they add the wages
of coopers and other artificers, the money expended
m which remains entirely in the country, and
BMIOWTIES Ll de SIN. Faia ad PESOS ANSE. Cis 233,500 f

*- << Nieuwe Beschryving der Walvisvangst en Haring Vis-
schery, door D. de Jong, H. Kobel, en M. Salieth.” And its
French translation, “ Histoire des Péches, des découvertes,
et des etablissemens des Hollandois, dans les Mers du Nord, par
le C. Bernarde de Reste.”

154 WHALE-FISHERY.

Brought forward, 233,500 f-

2. The value of articles of foreign produce, or

any of the ingredients of which are imported

from foreign countries, consisting of barrel

staves, stock-fish, bread, beer, geneva, tim-

ber, iron, hemp, &c. amounts to ... 306,500 £
Of this sum, the proportion which is

paid to foreign powers for the raw

materials, &c. is estimated at....... ..21'7,600

And the difference of these sums,
“which is entirely expended in the
wages of artificers, labourers, &c.
TeMalns IY Che CGUNEPY, oA. esscee es wesee oPasten: 88,900 £
5. Amount of seamens wages, ......... 720,000
Of this sum, a part is carried abroad
by the few foreigners who are en-
gaged from neighbouring states, es- -
CUMROCh abe re cccees: + cscish ouerne ion denend 20,000

Therefore, the difference of the two sums

remains in the country, which is, ............068 700,000
4. All the money paid for the freight or hire and

insurance of the fleet remains in the country,

which, as before stated, amounts to ....... ..... 940,000
Hence, the proportion of the advances of 180-————

fishing ships, which remains in the country, 1s

estimated at...........66 brartitacs Aicroicte tect eie 1,562,400
And the proportion paid to foreign coun-
ties) onlytssnt Ul. Re ae PRY Pose Lee . 237,600 *.

* This sum should be increased, and the former sum dimi-
nished, by the value of losses among the shipping, which,
averaging 3.73 ships per year, makes 37,300 life

COMPARATIVE VIEW.——HOLLAND. 155

The Dutch authorstherefore conclude, that should
it ever have so happened, that the whole fleet of 180
ships should have returned home without a single
fish, the adventurers would, in fact, lose the sum of
1,800,000 florins; but so far from this sum being
lost to the State, the equipment of the Greenland
fleet, notwithstanding the total failure of the fish-
ery, would augment the interior circulation of
money, in the amount of the above enumeration of
1,562,400/; and the amount of loss to the State,
in this point of view, would only consist of that
proportion of the total advances paid to foreign na-
tions for hemp, tar, masts, timber, staves, iron, and
other articles, which is calculated at 237,600 flo-
rins.

M. Gerard Van Sante, published in 1770, “ An
Alphabetical List of the Captains of Fishing-ships
sent to Greenland and Davis’ Straits * ;” which, not-
withstanding the unpromising title, is in reality
an instructive work. It is from it, indeed, that the
most interesting details of the success of the Dutch
fishery during a period of more than a century, in-
cluded between 1669 and 1779, are derived. While
the whale-fishery opened to the inhabitants of
Holland a new branch of commerce, it, at the
same time, conferred two important advantages on
the State; the first and the most general was, that it

* « Alphabetische Naamlyst van alle Groenlandsche en Straat
Davische Commandeurs.”

156 WHALE-FISHERY.

afforded a useful employment to a vast number of
labourers and artificers, and it gave to the interior
trade a new circulation and increased activity ;
and the second was, that while it conferred an ac-
tual benefit on the adventurers, and through them
on the State, it likewise occasioned an improve-
ment in the general relations of commerce with fo-
relgn powers.

For estimating, as nearly as may be, the amount
of the emoluments derived from the whale-fishery,
by the individuals speculating in the trade, during
the period detailed by Gerard van Sante, it may be
divided into eleven equal portions of ten consecutive
years, each of which, in the “ Nieuwe Beschryving
der Walvisvangst,” and in the “ Histoire des
Péches,” forms a distinct table; but for the sake of
brevity, 1 shall include the whole in one point of
view.

TABULAR VIEW, &c.

To Face page 156. vol. ii.}
TABULAR VIEW of the Durcu GreEenta

‘

Expences of Value of Expences of Pre- | Pr

Years Inclu-; Ships, | Equipment | Ships bs = het paring the oil and} Amount of | Jar?

sive. sent |of ships; or | Lost. Bask i fins, with other Expences. | voi

out. | advances. ; Incidentals. Ad

1669-1673 * 993} 9,930,000; 83) $30,000 4,250,000 15,010,000} 4
16791688} 1932] 19,320,000] 113/1,120,000 5,900,000 263850, 000| 0
1689—1698 955| 9,550,000 82 820,000 2,836,00 13,206,000} 10
1699—1708| 1652| 16,520,000} 62) 620,000 4,518,000 21,658,000} - 40
1709—1718} 1351! 13,510,000} 51] 510,000 2,557,000 16,577,000] 0
1719—1728) 1504] 15,040,000] 40] 400,000 1,974,000 17,414,000; 0
1729 — 1738 858} 8,580,000} 13] 130,000 1,304,000 10,014,000}
1739—1748} 1356] 13,560,000] 31] 310,000 2,892,880 16,762,880] ‘A
1749—1758| 1339) 13,390,000] 30) 300,000 2,024,120 15,714,120] @
1759—1768| 1324! 13,240,000} 25] 250,000 1,464,190 14,954,180} 2
1769—1778 903 | 9,030,000} 31} 310,000 $93,780 10,233,780} 4
1669—1778 | 14167 561 177,893,970 | 440|

TABULAR VIEW of the Dutcy Da

Wo. of | Expences of Ranertos af Pre: Pri

Years Inclu-|Ships | the Equip- P - Amount of | lanf

: ? paring the Oil i

sive. Equip- | ment ofthe 7, Expences. | of i

= . and Fins, &c.

ped. Ships. tur
1719—1728] 748 7,480,000 200,000 1,112,280 8,792,280 8}
1729—1738| 975 9,750,000 140,000 1,527,910 | 11,417,910 7}
1739—1748| 368 3,680,000 100,000 793,240 4,573,240] 8)
1749—1758|} 340 3,400,000 60,900 461,500 3,921,500 0;
1759—1768| 296 2,960,000 40,000 537,720 3,537,720 7
1769—1778|; 434 4,340,000 80,090 853, 960 5,273,960 2 |
1719—1778)| 316% 37,516,610| 2

Additional Expences in the Davis’ Straits F ae |

ery, of 1000f. per ship, in consequence of the 3,161,000] Of
greater length of the voyage, - - H
40,677,610 |

* This interval between 1669 and 1678, consists only of 7 voyages instead of

Note.—The annual amount of advances, col. 3., is calculated in this Table, accordin) 3
but in this sum is included 4924. for the first cost of casks, boats, and other stores for tP,
on her first voyage, were really 12,000 to 13,000f. ; yet, on future voyages, it would be red’s-

aimation, or 10,000. per ship per annum.

feat

156 WHALE-FISHERY.

afforded a useful employment to a vast number of
labourers and artificers, and it gave to the interior
trade a new circulation and increased activity ;
and the second was, that while it conferred an ac-
tual benefit on the adventurers, and through them
on the State, it likewise occasioned an improve-
ment in the general relations of commerce with fo-
relon powers.

For estimating, as nearly as may be, the amount
of the emoluments derived from the whale-fishery,
by the individuals speculating in the trade, during
the period detailed by Gerard van Sante, it may be
divided into eleven equal portions of ten consecutive
years, each of which, in the “ Nieuwe Beschryving
der Walvisvangst,” and in the “ Histoire des
Péches,” forms a distinct table; but for the sake of
brevity, 1 shall include the whole in one point of
view.

TABULAR VIEW, &c.

~~; " f %
To Face page 156. vol. ii.] “ -
TABULAR VIEW of the Durcu GneENtaND Fisuery, During a Period of One Hundred and Seven Years. _

| No, of Value of Expences of Pre- Profit or Ba- No. of | Casks or | Barrels or [Price Quantity of | Pri :
Ds ¢ :: 3 2 . B - y of | Price of | Value of the
Years Inclu-} Ships. the Ships |P2™s dheioihand } Amount of |lance infa- "| 104] Vaten of | Quardeex lof Oil Waluesit Oil Whalebone |Finsper| Fins in Flo- Aaiount,oF
avast yy Sent ‘Lost. {SNS with other) Expences. jvour of the | saxen, | Blubber. | en of Oils(per@.|* F!HM® i, Pounds. |100 Ib. |rins Benelptas
out. . Incidentals. Adventurers. iP . :
1669.1678" 993 4,250,000 15,010,000] 4,285,000 | 6,414) 283,396) 425,000 13,175,000} 12,750,000} 48 6,120,000) 19,295,000

5,900,000 26,350,000 908,000 | 10,019| 395,771] 590,000) 36} 21,240,000! 17,700,000

1679—1688| 1932 34 | 6,018,000) 27,258,000

1689—1698| 955| 9,550,000 820,000 2,836,000 | 12,206,000] 10,928,360 | 4,864| 189,132} 283,600] 50] 14,180,000) 8,508,000] 117 9,954,360} 24,134,360
1699—1708| 1652] 16,520,000 620,000 4,518,000 | 21,658,000] - 4,727,120 | 8,537| 301,250] 451,800| 41] 18,523,800| 13,554,000| 58 7,861,320) 26,385,120
1709—1718] 1351] 13,510,000 510,000 2,557,000 | 16,577,000] 6,129,160 | 4,645] 170,488] 255,700] 57} 14,574,900] 7,671,000| 106 8,131,260] 22,706,160
1719—1728] 1504| 15,040,000 400,000 1,974,000 | 17,414,000] 588,880 | 3,439] 131,607] 197,400] 42] 8,290,800] 5,922,000] 164 9,712,080} 18,002,880
1729-1738] 958] 8,580,000 130,000 1,304,000 | 10,014,000] 3,427,680 | 2,198] $6,939] 130,400] 39] 5,070,000] 3,912,000] 214 8,371,680] 13,441,680
1739—1748| 1356] 13,560,000 310,000 2,892,880 | 16,762,880] 7,016,544 | 6,193| 192,859} 289,288] 45! 13,017,960| 8,678,600] 124 | 10,761,464| 23,779,424
1749-1758] 1339] 13,390,000 300,000 2,024,120 | 15,714,120] 2,219,510 | 4,770] 135,725| 202,412] 52) 10,595,424! 6,072,360] 122 7,408,206) 17,933, 630
17891768} 1324! 13,240,000 250,009 1,464,190 | 14,954,190] 1,166,592 | 3,018] 98,517| 146,419] 60] 8,785,140] 4,392,600] 167 7,935,642| 16,120,782

310,000 $93,780 10,233,780] 2,895,954 | 3,493) 89,378] 133,977

177,893,970} 44,292,800 |

62) 8,306,574) 4,019,300; 120 4,823,160) 13,129,734

222,186,770

1769—1778 903

1669—1778 | 14167

9,030,000

No. of ; Expences of - ass Profit or Ba- | 47 © ; a fe
Years Inclu-|Ships | the Equip- Sali Gs a eae of ie Amount of | lance in favour| 7°” y Casks of | Quardee- | EB ee Value of Oil Guantiiy at Paice of we ie Be Amount of
‘a Haui Conch the Ships |paring the Oil Femercesi#| of the Advenc Whales Blubber. {len of Oil of Oil’. a Flori Whalebone |Finsper Fins in Flo- Meccsnt
aves Hee ae N Lost. and Wins, &e. P j a ee taken. : p perQ.\" mS: lin Pounds. |100 Ib. |rins. pe:

SE | ee

1719—1728} 748 7,480,000) 20 | 200,000 1,112,280 8,792,280 1,351,548) 1,251] 74,152] 111,228) 42) 4,671,576} 3,336,800] 164 5,472,352} 10,143,928)
17291738} 975 9,750,000| 14 | 140,000 1,527,910 |} 11,417,910 4,350,037] 1,929] 101,861 | 152,791) 39) 5,958,829] 4,583,700} 214 9,809,118] 15,767,947)

1739—1748| 368 3,680,000} 10 | 100,000 793,240 4,573,240 2,947,168] 1,162) 52,186 79,324) 45) 4,569,580) 2,779,700| 124 2,950,828) 7,520,408}
1749—1758| 340 3,400,000 60,000 461,500 3,921,500 167,390 513] 32,957} 46,150) 52) 2,399,800} 1,384,500} 122 1,689,090} 4,088,890
1759—1768| 296 2,960,000 - 40,000 537,720 3,537,720 2,215,477 818} 36,219] 53,772| 60; 3,226,320) 1,513,100} 167 2,526,877| 5,753,197
1769—1778) 434 4,340,000 80,000 853,960 5,273,960 3,094,252) 1,313) 59,044) 85,396) 62) 5,294,552] 2,561,880) 120 3,074,160! 8,368,712
1719—1778| 3164 37,516,610 14,125,872 & ea yy 51,643,082
Additional Expences in the Davis’ Straits F iby

ery, of 1000f. per ship, in consequence of the 3,161,000] OF 3,161,000
greater length of the voyage, - - ) |
40,677,610, 10,964,872 |

* This interval between 1669 and 1678, consists only of 7 voyages instead of 10, as, in the years 1672, 1673, and 1674, a French war prevented the prosecution of the fishery.

Note.—The annual amount of advances, col. 3., is calculated in this Table, according to Wagenaar, after the rate of 10,000f. per ship. Zorgdrager’s estimation is 12,447 f. per ship (page 150.) ;

_ but in this sum is included 4924 f. for the first cost of casks, boats, and other stores for the fishery, only a small part of which requires to be renewed every year. Hence, though the expences of a ship,
on her first voyage, were really 12,000 to 13,000. ; yet, on future voyages, it would be reduced by the value of that proportion of stores, not requiring annual renewal, to about the same as Wagenaar’s cs-
‘imation, or 10,000/f. per ship per annwns

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COMPARATIVE VIEW.—HOLLAND. 157

From this table, it appears, that the expences in-
curred by the Dutch Greenland whale-fishers, in
the course of 107 years, included between 1669 and
1778, (three years of war omitted), amounted to
177,893,970 f:; that the product of the fishery was
in the same interval, 222,186,770,f;, which leaves
2 balance in favour of the fishers of 44,292,800 f°
or 3,691,066 /. Sterling. If we divide the expences
and, profits by 107, the number of years included in
the estimation, we find the annual expenditnre
must have been 1,662,560 f, and the annual re:
eeipts 2,076,512 f, and consequently the annual
profits 413,952 f But if an annual expenditure
of 1,662,560 f. afford an annual profit of the sum
of 413,952 f, there must be an advantage realized
. to the adventurers of about 25 per cent*.

From the same table, we learn, that during a
period of 60 consecutive years, from 1719 to 1778,
the Dutch Davis’ Straits fishers realized a profit of
10,964,872 f. or 182,748 f. per annum. But the
expences during this period being 40,677,610//,
the proportional advantage to the adventurers must
have been 27 per cent.

The question, therefore, whether the Dutch
whale-fishery was, on the whole, of benefit to the

* Had the value of the ships been included in these calcu-
lations, instead of the freight or hire, the annual profit per cent.
on the capital embarked in the trade, would, I imagine, have
been reduced to near one-half.

158 WHALE-FISHERY.

adventurers, meets a satisfactory solution in the at-

firmative.

It may not be uninteresting, before we quit this
subject, to calculate the extent of national emo-
lument which the Dutch have derived from the
two fisheries of Greenland and Davis’ Straits.
Supposing the principle to be correct, that out of
1,800,000 f, the advances required for 180 fishing
ships, only 237,600 f, the proportion expended in
foreign produce for stores, and in wages to foreign
seamen, and 37,300 f., the average value of ships
wrecked each year, were loss to the State, in case of
no returns being made from the fishery,—we then
easily calculate the benefit to the State arising from
the known success of the Dutch fleet during the
period comprised in the preceding table.

From this table, it appears, that the “ amount of
receipts” of the whole Dutch Greenland fleet dur-
ing a period of 107 years, was... .. 222,186,770 f-

Freight or “ receipts” of the Davis’

Straits fleet during 60 years,...... 51,643,082
Gross produce of the whale-fisheries, 273,829,852 f-
Now, the amount of expences of

the two fleets, appears to be

218,571,580 f°; we therefore say,

As 1,800,000 f, the expenditure

Carried. forward, 273,829,852 f.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—HOLLAND. 159

Brought forward, 273,829,852 f:
of one year, is to 274,900 f, the
loss to the State in one year, so
is the gross expence of the whole
period, 218,571,580 f. to the loss
to the State out of these expen-
ces, provided there had been no

PM See ta ag eo cnisinin ada nahlyny 0 33,380,737

The last sum deducted from the
gross receipts, gives the apparent
benefit afforded to the State from
the whale-fisheries during the

period in question,....... debs, spices ach 240,449,115 2

This balance, reckoning the florin at 20d. Eng-
lish, is equal to 20,037,426/. Sterling, or about.
156 tons of gold; but if we reckon the florin at
21d. English, the value will be equal to about 164
tons of gold! |

This tabular view of the Dutch whale-fisheries,
likewise shows us the average risk of the trade, as
it was then pursued, with regard to the safety of the
vessels employed in it. In 107 years, 14,167 ships
sailed to the Greenland fishery, whereof 561 were
wrecked ; or, in a fleet of 100 ships, on an average,
4 were lost each voyage ; hence the real risk with
respect to premium of insurance, must have been

160 | WHALE-FISHERY.

4 per cent. Ina period of 60 years, 3161 ships
sailed to Davis’ Straits, whereof 62 were wrecked ;
or, in a fleet of 100 ships on an average, 2 were
lost each voyage; consequently the real risk with re-
spect to premium of insurance, must have been
2 per cent. In the present day, however, the ave-
rage loss among the British Greenland and Da-
vis’ Straits fleets is not one-half so much.

The great balance of profits received by the
Dutch whale-fishers during 107 years, amounting
to between fifty and sixty millions of florins, was
all derived from the trade, during what I have
called the third era of their fishery. But the re-
sult of the fourth era will be found to be very dif-
ferent.

Between 1785 and 1794, inclusive, the average
number of vessels fitted out from Holland for Green-
land and Davis’ Straits, was 60 sail. ‘Their success
in ten years, was 2,295 whales and 55,722 casks of
blubber; or 2294 fish, and 5,572 casks of blubber,
equal to 7,2434 quardeelen of oil per year. This
oil, estimated at 35 florins per quardeel, produces
thi Ganateise 2114.0). PER CA 253,522 f
Reckoning for every hundred quardee-

len of oil 3,0001b. of fins, gives, for

the above quantity of oil, 217,000

Carried forward, 253,522 f-

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—SPAIN. 16k

Brought forward, f- 253,522
pounds of fins, which, estimated at
150/. per 100\b., amounts to, ........... 325,500

Consequently, this part of the national
industry of Holland, brought in an-
si in numerical value, the sum
MDs Sedans cdacnw-Sanglbiacian vied ng bnsive yiate F- 579,022
The expences of a ship at this period, with an aver-
age cargo of 120 quardeelen of oil, is estimated at
13,8007, which, multiplied by 60, the number of

vessels employed, amounts to, ......... SJ: 828,000
- But the amount of freight as above esti-
Bae cela ras OMA 4. 5c5ia.. cdiisnide coilcavineb sznige ss 579,022

Consequently, there must have been
an annual loss to the adventurers
ethan erate ND I RMR are ee eee * f. 248,978

SECT. IV.

Whale-Fishery of the Spaniards, French, Danes,
Germans, Norwegians, Prussians and Swedes.

The Biscayvans appear to have engaged in the
whale-fishery on their own coasts, probably some
centuries before the establishment of the fishery at

VOL. Il. L

* Metelerkamp, “ Tableau Statistique dela Hollande,” p. $7,-
4.0.

ibs WHALE-FISHERY.

Spitzbergen. The whales or fin-fish only resorting
to the Bay of Biscay, from the antumnal equinox
until the spring, they began along with the Basques,
in the sixteenth century, to pursue them in their
retreat towards the north and west. In this pur-
suit they were joined by the Icelanders, and for
some years their combined fleets conducted a dis-
tant and extensive fishery ; and were amply recom-
pensed for the trouble and perils of the voyage, by
the highly successful issue.

After instructing the English, Dutch, and other
nations, in the art of capturing the whale, some of
the Biscayans themselves commenced the fishery at
Spitzbergen on their own account. One Spanish
ship, indeed, piloted by an Englishman, fished at
Spitzbergen in 1612; but it was some years after-
wards, before this fishery by the Spaniards became
general. The most eligible harbours on the west
coast being already occupied as fishing stations,
they took possession of a situation on the northern
face of Spitzbergen, whither they regularly resorted
with their ships. It does not appear, however, that
their fishing concern was at any time very exten-
sive, since a great proportion of their fishing offi-
cers seem to have been employed, for many years, in
the service of other northern adventurers. It % evi-
dent, that after the different nations were sufiicient-
ly instructed in the art, the custom of hiring these
foreigners would fall imto disuse, especially as it

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—FRANCE. 163

must have been attended with no inconsiderable ex-
pence ; and, therefore, the skilful Biscayans might,
possibly, be sent out to Spitzbergen on the same
employment by their own countrymen. Of the ex-
tent of their fishing concerns, excepting at particu-
lar times, we have no account. In the year 1721,
twenty ships were sent on the whale-fishery from
different ports in the Bay of Biscay; but towards
the latter part of the last century, it would appear
that the Biscayans had totally abandoned this oceu-
pation.

From the researches of M.S. B. J. Norn *, it
seems probable, that the Frencu had not only an
early knowledge of the use of the harpoon in the
capture of the whale, but that they were actually
engaged in this enterprise in the 14th century; and it
is not very certain, but they commenced this occupa-
tion on some parts of the coast of France even some
centuries earlier. In the early whale-fishery, how-
ever, by the French, as well as in that by the Eng-
lish, we labour under some difficulty in drawing
conclusions from ancient charters, grants, Ke. to
decide, whether they refer to whales accidentally
stranded, forced on shore by the pursuit of boats,
or captured in the main sea. On the whole, I con-
sider there is reason to suppose, that in some of the

L2

* « Memoire sur ]’Antiquité de la Péche de Ja Baleine,” &c.

164 WITALE-FISHERY.

instances quoted by M. Nor, an actual whale-fish-
ery must be referred to.

Though the whale-fishers inhabiting the shores
of the Bay of Biscay, spoken of in the preceding
pages, were principally Spaniards *, yet some of
them were evidently French, and consequently the
whale-fishery of this nation is partly involved in
that of the Biscayans. As it would be needless to
repeat here what has already been advanced, it will
be necessary only to observe, that when they began
to pursue the fin-whales from the Bay of Biscay to
the high sea, the numbers taken were so consi-
derabie, that, according to Rondelet, about the year
1554, the fishers of the coast of Bayonne made use
of the bones of the whale for the inclosures of thew
gardens +. ‘The French sent ships to Spitzbergen
at a very early period, as appears by the account of
all the rival fishers being driven out of the coun-
try by the Russia Company’s ships, in the year
1613, excepting some French ships, which they
permitted to fish there, on payment of a cer-
tain tribute of whales. After this time, the French
were in the habit of frequently visiting the Spitz-
bergen fishery, and occasionally with a considerable
number of ships, though it seems they seldom used
to resort to the bays, but usually fished in the open

* Beschryving, &c. vol. i. p. 26,-27.

+ «© Memoire,” p. 12.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—FRANCE. 165

sea, and brought home their cargoes in the raw
state. When Soccoa, Cibourre, and St Jean de
Luz, were taken and plundered by the Spaniards
in 1636, they likewise seized upon 14 large ships
laden with blubber, as they returned from the
Greeenland seas *.

The French, who greatly neglected the fishery
in the 17th century, made an attempt to revive
this branch of trade in 1784. Six ships fitted out
at Dunkirk, at the expence of Louis XVI., made
some successful voyages, both in the northern and
southern whale-fishery. The advantages of the
trade were obvious, and the French Government
were eager to improve them. In 1786, some of the
sahanitatts of the Island of Nantucket, near Ha-
lifax, i in North America, were invited to settle at
Dunkirk, to carry on the fishery +. Several families
accepted the invitation, and to encourage them to
prosecute the trade, they were permitted to enjoy
peculiar privileges and immunities. Ships were
sent out to different seas, and had prosperous voy-
ages. But this trade, as well as almost every other
branch of French commerce, was completely inter-
rupted hy the Revolution, and the particular cir-
cumstances in which that nation was placed with
regard to foreign powers.

* « Memoire,” &c. p. 13.
+ Ency. Brit. 4th edit. Art. C elology.

166 WHALE-FISHERY.

The Danes first resorted to the coast of Spitz- _
bergen in the year 1615, when they appeared in
the fishing seas with three men of war, and de-
manded tribute from the English. Their plea was,
that they were the original discoverers of West
Greenland, of which country these islands were at
first supposed to be an extension, and, as such,
claimed the Islands of Spitzbergen, and imagined
they were entitled to tribute from all other nations
resorting thither. The English, however, very
properly resisted this assumption, and preferred
their own claim, but on a ground scarcely more
tenable than that of the Danes. They decla-
red themselves to be alone entitled to all ad-
vantages derivable from the Spitzbergen whale-
fishery, in consequence of the supposed discovery of
this country by Sir Hugh Willoughby in 1553 ; but
more plausibly, however, in virtue of the discovery
of the Spitzbergen fishery by the English adven-
turers in the year 1610.

Shortly after the first visit of the Danes to Spitzber-
gen, other ships adapted for carrying on the whale-
fishery were sent out ; and these were allowed to oc-
cupy a small island and convenient bay, lying be-
tween the possessions of the English and the
Dutch, in the 80th degree of north latitude. In
1620, the King of Denmark established a Green-
land Company, which was to have sent out two
ships yearly to the whale-fishery; but in 1624 it

COMPARATIVE VIEW,—DENMARK. 167
was dissolved, the company being so poor that they
could not continue the trade. Any Danish burgher
was then declared to be at liberty to pursue the
fishery. Another company, established in 1636.
sent out ships, which neglected the fishery, and con-
fined their operations to searching for gold and sil-
ver. Their search being unsuccessful, the company
was discouraged, and speedily relinquished any fur-
ther speculation*. In the year 1697, they sent
four ships to Greenland, which procured 4710 pun-
cheons of oil. In 1751, an ordinance was passed
in favour of the Chartered Greenland Company,
prohibiting all others, both natives and foreigners,
from trading to any of the colonies established in
Greenland, or within fifteen miles thereof, under
penalty of seizure and confiscation. In 1753, their
whale-fishing concerns established in different ports —
had increased to 90 sail, the cargoes of which, in this
year, amounted to 344 whales f.

The Greenland fishery afterwards declined, and
was disused by the Danes for many years, before
any attempt was made to revive it. “ In 1785, the
King of Denmark granted a bounty of about 30s.
Sterling per ton, to all vessels in the Greenland and
Icelandic fisheries, on condition of their fitting out
their ships, and selling their cargoes in a Danish —

* Forster’s Voyages and Discoveries in the North, p. 471.

+ Gent. Mag. vol. xxi. p. 189. ; and xxiv. p. 42.

168 WHALE-FISHERY.

port. Foreign built ships were employed, foreign-
ers were encouraged to promote the view, and even
foreign manufactures necessary for the Greenland
fishery, were allowed duty-free *.” After this pe-
riod, the whale-fishery was generally prosecuted by
private adventurers, but at no time with any very
great energy. ‘T'wenty-seven ships were fitted out
of Frederickstadt in 1803, and eight from Copen-
hagen, of which three were wrecked +.

Among the ports of GrERMANY, that of Ham-
burgh occupies the most respectable place in the
annals of the whale-fishery. The Hamburghers
commenced the fishery immediately after the Danes,
and established themselves on the west coast of
Spitzbergen, in a small bay situated near the
Seven Icebergs, discovered by themselves, which
was found to be but little incommoded with ice,
and was, therefore, very suitable as a fishing station.
This place still retains the name of Hamburghers
Bay. From a table of the whale-fishery by the
~ Hamburghers, given by Zorgdrager, it appears, that
they long prosecuted the trade with success. From
1670 to 1719, a period of fifty years, 2289 ships
were sent out to Spitzbergen from Hamburgh,
whereof 84 were wrecked ; the remainder captured
and ‘ook home the produce of 9976 whales, which

* Oddy’s European Commerce, p. 525. 7 Idem.

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—HAMBURGH. 169

afforded 444,607 casks of blubber, being on an a-
verage of the whole number of ships fitted out,
4.36 fish or 194.2 barrels of blubber per ship each
voyage. During the same period, the average suc-
‘cess of the Dutch Greenland fishery was 4.96 fish
per ship each voyage. The proportion of ships
lost by the Hamburghers was 3.7 in 100, and by
the Dutch only 1.8 in 100, during the same time*.

Thus far the success of the Hamburghers in the
whale-fishery, was very uniform with that of the
Dutch ; but the proportion of ships lost in the ice
by the Hamburghers, was double that of the Dutch.

In each of the years 1672,—73,-78,-80,-97, and
1701, the whale-fishery of the Hamburghers produ-
ced from nine to eleven whales per ship; but in the
years 1688,—89,—91,-1706,-10,-18, and 19, the aver-
age was only {ths of a fish per ship; 311 ships which
were fitted out, having only procured in the seven
years 2151 whales. F'rom 1719 to the present time,
the fishery of the Hamburghers was rarely suspend-
ed, but was generally conducted on a respectable
scale, and with like success as that of the neighbour-
ing provinces of Holland. The Greenland ships
fitted out of Hamburgh in 1794, consisted of 25
sail; in 1795, 18; 1796, 19; and in 1797, 19. In
1802 the Hamburgh fleet consisted of 15 sail, and
their cargoes amounted to 62 whales, or 1011 casks
of blubber, which produced 3409 barrels of oil. _

* Zorgdrager’s Groenlandsche Visschery, p. 262,-270.

170 } WHALE-FISHERY.

The whale-fishers from other ports of the Elbe,
have, in general, held a place of some importance,
especially those of Altona, which for many years re-
gularly embarked in the trade. In 1802, Altona
sent out ten ships, which took home only 304 casks of
blubber, or 1536 barrels of oil, the produce of 21
whales. Kleven ships from Gluckstadt, the same
year caught only 24 fish, which afforded 346 casks
of blubber, or 3124 barrels of oil. And two ships
from the eastern ports procured 8 fish, yielding 508
barrels of oil, from 145 casks of blubber *.

The port of Bremen, in the Weser, sent twelve
ships on the fishery in 1697, the united cargoes of
which consisted of 3,790 puncheons of blubber ; and
in 1721, a fleet of twenty-four ships sailed from the
same port. In 1802, the Bremen Greenland fleet
consisted of eight ships; and the same number the
following year, which caught 14 whales, producing
1250 butts of blubber +. ‘The whale and seal fish-
ers from the Elbe and Weser, amounted to 42
sail in the year 1817, and were increased to 53 in
1818 ¢.

* Oddy’s European Commerce, p. 420. ‘t+ Idem, p. 444

$1817, From Hamburgh, 12 1818, From Hamburgh, 19
Altona, 7 Altona, 9
Gluckstadt, 12 Gluckstadt, 17
Bremen, Ff Bremen, 8
4 other Ports, 4 5other Ports, 6

ore

AQ 53

COMPARATIVE VIEW.—SWEDEN. 171

The account of the early whale-fishery of the
NorweEGIAns, as presented to us in Alfred’s Oro-
sius, has been already sufficiently considered. ‘Their
fishery at Spitzbergen seems never to have employ-
ed many vessels, and their enterprises thither to
have been only occasional. A company established
at Bergen for trading with the Greenlanders, made
a feeble effort in 1721 to commence a whale-fishery
at Davis’ Straits; but after continuing it occasion-
ally for a few years with constant bad success, they
abandoned the business; but in the year 1733,
they took the resolution of attempting it again *.

In addition to those nations which have specu-
lated in the whale-fishery already enumerated, I
may mention, that the King of Prussta ordered
the equipment of some ships in 1768; and that the
Government of SWEDEN in 1774, granted to a com-
pany established at Stockholm, the exclusive pri-
vilege of the Greenland and Davis’ Straits fishery
for twenty years, and with a view of promoting an
undertaking so useful to the State, assisted the ad-
venturers with the loan of 500,000 dollars, at an in-
terest of 3 per cent +.

* Hist. des Péches, vol. iti. p. 20.

+ Macpherson, vol. iii. p. 557.

173 WHALE-FISHERY.

CHAPTER III.

SITUATION OF THE EARLY WHALE-FISHERY,—
MANNER IN WHICH IT WAS CONDUCTED,—
AND THE ALTERATIONS WHICH HAVE SUBSE-
QUENTLY TAKEN PLACE.

[umepiaTeLy after the rediscovery of Spitzber-
gen by Hudson, in the year 1607, the walrus-
fishers, who carried on an extensive and profitable
business at Cherry Island, finding the animals of
their pursuit become shy and less abundant, ex-
tended their voyage to the northward, until they
fell in with Spitzbergen, the newly discovered coun-
try, about the time when the Russia Company
equipped their first ships for the Greenland whale-
fishery. As the coast abounded with whales and
sea-horses, Cherry Island was deserted, and Spitz-
bergen became the scene of future enterprise.

At this time, the mysticetus was found in im-
mense numbers throughout the whole extent of the
coast, and in the different capacious bays with
which it abounds. Never having been disturbed,
these animals were unconscious of danger, and al-
lowed themselves to be so closely approached, that

,.. 2

a

METHOD OF FISHING FIRST PRACTISED. 173

they fell an easy prey to the courageous fishermen.
It was not necessary that the ships should cruize
abroad throughout the extended regions of the Po-
lar Seas, as they do at the present time; for the
whales being abundant in the bays, the ships were
anchored in some convenient situation, and gene-
rally remained at their moorings until their cargoes
were completed. Not only did the coast of Spitz-
bergen abound with whales, but the shore of Jan
Mayen Island, in proportion to its extent, afforded
them in like abundance.

The method used for capturing whales, at this
period, was usually by means of the harpoon and
lance, though the Dutch inform us that the Eng-
_lish made use of nets made of strong ropes for the
purpose *. The harpoon, which was the instru-
ment used in general practice for effecting their
entanglement, consisted, as at present, of a barbed
or arrow-shaped iron dart, two or three feet in
length, to which was attached a wooden handle for
convenience in striking or throwing it into the
whale. Fastened to the harpoon, was a line or
rope 300 fathoms in length ; more than sufficient to
reach the bottom in the bays, where the depth of
the water seldom exceeds 80 or 100 fathoms; so
that, on a fish descending after being struck, the
end of the line could always be retained in the boat. -

ee

* Beschryving, &c. vol. i. p. 27.

174 WHALE-FISHERY.

The movements of this boat, of course, corresponded
with those of the whale; and so closely pointed out
its position, that, on its re-appearance at the sur-
face, the other assisting boats were usually very
near the place. It was then vigorously pursued,—
secured by a sufficient number of harpoons,—and
lastly attacked repeatedly with lances until it was
killed. The lance in use was an iron spear, with a
wooden handle, altogether 10 to 12 feet in length.
The capture of the fish, in which, owing to the par-
ticular excellence of the situation, they seldom fail-
ed, being accomplished, it was towed by the boats,
rowing one before another, “ like a team of horses,”
to the ship’s stern, where it lay untouched, from
one * to two or three days}. The fat being then
removed, was carried to the shore; where ample
conveniences being erected, it was afterwards sub-
jected to heat in a boiler, and the greater part of
the oil extracted.

As the process in use by the early fishers for ex-
tracting the oil, may be interesting to some readers,
T shall attempt to describe it, following the accounts
by Captains Anderson and Gray, whose papers on
Greenland and the whale-fishery, embracing this
subject, are preserved among the manuscripts in
the British Museum t.

* Mr Gray’s Account of the Whale-fishery, MS. Brit. Mus.

+ Captain Anderson’s Account of Greenland, Idem.

+ There is no date to the papers of Messrs Anderson and
+ :

; f
Gray ; but, as Anderson was the person, (according to his

OIL PREPARED IN SPITZBERGEN. 175

The blubber being made fast to the shore, a
“ water-side-man,” standing in a pair of boots, mid-
leg in the sea, flayed off the fleshy parts, and cut
the blubber into pieces of about 2 cwt. each. ‘Two
men with a barrow then carried it piece by piece
to a stage or platform erected by the side of the
works, where a man, denominated a “ stage-cutter,”
armed with a long knife, sliced it into pieces 14
inches thick, and about a foot long, and then push-
ed it into an adjoining receptacle, called a “ slicing
cooler.” Immediately beyond this cooler, five or six
choppers were arranged in a line with blocks of
whales-tail before them ; and adjoining these blocks,
was another vessel called a “ chopping cooler,” of
two or three tons capacity. ‘These men being si-
tuated between the two coolers, took the sliced
blubber from the slicing cooler, and after reducing
it into little bits, scarcely one-fourth of an inch thick,
and an inch or two long, pushed it into the chop-
ping cooler. ‘These operations were carried on as

MS.) who took in eight men, whose ship sailed when they
were engaged in hunting, and left them to winter inSpitzbergen
in 1630,—the period here referred to, must have been within
a few years of this time. Gray’s paper was registered by Mr
Oldenberg, Secretary to the Royal Society, in the year 1662,—3;
so that both papers must refer to the same period of time, with-
in a few years at the most. Gray’s paper, (the one I have prin-
cipally followed,) is by far the most clear and precise. It is
contained in the “ Bibl. Sloan.” N°. 698. Art. 27. ; and Ander-
son’s paper in the same departanent, N°. 3985. Art. 22.

176 WHALE-FISHERY.

near as convenient to the place where the copper was
erected. The copper held only half a ton. It was
furnished with a furnace and the requisite appen-
dages. A man, designated “ tub-filler,” with a ladle
of copper, was employed in filling a hogshead with
chopped blubber, dragging it to the copper, and emp-
tying it in, until the copper was full. A fire of wood
was in the first instance applied ; but after a copper
or two had been boiled, the finks or fritters were
always sufficient to boil the remainder without any
other fuel.

When the blubber was sufficiently boiled, two
men, called “ copper-men,” with two long-handled
copper-ladles, took the oil and finks out of the cop-
per, and put it into a “ fritter barrow,” which, be-
ing furnished with a grating of. wood in place of
a bottom, drained the oil from the fritters, from
whence it ran into a wooden tank or cooler of about
five tons capacity. ‘Three coolers were usually pro-
vided, and placed some feet asunder, a little be-
low each other. A quantity of water was put into
each before the oil, and the oil, whenever it came
to a certain height in the first cooler, escaped
through a hole by a spout into the second, the
same way into the third, and from thence by a
plug-hole mto the casks or butts in readiness for its
reception. When the oil in these butts was tho-
roughly cold, whatever it had contracted was filled

BUILDINGS IN SPITZBERGEN. L177
wp, and the casks then rolled into the water, and in
rafts of 20 together, were conveyed to the ship.

The whalebone was separated from the gum or
substance in which it is embedded, rubbed clean,
packed in bundles of 60 lamin or blades each,
and taken to the ship in the longboat. ‘Thus pre-
pared, the cargo was conveyed home, either when
a sufficiency was procured, or the close of the sea-
son put an end to the fishing occupations.

The whale-fishers had different other buildings on
shore besides those made use of in boiling the
blubber. Those of the English, in one harbour,
consisted of a stone hut or tent, covered with wood,
and fitted up with cabins, &c. for lodging the blub-
ber men in, and a large cooperage, with a lodging-
room above it, for the use of the coopers when em-
ployed preparing the casks. In Bell Sound, the
English had a wooden house covered with Ilemish
tiles, originally built by the I‘lemings, 80 fect in
length, and 50 in breadth, besides other smaller
tents. And in addition to similar structures, the
Dutch are said to have built warehouses, dwelling-
houses, and forts.

While some of the people belonging to the whale
ships were engaged in boiling the blubber, the rest
of the crew, it is probable, were occasionally employ-
ed in the capture of other whales.

Each nation which resorted to Spitzbergen, ha-
ving a different fishing station, completely occupied

VOL. IL M

178 WHALE-FISHERY.

it, and retained it tenaciously for its own use. As
a place of resort, however, for escaping a storm, a
contrary wind, or any other especial convenience,
save that of fishing, the harbours were open to
all.

So long as the whales resorted to the bays of
Spitzbergen in sufficient abundance, the method of
fishing first adopted, continued to be practised ; but
when the trade increased, and the annoyance to
their species became so very great that they took.
the alarm and gradually receded from their fa-
vourite haunts, a suitable change in the fishery
was requisite. For twenty years after the com-
mencement of the Spitzbergen fishery, the trade was
in its most flourishing state; the fish were nume-
rous and unwary, and the adventurers seldom failed
to fulfil the intentions of the voyage, by procuring
ample cargoes. ‘The fish seem to have become
scarce in the bays about the years 1630 to 1640;
upon which, the fishery frequently failed, and the
Dutch companies were subjected to such heavy
losses, that their great profits of former years were
almost swallowed up *. Still, however, the whales
were occasionally found in plenty, in particular
places along the coast, or on particular banks, where
some skilful and active individuals, made very pro-
fitable voyages +. So long as the whales remained

* Histoire des Péches, vol. i. p. 307.

+ Beschryving, &c. vol. i. p. 31.

ALTERATIONS IN THE MODE OF FISHING. 179

in the immediate vicinity of the fishing establish-
ments, the boats were sent out of the bays, the fish
captured at sea, towed into the harbour, stripped of
the fat, and the blubber boiled as formerly *; but as
the whales increased their distance, this plan of pro-
cedure became inconvenient ; so that the ships be-
gan to cruise about the sea, to kill the whales
wherever they found them, to take on board the
blubber, and only occasionally to enter a port for
the convenience of making off, or awaiting, when
the weather was unfavourable for fishing, an appro-
priate change.

The different operations connected with the fish-
ery being now more tedious, so far from having oc-
casion for empty ships for carrying away the super-
abundant produce |, it was a matter of difficulty
and uncertainty the procuring a cargo at all; and
with the most prosperous issue, there was not suffi-
cient time for landing the cargo and extracting the
oil §: the blubber was, therefore, merely packed in
casks and conveyed home, where the remaining o-
perations of extracting the oil, and cleaning and.
preparing the whalebone, were completed. Hence
‘the various buildings which had been erected at
a great expence became perfectly useless; the cop-

M 2

* Beschryving, &c. vol. i. p. 31. + Idem, p. 30.

t Idem, vol. i. p. 29 § Idem, p. 30.

180 WHALE-FISHERY.

pers and other apparatus that were worth the tes
moval were taken away, and the buildings of all the
different nations, both at Spitzbergen and at Jan
Mayen Island, were either wantonly razed to
the ground, or suffered to fall into a state of de-
cay *.

~ Martin, who sailed to Spitzbergen in 1671, ob-
served several buildings connected with the “ Har-
lem Cookery” still remaining. They consisted of
two dwelling-houses and two warchouses. He also
noticed a kettle and coolers, a smith’s anvil, tongs,
and other tools, frozen among the ice.

When the whales first approached the borders of
the ice, the fishers held it in such dread, that when-
ever an entangled fish ran towards it, they immedi-
ately cut the line +. Experience through time, in-
ured them to it ; occasionally they ventured among
the loose ice, and the capture of small whales at
fields was at length attempted, and succeeded.
Some adventurous persons sailed to the east side of
Spitzbergen, where the current has a tendency, it is
believed, to turn the ice against the shore; yet
here finding the sea on some occasions open, they
attempted to prosecute the fishery, and it seems
with some success, a great whale-fishery having
been made near Stans Foreland in the year 1700.

The progress of the retreat of the whales from
the bays, first to the sea-coast, from thence to the

* Beschryving, &e. vol. i. p. So. t Idem, p. 32.

ALTERATIONS IN THE MODE OF FISHING. 18%

banks at a distance from land, then to the borders
of the ice, and finally, to the sheltered situations
afforded by the ice, appears to have been fully .ac-
complished about the year 1700, or from that to
1720. In consequence of this event, the plan of
prosecuting the fishery, which, previous to this pe-
riod, had undergone different alterations, now un-
derwent a material change. This change did not
only affect the manner of conducting the fishery,
but it likewise extended to the construction of the
ships, and the quality and quantity of the fishing
apparatus. When the fishery could be effected en-
tirely in the bays, or even along the sea-coast, any
vessels which were sea-worthy, however old or ten-
der, were deemed sufficient to proceed to Spitzber-
gen, and were generally found adequate to the pur-
pose; especially as it was customary to allow the
spring to be far advanced before they set out, where-
by they avoided the inconvenience and obstruction
to the advance of the ships into fishing stations,
which is often presented by the ice in the early part
of the spring of the year; and, what was of equal
consequence, they escaped those tremendous and
destructive storms, to which the whale-fishers in
modern times, who set out at an earlier period, are
constantly exposed. On account of the increased
exposure to the ice, new, or at least very substantial
ships became requisite; and even these, it was
Aound necessary to strengthen by additional timbers

132 WHALE-FISHERY.

on the bows and stem, and additional planks on the
sides. Besides the increased expence of the ships,
a greater quantity of fishing stores became needful.
When fishing among the ice, the whales, after ha-
ving been struck, frequently penetrated to a great
distance, out of the reach of their assailants, drag-
ging the line away, until at length they found it
necessary to cut it, to prevent farther loss. Hence,
by the frequency of disasters among their ships, the
increased expence of their equipment, and the lia-
bility of losing their fishing materials, such an ad-
ditional expence was occasioned, as required ‘the
practice of the most rigid economy to counterbalance.
The destruction among the shipping by the ice, in the
Dutch fleet alone, was frequently near twenty sail
in one year, and, on some occasions, above that num-
ber. The Greenlandmen of the present day, being
mostly ice fishers, an account of the improved mode
of fishing now practised, will be sufficient for the
illustration of the method followed by the Dutch
and other nations ata more early period ; particular-
ly, as the way im which the whale is pursued and kill-
ed, is pretty nearly the same at this time as it was
a hundred years ago; the improvements being con-
fined: to an increase of application, perseverance and
activity, the effects of which, as I have ‘before no-
ticed, are truly wonderful.

Davis’ Straits, or the sea lying between the West
side of Old Greenland and the East side of North

SITUATION OF THE FISHERY CHANGED. 183

america, and its- most northern islands, has gene-
rally, since the close of the 17th century, been the
scene of an advantageous whale-fishery. This fish-
ery was first attempted by the Dutch in 1719, as has
before been mentioned ; after which period, it was
usually resorted to by about three-tenths of their
whalers, while seven-tenths proceeded to Spitzbergen.
The whale-fishery of Davis’ Straits, is conducted in
an extensive limit, and differs only from that of Spitz-
bergen or Greenland, in the sea being in many dis-
tricts less incommoded with ice, and in the climate,
on account of its lower latitude, or the influence of
the land in receiving and dispersing the heat de-
rived from the sun, being somewhat more mild.
The alterations which have taken place in this
_ fishery, are in some measure similar to what have
occurred at Spitzbergen. The fish which, half a
century ago, appear to have resorted to all parts of
the western coast of Old Greenland, in a few years
retired to the northward, but they still remained
about the coast. Within a very few years, how-
ever, of the present, they deserted some of the nor-
thern bays in which they used to be captured in
considerable abundance, and have of late been
principally caught in icy situations, in a high lati-
tude, or in the opening of Hudson’s Straits, or at
the borders of the western ice near the coast of La-
brador. 3

Lé4 WHALE-FISHERY.

Baffin’s Bay was suggested as an excellent fish-
ing station, by the voyager whose name it bears, so
early as the year 1616, when his memorable navi-
gation was performed. Baffin, in a letter pu-
blished by Purchas *, addressed to J. Wostenholm,
Esq. one of the gentiemen who shared in the ex-
pence of the expedition, remarks the probability of
profit which might be derived from future voyages
to this Bay as a fishing station, observing, that
great numbers of whales occur in the bay, and easy
to be struck; and though ships cannot reach the
proper places until toward the middle of July,
“vet they may well tarry tiil the last of August, in
which space much business may be done, and ‘good
store of oil made.”

To this situation, where the whales have never been |
molested, until two years ago, it appears they still
resort in the same manner, and in similar numbers,
as in the time of Baffin. In 1817, two or three of
the Davis’ Straits whalers proceeded through the
Straits into Baffin’s' Bay to a much greater length
than they were in the habit of adventuring ; where,
in the month of July and August, they found the
sea clear of ice, and in some parts abounding with
whales. A Leith ship, which it appears advanced
the farthest, made a successful fishery, in latitude
76°-77°, after the season when it was usual for

* Vol. iii. p. 843.

FISHING SEASON EXTENDED. 185

ships to depart. This fact having become generally
known, several other ships followed the example
in the last season (1818), and persevered through the
barrier of ice lying in 74°-75° towards the north.
After they had succeeded in passing this barrier,
they found, as in the preceding year, a navigable
sea, where several ships met with considerable suc-
cess in the fishery, at a very advanced period of
the season.

This discovery, therefore, of the practicability of
pursuing the whales to their most northern retreats,
and thus prolonging the fishery to a much later pe-
riod than was before usual, is likely to prove an era
of great importance in the fishery of Davis’ Straits.
Ships which fail of success in the old stations, will
still, in the new fishery, have a reserve of the most
promising character. And instead of the fishery
being terminated by the disappearance of the whales
from the old stations, it is probable it will in future
be only terminated by the setting in of the frost.
There is rarely any thick ice formed in June, though
the sea be constantly at or near the freezing tempera-
ture ; much less will there be a liability to strong
ice being formed in September, which is but 34 de-
grees colder than June, when the sea has had the ef-
fect of the warmth of two months, during which the
mean temperature of the air is usually from 6° to 9°
above the freezing point of sea-water. Hence, in-
stead of this fishery being necessarily closed in July,

180 WHALE-FISHERY.

the period when the whales have usually made their
final retreat from the old fishing stations, it will in
future be extended to the end of August at least ;
and it may ultimately appear, that there will be
little danger of ships being permanently frozen up,
unless previously beset in the ice, during any part of
the month of September.

DESCRIPTION OF A WHALE SHIP. 187

CHAPTER IV.

ACCOUNT OF THE MODERN WHALE-FISHERY, AS
CONDUCTED AT SPITZBERGEN.

SECT. I.

Description of a well-adapted Greenland Ship,
with the additional Strengthenings requisite for
resisting the Concussions of tie Ice.

A snip intended for the Greenland or Davis’
Straits trade, should, I conceive, be of three to four
hundred tons admeasurement,—very substantially
built,—doubled and fortified ;—should have six or
seven feet perpendicular space between decks,—
should be furnished with a deseription of sails which
are easily worked,—and should possess the property
of fast sailing.

The most appropriate dimensions of a ship in-
tended for the northern whale-fisheries, seems to be
that which is so large, as to be capable of deriving
the greatest advantage from the best opportunity.
and no larger.

rss WHALE-FISHERY.

A vessel of 250 tons requires nearly the same
number of men, the same quantity of provisions
and stores, and the same expence of outfit, as a ship
of 350 tons burden; while the difference in the
cargoes of the two vessels when filled, is, in one
voyage, more than a compensation for the difference
in the first expence. Besides, for want of similar
room and convenience, the smaller ship has not al-
ways an equal chance of succeeding in the fishery
with the larger. And as ships of about 350 tons
burden have been occasionally filled, it is clear,
vessels of 250 tons are too small for the fishery.

In a voyage of confined duration, in which the
opportunities of procuring a full cargo are but rare,
the magnitude of the cargo, which may with usual
means be obtained, is necessarily limited ; and not-
withstanding it is impossible to state what that li-
mit in future may prove, yet we form an opinion
from what it has heretofore been.

Ships of 350 tons burden, it has been observed,
have been occasionally filled; but we know of no
instance in which a ship of 400 tons admeasure-
ment, of the usual capacious build, has been de-
ficient in capacity for taking in as large a cargo as
of late years there has been any opportunity of pro-
curing; hence we consider, that an increase of di-
mensions above 400 tons, ts not only useless, but of
actual disadvantage.

DESCRIPTION OF A WHALE SHIP. 189

As on the one hand, a ship.of 250 tons burden
is too small, inasmuch as her capacity will not ad-
mit of the most advantageous use being made of
the plentiful fisheries which sometimes occur, so,
on the other hand, a ship of 450 or 500 tons is too
large, because, with the most prosperous fishing,
there would not be a probability, or scarcely a pos-
sibility, that she should ever be filled. We, there-
fore, conclude, that a ship of intermediate size be-
tween 300 and 400 tons, is best adapted for the
fishery. And, on the whole, perhaps, a reomy ship
of 330 or 340 tons, possesses more advantages, with
fewer disadvantages, than a vessel of similar build
of any other capacity *.

Greenland ships, in the early ages of the fishery,
were very indifferent structures; and even within
the last thirty years, when the fishers were not
much in the habit of penetrating far into the ice,
shipping of inferior quality were generally deemed
sufficient for the trade. At present, however, when
a good fishery is rarely made, without frequent ex-
posure to the ice, and sometimes in very critical si-
tuations, the vessels require to be substantially built,
for the purpose of resisting the occasional pressure
of, and frequent blows from the ice, to which the
ships of persevering fishermen must always be more
or less exposed.

* For the farther investigation of the advantages and disad-
vantages of ships of different sizes, see Appendix to this Vo-
lume, No. IT.

.

190 WHALE-FISHERY.

The requisites peculiar to a Greenland ship, the
intention of which is to afford additional strength,
consist of doubling, and sometimes trebling, and
fortifying.

The terms “ doubling” and “ trebling,” are expres-
sive of the number of layers of planks which are ap-
plied to the exterior of a frame of timbers ; hence a
ship which has one additional series of planks, is said
to be doubled ; and such ships as are furnished with
two, or part of two additional layers of planks, are said
to be trebled. Doubling generally consists of the ap-
plication of 2 or 24 inches oak plank near the bow, di-
minishing towards the stern to perhaps half that
thickness, and extending, in one direction, from the.
lower part of the main-wales, to within six feet (per-
pendicular) of the keel forward, and to within eight
or nine feet abaft; and, in the other direction, that
is, fore and aft wise, from the stem to the stern post.
Doubling is used for producing an increase of
strength ; and, at the same time, for preserving the
outside or main planks of: the ship, from being in-
jured by the friction of passing ice. Trebling,
which commonly consists of 14 to 2 inches oak
plank, is generally confined to the bows of the ship,
and rarely extends farther aft than the fore chains,
or chess-tree. It is seldom applied, but to second
rate ships. Its principal use is to imerease the
strength of the ship about the bows; but it also

DESCRIPTION OF A WHALE SHIP. 191

serves to preserve that part of the doubling which
it covers, from being destroyed by the ice.
Fortifying, is the operation of strengthening a
ship’s stem and bows, by the application of timber
and iron plates to the exterior, and a vast number
of timbers and stanchions to the interior. When
it is required to be very strong and complete, the
operation is generally performed somewhat in the
following manner. Four straight substantial oak-
timbers, called ice-beams, about 12 inches square
and 25 feet in length, are placed beneath the hold
beams, butting with their foremost extremities a-
gainst a strong fore-hook, and extending nearly at
right angles, across three or four of the hold beams,
into each of which they are notched and secured
at the point of intersection, by strong iron bolts,
with the addition of cleats on the aftermost beam.
The fore part of the ice-beams, which butt against
the hook, are placed at a small distance from each
other; from thence they diverge in such a way, that
their other extremities divide the aftermost beam
under which they pass, into five equal parts. ‘The
next important part of the fortification is the poiné-
ers, which consist of four or more crooked timbers,
fitting the curve of the ship’s bow on each side ;
these are placed below the hold beams, against the
inside of the ceiling, nearly parallel with the direc-
tion of its planks, some butting against the fore-
hooks, and others passing between them. ‘They

192 WHALE-FISHERY.

are secured by tree-nails and bolts driven into the
timbers of the ship’s bow. Across these pointers
four or five smaller timbers, called riders, disposed
at regular distances, are placed at right angles;
that is, in the same direction as the ribs of the ship.
Now, from each of the points of intersection of the
riders and pointers, consisting of 16 or 20 on each
side of the ship, a stanchion or shore proceeds
to the edge of one of the two ice-beams, placed
on the same side, where it is secured in a rvabbet.
About five of these shores pass from the intersections
of the riders with the upper pointer, to the external
or nearest ice-beam ; five others from the intersec-
tions of the riders with the lower pointer, to the se-
cond ice-beam; and the remaining ten, from the
intersections of the riders on the middle pointers, are
equally distributed between the same two ice-beams
lying on that side. Eight or ten shores, therefore,
terminate in the rabbet of each ice-beam. Lastly,
the ice-beams are supported and connected by seve-
ral strong pieces of wood, placed between each two
in different parts, called carlings, whereby they are
made to bear as one. Hence, it is evident, that a
blow received on the starboard bow, will be impres-
sed on the adjoming pointers, and the impression
communicated through the medium of the lateral
timbers or shores to the two ice-beams on the same
side ; from thence by the carlings to the other ice-
beams, and then by the shores on the opposite side,

DESCRIPTION OF A WHALE SHIP. 193

‘to the larboard bow and annexed pointers. Thus the
whole fore part of the ship is so consolidated, that a
blow cannot be received on any part of one bow, with-
out being communicated by the fortification to every
part of the opposite bow; while every part to and
through which the impression is communicated,
must tend to support that place on which the blow
is impressed. very part of the bows, therefore,
from the stem to the fore-chains, derives additional
strength from the fortification. The stem itself is
likewise supported by such parts of the fortification.
as butt against the fore-hooks; these consist of all
the ice-beams and some of the pointers.
To preserve the stem from being shattered or bruis-
ed by direct blows from the ice, it is strengthened
_by an extra piece applied to the front, called the
false or ice stem. On the sides of this are placed
the zce-knees, which are angular chocks or blocks of
wood, filling the concavity formed by the stem and
bow planks, and extending from about the eight
feet mark to the loading mark. In the best style,
the ice-knees are twelve to fifteen inches in thick-
ness at the stem, diminishing to, perhaps, six or
eight inches thick, at the distance of about eight
feet from the stem, from thence gradually becoming
thinner, until they fall into, and incorporate with the
common doubling, below the fore part of the fore-
chains. This makes a neat bow; and, in point of
VOL. I. i N

194 WHALE-FISHERY.

strength, is much preferable to the angular chocks
or knees, which usually extend but five or six feet
from the stem, and then terminate somewhat ab-
ruptly upon the doubling. Ice-knees not only
strengthen the front of the bows, and prevent the
main planks from being bruised or shattered, as far
as they extend, but likewise protect the stem from
the twisting effect of a side blow. The stem, anda
small part of the ice-knees adjoining, are still far- .
ther defended by plates of half-inch iron, called 2ce-
plates, which are nailed upon the face of the ice-
stem, and partly on the ice-knees, to prevent them
being cut by the ice.

Such are the principal requisites for strengthen-
ing ships intended for the northern whale-fisheries.
There are, likewise, other peculiarities in their struc-
ture, which the nature of the trade requires.

For additional strength as well as convenience,
the hold beams of a Greenland ship should be placed
low, or at a greater distance from the deck beams
than is usual in other merchantmen, leaving a
clear space of six or seven feet between decks. The
strength derived from hold beams laid in this posi-
tion, is prineipally serviceable when the ship is
squeezed between two sheets of ice; because, the
nearer the pressure acts on the extremities of the
beams, the greater is the resistance they are caleu-
lated to offer. And with regard to convenience, a
large space between decks is useful in various points

DESCRIPTION OF A WHALE SHIP. 185

of view: it admits of a considerable portion of the
boats being carried out below, thus effectually pre-
serving them in heavy storms, in which, sometimes,
boats lashed upon deck, are subject to be washed
away or otherwise destroyed, while, at the same time,
the deck is freed from unnecessary lumber and
weight. It is likewise of great advantage in the
event of a successful fishery, as it admits of a great-
er quantity of blubber being taken in at once, be-
sides facilitating many of the operations connected
with the fishery. This position of the hold beams,
though it takes from the capacity of the hold, does
not, of course, affect the dimensions of the hull;
and in a ship of 350 tons, it will generally leave
such a space in the hold as will admit of three tiers
of casks, of 300 to 350 gallons capacity, and be
completely filled by them; whereas, if the dimen-
sions of the hold were enlarged by the beams being
elevated, it would require four tiers of convenient
sized casks to fill it; which additional tier, would
oceasion an amazing increase of labour in the diffe-
rent processes connected with the packing of blub-
ber in Greenland.

Hammocks, as receptacles for sailors’ beds, being
incommodious, the crew are lodged in cabins or
births, erected in the half deck: these consist of
from twelve to twenty in number, each of which is
calculated to contain two or three persons.

When a ship is on fishing stations, the boats are
required to be always ready for use; as such, they

N 2

196 WHALE-FISHERY.

are suspended from davits or cranes fixed on the
sides of the ship, and are usually so contrived,
that a boat can be lowered down into the water,
manned and pushed off from the ship, in the short
space of a minute of time. Prior to the year 1813,
a ship having seven boats carried one at each waist,
that is, between the main-mast and fore-mast, two
at each quarter, one above the other, and one a-
cross the stem. As an improvement on this plan,
in 1813, the Esk of Whitby and John of Greenock,
had each their boats fixed in a line of three lengths
of boats on each side. In the usual way of suspen-
sion, it was necessary that the under quarter boats
should be taken upon deck in every storm, accom-
panied by a high sea,—an operation which, on some
occasions, was scarcely practicable. They were,
likewise, subject to be damaged by the passing ice.
The mode adopted in the Esk and John, in a great
measure avoids both these inconveniences; besides
which it is attended with the peculiar advantage of
admitting any particular boat of the seven to be
lowered by itself, or all the seven boats at the same
time. ‘These advantages of the new manner of sus-
pending the boats were at once so evident, that the
plan was adopted in almost every new ship subse-
quently fitted for the fishery, and in almost every
old ship in the trade, excepting where want of
length, or the consideration of the expence requisite
for making the alteration, prevented it.

DESCRIPTION OF A WHALE SHIP. 197

The masts and sails of a Greenlandman are not
without their peculiarities. As it is an object
of some importance, that a fishing ship should be
easily navigated, under common circumstances, by
a boat’s crew of six or seven men, it is usual to take
down royal masts, and even some of the top-gallant-
masts, and sometimes to substitute a long light pole
in place of a mizen-top-mast ; also to adopt such sails
as require the least management. Courses set in
the usual way require a number of men to work
them when the ship is tacked: A course, there-
fore, made to diminish as it descends, that is, nar-
rowest at the foot or lower part, and extended by a
boom or yard below as well as above, and this boom
fastened by a tackle fixed at its centre to the deck,
swings with the yards with little or no attention,
and is found particularly convenient. Fore-sails, on
this principle, have been in use about six or seven
years. In 1816, I fitted a main-sail and cross-
jack in the same way, the former of which we found
of admirable utility. Boom-courses * are not only
convenient in tacking, but are likewise a valuable
acquisition when sailing among crowded dangerous
ice. As the safety of a ship then depends, next to
the skilfulness of the piloting officer, on a prompt

* To prevent confusion in speaking of these sails, I have
confined the term boom-sails to the new description of courses ;
and gaff-sails to the fore and aft sails, the tops of which are ex-
tended to a gaff.

198 WHALE-FISHERY.

management of the yards and sails, boom-courses
are strikingly useful, on account of the little atten-
tion they require, when any alteration in the posi-
tion of the sails becomes necessary. And when the
ship’s head-way is required to be suddenly stopped,
in a situation where she cannot be luffed into the
wind, hoom-courses swinging simultaneously with
the top-sails, are backed without any annoyance from
tacks or sheets, and of course assist materially in
effecting the intention. Such is the advantage of
this description of sails, that on one oceasion when
all the rest of my crew were engaged in the cap-
ture of a whale, with the assistance of only two
men, neither of them sailors, I repeatedly tacked
a ship of 350 tons burden under three courses, top-
sails and top-gallant-sails, together with jib and
mizen, in a strong breeze of wind. Gaff-sails, be-
tween the masts, in the place of stay-sails, are like-
wise deservedly in much repute. To the mizen
and, try-sail or gaff main-sail, that have been long
in use, I have added a gaff fore-sail of similar form,
besides which, my Father has also adapted gaff-top-
sails between each mast. ‘These sails produce an
admirable effect when a ship is “ on a wind,”
which is the kind of sailing most required among

ice.

DESCRIPTION OF A WHALE SHIP'S CREW. 199

SECT. II.

Proceedings on bourd of a Greenland Ship, fron
putting to Sea to her Arrival on the Coast of
Spitzbergen.

WHEN a ship is fully equipped, with at least the
- proportion of men, provisions, boats and stores, re-
quired by law for her tonnage, together with va-
rious other apparatus and appendages which expe-
rience has found to be useful or indispensable * ;
when the crew have been mustered + by the proper
officer of the customs, and paid a month’s wages in
advance; and when the requisites of law with re-
gard to bonds, certificates, oaths, &e. have been ful-
filled, and the ship cleared out at the custom-
house,—the first opportunity is embraced for putting
to sea. This is generally accomplished in the course
of the month of March, or at latest before the 10th
of April.

The crew of a whale-ship usually consists of 40
to 50 men, comprising several classes of officers, such
as harpooners, boat-stecrers, line-managers, carpen-

* For a schedule of the extra stores, see Appendix No. III.

+ For the manner of mustering the crew of whale ships,
with some account of the affidavits, certificates, &c. required by
law, see Appendix, No. IV.

200 WHALE-FISHERY.

ters, coopers, &e., together with fore-mast-men, land-
men, andapprentices. Asa stimulus to the crew in
the fishery, every individual, from the master down
to the boys, beside his monthly pay, receives either
a gratuity for every size fish caught during the voy-
age, or a certain sum for every ton of oil which
the cargo produces. Masters and harpooners, in
place of monthly wages, receive a small sum in ad-
vance before sailing, and if they procure no cargo
whatever, they receive nothing more for their voy-
age; but in the event of a successful fishing, their
advantages are considerable. The master usually re-
ceives three guineas for each size fish, and as much
for striking a size whale, or discovering a dead one,
together with 10s. to 20s. per ton on oil, and com-
monly a thirtieth, a twenty-fifth, or a twentieth of
the value of the cargo besides. He also has about
51. per month for his attendance on the ship while
he remains on shore. Each harpooner has usually
Gs. per ton on oil, together with half-a-guinea for
every size fish he may strike during the voyage. In
addition to which, the chief-mate, who is generally
also a harpooner, has commonly two guineas per
month when at sea, and a guinea for each size fish,
‘The specksioneer or chief harpooner, has also half-a-
guinea per fish, and sometimes a trifle ner ton of oil ad-
ditional; and the second mate, and other officers, who
serve in a compound capacity, have some additional
monthly wages. Boat-steerers, line-managers, and

WAGES OF THE CREW OF A WHALE snir. 261

fore-mast men, commonly receive about ls. 6d.
per ten each, besides their monthly pay, and land-
men either a trifle per ton on oil, or a few shillings
for each size fish.

From the difference in the wages paid in different
ports, it is not easy to say what is the amount of
wages received by each class of officers belonging to
the whale ships. In the general, however, it may
be understood, that in a ship with 200 tons of oil,
which is esteemed an excellent cargo, the chief
mate receives about 95/. for his voyage; a har-
pooner about 70/.; and a common sailor, or fore-
mast man, about 25/,, including advance money and
monthly pay. As the master’s wages depend as
much on the value of the cargo, as upon its quanti-
ty, it is difficult to give an opinion as to the amount:
generally speaking, however, with a cargo of 200
tons of oil, he will receive about 2507. to 300/. when
his pay is according to the lowest scale, and perkaps
5001. or 600 1., or wpwards, when he is pa:d after
the highest rate.

In time of war, the manning of the whale-ships
at the ports where they were respectively fitted out,
being sometimes impracticable, and always a mat-
ter of difficulty, it was usual for the owners and
masters of such ships to avail themselves of the pri.
vilege allowed by act of Parliament, of completing
their crews in Shetland and Orkney. These islands
were therefore the frequent resort of most of the
fishermen; those bound for Spitzbergen commonly

962 WHALE-FISHERY.

put into Shetland, and those for Davis’ Straits inte
Orkney. But, in the present time of peace also,
several ships, in consequence of the higher wages de-
manded by the English seamen, have availed them-
selves of a late extension of the act, for permitting
a certain amount of extra men to be taken on board
in Shetland, or Orkney, during the continuance of
the bounty system. ‘This privilege being originally
intended to terminate with the war, it became an ob-
ject of justice to the Shetland and Orkney people to
extend it to peace also. Since these islanders had
formerly furthered the interests of the fishers, and en-
abled them to send more ships than otherwise could
have been manned, it was only reasonable that no
obstruction at least, should be offered to prevent
the fishers from repaying them for the accommoda-
tion they afforded in time of war, by continuing to
employ them after the establishment of peace.

In Shetland, it is usual for the fishermen to
trim their ships, and complete their ballast, by
filling most of their empty casks with water, where
it has not previously been done,—to replenish
their fresh water,—to lay in stocks of eggs, fish,
fowls, sea-sand, &¢.,—to divest the ships of all
elevated lumber, and gaudy appendages to the
masts and rigging, by the way of preparing them
for enduring the Polar storms, with greater safety
and convenience,—and, lastly, to fix a “ crow’s
nest,” or “ hurricane-house,” on the mast of each ship.

DESCRIPTION OF CROWS NEST. 203

and prepare a passage to it as safe and convenient
as possible.

The erow’s nest is an apparatus placed on the
main-top-mast, or top-gallant-mast head, as a kind of
watch-tower, for the use of the master, or officer of the
wateh, in the fishing seas, for sheltering him from
the wind, when engaged in piloting the ship through
crowded ice, or for obtaining a more extensive view of
the sea around, when looking out for whales. When
sailing amongst much heavy drift ice, as seen from
the deck, it seems at a small distance impervious,
although it may happen that scarcely any two
pieces are connected ; but, from the mast head,
the relative position of almost every piece may
be distinctly seen, and an opinion may be formed,
by the experienced observer, of the probable and
actual movements of such pieces as the ship is re-
quired to pass. This is an object of the greatest
importance; because the varied movements of the
different pieces, occasion such an alteration in the
channel pursued, that were it not for a constant,
attentive, and judicious watch by the master, or an
able officer, a ship could not pass through any
crowded collection of drift ice, without the immi-
nent risk of being stove. Now, in difficult situa-
tions, a master’s presence at the mast head, is some-
times required for many hours in succession, when
the temperature of the air is from 10° to 20° below
the freezing point, or more. It is therefore neces-

204 WHALE FISHERY.

sary, for the preservation of his health, as well as
his comfort, that he should be sheltered from the
piercing gale*. A piece of canvas tied round the
head of the main-top-mast, and heel of the top-gal-
lant-mast, extending only from the cap to the cross
trees, or at best a canvas stretched round the base
of the top-gallant rigging, but open on the after part,
was the most complete contrivance of a crow’s nest,
until a few years ago, when my Father invented an
apparatus, having the appearance of a rostrum,
which afforded an admirable defence against the
wind. This contrivance, from the comfortable shel-
ter it affords to the navigator, having come into
very general use, it may not be improper to describe
it more particularly. The one most approved by
the inventor is about 43 feet in length, and 24 in
diameter. The form is cylindrical; open above and
close below. It is composed of laths of wood placed
in a perpendicular position round the exterior edge
of a strong wooden hoop, forming the top, and
round a plane of mahogany, or other wood, which
forms the bottom; and the whole circumference of
the cylinder is covered with canvas or leather.
The entrance is by a trap-hatch at the bottom. It
is fixed on the very summit of the main-top-gallant-

A

* T have myself been seven hours at the mast head, without
ence descending ; and have many times spent 10 or 12 hours
ef a day in the crow’s nest.

PASSAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 905

mast, from whence the prospect on every side is
unimpeded. On the after side is a seat, with a
place beneath for a flag. In other parts are recep-
tacles for a speaking trumpet, telescope, and occa-
sionally for a rifle piece *, with utensils for loading.
For the more effectual shelter of the observer, when
in an erect posture, a moveable screen is applied to
the top on the windward side, which increases the
height so much as effectually to shield his head.
When the ship is tacked, nothing more is necessary
for retaining the complete shelter, than shifting
the screen to the opposite side, whicn is done in an
instant.

The Greenland ships usually leave Shetland to-
wards the end of March or the beginning of April.
From thence, if their view be to avail themselves
of the benefit of the seal-fishery, they steer to the
northward on the meridian, or a little to the west-
» ward, and commonly make the ice in the latitude
of 70° to 72° north. But if the month of April
be much advanced before they leave Shetland, they

* The rifle has been occasionally used for shooting nar
whales : when fired at from the deck, it is almost impossible
to kill them, partly on account of the resistance of the water,
which the ball must pass through, and partly on account of
the deception in their position, produced by the refractive pro-
perty of the water. Shooting from the mast head nearly per-
pendicularly downwards, in a great measure obviates both these
inconveniences.

io

06 WHALE-FISHERY.

gencrally steer for the whaling stations, on a eourse
to the east of north, with the view of falling into
that remarkable indentation of the Polar ice, lying
in 5 or 10 degrees east longitude, which I have de-
nominated the “ Whale-fishers Bight.” It used to -
be the practice to remain on sealing stations until
the beginning of May, and not to enter the ice
until about the middle of the month; but of late
it has become usual to push into the ice at a much
earlier period, though the practice is neither with-
out its dangers nor disadvantages. If a barrier of
ice prevents the fisher from reaching the usual fish-
ing station, he sometimes perseveres in search of
whales on the southward margin of the ice, but
more generally endeavours to push through it into
an opening, which is usually formed on the west
side of Spitzbergen in the month of May, where
he seldom fails of meeting with the objects of his
search. It is a common remark, that the more diffi-
culty there is attending the passage through the
ice, the better is the fishery when that passage is
accomplished. In close seasons, very few ships pass-
the barrier before the middle or end of May. Those
which first succeed, immediately proceed along the
edge of the western ice to the latitude of 78 or 79
degrees, or until they meet with whales. But in
open seasons, the most commendable plan is to sail
direct to the latitude of 80 degrees, when it can

FISHERY OF DIFFERENT LATITUDES. 907

be accomplished at a very early period, where large
whales are generally at this season to be found.

SECT. IIT.

Observations on the Fishery of different Latitudes
and Seasons, and under diferent circumstances
of Ice, Wind, and Weather.

It is not yet ascertained, what is the earliest pe-
riod of the year, in which it is possible to fish for
whales. The danger attending the navigation, a-
midst massive drift ice in the obscurity of night, is
the most formidable objection against attempting
the fishery before the middle of the month of April,
when the sun having entered the northern tropie,
begins to enlighten the Polar ‘regions throughout
the twenty-four hours. Severity of frost, prevalence
of storms, and frequency of thick weather, arising
from snow and. frost rime, are the usual concomi-
tants of the spring of the year; and these, when
combined with the darkness incident to night, a
tempestuous sea, and crowded ice, must probably
produce as high a degree of horror in the mind
of the navigator, who is unhappily subjected to their
distressful influence, as any combination of cireum-
stances which the imagination can present.

208 WHALE-FISHERY.

Some ships have sailed to the northward of the
seventy-eight degree of latitude, before the close of
the month of March; but I am not acquainted with
a single instance, where the hardy fishers have, at
this season, derived any compensation for the extra-
ordinary dangers to which they were exposed. In
the course of the month of April, on certain occa-
sions, considerable progress has been made in the
fishery, notwithstanding the frequency of storms.
At the first stage of the business, in open seasons,
the whales are usually found in most abundance on
the borders of the ice, near Hackluyt’s Headland, in
the latitude of 80°. A degree or two farther south,
they are sometimes seen, though not in much plen-
ty: but in the 76th degree, they sometimes occur
in such numbers, as to present a tolerable prospect of
success in assailing them. Some rare instances have
occurred, wherein they have been seen on the edge
of the ice extending from Cherry Island to Point-
look-out, in the early part of the season.

In the year 1803, the fishery of April was consi-
derable in the latitude of 80°; in 1813, many
whales were seen near the same latitude; but the
weather being tempestuous in an almost unprece-
dented degree, but few were killed; and in the in-
termediate years, the fishery was never general in
this month, and but seldom begun at all before the
commencement of May. In 1814, the fishery com-
menced before the middle of April. and some ships

FISHERY OF DIFFERENT LATITUDES. 969

derived uncommon advantage from an early arrival.
In 1815, some ships were near Spitzbergen in
March, and fished in the first week of April in the
latitude of 80°, where a great number of whales
were seen. Accompanying the ice in its drift along
the coast to the southward, the same tribe of whales
were seen in the latitude of 78°, about the middle
and end of the month, and a considerable number
were killed. In 1816, fish were seen in 80°, in the
same month, but few killed, on account of the for-
mation of bay ice upon the sea. In 1817, the
weather was very tempestuous in April, and scarce-
ly any whales were killed; and in 1818, the fish-
ery of this month was inconsiderable.

- Grown fish are frequently found at the edge, or
a little within the edge of the loose ice, in the 79th
degree of north latitude, in the month of May;
and small whales of different ages at fields, and
sometimes in bays of the ice in the 80th degree.

Usually, the fish are most plentiful in June:
and on some occasions they are met with in every
degree of latitude from 75° to 80°. In this month.
the large whales are found in every variety of situa-
tion; sometimes in open water, at others in the loose
ice, or at the edges of fields and floes, near the main
impervious body of ice, extending towards the
coast of West Greenland. The smaller animals of
the species are, at the same time, found farther te

VOL. Ti. Q

910 WHALE-FISHERY.

the south than in the spring, at floes, fields, or ever
among loose ice, but most plentifully about fields
or fioes, at the border of the main western ice, in
the latitude of 78 or 783 degrees.

In July, the fishery generally terminates, some-
times at the beginning of the month, at others,
though more rarely, it continues throughout the
greater part of it. Few small fish are seen at this
season. The large whales, when plentiful, are
found occasionally in every intermediate situation,
between the open sea and the main ice, in one di-
rection, and between the latitudes of 75° and 79°
in the other, but rarely as far north as 80°.

The parallel of 78 to 784 degrees, is, on the whole,
the most productive fishing station. 'The interval
between this parallel and 80°, or any other situa-
tion more remote, is called the “ northward,” and
any situation in a lower latitude than 78°, is called
the “ southward.”

Though the 79th degree affords whales in the
greatest abundance, yet the 76th degree affords
them, perhaps, more generally. In this latter situa-
tion, a very large kind of the mysticetus is com-
monly to be found thronghout the season, from
April to July inclusive. Their number, however,
is not often great; and as the situation im which
they occur is unsheltered, and, consequently, ex-
posed to heavy swells, the southern fishery 3 is not -
much frequented,

DIFFERENT TRIBES OF MYSTICETE. Sli

The parallel of 77° to 7740, is considered a
* dead latitude” by the fishers, but occasionally it
affords whales also.

From an attentive observation of facts, it would
appear, that different tribes of the mysticetus inha-
bit different regions, and pursue different routes on
their removal from the places where first seen.
These tribes seem to be distinguished by a differ-
ence of age or manners, and in some instances, ap-
parently by a difference of species or sub-species.
The whales seen in the spring in the latitude of
80°, which are usually full grown animals, disap-
pear generally by the end of April; and the place
of their retreat is unknown. Those inhabiting the
regions of 78°, are of a mixed size. Such as resort
to fields in May and beginning of June, are gener-
_ally young animals; and those seen in the latitude
of 76°, are almost always of the very largest kind.
Instances are remembered by some aged captains,
wherein a number have been taken in the sowth-
ward fishing stations, which were astonishingly pro-
duetive of oil. It is probable, that the difference
in the appearance of the heads, or the difference of
proportion existing between the heads and bodies
of some mysticete, are distinguishable of a diffe-
rence in. the species, or sub-species. ‘Those inha-
biting southern latitudes, have commonly long heads
and bodies, compared with their circumference, mo-
derately thick blubber and long whalebone ; those of

0 2

219 WHALE-FISHERY-.

the mean fishing latitude, that is 78°,-79°,. have
more commonly short broad heads, compared with
the size of the body. In some individuals, the
head is at least one-third of the whole length of the
animal, but in others scarcely two-sevenths. Hence,
it is exceedingly probable, that the whales seen early
in April, in the latitude of 80 , are a peculiar tribe,
which do not re-appear during the remainder of the
season ; and that those inhabiting the latitude of 78°
and of 76°, are likewise distinct tribes.

Notwithstanding, if we descend to particulars, the
great variety and uncertainty which appear in the
nature of the situations preferred by the whales,
and the apparent dissimilarity observed in their ha-
bits,—it is probable, that were the different tribes
distinguished, we should find a much greater de-
eree. of similarity im their choice of situation and in
their general habits, than we are at present able te
trace.

Annoyed as the whales are by the fishers, it is
not surprising that they sometimes vary their usual
places of resort ; and it is not improbable, were they
left undisturbed for a few years, but that they
might return to the bays and sea-coasts of Spitzber-
gen and its neighbouring islands, as was formerly
the custom with certain tribes, at the commencement
of this fishery. We are doubtless, in a great mea-:
sure, indebted to the necessity they are under, of
performing the fuaction of respiration in the air, at

DIFFERENT TRIBES OF MYSTICETE. 9138

stated intervals, for being able to mect with them
at all; though the coast of Spitzbergen may possi-
bly possess a powerful attraction to the mysticete, by
affording them a greater abundance of palatable food
than the interior western waters, covered perpctu-
ally by the ice. From this necessity of respiring
in the air, we may account for their appearance in
the open sea in the early part of the spring. The
ice at this season, connected by the winter’s frost,
is probably so consolidated, as to prevent the whales
from breathing among it, excepting within so much
of its confines as may be broken by the violence of the
sea in storms. After the dissolution of the continuity
of the ice, by north, north-west, or west winds, they
find sufficient convenience for respiration in the in-
terior, and often retreat thither to the great disadvan-
tageof the whalers. In such cases, if the formation of
bay ice, or the continuity of the border of the heavy
ice, prevents the ships from following, the whales
completely escape their enemies, until the relaxation
of the frost permits an entrance.

‘It is not uncommon, however, for an adult tribe
of whales to resort partially to the open sea, between
the latitudes of 76° and 79°, during the months of
May and June, and though more rarely, during the
early part of July, when, at length, they suddenly
betake themselves to the ice and disappear altoge-
ther.

QT4 WHALE-FISHERY.

The systematical movements of the whales receive
additional illustration from many well known facts.
Sometimes a large tribe passing from one place to
another, which, under such circumstances, is denomi-
nated a “run of fish,” has been traced in its move-
ments, in a direct line from the south towards the
north, along the seaward edge of the western ice,
througl: a space of two or three degrees of lati-
tude ; then it has been ascertained to have en-
tered the ice, and penetrated to the north-westward,
beyond the reach of the fishers. In certain years,
it is curious to observe, that the whales commence
a simultaneous retreat throughout the whole fish-
ing limits, and all disappear within the space of a
very few days. On such occasions, it has often
happened, that not a single whale has been seen by
any individual belonging to the whole Greenland
fleet, after, perhaps, the middle of June, but more
commonly after the first or second week in July,
notwithstanding many of the fleet may have cruised
about in the fishing regions for a month afterwards.
In the year 1813, whales were found in considerable
numbers in the open sea, during the greater part of
the fishing season, but in the greatest abundance
about the end of June and beginning of July. On
the 6th of July they departed into the ice, and
were followed by the fishers; several were killed
during the three succeeding days, but they wholly
disappeared after the 9th, Notwithstanding, seve-

PERMINATION OF THE FISHING SEASON. 215

ral ships cruised “ the country” for some weeks
afterwards, in all navigable directions through an
extent of four degrees of latitude, and penetrated
the ice as far as the main.western body, in different
parallels, it does not appear that a single whale was
caught, and, as far as I was able to learn, but one
was seen, and this individual was observed to be
rapidly advancing towards the north-west. I do
not mention this as an uncommon circumstance,
because a similar case occurs frequently, but as a
single illustration of the foregoing observation.
When the fishery for the season, in the opinion
of the British whalers, has altogether ceased, it ap-
pears from the observations of the Dutch *, that it
may frequently be recommenced in the autumn, at the
verge of the most northern waters, near Hackluyt’s
Headland. They consider the fish which then appear
as the same tribe that are seen in this place in the
spring of the year, and enter the ice immediately
after it opens in the north. On the recommence-
ment of the frost, they instinctively return, to pre-
vent themselves being enclosed so far within the
ice, as to occasion suffocation from the freezing up
of the openings through which they might other-
wise breathe. In consequence of this, together with
the dangers attending the northern fishery in the
spring, the Dutch appear to have generally prefer-

* Beschryving, &c. vol. i. p. 52.

216 WHALE-FISTIERY.

red the fishery of high northern latitudes in the
autumn, as a considerable degree of success was
reasonably expected from it at this season, without
the same risk of getting their ships beset as they are
exposed to in the spring. ‘The many calamities which
have occurred to the Hollanders, from their ships
getting beset, occasioned an excessive dread of ‘the
ice in high latitudes. Such of their ships as hap-
pened to get enclosed by the ice under unfayour-
able circumstances, not only failed altogether in the
fishery, but not unfrequently accompanied the ice
in its drift by the course of the south-westerly cur-
rent, and remained beset until the approach of win-
ter. In some instances, they were obliged to win-
ter in the Polar regions, and on several occasions
their ships were wrecked, and many, if not all, of
their crews perished under the most afflicting cir-
cumstances. In modern times, these events are
more rare, notwithstanding the increased perseve-
rance of the fishers among the ice. ‘This may be
attributed to the extraordinary exertions of skill
and personal labour, which they now make use of,
for accomplishing their release, whenever they find
themselves unhappily enclosed in such situations as
threaten them with permanent detention, or their
ships with destruction. The means in common
use for securing the safety of their ships, are like-
wise ingenious. They seck the most protected situa-
tion, keep an anxious watch, and remove their ships,

DIFFERENT TRIBES OF MYSTICETE. O17

when it can be accomplished, on the first approach
of danger; but if unable to move about, they cut
canals or docks in the solid ice, into which they push
their ships, and generally preserve them in safety.

That tribe of whales above mentioned, which are
seen in the spring and autumn of the year near
Hackluyt’s Headland, are supposed by the Dutch
to be really inhabitants of the sea adjoining West
Greenland; that they always retreat thither when-
ever the state of the ice will admit, and only appear
within the observance of the fishers, when the so-
lidity of the ice prevents their attaining those fa-
vourite situations, where they probably find the
most agreeable food *.

The whales of lower latitudes, however, whose
food lies near the eastern margin of the main
ice, when they enter the ice in May and June,
seem to exhibit an intention of evading their pur-
suers; for in whatever manner they may retreat for
a while, they frequently return to the same or other
similar place accessible to the fishers. But after
the month of July, this tribe also penetrates so
deeply into the ice, that it gets beyond the reach
of its enemies.

Ships, when drifted along with the ice to the
south-west, until they lose sight of the whales, en-

* Beschryving, &c. vol. i. p. 53.—As I have never seen whales
in this situation in the autumn myself, I give the information
entirely on the authority of the work here quoted.

218 WHALE-FISHERY.

deavour to make their escape into the eastern sea,
and resume the fishery again in a higher latitude.

There have been occasions in which whales have
been seen and killed in the latitude of 71° or 72°,
but the cireumstanees were peculiar, and the in-
stances rare.

Having now mentioned, generally, the principal
places resorted to by the whales in the Spitzbergen
seas, it will possibly be interesting to such as are in
any way concerned in the fishery, to notice more par-
ticularly their favourite haunts, under particular
circumstances.

Experience proves, that the whale has its fa-
vourite places of resort, depending on a sufficiency
ef food, particular cireumstances of weather, and
particular positions and qualities of the ice. ‘Thus,
though many whales may have been seen im open
water, when the weather was fine, after the oe-
currence of a storm, perhaps not one is to be
seen. And, though fields are sometimes the re-
sort of hundreds of whales, yet, whenever the
loose ice around separates entirely away, the
whales quit them also. Hence fields seldom: af-
ford whales in much abundance, excepting at the
time when they first “ break out,” and become’ ae-
eessible ; that is, immediately after a vacancy is
made on some side by the separation of adjoining
fields, floes or drift ice. Whales, on leaving. fields
which have become exposed, frequently retire te

FAVOURITE HAUNTS OF WHALES. 219

other more obscure situations in a west or north-west
direction ; but occasionally they retreat no further
than the neighbouring drift ice, from whence they
sometimes return to the fields at regular intervals
of six, twelve, or twenty-four hours. It is a re-
mark of my Father’s, which may be useful to the
fisher, that in penetrating from the sea towards the
edge of a field in search of whales, seldom will any
be found, unless some individuals are seen in the
passage through the intervening loose ice.

Whales are rarely seen in abundance in the large
open spaces of water, which sometimes occur amidst
fields and floes, nor are they commonly seen in a
very open pack, unless it be in the immediate neigh-
bourhood of the main western ice. ‘They seem te
have a preference for close packs and patches of ice,
and for fields under certain circumstances ; for deep
bays or bights, and sometimes for clear water situa-
tions; occasionally for detached streams of drift ice ;
and most. generally, for extensive sheets of bay ice.
Bay ice is a very favourite retreat of the whales, so
long as it continues sufficiently tender, to be conve-
niently broken, for the purpose of respiration. In
such situations, whales may frequently be seen in
amazing numbers, elevating and breaking the ice
with their crowns *, where they are observed to

* The eminence on the head of the whale, in which the
blow-holes are situated, is thus called,

M

920 WHALE-FISHERY.

remain much longer at rest than when seen in open
water, or in the clear interstices of the ice, or in-
deed in almost any other situation.

The most favourable opportunity for prosecuting
the fishery, commonly occurs with north, north-west,
or west winds. At such times, the sea near the ice ig
almost always smooth, and the atmosphere, though
cloudy and dark, is generally free from fog or thick
snow. The fishers prefer a cloudy to aclear sky ; be-
cause, in very bright weather, the sea becomes illumi-
nated, and the shadow of the whale-boats are sodeeply
impressed in the water by the beams of the sun, that
the whales are very apt to take the alarm, and
evade the utmost care and skill of their pursuers.
The severe frost with which these winds are some-
times accompanied, is the principal inconvenience
attending them. South-east or east winds, though’
of themselves disagreeable, on account of the thick
weather with which they are in general aecompa-
nied, and exceedingly dangerous, from the highswells
which they often occasion, when they are boisterous,
—have nevertheless their advantages. They crowd
the drift ice closely together, cause a violent agita-
tion among the pieces, and by these circumstances
either drift the ice away from the places occupied
by the whales, or so annoy them as to induce them
to leave their retreat and appear in the open sea.

The nature of the circumstances most favourable
for fishing, will be readily understood, when it is

DESCRIPTION OF WHALE-BOATS. 291

observed, that the fishery most particularly requires
a cloudy atmosphere, yet free from fog or continued
snow; smooth water, with a breeze of wind; and
navigably open, or perfectly solid ice.

Calms are unfavourable for fishing. The still-
ness which then prevails gives the whale a great ad-
vantage in avoiding danger, by the distinct use of
its hearing and sight ; so that it is difficult for a boat
to approach within the distance to which a harpoon
can be thrown, before the fish takes the alarm, and
escapes. In a brisk breeze, on the contrary, where
the surface of the water is rough with “ wind lip-
per,” both the sight and hearing of the whale must
be very indistinct.

SECT. IV.

Description of the Boats and Principal Instru-
ments used in the Capture of the Whale.

WUHALE-BOATS are, of course, peculiarly adapted
for the occupation they are intended to be employ-
edin. A well constructed “ Greenland boat,” pos-
sesses the following properties. It floats lightly
and safely on the water,—is capable of being rowed
with great speed, and readily turned round,—it is
of such capacity that it carries six or seven men,
seven or eight hundred weight of whale-lines, and

922 WHALE-FISHERY.

various other materials, and yet retains the necessary
properties of safety, buoyancy, and speed, either in
smooth water, or where it is exposed to a consider-
able sea. Whale-boats being very liable to receive
damage, both from whales and ice, are always carver-
built,—a structure which is easily repaired. ‘They
are usually of the following dimensions. ‘Those
called “ Six oared boats,” adapted for carrying seven
men, six of whom, including the harpooner, are row-
ers, are generally 26 to 28 feet in length, and about
5 feet 9 inches in breadth. Six men boats, that is,
with five rowers and a steersman, are usually 25 to
26 feet in length, and about 5 feet 6 inches in
breadth. And “ four cared boats,” are usually 23
to 24 feet in length, and about 5 feet 3 inches
in breadth. The main breadth of the two first
classes of boats, is at about three-sevenths of the
length of the boat: reckoned from the stem; but, in
the last class, it 1s necessary to have the main
breadth within one-third of the length of the boat
from the stem. The object of this is, to enable the
smaller boat to support, without being dragged un-
der water, as great a strain on the lines as those of
a larger class; otherwise, if such a boat were sent
out by itself, its lines would be always liable to be
lost, before any assistance could reach it. The five
oared or six men boat, is that which is in most ge-
neral use; though each fishing ship generally car-
ries one or two of the largest class. These boats

DESCRIPTION OF THE HARPOON. 993

*

are now commonly built of fir-boards, one-half or
three-fourths of an inch thick, with timbers, keel,
gunwales, stem, and stern-post of oak. An im-
provement in the timbering of whale-boats has late-
ly been made, by sawing the timber out of very
straight grained oak, and bending them to the re-
quired form, after being made supple, by the appli-
eation of steam, or immersion in boiling water.
This improvement, which renders the timbers more
elastic, than when they are sawn out of crooked
oak, and at the same time makes the boat strong-
er and lighter, was suggested by Thomas Brodrick,
Esq. of Whitby, ship-builder. Though the prin-
ciple has long been acted upon in clincher-built
boats, with ash timbers, the application to carver-
built whale-boats, is, I believe, new. The bow and
stern of Greenland boats, are both sharp, and, in
appearance, very similar; but the stern forms a
more acute angle than the bow. The keel has
some inches depression in the middle, from which
the facility of turning is acquired.

The instruments of general use in the capture of
the whale, are the harpoon and lance.

The harpoon (plate 18. fig. 2.) is an instrument
ef iron, of about three feet in length. It consists
of three conjoined parts, called the “socket,” “shank,”
and “ mouth ;” the latter of which includes the
barbs or “ withers.” This instrument, if we except
a small addition to the barbs, and some enlargement
_ of dimensions, maintains the same form in which it

Qh WHALE FISHERY.

was originally used in the fishery two centuries age.
At that time, the mouth or barbed extremity was
of a triangular shape, united to the shank in the
middle of one of the sides; and this being scoop-
ed out on each side of the shank, formed two sim-
ple flat barbs. In the course of last century, an im-
provement was made, by adding another small barb,
resembling the beard of a fish-hook, within each of
the former withers, in a reverse position. The two
principal withers, in the present improved harpeon,
measure about 8 inches in length and 6 in breadth ;
the shank is 18 inches to 2 feet in length, and ;‘oths
of an inch in diameter; and the socket, which is
hollow, swells from the size of the shank to near 2
inches diameter, and is about 6 inches in length.
Now, when the harpoon is forced by a blow into the
fat of the whale, and the line is held tight, the prin-
cipal withers seize the strong ligamentous fibres of
the blubber, and prevent it from being withdrawn ;
and in the event of its being pulled out, so far as to
remain entangled by one wither only, which is fre-
quently the case, then the little reverse barb, or
“ stop wither” as it is called, collecting a number of
the same reticulated sinewy fibres, which are very
numerous near the skin, prevents the harpoon from
being shaken out by the ordinary motions of the
whale. The point and exterior edges of the barbs of
the harpoon, are sharpened toa rough edge, by means
ofa file. This part of the harpoon is not formed of

DESCRIPTION OF THE HARPOON. 995

steel, as it is frequently represented, but of common
soft iron; so that when blunted, it can be readily
sharpened by a file, or even by scraping it with a
knife. ‘The most important part in the construc-
tion of this instrument, is the shank. As this part
is liable to be forcibly and suddenly extended, twisted
and bent, it requires to be made of the softest and
most pliable iron. That kind which is of the most
approved tenacity, is made of old horse-shoe nails
or stubs, which are formed into small rods, and two
or three of these welded together ; so that should a
flaw happen to occur in any one of the rods, the
strength of the whole might still be depended on.
Some manufacturers enclose a quantity of stub-iron
in a cylinder of best foreign iron, and form the
shank of the harpoon out of a single rod. A test
sometimes used for trying the sufficiency of a har-
poon, is.to wind its shank round a bolt of inch iron,
in the form of a close spira], then to unwind it
again, and put it into a straight form. If it bears this
without injury in. the cold state, it is considered as
excellent. ‘he breaking of a harpoon is of uo less
importance than the value of a whale, which is
sometimes estimated at more than a 1000/. Ster-
ling. This consideration has induced many ingeni-
ous persons to turn their attention towards improv-
ing the construction and security of this instrument ;
but though various alterations have been suggested,
VOL, Il. P

296 WHALE-FISHERY.

such as forming the shank of plies of wire, adding
one or two lateral barbs, &c. &c. they have all given
place to the simplicity of the ancient harpoon.

A harpoon was recently produced in Hull, the
desien of which was to prevent the loss of a whale,
provided the shank of the instrument should happen
to break. To effect this, the thick part of the
shank immediately adjoining the mouth of the har-
poen, was piereed with an oblong hole, in the di-
rection of the plane of the withers. Through this
hole a small rope, or a strand of whale line, is pas-
sed, and both ends secured to the line attached tothe
other end of the harpoon. Hence, should the shank
of the harpoon break, the connection between the
line and the part of the harpoon fixed in the whale
is still preserved ; and the connecting material is of
such a strength, as to be, in ordinary cireumstan-
ces, sufficient for completing the capture. The
safety rope is no hinderance to the entrance of the
harpoon into the whale, as it serves to increase the
breadth of the shank only, and not its thickness ; nor
is there any great risk of the shank breaking in the
part which is pierced, its strength being very great.
This contrivance, on the whole, appears to be
calculated for effecting, in a considerable degree, the
desirable purpose for which it is intended.

I have been thus particular in the description of
the harpoon, because it is an instrument of greater
consequence than any other used in the fishery.

LANCE AND HARPOON-GUN DESCRIBED. 227

Next in importance to the harpoon is the lance,
(Pl. 18. fig. 6.*) which is a spear of iron of the
length of 6 feet. It consists of a hollow socket 6
inches long, swelling from half an inch, the size of
the shank, to near 2 inches in diameter, into which
is fitted a 4 feet stock or handle of fir; a shank 5
feet long, and half an inch in diameter; and a
mouth of steel, which is made very thin, and ex-
eeedingly sharp, 7 or 8 inches in length, and 2 or
24 in breadth.

These two instruments, the harpoon and lance,
with the necessary apparatus of lines, boats and
oars, are all that are essential for capturing tlie
whale. But besides these instruments, so success-
fully used in the whale-fishery, there is likewise an
auxiliary weapon which has, at different periods,
been of some celebrity. This is the harpoon-gun. It
is well calculated to facilitate the capture of whales,
under particular circumstances, particularly in calm
clear weather, when the fish are apt to take the alarm,
whenever the boats approach within fifteen or
twenty yards of them. The harpoon-gun was in-
vented in the year 1731, and used, it seems, by
some individuals with success. Being, however,
difficult, and somewhat dangerous in its application,
it was laid aside for many years. In 1771 or 1772,

P 2

* Thave given three figures of lances, (fig. 4, 5, 6,).of which
I prefer No. 6.

228 WHALE-FISHERY.

a new one was produced to the Society of Arts,
which differed so materially from the instrument
before in use, that it was received as an original in-
vention. This society took a great interest in pro-
moting its introduction, and with some difficulty
and great expence effected it. Between 1772 and
1792, the Society of arts gave in premiums to whale-
fishers, and to artisans for improvements in the gun
and harpoon, the sum of 3502. or 400/. In one
year only, (1791,) they paid 36 guineas as premiums,
to twelve persons, who had been successful in the use
of the harpoon-gun. Since the year 1792, they
have generally been in the habit of offering a premi-
um of 10 guineas, to the harpooner who should shoot
the greatest number of whales in one season, not
being less than three. This premium, however,
though it has been frequently offered, has been sel-
dom claimed, The harpoon-gun has been highly
improved, and rendered capable of throwing a har-
poon near forty yards with effect ; yet, on account
of the difficulty and address requisite in the ma-
nagement of it, and the loss of fish, which, in unskil-
ful hands, it has been the means of occasioning, to-
gether with some accidents which have resulted from
its use,—it has not been so generally adopted as
might have been expected.

In its present improved form, as made by Mr
Wallis, gun-smith, Hull, the harpoon-gun con-
sists of a kind of swivel, having a_ barrel of

DESCRIPTION OF THE GUN-HARPOON. 299

wrought iron, 24 to 26 inches in length, of 3 inch-
es exterior diameter, and 13 inches bore. It
is furnished with two locks, which act simulta-
neously, for the purpose of diminishing the lia-
bility of the gun missing fire. In plate 19., is
a representation of the harpoon-gun; and fig. 1.
and 3. of Pl. 18., show the form of the harpoon
which is fired from it. The shank of this harpoon
is double, terminating in a cylindrical knob, fitting
the bore of the gun. Between the two parts of the
shank is a wire ring, to which is attached the line.
Now, when the harpoon is introduced into the bar-
rel of the gun, the ring, with the attached line, re-
mains on the outside, near the mouth of the har-
poon ; but the instant that it is fired, the ring flies
back against the cylindrical knob. Some harpoons
have been lately made with a single shank, similar
to the common “ hand-harpoon,” but swelled at the
end to the thickness of the bore of the gun. The
whale line, which is closely spliced round the shank,
is slipped towards the mouth of the harpoon, when
it is placed in the gun, and when fired, is prevented
from disengaging itself, by the size of the knob at
the end.

230 WHALE-FISHERY.

SECT. V.
Preparations for the Fishery.

ON the first convenient opportunity after a ship
arrives on the usual fishing-stations, preparations
for attacking the whale are made. Previous to the
sailing of the ship from her port, the principal ar-
ticles requisite for this service are provided, and im
the course of the outward passage, the different
utensils are fitted for immediate use. Among nu-
merous preparations carricd on by the mechanics
and seamen of the ship, most of which are void of
interest to general readers, the operation of “ span-
ning harpoons” will alone be noticed.

A piece of rope made of the best hemp, called a
“ Horeganger,” about 24 inches in circumference, and
eight or nine yards in length, is spliced closely round
the shank of the harpoon, the swelled socket of which
prevents the eye of the splice from being drawn off.
A. stock or handle, six or seven feet in length, is
then fitted into the socket, and fastened in its place
through the medium of the foreganger. The fas-
tening of the stock is sufficient only for retaining it
firm in its situation during the discharge of the wea-
pon, but is hable to be disengaged soon afterwards ;
on which the harpoon, relieved from the shake and
twist of this no longer necessary appendage, main-

PREPARATIONS FOR THE FISHERY. 931

tains its hold with better effect. After the stock
drops out, it is seldom lost, but still hangs on the
line by means of a loop of cord fixed openly round
it, for the purpose of preventing the stock from float-
ing away. The foreganger is most commonly formed
of white or untarred rope, which is stronger and
more flexible than tarred rope, consequently more
easily extended when the harpoon is thrown. Every
harpoon is stamped with the name of the ship to
which it belongs; and when prepared for use, a
private mark, containing the name of the ship and
master, with the date of the year, written upon
leather, is concealed bencath some vope-yarns wound
round the socket of the instrument, and the same
is sometimes introduced also into the foreganger.
These marks serve to identify the harpoons when
any dispute happens to arise relative to the claims of
different ships to the same fish, and have sometimes
proved of essential service, im deciding cases which
might otherwise have extended to vexatious litiga-
tion. A harpoon thus prepared with foreganger
and stock, is said to be “ spanned in.” In this
state, the point or mouth being very clean and
sharp, ig preserved in the same condition by a shield
of oiled paper or canvas; and the instrument, with
its appendages, laid up in a convenient place, ready
for being attached to the whale-lines in a boat when
wanted.

lo WHALE-FISHERY.

The principal preparations for commencing the
fishery, are included in the “ fitting of the boats.”
In this work, ail the people belonging to the ship
are employed. The boats are first cleared of all
lumber, and then the whale-lines, each consisting of
120 fathomsof rope, about 24 inches in circumference,
are spliced to each other, to the amount of about six
for each boat, the united length of which is about
720 fathoms, or 4320 feet ; and the whole carefully
and beautifully coiled in compartments in the boat,
prepared for the purpose. A portion of five or six
fathoms of the line first put into the boat called
the “ stray-line,” is left uncovered, by that which
follows, and coiled by itself in a small compartment
at the stern of the boat: it is furnished with a loop
or “ eye,” for the facility of connecting the lines of
one boat with those of another. 'To the upper end
of the line is spliced the foreganger of a spanned
harpoon, thus connecting the harpoon with all the
lines in the boat *.

Every boat completely fitted, is furnished with
two harpoons, (one spare), six or eight lances, and
five to seven oars, together with the following in-
struments and apparatus. A “jack” or flag fas-

* Whale-lines are always made of the best materials, and
manufactured with extraordinary care. As such they-are usu-
ally charged 20s. or 30s. per ewt. more than other cordage.

EQUIPMENT OF A WHALE BOAT. 933

tened to a pole, intended to be displayed as a
signal whenever a whale is harpooned; a “ tail-
knife,” (Pl. 20. fig. 4.) used for perforating the fins
or tail of a dead whale; a “ mik,” or rest, (fig. 7.),
made of wood, for supporting the stock of the har-
poon when ready for instant service; an “ axe”,
(fig. 16.) for cutting the lines when necessary; 2
“ pigging” or small bucket, for bailing the boat, or
wetting the running lines, to prevent the bollard
from taking fire; a “ snatch-block,” (fig. 17.); “a
grapnel,” (fig. 11.); two “boat-hooks ;” a “ fid,” a
wooden “ mallet,” and “ snow-shovel;” also a smali
broom and a “ swab,” together with spare tholes,
grommets, &c. In addition to these, the two six-
oared or other swiftest boats, are likewise furnished
with an apparatus called a “ winch,” (Pl. 19. fig. 2.),
for heaving the lines into the boat after the fish is
either killed or has made its escape; and in some
ships they also carry a harpoon-gun, with appara-
tus for loading. ‘The whole of the articles above
enumerated, are disposed in convenient places
throughout the boat. The axe is always placed
within the reach of the harpooner, who, in case
of an accident, can cut the line in an instant; the
harpoon-gun is fixed by its swivel to the boat's
stem ; the lances are laid in the sides of the boat
upon the thwarts; the hand-harpoon is placed up-
on the mik or rest with its stock, and on the bow
of the boat with its point, and the foreganger is

234, WHALE-FISHERY.

clearly coiled beneath it, so that the harpoon car
be taken up and discharged in a moment. The
oars used for rowing the Greenland boats, are about
16 feet in length, and those used for steering are
18 or 20 feet. “All the oars are fixed by rope-
grommets to a single thole, so that when not in use,
they can be readily unshipped or pushed out of the
boat through the grommet, as far as a stop on the
extremity of each oar will admit,and then left to float
parallel with the sides of the boat. An oar is used
for steering in preference to a ruddez, in conse-
guence of its possessing many advantages: An oar
does not retard the velocity of the boat so much as
a rudder; it is capable of turning the boat when in
a state of rest, and more readily than a rudder
when in motion; and it can be used for propelling
the boat, in narrow places of the ice where the row-
ers cannot ply their oars, by the process of sculling,
and in calms for approaching a whale without
noise, by the same operation.

The crew of a whale ship are separated into di-
visions, equal in number to the number of the boats.
Each division, consisting of a harpooner, a boat-steer-
er, and a line-manager, together with three or four
rowers, constitutes “ a boat’s crew.”

The harpooner’s principal office is, as his name
implies, to strike the whale, also to guide the lines,
or to kill an entangled whale with his lances.
When im pursuit, he rows the bow-oar. He has

PREPARATIONS FOR THE FISHERY. 935

the command of the boat. When on board of the
ship, he has different occupations, according to the
nature of the operations which are going on.

The boat-steerer, who ranks next to the harpoon-
er. At the same time that he guides the course of
the boat in the most favourable direction, likewise
watches the motions of the whale pursued,—inti-
mates its movements to the harpooner,—and stimu-
lates the crew to exertion by encouraging exclama-
tions. The line-manager rows the “ after oar” in the
boat, and, conjointly with the boat-steerer, attends to
the lines, when in the act of running out, or coiling
in. The remainder of the crew of the boat is com-
posed of seamen, or others, whose chief qualification
consists in their capability of “ pulling an oar.”

Besides the division of the seamen of a whaler
into boats’ crews, they are likewise classed, as in
other vessels, into watches. A waich is a certain
proportion of the ship’s crew, generally a third, or
a half, who, when at sea, are on duty, while the
others rest. When in thirds, each watch consists
of two boats’ crews, with an equal share of those
men constituting the crews of what may be called
extra boats, or the excess above six. ‘This division
is usually, but very improperly, called “ the quarter
watch.” In this kind of arrangement, which is only
adopted on the passages, or in the fishing country,
when no whales are seen, nor any particular busi-
ness going on, cach man watches four hours, and

236 WHALE-FISHERY.

rests eight. But when whales are astir, the crew
is usually divided into two parties, called “ the half
watch,” in which every man watches and rests four
hours alternately.

In the one-third watch, the chief-mate, speck-
sioneer, and second-mate, who are usually the three
principal harpooners, have the charge of the three
~ watches, though the one under the second-mate is
called the Captain’s Watch. When any of these
principal officers are in the boats, the under har-
pooners take charge of the watches.

SECT. VF.

Proceedings on Fishing Stations.

On fishing stations, when the weather is such as
to render the fishery practicable, the boats are al-
ways ready for instant service. Suspended from
davits or cranes, by the sides of the ship, and fur-
nished with stores, as before enumerated, two boats
at least, the crews of which are always in readiness,
can, in a general way, be manned and lowered into
the water, within the space of one minute of time.

Wherever there is a probability of seeing whales,
when the weather and situation are such as to pre-
sent 2 possibility of capturing them, the erow’s nest

PROCEEDINGS ON FISHING STATIONS. 237

is generally occupied by the master, or some one of
the officers, who, commanding from thence, an ex-
tensive prospect of the surrounding sea, keeps an
anxious watch for the appearance of a whale. As-
sisted by a telescope, he views the operations of any
ship which may be in sight at a distance; and oc-
casionally sweeps the horizon with his glass, to ex-
tend the limited sphere of vision in which he is
able to discriminate a whale with the naked eye, to
an area vastly greater. ‘The moment that a fish is
seen, he gives notice to the “ watch upon deck,” part
of whom leap inte a boat, are lowered down, and
push off towards the place. If the fish be large, a
second boat is immediately dispatched to the support
of the other. When the whale again appears, the
two boats row towards it with their utmost speed ;
and though they may be disappointed in all their
attempts, they generally continue the pursuit, un-
til the fish either takes the alarm, and escapes
them, or they are recalled by signal to the ship.
“When two or more fish appear at the same time,
in different situations, the number of boats sent in
pursuit, is commonly increased ; and when the whole
of the boats are sent out, the ship is said to have
“a loose fall.”

During fine weather, in situations where whales
are seen, or where they have recently been seen, or
where there is a great probability of any making
their appearance, a boat is generally kept in readi-

238 WHALE-FISHERY.

ness, manned and afloat. If the ship sails with
considerable velocity, this boat is towed by a rope,
astern; but when the ship is pretty still, whe-
ther moored to ice, laid too, or sailing in light
winds, the “ bran-boat,” as it is called, often
pushes off to a little distance from the ship. A
boat on watch, commonly lies still in some eligible
situation, with all its oars elevated out of the wa-
ter, but im readiness, in the hands of the rowers,
for immediate use. The harpooner and boat-steer-
er keep a careful watch on all sides, while each of
the rowers looks out in the direction of his oar.
In field-fishine, the boats approach the ice with
their sterns, and are each of them fastened to it by
means of a boat-hook, or an iron spike with a cord at-
tached, either of which is held -by the boat-steerer, and
is slipped or withdrawn the moment a whale appears.
‘There are several rules observed in approaching a
whale, as precautions, to prevent, as far as possible,
the animal from taking the alarm. As the whale
is dull of hearing, but quick of sight, the boat-
steerer always endeavours to get behind it; and, in
accomplishing this, he is sometimes justified im
taking a circuitous route. In calm weather, where
guns are not used, the greatest caution is necessary
before a whale can be reached ; smooth careful row-
ing is always requisite, and sometimes sculling is
practised.

' PROCEEDINGS ON FISHING STATIONS. 2399

When it is known that a whale seldom abides
longer on the surface of the water than two mi-
nutes,—that it generally remains from five to ten
or fifteen minutes under water *,—that in this im-
terval it sometimes moves through the space of half
a mile, or more,—and that the fisher has very rare-
ly any certain intimation of the place in which it
will re-appear ;—the difficulty and address requisite
to approach sufficiently near during its short stay
on the surface, to harpoon it, will be readily appre-
ciated. It is therefore a primary consideration with
the harpooner, always to place his boat as near as
possible to the spot in which he expects the fish to
rise, and he conceives himself successful in the at-
tempt when the fish “ comes up within a start ;”
that is, within the distance of about 200 yards. In
all cases where a whale that is pursued has but
once been seen, the fisher is considerably indebted to
what is called chance for a favourable position. But
when the whale has been twice seen, and its
change of place, if any, noticed, the harpooner makes
the best use of the intimation derived from his ob-
servations on its apparent motion, and places his
boat accordingly ; thus, he anticipates the fish in its
progress, so that when it rises to the surface, there

* Before I had particularly minuted the time that a whale stays
on the surface, and remains below, I believed each interval,
and especially the former, was much greater than it really is.

YAO WHALE-FISHERY.

is a probability of its being within the favourable '
precincts of a start.

A whale moving forward at a small distance be-
neath the surface of the sea, leaves a sure indication
of its situation, in what is called an “ eddy,” ha-
ving somewhat the resemblance of the “ wake” or
track of a ship; and in fine calm weather, its
change of position is sometimes pointed out by the
birds, many of which closely follow it when at
the surface, and hover over it when below, whose
keener vision can discover it, when it is totally con-
cealed from human eyes. By these indications,
many whales have been taken.

SECT. VII.
Proceedings in capturing the Whale.

THE Providence of Gop is manifested in the
tameness and timidity of many of the largest in-
habitants of the earth and sea, whereby they fall
victims to the prowess of man, and are rendered
subservient to his convenience in life. And this
was the design of the lower animals in their crea-
tion. Gop, when he made man, having given him
“* dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the
fowl of the air, and over every living thing that

PROCEEDINGS IN CAPTURING THE WHALE. 241

moveth upon the earth*.” The holy Psalmist,

-when considering the power and goodness of Gop
in the Creation, exclaims, “ What is man that thou
art mindful of him? and the son of man that thou
visitest him ?” And, in contemplation of the “ glo-
ry and honour” put upon man by the Almighty, in
the power given him over created nature, he adds,
« Thou madest him to have dominion over the
works of thy hands: thou hast put all things under
his feet..-—“ The fowl of the air, and the fish of
the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths
of the seas. O Lord, our Lord, How excellent is
thy name in all the earth + ?”

Hence, while we admire the cool and determin-
ed intrepidity of those who successfully encounter
the huge mysticetus, if we are led to reflect on
the source of the power by which the strength of
men is rendered effectual for the mighty under-
taking ; our reflections must lead us to the “ Great
first Cause,” as the only source from whence such
power could be derived.

Whenever a whale lies on the surface of the
water, unconscious of the approach of its enemies,
the hardy fisher rows directiy upon it; and an in-
stant before the boat touches it, buries his harpoon

VOL. Il. Q

* Hoty Biate, book of Gen. chap. i. ver. 26. & 28.

+ Idem, 8th Psalm.

242, WHALE-FISHERY.

in its back. But if, while the boat is yet at a little
distance, the whale should indicate his intention of
diving, by lifting his head above its common level and
then plunging it under water, and raising his body,
until it appear like the large segment of a sphere,—
the harpoon is thrown from the hand, or fired from a
gun, the former of which, when skilfully practised,
is efficient at the distance of eight or ten yards,
and the latter at the distance of thirty yards, or up-
ward. The wounded whale, in the surprise and
agony of the moment, makes a convulsive effort to
escape. Thenis the moment of danger. The boat
is subjected to tue most violent blows from its
head, or its fins, but particularly from its pon-
derous tail, which sometimes sweeps the air with
such tremendous fury, that both boat and men are
exposed to one commen destruction.

The head of the whale is avoided, because it can-
not be penetrated with the harpoon ; but any part
of the body, between the head and the tail, will ad-
mit of the full length of the instrument, without |
danger of obstruction. The harpoon, therefore, is
always struck into the back, and generally well
forward towards the fins, thus affording the chance,
when it happens to drag and plough along the
back, of retaining its hold during a longer time
than when struck in closer to the tail.

PROCEEDINGS IN CAPTURING THE WHALE. 243

The moment that the wounded whale disappears,
or leaves the boat, a jack or flag, elevated on a staff,
is displayed; on sight of which, those on watch in
the ship, give the alarm, by stamping on the deck,
accompanied by a simultaneous and continued shout
of “a fall*” At the sound of this, the sleeping
crew are roused, jump from their keds, rush up-
on deck, with their clothes tied by a string in their
hands, and crowd into the boats. With a temperature
of Zero, should a fall occur, the crew would appear
upon deck, shielded only by their drawers, stockings,
and shirts, or other habiliments in which they sleep.
They generally contrive to dress themselves, in
part at least, as the boats are lowered down; but
sometimes they push off in the state in which they
rise from their beds, row away towards the “ fast
boat,” and have no opportunity of clothing them-
selves for a length of time afterwards. The alarum
of “ a fall,” has a singular effect on the feelings of
a sleeping person, unaccustomed to the whale-fish-
ing business. It has often been mistaken as a cry
of distress. A landsman, in a Hull ship, seeing
the crew, on an occasion of a fall, rush upon deck.

* The word fall, as well as many others used in the fishery,
is derived. from the Dutch language. In the original it is
written val, implying jump, drop, full, and is considered as
expressive of. the conduct of the sailors, when manning the
boats on an occasion requiring extreme dispatch.

Q2

IAA ‘ WHALE-FISHERY.

with their clothes in their hands, and leap into the
boats, when there was no appearance of danger,
thought the men were all mad; but, with another
individual, the effect was totally different. Alarm-
ed with the extraordinary noise; and still more so,
when he reached the deck, with the appearance of
all the crew seated in the boats im their shirts, he
imagined the ship was sinking. He therefore en-
deavoured to get into a boat himself, but every one
of them being fully manned, he was always repulsed.
After several fruitless endeavours to gain a place
among his comrades, he cried out, with feelings of
evident distress, “ What shall I do ?—Will none
of you take me in ?”
The first effort of a “ fast-fish,” or whale that has
been struck, is to escape from the boat, by sinking
under water. After this, it pursues its course di-
rectly downward, or re-appears at a little distance,
and swims with great celerity, near the surface of
the water, towards any neighbouring ice, among
which it may obtain an imaginary shelter; or it re-
turns instantly to the surface, and gives evidence
of its agony, by the most convulsive throes, in
which its fins and tail are alternately displayed in
the air, and dashed into the water with tremendous
violence. The former behaviour, however, that is,
to dive towards the bottom of the sea, is so frequent.
in comparison of any other, that it may be consi-
dered as the general conduct of a fast-fish.

PROCEEDINGS IN CAPTURING THE WHALE. 245

A whale, struck near the edge of any large sheet
of ice, and passing underneath it, will sometimes
run the whole of the lines out of one boat, in the
space of eight or ten minutes of time. This being
the case, when the “ fast-boat” is at a distance,
both from the ship and from any other boat, it fre-
quently happens that the lines are all withdrawn
before assistance arrives, and, with the fish, entire-
ly lost. In some eases, however, they are recover-
ed. To retard, therefore, as much as possible, the
flight of the whale, it is usual for the harpooner,
who strikes it, to cast one, two, or more turns of
the line round a kind of post called a bollard ;
which is fixed within ten or twelve inches of the
stem of the boat, for the purpose. Such is the
friction of the line, when running round the bol-
lard, that it frequently envelopes the harpooner in
smoke ; and if the wood were not repeatedly wetted,
would probably set fire to the boat. During the
capture of one whale, a groove is sometimes cut in
the bollard near an inch in depth ; and, were it not
for a plate of brass, iron, or a block of lignum-vite,
which covers the top of the stem where the line
passes over, it is apprehended that the action of the
line on the material of the boat, would cut it down
to the water’s-edge, in the course of one season of
successful fishing. The approaching distress of a
boat, for want of line, is indicated by the elevation
of an oar, in the way of a mast, to which is added a

246 WHALE-FISHERY,

second, a third, or even a fourth, in proportion to
the nature of the exigence. ‘The utmost care and
attention are requisite, on the part of every person
in the boat, when the lines are running out; fatal
consequences having been sometimes produced by
the most trifling neglect. When the line happens
“to run foul,” and cannot be cleared on the instant,
it sometimes draws the boat under water ; on which,
if no auxiliary boat, or convenient piece of ice, be at
hand, the crew are plunged into the sea, and are
obliged to trust to the buoyancy of their oars or to
their skill in swimming, for supporting themselves
on the surface. To provide against such an acci-
dent, as well as to be ready to furnish an additional
supply of lines, it is usual, when boats are sent in
pursuit, for two to go out in company; and when a
whale has been struck, for the first assisting boat
which approaches, to join the fast-boat, and to stay
by it, until the fish reappears. ‘The other boats
likewise make towards the one carrying a flag, and
surround it at various distances, awaiting the ap-
pearance of the wounded whale.

On my first voyage to the whale-fishery, such an
accident as above alluded to, occurred. A thousand
fathoms of line were already out, and the fast-boat
was forcibly pressed against the side of a piece of
ice. The harpooner, in his anxiety to retard
the flight of the whale, applied too many turns
of the line round the bollard, which, getting en-

PROCEEDINGS IN CAPTURING THE WHALE. 247

tangled, drew the boat beneath the ice. Another
boat, providentially was at hand, into which the
crew, including myself, who happened to be present,
had just time to escape. The whale, with near two
miles’ length of line, was, in consequence of the ac-
cident, lost, but the boat was recovered. On a sub-
sequent occasion, I underwent a similar misadven-
ture, but with a happier result; we escaped with a
little wetting into an accompanying boat, and the
whale was afterwards captured, and the boat with
its lines recovered.

- When fish have been struck by myself, I have on
different occasions estimated their rate of descent.
For the first 300 fathoms, the average velocity was
usually after the rate of eight to ten miles per
hour. In one instance, the third line of 120 fa-
thoms was run out in 61. seconds; that is, at the
rate of 8! English miles, or 71 nautical miles per
hour.

By the motions of the fast-boat, the simul-
taneous movements of the whale are estimated.
The auxiliary boats, accordingly, take their stations,
about the situation where the whale, from these
motions, may reasonably be expected to appear.

The average stay under water, of a wounded whale,
which steadily descends after being struck, accord-
ing to the most usual conduct of the animal, is about
30 minutes. The longest stay I ever observed was
56 minutes; but in shallow water, I have been in-

948 WHALE-FISHERY.

formed, it has sometimes been known to remaity
an hour and a half at the bottom after being struck,
and yet has returned to the surface alive. ‘The
greater the velocity, the more considerable the

distance to which it descends, and the longer the
time it remains under water, so much greater in
proportion is the extent of its exhaustion, and the
consequent facility of accomplishing its capture. Im-
mediately that it re-appears, the assisting boats make
for the place with their utmost speed, and as they
reach it, each’ harpooner plunges his harpoon into
its back, to the amount of three, four, or more, ac-
cording to the size of the whale, and the nature of
the situation. Most frequently, however, it de-
scends for a few minutes after receiving the second
harpoon, and obliges the other boats to await its re-
turn to the surface, before any further attack can be
made. It is afterwards actively pled with lances,
which are thrust into its body, aiming at its vitals,
At length, when exhausted by numerous wounds
and the loss of blood, which flows from the huge ani-
mal in copious streams, it indicates the approach of
its dissolution, by discharging from its “ blow-holes,”
a mixture of blood along with the air and mucus
which it usually expires, and finally jets of blood
alone. The sea, to a great extent around, is
dyed with its blood, and the ice, boats, and men,
are sometimes drenched with the same. Its track
is likewise marked by a broad pellicle of oil,

PROCEEDINGS IN CAPTURING THE WHALE. 249

which exudes from its wounds, and appears on the
surface of the sea. Its final capture is sometimes
preceded by a convulsive and energetic struggle, in
which its tail, reared, whirled, and violently jerked
in the air, resounds to the distance of miles. In |
dying, it turns ‘on its back or on its side; which
joyful circumstance is announced by the capturers
with the striking of their flags, accompanied with
three lively huzzas!

The remarkable exhaustion observed on the first
appearance of a wounded whale at the surface, after
a descent of 700 or 800 fathoms perpendicular, does
not depend on the nature of the wound it has re-
ceived ; for a hundred superficial wounds received
from harpoons, could not have the effect of a single
lance penetrating the vitals, but is the effect of the
almost incredible pressure to which the animal
must have been exposed. The surface of the body
of a large whale, may be considered as comprising
an area of 1540 square feet. ‘This, under the com-
mon weight of the atmosphere only, must sustain a
pressure of 3,104,640 lb., or 1386 tons. But at the
depth of 800 fathoms, where there is a column of wa-
ter equal in weight to about 154.atmospheres, the pres-
sure on the animal must be equal to 211,200 tons*,

* From experiments made with sea water taken up near Spitz-
bergen, I find that 35 cubical feet weigh a ton. Now, supposing
a whale to descend to the depth of 800 fathoms, or 4800 feet,

250 WHALE-FISHERY.

This is a degree of pressure of which we can have but
an imperfect conception. It may assist our compre-
hension, however, to be informed, that it exceeds in
weight sixty of the largest ships of the British navy,
when manned, provisioned, and fitted for a six
_months cruise. i?

Every boat fast to a living whale carries a flag, and |
the ship to which such boats belong, also wears
a flag, until the whale is either killed or makes its
escape. These signals serve to indicate to surround-
ing ships, the exclusive title of the “ fast-ship” to the
entangled whale, and to prevent their interference,
excepting in the way of assistance, in the capture.!

A very natural inquiry connected with this sub-
ject, is, What is the length of time requisite for
capturing a whale?» ‘This is a question which can
only be answered indirectly ; for I have myself wit-
nessed the capture of a large whale, which has been
effected in twenty-eight minutes; and have also
been engaged with another fish which was lost, af-
ter it had been entangled about sixteen hours. In-
stances are well authenticated, in which whales have

which, I believe, is not uncommon, we have only to divide
4.800 feet, the length of the column of water pressing upon the
whale, by 35 feet, the length of a column of sea-water, a foot
square, weighing a ton, the quotient 137}, shows the pressure
per square foot upon the whale, in tons ; which, multiplied by
1540, the number of square feet of surface exposed by the ani-
mal, affords a product of 211,200 tons, besides the usual pres-
sure of the atmosphere.

PROCEEDINGS IN CAPTURING THE WHALE. 251

yielded their lives to the lances of active fishers,
within the space of fifteen minutes from the time
of being struck; and in cases where fish have been
shot with a harpoon-gun, in a still shorter period ;
while other instances are equally familiar and cer- .
tain, wherein a whale having gained the shelter of a
pack or compact patch of ice, has sustained or
avoided every attack upon it, during the space of
forty or fifty hours. Some whales have been cap-
tured when very slightly entangled with a single har-
poon, while others have disengaged themselves, though
severely wounded with lances, by a single act of vio-
lent and convulsive distortion of the body, or tre-
mendous shake of the tail, from four or more har-
poons; in which act, some of the lines have been
broken with apparent ease, and the harpoons to
which other lines were attached, either broken or
torn out of the body of the vigorous animal. Ge-
nerally, the speedy capture of a whale depends on
the activity of the harpooners, the favourableness of
situation and weather, and, in no inconsiderable de-
gree, on the peculiar conduct of the whale attacked.
Under the most favourable circumstances; namely,
when the fishermen are very active, the ice very open,
or the sea free from ice, and the weather fine,—the
average length of time occupied in the capture of a
whale, may be stated as not exceeding an hour*. The

* Twelve large whales taken in different voyages, memo-
randa of whose capture I have preserved, were killed, on an

252 WHALE-FISHERY.

general average, including all sizes of fish and alf
circumstances of capture, may probably be two or
three hours.

The method practised in the capture of whales,
under favourable circumstances, is very uniform
with all the fishers, both Britains and foreigners.
The only variation observable in the proceedings
of the different fishers, consisting in the degree
of activity and resolution displayed, in pursuance
of the operations of harpooning and lancing the
whale, and in the address manifested in improv-
ing by any accidental movement of the fish, which
may lay it open to an effectual attack,—rather than
in any thing different or superior in the general me-
thod of conducting the fishery. It is true, that with
some tiie harpoon-gun is much valued, and used with
advantage, while with others, it is held in prejudi-
eed aversion; yet, as this difference of opinion affects
only the first attack and entanglement of the whale,
the subsequent proceedings with all the fishers, may
still be said to be founded on equal and unanimous
principles. Hence, the mode described in the pre-
ceding pages, of conducting the fishery for whales
under favourable circumstances, may be considered

average, in 67 minutes. The shortest time expended in the
taking of one of the 12 whales, was 28 minutes ; the longest
time 2 hours. One of these whales, we believed, descended
670 fathoms perpendicular; another 720 ; and a third 750.
One descended 1400 fathoms obliquely, and another 1600 fa~

| eas
thoms,

PROCEEDINGS IN CAPTURING THE WHALPF. 953

as the general plan pursued by the fishers of all the
ports of Britain, as well as those of other nations who
resort to Spitzbergen. Neither is there any difference
in the plan of attack, or mode of capture between
fish of large size, and those of lesser growth: the pro-
eeedings are the same, but, of course, with the smal-
ler whales less force is requisite; though it some-
times happens, that the trouble attached to the
killing of a very small whale, exceeds that con-
nected with the capture of one of the largest in-
dividuals. The progress or flight of a large whale
cannot be restrained; but that of an under-size
fish may generally be confined within the limits of
400 to 600 fathoms of line. A full grown fish
generally occupies the whole, or nearly the whole,
of the boats belonging to one ship in its capture;
but three, four, and sometimes more small fish,
have been killed at the same time, by six or seven
boats. It is not unusual for small whales to run
downward, until they exhaust themselves so com-
pletely, that they are not able to return to the sur-
face, but are suffocated in the water. As it is ve-
quisite that a whale that has been drowned should
be drawn up by the line, which is a tedious and
troublesome operation, it is usual to guard against
such an event, by resisting its descent with a tight
strain on the line, and also by hauling upon the
line the moment its descent is stopped, with a view
of irritating the wound, and occasioning such a
degree of pain, as may induce it to return to the

O54 WHALE-FISHERY.

surface, where it can be killed and secured without
farther trouble. Seldom more than two harpoons
are struck into an under-size whale.

The ease with which some whales are subdued,
and the slightness of the entanglement by which they
are taken, is truly surprising ; but with others it is
equally astonishing, that neither line nor harpoon,
nor any number of each, is sufficiently strong to
effect their capture. Many instances have occurred.
where whales have escaped from four, five, or even
more harpoons, while fish equally large have been
killed through the medium of a single harpoon.
Indeed, whales have been taken in consequence of the
entanglement of a line, without any harpoon at all;
though, when such a case has occurred, it has evi-
dently been the result of accident. The following
instances are in point.

A whale was struck from one of the boats of the
ship Nautilis, in Davis’ Straits. It was killed,
and, as is usual after the capture, it was disentan-
gled of the line connected with the “ first fast-
boat,” by dividing it at the splice of the foreganger,
within 8 or 9 yards of the harpoon. The crew of
the boat from which the-fish was first struck, in the
mean time were employed in heaving in the lines,
by means of a winch, fixed in the boat for the pur-
pese, which they progressively effected for some
time. On a sudden, however, to their great asto-
nishment, the lines were pulled away from them,

©WO WHALES TAKEN BY ONE HARPOON. 255

with the same force and violence as by a whale
when first struck. They repeated their signal, in-
dicative of a whale being struck, their shipmates
flocked towards thera, and while every one expressed
a similar desree of astonishment with themselves,
they all agreed that a fish was fast to the line. Ina
few minutes, they were agreeably confirmed in their
opinion, and relieved from suspense, by the rising of
a large whale close by them, exhausted with fa-
tigue, and having every appearance of a fast-fish.
It permitted itself to be struck by several harpoons
at once, and was speedily killed. Ou examining it
after death, for discovering the cause of such an
interesting accident, they found the line belonging
to the above mentioned boat in its mouth, where it
was still firmly fixed by the compression of its lips.
The occasion of this happy and puzzling accident,
was therefore solved ;—the end of the line, after be-
ing cut from the whale first killed, was in the act
of smking in the water,—the fish in question, en-
gaged in feeding, was advancing with its mouth
wide open, and accidentally caught the line between
its extended jaws,—a sensation so utterly unusual
as that produced by the line, had induced it to shut
its mouth and grasp the line which was the cause
of its alarm, so firmly between its lips, as to produce
the effect just stated. This circumstance took
place many years ago, but a similar one occurred in
the year 1814.

256 WHALE-FISHERY.

A. harpooner belonging to the Prince of Brazils,
of Hull, had struck a small fish. It descended,
and remained for some time quiet, and at length
appeared to be drowned. The strain on the line
being then considerable, it was taken to the ship’s
capstern, with a view of heaving the fish up. The
force requisite for performing this operation, was ex-
tremely various ; sometimes the line came in with
ease, at others a quantity was withdrawn with great
force and rapidity. As such, it appeared evident,
that the fish was yet alive. The heaving, how-
ever, was persisted in, and after the greater part of
the lines had been drawn on board, a dead fish ap-
peared at the surface, secured by several turns of
the line round its body. It was disentangled with
difficulty, and was confidently believed to be the
whale that had been struck. But when the line
was cleared from the fish, it proved to be merely
the “ bight,” for the end still hung perpendicular-
ly downward. What was then their surprise to
find, that it was still pulled away with consider-
able force? ‘The capstern was again resorted to,
and shortly afterwards they hove up, also dead, the
fish originally struck, with the harpoon still fast!
Hence it appeared, that the fish first drawn up had
got accidentally entangled with the line, and in its
struggles to escape, had still further involved itself,
by winding the line repeatedly round its body. ‘The
first fish entangled, as was suspected, had long been

PACK-FISHING. | DBT

dead ; and it was this lucky interloper that occa-
sioned the jerks and other singular effects obser-
ved on the line.

SECT. VIII.

Alterations produced in the Manner of conduct-
ing the Fishery, by peculiar Circumstances of
Situation and Weather.

Hiruerto I have only attempted to describe
the method adopted for the capture of whales, under
favourable circumstances,—such as occur in open
water or amongst open ice in fine weather; as,
however, this method is subject to various altera-
tions, when the situation or circumstances are pe-
culiar, I shall venture a few remarks on the subject.

1. Pack-fishing—The borders of close packs of
drift ice are frequently a favourite resort of large
whales. To attack them in such a situation, sub-
jects the fisher to great risk in his lines and boats,
as well as uncertainty in effecting their capture.
When a considerable swell prevails on the borders
of the ice, the whales, on being struck, will some-
times recede from the pack, and bevome the prize
of their assailers ; but most generally they flee to it
for shelter, and frequently make their escape. To
guard against the loss .of lines as much as possible,

vOL. IT. R

258 WHALE FISHERY.

it is pretty usual either to strike two harpoons front

different boats at the same moment, or to bridle

the lines of a second boat upon those of the boat
from which the fish is struck. This operation con-
sists in fixing other lines to those of the fast-boat,
at some distance from the harpoon, so that there is
only one harpcon and one hne immediately attach-
ed to the fish, but the double strength of a line
from the place of their junction to the boats. Hence,
should the fish flee directly into the ice, and proceed
to an inaccessible distance, the two boats bearing an
equal strain on each of their lines, can at pleasure
draw the harpoon, or break the single part of the

line immediately connected with it, and in ei-.

ther case, secure themselves against any consider-
able loss.

When a pack, from its compactness, prevents
boats from penetrating, the men travel over the ice,
leaping from piece to piece, in pursuit of the en-
tangled whale. In this pursuit, they carry lan-
ces with them, and sometimes harpoons, with
which, whenever they can approach the fish, they
attack it,—and if they succeed in killing it, they
drag it towards the exterior margin of the ice,
by means of the line fastened to the harpeon
with which it was originally struck. In such cases,
it is generally an object of importance to sink it
beneath the ice; for effecting which purpose, each

lobe of the tail is divided from the body, excepting

a small portion of the edge, from which it hangs

|
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FIELD-FISHING. 259

pendulous in the water. If it still floats, bags of
sand, kedges, or small cannon, are suspended by a
block on the bight of the line, wherewith the
buoyancy of the dead whale is usually overcome.
It then sinks, and is easily hauled out by the line
into the open sea.

To particularise all the variety in pack-fishing,
arising from winds and weather, size of the fish,
state and peculiarities of the ice, &c. would require
more space than the interest of the subject, to ge-
neral readers, would justify. I shall, therefore,
only remark, that pack-fishing is, on the whole, the
most troublesome and dangerous of all others ;—
that instances have occurred of fish having been en-
tangled during 40 or 50 hours, and have escaped af-
ter all ;—and that other instances are remembered,
of ships having lost the greater part of their stock
of lines, several of their boats, and sometimes,
though happily less commonly, some individuals of
their crews.

2. Field-fishing.—The fishery for whales, when
conducted at the margin of these wonderful sheets
of solid ice, called fields, is, when the weather is fine,
and the refuge for ships secure, of all other situations
which the fishery of Greenland presents, the most
agreeable, and sometimes the most productive. A.
fish struck at the margin of a large field of ice,
generally descends obliquely beneath it, takes four
to eight lines from the fast-boat, and then returns

R2

260 WHALE-FISHERY.

exhausted to the edge. It is then attacked in the
usual way with harpoons and lances, and is easily
killed. There is one evident advantage in field-
fishing, which is this: When the fast-boat lies at
the edge of a firm unbroken field, and the line pro-
ceeds in an angle beneath the ice, the fish must ne-
cessarily arise somewhere in a semicircle described
from. the fast-boat as a centre, with a sweep not ex-
ceeding the length of the lines out; but most ge-
nerally it appears in a line extending along the mar-
gin of the ice, so that the boats, when dispersed
along the edge of the field, are as effectual and as
ready for promoting the capture as twice the num-
ber of boats or more, when fishing in open situa-
tions; because, in open situations, the whale may
arise any where within a circle, instead of a semi-
circle, described by the length of the lines with-
drawn from the fast-boat,—whence it frequently
happens, that all the attendant boats are disposed
in a wrong direction, and the fish recovers its breath,
breaks loose, and escapes before any of them can
secure it with a second harpoon. Hence when a
ship fishes at a field with an ordinary crew and six
or seven boats, two of the largest fish may be
struck at the same time with every prospect of suc-
cess; while the same force attempting the capture
of two at once in an open situation, will not unfre-
quently occasion the loss of both. There have indeed
been instances of a ship’s crew, with seven boats,

FIELD-FISHING. 261

striking, at a field, six fish at the same time, and
of succeeding in killing the whole. Generally
speaking, six boats at a field are capable of perform-
ing the same execution as near twice that number
in open situations. Besides, fields sometimes af-
ford an opportunity of fishing, when in any other
situation there can be little or no chance of success,
or, indeed, when to fish elsewhere is utterly im-
practicable. Thus calms, storms and fogs, are
great annoyances in the fishery in general, and fre-
quently prevent it altogether; but at fields the
fishery goes on under any of these disadvantages.
As there are several important advantages attend-
ing the fishery at fields, so likewise there are some
serious disadvantages,—chiefly relating to the safety
of the ships engsged in the occupation. The motions
of fields are rapid, various, and unaccountable, and
the power with which they approach each other,
and squeeze every resisting object, immense,—hence
occasionally vast mischief is produced, which it is
not always in the power of the most skilful and at-
tentive master, to foresee or prevent.

Such are the principal advantages and disadvan-
tages of fields of ice to the whale-fishers. The ad-
vantages, however, as above enumerated, though they
extend to large floes, do not extend to small floes,
or to such fields, how large soever they may be, as
eontain cracks or holes, or are filled up with thin ice
in the interior. Large and firm fields are the most

262 WHALE-FISHERY.

convenient, and likewise the most advantageous for
the fishery; the most convenient, because the whales,
unable to breathe beneath a close extensive field of ice,
are obliged to make their appearance again above
water among the boats on the look-out; and they
are the most advantageous, because, not only the most
fish commonly resort to them, but a greater number
can be killed with less force, and in a shorter space
of time, than in any other situation. ‘Thin fields, or
fields full of holes, being by no means advantageous
to fish by, are usually avoided, because a “ fast-fish”
retreating under such a field, can respire through the
holes in the centre as conveniently as on the exte-
rior; and a large fish usually proceeds from one
hole to another, and, if determined to advance, can-
not possibly be stopped. In this case, all that can
be done is, to break the line or draw the harpoon
out. But when the fish can be observed “ blowing”
in any of the holes in a field, the men travel over
the ice and attack it with lances, pricking it over
the nose, to endeavour to turn it back. This
scheme, however, does not always answer the expee-
tations of the fishers, as frequently the fear of his
enemies acts so powerfully on the whale, that he
pushes forward towards the interior to his dying
moment. When killed, the same means are used
as in pack-fishing, to sink it, but they do not always
succeed ; for the harpoon is frequently drawn out,
or the line broken in the attempt. If, therefore, no

|
|

COURAGEOUS EXPLOIT. 263

attempt to sink the fish avails, there is scarcely any
other practicable method of making prize of it, (un-
less when the ice happens to be so thin that it can
be broken with a boat, or a channel readily cut in it
with an ice-saw), than cutting the blubber away, and
dragging it piece by picce across the ice to the ves-
sel, which requires immense labour, and is attended
with vast loss of time. Hence we have a sufficient
reason for avoiding such situations, whenever fish
ean be found elsewhere. As connected with this
subject, I cannot pass over a circumstance which oc-

curred within my own observation, and which ex-
cited my highest admiration.

On the 8th of July 1813, the ship Esk lay by
the edge of a large sheet of ice, in which were se-
veral thin parts and some holes. Here a fish being
heard blowing, a harpoon, with a line connected
to it, was conveyed across the ice, from a boat on
guard, and the harpooner succeeded in striking the
whale, at the distance of 350 yards from the verge.
It dragged out ten lines, (2400 yards) and was sup-
posed to be seen blowing in different holes in the
ice. After some time, it happened to make its ap-
pearance on the exterior, when a harpoon was struck
at the moment it was on the point of proceeding
again beneath. About a hundred yards from the
edge, it broke the ice where it was a foot in thick-
ness, with its crown, and respired through the
opening. It then determinately pushed forward,

264 WHALE-FISHERY.

breaking the ice as it advanced, in spite of the lan-
ces constantly directed against it. It reached at
length a kind of bason in the field, where it floated
on the surface of the water, without any encumbrance
from ice. Its back being fairly exposed, the har-
poon struck from the boat on the outside, was ob-
served to be so slightly entangled, that it was ready
to drop out. Some of the officers lamented this
circumstance, and expressed a wish that the har-
--poon were better fast,—observing, at the same
time, that if it should slip out, the fish would either
be lost, or they would be under the necessity of
flensing it where it lay, and of dragging the pieces of
blubber over the ice to the ship; a kind and degree
of labour every one was anxious to avoid. No
sooner was the wish expressed, and its importance
made known, than one of the sailors, a smart and
enterprising fellow, stept forward and volunteered
his services to strike it better in. Not at all inti-
midated by the surprise which was manifested in
every countenance, by such a bold proposal,—he pul-
led out his pocket-knife,—leapt upon the back of the
living whale,—and immediately cut the harpoon out.
Stimulated by this courageous example, one of his
companions proceeded to his assistance. While
one of them hauled upon the line and held it in his
hands, the other set his shoulder against the extre-
mity of the harpoon, and though it was without a
stock, he contrived to strike it again into the fish

FIELD-FISHING. 965

more effectually than it was at first ! The fish was in
motion before they finished. After they got off its
back, it advanced a considerable distance, breaking
the ice all the way, and survived this uncommon
treatment, ten or fifteen minutes. This admirable
act was an essential benefit. The fish fortunately
sunk spontaneously, after being killed; on which
it was hauled out to the edge of the ice by the line,
and secured without further trouble. It proved a
stout whale, and a very acceptable prize.

When a ship approaches a considerable field of
ice and finds whales, it is usual to moor to the lee-
ward side of it, from which the adjoining ice usually
first separates. Boats are then placed on watch, on
each side of the ship, and stationed at intervals of
100 or 150 yards from one another, along the edge
of the ice. . Hence, if a fish arises any where be-
tween the extreme boats, it seldom escapes unhurt.
It is not uncommon for a great number of ships to
moor to the same sheet of ice. When the whale-
fishery of the Hollanders was in a flourishing state,
above 100 sail of ships might sometimes be seen
moored to the same field of ice, each having two or
more boats on watch. The field would, in conse-
queuce, be so nearly surrounded with boats, that it
was almost impossible for a fish to rise near the verge
of the ice, without being within the limits of a start
of some of them.

266 WHALE-FISHERY.

3. Lishing in Crowded Ice, or in Open Packs.
In navigably open drift ice, or among small detach-
ed streams and patches, either of which serve in a
degree to break the force of the sea, and to prevent
any considerable swell from arising, we have a situa-
tion which is considered as one of the best possible
for conducting the fishery in; consequently, . it
comes under the same denomination as those favour-
able situations, in which I have first attempted to
describe the proceedings of the fishers in killing the
whale. But the situation I now mean to refer to is,
when the ice is crowded and nearly close ; so close, .
indeed, that it searcely affords room for boats to
pass through it, and by no means sufficient space
for a ship to be navigated among it. This kind of
situation occurs in somewhat open packs, or in large
patches of crowded ice, and affords a fair probabili-
ty of capturing a whale, though it is seldom accom-
plished without a considerable deal of trouble.
When the ice is very crowded, and the ship cannot
sail into it with propriety, it is usual, especially with
foreigners, to seek out for a mooring to some large
mass of ice, if such can be found, extending two or
three fathoms, or more, under water. A piece of ice
of this kind, is capable not only of holding the ship
** head-to-wind,” but also to windward of the smaller
ice. The boats then set out in chase of any fish
which may be seen; and when one happens to be
struck, they proceed in the capture in a similar man-

FISHING IN CROWDED ICE. 267

mer as when under more favourable circumstances ;
excepting so far as the obstruction which the quali-
ty and arrangement of the ice may offer, to the re-
gular system of proceeding. Among crowded ice,
for instance, the precise direction pursued by the
fish is not easily ascertained, nor can the fish itself
be readily discovered on its first arrival at the sur-
face, after being struck, on account of the elevation
of the intervening masses of ice, and the great quan-
tity of line it frequently takes from the fast-boat.
Success in such a situation, depends on the boats
being spread widely abread, and on a judicious ar-
rangement of each boat; on a keen look-out on
the part of the harpooners in the boats, and on their
occasionally taking the benefit of a hummock of
ice, from the elevation of which the fish may some-
times be seen “ blowing” in the interstices of the
ice ; on pushing or rowing the boats with the great-
est imaginable celerity, towards the place where the
fish may have been seen; and, lastly, on the exer-
cise of the highest degree of activity and dispatch,
in every proceeding. |

If these means be neglecéed, the fish will gener-
ally have taken its breath, recovered its strength,
and removed to some other quarter, before the ar-
rival of the boats; and it is often remarked, that if
there be one part of the ice more crowded or more
difficult of access than another, it commonly retreats
thither for refuge. In such cases, the sailors find much
difficulty in getting to it with their boats, having

268 WHALE-FISHERY.

to separate many pieces of ice before they can pass
through between them. But when it is not prac-
ticable to move the pieces, and when they cannot.
travel over them, they must either drag the boats
across the intermediate ice, or perform an extensive
circuit, before they can reach the opposite side of the
close ice, into which the whale has retreated.

A second harpoon in this case, as indeed in all
ethers, is a material point. They proceed to lance
whenever the second harpoon is struck, and strike
more harpoons as the auxiliary boats progressively
arrive at the place.

When the fish is killed, it is often at a distance
from the ship, and so circumstanced, that the ship
cannot get near it. In such cases, the fish must be
towed by the boats to the ship ; an operation which,
among crowded ice, is most troublesome and labo-
rious.

4. Bay Ice Fishing.—Bay ice constitutes a situa-
tion which, though not particularly dangerous, is yet,
on the whole, one of the most troublesome in which
whales are killed. In sheets of bay ice, the whales
find a very effectual shelter ; for so long as the ice will .
not “ carry a man,” they cannot be approached
with a boat, without producing such a noise, as most
certainly warns them of the intended assault. And
if a whale, by some favourable accident, were struck, ~
the difficulties of completing the capture are always
numerous, and sometimes prove insurmountable.
The whale having free loco-motion beneath the ice,

BAY ICE FISHING. 269

the fishers pursue it under great disadvantage.
The fishers cannot push their boats towards it but
with extreme difficulty; while the whale, invaria-
bly warned by the noise of their approach, possesses
every facility for avoiding its enemies.

In the year 1813, I adopted a new plan of fishing
in bay ice, which was attended with the most for-
tunate result. The ship under my command, (the
Esk of Whitby,) was frozen into a sheet of bay ice,
included m a triangular space, formed by several
massive fields and floes. Here a number of small
whales were seen sporting around us, in every little
hole or space in the bay ice, and occasionally they
were observed to break through it, for the purpose
of breathing. In various little openings, free of ice,
near the ship, few of which were twenty yards in
diameter, we placed boats; each equipped with a
harpoon and lines, and directed by two or three
men. They had orders to place themselves in such
a situation, that if a fish appeared in the same
opening, they could scarcely fail of striking it.
Previous to this, I provided myself with a pair of
ace-shocs, consisting of two pieces of thin deal, six
feet in length, and seven inches in breadth. They
were made very thin at both ends ; and, in the cen-
tre of each, was a hollow place exactly adapted for
the reception of the sole of my boot, with a loop of
leather for confining the toes. I was thus enabled
to retain the ice-shoes pretty firmly to my feet,

270 WHALE-FISHERY.

when required, or, when I wished it, of disengaging’
them in a moment. Where the ice was smooth, it
was easy to move in a straight line; but, in turning,
I found a considerable difficulty, and required some
practice before I could effect it, without falling.
TI advanced with tolerable speed, where the ice was
level on the surface, by sliding the shoes alternate-
ly forward ; but when I met with rough hilly
places, I experienced great inconvenience. When,
however, the rough places happened to ‘consist of
strong ice, which generally was the case, I stepped
out of my ice-shoes, until I reached a weaker part.
Equipped with this apparatus, I travelled safely
over ice which had not been frozen above twenty-four
hours, and which was incapable of supporting the
weight of the smallest boy in the ship.

Whenever a fish was struck, I gave orders to the’
harpooner, in running the lines, to use every means
of drowning it; the trouble of hauling it up, under
the circumstances in which the ship was placed, be-
ing a matter of no consideration. This was attempt-
ed, by holding a steady tight strain on the line,
without slacking it, or jerking it unnecessarily, and
by forbearing to haul at the line when the fish
stopped. By this measure, one fish, the stoutest
of three which we got, was drowned. When others
were struck, and the attempt to drown them failed,
I provided myself with a harpoon; and, observing
the direction of the line, travelled towards the place

NEW PLAN OF FISHING IN BAY ICE. O71

where I expected the fish to rise. A small boat
was launched, more leisurely, in the same direction,
for my support ; and wherever the ice, in my track,
was capable of supporting a man, assistance was af-
forded me in dragging the line. When the wound-
ed fish appeared, I struck my harpoon through the
ice, and then, with some occasional assistance, pro-
ceeded to lance it, until it was killed. At differ-
ent times the fish rose beneath my feet, and broke
the ice on which I stood: on one occasion, where
the ice was fortunately more than usually strong,
I was obliged to leave my ice-shoes and skip off. In
this way we captured three fish, and took their pro-
duce on board, while several ships near us made not
the least progress in the fishery. After they were kill-
ed, we had much trouble in getting them to the ship,
but as we could not employ ourselves to advan-
tage in any other way, we were well satisfied with
the issue. This part of the business, however, I
could not effect alone, and all hands who were oc-
casionally employed in it, broke through the ice.
Some individuals broke in two or three times, but
no serious accident ensued. As a precaution, we
extended a rope from man to man, which was held
in the hands of each in their progress across the ice,
and which served for drawing these out of the wa-
ter who happened to break through. Sometimes ten
or a dozen of them would break in at once; but so
far was such an oceurrence from exciting distress,

27% WHALE-FISHERY.

that cach of their companions indulged a lauglt
at their expence, notwithstanding they, probably,
shared the same fate a minute or two afterwards.
The shivering tars were, in general, amply repaid
for the drenching they had suffered, by a dram of
spizits, which they regularly received on such occa-
sions. I have seen instances, indeed, of sailors ha-
ving voluntarily broken through the ice, for the mere
purpose of receiving the usual precious beverage.
5. Fishing in Storms.—Excepting in situations
sheltered from the sea by ice, it would be alike
useless and presumptuous, to attempt to kill whales
during a storm. Cases, however, occur, wherein fish
that were struck during fine weather, or in winds
which do not prevent the boats from plying about,
remain entangled, but unsubdued, after the com-
meneement of a storm. Sometimes the capture is
completed, at others the fishers are under the ne-
cessity of cutting the lines, and allowing the whale
to escape. Sometimes when they have succeeded
in killing it, and in securing it during the gale with a
hawser to the ship, they are enabled to make a prize
of it on the return of moderate weather; at others,
after having it to appearance secured, by means
of a sufficient rope, the dangerous proximity
of a lee-pack constrains them to cut it advift and
abandon it, for the preservation of their vessel. Ai-
ter thus being abandoned, it becomes the prize of
the first who gets possession of it, though it be in

ss

FISHING IN FOGGY WEATHER. 273

in the face of the original capturers. A storm com-
mencing while the boats are engaged with an en-
tangled fish, sometimes occasions serious disasters.
Generally, however, though they suffer the loss of
the fish, and perhaps some of their boats and mate-
rials, yet the men escape with their lives.

6. Fishing in Foggy Weather.—The fishery in
storms, in exposed situations, can never be voluntary,
as the case only happens when a storm arises, subse-
quent to the time of a fish being struck ; but in foggy
weather, though occasionally attended with hazard,
the fishery is not altogether impracticable. The
fogs which occur in the icy regions in June and
July, are generally dense and lasting. They are so
thick, that objects cannot be distinguished at the
distance of 100 or 150 yards, and frequently con-
tinue for several days without attenuation. To fish
with safety and success, during a thick fog, is, there-
fore, a matter of difficulty, and of still greater un-
certainty. When it happens that a fish conducts
itself favourably, that is, descends almost perpendi-
cularly, and on its return to the surface remains
nearly stationary, or moves round in a small circle,
the capture is usually accomplished without hazard.
or particular difficulty: but when, on the con-
trary, it proceeds with any considerable velocity
in a horizontal direction, or obliquely downwards,
it soon drags the boats out of sight of the ship,
and shortly so confounds the fishers in the intensity

VOL. II, 8

274 WHALE-FISHERY.

of the mist, that they lose all traces of the situation
of their vessel. If the fish, in its flight, draws them
beyond the reach of the sound of a bell, or a horn,
their personal safety becomes endangered ; and if
they are removed beyond the sound of a cannon,
their situation becomes extremely hazardous ; espe-
cially if no other ships happen to be in the immedi-
ate vicinity. Meanwhile, whatever may be their
imaginary or real danger, the mind of their com-
mander must be kept in the most anxious suspense
until they are found; and whether they may be in
safety, or near perishing with fatigue, hunger and
cold, so long as he is uncertain of their fate, his
anxiety must be the same. Hence it is, that feel-
ings excited by uncertainty are frequently more vio-
lent and distressing than those produced by the ac-
tual knowledge of the truth.

Keen and vigilant observance of the direction
pursued by the whale, on the part of the persons
engaged in the chase, and a corresponding obser-
vance of the same by their commander, can be the
only means within the power of each party of secu-
ring the ship and boats from being widely separa-
ted, without knowing what course to pursue for re-
uniting them. Much depends on the people em-
ployed in the boats using every known means to ar-
rest the progress of the fish in its flight, by attack-
tug it with the most skilful, active and persevering

FISHING IN FOGGY WEATHER. O75

efforts, until it is killed; and then, as speedily as
may be, of availing themselves of the intimation
they may possess relative to the position of the ship,
for the purpose of rejoining her. But as their know-
ledge of the direction of their movements generally
depends on the wind, unless they happen to be pro-
vided: with a compass, and have attentively marked.
their route by its indications, any change in the di-
rection of the wind, must be attended with ‘sericus
consequences.

To describe this subject fully, and to enter into
the detail of the various modes which ingenuity
may adopt for maintaining the proximity of a ship
with her boats, and the safety of the latter when
engaged in the fishery during the obscurity of a fog,
would be tedious, and in a work of this nature su-
perfizous; I shall therefore proceed with another
branch of my subject. But before 1 enter upon the
subsequent operations of the whalers connected with
a successful fishery, I shall give a few examples of re-
markable strength, activity, or other peculiarity
in the behaviour of whales after they have been
struck; being a few of the curious circumstances
connected with the fishery which I have myself
observed, or have received from unquestionable au-
thority.

9 2

o-

276 WHALE-FISHERY.

SECT. IX.

Anecdotes illustrative of Peculiarities in the
Whale-Fishery.

1. Surprising vigour of a Whale. —On the
25th of June 1812, one of the harpooners be-
longing to the Resolution of Whitby, under my
command, struck a whale by the edge of a smalk
floe of ice. Assistance being promptly afforded, a
second boat’s lines were attached to those of the
Jast-boat, in a few minutes after the harpoon was
- discharged. The remainder of the boats proceeded
to some distance, in the direction the fish seemed
to have taken. In about a quarter of an hour the
fast-boat, to my surprise, again made a signal for
lines. As the ship was then within five minutes
sail, we instantly steered towards the boat, with
the view of affording assistance, by means of a spare
boat we still retained on board. Before we reached the
place, however, we observed four oars displayed in sig-
nal order, which, by their number, indicated a most
urgent necessity for assistance. ‘Two or three men
were at the same time seen seated close by the stern,
which was considerably elevated, for the purpose of
keeping it down,—while the bow of the boat, by the
force of the line, was drawn down to the level of
the sea,—and the harpooner, by the friction of the

ILLUSTRATIVE ANECDOTES. bu he |

line round the bollard, was enveloped in smoky ob-
scurity. At length, when the ship was scarcely
100 yards distant, we perceived preparations for quit-
ting the boat. The sailors’ pea-jackets were cast
upon the adjoining ice,—the oars were thrown down,
—the crew leaped overboard,—the bow of the boat
was buried in the water,—the stern rose perpendi-
cular, and then majestically disappeared. The har-
pooner having caused the end of the line to be fas-
tened to the iron-ring at the boat’s stern, was the
means of its loss*; and a tongue of the ice, on
which was a depth of several feet of water, kept the
boat, by the pressure of the line against it, at such 2
considerable distance as prevented the crew fromleap-
ing upon the floe. Some of them were, therefore, put
to the necessity of swimming for their preservation,
but all of them succeeded in scrambling upon the ice,
and were taken on board of the ship in a few mi-
nutes afterwards,

I may here observe, that it is an uncommon cir-
cumstance for a fish to require more than two
boats’ lines in such a situation ;—none of our har-
pooners, therefore, had any scruple in leaving the
fast-boat, never suspecting, after it had received the

* « Giving a whale the boat,” as the voluntary sacrifice of a
boatis termed, isa schemenot unfrequently practised by the fisher
when in want of line. By submitting to this risk, he expects
to gain the fish, and still has the chance of recovering his boat
and its materials. It is only practised in open ice or at fields.

by

278 WHALE-FISHERY.

assistance of one boat with six lines or upward, that
it would need any more.

Several ships being about us, there was a possi-
bility that some person might attack and make a
prize of the whale, when it had so far escaped us,
that we no longer retained any hold of it; as such,
we set all the sail the ship could safely sustain, and
worked through several narrow and intricate channels
in the ice, in the direction I observed the fish had re-
treated. After a little time, it was descried by the
people in the boats, at a considerable distance to the
eastward; a general chase immediately commenced,
and within the space of an hour three harpoons were
struck. We now imagined the fish was secure, but
our expectations were premature. The whale reso-
lutely pushed beneath a large floe that had been re-
cently broken to pieces, by the swell, and soon drew
all the lines out of the second fast-boat; the officer
of which, not being able to get any assistance, tied
the end of his line to a hummock of ice and broke
it. Soon afterwards, the other two boats, still fast,
were dragged against the broken floe, when one of
the harpoons drew out. The lines of only one boat,
therefore, remained fast to the fish, andthis with six
or eight lines out, was dragged forward into the shat-
tered floe with astonishing force. Pieces of ice, each
of which were sufiiciently large to have answered the
purpose of a mooring for a ship, were wheeled about
by the strength of the whale; and such was the ten- .

ILLUSTRATIVE ANECDOTES. 279

sion and elasticity of the line, that whenever it
slipped clear of any mass of ice, after turning it
round, into the space between any two adjoining
pieces, the boat and its crew flew forward through
the crack, with the velocity of an arrow, and never
failed to launch several feet upon the first mass of
ice that it encountered. ;

While we scoured the sea around the broken
floe with the ship, and while the ice was attempted
in vain by the boats, the whale continued to press
forward in an easterly direction towards the sea.
At length, when 14 lines (about 1680 fathoms)
were drawn from the fourth fast-boat, a slight en-
tanglement of the line, broke it at the stem. The
fish then again made its escape, taking along with
it a boat and 28 lines. The united length of the
lines was 6720 yards, or upwards of 37 English
miles; value, with the boat,.above 150/. Sterling.

The obstruction of the sunken boat, to the progress
of the fish, must have been immense; and that of
the lines likewise considerable; the weight of the
lines alone, being 35 hundred weight.

So long as the fourth fast-boat, through the me-
dium of its lines, retained its hold of the fish, we
searched the adjoining sea with the ship in vain ;
but, in a short time after the line was divided, we
got sight of the object of pursuit, at the distance of
near two miles to the eastward of the ice and boats,
im the open sea. One boat only with lines, and two

280 WHALE-FISHERY.

empty boats, were reserved by the ship. Having,
however, fortunately fine weather, and a fresh breeze
of wind, we immediately gave chase under all sails ;
though, it must be confessed, with the insignificant
force by us, the distance of the fish, and the rapidi-
ty of its flight considered, we had but very small
hopes of success. At length, after pursuing it
five or six miles, being at least nine miles from the
place where it was struck, we came up with it, and
it seemed inclined to rest after its extraordinary
exertions. ‘The two dismantled or empty boats ha-
ving been furnished with two lines each, (a very
inadequate supply.) they, together with the one in
a good state of equipinent, now made an attack up-
on the whale. One of the harpooners made a blun-
der ; the fish saw the boat, took the alarm and again
iled. I now supposed it would be seen no more; ne-
vertheless, we chased nearly a mile in the direction I
imagined it had taken, and placed the boats, to the
best of my judgment, in the most advantageous si-
tuations. In this case we were extremely fortunate.
The fish rose near one of the boats, and was imme-
diately harpooned. In a few minutes two more har-
poons entered its back, and lances were plied against.
it with vigour and success. Exhausted by its amaz-
ing exertions to escape, it yielded itself at length
to its fate, received the piercing wounds of the lan-
ces without resistance, and finally died without a
struggle. Thus terminated with success, an attack

ILLUSTRATIVE ANECDOTES. 981

upon a whale, which exhibited the most uncommon
determination to escape from its pursuers, seconded
by the most amazing strength of any individual
whose capture I ever witnessed. After all, it may
seem surprising, that it was not a particularly large
individual ; the largest lamina of whalebone only
measuring 9 feet 6 inches, while those affording
12 feet bone are not uncommon*. The quantity
of line withdrawn from the different boats engaged.
in the capture, was singularly great. It amounted,
altogether, to 10,440 yards +, or nearly six English

* It has been frequently observed, that whales of this size
are the most active of the species ; and that those of very large
growth are, in general, captured with less trouble.

+ The following is a correct statement of the quantity of lines
withdrawn from each of the fast-boats, viz.
From the first fast-boat 13 new lines, (the whole of

which, together with the boat, were lost) ; harpoon Yards.
drew, - - ~ 3120
From the second fast-boat 6} lines ; line broke, = 1560
third 33 lines ; harpoon drew, 840
fourth 14 lines ; line broke, c 3360
fifth 3 line ; harpoon drew, - 120
sixth 24 lines, “ . 600
seventh 24 lines, - = 600
eighth 1 line, - ave 240

Total in yards, 10,440

[Dern err

282 WHALE-FISHERY.

miles. Of these, 13 new lines were lost, together
with the sunken boat; the harpoon connecting them
to the fish having dropt out before the whale was
killed.

2. Singular and unsuccessful Chase of a Whale.
—After having taken a large circuit with the ship
Esk in the open sea, in search of whales, we saw
two or three individuals, when at the distance of
about 20 miles from the Middle-Hook of the Fore-
land *. It was on the 15th of June 1814 we were
thus situated. The weather was fine, and no ice in
sight. A boat was dispatched towards one of the fish
we saw, which was immediately struck. The men
were already considerably fatigued, having been em-
ployed immediately before, in the arduous operation,
hereafter to be described, called making off; but, of
course; proceeded in the boats to the chase of the
fast-fish. It made its re-appearance before they all
left the ship. Three boats then approached it, un-
luckily at the same moment. Each of them so
incommoded the others, that no second harpoon
could be struck. The fish then took the alarm,
and run off towards the east, at the rate of about

*

* Charles’s Island, lying parallel to the west side of Spitz-

bergen, is usually denominated the Foreland; the Middle

Hook is a remarkable high ridge of mountains, near the mid-
dle of the island.

ILLUSTRATIVE ANECDOTES. 983

four miles per hour; some of the boats gave chase,
and others took hold of the fast-boat, and were
towed by it to windward. When two boats, by
great exertions on the part of their crews, had got
very near to the fish, and the harpooners were ex-
pecting every moment to be able tostrike it, it sud-
denly shifted its course when under water, and in a
few minutes discovered. itself in a southerly direc-
tion,‘ at least half a mile from any boat. It then
completed a circuit round the fast-boat, with the
sweep of nearly a mile as a radius, and though fol-
lowed in its track by the boats, it dived before any
of them got near it, and evaded them completely.
When it appeared again, it was at least half a mile
to windward of any of them, and then continued
arduously advancing in the same direction. The
“ lipper” on the water, arising froma strong breeze
of wind, much impeded. the velocity of the boats,
and rapidly exhausted the little remaining strength
of their crews.

At various times during the pursuit, the boats hay-
ing the most indefatigable crews, reached the fish
within 10 or 15 yards, when, apparently aware of
their design, it immediately sunk and changed its
course ; so that it invariably made its next appear-
ance, in a quarter where no boats were near.

The most general course of the whale being to
windward, it soon withdrew all the boats many

984 WHALE-FISHERY.

miles from the ship, notivithstanding our utmost
efforts, under a pressure of sail, to keep near them.
I was, therefore, prevented from directing their
movements, or, indeed, from affording them the
least assistance.

After six or seven hours pursuit, without success,
the sky became overcast, and we were suddenly en-
veloped for some time, in the obscurity of a thick
fog. This circumstance excited much alarm for
the safety of the boats. We were scon, however,
relieved, by the fog being dispelled. In this inter-
val, the boats were all moored to the fast-boat, the
men being fearful of being dispersed; but on the
disappearance of the fog, the pursuit was recommen-
ced with renewed and more’ determined vigour.
Still the harpooners were not able to succeed. 'They
were now convinced of the necessity of using every
measure to retard the flight of the fish. For this
purpose they slacked out nine lines, a weight in
air of 114 cwt. while the crew of the fast-boat en-
deavoured farther to retard its progress, by holding
their oars firmly in the water, as if in the act of
backing the boat a-stern. But this plan did not
succeed. ‘They then lashed two or three boats with
their sides to the stern of the fast-boat, and these
were dragged broadside first, with little diminution
of velocity for some time. But the fish at length feel-
ing the impediment, suddenly changed its course,

ILLUSTRATIVE ANECDOTES. 985

and again disappointed the people in two of the
boats, which had got extremely near it.

Several times the harpooners seized their wea-
pons, and were on the point of launching them at
the fish, when, in an instant, it shot from them with
singular velocity, and then disapeared. In this
way the chase was continued for fourteen hours,
when the fish again turned to leeward. But the men
exhausted by such uncommon exertion, together with
the hard labour to which they had previously been
subjected; at the same time being without meat or
drink, and sparingly shielded from the inclemency
of the weather, by clothes drenched in oil,—were
incapacitated from taking advantage of the only
chance they had ever had of success from the com-
mencement of the chase; they did, it is true, make
the attempt, but their efforts were too feeble to be
of any service.

By this time we had reached the boats with the
ship. ‘The wind had increased to a gale, and a con-
siderable sea had arisen. We had no hope, there-
fore, of success. As, however, we could not possi-
bly recover the lines at this time, stormy as the
weather was, we applied a cask as a buoy to support
them, and moored an empty boat having a jack fly-
ing in it, to the cask, with the intention of keeping
near it during the storm, and with the expectation of
secoyering our lines, and a faint hope of likewise

986 WHALE-FISHERY.

gaining the fish, after the termination of the gale.

The boat was then abandoned, and all hands, fatigued
and oppressed with hunger and thirst, and some
with cold, were safely, but not without difficulty,
taken on board the ship, at the expiration of 152

hours of unremitting labour, under circumstances

particularly unfavourable.

We made an attempt to keep near the boat with
the ship; but the increasing force of the gale, drove
us, in spite of every effort, about 20 miles to leeward.
On the first cessation we made all sail, and plyed to-
wards the boat ; and although the weather was con-
stantly foggy, we succeeded in finding it, recovered
boat and lines, but lost the whale. This disagree-
able and unsuccessful adventure, occupied ee
three and four days.

3. Two Whales struck at the same moment,
unexpectedly captured.—When engaged in the
pursuit of a large whale, it is a necessary precau-
tion for two boats at all times to proceed in com-
pany, that the one may be able to assist the
other, on any emergency. With this principle in
view, two boats from the Esk were sent out
in chase of some large whales, on the 13th
of June 1814. No ice was within sight. The
boats had proceeded some time together, when they
separated in pursuit of two whales, not far distant

ILLUSTRATIVE ANECDOTES. 987

from each other; when, by a singular coincidence,
the harpooners each struck his fish at the same
moment. They were a mile from the ship. Ur-
gent signals for assistance were immediately dis-
played by each boat, and in a few minutes one of the
harpooners was under the necessity of slipping the
end of his line. Fortunately the other fish did not de-
scend so deep, and the lines in the boat proved ade-
- quate for the occasion. One of the fish being then
supposed to be lost, five of the boats out of seven at-
tended on the fish which yet remained entangled,
and speedily killed it. A short time afterwards,
the other fish supposed to be irrevocably lost, was
descried at a little distance from the place where it
was struck ;—three boats proceeded against it ;—it
was immediately struck, and in twenty minutes
also killed. Thus were fortunately captured two
whales, both of which had been despaired of. They
produced us near 40 tons of oil, value, at that time,
1400/. The linesattachedto the fish last killed, were
“yecovered in aremarkable manner. The harpooners
were busily engaged in attempting to secure them,
when the harpoon, by which alone they were pre-
vented from sinking, slipped out ; but as it descend-
_ed in the water, it luckily hooked the lines belong-
ing to another boat, by which both harpoon and
lines were preserved.

988 WHALE-FISHERY.

4. A Fish captured after being Twice Lost—
An Aberdeen whaler cruising in Greenland, to-
wards the close of the fishing-season of the year
1814, met with a whale, which one of the harpoon-
ers struck. Stormy weather commencing, obliged
them to cut the line. The next day a fish was
struck, which proved to be the same, but which
again escaped them; “and on the following day,
the identical fish came up at the ship’s bow, blew
vehemently, was again struck, and in half an hour
was secured.”

5. A curious Circumstance in the Fishery.—
It is very generally believed by the whalers, that
fish have occasionally been struck, which, by a sud-
den extension or heave of the body, have instantly
disengaged themselves from the harpoon. This
case usually happens when the whale is struck “ with
a slack back,” as that position of the fish is deno-
minated, in which the back being depressed, the
flesh is relaxed. A harpoon then struck, occasions
an uncommon wound. Hence, if the fish sudden-
ly extends itself, and elevates its back, the wound
appears of twice the size of the harpoon; and con-
sequently the weapon is capable of being thrown out
by the jerk of the body.

Under such circumstances as these, a large whale
was struck by a harpooner belonging to the ship

ILLUSTRATIVE ANECDOTES. 289 ~

Howe of Shields. On the fish extending and lift-
ing its back with uncommon violence, the harpoon
was disengaged, and projected high into the air,
when, at the same moment, the fish rolled over upon
its back, and received the point of the falling wea-
pon in its belly, whereby it was entangled and
caught! ‘This circumstance, romantic as it may ap-
pear, is so well authenticated by the person who
struck the fish, together with others who were in
the boat at the time, and were witnesses of the fact,
that I have no scruple in introducing it here.

6. Capture of a Fish which survived jorty
Hours after being struck.—On the 28th of
May 1817, the Royal Bounty of Leith, Cap-
tain Drysdale, fell in with a great number of
whales in the latitude of 77° 25’ N., and lon-
gitude 5° or 6° EK. Neither ice nor land was in
sight, nor was there supposed to be either the one
or the other within 50 or 60 miles. A brisk breeze
of wind prevailed, and the weather was clear. The
boats were therefore manned and sent in pursuit.
After a chase of about five hours, the harpooner com-
manding a boat, who, with another in company, had
rowed out of sight of the ship, struck one of the
whales. 'This was about 4 a. M. of the 29th. The
captain supposing, from the long absence of the
two most distant boats, that a fish had been struck,

VOwea. T

250 WHALE-FISHERY.

directed the course of the ship towards the place
where he had last seen them, and about 8 a. M. he
got sight of a boat which displayed the signal for
being fast. Some time afterwards, he observed the
other boat approach the fish, a second harpoon
struck, and the usual signal displayed. As, how-
ever, the fish dragged the two boats away with consi-
derable speed, it was mid-day before any assistance
could reach them. 'Two more harpoons were then
struck,—but such was the vigour of the whale, that
although it constantly dragged through the water
four to six boats, together with a length of 1600
fathoms of line, which it had drawn out of the differ-
ent boats, yet it pursued its flight nearly as fast as a
boat could row; and such was the terror that it ma-
nifested on the approach of its enemies, that when-
ever a boat passed beyond its tail, it invariably di-
ved. All their endeavours to /ance it were therefore
in vain. ‘The crews of the loose boats being unable to
keep pace with the fish, caught hold of and moored
themselves to the fast-boats, and for some hours af-
terwards, all hands were constrained to sit in idle
impatience, waiting for some relaxation in the speed
of the whale. Its most general course had hitherto
been to windward, but a favourable change taking
‘place, enabled the ship, which had previously been
at a great distanee,.to join the boats at 8 P. M.
They succeeded in taking one of the lines to the
ship, which was fast to the fish, with a view of re-

ILLUSTRATIVE ANECDOTES. 904

tarding its flight. They then furled the top-gallant-
sails, and lowered the top-sails ; but after supporting
the ship a few minutes, head to wind, the wither of
the harpoon wpset, or twisted aside, and the instru-
ment was disengaged from its grasp. The whale im-
mediately set off to windward with increased speed,
and it required an interval of three hours before the
ship could again approach it. Another line was
then taken en board, which immediately broke.
A fifth harpoon had previously been struck, to re-
place the one which was pulled out, but the line
attached to it was soon afterwards cut. They then
instituted various schemes for arresting the speed
of the fish, which occupied their close attention near-
ly twelve hours. But its velocity was yet such, that
the master, who had himself proceeded to the attack,
was unable to approach sufficiently near to strike a
harpoon. After a long chase, however, he succeed-
ed in getting hold of one of the lines which the
fish dragged after it, and of fastening another line
to it. The fish then fortunately turned towards the
ship, which was at a considerable distance to lee-
ward. At 4 p.m. of the 30th, 36 hours after the
fish was struck, the ship again joined the beats ;
when, by a successful manceuvre, they secured two
of the fast-lines on board. The wind blowing a
moderately brisk breeze, the top-gallant-sails were
taken in, the courses hauled up, and the top-sails
clewed down; but notwithstanding the resistance
a ship thus situated must necessarily offer, she was
yt -

999 WHALE-FISHERY.

towed by the fish directly to windward, with the ve-
locity of at least 14, to’2 knots, during an hour and
a half. And then, though the whale must have
been greatly exhausted, it beat the water with its
fins and tail in so tremendous a way, that the sea
around was in a continual foam, and the most hardy
of the sailors scarcely dared to approach it. At
length, about 8 p. M. after 40 hours of almost in-
cessant, and for the most part fruitless exertion,
this formidable and astonishingly vigorous animal
was killed. 'The capture and the flensing occupied
48 hours! The fish was 11 feet 4 inches bone
(the length of the longest lamina of whalebone) ;
and its produce filled 47 butts, or 235 ton casks
with blubber *.

SECT. X.

Proceedings of the Fishers after a Whale is
Killed.

BEForeE a whale can be /lensed, as the operation
of taking off the fat and whalebone is called, some
preliminary measures are requisite. These consist
in securing the fish to a boat, cutting away the at-
tached whale-lines, lashing the fins of the whale
together, and towing it to the ship.

* This interesting occurrence was communicated to. me by
the date Captain of the Royal Bounty, in a letter containing the
account of the transaction, as inserted in his log-book.

PROCEEDINGS AFTER A WHALE IS KILLED. 293

‘The first operation performed on a dead whale,
is to secure it to a boat. This is easily effected, by
lashing it with a rope, passed several times through
two holes pierced in the tail, to the boat’s bow. The
more difficult operation of freeing the whale from
the entanglement of the lines, is then attempted.
As the whale, when dead, always lies on its back or
on its side, the lines and harpoons are generally
far under water. When they are seen passing ob-
liquely downward, they are hooked with a grapnel,
pulled to the surface, and cut. But when they hang
perpendicular, or when they cannot be seen, they
are discovered. by a process called “ sweeping a
fish.” This is performed by taking a part of a
whale-line in two different boats, ten or fifteen fa-
thoms asunder; and while one boat lies at rest
supporting the end of the line, the other is rewed
round the fish, and the Jight, or intermediate
part of the line, allowed to sink below the fish as it
proceeds, until each ef the parts held in the two
boats are again brought together. Hence, when
one part of the line has made a cireuit of the fish, it
must evidently enclose every other line or appen-
dage affixed to it. Thus enclosed, they are pul-
led up to the surface of the water, and each -of
them cut at the splice of the foreganger; leaving
the harpoon sticking in the fish with its foreganger
attached, and allowing the end of the line to sink,
and be hauled on board of the boat, from whence it

294 WHALE FISHERY.

was withdrawn, at the convenience of the crew.
While this is in progress, the men of other boats
having first lashed the tail to a boat, are employed
in lashing the fins together across the belly of the
whale. Ihave observed two or three curious cir-
cumstances connected with these operations, which
{ shall venture to mention.

On one occasion, I was myself engaged in the
capture of a fish, upon which, when to appearance
dead, I leaped, cut holes in the fins, and was in the
act of “reeving a rope” through them, to lash them
together, when the fish sunk beneath my feet. As
soon as I observed that the water had risen above my
knecs, 1 made a spring towards a boat, at the dis-
tance of three or four yards from me, and caught
hold of the gunwale. Scarcely was I helped on
board, before the fish began to move forward, turn-
ed from its back upon its belly, reared its tail aloft,
and began to shake it with such prodigious violence,
that it resounded through the air to the distance of
two or three miles. In the mean time, all the sail-
ors, very properly, kept aloof, and beheld its extra-
ordinary powers with the greatest astonishment. Af-
ter two or three minutes of this violent exercise, it
ceased, rolled upon its side, and died.

In the year 1816, a fish was, to all appearance,
killed by the crew of the Esk. The fins were
partly lashed, and the tail on the point of being
-secured, and all the lines excepting one, were cut

PROCEEDINGS AFTER A WHALE IS KILLED. 295

away, the fish meanwhile lying as if dead. ‘To the
surprise and great alarm, however, of the sailors, it
revived, began to move, and pressed forward in a con-
vulsive agitation ; soon after it sunk in the water to
some depth, and then died. One line fortunate-
ly remained attached to it, by which it was drawn
to the surface and secured. |

On a former occasion, my harpooners had killed
a fish and cut off the lines, when, though actually
dead, it, being less buoyant than whales usually are,
immediately sunk. It would have been altogether
lost, had not one of the harpooners, with great pre-
sence of mind and alacrity, seized a harpoon, and
driven it with a powerful stroke under water, which
had the good fortune to penetrate the head, though
one of the most difficult parts to pierce, whereby the
fish was recovered.

A fish beg properly secured, is then “ taken
in tow;” that is, all the boats join themselves in
a line, by ropes always carried for the purpose, and
unite their efforts in rowing towards the ship. The
course ef the ship in the mean time, is usually di-
rected towards the boats. But in calms, or when
the ship is moored to the ice at no great distance,
or when the situation of the fish is convenient or
inaccessible, the ship awaits the approach of the fish.
Towing a fish is usually considered a cheerful,
though laborious operation, and is generally per-

296 WHALE-FISHERY.

formed with great expressions of joy. <A large
whale, by means of six boats, can be towed at the
rate of nearly a mile per hour.

The fish having reached the ship, is taken to the
larboard side, arranged and secured for flensing.
For the performance of this operation, a variety of
knives and other instruments are requisite, most of
which are figured in Plates 18, 20, and 21.

Towards the stern of the ship the head of the fish
is directed ; and the tail, which is first cut off, rests
abreast of the fore-chains. The smallest or poste-
rior part of the whale’s body, where the tail is unit-
ed, is called the rwmp, and the extremity or an-
terior part of the head, the nose, or nose-end. The
rump then, supported by a tackle, is drawn forward
by means of a stout rope, called the rwmp-rope, and
the head is drawn in an opposite direction by means
of the “ nese-tackle.” Hence, the body of the fish is
forcibly extended. 'The right-side fin, being next
the ship, 1s jashed upward towards the gunwale.
A band of blubber, 2 or 3 feet in width, encircling
the fish’s body, and lying between the fins and the
head, being the fat of the neck, or what corresponds
in other animals with the neck, is called the ‘ent ;
because, by means of it, the fish is turned over or
kented. Now, to the commencement of this imagi-
nary band of fat or kent, is fixed the lower extre-
mity of a combination of powerful blocks, called
the kent-purchase. Its upper extremity is fix-

UNLUCKY OCCURRENCE. 297

ed round the head of the main-mast, and its fall
or rope is applied to the windlass, drawn tight, and
the upper surface of the fish raised several inches
above the water. The enormous weight ofa whale,
prevents the possibility of raising it more than one-
fourth or one-fifth part out of the water, except, in-
deed, when it has been some days dead, in which
case it swells, in consequence of air generated by
putrefaction, until one-third, of its bulk appears
above the surface. The fish then lying belly up-
ward, extended and well secured, is ready for com-
mencing the operation of flensing. In this state,
a suspension of labour is generally allowed, in which
the crew get themselves refreshed with food and a
dram, and equip themselves suitably for the ensuing
duties.

An unlucky circumstance once occurred in an in-
terval of this kind. At that period of the fishery,
(40 or 50 years ago,) when a single stout whale, to-
gether with the bounty, was found sufficient to re-
muncrate the owners of a ship for the expences of the
voyage, great joy was exhibited on the capture of a
whale, by the fishers. ‘They were not only checred by
a dram of spirits, but sometimes provided with some
favourite “ mess,” on which to regale themselves,
before they commenced the arduous task of flensing.
At such a period, the crew of an English vessel had
captured their first whale. It was taken to the ship,
placed on the lee-side, and though the wind blew a
strong breeze, it was fastened only by a small zope

298 WHALE-FISHERY.

attached to the fin. In this state of supposed secu-
rity, all hands retired to regale themselves, the
captain himself notexeepted. The shipbeingat a dis-
tance from any ice, and the fish believed to be secure,
they made no great haste in their enjoyment. At
length, the specksioneer having spent sufficient time
in indulgence and equipment, with an air of import-
ance and self-confidence, proceeded on deck, and
naturally turned to look on the whale. To his as-
tonishment it was not there. In some alarm he
looked a-stern, a-head, on the other side, but his
search was useless ; the ship drifting fast, had pressed
forcibly upon the whale, the rope broke, the fish sunk
and was lost! The mortification of this event may
be conceived, but the termination of their vexation
will not easily be imagined, when it is known, that
no other opportunity of procuring a whale occur-
red during the voyage. The ship returned home
clean.

SECT. XI. -
Process of Flensing.
After the whale is properly secured alongside of
the ship, and the men sufficiently refreshed, the

harpooners, having their feet armed with “ spurs,”
(Pl. 20. fig. 15.) to prevent them from slipping,

PROCESS OF FLENSING. 299

descend upon the fish. ‘Two boats, each of which
is under the guidance of one or two boys, attend
upon them, and serve to hold all their knives and
other apparatus. Thus provided, the harpooners,
directed by the specksioneer, divide the fat into ob-
long pieces or “slips,” by means of “ blubber-spades,”
(Pl. 18. fig. 7, 8,9, 10.) and “ blubber-knives,”
(Pl. 20. fig. 1.); then. affixing a“ speck-tackle” to
each slip, progressively flay it off, as it is drawn up-
ward. The speck-tackles, which are two or three
in number, are rendered effective by capsterns,
winches, or other mechanical powers. Each of
them consists of a simple combination of two single
blocks, one of which is securely fixed on a strong
rope, extended between the main-top and the fore-
top, called a guy; and the other is attached by a
strap to the blubber of the whale. The flensers
commence with the belly and under jaw, being the
only parts then above water. The blubber, in pieces
of half a ton to a ton each, is received upon deck by
the boat-steerers and line-managers : the former with
strand-knives,” (Pl. 20. fig. 3.) divide it into port-
able cubical, or oblong pieces, containing near a solid
foot of fat, while the latter, furnished with “ pick-
haaks,” (Pl. 20. fig. 9.) pass it between decks, down
a hole in the main hatches. It is then received by two
men styled kings, who pack it in a receptacle
provided for it in the hold, or other suitable place,

300 WHALE-FISHERY.

called the ficns-gut, where it remains until further
convenience.

All the fat being taken away from the belly, and
the right fin removed, the fish is then turned on its
side by means of the kent, which, by the power of
the windlass, readily performs this office. 'The up-
per surface of fat is again removed, together with
the left fin, and after a second kenting, one of the
“lips” is taken away, by which, the whalebone of
one side of the head, now lying nearly horizontal, |
is exposed. ‘The fish being a little further turned,
the whalebone of the left side is dislodged by the
use of “ bone hand-spikes,” (Pl. 21. fig. 6.) “ bone-
knives,” and “ bone-spades.” Four of the articles
represented by fig. 5. Pl. 20., which, when combin-
ed, constitute what is called the bone-geer, are
used, with the assistance of two speck-tackles, for
taking up the whalebone in one mass. On its ar-
rival on deck, it is split with “ bone-wedges” (P1. 20.
fig. 6.) into “ junks,” containing 5 to 10 blades each,
and stowed away. A further kenting brings the
fish’s back upward, and the next exposes the second
side of bone. As the fish is turned or kented round,
every part of the blubber becomes progressively up-
permost, and is removed. At length, when the
whole of the blubber, whalebone, and jaw-bones,
have been taken on board, the kent, which now ap-
pears a slip of perhaps 30 feet in length, is also
separated, together with the rump-repe and nose-

PROCESS OF FLENSING. $01

tackle, on which, the carcass being at liberty, ge-
nerally sinks in the water and disappears *. When
it floats, however, it becomes food for bears, sharks,
and various kinds of birds, all of which attack it
with most voracious earnestness.

When sharks are present, they generally take
the liberty of helping themselves very bountifully
during the progress of the flensing; but they often
pay for their temerity, with their lives. Fulmars
pay close attendance in immense numbers. They
seize the fragments occasionally disengaged by the
knife, while they are swimming in the water; but
most of the other gulls who attend on the occasion,
take their share on the wing. The burgomaster is
decidedly the master of the feast. Hence every
other bird is obliged to relinquish the most deli-
cious morsel, when the burgomaster descends to
claim it. Bears seldom approach so near the ship,
as to become partakers of the banquet.

When dispatch is seconded by ability, the opera-
tion of flensing can be accomplished on a fish af-
fording 20 to 30 tons of blubber, in the space of
three or four hours. Probably the average time
with British fishers but little exceeds four hours,

* When a whale has been 24 to 48 hours killed, its kreng,
as the carcass after being flensed is called, becomes so swollen
by the air generated by the process of putrefaction, that it will
swim ; and, in a few days after death, will rise three or four
feet above the surface of the water.

302 “WHALE-FISHERY.

But I have observed a foreign ship nearly 24 hours:
in flensing a whale! This dilatormess was occasion-
ed by inexperience, and indifferent weather, in com-
bination with an indulgence of ease, amounting to
idleness. |

The process by which a small fish is flensed, is a
little different from the preceding ; inasmuch as the
preparations are less formal, and the labour less ar-
duous.

Flensing in a swell is a most difficult and dan-
gerous undertaking; and when the swell is at all
considerable, it is commonly impracticable. No
ropes or blocks are capable of bearing the jerk of
the sea. The harpooners are annoyed by the surge,
and repeatedly drenched in water ; and are likewise
subject to be wounded by the breaking of ropes or
hooks of tackles, and even by strokes from each
others knives. Hence accidents in this kind of
flensing, in particular, are not uncommon. The
harpooners not unfrequently fall into the fish’s
mouth, when it is exposed by the removal of a sur-
face of blubber ; where they might easily be drown-
ed, but for the prompt assistance which is always
at hand.

Some years ago, I was witness of a circumstance,
in which, a harpooner was exposed to the most immi-
nent risk of his life, at the conclusion of a flensing
process, by a very curious accident. 'This harpoon-
er stood on one of the jaw-bones of the fish, with a

PROCESS OF FLENSING. 303

boat by his side. In this situation, while he was
in the act of cutting the kreng adrift, a boy inad-
vertently struck the point of the boat-hook, with
which he usually held the boat, through the ring
of the harpooner’s spur; and, in the same act, seiz-
ed the jaw-bone of the fish with the hook of the
same instrument. Before this was discovered, the |
kreng was set at liberty, and began instantly to
sink. ‘The harpooner then threw himself towards
the boat; but being firmly entangled by the foot,
he fell into the water. Providentially, he caught
the gunwale of the boat with his hands: but, over-
powered by the force of the sinking kreng, he was on
the point of relinquishing his grasp, when some of
his companions got hold of his hands, while others
threw a rope round his body. The carcass of the
fish was now suspended entirely by the poor fel-
low’s body, which was consequently so dreadfully
extended, that there was some danger of his being
drawn asunder. But such was his terror of being
taken under water, and not indeed without cause,
for he could never have risen again, that notwith-
standing the excruciating pain he suffered, he con-
stantly cried out to his companions to “ haul away
the rope.” He remained in this dreadful state,
until means were adopted for hooking the kreng
with a grapnel, and drawing it back to the surface
of the water. His escape was singularly provi-
dential : for, had he not caught hold of the boat as

304 WHALE-FISHERY.

he was sinking, and met with such prompt assists
ance, he must infallibly have perished.

SHOT XIE
Process of Making Of:

When a fish is caught, or sometimes when theré
is a good prospect of success in the fishery, even
before a fish is caught, the centre of the ship’s
hold is disencumbered of a few of. its casks, to
be in readiness for the reception of the blub-
ber. The cavity thus made, together with all
the space between decks which can convenient-
ly be appropriated to the same purpose, receives
the name of the flens-gut. Now, when the
flens-gut is filled with blubber, or when, no fish
being seen, a favourable opportunity of leisure is
presented, the operation of making off* is general-
ly commenced. This consists of freeing the fat
from all extraneous substances, especially the mus-
cular parts, and the skin; then cutting it into smalk
pieces, and putting it into casks through the bung-
holes.

* The expression “ making off,’ seems to be derived from .
the word afmaaken of the Dutch, signifying to finish, adjust,
or complete, referring to the nature of the operation,—as a
concluding, finishing, or adjusting process.

PROCESS OF MAKING-OFF. 305

» Before the process of making-off can, however,
be commenced, several preparatory measures are ne-
cessary. ‘The ship must be moored to a convenient
piece of ice, or placed in an open situation, and the
sails so reduced as to require no further attention.
in the event of bad weather occurring. ‘The hold
of the ship must be cleared of its superstructure of
casks, until the “ ground-tier,” or lowest stratum
of casks, is exposed; and the ballast-water must be
“ started,” or pumped out of all the casks that are
removed upon deck, as well as out of those in the
ground-tier, which are firstprepared for the reception
of the blubber. In “ breaking out the hold,” it is
not neeessary to lay open more of the ground-tier at
a time, than three or four casks extend in length.
The water which is discharged from the casks in
the hold, provided they have been before in use, gives
out a great quantity of a strong disagreeable vapour,
consisting probably of sulphuretted and phosphuret-
ted hydrogen, with a mixture of other gaseous fluids,
produced by the decomposition of the oleaginous,
and other animal substances, left in the casks after
former voyages. This decomposition seems to be
encouraged, if not wholly produced, by the action
of the water on the animal matter; because the
same casks, if bunged close, when empty, give out
but a small quantity of gas, and that of inferior
pungency. The gas proceeding from oily casks,
VOL. I. U

306 WHALE-FISHERY.

having contained water, resembles, in some degree,
though vastly more pungent, the gas evolved by
* bilee-water,” or the stagnant water which rests
among the timbers of a very tight ship. The gas
discharged from oily casks, is usually stronger and
more abundant, in proportion as the water from
which it is disengaged, has been a longer time in
the casks. A considerable quantity of it is gener-
ated, in the space of three or four months. This
gas blackens metals, even gold, restores some me-
tallic oxides, is disagreeable in respiration, and af-
fects the eyes of the persons employed in the hold,
where it is most abundant, so as to occasion ophthal-
mic inflammation, and frequently temporary blind-
ness.

While the line-managers, together with the
“ skeeman *,” the cooper, and perhaps a few o-
thers, are employed in breaking out the hold, the
rest of the crew on the deck arrange all the
variety of apparatus used for the preparation of
the blubber, before it is put into the casks. Of
this apparatus, the most considerable part is the
* speck-trough,” with its appendages. It consists
of a kind of oblong box or chest, about twelve feet
in length, 13 feet in breadth, and 14 feet in depth.
The speck-trough 1s fixed upon the deck, as nearly

* The officer who has the direction of operations conduct
ed in the held.

PROCESS OF MAKING-OFF. 307

as possible over the place where the casks are to
be filled in the hold. A square hole, made in its
bottom, is placed either over the nearest hatch-way
to the scene of operations, or upon a corresponding
hole, cut in the deck.

The speck-trough is then secured, and its lid
turned backward into an horizontal position; inwhich
position it is supported on one side by its hinges,
and on the other, by screw props or pillars ; or it is
altogether rested upon several little stcols. The
surface of the lid, which, thus placed, forms a level
table, is then covered with blocks of whales’ tail,
from end to end. This substance, from its simewy and
elastic nature, makes excellent “ chopping-blocks,”
and preserves the “ chopping-knives” from injury,
when used for dividing the blubber upon it. Into
the square-hole in the bottom of the speck-trough, is
fitted an iron-frame, to which is suspended a canvas
tube or “ hose,” denominated a dull. 'The lull is open
at both ends. Its diameter is about a foot, and its
length sufficient to reach from the deck to the bottom
of the hold. ‘To the middle, or towards the upper
part of the lull, is attached a “ pair of nippers,”
consisting of two sticks fastened together, by a kind
of hinge at one end, and capable of being pres-
sed together at the other. The nippers being pas-
sed across the body of the lull, and their detached
extremities brought together, they embrace it so
closely, that nothing can pass downward while they

ug

oo

308 WHALE-FISHERY.

remain in this position; but when, on the other
hand, the nippers are extended, the lull forms a
free channel of communication between the speck-
trough and the hold.

Every thing being now in readiness, the blubber,
as it is thrown out of the flens-gut by the kings,
undergoes the following several operations. It is
received upon deck by the “ krengers,” whose of-
fice is to remove all the muscular parts, together
with such spongy or fibrous fat, as is known by ex-
perience to produce very little oil. When these sub-
stances, which go under the general denomination
of Kreng, are included among the blubber in the
casks, they undergo a kind of fermentation, and ge-
nerate such a quantity of gas, as sometimes to burst
the containing vessels, and occasion. the loss. of their
contents. From the krengers, the blubber passes
to the harpooners. Each ef these officers, provided
with a blubber-knife or a strand-knife, places him-
self by the side of a “ closh” (Pl. 20. fig. 10.) fixed
in the deck. An attendant, by means of a pair of
“ hand-hooks,” (Pl. 19. fig. 3.) or “ a pick-haak,” (PI.
20. fig. 9.) then mounts a piece of blubber upon the
spikes of the closh, and the harpooner slices off the
skin. From the skinners, the blubber is passed
into an open space called the bank, prepared as a
depository, in front of the speck-trough, and it is
then laid upon the “ chopping-blocks,” as want-
ed. It now falls under the hands of the boat-

PROCESS OF MAKING-OFF. 309

steerers, who, armed with “ chopping-knives,” (PI.
20. fig. 2.) are arranged in a line by the side of
the chopping-blocks, with the speck-trough before
them. ‘Thus prepared, they divide the blubber,
as it is placed on their blocks, into oblong pie-
ces, not exceeding four inches in diameter, and
push it into the speck-trough intended for its recep-
tion. And, finally, the blubber falls under the di-
rection of the line-managers stationed in the hold,
who receive it into tubs, through the medium of the
lull, and pass it, without any instrument but their
hands, into the casks through their bung-holes.
When the line-manager brings his tub beneath the
lull, he makes use of the words “ let lob,” on which
the boy who holds the nippers, permits the blub-
ber to escape, until he is warned by the words
“ nip the lull,” or “ nip,” to prevent any more from
descending. When a cask is nearly filled, the
packing is completed by the use of a “ pricker”
(Pl. 18. fig. 11, 12.); one piece after another being
thrust in by this instrument, until it can contain
no more. It is then securely bunged up.

An excellent apparatus for cutting blubber, has
been recently introduced, which promises in a few
years to supersede the use of the speck-trough and
its cumbrous appendages. It consists of a square
tube of wood, 5 or 6 feet in length, and about 16
or 18 inches square. An iron frame containing
four cutting knives, placed parallel to one ano-

310 WHALE-FISHERY.

ther, with their edges upward, is fixed on fric-
tion-rollers near the bottom of the tube; and
immediately below this frame another exactly si-
milar is placed at right angles. The knives
of the two frames, therefore, divide the cavity of
the tube imto 25 exact squares. In Plate 22.,
are two representations of this apparatus. Figure 1,
shows the instrument in its proper position; and
fig. 2. is a horizontal section of the same. When
it is in use, the blubber to be cut is put into the
tube at the top, and falls upon the edges of the
knives. The knives are then put into rapid hori-
zontal motion, by which the blubber is readily cut
into proper sized pieces, falls into the /udi attached
to the bottom of the machine, is conducted into the
hold, and disposed of in the same manner as before
described. No other pressure besides the weight of
the blubber, is requisite for forcing it through the
machine; but to assist the action of the knives, their
edges are sometimes made higher at the middle
than at the ends.

When the ground ticr-casks, as far as they have
been exposed, are filled, the second tier of casks is
“ stowed” upon it, and likewise filled with blubber,
together with the third tier-casks, when necessary.
As in this progressive manner, when fish can be had
in sufficiency, all the hold is filled, and likewise the
space between decks,—it is evident, that the pro-
cess of making-off must be tedious, disagreeable and

—E————
———— SSS SSS a

PROCESS OF MAKING-OFF. $11

laborious. Fifty men actively employed, can pre-
pare and pack about three tons of blubber in an
hour; though more frequently they are contented
with making-off little more than one-half of that
quantity *. When a ship, which makes a successful
fishing, is deficient in casks, the remaining vacan-
cies adapted for the reception of the cargo, are filled
with “ blubber in bulk ;’ that is, the blubber, in
large pieces as it is taken off the whales, is laid skin
downward, upon the highest tier of casks, and over
this, stratum after stratum, until the vacancies are
filled. A little salt is usually scattered over the sur-
face of each stratum of blubber, which assists in pre-
serving the animal fibre, and in preventing the dis-
charge of the oil. Blubber in bulk, notwithstand-
ing every precaution, however, generally loses much
of its oil. A quick passage homeward, with cool
weather and smooth sea, are favourable for its pre-
servation ; but under the influence of opposite cir-
cumstances, it becomes greatly reduced.

* The operation of making-off, was always, in the early ages
of the fishery, performed on shore ; and even so recently as the
middle of lastcentury, it was customary for ships to proceed into
a harbour, and there remain so long as this process was going
on.

aEe WHALE-FISHERY.

SECT.’ XIIE.
Laws of the Whale-Fishery.

WHEREVER a number of individuals in different
interests, but under similar circumstances of time
and place, are embarked in the same traffic or ec-
cupation, their advantages generally clash with each,
or at least interfere in such a way that they are
liable to strive to promote their own advantage on
every occasion, though it be at the expence of their
neighbour. The generality of this fact in a greater or
less degree, has induced some manufacturers, merch-
ants, and tradespeople, to establish among themselves,
where the Legislature has omitted it, a suitable, and,
as nearly as possible, an equitable system of regula-
tions, for their mutual benefit.

‘Thus, in the Greenland W hale-fishery, the import-
ance of a code of laws was, at a very early period, ap-
parent. <A fish struck by the people of two different
ships, became an object of dispute, the first striker
claiming the wiole, and thesecond demandingashare
for his assistance. Stores saved from wrecked vessels,
and especially the cargoes of wrecks, being objects of
much moment, were also liable to occasion disputes
in a still higher degree. Hence, about the year 1677,
the Dutch issued a code of regulations, founded on
equitable principles, for the prevention of quarrels

LAWS OF THE FISHERY. $18

and litigation among the fishers, to which all per-
sons interested in the trade were expected to con-
form. But as these regulations, from their want
of authority, were not sufficiently cbserved,—and in-
deed, in their original form, were found to be sub-
ject to some difficulties.—the States-General of
Holland and West Friesland, in the year 1695, as
appears from a resolution dated the 25th of January
of the same year, approved and confirmed (after re-
vision) the general* regulations with respect to the
saving of the crews and stores of vessels wrecked in
the ice, the right to whales under peculiar cireum-
stances, and other matters connected with the fish-
ery. ‘To these regulations, every captain, speck-
sioneer and officer concerned in the fishery, was ob-
liged to subscribe. They consisted of twelve arti-
cles, in substance as follows *.

1. Whenever a ship is lost, and the captain and
crew endeavour to save themselves, the first vessel
they approach shall be bound to take them on
board ; whenever this ship meets with another, this
other shall take one-half of the men who have been
saved, except only in case the ship met with shall
happen to have already any other shipwrecked sea-
men on board; in the event of which, the number
in each ship shall be summed up and equally di-

* «Beschryving der Walvisvangst,” &c. Deel i. bl. 22; alsa
** Histoire des Péches,” Tome i. p. 427.

S14 WHALE-FISHERY.

vided between the two: And whenever either of
those ships shall meet with a third, they shall again
divide with her, one-half of their shipwrecked sea-
men; and thus continue subdividing with every
ship they meet, until they become equally dis-
tributed throughout the flect, or at least until the
number left be so far diminished, as to cease to be a
burden to the savers.

2. The victualling stores of the people saved,
shall be exclusively consumed by themselves; and
when any division of the shipwrecked crew is made
to any other vessels, an equal proportion of the xe-
maining victuals must go along with them; but in
the event of the said crew not having brought any
provisions along with them, then they shall be as-
sisted therewith, for humanity’s sake, they working
for the same as other seamen.

3. Whenever a ship shall be cast away in Green-
land, the commander or captain, or the person re-
presenting the same, so long as he remains by the
wreck, shall have his free choice whether the stores
shall be saved or not, and by whom they shail be
saved, provided the person on whom he fixes shall
have it at his option to receive them.

4. In ail instances, however, of a wreck being
found without any person near or on board the same,
he or they who shall meet with it, shall be legally
authorised to take on board any of its stores, spars,
rigging, sails, casks, cargo or goods; and on carrying

LAWS OF THE FISHERY. Bid

the same home, he (the saver) or the owners of his
vessel, shall be entitled to one equal half thereof,
and the remaining moiety, without any charge or
expence whatsoever, shail be given up to the ori-
ginal proprictors.

5. When it happens that a wreck is abandoned by
the captain, officers and crew, and the stores, cargo
and goods belonging to it are afterwards saved,—the
captain, officers and crew, so deserting the wreck,
shall not have any claim whatever on the goods
so saved, any more than if they had been totally
lost.

6. But the crew of the ship lost, or any part tiere-
of, who may be present at the time any stores, or
any part of the cargo, shall be saved, and shall as-
sist in saving them, shall, out of the neat fourth
part of all that may be saved, receive the monthly
wages due to them at the time the ship was lost ;
but, in the event the one-fourth part should be
inadequate for this purpose, cach individual shall
sustain an equal proportion of the existing deficien-
cy ; and if the said one-fourth should exceed the sum
requisite for paying the monthly wages as above,
the surplus shall be added to the remaining three-
fourths, as the equal and joint property of the sa-
vers and the owners of the wrecked vessel.

S16 WHALE-FISHERY.

7*. The commander by whom any thing is sa--
ved, shall calculate the value thereof, (deducting
that part required for paying the monthly wages of
the shipwrecked crew, as in the last article) and
comparing the said value or capital thus arising
with the market price of train-oil and whalebone,
he shall pay his officers and crew in like proportion,
as they would have been entitled to, had the same
value of oil and fins been obtained in the fishery :—
In this estimate of the value of the goods saved, when
rendered into their corresponding proportion of oil
and fins, he shall reckon 50 barrels of blubber and
1600 Ib. of whalebone as one fish.

8. All goods thus saved from wrecks, shall, in
ease of damage being received by the saving ves-
sel, be subject to average the same as all other pro-
perty in the ship f.

9. Any one having killed a whale in the ice, but
who cannot eonveniently take it on board, shall be
considered as the owner thereof, so long as any of
his crew remains along with it; but whenever
it is deserted, though made fast to a piece of

* In the French, this article is rendered totally different, and
tome is quite unintelligible ; in the Dutch it is also ambigu-
ous; but I flatter myself, I have conveyed pretty nearly the
meaning of it.

+ The cargoes of Dutch ships probably became liable to
general averages, in consequence of their frequently using
hired shins for the whale-fishery.

LAWS OF THE FISHERY. 317

ie¢, it becomes the property of the first who can get
possession of it *.

10. But if a fish be made fast to the shore, or
moored near the shore by means of a grapnel or
anchor, with a buoy, a flag, or other mark attached
to it, signifying that it is not deserted,—the person
who left it there, shall still be considered the sole
proprietor, though no person may be with it.

11. Any person being wounded or maimed in de-
fensive operations, while in this service, either in
the passage to or from Greenland, shall receive a
reasonable compensation from the Commissioners of
the fishery, according to the injury sustained, and the
degree of zeal and bravery manifested on the occa-
sion; the expence of which to be borne by the
whole fleet.

12. Lastly, if a case shall happen which is not
provided for by these regulations, it shall be set-
tled by reference to wise and prudent arbitrators.

(Signed) SIMON VaN-BEAUMONT, &e.

The above articles being duly announced, were
enforced by commissioners chosen from amongst the
principal Greenland owners of Holland, for conduct-
ing and carrying into effect, this and other matters

* The latter part of this article is omitted in the French, and
a sentence of a similar signification with the former part sub-
stituted.

$18 WIHALE-FISHERY.

connected with the prosperity and regulation of the
fishery.

Besides the preceding regulations, which were
subscribed to on cath by every fishing captain and
chief officer before sailing, there was another set of
rules adapted for the crews of each ship, to the ob-
servance of which, every man was sworn before one of
the Commissioners, who went on board of each ship
to administer the oath. his affidavit was a kind
of charter-party, importing, that they would attend
prayers morning and evening, on pain of an amerce-
ment at the discretion of the captain; that they
would not get drunk or draw their knives, on for-
feiture of half their wages; and that they would not
fight on forfeiture of the whole. That no one should
lay wagers on the good or ill success of the fishing,
nor buy or sell on these conditions, in case they took
one or more fish, on penalty of 25 florms; that they
would be contented with the provision allowed them,
and that they would never light fire, candle or
match, by night or day, without the captain’s leave,
under the same penalty *.

Among the British whale-fishers, it does not ap-
pear that any particular laws were ever expressly laid
down, for the adjusting of differences; yet custom.
has established certain principles, as constituting the
rule of right, the legality of which is sufficiently ac-

——+,

* Reece’s Cyclopedia, Art. Fishery.

LAWS OF THE FISHERY. 319

knowledged, by their being universally respected.
The fundamental articles are two.

First, That a fast-fish, or a fish in any way in pos-
session, whether alive or dead, is the sole and un-
questionable property of the persons so maintain-
ing the connection or possession; and, secondly,
That a loose fish, alive or dead, is fair game.

The first of these regulations is founded in equity,
and needs no modification ; but the second can on-
ly be recommended for its simplicity, as it some-
times decides contrary to the apparent principle of
right. Its simplicity, however, must be considered
as of great moment, when its frequent application
in the whale-fishery is known; because, from this
excellence, it is so readily understood, that it has a
tendency to prevent a great deal of litigation, to
which a more limited and modified construction
might render it hable.

1. Under the first law, whenever a fish is struck,
it becomes the sole indisputable property of the
people by whom it was struck, and it remains their
property so long as they retain their connection
with it, through the medium of their lines and
harpoons ; but whenever the continuity of the line
is broken, no matter by what means, the fish is
esteemed loose.

When a fish is struck, and the harpoon draws
out, if either the line or the harpoon were only to
lie across its back, the fish would still be considered
as fast.

320 WHALE-FISHERY:

If a fish, which can be said to be fast, no matter
how slightly, were struck again, and killed by the
people of any other ship, excepting that of the ori-
ginal striker, they would not have the least claim up-
on the fish on account of the assistance given ; nay,
even if the first fast-harpoon should drop out, or the
line should break, an instant after another ship’s peo-
ple had. struck a harpoon, the fish would still be the
sole prize of the original striker. Hence, the only
question which is lable to be disputed, is, Whe-
ther the fish, at the time of being harpooned by the
second ship, was fast or loose? In disputes of this
nature, itis the business of the original striker to
identify the fish in dispute, which can generally be
done by the wound of the harpoon; but as he must
be always considered as fast, so long as his jack is
continued fiying in the boat and ship, it becomes
the part of the second claimant to prove the contra-
ry. Toprove a fish to have been loose at a certain
moment of time, however, is generally a matter of
difficulty, though every one may be convinced of the
fact; for who can say, though no harpoon or line
was visible, that the line or harpoon was not adher-
ing to the fin, tail, belly, or other concealed part of
the fish ?

The same law holds with a dead fish as with a
living one; a dead fish being the sole and unques-
tionable property of the person who maintains the
possession

LAWS OF THE FISHERY. 891

_ A fish may be said to be in possession, whenever
it is connected, by any rope, pole, staff, or any other
similar controllable* medium, to a ship, or to a
boat containing one or more of her crew, or to or
with any individual belonging to the crew of the
said ship, whether he be in a boat, or on the ice, or
even in the water. Thus, if a fish be fast by a
harpoon and line, or a line without a harpoon,—by
aman resting upon the fish, or touching it in any
part, though he be in the water himself, or upon a
piece of ice,—by having a man holding it with
a boat-hook, a cord, a lance, or any other article,—
or, indeed, by a man either holding one end of any
article which touches the fish with the other, or be-
ing in a boat with whose lines one end of such ar- .
ticle is connected,—the fish thus circumstanced is in-
disputably in pdssession. But no boat, or any num-
ber of boats connected with the fish, in the most se-
cure manner, where no person is with them, can
‘secure the possession of the fish, for even these
boats themselves appear to be in some measure free
prizes; at least, under such circumstances boats have,
occasionally, been peremptorily detained.

* T use the word controllable here, to distinguish the articles
meant, from some others, which, though forming a connection,
do not establish the possession. For instance, 2 man may have
hold of, or be upon a piece of ice, which, on the opposite side,
rests against a fish, or touches it; but though, in this case,
there is a kind of connection, the ice, not being under his con-
troul, does not convey the necessary possession.

YOL. TE. X

322 WHALE-FISHERY.

II. Under the second law; whenever a fish is
loose, whatever may be the case or circumstances, it
becomes a free prize to the first person who gets
hold of it.

Thus, when a whale is killed, and the flensing
is prevented by a storm, it is usually taken in. tow ;
if the rope by which it is connected with the ship
should happen to break, and the people of another
ship should seize upon it while disengaged, it be-
comes their prize*.

Should the flags of a ship and its fast-boat be
struck, on the supposition that their whale has es-
eaped, the same whale may be struck by the peo-
ple of any other ship who can approach it; and
though the case should prove doubtful, whether the
fish were really fast or loose at the time, the second
striker would have the advantage in his claim,
in consequence of the jacks of the first striker being

* Some instances of this kind have, however, occurred,
wherein the right of the original proprietors has appeared so
evident, that the fish, which might have been perversely de-
tained, was liberally restored. Such was the case, where a
ship was towing one dead fish towards another, for the purpose
of securing both of them, before the flensing was commenced,
when the line broke, and the fish was left a little distance astern.
In the interim, before a boat could be dispatched, to regain it,
the crew of a strange boat, which happened to be near, seized
it, and towed it to their own ship. The case, however, being

glaringly inequitable, the fish, after some little altercation, waé-
given up.

— =

LAWS OF THE FISHERY. 393

taken down, which is considered as an acknowlede-
ment that the fish was loose, and consequently a free
prize.

If, when a fish is struck, the lines of the fast-
boat should be expended before any assistance ar-
fives, and the men should abandon the boat and be-
take themselves to the ice, or even to swimming,
stipported by their oars, while the boat is allowed
to be drawn under water, with the hope of securing
the fish by the sacrifice.—that moment when the
men quit the boat and release it from their grasp,
the continuity with the whale is broken, and it is
considered to be loose. Hence, though the rest
of the boats belonging to the same vessel may
immediately arrive, though they may disperse them-
selves around the spot, remain on watch for the
return of the fish to the surface, and assist in
killing it, yet, whenever the fish is subdued, it be-
comes the indisputable prize of the second striker*.

* A remarkable case in point, occurred in the Spitzbergen
fishery, about fifteen years ago. Two London ships were in
company, near the edge of a field of ice, where several fish were
astir. A harpooner belonging to one of them, the Neptune,
struck 4 whale when at a distance from his companions ; which;
taking his line out, before assistance could reach him, he fas-
tenéd its end to the boat, and allowed the boat to be taken under
water, with the expectation of its being the means of regain-
ing the fish. Boats were sent from the ship m company, with
the ostensible view of assisting ; from one of which, the whale,

xQ

524 WHALE-FISHERY.

This is a hard case, and appears inequitable. The
reason why it is not modified, is, probably, that
many fish would be altogether lost which are
now captured, whilst a further cause for litiga-
tion would be opened. In the present state of
the law, for instance, disputes can only relate
to the cireumstance—fast or loose; but if the law
were modified, so that a fish struck by the peo-
ple of any ship, should be the property of that ship,
fast or loose, so long as her boats continued the

on its first appearance, was struck. All assisted in the cap-
ture. The Neptune’s people expected it was their prize :
but their competitors seized it, when dead, together with
the boat and lines that had been drawn under water,
and took them, in spite of opposition, to their own ship.
The two captains who met to canvass the matter, parted with
angry violence: the one refusing to give up the advantage he
had so unhandsomely obtained ; the other threatening to refer
the case to a court of law. On the return of the ships, the
case was tried before Lord Ellenborough, when the defendant,
having offered to give up the boat, the Jury gave a verdict for
the plaintiff, (the owner of the Neptune,) damages one shilling,
costs forty shillings. But it was found, that as soon as the
crew abandoned the boat, the fish was loose, and consequently
a free prize to the defendant. As this important case involves
the law with regard to boats, lines, and harpoons, when taken
away from the hands of the proprietors by a whale, as well as
the law relating to a loose fish, I have, for the satisfaction of
whale-fishers, given the trial at some length in the Appendix,
No. V., from a communication with which I have been favour-
ed by James Gale, Esq. owner of the Neptune.

LAWS OF THE FISHERY. 325

pursuit, an additional cause of dispute would occur :
for, besides the simple question, Whether the fish
was fast or loose ? we should have to inquire, Whe-
ther the original striker’s boats had, or had not, re-
Tinguished the pursuit ? And, whenever a master
observed a fish escape from any neighbouring ship,
he would be dubious of striking such fish, or any
other, which, from its conduct, he might mistake for
the same. Hence, the fear of litigation might ope-
rate so forcibly, and, at the same time, so contrary
to the economy of the fishery, that a number of
wounded whales, and others supposed to be wound-
ed, would escape, which, in the present state of the
law, are attacked and captured without scruple.

The same objection holds with regard to any
other general alteration in the laws of the fishery,
which occurs to me. ;

The only improvement, therefore, which, on the
whole, I conceive, in the present state of things, the
law is capable of, is that arising from the application
of the golden precept, given by the Saviour of Man-
kind, “ Whatsoever ye would that men should do
to you, do ye even so to them.*” This would shew
a person, that to attempt to take a fish out of the
hands of another is a crime; and to endeavour to
seize a fish which has just escaped from its strikers
with lines, or with lines and boat, (so long as they

* New Testament, Matthen, ch, vii. ver. 12.

326 WHALE-FISHERY.

have a chanee of sueceeding in the recapture,) is an
act at once mean and despicable. It-would also shew
him, that nothing could justify such an act, but the
certainty, that the original strikers could have lit-
tle or no chance of ever recovering the possession of
the fish themselves. As the application of this max-
im, howeyer, must depend upon the integrity of
character of those individuals engaged in the trans-
action, it cannot be expected, in a case where self-
imterest is so deeply concerned, that it should be
universally respected. So labie, indeed, is the judg-
ment to be warped by an interested feeling, that its
decisions in such a case are rarely to be depended
on, unless the question can be considered abstractly
from this prejudicial imfiuence.

if any person should, unintentionally, be led to
strike a fish which has just escaped from another, I
conceive he is justified in retaining it, the meanness
of the act not consisting im the transaction itself,
but in the design to seize upon a fish, in point of
equity the right of another. But any one who is
the original striker of 2 whale, must, undoubtedly,
condemn him who designedly interferes, and must
‘esteem the act of intentionally anticipating his
boats, as little better than a robbery.

From the second law, a fish may alternately be-
come the property of several persons, each of whose

claim immediately ceases, the moment he loses pos-
session.

LAWS OF THE FISHERY. 327

The crew of the Mars of Whitby, commanded by -
my Father, killed a whale at the commencement of
a storm in the beginning of May 1817. It was
taken to the ship and secured by a new nie-inch
hawser; but such was the violence of the sea, that
when the ship was on the point of rounding a pro-
montory of ice, which was capable of affording ex-
cellent shelter from the sea, the hawser broke.
When the gale abated, my Father proceeded in
search of his fish, found it, and got up to it, a few
minutes after the people of another vessel had seiz-
ed it. His claim was, therefore, at an end with
regard to the fish, and even the part of the hawser
which was fast to it, was exultingly refused him.
But the triumph of the new possessors was short ;
the swell drove their ship against the ice, and they
were obliged to cast the fish adrift. A third ship
then found it, and succeeded in making prize of
it.

If, when a person, from friendly motives, sends
his boats to assist those of another ship in the cap-
ture of a fish, it should happen that the fish slips
loose, and his boats succeed in first re-striking it,
the whale in this case, according to the Greenland
law, is the prize of the last striker, because it was
loose: but according to principles of right and strict
honour, I conceive it is the property of the first strik-
er, and as such, ought to be givenup. Three reasons
occur to me for enforcing such a doctrine: 1st, The

325 WHALE-FISHERY.

consideration, that the auxiliary ship would not,
probably, have become the possessor of this fish, had
it not been previously struck by the other: 2dly,
That as the boats were sent out with the view to
assist the then possessors in the capture, they ought
to fulfil the object for which they embarked in the
cause, and not convert it imto a plea for taking the
fish to themselves; and, 3dly, The golden precept,
already mentioned, “ Whatsoever ye would that
men should do to you, do ye even so to them.”

From what has been now advaneed, it will pro-
bably appear to be a matter of doubt, whether or
not, on the whole, any alteration in the Greenland
fishing laws would be beneficial to the trade. _Un-
certain, however, as this point is, there can be no
doubt, but that the speculators in the fishery in ge-
neral, as well as the underwriters of their ships,
would be materially benefited by some amendment
in the custom relative to the stores and cargoes
saved from wrecked vessels.

At present, the fishing laws are extended to the
case of wrecks, which, together with their cargoes
and. stores, are considered, equally with a loose fish,
as free prizes. This extension of the fishing laws
is frequently acted on: stores are saved from
wrecks and appropriated entirely to the use of the
savers, and no account of them whatever, rendered
to the original owners. But although this applica-

LAWS OF THE FISHERY. $29

tion of the law has been repeatedly admitted, I am
not aware that it has been legally established. In
support of this principle, however, the fishers con-
tend, that the existing laws are well adapted to the
nature of the trade, and that their application, whe-
ther to fish, or to the stores and cargoes of wrecks,
is universal; that the British laws, relative to sal-
vage, and the claim of the original owners on aban-
doned or lost property, is foreign to matters of this
nature; and, consequently, that in a court of law, the
case must be adjudged by the custom established in
the fishing seas, where the transaction took place,
and not by the laws of the country where the case
is tried.

The propriety of appropriating all wrecked stores
to the use of the savers, is argued from the suppo-
sition, that few persons would consider the benefit
of the usual salvage, (suppesing it never to exceed a
third), as a sufficient remuneration for encumbering
themselves with the stores of wrecks; and much
less would the same reward induce any one to save
the cargo of a wrecked ship, because by so doing,
they would burden themselves with the property of
others, of which they must be obliged to render an
account, when subsequently it might appear, that
had not the room in the ship been thus occupied,
they might have procured a full cargo of blubber
of their own taking, on which no one could have
any claim; and consequently the owners of the

330 WHALE-FISHERY.

vessel saving the stores would suffer a loss equal to
the value restored to the owners of the wreck.
Now, if it were really the case, that a small salvage
only could be legally claimed by the savers of
wrecked stores, which would have the effect of pre-
venting any stores whatever from being saved, it
would be an impolitic law, because the leaving of
goods in Greenland is absolutely a national loss ; but
if, on the other hand, it should appear that, by the
enacting of an express law offering a larger salvage
than is usual, the preceding objections would be ob-
viated, and the quantity of stores saved from wrecks
increased,—then would it become an object worthy
of legislative interference, especially if to a national
advantage should be added that of an equitable ar-
rangement in the distribution of property. Sup-
_ posing, for instance, the salvage established by law
were to be one-half on all fishing-stores, and other
materials belonging to wrecks, but two-thirds, or
even three-fourths, on the cargoes of wrecks, it
might answer the desired end. It would, at any
rate, obviate an existing fear of controversy, which
induces some owners to give positive orders to their
captains, to take no wrecked stores on board. Sub-
stituting the above salvage, then, instead of a re-
gular one-third, or even less, I conceive the abstract
of Dutch laws already before the reader, would, on
the whole, be admirably adapted to the present
circumstances of the fishery. Articles 10. and 11.

LAWS OF THE FISHERY. 351

might be omitted as unnecessary at the present day,
and likewise the first clause of the Ist article; for
the principle of humanity is happily not so far
extinct that any British seaman should necd a le-
gal order to induce him to save, protect and non-
rish‘a fellow-creature in distress!

The following circumstance, which occurred a
good many years ago, has a tendency to illustrate
the existing Greenland laws, and to set them in a
prominent light.

uring a storm of wind and snow, several ships
were beating to windward, under easy sail, along the
edge of a pack. When the storm abated, and the
weather cleared, the ships steered towards the ice.
Two of the fleet approached it, about a mile asun-
der, abreast of each other, when the crews of each
ship accidentally got sight of a dead fish, at a little
distance within some loose ice. Each ship now
made sail, to endeavour to reach the fish before the
other; which fish being loose, would be a prize to the
first who should get possession of it. Neither ship
could outsail the other, but each continued to press
forward towards the prize. ‘The little advantage
one of them had in distance, the other compensated
with velocity. On each bow of the two ships, was
stationed a principal officer, armed with a harpoon,
in readiness to discharge. Gut it so happened, that
the ships came in contact with each other, when
within a few yards of the fish, and in consequcneg

332 WHALE-FISHERY.

of the shock with which their bows met, they re-
bounded to a considerable distance. The officers,
at the same moment, discharged their harpoons,
but all of them fell short of the fish. A hardy
fellow, who was second mate of the leeward ship, im-
mediately leaped overboard, and with great dexterity
swam to the whale, seized it by the fin, and pro-
claimed it his prize. It was, however, so swoln,
that he was unable to climb upon it, but was o-
bliged to remain shivering in the water until assist-
ance should be sent. His captain, elated with his
good luck, forgot, or at least neglected, his brave
second mate; and before he thought of sending a
boat to release him from his disagreeable situation,
prepared to moor his ship to an adjoining piece of
ice. Meanwhile, the other ship tacked, and the
master himself stepped into a boat, pushed off, and
rowed deliberately towards the dead fish. Obser-
ving the trembling seaman still in the water, hold-
ing by the fin, he addressed him with, “ Well,
my lad, you’ve got a fine fish here,’—to which, after
a natural reply in the affirmative, he added,
“ But don’t you find it very cold ?”—*“ Yes,” re-
plied the shivering sailor, “ I’m almost starved; I
wish you would allow me to come into your boat until’
ours arrive.” This favour needed no second soli-
citation, the boat approached the man, and he was
assisted into it. The fish being again loose and
eut of possession, the captain instantly struck his

CAUSES OF SUCCESS IN THE FISHERY. $33

harpoon into it, hoisted his flag, and claimed his
prize! Mortified and displeased as the other mas-
ter felt at this trick, for so it certainly was, he had,
nevertheless, no redress, but was obliged to permit
the fish to be taken on board of his competitor’s
ship, and to content himself with abusing the se-
cond mate for his want of discretion, and with con-
demning himself for not having more compassion
on the poor fellow’s feelings, which would have pre-
vented the disagreeable misadventure.

As in some measure connected with the laws of
the whale-fishery, I might also mention the signals
used by the fishers; but as they are of interest to
few persons excepting such as are concerned in the

fishery, they are placed in the Appendix *.

SECT. XIV:

Remarks on the Causes on which Success in the
Whale-Fishery depends.

_ Success in the whale-fishery has been very ge-
nerally supposed to depend, not upon the exercise
of talent and industry on the part of the masters and

rn nn

* Appendix, No. VI.

334 WHALE-FISHERY.

crews of the fishing ships, but solely upon the freaks
of fortune.

That there is something resembling what is called
chance or luck in the fishery, cannot be disputed ;
but that the fishery is altogether a chain of casual-
ties, is as false as it is derogatory to the credit of
the persons employed in the enterprize. For a per-
son with a die to throw the highest pomt once in
six times, is what might be expected from chance ;
but for him to throw the highest pomt many times
in succession, would afford a presumptive proof that
he employed some art in casting the die; so it is
with the fishery. The most skilful, from adventi-
tious and unavoidable circumstances, may occasion-
ally fail, and the unskilful may be successful; but
if we mark the average of a number of years, that
is, where the means are equal, a tolerable estimate
may be formed of the adventurer’s ability, and his
fitness for the undertaking in which he is engaged.

The great variety of success which is observed to
result from the exertions of the different Greenland
commanders, when the average of several voyages
is taken, confirms the above position ; and the cir-

rumstance of some masters, i whatever ship they
may sail, almost always succeeding, whilst others,
however favourably cireumstanced, seldom or never
procure a full cargo, warrants this conclusion,—
that, most gencrally, a successful fishery depends on
the experience, determined perseverance, and per-

CAUSES OF SUCCESS IN THE FISHERY. 335

sonal talent of the master of the vessel, supported
by a necessary degree of skill among the people
composing his crew. There are oceasions, however,
especially in those seasons when the Greenland seas
are open, or in some measure free from ice, in which
personal talent becomes of comparative little avail.
This was strikingly the case in the year 1817,
and in some degree in 1818. In the former season,
in particular, the ice lay at a distance so remote
from Spitzbergen, that a space of about 2000 square
leagues of the surface of the sea, which is usually
covered by ice, was wholly void of it. Hence the
whales, having an immense sea to sport in, and
finding no ice in the usual places to act as an ob-
stacle to prevent their flight, or as a shelter to in-
duce their stay, were either constantly moving from
place to place, or took up their abode in the most
unfrequented and unexpected situations. What-
ever judgments, therefore, were formed, though
founded on the most plausible appearances, or
whatever probabilities the judicious fisher was led
by experience to estimate and act upon, proved falla-
cious, and tended only to embarrass him in all his
proceedings. Thus inferences and deducticns the
most sagacious in appearance, had no tendency but
to mislead and perplex the navigator. Besides, the
range of space in the fishing country being so asto-
nishingly great, and the whales, except in a few
particular spots, so unusually scarce, it followed, that
the fishery, as was actually the case, must be ex-

336 WILALE-FISHERY.

tremely partial: For, whenever a ship happened to
cruise in a direction where no fish were found, much
time was expended before she could either return,
or Visit some other remote situation, considered as
a probable retreat of the whales; and meanwhile,
perhaps, a successful fishery was made in the very
spot she had left. _

The only general indication, in the season of
1817, which could be of the least service to
the fisher, to assist him in the choice of a situa-
tion, was the colour of the sea. In places where
the water was transparent and blue, or green-
ish blue, it was in vain to look for whales; but,
in a certain stream of cloudy water of a deep
olive green colour, which extended, with some in-
terruptions, from the latitude of 80° N. in the pa-
rallel of 2° or 3° KE. to the latitude of 74° in the
parallel of 5° to 10° W., all the whales which were
seen throughout the season, or at least nine-tenths of
them,occurred; and the chief partof those which were
caught, were found in the same stream of water.
This kind of sea-water, respecting which I have had
occasion to speak in the first volume of this work, oc-
eurs to aremarkable extent in the Greenland seas. It
is the favourite resort of whales during the fishing
season; evidently because it abounds with various
descriptions of actiniz, sepiz, meduse, and caneri,
which constitute the chief, if not the sole nourish-
ment of the whale. Such whales as were seen in
the clear blue-coloured sea-water, were never ob-

CAUSES OF SUCCESS IN THE FISHERY. 337

served to be at rest, but invariably in motion, as if
they were in the act of performing a journey to
some other place. In the cloudy green sea, on the
other hand, they were observed to halt, and gene-
rally made it their home, as it were, during a pe-
riod of several days or weeks. At length, early in
the month of July, they totally disappeared from the
green-coloured sea likewise, and retreated to some
other situation, unknown to the fishers, to which,
though the ice was generally open and navigable at
the time, it was found to be almost impossible to
trace them. ‘The general conduct of whales, after
being struck, was in this season peculiar. Instead
of immediately descending to the depth of near a
mile, they frequently never went down at all; and
those which did descend, after receiving the har-
poon, seldom proceeded more than 200 to 300 yards
below the surface. The year referred to, (1817,)
was what the fishers call an open season, to distin-
guish that state of the country, when the ice lies
remote from Spitzbergen, from the close season,
when the country is nearly full of ice.

The fishery of open seasons is more uncertain
than that of close seasons. In the former, the fish-
et has but little dependance on any certain place
for affording whales; but, in the latter, whenever
the barrier of ice is passed, he has the fullest confi-
dence of meeting with them, near the borders of

VOL. IT. ¥

+
$38 WHALE-FISHERY.

the western ice, between the parallels of 78° and
79~- of latitude.

Success in the fishery has some dependance on
the suitable equipment of the ships employed in
the trade—on a sufficient apparatus,—and_fre-
quently, in no inconsiderable degree, on that valu-
able property of a ship, called fast-sailnges When
any opening occurs in the ice, of a tempting ap-
pearance, it frequently happens that a number of
ships enter it together. The fastest sazlers lead
the way, and often procure a whale or two, or more,
before the heavy-sailing ships can perform the navi-
gation; and, by the time the latter accomplish it,
the “ run of fish” is frequently over.

When the ice lies so far to the eastward, that it
covers the green-coloured water, usually resorted to.
during the fishing ‘season, by the whales, it is ad-
visable to persevere in the fishery in icy situations;
but when the green-coloured sea is uncovered by
the ice, it is generally more advantageous to fish in
the open sea.

Too great anxiety on the part of the command-
ers, is sometimes the occasion of failures in the
fishery. When such is the case, they are apt to be
dissatisfied with the situation they occupy, though
whales may be occasionally seen in it, and though
they may, now and then, present them with an op-
portunity of making a capture. Hence the too
anxious fisherman not unfrequently leaves the place

i &
GAUSES OF SUCCESS IN THE FISHERY. $89

where whales were seen, and proceeds to a distant
quarter, where he cannot meet with whales at
all.

Not a little depends, in the fishery, on the confi-
dence the sailors have in the skill of their captain,
and in the efficiency of the personal talents and
exertions of their officers. If the officers are frequent-
ly unfortunate, they are apt to loseconfidence in them,
and proceed, even when good opportunities occur,
without spirit to the attack. The greater their
spirits and confidence, the better is the chance they
have of success. Hence the crew of a ship which
has met with success, can generally fish better, and
more advantageously, under the same circumstances,
than the people of a clean ship. Men, discouraged
by the failure of their exertions, lose their spirits,
and, with them, their activity. Their judgments
even are clouded by the depression of their minds,
so that they become inferior, in every respect, to suc-
cessful fishers, of the same natural talent. Hence
it is of great importance, that the ardour and confi-
dence of the crew of a whaler should be encouraged
and stimulated: for, on their exertions, when plen-
ty of whales are in view, success almost entirely de-
pends. But for the regulation of the ship’s move-
ments,—for the choice of a situation,—for direction
in difficulties,—for a stimulus when discouraged,—
for encouragement when weary,—and for a variety

of other important matters, the master alone must
¥ 2

340 WHALE-FISHERY.

be looked to, on whom, indeed, almost every consi-
derable effort of judgment or forethought devolves.

When a sudden impulse,—when uncommon exer-
tion,—or when long-continued labour is required,
the judicious distribution of spiritous liquors among
the crew, is sometimes of essential benefit ; but as,
on the one hand, spiritous liquor stimulates by its
direct influence ; so, on the other hand, it produces a
corresponding depression, by its re-action, so that its
use, under ordinary circumstances, is perhaps inju-
rious, rather than the contrary.

SECT. XV.

Anecdotes Tlustrative of the Dangers of the
Whale-Pishery.

It is evident that the capture of so large an ani-
mal as a whale, possessing strength in proportion
to its bulk, with an uncommon degree of activity
for its size, and inhabiting an element in which
its invaders cannot exist, must always be accom-
panied with danger to the fishers. ‘Though fatal
accidents do not so frequently occur, as a general
view of the bold and hazardous operations connect-
ed with the capture of whales would lead us to ex-
pect ; yet the fishers frequently encounter imminent
risks, and occasionally lose their lives in the enter-
prise.

DANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 341

As the subject is generally interesting, I shall
give a few instances of accidents and remarkable
occurrences, illustrative of the dangers of the whale-
fishery, most of which occurred within the sphere
of my own observation.

Those employed in the occupation of killing
whales, are, when actually engaged, exposed to
danger from three sources, viz. from the ice, from
the climate, and from the whales themselves.

Of these three principal sources of accidents,
each of which will be illustrated in order, it may
be observed generally, That casualties from the
ice are neither so common, nor so fatal, as. those
arising from the whale, or from the climate; that
- the climate is the source of the most fatal disasters,
but happily not the most frequent; and that the
whale itself, though generally undesignedly, is the
source of a great proportion of the accidents which
occur.

I. The ice is a source of danger to the fishers,
from overhanging masses falling upon them,—from
the approximation of large sheets of ice to each
other, which are apt to crush or upset the boats,—
from their boats being stove and sunk by large
masses of ice, agitated by a swell,—and from the
boats being enclosed and beset in a pack of ice,
and their crews thus prevented from joining their

ships.

$42 WHALE-FISHERY.

Dangers. from Overhanging Masses of Ice
jalling on the Boats—The crew of one of the Hull
whalers having, a few years ago, killed a fish by the
side of an ice-berg, in Davis’ Straits, the fins were
lashed together, and the tail secured to a boat, in
the usual way, but by the efforts only of one boat’s
crew; all the other boats belonging to the same
ship, being engaged in the capture of two more
whales, neither of which were yet subdued. This
circumstance occasioned some altercation among the
crew of the boat, as to the propriety of their re-
naining by the dead whale, or of quitting it, and
proceeding in an empty boat, which was at hand,
to the assistance of their companions. The latter
measure was carried; but as it was deemed expe-
dient that one man should remain in the boat, to
which none of them would consent, they were under
the necessity of either remaining in idleness by the
fish, or leaving the fish and boat by themselves.
But every one being anxious to participate in the
more active exercises of the fishery, they at length
agreed unanimously to quit the boat connected with
the dead fish, and to proceed to the aid of their
comrades. ‘The arrangements were just accomplish-
ed in time; for they had not rowed many fathoms
from the place, before a tremendous crash of the
berg ensucd,—an immense mass of ice fell upon the
boat they had just quitted, and neither it nor the
fish were ever seen afterwards.

DANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 348

Two harpooners who sailed with me, to the
fishery in the year 1814, were engaged, at a
former jperiod, in the capture of a whale at
Davis’ Straits, in the service of the ship James,
when the boat from which the fish was struck, was
dragged by the line under an overhanging precipice
of a huge ice-berg. It remained some time sta-
tionary, and then was again withdrawn to a small
distance, when a mass immediately fell from the
summit, which, had they remained in their original
position, must have crushed the boat to pieces, and
buried the crew in the deep. Their escape was in-
deed so happy and so striking, that they did not
scruple to designate it as providential; and the dan-
ger was yet so near, that the waves produced by the
concussion of the ice on the water, passed, in consi-
derable sprays, over the boat.

| Dangers arising from Ice, when Boats are en-
closed and beset, and their Crews thus prevented
from joining their Ships. — June 17th 1813,
several Greenland fishing ships penetrated the ice
into an enticing opening, in which a number of
whales were sporting in fancied security. The
John, of Greenock, Neptune, of Aberdeen, and Ear]
Perey, of Kirkcaldy, were immediately, to appear-
ance, successful. The crew of the John, in a short
time, killed several fish ; the people of the Neptune
killed one, and struck a second ; and the crew of thé

B44 WHALE-FISHERY.

Earl Perey struck one also. Things were in this
state, when I arrived in the same situation, with the
Hsk. My harpooners, happily as it proved, did not
succeed in any measure. The sea was as smooth as
the surface of a pond; but the ice, I observed, was
in a strange state of disturbance. Some floes, and
some large pieces, moved with a velocity of three
or four miles per hour, while other similar masses
were at rest. Some sheets of ice, though quite de-
tached from the main body, moved towards the
south, as it were by magic, and with such a degree
of rapidity, that they left traces in the water over
which they passed, resembling the eddies produced
by a strong current in a shallow river. The John,
which, on her first arrival in this situation, had na-
vigated an open lake some leagues in circumference,
was, in the space of a few hours, closely beset. The
captain of the Neptune, alarmed by the danger to
which his men and boats were exposed, left his ship
to the care of his second mate, with 11 or 12 men,
and proceeded himself in a boat, making the fifth,
to their assistance. In a few minutes, these five
boats, together with two belonging to the Karl
Perey, were closely fixed in the ice. The ships,
meanwhile, were progressively forced to a distance,
by the quantity of ice which poured in from the
north, and interposed itself between them and the
boats. In the course of the following morning, the
intervening ice had spread to the width of seven or

DANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 345

eight miles ; and shortly afterwards, the people in the
hoats, and those in the corresponding ships, lost sight
of each other. Happily for the men who were in these
boats, the John was near ; and so long as she remain-
ed in safety, their lives were not exposed to immedi-
ate danger. My Father, who at this time command-
ed the John, had anticipated the consequences of the
ice closing, and sought out a place of refuge. This
consisted of a cove in an adjoining field, filled with
bay-ice, into which he thrust his ship, and obtained
the desired shelter. After three days, the ice slack-
ed, and the Neptune’s boats, together with those
belonging to the Earl Percy, left the John, al-
though neither the sea nor their ships were visible.
In this adventure they proved successful. When
they had rowed many hours to the south-eastward,
they discovered a ship, on their approach to which
they were invited on board, and received some
refreshment. After this, having received infor-
mation of the relative situation of their ships,
they put off, and soon afterwards had the happiness
of regaining their respective vessels. ‘This cireum-
stance, which was the occasion of so much anxiety,
danger, and loss of time to the crews of the Nep-
tune and Earl Percy, proved the contrary to the
people of the John, as they added to her cargo
seventeen whales, within the space of five days;
and, on the sixth, the ice having again slacked.
they made their escane into a place of safety.

SAG WHALE-FISHERY?

Under this head, I could adduce a great num-
ber of anecdotes; but as they possess a consider-
able degree of sameness, the preceding may suf-
fice.

Ii. The climate of the Polar regions becomes a
source of danger to the whale-fishers, when boats
are separated from the ship to which they belong, in
fogey weather,—when they are overtaken by a storm,
and prevented from joining their ship,—and when
the people in the boats are long exposed to inclement-
winds.

- Boats separated from their Ship in Thick Wea-
ther.—During a calm foggy season, towards the
latter end of June, about the year 1800, a harpoon-
er belonging to the Hercules whaler, struck a fish,
which, taking but a small quantity of line from the
fast-boat, ran off along the surface of the water with
astonishing velocity. Three boats belonging to the
same ship had just time to join company with the
fast-boat, to which they were secured by means of
a rope, and towed without danger of disunion. In
a short time they were effectually separated from
their ship. ‘The fish dragged them 30 or 40 miles’
in a southerly direction, without their being able to
overpower it. After passing many hours in a state
of increasing anxiety of mind, benumbed with cold
and oppressed with hunger, they at length heard

PANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 347

some sound as if proceeding from a ship. They
raised a loud huzza, which fixed the attention of the
watch in the ship, and in a few minutes they had
the happiness of forming a junction with the Hen-
rietta. At their request, assistance was instantly
afforded them, with which the whale, that they had
so long pursued in vain, was presently killed. They
were then received on board of the Henrietta, got
permission to place their fish alongside, and were
refreshed with an ample supply of food and drink,
and then retired to rest. They remained 48 hours
on board of this ship, during which time the wea-
ther was constantly calm and feggy. When the
weather cleared, they observed a hummock of ice
in the horizon, which, mistaking for a ship, they
put off towards it with their fish in tow. They:
were provided with a compass, for assisting them in
the navigation, and received the promise of Captain
Kearsley, that he would remain with his ship, the
Henrietta, in the same position for a few hours, that
they might return to him, provided they were unable
to find their own ship. ‘The fog recommenceed, and
after six hours absence, the boats with the fish re-
tured. As a breeze of wind now sprung up, in a
direction fair for England, the Henrietta, which
was nearly full, prepared to take advantage of it.
The people of the Hercules were therefore obliged
to depart. They put off again to traverse the sea ;
but as the Henrietta receded to a distance, their

348 WHALE-FISHERY.

courage failed them. Rather than again brave the
terrors which they had but recently escaped, they
determined to sacrifice the whale. hey accord-
ingly returned to the ship they had left, cast their
fish adrift, which, being picked up by the Hen-
rietta’s crew, was added to her cargo, and, agreeable
to the usage of the fishery, became her prize. The
condition was, that the Hercules’s men should, if
practicable, be put on beard of their own vessel.

The fish being flensed, the Henrietta stretched
to the northward about 30 miles, and fell in with
a ship, which proved to be the Dundee, command-
ed by my Father. From him they received in-
formation of the situation of the Hercules, and pro-
ceeded according to his directions, firing guns at
intervals, as the fog had returned, until at length
they were rejoiced by the sound of a gun in answer.
By repeating their signals, they soon afterwards
joined the ship of which they were in search, and
the men and boats were restored to the Hercules ;
but the fish, according to agreement and general
usage, was detained.

Boats overtaken by Storms, and prevented
Jrom joining their Ships*.—On the commencement

* Though the circumstance immediately following has no re-
ference to the fishery, excepting in so far as the circumstance
occurred in Greenland, it is inserted here, on account of the
interest connected with the adventure.

DANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 849

of a heavy gale of wind, May 11. 1813, fourteen
men put off in a boat from the Volunteer of Whit-
by, with the view of setting an anchor in a large
piece of ice, to which it was their intention of
mooring the ship*. The ship approached on a
signal being made, the sails were clewed up, and a
rope fixed to the anchor ; but the ice shivering with
the violence of the strain when the ship fell astern,
the anchor flew out, and the ship went adrift. The
sails being again set, the ship was reached to the
eastward (wind at north), the distance of about two
miles; but in attempting to wear and return, the
ship, instead of performing the evolution, scudded a
considerable distance to leeward, and was then reach-
ed out to sea; thus leaving fourteen of her crew to
a fate the most dreadful, the fulfilment of which
seemed almost inevitable. The temperature of the
air was 15° or 16° of Fahr. when these poor wretches
were left upon a detached piece of ice, of no consider-
able magnitude, without food, without shelter from |
the inclement storm, and deprived of every means of
refuge except in a single beat, which, on account of
the number of men, and violence of the storm, was in-
capable of conveying them to their ship. Death
stared them in the face whichever way they turned,

* The “ ice-anchor” is represented by fig. 2, and 3. Pl. 21.
and the “ ice-axe,” with which the hole is made, by fig. 1.
Sometimes an “ ice-drill” fig. 4. Pl. 19. is made use of for this

purpose,

350 WHALE-FISHERY.

and a division in opinion ensued. Some were wisli-
ful to remain by the ice, but the ice could afford
them no shelter from the piercing wind, and would
probably be soon broken to pieces by the increasing
swell; others were anxious to attempt to join their
ship while she was yet in sight, but the force of the
wind, the violence of the sea, the smallness of the
boat in comparison of the number of men to be con-
veyed, were objections which would have appeared
utterly insurmountable to any persons but men in
a state of despair. Judging that, by remaining on
the ice, death was but retarded for a few hours, as
the extreme cold must eventually benumb their
faculties, and invite a sleep which would overcome
the remains of animation,—they determined on ma-
king the attempt of rowing to their ship. Poor
souls, what must have been their sensations at this
moment,—when the spark of hope yet remaining
was so feeble, that a premature death even to them-
selves seemed inevitable. They made the daring
experiment, when a few minutes trial convinced
them that the attempt was utterly impracticable.
They then, with longing eyes, turned their efforts
towards recovering the ice they had left, but their
utmost exertions were unavailing. Every one now
viewed his situation as desperate; and anticipat-
ed, as certain, the fatal event which was to put
a period to his life. How great must have

DANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 358

been their delight, and how overpowering their
sensations, when at this most critical juncture a
ship appeared in sight! She was advancing di-
rectly towards them; their voices were extended,
and their flag displayed: But although it was im-
possible they should be heard, it was not impossible
they should be seen. Their flag was deseried by the
people on board the ship, their mutual courses were
so directed as to form the speediest union, and in a
few minutes they found themselves cn the deck of the
Lively of VZhitby, under circumstances of safety!
They received from their townsmen the warmest
congratulations ; and while each individual was for-
ward in contributing his assistance towards the
restoration of their benumbed bodies, each ap-
peared sensible that their narrow escape from death
was highly providential. The forbearance of Gop
is wonderful. Perhaps these very men, a few hours
before, were impiously invoking their own destruc-
tion, or venting imprecations upon their fellow-be-
ings! True it is, that the goodness of the Almighty
extendeth over all his works, and that while “ Mer-
cy is his darling attribute,’—* Judgment is his
strange work.”

The Resolution of Whitby was moored to a flat
piece of ice, surrounded by streams and open drift-ice,
on the 30th of April 1808. In the evening, a whale
was harpooned, which took about the length of a

352 WHALE-FISHERY.

mile and a half of line from the fast-boat. Three
other harpoons and several lances were then struck.
A convulsive effort of the whale followed, when,
to the astonishment of every one, it was found to
be free. It dived and escaped. Ly a single ener-
getic throe, one of the lines and one of the har-
poons, were broken, and two other harpoons were
drawn out. In the interval of time, in which the
boats had been engaged, a storm commenced ; the
loss of the fish was therefore considered as a happy
release. The crews of five boats were left to haul
the lines in, and two (myself in one) returned to the
ship. Thick snow immediately began to fall, the
boats were already out of sight,and their distance was
constantly increasing on account of the rapid drift
of the ship to leeward. At 1 A. M. the mooring
was cut, the sails set, and the ship worked on short
tacks to windward, in the supposed direction of the
boats. At 3 A.M. we were rejoiced by the sight of
three of the boats; the crews of which informed us,
that the remaining two might be expected in half
an hour by the same track. During five tedious
hours of anxiety and distress, we navigated off and
on among troublesome and dangerous ice. Guns
were fired occasionally, and at every interval all
hands were occupied in straining their eyes, with
the hope of descrying the boats through the obscu-
rity of the snow. The snow was not attenuated,
the storm raged, and the sea increased, while a

DANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 353

sympathetic gloom appeared in every countenaiice,
which progressively darkened and kept pace with
the dismalness of the night. The loss of one-half
of the Ipswich’s crew, on a similar occasion, was
yet fresh on our minds, and involuntary shudder-
ings indicated our dread of a similar fate to our
comrades. At length, happy moment, a little after
8 A. M. a shout of joy announced the approach of
the boats, and a few minutes afterwards their crews
received the most heartfelt greeting from their ship-
mates. Being much affected with long exposure to
cold, they were not suffered to approach a fire, until
by an exertion as violent as they were eapable of,
im chasing each other round the decks, they had
excited a genial glow of heat in their bodies, and
fitted themselves for the change of temperature.
A stout Shetland boy was very near falling a sacri-
fice to the severity of the exposure. He expressed
a great wish for sleep, and earnestly entreated the
men to allow him to compose himself for half a
hour ; which indulgence he procured in part, by de-
celaring with confidence that he should dream of the
situation of the ship. After a few minutes repose,
he was awoke with difficulty, and it required con-
stant attention on the part of his companions to
preserve him from a sleep, which they well knew
was, under such circumstances, the harbinger of
cteath.
VOL, It. h

$54 WHALE-FISHERY.

One of the most calamitous events which, im
modern times, has occurred in the fishery, was
that above alluded to, which happened to the crew
of the Ipswich, Captain Gordon, about fifteen
years ago. A whale was struck and killed by
the Ipswich’s people, early im the spring of the
year; a season in which the weather is most un-
certain. A storm commenced, accompanied with
snow, before the capture was completed, but never-
theless the fish was taken to the ship, and having
shelter from the ice, it was flensed. Meanwhile
four beats’ crews were employed on a piece of ice,
in hauling in the lines of the fast-boats, &.; du-
ring the performance of which duties, the ship drift-
ed out of sight of them. Every effort was then
made by the captain, for diseovering these unhappy
men, who, being above twenty in number, constituted
nearly half of his crew. But the weather conti-
nuing thick and stormy, and the frost most intense,
it is probable they all perished before the conclu-
sion of the gale; at least none of them were saved, .
nor can I learn that any of their bodies were ever
found *. |

The remarkable property of oil in smoothening
the surface of the sea when considerably agitated,

* The particulars of this unhappy affair I was desirous to
have given at some length ; but though I applied to those ca
pable of affording the information, I have not yet been fayour«
ed with any reply.

DANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 355

and of preventing breakers in the main ocean, was
sometimes resorted to by the ancient whale-fishers
for their preservation when overtaken by storms at
sea. It was not unusual, I believe, a century ago,
for every whale-boat to carry along with it a keg of
oil, for this very purpose; which oil being slowly
poured overboard in a storm, afforded a sort of de-
fence to the boat as it drifted to leeward. ‘The
height of the waves, it is true, is not affected by
the action of the oil, but as it intercepts the at-
traction which dry air possesses for water, it pre-
vents the immediate action of the wind, quells the
ruffled surface of the waves, and in a great degree
prevents the tendency to breakers, which consti-
tutes the principal danger in a storm.

Danger of long Exposure to inclement Winds.
—The whale-fishers being well defended against
the cold by suitable clothing, seldom suffer much
from it. Many instances, indeed, occur, in which
the sailors have their faces, feet or hands, partially
frozen, and a few instances where the seeds of
disorders are sown, which sometimes occasion pre-
mature death; but, on the whole, calamitous cir-
cumstances of this nature do not often happen. I
have witnessed several instances of the pernicious
effects of severe cold, but nothing so remarkable as
to be worthy of communication. Those events re-
sulting from shipwrecks in the Pelar regions, have

“2

356 WHALE-FISHERY.

produced the most distressful consequences; but
they do not come under this division of my work.

III. The most extensive’souree of danger to the
whale-fisher, when actively engaged im his occupa-
tion, arises from the object of his pursuit.

Excepting when it has young under its pro-
tection, the whale generally exhibits remarkable
timidity of character. A bird perehing on its back
alarms it; hence, the greater part of the accidents
which happen in the course of its capture, must be
attributed to adventitious circumstances on the part
of the whale, or to mismanagement or fool-hardi-
ness on the part of the fishers.

In this employment, the fisher is liable to receive
contusions from oars forcibly struck by the fish, or
from direct blows from its fins or tail ;—he is liable
to aceidents, from getting entangled by the lines,
or from the boat being drawn under water by the
fish, through the medium of the lines ;—and he is
in danger of being thrown overboard by the heeling
or jerking of the boat,.or more particularly from the
boat being stove, upset, sunk, or projected into the
air, by the force of a blow from the whale.

Contusions from Blows by the Whale—Several
instances have occurred, in which serious accidents
have been occasioned by blows from the whale ei-
ther directly struck, or impressed through the me-
dium of oars. Hlarpooners have been struck dead

DANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 357

by a single blow of a whale’s tail, and other fishers
have received dangerous wounds. But as I am.not
in possession of so many of the particulars of these
circumstances as to be able to give them in the nar-
rative form, this description of accidents must pass
without any particular illustration.

Injuries sustained by Entanglements of the
Lines.—One of the crew of the Jolin of Greenock,
who was in a fast-boat, in the fishery of 1818, un-
fortunately slipped his foot through a coil of line
in the act of running out, which drew him forward
to the boat’s stem, and separated his foot by the
ancle. He was conveyed by the first boat to the
ship, where the assistance of several surgeons being
procured, the lower part of the leg was cut off.
After this, the poor fellow having received the
most unremitting attention from Captain Jackson,
with the best sustenance and accommodation the
ship could afford, was restered to health, and his
wound in a great measure healed, before the con-
clusion of the voyage. It is worthy of being remark-
ed, that the captain and crew of the John subscribed
upwards of 24/7. for his relief, which was increased
by the owners of the ship, and others, on arrival, te
about 377. ‘This sum was placed in the * Provi_
dent Bank,” at Greenock, from whence he was -per-
mitted to draw it, after the rate of 7s. per week.

A. harpooner belonging to the Henrietta of Whit-
by, when engaged in lancing a whale, into which

355 WHALE-FISHERY.

he had previously struck a harpoon, incautious~
ly cast a little line under his feet that he had just
hauled into his boat, after it had been drawn out
by the fish. A painful stroke of his lance in-
duced the whale to dart suddenly downward, his line
began to run out from beneath his feet, and in an in-
stant caught him by a turn round his body. He had
but just time to cry out, “ Clear away the line,”"—.
* O dear !” when he was almost cut asunder, drag-
ged overboard, and never seen afterwards. The line
was cut at the moment, but without avail. The
fish descended a considerable depth, and died; from
whence it was drawn to the surface by the lines
connected with it, and secured.

Fishers thrown Overboard, by the jerking or
sudden hecling of the Boats, in consequence of
Blows from Whales.—On the 3d of June 1811, a
boat from the ship Reselution, commanded at the
time by myself, put off im pursuit of a whale, and
was rowed upon its back. At the moment that it was
harpooned, it struck the side of the boat a violent
blow with its tail, the shock of which threw the
boat-steerer to some distance into the water. <A re-
petition of the blow projected the harpooner and
line-manager in a similar way, and completely
drenched the part of the crew remaining in the
boat, with the sprays. One of the men regained
the boat, but as the fish immediately sunk, and drew

PANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 359

the boat away from the place, his two companions
in misfortune were soon left far beyond the reach of
assistance. The harpooner, though a practised
swimmer, felt himself so bruised and enervated by a
blow he had received on the chest, that he was to-
tally incapacitated from giving the least support to
his fellow sufferer. The ship being happily near,
a boat which had been lowered on the first alarm,
arrived to their succour, at the moment when the
line-manager, who was unacquainted with the art of
swimming, was on the point of sinking, to rise no
more. Both the line-manager and harpooner were
preserved ; and the fish, after a few hours close pur-
suit, was subdued.

A large whale, harpooned from a boat belonging
to the same ship, became the subject of a general
chase on the 23d of June 1809. Being myself in
the first boat which approached the fish, I struck
my harpoon at arm’s length, by which we fortunate-
ly evaded a blow that appeared to be aimed at the
boat. Another boat then advanced, and another
harpoon was struck, but not with the same result ;
for the stroke was immediately returned by a tre-
mendous blow from the fish’s tail. 'The boat was
sunk by the shock; and, at the same time, whirled
round with such velocity, that the boat-steerer was
precipitated into the water, on the side next to the
fish, and was accidentally carried down to a consi-
derable depth by its tail. After a mimiute or so, he

$60 WHALE-FISHERY.

arose to the surface of the water and was taken up,
along with his companions into my boat. A simi-
lar attack was made on the next boat which came
up; but the harpooner being warned of the prior.
conduct of the fish, used such precautions, that the
blow, though equal in strength, took effect only in
an inferior degree. ‘The boat was slightly stove.
The activity and skill of the lancers soon overcame
this designing whale, accomplished its capture, and
added its produce to the cargo of the ship. Such
intentional mischief on the part of a whale, it must
be observed, is an occurrence which is somewhat rare.

Again. While the same ship, (Resolution,) na-
vigated an open lake of water, in the 81st degree,
of north latitude, during a keen frost and strong
north wind, on the 2d of June 1806, a whale ap-
peared, and a boat put off in pursuit. On its se-
cond visit to the surface of the sea, it was harpoon-
ed. A convulsive heave of the tail, which suecceed-
ed the wound, struck the boat at the stern; and by
its reaction, projected the boat-steerer overboard.
As the line in a moment dragged the boat beyond
his reach, the crew threw some of their oars towards
him for his support, one of which he fortunately
seized. ‘The ship and boats being at a considerable
distance, and the fast-boat being rapidly drawn
away from him, the harpooner cut the line, with
the view of rescuing him from his dangerous situa-
tion, But no sooner was this act performed, than

DANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 361]

to their extreme mortification they discovered, that
in consequence of some oars being thrown towards
their fioating comrade, and others being broken
or unshipped by the blow from the fish, one oar
only remained ; with which, owing to the force of
the wind, they tried in vain to approach him. A
considerable period elapsed, before any boat from
the ship could afford him assistance, though the
men strained every nerve for the purpose. At
length, when they reached him, he was found with
his arms stretched over an oar, almost deprived of
sensation. On his arrival at the ship, he was in a
deplorable condition. His clothes were frozen like
mail, and his hair constituted a helmet of ice. He
was immediately conveyed into the cabin, his clothes
taken off, his limbs and body dried and well rubbed,
and a cordial administered to him which he drank,
A dry shirt and stockings were then put upon him,
and he was laid in the captain’s bed. After
a few hours sleep he awoke, and appeared consi-
derably restored, but complained of a painful sen-
sation of cold. He was, therefore, removed to his
own birth, and one of his messmates ordered to lie
on each side of him, whereby the diminished cir-
culation of the blood was accelerated, and the ani-
mal heat restored. ‘The shock on his constitution,
however, was greater than was anticipated. He re-
covered in the course of a few days, so as to be able
to engage in his ordinary pursuits; but many

362 WHALE-FISHERY.

months elapsed, before his countenance exhibited its
wonted appearance of health.

Boats Sunk, Stove, or Upset, by blows from
Whales —TYhe Aimwell of Whitby, while eruising
the Greenland seas, in the year 1810, had boats in
chase of whales on the 26th of May. One of them
was harpooned. But instead of sinking immediate-
ly on receiving the wound, as is the most usual
manner of the whale, this individual only dived fora
moment, and then rose again beneath the boat, struck
it inthe most vicious manner with its fins and tail,
stove it, upset it, and then disappeared. The crew,
seven in number, got on the bottom of the boat;
but the unequal action of the lines, which for some
time remained entangled with the boat, rolled it oc-
casionally over, and thus plunged the crew repeat-
edly into the water. Four of them, after each im-
mersion, recovered themselves and clung to the boat ;
but the other three, one of whom was the only per-
son acquainted with the art of swimming, were
drowned beforeassistance could arrive. The four men
on the boat being rescued and conveyed to the ship,
the attack on the whale was continued, and two
more harpoons struck. But the whale irritated, in-
stead of being enervated by its wounds, recommen-
ced its furious conduct. The sea was in a foam.
Its tail and fins were in awful play ; and in a short

DANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 363

time, harpoon after harpoon drew out, the fish was
loosened from its entanglements and escaped.

In the fishery of 1812, the Henrietta of Whitby
suffered a similar loss. A fish which was struck very
near the ship, by a blow of its tail, stove a small hole
in the boat’s bow. Every individual shrinking from
the side on which the blow was impressed, aided the
influence of the stroke, and upset the boat. They
all clung to it while it was bottom up; but the line
having got entangled among the thwarts, suddenly
drew the boat under water, and with it part of the
crew. Excessive anxiety among the people in the
ship, occasioned delay in sending assistance ; so that
when the first boat arrived at the spot, two survivors
only out of six men were found.

~ During a fresh gale of wind in the season of 1809,
one of the Resolution’s harpooners struck a sucking
whale. Its mother being near, all the other boats
were disposed around, with the hope of entangling
it. The old whale pursued a circular route round
its cub, and was followed by the boats; but its ve-
locity was so considerable, that they were unable toe
keep pace with it. Being in the capacity of har-
pooner on this occasion myself, I proceeded to the
chase, after having carefully marked the proceedings
of the fish. I selected a situation, in which I con-
ceived the whale would make its appearance, and
was in the act of directing my crew to cease rowing,
when a terrible blow was struck on the beat. The

364 WHALE PISHERY.

whale I never saw, but the effect of the blow was
too important to be overlooked. About 15 square
- feet of the bottom of the boat were driven in ; it fil-
led, sunk, and upset in a moment. Assistance was
providentially at hand, so that we were all taken up
without injury, after being but a few minutes in the
water. ‘The whale escaped ; the boat’s lines fell out
and were lost, but the boat was recovered.

A remarkable instance of the power which the
whale possesses in its tail, was exhibited within my
own observation, in the year 1807. On the 29th of
May, a whale was harpooned by an officer belong-
ing to the Resolution. It descended a considerable
depth ; and, on its re-appearance, evinced an uncom-
mon degree of irritation. It made such a display
of its fins and tail, that few of the crew were hardy
enough to approach it. The captain, (my Father,)
observing their timidity, called a boat, and himself
struck a second harpoon. Another boat immediate-
ly followed, and unfortunately ‘advanced too far.
The tail was again reared into the air, in a terrifie
attitude,—the impending blow was evident,—the
harpooner, who was directly underneath, leaped
overboard,—and the next moment the threatened
stroke was impressed on the centre of the boat,
which buried it in the water. Happily no one was
injured. The harpooner who leaped overboard,
escaped certain death by the act,—the tail having
struck the very spot on which he stood. The ef-

DANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. $365

fects of the blow were astonishing. The keel was
broken,—the gunwales, and every plank, except-
ing two, were cut through,—and it was evident
that the boat would have been completely divided,
had not the tail struck directly upon a coil of lines.
The boat was rendered useless.

Instances of disasters of this kind, occasioned by
blows from the whale, could be adduced in great
numbers,—cases of boats being destroyed by a sin-
gle stroke of the tail, are not unknown,—instances
of beats having been stove or upset, and their crews
wholly or in part drowned, are not unfrequent,—
and several cases of whales having made a regular
attack upon every boat which came near them,
dashed some in pieces, and killed or drowned some
of the people in them, have occurred within a few
years, even under my own observation.

Boats, together with their Crews and Appara-
tus, projected into the Air—The Dutch ship
Gort-Moolen, commanded by Cornelius Gerard
Ouwekaas, with a cargo of seven fish, was anchored
in Greenland in the year 1660. The captain, per-
ceiving a whale a-head of his ship, beckoned his at-
tendants, and threw himself into a boat. He was
the first to approach the whale; and was fortunate
enough to harpoon it before the arrival of the se-
cond boat, which was on the advance. Jacques
Vienkes, who had the direction of it, joined his

$66 WHALE-FISHERY.

capta’n immediately afterwards, and prepared to
muke a second attack on the fish, when it should
remount again to the surface. At the moment of
its ascension, the boat of Vienkes happening unfor-
tunately to be perpendicularly above it, was so sud-
denly and forcibly lifted up by a stroke of the head
of the whale, that it was dashed to pieces before the
harpooner could discharge his weapon. Vienkes
flew along with the pieces of the boat, and fell upon
the back of the animal. This intrepid seaman, who
still retained his weapon in his grasp, harpooned the
whale on which he stood ; and, by means of the har-
poon and the line, which he never abandoned, he
steadied himself firmly upon the fish, notwithstand-
ing his hazardous situation, and regardless of a con-
siderable wound that he received in his leg, in his fall
along with the fragments of the boat. All the efforts
of the other boats to approach the whale, and deliver
the harpooner, were futile. The captain, not seeing
any other method of saving his unfortunate com-
panion, who was in some way entangled with the
line, called to him to cut it with his knife, and be-
take himself to swimming. Vienkes, embarrassed.
and disconcerted as he was, tried in vain to follow
this counsel. His knife was in the pocket of his
drawers ; and, being unable to support himself with
one hand, he could not get it out. The whale,
mean while, continued advancing along the surface
of the water with great rapidity, but fortunately

DANGERS OF THE FISHERY.—ANECDOTES. 367

never attempted to dive. While his comrades de-
spaired of his life, the harpoon by which he held, at
length disengaged itself from the body of the whale.
_ Vienkes being then liberated, did not fail to take
advantage of this circumstance ; he cast himself into
the sea, and, by swimming, endeavoured to regain
the boats which continued the pursuit of the whale.
When his shipmates perceived him struggling with
the waves, they redoubled their exertions. ‘They
_ reached him just as his strength was exhausted, and
had the happiness of rescuing this adventurous har-
pooner from his perilous situation *.

In one of my earliest voyages to the whale-fishery,
I observed a circumstance which excited my highest
astonishment. One of our harpooners had struck
a whale, it dived, and all the assisting boats had
collected round the fast-boat, before it arose to the
surface. The first boat which approached it ad-
vanced incautiously upon it. It rose with unex-
pected violence beneath the boat, and projected it
and all its crew, to the height of some yards m the
air. It fell on its side, upset, and cast all the men
into the water. One man received a severe blow in
his fall, and appeared to be dangerously injured;

* I give this ancedote on the authority of the author of the
Histoire des Péches, who translated it from the Dutch. Part
of the story bears the marks of truth ; but some of it, it must
be acknowledged, borders on the marvellous. ©

368 WHALE-FISHERY.

but scon after his arrival on board of the ship, he
recovered from the effects of the accident. The rest
of the boat’s crew escaped without any hurt.
Captain Lyons of the Raith of Leith, while prose-
euting the whale-fishery on the Labrador coast, in
the season of 1802, discovered a large whale at a
short distance from the ship. Four boats were dis-
patched in pursuit, and two of them succeeded in
approaching it so closely together, that two harpoons
were struck at the same moment. The fish descend-
ed a few fathoms in the direction of another of the
boats, which was on the advance, rose accidentally
beneath it, struck it with its head, and threw the
boat, men and apparatus, about fifteen feet into the
air. It was inverted by the stroke, and fell into the
water with its keel upwards. Ail the people were
picked up alive by the fourth boat, which was just at
hand, excepting one man, who having got entang-
‘led in the boat, fell beneath it, and was unfortu-
‘nately drowned. The fish was soon afterwards killed.
The engraving which forms the frontispiece to this
volume, executed from an original drawing by James
Waddel, Esq., is illustrative of this accident.

PASSAGE FROM GREENLAND TO BRITAIN. 369

SECT. XVI-

Proceedings in a Greenland Ship, from leaving the
Fishing Stations, to her arrival in Britain.

WHEN a ship has on board an ample cargo, or
when the fogs set in, and the whales totally disap-
pear, so as to put a period to the fishery for that
season, there remains no sufficient motive to induce
farther stay in the country ; the course of each ship
is, therefore, directed immediately homeward.

It is not unusual for a ship to bear away, without
the navigators having first obtained any certain
knowledge as to their situation in longitude. Not
having, perhaps, seen any land for some weeks, or
even months; or possibly not since their arrival on
_ the fishing stations ; having neither a chronometer on
board, nor the means of taking a lunar observation ;
they set out ignorant of the meridian on which
they sail, and sensible of their being liable to an er-
ror of 5 or 6 degrees of longitude. In such cases,
they steer a south-westerly course by the compass.
If they happen to be in a more westerly situation
than they expect, an increase in the westerly varia
tion reacts a little in their favour; andif they prove
to be farther easterly, a decrease of the variation of
the compass, tends to give them more westing than

VOL. I, Aa

370 WHALE-FISHERY.

they calculate upon. The increase of variation
with the longitude in a westerly direction, acts,
therefore, in the navi~.tor’s favour, but only in a
trifling degree. I» another respect, however, this
regular alteration of the variation serves to point out
the situation of the ship in longitude, within 2° or
3°, when a sufficiently delicate instrument is on
board for observing the variation with accuracy.

If the homeward bound Greenlandmen stecr too
far to the eastward, they make the coast of Norway,
and if tceo far to the westward, they probably make
Feroe. The appearance of certain birds, sea-weeds
and medusaw,—sudden alterations in the swell,—
and the examination of the depth of the water, are
the prmeipal intimations which give them a know-
ledge of their situation. ‘The appearance of sea-
weeds and meduse in the water, and of solan
geese, skua-gulls and land birds on the wing, denote
their proximity to land. . A westerly swell general-
iy prevailing between the latitudes of 60° and 65°,
its sudden cessation indicates shelter from some land.
If, in the 62d or 63d degree of latitude, the westerly
swell be suddenly obstructed, it is evident that the
Ieroe Islands are not far distant to the westward ;
but if the same effect takes place in the 61st degree,
it denotes the proximity of Shetland to the west-
ward.

PASSAGE FROM GREENLAND TO BRITAIN. 371

Subject to mists as the Shetland Islands are, the
navigator, in thick stormy weather, is sometimes
exceedingly embarrassed in approaching them. Pos-
sessing no satisfactory knowledge of his situation,
he cannot, perhaps, determine, whether he be on
the east side or west side, or on the meridian of
these islands. In the latter case, he apprehends
danger from the Skerries, which lic on both sides of
the land, at a considerable distance from the main,
some of which are so small, low and rocky, that, in
bad weather, or in the night, they constitute a very
formidable source of danger. He apprehends some
little risk of running to the westward of Orkney, if
he be much to the westward of Shetland, or of being
detained on the coast of Norway, if he prove to be
on the east side. ‘The westerly winds, which are
here prevalent about the middle and latter end of
summer, though tolerably favourable for a ship
in a fair way, between Shetland and Norway, re-
tard such as happen to be on the coast of Nor-
way, especially if they be unable to clear the land
on the starboard tack.

In approaching Shetland in foggy weather, or
during the night, the soundings are the only satis-
factory guide. If the navigator be pretty certain
of his latitude, and try for soundings in the parallel
of 601 or 61 degrees, he will have no bottom with
100 or 120 fathoms of line, at the distance of thirty’
miles from the. west side of Shetland: but on the

Aad

372 WHALE-FISHERY.

east side, he will have soundings in 70 or 80 fa-
thoms, fine sand, or sand and shells, midway between
Shetland and Norway; coarser soundings, with some
increase of depth nearer to Shetland ; and no bottom
at 120 fathoms, within sight of the Norway land.
The circumstance, therefore, of obtaining soundings,
is the general criterion of being in east longitude ;
and of finding no bottom, of being to the westward
of Shetland in west longitude.

In the year 1812, I steered into the latitude of
60°, in longitude by lunar observation about 33° W.
‘As a matter of curiosity, I tried for soundings, and,
to my great surprise, found bottom in 73 fathoms.
Had I not had the greatest confidence in my lunar
observation, (especially as we had left Greenland with-
out obtaining any departure, and without having seen
land for two months previous,) I should, undoubted-
ly, have steered a south-westerly course, which would
have run us to the westward of Scotland. My mate,
and some other experienced officers on board, felt
assured that we were to the eastward of Shetland.
Such, however, was my confidence that we were to
the westward, that we sailed 18 miles to the east-
ward, struck soundings im 45 fathoms, rocks and
shells, and then 20 miles farther on an E. by S.
course, When our soundings were 60 fathoms, shells.
‘lhe weather had previously been clear, but it was_
now dark. On caleulating from my lunar observa-
tion the position of the ship, the island of Fula ap-
peared to be at the distance of 10 miles, bearing

PASSAGE FROM GREENLAND TO BRITAIN. 373

north. We stood off and on during the night, and
at day light descried the very island of Fula, bear-
ing N. N. E. distant 15 or 20 miles! I mention
this circumstance thus particularly, because I feel
assured, that such is the confidence Greenland cap-
tains in general have in their easterly situation when
they find soundings, that, without the same advan-
tage of a lunar observation as I on this occasion pos-
sessed, it is highly probable they would have run to
the westward of Britain altogether.

‘An accurate survey of the Shetland islands, with
particular soundings on every side, marking the ex-
act situations where soundings, with a certain length
of line, can no longer be obtained, would be a great
advantage both to the Greenland and Archangel
trade.

Besides the great call for a survey of the Shet-
land Islands and the soundings around them, an-
other great safeguard to this navigation, would be
the erection of Light-houses on two or three of the
most dangerous and prominent parts of the coast *.
To advance in the night towards this coast, where
rocky islands abound, and strong tides prevail, is a

* My friend Mr Stevenson, the distinguished Engineer to the
Commissioners for Northern Light-houses, informs me that, on
the motion of William Erskine, Esq. Sheriff of Orkney and
Shetland, the Board has recently resolved to erect light-
houses on the Shetland Islands, beginning with one on Sum-
brough-Head. The advantages will be great; and, at the
same timte, I understand, will infer no additional charge on the

shipping.

S74 WHALE-FISHERY.

hazardous undertaking, neither is it altogether safe
to le-to near it; for ships which have lain-to in
the evening, at the distance of five or six leagues
from Sumbrough-Head, (the southern extremity of
Zetland), have sometimes been swept by the tide to
within a few furlongs of the shore, in the space of
two or three hours! This remarkable effect of a
tide, the nature of which is but very imperfectly
known, I myself experienced in the Ksk, in the year
1814. The circumstances were as follow: In the
evening of the 26th of March, we passed Fair Is-
land, with a south wind. The weather being stormy
and hazy, we reefed our sails, and hauled to the
eastward at 8 p. M., being then 10 miles 8. W.byS.
from the southern point of Shetland. We procced-
ed on an EK. 8. FE. course, under easy sail, supposing
ourselves quite out of the influence of any rapid tide,
and consequently in safety; meaning to stand off
and on during the night, and proceed to Lerwick
after day-break. I had just retired to rest, when
the officer of the watch called out, “ Land.” Tjump-
ed upon deck, and, incredible as it was, saw a lofty
peak of land, scarcely two miles distant, under our
lee, and presently afterwards observed land a-head,
and to windward! The night being tempestuous and
dark, our situation was very alarming. ‘The ship was
instantly “ weared,” a smart sail set, and we soon
cleared the land to the westward. I recognized the
land to be Fitfil-Head; consequently the ship must

PASSAGE FROM GREENLAND TO BRITAIN. 375

have been drifted by the tide into Quendale Bay ;
a small inlet at the southern extremity of Shetland.
Westretched to the westward about three hours, and
then returned, supposing, from the state of the sea,
that the ship could not have fetched the land we
had before seen ; but the influence of the returning
tide had caught us, and to our surprise at day-light,
though the atmosphere was not foggy, no land was
in sight! Soon afterwards, however, a certain hazi-
ness in the atmosphere dispersed, and Fair Island
made its appearance, bearing west, and Sumbrough
Head N. N. EK. 12 miles distant. Irom a correct
estimation of the courses and distances steered, I
ascertained, that in the evening (8 to 10 p.m.) the
ebb-tide had carried us N. 3 E. per compass, 11
miles in two hours; and that during the night, the
flood-tide had taken us in the opposite direction
about 12 miles. Our situation at day-light, indeed,
was almost precisely the same as that where we had
hauled the wind the night before; and had we not
had certain evidence of having seen the land, we
should have supposed we had been deceived.
Vessels returning from Greenland or Archangel,
are so very liable to make the coast of Norway,when
the navigators imagine themselves at the distance
of some degrees, that the circumstance is notorious.
An error of 5 or 6 degrees of longitude, in the
reckoning of a Greenland ship, is by no means un-
common, notwithstanding the coast of Spitzbergen

376 WHALE-FISHERY.

may have been seen immediately before setting out
on the passage homeward. As this error is inva-
riably in one direction, the cause must be regu-
lar. Ships which have made the Norway land, have
been frequently supposed to be steering direct for
Shetland. This error has usually been attributed
to an easterly current ; if such a cause, however, do
operate at all, most certainly it is not the sole cause.
There is little doubt but it is chiefly owing to the
increase of the westerly variation of the compass,
In consequence of the “local attraction” of the ship
on the magnetic needle, when steering on a course
to the westward of the magnetic meridian; and
partly to an error in the departure of the Green-
land ships, arising from the situation of the south-
em parts of Spitzbergen being laid down 3 or 4
degrees too far to the westward in the charts.

That there is a kind of focus or centre of attrac-
tion in every vessel, towards which, in north lati-
tude, the north point of the compass is invariably
drawn, is a fact which is now sufficiently establish-
ed. When the compass, therefore, is placed near
the stern of the vessel, which is its usual situation,
its north point in the northern hemisphere, is at-
tracted towards the centre of the ship. Hence, if
the ship’s head is directed towards the west, the
north point of the compass being deflected forward,
produces an error of a quarter to half a point to-
wards the north, in very high latitudes, and an

PASSAGE FROM GREENLAND TO BRITAIN. 377

equal error in the same direction when sailing on
an east course; so that when a ship’s head, by the
compass placed near the middle of the quarter-deck,
appears to be west, it is actually W.458. or W.LS.
compared with the true magnetic meridian; and
when it appears to be east, it is E.4 8. or HE. 38.
On more oblique courses, such as N.E., S. E.,
S. W. and N. W. the equation or anomaly of va-
riation, though less considerable, is still very per-
ceptible. A ship steering with a fair wind from
Greeenland, 8. W. + W. by the compass, scarcely
makes good a 8. 8. W. course, though the variation
should be but two points. ‘This quarter point of
attraction or anomaly of variation, all the way
from latitude 78° to 61°, a distance of 1020 miles,
occasions an error of 152’ of longitude, or about
2; degrees, which the reckoning will be to the
westward of the ship*. This, of itself, is nearly
sufficient to account for the frequent mistakes which
are made, but amply so if we view it in connection
with the liability to err, occasioned by the insuffi-
ciency of the usual allowances made for lee-way,
when westerly winds prevail, together with the other
source of error already mentioned, in the departure

* This subject, the anomaly of variation, having been con-
sidered more at large in the First Volume of this Work, it is
unnecessary to state in this place the facts and observations
from which the above conclusicns are derived.

378 WHALE-FISHERY.

from Spitzbergen, which operates in the same di-
rection.

Hence, where there are such prevailing sources
of error, and these, instead of compensating each
other, all tending in the same direction, celestial ob-
servations become of the greatest importance. As,
however, the prevalence of cloudy or foggy weather
admits of but few opportunities of taking lunar
observations, the chronometer, from the facility with
which the time may be generally got, becomes a most
useful instrument. But as accidents have rarely arisen
from the want of a chronometer, detention only in
the passage being the usual consequence, this in-
convenience is not considered of sufficient import-
ance to bring chronometers into general use in this
navigation.

SECT. XVII.

Legislative Regulations on the Importation of the
Produce of the Northern Whale-Fishertes.

IMMEDIATELY on the arrival of a fishing ship
at the port from whence she sailed, the mustering
officer of the customs repairs on board, receives the
manifest of the cargo *, with a true copy thereof,

~

* A manifest is a kind of schedule in writing, signed by the
master of the vessel, containing the name or names of the place

LEGISLATIVE REGULATIONS. 379

examines into the identity and number of the crew,
by the usual form of mustering, and places an of-
ficer or two on board to take charge of the cargo on
the part of the revenue. ‘The duty of these officers
is to take account of every cask or other article of
which the cargo consists, as it is discharged from the
ship, and one of them to accompany the same to its
destination, carrying an account thereof in writing,
and not quitting the lighter wherein it is contained
until he is relieved by another officer, who is placed
in the capacity of /anding-waiter on the premises,
where the blubber is warchoused or boiled.

Within twenty-four hours after the ship arrives
in port, the master is required, under the penalty
of 1007. to attend at the customhouse, to make
his report, that is, to make affidavit of the built,
burden and cargo of the ship he commands; on
which occasion he must deliver his manifest to the

or places where the cargo was laden : the name of the master ;
the name, admeasurement, and built of the vessel; and the
port to which she belongs ;-and a true account and description
of every individual part of the cargo.—26th Geo. III. ¢. 40.
§ 1. :

Goods imported in a British vessel, into a British port,
without being regularly described in the manifest, renders the
master or commander of the vessel, liable to forfeit double the
value of such goods, together with the full duties payable on
the same.—26th Geo. III. c. 40. § 5.

380 WHALE-FISHERY.

collector or other chief officer, (if it has not before
been demanded of him,) under the penalty of 2007. *
At the same time, the log-book must be produced ;
and its contents, as required by law +, verified on
the oath of the master and mate; and affidavit also
made by the same persons, of their faithful deal-
ings, according to the requirements of law, during
the voyage. After these things are accomplished,
the mustering officer’s certificate, and schedule of
the crew, the commissioners’ licence, and the affi-
davits of master and mate, are transmitted to the
commissioners, who, being satisfied of the faithful-
ness of all the proceedings, are required to order
payment of the bounty on demand f.

Previous to the cargo being admitted to entry,
free from the duties imposed on the produce of fo-
reign fishing, the owner, importer, or consignee of
the cargo, together with the master or commander
of the vessel, must severally make oath, each to the
best of his knowledge and belief, that the said car-
go was the produce of fish, &c. actually caught by
the crew of a British built vessel, wholly owned by
his Majesty’s subjects, usually residing in Great
Britain, &. registered and navigated according to
jaw 6.

* 26th Geo. ITI, c. 40. § 11.

26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 10.

26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 6,

49th Geo. III. c. 98. § 37. Appendix No. I. & IV,

Wr t+

LEGISLATIVE REGULATIONS. 381

The importer or consignee of any goods imported
into Britain, is required, within twenty days after
the master shall have made his report, under cer-
tain penalties, to make a due entry with the collec-
tor or other chief officer of the customs at the port
where the ship shall arrive, of all the goods by him
imported therein, and pay the full duties thereon *.
In the whale-fishery trade, however, the duties are
not usually paid until the blubber is reduced into
‘oul, and the exact produce thereof ascertained,
though the time exceed the twenty days allowed
by the above act +; but should the proprietors have
occasion to send any part of the produce away be-
fore the whole cargo is boiled off, entry must be
made of such quantity at least, and the duty charge-
able on it paid, before it can be allowed to be removed
from under the eye of the superintending officer
appointed by the Customs.

* 26th Geo. III. c. 40. § 14.

+ By act 49th Geo, III. c. 68. ; and 39th & 40th Geo. ITI.
c. 51. § 1., blubber is allowed to be boiled into oil, under the
inspection of the proper officers, and such oil admitted to en-
try, and the duties paid thereon.

382 WHALE-FISHERY.

(nn en Se rr ee
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CHAPTER V.

ACCOUNT OF THE DAVIS’ STRAITS WHALE-FISH-
ERY, AND A COMPARISON WITH THAT OF
GREENLAND, WITH STATEMENTS OF EXPEN-
CES AND PROFITS OF A FISHING SHIP.

SECT. 1.

Some Account of the Whale-Fishery, as at pre-
seni conducted in Davis Straits, and on the
Coast of Labrador.

‘Pur manner of conducting the fishery in Davis’
Straits, being so very similar to the proceedings in
the Greenland fishery, I shall only notice briefly,
such circumstances as are peculiar to the former.
Ships intended for Davis’ Straits, commonly put
to sea a little earlier than the Greenland ships. A
few years ago, they were in the habit of sailing in
the latter part of February; but, at present, they
seldom leave their ports before the beginning or mid-
dle of March. On their passage outward, the Davis’

FISHERY OF DAVIS STRAITS. 383

Straits fishers usually touch at Orkney or Shetland,
for the purpose of procuring men, and such trifling
stores as are furnished at a cheap rate in these islands,
together with a view of trimming and preparing
their vessels for accomplishing the passage across
the Atlantic.

In consequence of the frequent storms and high
seas which prevail in the spring of the year, the pas-
sage across the Atlantic is often attended with dif-
ficulty. Instead of steering direct fer the southern
point of Greenland, which lies in about 594° north
latitude, this navigation is usually performed in
the parallel of 58°, for the purpose of avoiding a
dangerous body of heavy drift ice, which sometimes
extends to a considerable distance to the southward
of Cape Farewell. After sailing 5° or 6° of longi-
tude to the westward of the Cape, a more northerly
course is generally pursued, until the ships fall in
with the Labrador ice, in the parallel of 61° or 62°.
The greatest danger in this navigation is from ice-
bergs, which the whalers are constantly liable to meet
with after passing the meridian of Cape Farewell,
up to their arrival at the face of the ice, connected.
with the shore of Labrador. In the night, or in thick
weather, they are particularly hazardous, and espe-
cially in storms. In moderate winds, indeed, such
an intimation of their proximity is derived, either
from their natural effulgence in some states of the
atmosphere, or from their intense ,blackness in

384 WHALE-FISHERY.

others, that they can be generally avoided. But in
storms, when a ship ecases to be under command,
they become one of the most appalling dangers which
ean be presented to the navigator.

In the Spitzbergen seas, though the ice is equal-
ly dangerous to the shipping, and is often the occa
sion of their loss,—though it presents a frightful
appearance and a most formidable danger,—yet it
seldom proves fatal to the navigators, as they can
commonly escape upon it, and sustain themselves
till an opportunity of making their escape is pre-
sented. But the danger from ice-bergs is more
dreadful.

‘Two most fatal shipwrecks have occurred in the
Davis’ Straits fleet, within the last five years. The
Royalist, Captain Edmonds, and the London, Cap-
tain Mathews, having been lost with all hands;
the former among ice-bergs in 1814, and the latter,
it is supposed, in a similar way, in 1817. Little
is known respecting these distressing events, espe-
cially with regard to the London. As to the other
ship, however, I have received a few particulars from
an intelligent seaman, Captain Bennet of the Ve-
nerable, who was in company with the Royalist
immediately before she was wrecked. April the
14th, the Venerable was in latitude 61° 7’, longi-
tude by estimation 56° 13’ west; the Royalist in
company. They fell in with drift ice at 8 a. M.,
when a heavy gale of wind commenced, and conti-

<<

FISHERY OF DAVIS’ STRAITS. 385

nued twelve hours, after which the wind abated;
but suddenly veering to the N. W. a tremendous
storm arose, which, accompanied with sleet or snow,
continued without intermission during twenty hours.
Before dark of the 15th (nautical day), Captain
Bennet saw several ice-bergs, at which time he be-
lieved the Royalist was lying to windward of an
extensive chain of these islands of ice, among which
she was wrecked in the course of the same night.
The unfortunate crew probably perished immediate-
ly, as the sea was uncommonly high.

A subscription was opened at Hull by the own-
ers of the whalers, which met with liberal support
from the humane of other classes of people, both in
this and in neighbouring towns. ‘The sum raised
amounted to 1122/.13s. 6d., which was divided in
the following manner. To the captain’s widow,
216/. 11s. 3d.; to the widow of the chief mate, 517.
19s. 6d.; and to the widows and families of the
rest of the crew certain monthly shares, proportion-
ate to the number and age of their children, until
the whole was expended.

The London was lost about the same situation in
the year 1817. A subscription, amounting to
5301. 11s., raised chiefly by the people of Hull, was
divided among the widows and families of the crew
in the manner following. ‘To the widow of the cap-
tain, 42/.; three shares per month, of 7s. each, to
every other widow; and one share per month to

VOL. IL. Bb

386 WHALE-FISHERY.

every child under fourteen years of age. The last
‘monthly payment was made on the 24th of De-
cember 1818 *.

The fishery on the coast of Labrador commences
occasionally in the month of March. On this station,
which is inhabited by a large description of whales,
some fishers have persevered altogether, and have
sometimes procured great cargoes. It is, however,
a dangerous fishery. The nights being long and
dark on their first arrival, they are obliged to use
lanterns in their boats, when fish happen to be
struck, or to remain unsubdued at the close of
day, for the purpose of keeping the ships and boats
together ; on which occasions, the stormy weather
that frequently occurs at this season, exposes them
to continual danger. Those who prosecute the
northern fishery, after making the ice at the
“ South-West,” as the neighbourhood of the La-
brador coast is usually denominated, proceed al-
most immediately up Davis’ Straits, towards Baf-
fins Bay. If, in the month of April or begin-
ning of May, they commence this navigation, and
sail along the edge of the western ice to the

* Captain Bennet’s communication by letter.—It is some-
what remarkable, that Captain Mathews of the London, who
perished when his ship was lost, was engaged. as chief-mate of
the Royalist, for the voyage in whicl: she was wrecked, but,
by some accident, was prevented from sailing in her. In the
first instance, he had an extraordinary escape from premature
death, and yet three years afterwards he suffered a similar ca~
lamity.

FISHERY OF DAVIS’ STRAITS. 384

northward, they often find it joining the ice con-
nected with the west coast of Greenland, in the la-
titude of 663° or 67°, and meet with a considerable
barrier of it in 68°, immediately beyond which, a
few leagues from land, is a good fishing station. As
the ice opens to the northward, the whales retreat
in that direction, and the fishers follow as prompt-
ly as possible. The whalers often reach Disko
early in May; but it is generally the latter
end of this month, or the beginning of June,
before they can pass the second barrier of ice,
lying about Hare Island, in the 71st degree of
latitude, and enter the northern inlets frequented by
the whales. The three inlets, called the South-east
Bay, J acob’s Bight, and the North-east Bay, were
most productive fishing stations a few years ago;
but of late they have afforded but few whales.
From hence, if no fish are found, the whalers pro-
ceed to the western part of the Straits, towards Cum-
berland Island, or persevere along the east side of |
Davis’ Straits towards Baffin’s Bay ; to the extreme
parts of which the fish appear to retreat as the sea-
son advances, and as the ice clears away from the
northern and eastern shores.

Perhaps the following may be considered as
an eligible plan of fishing on a Davis’ Straits
voyage. ‘To proceed at the usual season, and in the
usual manner, to the drift-ice bordering the coast
of Labrador, where whales, though not in great
numbers, usually remain during a great part of the

BbaQ

388 WHALE-FISHERY.

season, and there to persevere in the fishery until the
latter end of April or beginning of May, by which
time the fish at the South-West sometimes retire
into the ice or to the northward ; then to follow the
whales which go north, and attack them in latitude
65° or 66°, where they occasionally make a halt.
About the middle of May to proceed up the Straits,
try the fishing station in the 69th degree, then the
western part of the Straits, when open, in the 70th
or 71st degree, and on the first opening of the ice
near Hare Island, to explore the inlets in latitude
71° and 72°. If considerable success has not, by
that time, been obtained, to proceed up Baffin’s
Bay as the ice clears away, to the farthest navigable
point, where a reasonable prospect of success is al-
ways offered. The farthest point attained in the
month of June will, perhaps, not be above the 72d or
73d degree of latitude; but in the month of July or
early in August, the extreme parts of Baffin’s Bay
will probably be open, and a‘ford a productive fish-
ing station, should all others fail. Thus, the fish-
ery of Davis’ Straits may be extended, in one sea-
son, during six months, instead of four or five, the
usual interval; and, at all times, with a more than
ordinary probability of success.

At the South-West, in latitude 61° or 62°, fish
have been killed in the month of July, but only in
icy situations, near the Labrador coast.

In Baffin’s Bay, and in the inlets of West-Green-

land, the fishery is conducted under the most favour-

FISHERY OF DAVIS’ STRAITS. 389

able circumstances. The water being shallow in many
situations, the boats require only a small quantity
of line; and the weather being warm, the sailors
perform their occupations, if not with pleasure, at
east with comfort to themselves. But at the South-
West, cach operation of the fishery is performed un-
der rather unpleasant and even dangerous circum-
stances. Darkness of night, exposure to storms,
and frequency of swells, are all unfavourable to the
fishers. The flensing of a whale at the South-West,
is usually more troublesome and more hazardous
than elsewhere, owing to the prevalent swell which
rarely altogether subsides.

Davis’ Straits fishers, within the present century,
after making a successful fishery at a distance from
land, have been in the habit of resorting to the bays,
and there mooring in safety, until the troublesome
process of making-off was accomplished. ;

On the passage homeward, the ships usually steer
down the middle of the Straits, and proceed suffi-
ciently far south for avoiding the “ Cape-ice,” before
they haul up to the eastward. From thence, the
prevalence of westerly winds in the summer season,
generally affords them an easy passage across the
Atlantic. ‘Their course is nearly due east ; which
being on a parallel of latitude, they can have no
difficulty in finding Shetland, Orkney, or the north-
west coast of Scotland, accordingly as they may
wish ; their only particular caution being to keep
a good look-out for land, some time before they may

390 WHALE-FISHERY.

calculate on its proximity, in case of an error in
their longitude. In Orkney, the men taken on
board on the outward passage, are landed on their
return; and the crew are mustered, when the num-
ber of men engaged at the port from which the
vessel sailed, was not sufficient for performing this
legal ceremony at home. These matters accomplish-
ed, the ship proceeds immediately to her port.

The legislative regulations on the importation of
Davis’ Straits produce, are the same as on cargoes
obtained in the Greenland fishery.

fd of Os A

Comparative View of the Fisheries of Greenland
and Davis’ Straits.

HitHErtro the comparative advantages of the
fisheries of Greenland and Davis’ Straits have been
entirely matter of opinion, no one having, I believe,
taken the pains to make correct estimates on the
subject. It may, therefore, be worth while to give
the result of some calculations, made with a view
of ascertaining the relative value of the two fish-
eries to individuals who embark their property in the
trade.

Among the Dutch fishers, we find that, during
a period of 107 years, included between 1669 and
1778, each ship in a fleet of 132 sail, which pro-

COMPARATIVE VIEW. 391

eeeded annually to Greenland, afforded to the own-
ers, on an average, a profit of 3126 florins ; and
that in a period of 60 years, ending with 1778, a
fleet of 53 ships, which sailed annually to Davis’
Straits, realized to the owners a profit of 3469 f.
per voyage: thus, exceeding the produce of the
Greenland fishery by 343 f. on each ship per voyage;
after ample allowance is made for the greater length
of the voyage to Davis’ Straits, ene with the
additional wear and tear.

Among the British fishers, the advantage seems
also to have been on the sideof Davis’ Straits, particu-
larly of late years. In the four years ending with
1817, the Greenland fishery has produced on an
average 88 tons of oil, and 4 tons 93 cwt. of whale-
bone per ship, each voyage ; but the Davis’ Straits
fishery has, during the same period, averaged 102
tons of oil, and 4 tons 163 cwt. of waleboue per
ship ; exceeding the average cargo of the Greenland
ships by 14 tons of oil and 74 cwt. of whalebone,
value, according to the mean rate of oil and fins,
about 5307. But from this, if we deduct the value
of skins taken by the Greenland fishers, but not
estimated in their cargoes, say 20 /. to 30/. per ship,
and the additional expences of a Davis’ Straits
voyage, occasioned by the greater wear and tear, and
the provisions and wages for a voyage longer by one
or two months than that to Greenland, we shall
reduce the balance in favour of the Davis’ Straits
fishers to a very small sum.

39Z WHALE-FISHERY.

During the above four years, the amount of the
cargoes of the British Greenland whale-fishing ships,
(consisting of 376 sail, repeated voyages included,)
was 3508 whales, which produced 33,070 tons of
oil, and 1682 tons of whalebone. At the same
time, 210 ships employed in the Davis’ Straits
fishery, procured 1522 whales, yielding 21,438 tons
of oil, and 1015 tons of whale-fins.

It seems worthy of remark, that the whales
caught near Spitzbergen, afforded a larger propor-
tion of whalebone, compared with the quantity of
oil, than the fish of Davis’ Straits; the Greenland
fish yielding a ton of fins for every 194 tons of oil,
and the Davis’ Straits fish a ton of fins for every
21 tons of oil. It is remarkable that this should
have been the case, when we consider that small
fish afford less whalebone than large fish, in pro-
portion to their produce in oil, and yet the Green-
land fish which, on the average of four years, were
much smaller than those caught in Davis’ Straits,
have produced the largest proportion of whalebone.
The whales taken at the Greenland fishery in four
years, only average 94 tons of oil each, but those
caught at Davis’ Straits average 14 tons. It would
therefore appear, that the large whales caught near
Spitzbergen are much stouter than those taken in
Davis’ Straits, and afford so much greater a propor-
tion of fins, as more than compensates fer the defi.
ciency in the small whales.

STATEMENT OF EXPENCES. 393

SECT. ITT.

Statements of Expences and Profits on some
Whale-fishing Voyages.

The fluctuating value of shipping, renders it dif-
ficult to give a fair estimate of the expences of a
whale-ship. The Resolution of Whitby, burden
291 tons, when new, in the year 1803, cost but
7791 /., including all expences of stores and outfit,
premiums of insurance, and advance money of sea-
men; while the Esk, of 354 tons admeasurement,
launched and fitted out of the same port in 1813,
cost above 14,000 /.

The following statement shows the cost and ex-
pences of the ship Resolution, before putting to sea,
on her first voyage, in the year 1803.

Hal BO Om
Wage ofthe” slap a Mrllas 08s 50 2320 10 0O
Expences of doubling, fortifying, &c.... 471 7 5
Mast-maker’s and jomer’s bills,.......... 505 18 4
Sail-maker’s, Bill peieiessss sells. 24 ks 240 11 5
Cordage,—Rigging, and cables,......... 580 11 0

Whale-lines, &c......... 5 aidan 276 6 5
AMO SFT. aa bzniied\ ois oh 95e oh sais se Soh 33 2 4
Boat-builder, for ‘7 boats,................. 144 111

Carried forward, L.4572 8 10

394 WHALE-FISHERY.

Brought forward, L.4572 8 10

Oars, timber, deals, harpoon-stocks,&c. 4517 1
Tron-work.—Anchors,.........00.00.eeee 66 11 4
Ice-saws, ice-anchors, &. 35 12 O-
——_——— Cooking-hearth,............ 20) 0 0
Harpoons, lances, knives, &c. 189 7 9
Cooper’s bill for casks,...........0c0cecee 1091 14 8
Ship-chandler’spoilly., oO 4) ace sn cond. e& ca 69 1 9
Parrter’s Policy: is Seow tna. s aes rude 3719 8.
Plumber and glazier’s bill,............... QO T5e BO
STU aCe NO Ot a gee NE ME 17114 5
Expences of outfit.
Provisiotis, Coals, rc. seein? ae ne 769 111
Insurance against sea and enemy,...... 413 3 0
Advance money to seamen, &c.......... 287 19 2
biol ot oO

This ship was sold in eight shares; and the sum
subscribed by the owners, and deposited in the
hands of the managing-owners, was 8000/7. The
expences incurred, and the profits realized by this
adventure, during fifteen voyages, are exhibited in
the following statement *.

—-

* I am indebted to my friends Messrs Fishburn and Bro-
drick, managing owners of the Resolution, for the documents
from which this statement was drawn up.

STATEMENT,

1810. Expences 7th, and outfit 8th voyage, 4729 11

—
Srorovonoroveowoanocortonn

1814. Cargo, &c. 11th se 6049

1d
2 aS ee. ==. =
" RECEIVED
\ PAID. %
| L. s. Dp. || 1804. Proceeds of the cargo and bounty Lees Se
1603. Amount advanced by the owners, 8000 0 O Ist voyage, - 3 . 6864 10
1804, One year’s interest on capital, 400 0 0} 1805. Cargo and bounty 2d voyage, 6568 1
I’xpences on the Ist, and outfit of 1806. — 3d — 6287 10
the 2d voyage, - - - 4008 18 4 |) 1808, ——————-_._ 4th & 5th voyages, 10428 1
1805. Expences 2d, and outfit 3d voyage, 4476 2 6'| 1809. ————---__ Gth voyage, 7157
Interest of capital, - - 300 0 O} 1810. —- 1th — $275 1
1806. Expences 3d, and outfit 4th voy age, 4679 11 5 Premium on capital, - ‘ 60
Interest of capital, - 200 O O01] 1811. Cargo, &c. &th voyage, 8195 16 1
1808. Expences 4th & 5th, and outfit of Premium on capital, - 189
5th & 6th voyages, - 9216 14 6] 1812. Cargo, &e. 9th voyage, 7385 ]
Interest of capital, (2 years) = 200 .0 0O Premium on capital, - 340
1809. Expences 6th, and outfit 7th voyage, 9823 14 4 || 1813. Cargo, &e. 10th voyage, 7834 1
Interest of capital, 20 0 0} Premium on capital, - . 500
8
5
3
8
2
6
9
7

SwWONVOWOESCHROASCOSCDCOAGAKOOGY

1811. Sth, A722 11 Premium on capital, 660
1812. ———— 9th, ————10th — 5149 10 1815. Cargo, &c. 12th voids $426 1
1813, ——_—— 10th, —llth-—-— _ 5432 3 Premium on capital, - 740
1814, ————11th, —— 12th 4270 13 1816. Cargo, &c. 13th voyage, 433
1815. ————1 2th, ——-—— 13th —--- 5455 5 Premium on capital, - 860
1816. ————13th, —_——_| 4th 2701 19 1817. Cargo, &e. 14th voyage, 2866
1817. ——_—— 14th, —-——1 5th ———_ 3240 2 Premium on capital, - S60
1818. loth, ——-—— 16th 2839 18 11] 1818. Cargo, &c. 15th voyage, 3506 1
Balance in favour of the owners, 19473 10 2 Premium on capital, - 860

STATEMENT OF EXPENCES AND PROFITS.

ee —- _—_—. ——_——.
.

|
L.95340 8 2 L. 95340 8 2

396 WHALE-FISHERY.

Hence the balance in favour of the owners of
the Resolution, for fifteen voyages, appears to be
19,473/. 10s. 2d., besides the value of the ship,
and the value of the outfit for the sixteenth voyage.
Sf we reckon these at 6500 /. the profit derived from
8000/., originally advanced, in addition-to the inte-
rest of the capital embarked, will amount to about
26,000 /., notwithstanding the last three voyages
were but indifferent; of which sum, 25,200 J. has
actually been divided. ‘To present this statement
without some qualification, however, would give a
very erroneous view of the general advantages of
the fishery to individuals; it is therefore necessary
to mention, thatithe Resolution, in her first. ten
voyages, procured 600 or 700 tons of oil, above the
average of the fishery, during that period, if not
more.

The usual expences of a Greenland voyage, in-
cluding outfit, when no cargo is obtained, may be
stated at 2200 /. exclusive of interest of capital, and
wear and tear. For every ten tons of oil procured,
there will be an additional expence of 80/. or 90 7.
for discharging and boiling the cargo, for oil-money
and fish-money, and for other extraordinaries con-
nected with a successful fishing. Thus the expence
of a ship, with a cargo of 200 tons of oil, will be
at least, 40007. These expences, however, will vary
with the kind of wages paid to the captain and
erew,—with the nature of the equipment,—and, in
some measure, with the price of oil.

PREMISES USED IN MANUFACTURING OIL. 397

CHAPTER VI.

METHOD OF EXTRACTING OIL AND PREPARING
WHALEBONE, WITH A DESCRIPTION OF THESE
ARTICLES, AND REMARKS ON THE USES TO
WHICH THE SEVERAL PRODUCTS OF THE
WHALE-FISHERY ARE APPLIED.

SECT. I.

Description of the Premises and Apparatus used
in extracting Oil out of Blubber. |

Ow the margin of the river, wet-dock, canal, or
other sheet of water, communicating with that
wherein the whale-fishing ship discharges her cargo,
are usually provided the necessary premises for re-
ducing the blubber into oil, consisting commonly
of the following articles.

1. A copper vessel or boiler, 3 to 6, or even 10 or
more tons capacity, of a circular form in the horizontal
view, and elliptical in the perpendicular section, is
fixed at the elevation of 6 to 10 feet above the ground,

398 WHALE-FISHERY.

provided with an appropriate furnace, and covered
with a tiled or slated shed. Some of these coppers
have a sudden depression in the bottom, into which
the refuse of the blubber subsides when it is suffi-
ciently boiled ; and at the elevation of a foot or 18
inches above the bottom, (higher than the cavity
usually occupied by the refuse,) is a grating and
conducting pipe, through which, on turning a stop-
cock, the greater part of the oil in the copper is
conveyed into an adjoining cooler.

2. On the same, or on a little lower level than
that of the copper, is fixed a square or oblong back
or cooler, built generally of wood, but sometimes
of brick or stone, lined with lead or cement, capable
of containing from 10 to 20 tons of oil or upwards.
Adjoining to this is another back, sometimes a third,
and occasionally a fourth or a fifth, each placed a
little lower than the one preceding it, so that the
lowest shall stand with its base about two or three
feet above the level of the ground. In some very
modern «orks, the coolers are all fixed at the same
elevation. Each of the backs is provided with one
or more stop-cocks on the most accessible side, for
convenience in drawing the oil off into casks.

3. Altogether above the level of the copper, and
immediately adjoining it,on the side directed towards
the river or canal, an oblong wooden cistern, called.
the “ starting-back,” is usually erected, for contain--
ing blubber, which ought to be a vessel of equal or

PREMISES USED IN MANUFACTURING OIL. 399

nearly equal capacity to that of the copper. It is
generally provided with a crane, which, \:ith a winch,
or other similar engine attached, is so contrived as
to take casks either from the quay or from a lighter
by the side of the quay, and convey them at once
to the top of the starting-back. Over this vessel is
extended a kind of railing or “ gauntree,” on which
the casks rest, without being injured, and are easily
moveable.

A, The starting-back being elevated two or three
yards above the level of the ground, occasionally
admits of a “ fenk-back” or depository for the refuse
of the blubber, immediately beneath it ; which fenk-
back is sometimes provided with a clough on the
side next to the water, for “ starting” the fenks into
a barge or lighter placed below. In some exten-
sive premises, however, the fenks are deposited in a
large shallow cistern, or pit sunk in the earth, and
made sufficiently large to contain the whole refuse
of one cargo; where it remains undisturbed, until
the action of the sun extracts the remaining oil, and
brings it to the surface.

5. The premises likewise comprise a shed for the
cooper, and sometimes a cooper’s, or master boiler’s
dwelling-house ; the mhabitant of which takes the
charge of all the blubber, oil, whalebone, and other
articles deposited around him.

6. Warehouses for containing the oil after it is
drawn off into casks, are also used, not only for

400 WHALE-FISHERY.

preserving it in safe custody, but for defending the
casks from the rays of the sun, otherwise they are
apt to pine and become leaky.—And,

7. Sometimes “ steeping-backs” and apparatus
for preparing whalebone, are comprised within the
same enclosure.

SECT. IT.

Process of Boiling Blubber or Extracting Oil.

The blubber, which was originally in the state of
firm fat, is found, on arrival in a warm climate, to
be in a great measure resolved into oil. The casks
containing the blubber, are conveyed, by the me-
chanical apparatus above mentioned, to the top of
the starting-back, into which their contents are emp-
tied or started, through the bung-holes. When the
copper is properly cleansed, the contents of the start-
ing-back, on lifting a clough ‘at the extremity,
or turning a stop-cock, fall directly into the copper,
one edge of which is usually placed beneath *.

* In the premises of William Mellish, Esq. Shadwell Dock,
London, which are the best adapted of any I have yet seen, the
starting-back, which is about ten tons in capacity, has a false
bottom full of small holes, placed a few inches above the true
bottom : by which the oil is drained off, and passes through a
grating and conducting pipe, into an adjoining copper, and is
boiled by itself; while the fenks collected by the grating, are,
at the same time, boiled in another copper placed equally con-
venient.

PROCESS OF EXTRACTING OIL. 401

The copper is filled within two or three inches of
the top, a little space being requisite to admit of
the expansion of the oil when heated; and then a
brisk fire is applied in the furnace, and continued
until the oil begins to boil. This effect usually
takes place in less than two hours. Many of the
fritters or fenks float on the surface of the oil before
it is heated, but after it is “ boiled off,’ the whole,
or nearly so, subside to the bottom. From the time
the copper begins to warm, until it is boiled off or
ceases to boil, its contents must be incessantly
stirred by means of a pole, armed with a kind of
broad blunt chisel, to prevent the fenks from ad-
hering to the bottom or sides of the vessel. When
once the contents of the copper boil, the fire in the
furnace is immediately reduced, and shortly after-
wards altogether withdrawn. Some persons allow
the copper to boil an hour, others during two or
three hours. ‘The former practice is supposed to
produce finer and paler oil, the latter a greater quan-
tity. ‘The same copper is usually boiled twice in
every twenty-four hours, Sundays excepted. Sup-
posing the copper to be filled at four in the morning,
it is generally brought to boil by half-past five,
and boiled off at half-past six or seven. It then
stands to cool and subside, until about two o’clock
in the afternoon, when the “ bailing” process com-
mences. One of the backs or coolers having been pre-
pared for the reception of the oil, by putting into it a
VOL. I. Cre

402 WHALE-FISHERY.

quantity of water*, for the double purpose of pre-
venting the heat of the oil from warping or rending
the back, and for receiving any impurities which it
may happen to hold in suspension, —a wooden
spout, with a large square box-like head, which
head is filled with brush-wood or broom, that it may
act as a filter, is then placed along, from the “ cop-
per-head+” to the cooler, so as to form a communica-
tion between the two. The oil in the copper being
now separated from the fenks, water, and other im-
purities, all of which have subsided to the bottom,
is, in a great measure, run off through the pipe
communicating with the cooler, and the remainder 1s
carefully lifted in copper or tin ladles, and poured.
upon the broom in the spout, from whence it runs
into the same cooler, or any other cooler, at the plea-
sure of the “ boilers t.” Besides oil and fenks, the
blubber of the whale likewise affords a considerable
quantity of watery liquor, produced probably from
the putrescence of the blood, on the surface of which,
some of the fenks, and all the greasy animal matter
called footje or footing, float, and wpon the top of
these the oil. Great care, therefore, is requisite, on
approaching these impure substances, to take the oil

* Some persons dispense with the water, believing that it
promotes rancidity in the oil.

+ The platform built around the edge of the copper, is
called the copper-head.

{ The men employed in extracting oil are thus denominated.

PROCESS OF EXTRACTING OIL. 403

off by means of shallow tinned iron or copper ladles,
called shimmers, without disturbing the refuse, and
mixing it with the oil. There must always, however,
be a small quantity towards the conclusion, which is
a mixture of oil and footing ; such is put into a cask
or other suitable vessel by itself, and when the
_grossy part has thoroughly subsided, the most pure
part is skimmed off, and becomes fine oil, and the
impure is allowed to accumulate by itself in another
vessel, where, in the end, it affords “ brown-oil.”

The refuse now left in the copper, is luzled into
a tunnel or spout, which conveys it into the fenk-
back, where it remains as long as the capacity of
the vessel will admit; a portion of brown-oil, which
is constantly found rising to the surface, being, in
the mean time, occasionally skimmed off.

A few years ago, my Father instituted a process
for reducing blubber into oil, by the use of steam ;
and a similar process has been adopted in Hull and
other ports, and applied to the extraction of oil,
with considerable advantage.

From a ton, or 252 gallons by measure, of blub-
ber, there generally arises from 50 to 65 gallons of
refuse, whereof the greater part is a watery fluid.
The constant presence of this fluid, which boils at a
much lower temperature than the oil, prevents the
oil itself from boiling, which is, probably, an advan-
tage, since, in the event of the oil being boiled,
some of the finest and most inflammable parts would

cee

AOL WHALE-FISHERY.

fly off in the form of vapour; whereas, the principal
part of the steam which now escapes, is produced
from the water. Some persons make a practice of
adding a quantity of water, amounting, perhaps, to
half a ton, to the contents of each copper, with the
view of weakening or attenuating the viscid im-
purities contaimed in the blubber, and thus obtain-
ing a finer oil; others consider the quantity of
watery fluid already in the blubber, as sufficient for
producing every needful effect.

Mach day, immediately after the copper 1s emp-
tied, and while it is yet hot, the men employed
in the manufacture of the oil having their feet
defended by strong leathern or wooden shoes, de-
scend into it, and scour it out with sand and wa-
ter, until they restore the natural surface of the cop-
per, wherever it is discoloured. This serves to pre-
serve the oil from becoming high coloured *, which
will always be the case, when proper cleanliness is
not observed.

The starting-back being previously filled with
blubber, its contents are again transferred into the
copper, and the fire is applied as before. ‘This is

* The palest-coloured oil is most esteemed by buyers, and
is supposed to be the best ; simply, perhaps, because it seems
to have been manufactured with care, and appears to be free
from any admixture of brown or black oil, produced from the
fenk-back, or found in the hold of the ship.

PROCESS OF EXTRACTING OIL. 405

generally accomplished by four, or half-past four
o'clock in the afternoon. The copper again boils by
half an hour after five or six, and is boiled off
by seven or eight in the evening. The men em-
ployed in this service, consisting of about six per-
sons, alternately watch in the night by couples.
Those on watch commence about two in the mor-
ning to empty the copper, which done, they again
fill it from the starting-back, which is always made
ready the night before. Thus the process gocs on,
until the whole cargo is finished.

By means of three coolers, severally capable of
containing at least twice the quantity of oil pro-
duced from one boiling of blubber in the copper, each
can be allowed, in turn, to stand undisturbed up-
wards of twenty-four hours. Thus, while one is in
the act of being filled, another stands to cool and
settle, and the third is drawn off. If the backs
be twice this size, or four times the capacity of the
copper, every one will require two days to be filled
by one copper, and after being filled, may subside
during two or three days undisturbed. Even two
backs in number, of this capacity, would admit of
an interval of twenty-four hours each, after being fill-
ed, before it would be necessary to begin to empty it.

Thus prepared and cooled, the oil is in a market-
able state, and requires only to be transferred from
the coolers into casks for the convenience of convey-
ance to any part of the country. ach of the cool-

406 WHALE-FISHERY.

ers, it has been observed, is furnished with a stop- |
cock, beneath which there is a platform adapted for
receiving the casks; where they are filled with
great ease, by the introduction of a leathern tube,
extending from the orifice of the stop-cock into the
bung-hole. At the conclusion of the proccss of
boiling each vessel’s cargo manufactured on the pre-
mises, the backs are completely emptied of their
contents. ‘To effect this, water is poured in, until
the lower part of the stratum of oil rises to within
a few lines of the level of the stop-cock, and permits
the greatest part of the oil to escape. The quanti-
ty left, amounts, perhaps, to half an inch, or an inch
in depth. Torecover this oil without waste, re-
quires a little address. A deal-board, in length a
little exceeding the breadth of the cooler, is introdu-
ced at one end, a little diagonally, and placed edge-
ways in its contents. The ends of the board being
covered with flannel, when pressed forcibly against
the two opposite sides of the cooler, prevent the oil
from circulating past. ‘The board is then advanced
slowly forward towards the part of the back, where
the stop-cock is placed ; and in its progress (the ends
being kept close to the sides of the cooler, and the up-
per edge a little above the surface of the oil,) all the:
oil is collected by the board, while the water has a free
circulation beneath it. When the oil accumulates to
the depth of the board, its further motion is sus-
pended, until the oil thus collected is drawn off.

PROCESS OF EXTRACTING OIL. 407

Another similar board is afterwards introduced at
the farthest extremity of the cooler, and passed for-
ward in the same manner, whereby the little. oil
which escapes the first is collected. Now the rem-
nant, which still refuses to run off by the orifice of
the stop-cock, being collected in a corner, is taken
up by shimmers ; and the footing or sediment which
appears at the last, is disposed of in the same way
as the footing from the copper, until the oil it con-
tains rises to the surface and can be removed.

In most of the out-ports, the oil is generally de-
posited in casks, in which it remains until it is dis-
posed of by the importers. In London, however,
and in some concerns in Hull and other ports, the
speculators in the whale-fishery are provided with
cisterns or tanks, wherein they can deposite their
oil, and preserve it until a convenient time for sell-
ing, without being subject to the waste which usu-
ally takes place when it is put into casks. From
these cisterns, any quantity can be drawn off at
pleasure.

The smell of oil, during its extraction, is undoubt-
edly disagreeable ; but perhaps not more so than
the vapour arising from any other animal substance
submitted to the action of heat when in a putrid
state. The prevailing opinion, however, that a
whale-ship must always give out the same unplea-
sant smell is quite erroneous. The fact is, that
the fat of the whale, in its fresh state, has no

408 WITALE-FISHERY.

offensive flavour whatever, and never becomes dis-
agreeable until it is brought into a warm climate and
becomes putrid; neither is a whale-ship more un-
pleasant than any other trader, until after her cargo
is opened on her arrival in port,

SECT. ITI.

Description of Whale-Oil, and Remarks on the
Cause of its offensive Smell.

WHALE-OIL prepared by the method just de-
scribed, is of a pale honey-yellow colour ; but some-
times, when the blubber from which it is procured
happens to be of the red kind, the oil appears of a red-
dish-brown colour. When first extracted, it is com-
monly thick, but after standing some time, a mucila-

ginous substance subsides, and it becomes tolerably

limpid and transparent, Its smell is somewhat of-
fensive, especially when it is long kept. It consists
of oil, properly so called, a small portion of sper-
maceti, and a little gelatin. At the temperature
of 40°, the latter substances become partially con-
crete, and make the oil obscure, and at the tempe-
rature of 32°, render it thick with flaky crystals.
It is sold by the ton of 252 gallons, wine-measure.
its specific gravity, is 0.9214. <A gallon of oil, by
measure, weighs 7 lb. 10 oz. 124 dr. avoirdupois, at

’
ae ee eae eee

DESCRIPTION OF WHALE-OIL. OO4

the temperature of 60°; consequently the ton will
weigh 1933 Ib. 12 oz. 14 dr., or 17 ewt. 1 qr. 1 Ib.
12 oz. 14 dr. *

The value of whale-oil, like that of every other
similar article, is subject to continual variations. In
the year 1742, oil sold in Kngland for 18/. 13s,
per ton; in 1743, for 14/. 8s.; in 1744, for 10/.
ls.; in 1754, for 29/7.; in 1801, for 50/.; in 1807,
for 21/.; and in 1813, when the price was

* It is remarkable, that 7} pounds of whale oil should have
been generally admitted by the dealers in this article, as an
equivalent for a gallon by measure, when the real equivalent
is greater by 2 oz. 12.5 drams. The buyers have indeed ge-
nerally, of late, objected to the purchase of oil by weight, be-
cause they have found it deficient of the London gauge ; which
deficiency the sellers have been in the habit of attributing to
the inaccuracy of the process ; but the true cause has not, that
I know of, been before explained. The error of 2 0z. 12.5
drams per gallon, makes a deficiency of 5.? gallons in the ton,
at the temperature of 60°, and at lower temperatures, a deficien-
ey still greater. As the practice of selling oil by weight is per-
fectly fair, under all circumstances of temperature, or form of
the containing vessels ; whereas the quantity by measure varies
with every change of temperature, and is liable to error from
the inaccuracies of the process of guaging,—it would be more
satisfactory for persons concerned in the oil trade, to adopt the
method of weighing. For the advancement of such a mea-
sure, some farther remarks on this subject, and the result of
some experiments for ascertaining the expansion of oil by heat,
are included in the Appendix to this Volume, N° VII.

410 WHALE-FISHERY.

the highest ever obtained, for 55/. or 60/. per
ton *.

The application of the gas produced by the dis-
tillation of coal for lighting the public streets and
buildings, manufactories, shops, &c. which formerly
were lighted with oil, it was apprehended would be
ruinous to the whale-fishery trade, and certainly had
a very threatening appearance ; but hitherto, owing,
perhaps, to the amount of whalc-oil lately imported,
having been less than the ordinary quantity, this ex-
pected effect of the employment of gas lights has not
been felt.

When blubber is boiled in Greenland, the oil
_ produced from it is much brighter, paler, more lim-
pid, and more infiammable, than that extracted in
Britain. It is also totally free from any unpleasant
flavour, and burns without smell. Hence it is evi-
dent, that whatever is disagreeable in the effluvia
of whale-oil, arises from an admixture of putrescent
substances. These consist of blood and animal
fibre. This latter is the reticulated and cellular
fibre of the blubber, wherein the oil is confined,
which produces the fenks when boiled. When pu-

* The average price of whale oil during the last nineteen

years, was about 34/. 15. viz.

Way Tn yd Ined In ° Uk if eas
1800, 35 1804, 3 1808, 27 1812, 35 1816, 28
1801, 46 1805, 30 1809, 36 1813, 50 1817, 46

(9)
9

Co =

1802, 31 1806, 1810, 88 1814, 32 1818, 38
1803, 38 1807, 1811, 81 1815, 38.

rm

CAUSE OF THE OFFENSIVE SMELL OF OIL. 411

trefaction commences, a small portion of the blood
contained in the blubber is probably combined with
the oil, and the animal fibre, in considerable
quantity, is dissolved in it. These substances
not only occasion the unpleasant smell common
to whale-oil, but by being deposited on the wick of
lamps in burning, produce upon it a kind of cinder,
which, if not occasionally removed, causes a great
diminution in the quantity of light. A sample of
oil which I extracted in Greenland about ten years
ago, is still fine, and totally free from rancidity. It
has certainly acquired a smell, but it is not more
unpleasant than that of old Florence oil. Hence,
were whale-oil extracted in Greenland, before the
putrefying process commences, or were any method
devised of freeing it from the impurities which
combine with it im consequence of this process, it
would become not only more valuable for common
purposes, but would be applicable to almost every
use to which spermaceti-oil is adapted. In fact it
would become a similar kind of article.

In the first age of the fishery, all the blubber
taken, used to be reduced in Spitzbergen or Jan
Mayen, and imported in the form of oil only. This
shows that the process ean be accomplished in the
cold climate of Greenland ; but in the present state
of things, the site of the fishery being removed to
a great distance from the land, whereas formerly it
was carried on in the very bays, there is not suffi-

412 WHALE-FISHERY.

cient time in one season for performing this operation
on shore. My Father has made several attempts
to accomplish it on ship-board, but the tenacious
confinement of the oil by the fibre of the blubber,
rendered every attempt to extract the whole con-
tents unavailing. After the process was finished,
he always found that the fenks still held a consider-
able proportion of the oil, amounting to perhaps
one-third of the original quantity, which he could
hit on no effectual method of extracting. He tried
a hydrostatic press and other machines for squeezing
it out, but these likewise failed of producing the
wished effect. The idea was therefore abandoned,
particularly as the increase in value of the oil thus
obtained was not sufficient to compensate for the
quantity which was lost. It therefore appears,
that the putrefying process serves to relax the te-
nacity of the cellular substance of the blubber, and
permits nearly the whole oil to ooze out, and is
therefore serviceable to the manufacturer, though
injurious to the quality of the oil.

Between the adipose and muscular substances
surrounding the body of the whale, is interposed a
kind of loose spongy fat, or in some piaces fat in-
termixed with muscular flesh. This substance, be-
fore alluded to under the name of kreng, affords so
little oil in the usual way, that it is frequently
thrown overboard. But on the application of the
boiling apparatus to it in Greenland, my Father

PROPERTIES OF REFINED OIL. 413

succeeded in obtaining a ton or two of oil in the
course of one season; a product which, though it
paid near about the expence of the apparatus, was
attended with such trouble and inconvenience, that
he never afterwards repeated the operation.

In performing some experiments on oil in Green-
land, during the fishing season of 1818, I adopted
a process for refining oil extracted from blubber,
before the putrifying process commenced, by which
I procured a remarkably fine oil. It was nearly
colourless, beautifully transparent, and very limpid.
Its specific gravity, temperature 60°, (compared
with snow water of the same temperature,) was
0.9202, and the gross oil from whence it was sepa-
rated 0.922. ‘This oil retains its fluidity, and even
its transparency, at a very low temperature. A
fine specimen of seal oil, refined in the same way,
remained unchanged in appearance, at the tempera-
ture of 15°, when common whale, seal, sperm, and
other oils, were as thick as hog’s lard, and had
quite lost their pellucidness. ‘The oil refined by this
process, is more inflammable than spermaceti-oil,—
and so pure, that it will burn longer, without form-
ing a crust on the wick of the lamp, than spermaceti
oil, or any other oil with which it has yet been com-
pared.

Besides the oil produced from blubber by boil-
ing, the whalers distinguish such as oozes from the
jaw-bones of the fish, by the name of jaw-bone oil ;

414 WHALE-FISHERY.

and inferior oils, which are discoloured, and more
impure, by the denominations of brown oil, and
black oil or bilge oil. Brown oil is produced in the
way described in the process of boiling; black or
bilge oil is that which leaks out of the casks in the
course of the voyage, or runs out of any blubber
which may happen to be in bulk, and accumulates
in the bottom of the ship. ‘This oil is always very
dark coloured, viscous, and possessed of little trans-
parency. In the hold of the ship, it imbibes va-
rious impurities; and when strongly acted upon
by the hydrogenous gases of the bilge-water, is
sometimes so changed in its qualities, that it com-
bines to a certain extent with the salt-water on
which it floats, and is rendered totally useless.
When, however, its oleaginous properties continue
unchanged, it is preserved and sold for inferior uses,
at a proportionate reduction of price.

From what has been advanced, we see why the
palest oil is esteemed the most valuable. Pale
limpid oil has a chance to be the most pure, be-
cause any inferior oil mixed with it, or much animal
matter combined with it, always has a tendency to
heighten the colour and render it viscous.

As oil kept in open vessels, we are informed, be-
comes gradually more and more oxygenated, and
also less fluid, it is necessary to keep whale-oil
closely barrelled up. Another precaution for pre-

DESCRIPTION OF WHALE-BONE. A15

serving it uninjured, is to keep it at such a tem-
perature that it shall not freeze; as it is probable
that the resinous part only concretes with cold,
and that a gas. is disengaged, which consists of
some of its most volatile parts, and materially in-
jures its property of burning *. At least, oil which
has been kept over a winter or two, is supposed to
be scarcely capable of burning ; though I suspect
the prejudice against old oil, unless it has been very
ill kept, is much greater than the actual deteriora-
tion of the article can warrant.

Whale-oil is said to be rendered more fluid, as
well as more combustible, by the addition of cold
drawn linseed oil +.

SECT. IV.

Description of Whale-bone, and of the Method of
Preparing it.

WHALE-BONE, or whale-fins, as the substance
is sometimes, though incorrectly named, is found
in the mouth of the common Greenland whale,
to which it serves as a substitute for teeth. It
forms an apparatus most admirably adapted as a
_ filter for separating the minute animals, on which
the whale feeds, from the sea-water in which they
exist.

* Nicholson’s Journal, vol. ii. p. 46. t Idem.

ALO WHALE-FISHERY.

It is a substance of a horny appearance and con-
sistence, extremely flexible and elastic, generally
of a bluish black colour, but not unfrequently strip-
ed longitudinally with white, and exhibiting a beau-
tiful play of colour on the surface. Internally it
is of a fibrous texture, resembling hair ; and the ex-
ternal surface consists of a smooth enamel, capable
of reeciving a good polish.

This substance, when taken from the whale, con-
sists of lamine, connected by what is called the gum
in a parallel series, and ranged along each side of
the mouth of the animal. The lamine are about
200 in number, in each side of the head. The
length of the longest blade, which occurs near the
middle of the series, is the criterion fixed on by the
fishers for designating the size of the fish. Its great-
est length is about 15 feet ; but an instance very rare-
ly occurs of any being met with above 125 or 13 feet.
Its greatest breadth, which is at the root end, is 10
or 12 inches, and its greatest thickness ;°5 or 75 of
an inch.

The two sides or series of the whale-bone, are
connected at the upper part of the head, or crown-
bone of the fish, within a few inches of each other,
from whence they hang downward, diverging so
far as to enclose the tongue between their extremi-
ties; the position of the blades with regard to each
other, resembles a frame of saws in a saw mill;
and, taken altogether, they exhibit, in some mea-

DESCRIPTION OF WHALEBONE. ALT

sure, the form and position of the roof of a house.
The smaller extremity and interior edge of each
blade of bone, or the edge annexed to the tongue, are
covered with a long fringe of hair, consisting of a
similar kind of substance as that constituting the
interior of the bone.

Whalebone is generally brought from Green-
land in the same state as when taken from the fish,
after being divided into portable junks, or pieces,
comprising 10 or 12 lamine in each; but occasion-
ally it is subdivided into separate blades, and the
gum and hair removed when at sea.

One of the first importations of whalebone into
England, was probably in the year 1594, when a
quantity of this substance, being part of the cargo
of a wrecked Biscayan ship, was picked up at Cape
Breton, by some English ships fitted out for the
whale and morse fisheries, after the example of the
Icelanders and Biscayans *.

This substance has been held in such high esti-
mation, that, since the establishment of the Spitz-
bergen whale-fishery, the British have occasionally
purchased it of the Dutch, at the rate of 7007. per
ton t. It is calculated, that at least 100,000 2. per
annum were paid to the Dutch for this article,

VOL. Il. pd

* Hakluyt’s Voyages, vol. ili. p. 194.

+ Macpherson’s Annals of Commerce, vol. iii. p. 512.

41S WHALE-FISHERY.

about the years 1715 to 1721, when the price was
400/.* About the year 1763, the price in Eng-
land was 5001. per ton; but, after an extensive
importation of this article from New England, the
price declined to 3507. + and subsequentiy as low
as 501. per ton. Of late years, the price has usual-
ly been fluctuating between 50/. and 1501. per
ton. Whalebone becomes more valuable as it in-
creases in length and thickness.

On or near the premisses where the oil is extract-
ed, the whalebone is commonly cleaned and _pre-
pared.

The first operation, if not already done, consists
in depriving it of the gum. It is then put into a
cistern containing water, until the dirt upon its
surface becomes soft. When this effect is suffi-
ciently produced, it is taken out, piece by piece,
Jaid on a plank placed on the ground, where
the operator stands, and scrubbed or scoured with
sand and water, by means of a broom or a piece of
cloth. It is then passed to another person, who,
on a plank or bench, elevated to a convenient
height, scrapes the root-end where the gum was at-
tached, until he produces a smooth surface ; he or
another workman, then applies a knife or a pair of

* Elking’s View of the Greenland Trade, &c. p. 65.

+ Macpherson’s Annals, vol. iti. p. 371.

PREPARATION OF WHALEBONE. 419

shears to the edge, and completely detaches all the
fringe of hair connected with it. Another person,
who is generally the superintendant of the concern,
afterwards receives it, washes it in a vessel of clean
water, and removes with a bit of wood, the impuri-
ties out of the cavity of the root. Thus cleansed, it
is exposed to the air and sun until thoroughly dry,
when it is removed into a warehouse, or other place
of safety and shelter.

Before it is offered for sale, it is usually scrubbed
with brushes and hair-cloth, by which the surface
receives a polish, and all dirt or dust adhering to it
is removed ; and, finally, it is packed in portable
bundles, consisting of about a hundred weight each.
The size-bone, or such pieces as measure six feet
or upward in length, is kept separate from the wn-
der-size ; the latter being usually sold at half the
price of the former. Each blade being terminated
with a quantity of hair, there is sometimes a diffi-
culty in deciding, whether some blades of whalebone
are size or not. Owing to the diminished value of
under-size bone, and more particularly, in conse-
quence of the captain and some of the officers en-
gaged in a fishing ship, having a premium on every
size fish, it becomes a matter of some importance in
a doubtful case, to decide thispoint. From a decision,
which I understand has been made in a court of law,
it is now a generally received rule, that so much of
the substance terminating each blade, as gives rise

pd

420 WHALE-FISHERY.

to two or more hairs, is whalebone; though, im fact,
the hair itself is actually the same substance as that
of which the whalebone is composed.

SECT: V.

Remarks on the Uses to which the Oil, Fenks,
Tails, Jaw-bones, Whalebone, and other pro-
duce of Whales, are applicable.

1. Oil.—The oil produced from the blubber of the:
whale, in its most common state of preparation, is
used for a variety of purposes. It is largely used in
the lighting of the streets of towns, and the interior
of places of worship, houses, shops, manufactories,
&c.; it is extensively employed in the manufacture
of soft soap, as well as in the preparing of leather
and coarse woollen cloths; it is applicable in the
manufacture of coarse varnishes and paints; in
which, when duly prepared, it affords a strength of
body more.capable of resisting the weather, than
paint mixed in the usual way with vegetable oil*;

* Mr Thomas Vanderham of London, communicated to the
Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and
Commerce, “ An account of processes for preparing cheap and
durable paints with fish-oil ;” for which communication, the
Society voted him the Silver Medal, anda premium of Twenty
Guineas. (See Repertory of Arts, vol. x. 2d series, p. 116.),

USES OF OIL.—OIL-GAS. 42]

it is also extensively used for reducing friction in va-
rious kinds of machinery ; combined with tar, it is
much employed in ship-work and in the manufacture
of cordage ; and either simple or in a state of com-
bination, it is applied to many other useful purposes.

One of the most extensive applications of whale
oil, that for illumination, has recently suffered a
considerable diminution, in consequence of the ap-
propriation of gas from coal to the same purpose.
This discovery, brilliant as it is acknowledged to be,
which, in its first application, bore such a threaten-
ing aspect against the usual consumption of oil,
may soon, it is probable, be the means of bringing
the oil of the whale into more extensive use than it
has at any former period been. Whale-oil of the
most inferior qualities is found to afford a gas,
which, in point of brilliancy, freeness from smell,
ease of manufacture, &e., is found to be greatly su-
perior to that produced from coal. Some remarks
on the properties of this gas, and the mode in which
it is produced, may be proper in this place; and
that I may be acquitted of giving a too favourable
character of oil-gas, I shall follow some aecounts that
have been published in the “ Quarterly Journal of
Literature, Science and the Arts.”

The process for the formation of gas from oil, is
simple, and the apparatus compact and not expensive.

One or more retorts being provided and brought
to a moderate red heat, oil, contained in an air-tight

492 WHALE-FISHERY.

vessel, is allowed to flow into them, which is princi-
pally decomposed in its passage through, and con-
verted into gas suitable for illumination. ‘The flow
of the oil into the retorts, and the production of gas,
can be regulated to a convenient rate. Some oil,
however, it will generally be found, passes over, in a
state of vapour without suffering decomposition,
which, if allowed to escape by the burner, may occa-
sion an unpleasant smell. ‘To prevent this, the gas
is made to pass through a worm in a vessel of water,
by which the steam is condensed into oil, runs at
once into the oil cistern, and is again exposed to de-
composition in the retorts. Lest there should still be
any oil suspended in the gas in a state of vapour, a
further precaution for purifying it is taken, by con-
veying it into another vessel, where it is further cool-
ed and washed, by passing in a zig-zag direction
through water, and rendered fit for use*.

The patent apparatus for the production of gas
from oil, is made by Messrs Taylors and Martineau,
the patentees, of various sizes and powers, to suit
dwelling houses and other buildings, in which room
is an object of importance.

« One which is capable of furnishing gas for roth
twelve to twenty argand lamps, may be convenient-

* Quarterly Journal of Literature, &c. vol. vill. p. 121—When
a certain quantity of gas has been produced, it is found that
the retorts begin to lose their power of decomposing oil ; but,
by throwing bits of common brick into the retorts along with
the oil, their capability of producing gas is not only restored
but augmented.

OIL-GAS APPARATUS. 423

ly placed in such a fire-place as is usually found in
back kitchens, and will occupy a space only of about
three feet square, or more conveniently of four feet
by three, and will require a height of about eight
feet*.” A large apparatus now in use at Apothe-
caries Hall, measures ten feet in breadth, six feet in
depth, and about eight feet in height.

The gasometer for private houses, should scarce-
ly be of less capacity than 80 to 100 cubic feet ; and
for mansions and larger establishments, 300 to 600
cubic feet. The former will only require a gasome-
ter of about four feet wide, four feet high, and five
or six feet longt.

The only particular attention requisite with the
patent apparatus, seems to be the cleaning out of the
retorts, which, from the accumulation of carbonace-
ous matter, becomes necessary from time to time,
and the keeping up of a moderate fire when the ap-
paratus is in use f.

This carbon is the only residuum in the retort,
and the only products of the oil “ besides the gas,
are a minute quantity of sebacic and acetic acids,
and. a portion of water,” all of which are separated
by passing the gas through water §.

The advantages of oil-gas, when contrasted with

* Journal of Literature, &c. vol. vili. p. 122.
+ Idem, p. 123. + Idem, p. 121.

§ Idem, vol. vil. p. 316.

ADA WHALE-FISHERY.

that obtained from coal, areas follow: “ The mate-
rial from which it is produced, containing no sulphur
or other matter by which the gas is contaminated,
there are no objections to its use on account of the
suffocating smell in close rooms. It does no sort of
injury to furniture, books, plate, pictures, paint, &e.”
all of which are liable to be damaged by coal-gas.
* All the costly and offensive operation of purifying
the gas by lime, &c., is totally avoided when it is
obtained from oil. Nothing is contained in oil-gas,
which can possibly injure the metal of which the
conveyance pipes are made*.”

* Quarterly Journal, vol. vii. p. 315.—It is also mentioned
in this publication (p. 312.), in reference to the defects and in-
convenience of coal-gas, that coals contain a large proportion of
sulphur, which is volatilised with the gas; and it has hitherto been
found impossible to purify it sufficiently for lighting close rooms.
The suffocating smell, and the property it has of tarnishing
every thing metallic, exclude its use from dwelling-houses, on
account of the injury it would do to our health, our furniture,
books, pictures, plate, paint, &c. Besides (p. 313.) “ the ap-
paratus necessary for the production of coal-gas is very large,
expensive, and unmanageable ; the purification, imperfect as it
is, very troublesome ; and the residual matter is peculiarly of-
fensive. This confines its adoption to public companies or large
establishments, thereby materially limiting its utility, and pro-
ducing an injurious monopoly. And the employment of coal
instead of oil, for the purpose of illumination, has an injurious
effect on one of the most important branches of trade a mari-

time country can possess ; and in proportion as coal-gas is used,
our fisheries are injured.”

PROPERTIES OF OIL-GAS. 425

* The oil-gas containing no unmixed hydrogen,
(which occasions the great heat of coal-gas,) there is
no greater heat in proportion from the flame of oil-
gas, than from burning oil in lamps, wax-candles,” &c.

“ The apparatus for the production of oil-gas, is
much less expensive than that necessary to make
coal-gas ; it occupies much less space,—it requires
much less labour and skill to manage it,—it is not
so liable to wear and tear, and not so costly to repair
as a coal-gas apparatus. There are no offensive pro-
ducts to remove; and on its present improved con-
struction, it may be introduced into any dwelling-
house without nuisance*.”

“ The oil-gas has a material advantage over coal-
gas, from its peculiar richness in olefiant gas, which
renders so small a volume necessary, that one cube
foot of oil-gas will be found to go as far as four (two?)
of coal-gas}.” Because, as oil-gas requires more oxy-
gen for its consumption than coal, a less quantity of
the former is consumed in a flame of equal size, while
the brilliancy of the light is superior ¢. This cir-
cumstance produces a great saving of room and of
expence.

“ The superiority of the light from oil-gas over
other artificial lights, is fully shown by its render-
ing the delicate shades of yellow and green nearly
as distinct as when viewed by solar light 9.”

* Quarterly Journal, vol. vii. p. 314.

+ Idem, p. 315. { Idem, No. xi.
$ Idem, p. 316.

426 WHALE-FISHERY.

The economy of oil-gas for purposes of illumina-
tion, may be judged of from the following data :—

“ One gallon of common whale-oil will produce
about 90 cube feet of gas *, and an argand burner
will require a cube foot and a-half per hour to main-
tain a perfect light ; consequently, a gallon of oil,
made into gas, will afford such a light for sixty
hours ; and the expence, at a moderate price of oil,
will be, allowing for coals, labour, &c¢. not more for
one burner than three farthings per hour.

“ Such a burner will be equal, in intensity of
light, to two argand oil lamps, or to ten mould
candles.

“ The expence of argand oil lamps is usually ad-
mitted to be about 1id. per hour each.

“ Suppose 10 mould candles to be burning, (at
4 to the Ib. will be 23 lb. costing 2s. ild.), one-tenth
part will be consumed in each hour, and the cost of
the light is then 33d. per hour t.”

With wax-candles, reckoned at 4s. 6d. per Ib.
the same quantity of light per hour would cost 14d.

The following will therefore be the result :-—

* « Mr De Ville, of the Strand, who has made many im-
portant experiments and observations on gas illumination, with
a view of applying it to. light houses, is inclined to estimate the
average produce in gas of a gallon of oil, at 80 cubical feet.”—

(Quarterly Journal, vol. vii. p. 316.)

+ Quarterly Journal, vol. vil. p. 314.

PROPERTIES OF OIL-GAS. 427

« Argand burner, oil-gas per hout,..............045 02d.
Argand lamps, spermaceti oil,.......00..0.... cscs 3
Would” earidllesaisis wits isedien. atone. dcluscod. wel. He
Wax! lecridles, cw sitohaisoes 650k eothaist. dhusd..dia 14° *

When a quantity of light smaller than that given
out by ten candles is only wanted, the cost will be
proportionally less ; and as the gas improves by
keeping, whatever remains over from day to day
will be an advantage to the consumer.

Besides, the above estimation of the cost of oil-
gas “is taken on the usual price of good whale-oil ;”
whereas, oil of the most inferior kinds, such as
brown oil, bilge or black oil, and even the greasy
substance called footje or footing, are applicable to
the manufacture of gas, in the use of which the cost
may be reduced to less than one-half.

The first application of oil to the formation of gas,
has been attributed to Messrs John and Philip
Taylor, who, “ about two years since,” (that is, two
years prior to the month of July 1819,) conceived
“ that it might be practicable to construct an appa-
ratus capable of converting oil into gas, which would
be preferable to coal-gas for lighting houses +.” In
their attempts for accomplishing this important de-
sign, they have been highly successful ; so success-
ful, indeed, that it is apprehended that when the

* Quarterly Journal, vol. vii. p. 315.
+ Idem for July 1819, p. 313,

428 WHALE-FISHERY.

apparatus they have contrived has become generally
known, it will command the attention of the public,
and be brought into extensive application. It is:
however, but justice toa gentleman of Hull, Mr
J. B. Emmett, to mention, that experiments were
instituted by him so early as August 1816, in which,
I understand, he succeeded in procuring a gas, very
superior to that from coal, by decomposing whale-
oil; and that in April 1817, the substance of his
investigation of this property of oil, was published
in the “ Philosophical Magazine,” and also appear-
ed in April and May, in several of the Yorkshire
newspapers. |

To persons who are concerned in the whale-fishe-
ries, as well as those who consider every thing of
importance which involves our national prosperity,
it must be gratifying to observe the laudable exam-
ple which has been set by the inhabitants of Nor-
wich, Ipswich, &c. of giving encouragement to the
fisheries by lighting their streets with gas from oil.
In places where coal is not very cheap, gas, it seems,
can be produced from oil, at about the same expence
as coal-gas; consequently, the numerous advantages
of the former, will render it highly preferable.

A recentcontrivance, tending to encourage the ma-
nufacture and increase the consumption of oil-gas,
[ have great pleasure in mentioning. I allude to
the patent Portable Gas Lamp, invented by Da-
vid Gordon, Esq. of Edinburgh. This consists of a

PORTABLE GAS-LAMP. 429

strong apparatus of copper or brass, of a spherical
urn-like, or any ornamental or convenient form, in
which gas may be compressed by a forcing pump, or
other apparatus, and consumed in burners attached
to it, with the same facility and security as an ordi-
nary lamp.

For regulating the escape of the condensed gas,
Mr Gordon has adopted two ingenious contrivances,
one by a conical leather valve, and the other by an
improvement in the common stop-cock ; either of
which admits of such minute regulation, that a
flame of any degree of intensity, from a light that
is scarcely perceptible, to the full brilliancy of which
the gas is capable, may be produced at pleasure,
and varied with the greatest facility.

A particular account of this interesting invention,
with an illustrative plate, may be seen in the valua-
ble Journal recently commenced in Edinburgh *.
“ There is one application of the portable gas lamp,”
say the editors of this work, “ to which we attach a
very high value. By an extreme diminution of the
aperture, the flame can be rendered so small (in
which case it is reduced to a blue colour) as to give
no perceptible light, and to occasion almost no con-
sumption of gas. In this state, the lamp may be
used in bed-rooms, and the imperceptible flame may
at any time be expanded into the most brilliant

* Edinburgh Philosophical Journal.—See vol. i. p, 373.

439 WHALE-FISHERY.

light, by turning the cock, by means of a metallic
rod terminating near the bed.”

One of these lamps, not larger than a common
tea-urn, when filled with oil-gas, condensed 25 times,
will afford a flame equal to 5 candles, 6 to the pound,
for about 12 hours. A sphere of 12 inches diame-
ter, filled in the same way, will, with two argand
burners, equal to 12 candles, burn for upwards of
6 hours with coal-gas, and 12 hours with oil-gas.
A. cylinder, 6 inches in diameter, and 2 feet high,
exclusive of the hemispherical ends, is calculated to
supply an argand burner, equal to 10 candles, for 6
hours, with coal-gas, and 12 hours with oil-gas *.

For facilitating the process of filling these lamps,
a reservoir, connected with a gas-work, may be kept
constantly charged with condensed gas; so that a
sufficient portion of its contents could be transferred
to the portable lamp, with the same ease and dis-
patch as filling it with oil.

Whale-oil, when freed from the incombustible
and contaminating animal matters, which are usually
dissolved in it, in consequence of putrefaction, is
then applicable to a variety of purposes, in which
the common oil cannot conveniently be employed.
The following is a list of some of the processes for
refining whale-oil :—

* Edinburgh Philosophical Journal.—See vol. i. p. 376.
3

or

PROCESSES FOR REFINING OIL. 431

. An account of processes for edulcorating train oil,

by Mr Dossie, was read before the Society for the
Encouragement of Arts, Sciences, and Commerce,
July 15. 1761 *.

. Two processes for purifying rape-oil, applicable

also to train-oil, have been published in. the
« Cours complet d Agriculture,” (tom. xi), by

M. Curaudeau ft.

. A patent was granted to Mr Joshua Collier of

Southwark, broker, dated 13th December 1798,
“ for a chemical process for freeing fish oils from
their impurities, in point of smell, taste, and co-
lour ; and for improved strainers for oils and other
liquids; with other instruments for ascertaining
their qualities, and assisting their burning f.”

. A patent, bearing date December 13. 1806, was

granted to William Speer, Esq. of Westminster,
(late of Dublin), for a new method “ of purifying,
refining, and otherwise improving fish oils, and
other oils, and converting and applying to use the
unrefined parts thereof §.”

. A patent for “a method of sweetening, purifying,

and refining Greenland whale and seal oil,” was
granted to Mr Henry William Vanderkleft of
London, dated 26th July 1814 ||.

* See Gent. Mag. for 1761, p. 495.

+ See Nicholson’s Journal, vol. xiii. p. 150.
{ “ Repertory of Arts,” vol. x. p. 389.

§ Idem, (2d series,) vol. xii. p. 174.

{| Idem, (2d series,) vol. xxv. p. 270.

432 WHALE-FISHERY.

6. “ A method of extracting all the gross or muci-
laginous matter from fenks or Greenland blubber,
produced from whales, when boiled into oil ;
which method not only renders the oil so boiled,
more free from its usual rancid smell and taste,
but in a great degree adds to its burning and in-
flammable qualities,” was invented by Mr Wil-
liam Allamus Day, of London, for which a pa-
tent was granted, bearing date December 20.
1814 *,

7. Mr Edward Roche invented a simple method of
rendering rape-oil equal to spermaceti oil, for the
purposes of illumination; which invention, proba-
bly, might have a similar effect upon common
whale or seal oil +.

8. A process for refining whale oil, by agitation in
a mixture of tannin and water is employed by
Mr Speer of Bowling Street, Westminster, and
with such effect, that the most rancid oil, after
being submitted to the process, becomes so pure
that it may be burnt in houses f.

Whale-oil, in its unrefined state, frequently
obtains an unmerited bad character for burning,

* Repert. of Arts, (2d series,) vol. xxvi. p. 90.
t+ Idem, vol. xxx. p. 95.

{ The only notice I have seen of this invention, occurs in
Parkes’ “ Chemical Essays,” vol. i. p. 57.

2

USES OF WHALE-OIL. 433

when the fault lies in those who have the charge of
the lamps in which it is consumed. Want of pro-
per cleanliness is a very common fault, and one
which is most inimical to the obtaining of a good
light. It is a practice not uncommon with those
who use oil lamps, especially in kitchens, to fill the
lamp up, night after night, without removing the
residue, and cleaning it out, by which all the impu-
rities mechanically mixed in the oil are progressive-
ly deposited and concentrated, until the cavity of
the lamp becomes almost filled with a gross sub-
stance, of the consistence of common paint. Pure
oil, of the quality of some that I have myself pre-
pared, would no doubt continue to burn with a pro-
per effect, though the lamp were not cleaned out
for a month together, provided care were taken to
prevent the access of dust; but, in the use of the
best oil of commerce, the lamps ought to be emp-
tied, and carefully cleaned out, at least once or twice
a-week. A common error, also, in the trimming of
lamps, consists in furnishing them with wicks of too
great diameter. ‘The wicks should be so thick as
to prevent them from slipping down the tubes in
which they are supported: but they should by no
means fill the tubes, otherwise the course of the oil
is interrupted, and an inadequate supply afforded
for producing the requisite flame. It is a precau-
tion which ought not to be neglected, to dry the
wick by a fire, before it is used.
VOL. IT. Ee

434, WHALE-FISHERY.

2. Fenks.—The fenks, or ultimate refuse of the
blubber of the whale, form an excellent manure, es-
pecially in soils deficient in animal matter. The
late eminent judge, Lord Meadowbank, found this
sort of refuse the very best matter to be added to
peat moss, in order to bring it into complete fer-
mentation, and to produce the rich manure known
to agriculturists by the name of “ Meadowbank
compost.”

Fenks might likewise be used, it is probable, in
the manufacture of prussian blue, and also for the
production of ammonia.

Footing, which is the finer detached fragments
of the fenks, not wholly deprived of oil, may be used
as a cheap material, in the formation of gas for illu-
mination.

3. Whale’s Tail, consisting chieily of tendinous
fibres, is capable of being converted into glue, and
is extensively used in the manufacture of this arti-
cle, especially in Holland. A small quantity of oil
may likewise be extracted from the tail. The tail,
being of a strong texture, and very tough, is used
by the whale-fishers for chopping-blocks, on which
the blubber of the whale is divided into pieces suit-
able for passing through the bung-holes of the casks.

4. The Bones.—The jaw-bones, with the skull
or crown-bone of the whale, are the largest found in
nature. They are sometimes met with of the length
of 25 feet. Jaw-bones are principally used as the

USES OF WHALEBONE. ASH

ribs of sheds, and in the construction of arches and
posts of gate-ways. The external part of these
bones, being harder 2nd of a more compact texture
than the interior, is applied to the formation of the
sheeves of blocks, in place of lignum-vite. Any of
the bones, when ground into powder, forms a valu-
able ingredient in manure.

5. Whalebone.—This singular substance, when
softened in hot water, or simply by heating it be-
fore a fire, has the property of retaining any shape
which may be then given it, provided it be secured
in the required form, until it becomes cold. This
property, together with its great elasticity and flexi-
bility, renders it capable of being applied to a great
variety of useful purposes.

The first way in which whalebone seems to have
been employed, was in the stays of ladies. Its ap-
plication to this purpose, was, at one period, when
the quantity imported was small, so general, that it
attained, in the wholesale way, the price of 700 J.
per ton. Subsequently, however, it has become less
valuable, and of late it has fallen somewhat into dis-
repute, some ladies haying superseded its use in
stays, by supporting themselves with plates of steel.
There has, for many years, been an extensive con-
sumption of this article in the manufacture of um-
brellas and parasols. The white enamel, (found in
some specimens of whalebone), has recently been fa-
bricated into ladies hats, and into a variety of orna-

EeQ

436 WHALE-FISHERY.

mental forms, as head-dresses ; and the black ena-
mel, and the coarser material of which the interior
is composed, have been worked into a great variety
of useful articles, for which patents have been ob-
tained. The black enamel is employed in the same
way as cane, in the construction of the seats or backs
of chairs, gigs, sofas, &e.; and the grosser parts in
the interior of the blade, when divided into fibres,
and curled, are capable of being used in the stuffing
of mattresses, Wc. ‘Fhe hair on the edge of the
whalebone, answers admirably every purpose of bul-
lock’s hair im stuffings for chairs, sofas, settees, car-
riages, mattresses, cushions, &c. An attempt has
been made to build whale-boats of this material ;
but the great alteration which takes place in its di-
mensions, in different states of the atmosphere, on
account of its ready absorption of moisture, renders
it inapplicable. It has been used, with a much bet-
ter effect, in the construction of portmanteaus, and
travelling trunks. Hygrometers, the ramrods of
fowling-pieces, fishing-rods, the shafts, springs, and
wheels of carriages, Wc. are articles, in the formation
of which, whalebone has already been employed.

The following is a list of some patents which
have been taken out for the peculiar appropriation
of this substance.

1. Mr Bowman, of Leith, obtained a patent, bear-
ing date 30th of October 1807, for the adapta-

USES OF WHALEBONE. 437

tion of whalebone to the manufacture of “ hats,
caps, and bonnets for men and women ; harps for
harping or cleansing corn or grain; and also the
bottoms of sieves and riddles; and girths for
horses ; and also cloth for webbing, fit for making
into hats, caps, &e.; and for the backs and seats
of chairs; sofas, gigs, and other similar carriages
and things ; and for the bottom of beds; and also
whalebone reeds for weavers *.”

. A patent was granted to Mr Samuel Crackles,
of Hull, brush-manufacturer, “ for a method of
making and manufacturing brushes from whale-
bone ;” dated November 3. 1808 +.

3. Mr H. W. Vander Kleft, of London, procured
a patent, bearing date August 17. 1813, for the
invention of a “ walking staff, calculated to con-
tain a pistol, powder, ball, and screw telescope,
pen, ink, paper, pencil, knife, and drawing uten-
sils ;” the exterior of which may be covered or ve-
neered with prepared whalebone }.

4. A patent has also been granted to Mr R. Dixon,
49. High Holborn, London, for an improvement

_ in the mode of manufacturing portmanteaus and
travelling trunks, by the use of whalebone.

‘9

* Repertory of Arts, vol. xi. (2d series,) p. 411.
+ Idem, vol. xiv. (2d series,) p. 156.

{ Idem, vol. xxvi. (2d series,) p. 88.

438 WHALE-FISHERY.

CHAPTER VII.

NARRATIVE OF PROCEEDINGS ON BOARD THE
SHIP ESK, DURING A WHALE-FISHING VOYAGE
TO THE COAST OF SPITZBERGEN, PERFORMED
IN THE YEAR 1816; PARTICULARLY RELAT-
ING TO THE PRESERVATION OF THE SHIP UN-
DER CIRCUMSTANCES OF PECULIAR DANGER.

4 he ship Hsk, under my command, sailed from
Whitby on the 29th of March 1816; put into Ler-
wick to trim the ship on the Ist of April; sailed
again on the 3d, entered the frigid confines of the
icy sea on the 14th, and killed our first whale on
the 25th of the same month.

On the 30th of April we forced into the ice,
with a favourable wind ; and, after passing through
a large body of it, entered an extensive sea, such as
usually lies on the western coast of Spitzbergen at
this season of the year, early on the morning of the
following day. ‘The wind then blowing hard from
the 8. 5. E., we kept our reach to the eastward un-
til three o’clock in the afternoon, when we unex-
pectedly met with a quantity of ice, which inter-

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 439

rupted our course. We then wared, by the way
of avoiding it, but soon found, though the weather
was thick with snow, that we were completely em-
bayed, in a situation that was truly terrific. In the
course of fourteen voyages, in which I had before
visited this inhospitable country, I passed through
many dangers wherein my own life, together with
those of my companions, had been threatened ; but
the present case, where our lives seemed to be at
stake for a length of time exceeding twelve hours,
far surpassed in awfulness, as well as actual hazard,
any thing that I had before witnessed. Dangers
which occur unexpectedly, and terminate suddenly,
though of the most awful description, appear like a
dream, when they are passed; but horrors whieh
have a long continuance, though they in some mea-
sure decrease in their effect on the mind, by a
lengthened contemplation of them, yet they leave
an impression on the memory which time itself can-
not altogether efface. Such was the effect of the
present scene. Whilst the wind howled through
the rigging with tempestuous roar, the sea was so
mountainous that the mast-heads of some accom-
panying ships, within the distance of a quarter of a
mile, were intercepted, and rendered invisible by
the swells; and our ship frequently rolled the lec-
boats into the water, that were suspended with their
keels above the rowghtree-rail! At the same time,
we were rapidly approaching a body of ice, the

440 WHALE-FISHERY.

masses of which, as hard as rocks, might be seen at
one instant covered with foam, the next concealed
from the sight by the waves, and instantly after-
wards reared to a prodigious height above the sur-
face of the sca! It is needless to relate the means
by which we attempted to keep the ship clear of
the threatened danger, because those means were
without avail. At 11. mM. we were close to the
ice, when, perceiving through the mist, an opening
a short distance within, we directed the drift of the
ship towards it. As we approached the ice, the
sails were filled, so that the first blow was received
obliquely on the bow, when the velocity of the ship
was moderate. In this place, the pieces of ice were
fortunately of smallish dimensions; at least, all the
larger masses we were enabled to avoid, so that, af-
ter receiving a number of shocks, we escaped with-
out any particular accident into the opening, or slack
part of the ice above noticed. ‘This opening, as far
as we could see, promised a safe and permanent re-
lease. But in this we were grievously disappointed :
for, when we attempted to ware the ship, which soon
became necessary, she refused to turn round, not-
withstanding every effort, in a space which, in ordi-
nary circumstances, would have been twice sufficient
for the evolution. In consequence of this accident,
which arose partly from the bad trim of the ship,
and partly from the great violence of the wind, she

fell to leeward into a close body of ice, to which we

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 441

could sce no termination. The Mars of Whitby,
and another vessel, which closely followed us as we
penetrated the exterior of the ice, being in better
trim than the Esk, performed the evolution with
ease, and were in a few minutes out of sight. In
this dreadful situation, we lay beating against the
opposing ice, with terrible force, during eight suc-
cessive hours; all which time, I was rocked, with
no agreeable feeling whatever to console me, at the
top-gallant-mast-head, directing the management of
the sails, to avoid the largest masses of ice, any one
of which would have perforated the side of the ship.
By the blessing of God, we succeeded to admira-
tion; and, at 8 a. M. of the 2d of May, gained a
small opening, where we contrived to navigate the
ship, until the wind had somewhat subsided, and
the weather cleared, so that we had the opportunity
of forcing into a more commodious place. On exa-
mining the ship, we found our only apparent da-
mage to consist in the destruction of most of our
rudder works, a few slight bruises on the sides, and
a cut on the lower part of the stem of the ship. The
first damage would have been very serious, had not we
fortunately had a forge, with an excellent smith, on
board, whereby this important piece of machinery,
the rudder, was so secured, as to serve for every
common occasion.

From this time, to the 20th of May, the fishery
was generally interrupted by the formation of new

44.2 WHALE-FISHERY.

ice; insomuch, that, during this interval, we killed
but one whale, while few of our neighbours sue-
ceeded so well.

On the 19th of May, we penetrated the ice to the
utmost extent of any opening, where, in the latitude
of 793 degrees, we met with several small whales,
sporting and feeding about the edges of some exten-
sive fields of ice. In four days, we killed five small
“fish.” ‘The wind prevailing then from the 8S. 8. E.
to S. W., continuing in that direction, and. occa-
sionally blowing hard, forced a swell into the ice,
which, though totally imperceptible to the sight,
broke the fields and floes to pieces, and brought the
fragments so closely together, that our ship, along
with the Mars, and three others, were soon im-
movably fixed. During the succeeding week, we
never moved, excepting occasionally a few yards,
which we effected with vast labour, to avoid the
terrible crushes of the ice that were apparent all
round us,and which, in one instance, lifted the North
Britain six feet above her usual water-mark. The
next twelve days were spent in the most arduous
labour, in warping the ship through occasional open-
ings of the ice. On several occasions we had re-
course to sawing; and, in some cases, we wrought
for many hours with our whole force and ingenuity,
without being able to move an inch. At length,
on the 12th of June, we happily escaped, though our
companions were all left behind. ‘They, however,

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 443

having particularly favourable winds and weather,
were not long detained. We immediately struck
and killed our eighth fish.

On the 14th we parted company with the Mars,
and proceeded alone to the southward; when, after
a chace of several hours, we captured a large whale.
On the 20th we killed another. In the course of
the week, between the 17th and 24th, three large
whales, which would have afforded a fourth part of
a cargo, escaped us, by the unparalleled unskilful-
ness of our harpooners.

We now penetrated the drift-ice in the latitude
of 78°, to the distance of seventy miles from the ex-
terior, where we met with several whales. One was
struck and captured, and a second was shot by means
of the harpoon-gun; but owing to the want of prompt
assistance, the latter was lost. On the following
day, (27th of June,) another large fish fell beneath
our lances; which, with a sucking fish we got on
the 25th, made our number thirteen, and our quan-
tity of oil about 125 tons. ‘This was a larger cargo
than any ship had procured that we had yet met
with, excepting only one. On the 28th, the John
of Greenock, commanded by my brother-in-law, Mr
Jackson, joined us.

After proceeding to the westward the greater
part of the 28th, we arrived at the borders of a com-
pact body of field-ice, consisting of immense sheets of
prodigious thickness. Here a number of ships were

Aged WHALE-FISHERY.

already assembled, some of which had made a very
profitable fishery on the day preceding our arrival.
Our latitude was at this time 78° 8’ N., and longitude
2°10’ W.

As the whales had quitted this position, and as
I considered the situation not particularly desirable,
notwithstanding extensive spaces lay between the
different sheets of ice, the ship was allowed to drift
to the eastward all the night. The wind, however,
subsiding to a calm, in the morning of the 29th of
June, I found the ship was very little removed from
the place where she lay when I went to bed. I
soon perceived that the floes had approached each
other very considerably, and that they were still in
the act of closing. Fearful of being again beset,
and particularly in a situation where the ice was so
heavy, and at such a great distance from the sea, we
lowered four boats to tow the ship through an open-
ing at a short distance from us. At the very mo-
ment when we were about to enter it, it closed.
The John had just passed through it. Another
channel, of at least a mile in width, and scarcely
that distance from us, lying to the southward, we
immediately directed the ship towards it. Finding
as we advanced, that the northern floe was not only
setting towards the southern one, but was, at the
same time, revolving with a velocity nearly equal to
that of the ship, I was induced to lower all the
boats for the purpose of accelerating our progress,

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 445

The effect was then considerable ; assisted by a light
air of wind, the ship attained the velocity of about
three miles per hour, while the northern fice had a
velocity of about two. As the channel between the
two floes was constantly as broad as our distance
from the narrowest part, we were tempted to ad-
vance. But when we came within a hundred yards,
our progress became sensibly lessened by a light air
of wind, that at this moment unfortunately sprung
up a-head ; as such, I began to look out for a place
of refuge, and succeeded in discovering a deep in-
dentation in the southern floe, which appeared cal-
culated to afford a secure retreat. Conceiving, how-
ever, that we should be still more secure were we to
return, we attempted to stop the ship before she en-
tered between the two first points ; but owing to a
mistake in taking out a rope that was found to be en-
tangled, by which a considerable loss of time was sus-
tained, theshipadvanced so far that she had passed the
points, and could not be hauled back without a risk
of being arrested by the ice at the projection, and
crushed to pieces. I, therefore, ordered the boats
again to tow forward; and they had already got the
ship into the safety of the indentation, within ten
yards, when a small piece of ice coming athwart her
bow, stopped her progress, and she was in a minute
afterwards subjected to a considerable squeeze.
Meanwhile, two eastern projections of the approach-

ing floes had met; and one of these, which was ex-
oO

~

446 WHALE-FISHERY.

pected to have been of sufficient strength to have
stopped the motion of the ice, was unfortunately
shivered to pieces by the severity of the pressure*.
At this time, a thin part of the southern fice lay
against the starboard-side of the ship, readily squeez-
ed up, and appeared incapable of doing any damage,
while two pieces of ice, touching the northern floe,
and pressing against the larboard-side of the ship
appeared so small, that their action was not regard-
ed. From neither of these, therefore, did we appre-
hend any danger, particularly as the motion of the
ice soon abated ; and as the ship never showed any
symptom of a dangerous pressure, such as lifting.
abaft+, heeling to one side, shaking of her frame, or
cracking of the timbers, we imagined that she had
escaped without damage. There was a danger, how-
ever, on the larboard-quarter, of which we were to-
tally unconscious. The piece of ice that touched
the ship in that part, though of itself scarcely six
yards square, and not more than one yard above

* While we were thus endangered, the John was in circum-
stances still more alarming. After she had passed the narrow
channel through which we made the first attempt, to escape,
she was suddenly involved by distant ice, and made a very
narrow escape from being crushed to pieces.

+ Ships pressed by the ice abaft, almost always rise to a
considerable height above the usual floating line ; hundreds of
ships have been lifted several feet without sustaining any da-

mage. ;

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 447

water, concealed beneath the surface of the sea, at
the depth of 10 or 12 feet, a hard pointed projection
of ice (called by the Greenlandmen a tongwe,) which
pressed against the keel, lifted the rudder, and caus-
ed a damage that had nearly occasioned the loss of
the ship. Yet so perfectly unconscious were we of
any danger, that we employed ourselves about an
hour and a-half after the accident, endeavouring to
heave the ship a-head, into the adjoming indenta-
tion or bay at which we originally aimed, as a place
of greater security; and it was not until the pres-
sure relaxed, and the ship began to sink in the
- water, that we became in any degree sensible of our
danger. ‘The carpenter then having sounded the
pump, discovered, to our great concern, a depth of
84 feet water in the hold! This amazimg flow of
water in so short a time, was most alarming. With
despair pictured in every fuce, the crew set on the
pumps. <A signal of distress was at the same time
hoisted, which was no sooner seen, than a dozen
boats. approached us from the surrounding ships.
Bailing, by means of tubs and buckets at the fore-
hatch-way, fore-scuttle and companion, was resorted
to, to assist the effect of the pumps. These means,
together with the two principal pumps, (of 9 inches
bore or diameter,) and a spare pump in the fore-
hatch-way, delivered such an astonishing quantity
of water, that in a very short time, the men were
enlivened by the intelligence, that the water dimi-

448 WHALE-FISHERY.

nished rapidly in the hold, and that the ship began
to rise again. In the space of four hours the water
had lowered to nearly four feet; but the forehatch-
way pump then becoming useless, and tie bailing
being less effectual, the water once more resumed
its superiority and gained upon us.

Something, therefore, was now to be done to stop,
if possible, the influx of the water. As the leak
could not be found in the inside, fothering*, as be-
ing the most common and ready means, was (as soon
as the floes were sufficiently separate,) immediately
resorted to. But what was our astonishment to find,
when about to apply a sail to the quarter of the ship,.
the place where the water seemed to enter, that the
“ after keel” was entirely detached from the timbers
to the distance of nearly two feet, turned into an
horizontal position, and all the bolts drawn; while,
along with it, a large portion of one of the garboard-
strakes+ was torn from its place! ‘This singular po-

* Fothering, is a peculiar method of endeavouring to stop a
leak in the bottom of a ship while she is afloat. It is perform-
ed by drawing a sail, by means of ropes at the four corners,
beneath the damaged or leaky part, then thrusting into it a
quantity of chopped rope-yarns, oakum, wool, cotton, &¢.; or
by thrumbing the sail, that is, sewing long bunches of repe-
yarn all over it, before it is placed beneath the ship. These
materials being sucked into the leaky part, the flow of the
water into the ship is interrupted, or at least diminished.

+ Garboard-strake or sand-strake, is the first range of strakes
or planks laid upon a ship’s bottom, next the keel, into which
it is rabitied below, and into the stem and stern-post at the ends.

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 449

‘sition of the keel, rendered fothering impracticable,
or at least in a great measure ineffectual ; we, there-
fore, endeavoured to stop some of the leak, by thrust-
ing bundles of oakum down to the place by means
of poles and tubs, a part of which remained beneath,
and seemed to do some little service. A sail was
next applied to the place, but, owing to the circum-
stances just mentioned, without producing any ef-
fect.

Tn consequence of the vigorous assistance of about
150 men from the John, North Briton, Don, Supe-

-rior, Elizabeth, Perseverance, &c. the water, though
‘it could not be wholly withdrawn, was yet so kept
under in the hold, that, for the space of twenty-four
hours, it fluctuated between the depth of four and
six feet. As, however, the pumping and bailing
could not possibly be continued by our own ship’s
company, it was necessary to make use of some means
to attempt a speedy remedy, whilst our assistants
were numerous. The different plans which I con-
ceived might be adopted in the present case, or
which I knew had been adopted to stop a leak in
former cases, were the following, viz.

I. Yo fother.—I proposed to attempt to pull the
keel entirely away, that the plan of fothering might
be adopted with a better prospect of success. This,
however, was strongly opposed by some able carpen-
ters, who conceived, that the removal of the keel

VOL, IL. Ff

450 WHALE-FISHERY.

might tear away more of the garboard-strake, and
eccasion the immediate loss of the ship.

IL. To heave the ship down,—that is, to discharge
the whole of the cargo and stores upon the ice, turn
the ship on one side, until the wound should come
above water, and then repair it. 'This plan was par-
ticularly recommended by all the masters who vi-
sited me, and by most of the carpenters.

IIL. To caul/ the ceiling.—It appeared to me,
that, could the ceiling or inside-planking be made
water-tight, as it yet remained uninjured, it would
swim the ship, though the whole of the keel were
removed, But as the whole of the ceiling could
not be come at, on account of the water which lay
upon it, and as the caulking of the whole ceiling
would require more time and materials than we
eould command, the same purpose, I conceived,
would be answered, by making a stop-water between
two of the frames of timber on the fore part of the
leak, and caulking the ceiling abaft it. This plan,
however, could not be adopted, unless the water were
withdrawn; it was not, therefore, at this time practi-
eable.

IV. To well the ship.—This operation, consisting
in the building of a bulk-head or partition on the
fore part of the leak, and caulking it, so as to con-
fine the water within it, would likewise require a
stop-water between two frames of timber, to prevent
the water making a passage between the timber and

3
|

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 451

planks. As it likewise would require the water to
be wholly extracted, it was therefore impracticable.
_ And,

V. To turn the ship keel upward.—This plan,
being a kind of desperate experiment, 1 was de-
termined to adopt, in the event of all others fail-
ing. . To effect this, it would be necessary first to
discharge the cargo, and to unrig the ship, then, let-
ting her fill with water, after securing the cabin-
windows and hatches, to turn her keel up, and re-
pair the damage; and, lastly, to return her back
to her proper position, and pump out the water.
In performing these operations, the aid of some
other ship to assist in heaving the Esk down, and
returning her back, would probably be indispens-
able.

With the 2d and 5th plans particularly in view,
we now set about unrigging the ship, and dischar-
ging the cargo and stores upon a flat place of the floe
against which we had moored.

As there was a chance that a bunch of rope-yarns,
straw or oakum, might enter some of the larger
leaks and retard the influx of water, if applied near
the place through the medium of a fothering sail,
we, in the mean time, prepared a lower studding
sail, by sewing bunches of these different materials
all over it, which, together with large shreds of old
thin canvas, whalebone-hair, and a quantity of ashes,

fitted it well for the purpose. Thus prepared, it -
Ff2

452, WHALE-FISHERY.

‘was hauled beneath the damaged place; but not the
least effect was yet produced.

During the whole of Saturday, (the day on which
the accident happened,) together with part of. Sun-
day, we received ample and vigorous assistance from
neighbouring ships, which was increased on Monday
morning by some men from the Royal Bounty, the
Margaret, John, and North Briton.

By this time my own sailors were completely
-worn out, and most of our auxiliaries wearied and
discouraged ; for the water gained to the depth of
nine feet in the hold, in spite of the utmost exer-
tions of the men who last arrived, though they were
fresh and active. It therefore appeared, that there
could be neither justice nor prudence in exhausting
these men also, where there did not appear to be
even a possibility of advantage resulting from their
labours. Hence, as the ship could never be hove
down while any water remained in her, this plan
was, of necessity, abandoned; and the 5th plan,
which alone remained to keep alive our hopes,
was resorted to. The pumps, meanwhile, were
merely kept in action until the ship should be in
readiness. Preparatory to putting the plan in exe-
cution, we placed twenty empty casks in the hold,
to act against a quantity of iron ballast which was
in the ship, caulked the dark-lights, removed all the
dry goods and provisions that would injure with the
wet, secured all the hatches, seuttles, companion,

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 453

&e., then, erecting two tents on the ice, one for shel-
tering myself and the other for the crew, we ceased
pumping and permitted the ship to fill.

I was the more ready to attempt this experiment,
when I considered, that our assistance must soon
fail us, as many who were forward to help in the be-
ginning had already deserted us ; and that the crews
of two ships before they left us, had become so care-
less and trifling, that they retarded every operation
by their untimely levity. It was peculiarly distres-
sing to me to observe, that men who had come ap-
parently with the intention of aiding us, not only
were useless themselves, but relaxed the exertions of
others by their open declarations, that the state of
the ship was without hope. ‘These inconsiderate
men did not even scruple to converse, in the hear-
ing of our people, on the subject of plundering
the ship the moment they had the opportunity,
and even were heard to name the particular ar-
ticles of which they would endeavour to make prize.
One fellow had the impudence to demand of our
blacksmith for some iron-work which he found
in the ship, intimating, that in a short time
it would be the prize of any one,—another pil-
fered a musket,—others were observed examining
some small sails which lay on the ice, with a view,
doubtless, of seeing how far they would suit their
convenience. Some of this unfecling party, when at
the pump, evinced, by their improper conduct, their
wish that the ship were abandoned. Instead of

454 WHALE FISHERY.

pumping, I could observe them treating the service
in which they were employed as a mere jest. The
two great pumps being worked with the same ma-
chine, the men on one side of the deck would frequent-
ly baulk the stroke of those on the other by an un-
timely jerk; then the whole gang would express
their amusement by bursting into a laugh! I was
so grieved with their conduct, that I was on the
point of ordering them to leave the ship, when I
was fortunately relieved from tue trial, by their vo- .
luntary departure, immediately on the arrival of
the fresh force from the Royal Bounty and Mar-
garet*. ‘The tantalizing behaviour of these men,
might possibly be encouraged, if not excited, by
the unmanly spirit which was evinced by many
of my own crew. Men of whom I had conceived
the highest opinion for firmness and bravery, great-
ly disappointed my expectations at this crisis.
Among the whole crew, indeed, scarcely a dozen
spirited fellows were to be seen. One of the prin-
cipal officers refused to work any longer in the
hold, until I appeared at the hatchway and put
him to the blush; another officer, a boat-steerer,

* Captain Allen bemg mformed, that one or two of his men .
had been guilty of some improprieties of conduct while on board
the Esk, ordered the future allowance of grog of the guilty in-
dividuals to be stopped during the voyage. This gentleman
likewise, I was told, enforced a caution to his crew against
plundering, by threatening to stop the wages of any man who
should be found to trespass in this respect.

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 455

whom I ordered to fill the bailing tubs, quitted his
station, on the weak pretence, that the water was
spilt upon’ him. My chief mate, however, and a
few others, it is but justice to say, shewed that
arduous zeal, that steady obedience and unrelenting
perseverance, which are properties when combined,
that dignify the seaman, and characterise him as
truly British. And notwithstanding some of the
men who visited us, were considered rather as
a burthen than a help, yet there were others who
acquitted themselves to admiration. Most of the
people belonging to the John and North Briton, were
unexeeptionable, as well as those of the Margaret,
during their short stay, those belonging to the Pres-
cotand some others. My brother Jackson, though his
ship was on the opposite side of a floe, scarcely ever
Jeft me; and the master of the North Briton, Mr
Allen, behaved in a most gentlemanly manner. —
Some of the officers of different ships, though un-
known to me, distinguished themselves by their ac-
tivity and zeal for our service.

As no ship could with propriety venture near us
to assist in turning the Hsk over, on account of the
hazardous position of the ice around her, we had no
other means of performing this singular evolution
than by attaching purchases to the ice from the
ship. We proceeded as follows: A new hawser of
92 inches circumference, was taken under the ship’s
bottom, the end clenched to the main-mast, and the

456 WHALE-FISHERY.

other part taken upon the ice: this was then con-
nected, with different purchases fixed to the ice, in
such a way, that the power was increased thirty-six
times; or, abating friction, I suppose every man
would be able to produce the effect of nearly a
ton. The other end of the same hawser, was in
a similar way attached to the fore-mast, and, by
means of ice-anchors, and a complex combination
of blocks, was also connected with the ice.
When, therefore, these purchases should be put in
force, the hawser would have a tendency to draw
the keel upward, towards the edge of the floe across
which it lay, and to pull the offside gunwale down-
ward, and consequently to reverse the position of the
ship. For the purpose of increasing the effect of
the purchases, as well as for retaining the ship’s
masts downwards, if the reversion should be per-
formed, we suspended an anchor from the main-mast-
head, and another from the fore-mast-head, by means
of hawsers, applied in such a way that one part went
under the ship’s keel, and could be cut when it was
required to restore the ship to her forsner position.
These anchors being likewise connected with the
jee, by means of a slack-rope, would be preserved
from sinking, when they should be separated from
the ship by cutting the hawser at the keel.

Every thing being thus prepared, whilst the wa-
ter flowed into the ship, I sent our exhausted crew
to seek a little rest. For my own part, necessity

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 457

impelled me to endeavour te obtain some repose. I
had already been fifty hours without rest, which
unusual exertion, together with the anxiety of mind
I endured, caused my legs to swell, and become so
extremely painful, that I could scarcely walk.
Spreading, therefore, a mattrass upon a few boards
laid on the snow, within one of the tents, notwith-
standing the coldness of the situation and the ex-
cessive dampness that prevailed from the constant
fog, I enjoyed a comfortable repose of four hours,
and arose considerably refreshed.

~ Immediately afterwards, (about 8 Pp. M. of the Ist
of July,) I proceeded with all hands to the ship,
which, to our surprise, we found had only sunk a
little below the 16 feet mark externally, while the
water but barely covered a part of tween decks with-
in. Perceiving that it was not likely to sink
much farther, on account of the buoyancy of the
empty casks, and of the materials of which the ship
itself was composed, we applied all our purchases ;
but, with the strength of above 150 men, we could
not heel her more than 5 or 6 strakes. When thus
careened, with the weight of two anchors suspended
from the masts acting with the effect of powerful levers
on the ship, I accompanied about 120 men on board.
All these being arranged on the high side of the
deck, ran suddenly to the lower side, when the ship
fell so suddenly on one side, that we were appre-
hensive she was about to upset; but, after turning

458 WHALE-FISHERY.

a little way, the motion ceased. The tackles on the
ice being then hauled tight, the heeling position of
the ship was preserved, until we mounted the high-
er part of the deck, and ran to the lower, as before.
At length, after a few repetitions of this manceuvre,
though the weight of men suddenly passing from
side to side, could not be less than 8 tons, no im-
pression whatever was produced *.

On account of the peculiar buoyancy and stabili-
ty of the ship, it hence appeared, that the plan of
upsetting her was not practicable, without the aid
of some other ship to assist by additional purchases ;
and, as no other ship could with safety be brought
to us, this method was at length relinquished.

The situation of the ship being now desperate,
there could be no impropriety in attempting to re-
move the keel and garboard-strake, which prevented
the application of the fothering: for, whatever
might be the result, it could scarcely be for the —
worse. Putting, therefore, the bight of a hawser
over the end of the detached part of the keel, we
fastened one end to a timber head, and, with the
other at the capstern, soon hove it asunder; but im-
mediately slipping out of the rope, it sunk}. The

« The frontispiece to Vol. I. represents the state of the
Esk at this juncture.—See the Explanation of the Plates, Ap-
pendix, No. X.

+ This piece of keel was 22 feet in length.

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 459

piece of garboard-strake yet remained attached to the
ship ; a line was with some difficulty fixed to it, but
it was found insufficient to drag it off; a hawser
likewise failed, though we contrived to clench it
round the plank, until, after heaving upon it in va-
rious positions, it was at length torn asunder. This
plank we found was 9 feet in length, and had at-
tached to it a piece of the dead wood, 6 inches in
thickness.

These ineumbrances being removed, the thrwmb-
ed sail for fothering was immediately applied to the
place, and a vast quantity of fothering materials
thrown into its concavity, when it was fairly under-
neath. Over this sail, we spread a fore-sail, and
braced the whole as tight to the ship as the keel-
bolts which yet remained in their horizontal posi-
tion, would permit. The effect was as happy as we
could possibly have anticipated.

Some time before all these operations were com-
pleted, our people, assisted by the John’s crew, who,
after a short rest, had returned to us, put the three
pumps and bailing tubs in motion, and applied their
energies with such effect, that in eleven hours the
pumps sucked! In this time, a depth of 13 feet wa-
ter was pumped out of the hold, besides the leakage.
The John’s crew remained at the pumps yet four
hours longer, until our own men cleared the after-hold
of casks, and got every thing in readiness to put in
execution the caulking of the ceiling, agreeably to

o

~

460 WHALE-FISHERY.

the method I proposed in plan No. III. The John’s
crew, on this occasion, exerted themselves with a
spirit and zeal which was truly praiseworthy. Their
conduct not only merited, but excited the approba-
tion and gratitude of the whole of my people.

As our men were by this time again worn out,
and as the assistance of some carpenters was parti-
cularly needed, we fired a gun, and repeated our
signal of distress, which brought, very opportunely,
two boats, with six men each, from the Prescot, and
the same number from our tried friend Mr Allen,
of the North Briton. As we likewise procured the
carpenters of these two ships, together with those of
the John, they commenced operations by cutting
through the ceiling, between two frames of timber,
directly across the hold, at the distance of about
26 feet from the stern-post; a situation which, we
were assured, was on the fore part of the leak, or
between the leak and the body of the ship. The
timbers, in this place, were unfortunately found so
closely connected, that we had to cut away part of
one of the floors, that we might come at the outside
plank, and caulk the crevices between it and the
timbers ; which operation, on account of the great
depth of timber, and the vast flow of water that is-
sued at the ceiling, was extremely diffieult, tedious,
and disagreeable. A man of the name of Nichol-
son, the carpenter of the North Briton, laboured in
this place among the water, with a perseverance

NARRATIVE OF. A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 461

and assiduity that was really astonishing, notwith-
standing every blow of his axe brought a shower of
_ water about his head.

- Meanwhile that we had good assistance, I allow-
ed our crew four hours rest, half of them at a time ;
for which purpose, some of their beds were removed
from the ice to the ship. Here, for the first time
during four days, they enjoyed their repose ; for, on
account of the cold and damp that prevailed when
they rested on the ice, several of them, I believe,
never slept. Some of the John’s people, returning
to us, swayed up the top-masts, and rigged most of
the yards, while our men were employed stowing the
main hold, which, by the floating of the casks, was
thrown into a singular state of disorder. Some of
the casks were found without heads, and all the
blubber lost, and many were found bilged, or other-
wise damaged.

After the carpenters had completely cleared the
roomsicad *, they drove oakum into it, along with an
improved woollen sheathing substance, and occasion-
ally, where the spaces were very large, pieces of fat
pork. The spaces or crevices between the planks of
the ceiling and the timber being then filled, all the
above substances were firmly driven down by means
of pine wedges, and the space between each of the

* Roomstead is the space between any two ribs or frames
of timber in a ship.

462 WHALE-FISHERY.

wedges caulked. ‘This would have been very com-
plete, had not the increased flow of water overcome
the pumps, and covered the ceiling where the carpen-
ters were at work. ‘They were, therefore, obliged to
wedge up the place with great expedition ; and being
at the same time greatly fatigued, the latter part of
the operation was accomplished with much less per-
fection than I could have wished. We, however,
were happy to find, that the intention for which we
laboured, was in some measure accomplished ; for no
sooner were the wedges driven from side to side, and
the interstices caulked,than the water, being no long-
er able to find a free passage between the outside and
inside planking, as it had previously done, now
sprung through the ceiling, abaft the stop-water,
in numerous little jets.

Hitherto calm weather, with thick fog, having
constantly prevailed, was the occasion of several
ships remaining by us and affording us assistance,
which would otherwise have left us; but the wea-
ther having now become clear, and a prospect of
prosecuting the fishery being presented, every ship
deserted us, except the John, and she was preparing
to leave us likewise. The knowledge that we should,
in a few hours, be left entirely alone, in a ship that
was little better than a wreck, and in a situation
of perpetual jeopardy, at the distance of 100 miles
from the sea,—the persuasion that, from the great
quantity of water which yet flowed into the hold,

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 463

the ship would sink in consequence of the most
trifling accident or increase of the leak,—the cer-
tainty that, under the most favourable circumstan-
ces, considering the dilapidated state of the ship,
her cargo, sails and stores being principally on the
ice, it would require a considerable length of time
before the ship could possibly be removed, as the
greater part of the crew must be constantly em-
ployed at the pumps,—the great probability there
was, considering the advanced state of the season,
that all the fleet of whale-ships would immediate-
ly endeavour to remove into safer ice, near the sea,
and consequently, that should the ice in which we
occupied a dangerous position *, eventually crush
the ship, there would be no refuge for us, but what
was at such a distance that it might, by the clear-
ing of the ice, be rendered inaccessible,—the con-
sciousness, that were the ship safely out of the ice,
she might yet founder at sea, from the fothering
sails washing away, or from the water accumu-
lating in the lee-bilge during a gale of wind, and

* It was somewhat remarkable, that during the first five
or six days after the accident, the two floes between which
the ship received the damage, were in frequent contact at a
small distance from us. Sometimes they approached each
other, where the ship lay, within a few yards, at others, inter-_
mediate pieces of ice would almost touch her. Under any
other circumstances we should have been in constant alarm ;—
as it was, we were too much involved in distress to be sensible
of any augmentation of danger from the ice.

464 WHALE-¥ISHERY.

hence the lives of the crew would in all probability
fall a sacrifice to their temerity ;—these numerous
and important considerations were so strongly im-
pressed on the minds of the sailors, that they ap-
peared determined to quit the ship and take re-
fuge in the John, as soon as she should attempt
to leave us. That they had determined on this,
I had sufficient information to convince me; and,
from the knowledge of the character of many of
my crew, who, from their conduct during the pre-
ceding operations and trials, proved themselves to
be in general a spiritless set of men, I was confident,
that unless the assistance of the John were by some
means secured, the Esk, after all the labour bestow-
ed on her, and the progress which had been made to-
wards her preservation, must yet be abandoned as a
wreck ! Some of my men had long importuned me to
hire the attendance and co-operation of the John, by
giving up to her the half of our cargo, if less would
not suffice :—these importunities I constantly resist-
ed, until, finding the necessity of the case, I at length,
at the unanimous request of my whole crew, made
the proposal to Captain Jackson, who, with the
consent of his crew, agreed to stay by us and assist
us, agreeably to the conditions of the following
contract; the original of which was voluntarily
signed by every individual of both ships’ compa-

nies.
3

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 465

Greenland Sea, 3d July 1816.
The ship Esk of Whitby being in distress, and the crew

of themselves unable to preserve her, it is agreed between
the undersigned masters, officers, and seamen of the ship
John of Greenock, and of the said ship Esk, that the for-
mer shall afford assistance to the latter, agreeable to the
terms and conditions following:

I. That the ship John shall remain by the Esk, and
shall accompany her to some port of Shetland, if requir-
ed, and that the crew of the John shall, during the
fitting of the Esk for the passage, and during the passage
to Shetland, assist to the utmost of their power, in any
measures necessary for her preservation.

II. In consideration of which services, the crew of the
ship Esk do agree to give up to the ship John, forty-eight
tons of oil, or blubber in proportion, after the rate of four
tons of blubber to three tons of oil, together with one-half
of the Esk’s present cargo of whalebone,—and hereby they
consider themselves as having relinquished all title and
claim to the said oil and whalebone, as well as to any
wages, oil-money, fish-money, or other perquisites, which
might be dependent thereon.

III. It is agreed by the master of the Esk, on the part
of his owners, that provided the ship Esk shall, by the
united exertions of the two ships’ companies, be preserved
and arrive safe at the port from whence she sailed, and
that the John accompanies, and the crew assists so far as
Shetland, the sum of One hundred pounds shall be given
by the owners of the Esk to the crew of the John, to be
equally divided amongst each individual, excluding har-
pooners.

IV. It is likewise agreed by the master of the Esk, on
the part of his owners, that provided any of the John’s

VOL. Il. Gg

ee

466 WHALE-FISHERY.

crew, by the unavoidable separation of the ships, shall be
carried to Whitby, a reasonable allewance for their travel-
ling expences homewards, shall be paid them.

And, V. It is mutually agreed by all parties, that bbe
any dead fish be found or other whale be captured. withir
the limits of this contract, whichever of the ships’ crews it
or they may be seen, struck, or killed by, the whale or
whales so found or captured, shall be equally divided be-
tween the two ships.

Migros by all Hands of each Ship.

I preferred dies giving up a quantity of eae

to paying any pecuniary salvage, for two particular
reasons: First, Because, should the ship eventually
have been lost, the above award would become no
gift at all, since any ship which had fallen in with
the wreck, might have appropriated the same to
their own use, with the probability that no part of
it could be claimed by the owners of the Esk;
Secondly, Because any pecuniary salvage that might
have been agreed on must have been paid, whether
the ship might eventually have been saved or lost ;
for, as the people of the John, in affording assist-
ance, would be obliged to sacrifice their future pros-
pect in the fishery of the same season, they would
have a reasonable claim on a remuneration for the
sacrifice they made, whatever might be the result
ef their endeavours to save the ship. Thus, by
giving blubber as a salvage, we gave away merely
what we were unable to take home of ourselves, or,
in other words, what we could not keep.

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 467

In making this contract, I should have been fully
justified in acting according to the best of my judg-
ment for the benefit of the owners, without consult-
ing the will of the crew; but as it was their first
proposal, and in a great measure their own act, and
particularly as each individual was more or less in-
terested in the blubber given up, and might have
been induced, on arrival, to have demanded wages
and perquisites on it, the same as if it had been
taken home, I judged it a matter of prudence to
procure each man’s written acknowledgment to the
contract, whereby the decision of the case as to their
claim for wages on the blubber given up to the
John, would be placed within the power of the
owners, without any one having the means of ques-
tioning that decision.

The acquiescence of the John’s crew was only
necessary, to sanction the master’s conduct in lea-
ving the fishing country with half a cargo before
the usual period, whereby, for the advantage ob-
_ tained from us, they sacrificed their chance of fur-
ther success in the fishery of the season.

As the foregoing agreement was not sufficiently
explicit and binding on the part of the masters and
owners of the Esk and John, the following contract
being drawn out, was signed hy myself and Mr
Jackson.

Gg2

468 WHALE-FISHERY.

AGREEMENT, &c.
The ship Esk, of Whitby, lying at a vast distance from

the sea, in a dangerous situation of the ice, being seriously
damaged, extremely leaky, in a great measure unrigged,
her cargo and stores discharged, the ship a mere hulk, and
altogether in great distress,—her crew at the same time
being worn out by hard and continued labour, and unable
of themselves to preserve the ship from sinking and take
her home,—are circumstances which render the assistance
of some other ship indispensable. 'The master and crew of
the ship John of Greenock, therefore, being willing to
afford the requisite aid, it is hereby agreed between the un-
dersigned masters of the two ships, the Esk and the John,
that such requisite assistance shall be afforded on the one
part, and that such certain award shall be presented on the
other, as are expressed in the conditions and terms follow-

ing :

Parr I.—The undersigned Thomas Jackson, master of
the ship John of Greenock, on his own part, and on the
part of his owners, with the unanimous consent of every
individual of his crew, doth engage and agree to the four
articles next following :

1. That he will, with his ship and crew, to the utmost
of his power, assist and endeavour to preserve the ship
Esk, to rig her, to stow her cargo and stores, and to fit her
for the passage homewards.

2. That he will then take her in tow, when practicable,
and use every exertion to remove her from the place where
she now lies, and attend on and accompany her homewards,
as far as some port of Shetland, if required.

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 469

3. That he will at all times furnish the Esk with as
many of his crew as he can conveniently and safely spare,
to assist in pumping and navigating the Esk on the home-
ward passage to Shetland. And,

4. That he accepts of as, and declares the award herein-
after mentioned ¢o de, an ample and sufficient compensation
for the services he hereby engages to perform; and that
no claim in the way of salvage, demurrage, or other cir-
cumstance, shall or can hereafter be made by himself or
owners of the John, on the master or owners of the Esk.

Part IJ.—In consideration of which services, the sacri-
fice of all future expectation from the fishery of the pre-
sent season, the consequent detention, and so on,—the un-
dersigned William Scoresby junior, master of the ship
Esk, on his part, and on the part of his owners, with the
free and unanimous consent of every individual of his crew,
doth engage and agree as follows:

1. That he will abandon into the possession of the ship
John 48 tons of whale-oil or blubber accordingly, after the
rate of 8 butts to 3 tons, together with one-half of the
whalebone, or thereabouts, which may at present form the
cargo of the Esk.

2. That the above quantity of blubber and whalebone
shall become the property of the owners of the ship John,
on which himself or owners can have no claim whatsoever,
on the conditions of Part I. being accomplished. _

3. That provided the ship Esk shall, by the united
exertions of the crews of the two contracting ships, be
preserved, arrive at the port from whence she sailed, and
that the John accompanies and the crew assists to the ut-
most of their power, so far as Shetland, as agreed; he, on
the part of the owners of the Esk, agrees to pay, in addi-

470 WHALE-IVISHERY.

tion to the whalebone and oil above specified, the sum of
One hundred pounds, to be equally divided among the
John’s crew, harpooners excepted. And,

4. Should any of the John’s crew, by the unavoidable
separation of the two ships, be carried to Whitby, a rea-
sonable allowance for their travelling expences homewards,

shall be paid them by the owners of the Esk.

Parr IIJ.—It is furthermore mutually agreed by the

undersigned William Scoresby junior, and Thomas Jack-. °

son, on their own parts, and on the part of their owners, and
as far as concerns them, with the free and unanimous con-
sent of their respective crews, as follows:

1. That provided the ship John shall, by any casualty,
be obliged to separate from the Esk, and withdraw her
assistance, within the space of seven days from the date
hereof, the award mentioned in Article 1., Part II., shall
be considered as the joimt property of the owners of the
two ships, and that accordingly, the one-half of the oil and
whalebone, as therein awarded, or the value thereof, free
of all charges for freight, demurrage, or other circumstan-
ces, excepting actual outlay, shall be returned to the own-
ers of the Esk, as soon after the arrival of the John at her
port, as conveniently may be.

2. That should any dead fish be found, or cther whale
be captured within the limits of this contract, whichever of
the ship’s crews it or they may be seen, struck, or killed
by, the whale or whales so found or captured, shall be
equally divided between the two ships. And it is declar-
ed,

8. That all the foregoing articles and stipulations of this
contract are enteredinto, not from any regardof relationship,
friendship, or other human tie, but from the sole principle of

al

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 471

mutual obligation, consequently for the benefit of the own-
ers of each concern. ‘The award is thus given on the part
of the Esk from the urgent nature of the circumstances,
and accepted on the part of the John, from the small pro-
bability there is of procuring such an increase to her cargo
elsewhere.

Done on board the Esk, at six o’clock P. M.

(civil day,) of the 3d day of July 1816.

Tuomas JACKSON,
WILiiamM Scoressy jun.

: John Dunbar, : ys
Signed Willm. War ‘a Witnesses.

Signed

These agreements being fully understood and
signed, the John hauled alongs.de of the ice,
which had now opened near the Esk for the first
time since the accident, and took on board the whole
of our loose blubber, estimated at 78 butts, and
51 butts in 25 casks, together with about half of
our whalebone as agreed. In the mean time, we
hauled the Esk a little out of the way, and pro-
ceeded in stowing the casks in the mazn hold; in
stowing and filling with water the casks of the after
hold; in caulking and battening the seams of the
ceiling, &c. &c. In the bilges of the ship, beneath
the fore-hatchway, we placed two empty casks on
their ends, with the upper heads taken out, and the
lower heads bored full of holes, for the purpose of
admitting the water which might accumulate in
the ship when heeling, and freeing it from any sub-

4.72 WHALE-FISHERY.

stances calculated to choke the pump or pumps
which might be introduced into the casks for ex-
tracting it®*.

Every thing now going on favourably, whilst our
crew and assistants were in full and vigorous em-
ployment, I was obliged to retire to seek that re-
pose which my wearied frame could want no longer.
During 120 hours I had rested only 12, whereas
in ordinary circumstances, I should have indulged,
myself in 40 or 50 hours of repose. It was not
therefore surprising, that the swelling and pain of
my legs became so serious, that I could scarcely
move about. In justice to Mr Jackson, I may ob-
serve, that in the course of the same period, he vo-
luntarily submitted to similar privations as myself.

During the 4th of July, we had a fresh breeze
of wind, with fine weather. The floe to which the
ship was moored, was found to have performed two-
thirds of a revolution in the course of the five pre-
ceding days.

For the purpose of securing the sails which were
beneath the ship, in their places, when she should
be put in motion, I adopted the following contri-

* This contrivance we found exceedingly useful ; for on
the passage homeward, the chips produced by the carpenters
in making the stop-water in the hold, frequently choked our
principal pumps, and annoyed us exceedingly. We were re-
peatedly obliged to hoist them out and clear the pump well ;
sometimes twice or thrice a-day.

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 473

vance, which, on account of the concavity of the
ship near the stern, was particularly'requisite. First,
two ring-bolts were driven into the stern-post at
the water’s edge, one in each side, and the same at
the bows. ‘Iwo: thick ropes were then connected,
by means of several similar pieces of whale-line,
placed at equal distances on each, in the form of a
rope-ladder, in which the steps or connecting pieces
of whale-line were 11 feet in length. The ends of
the thick ropes being then fixed to the ring-bolts
in the stern-post, the ropes themselves were extend-
ed along the bottom of the ship, put through the
bow-ring bolts, and by the hawse-holes connected
with the windlass. When, therefore, they were
drawn tight, the connecting pieces of the whale-
line embraced the sails, pressed them closely to the
ship, and had a surprising effect in diminishing the
influx of water into the hold.

On the 5th, assisted by all hands from the John,
our people, after four hours rest, applied them-
selves with such vigour, that the stowing of the
hold and the rigging of the ship were completed ;
the materials of every description removed from
the ice, and the sails set, before seven o’clock in the
morning. ‘The ice having then cleared away ina
most favourable manner, under a moderate breeze
of wind, we left the floe; but what was our asto-
nishment and mortification to find, that the ship

474 ~WHALE-FISHERY.

could not be guided! The rudder was become
perfectly useless,—so that, with the most appro-
priate disposition of the sails possible, and the re-
quisite position of the helm, the ship could not be
turned round or diverted in the least from the
course in which the impetus of the wind on the
sails was the most naturally balanced. This was
an alarming disappointment. However, as the ship
was in such constant danger of being crushed in
the situation where she lay, the John, with the
greatest difficulty imaginable, towed us three or four
miles to the eastward into a place of comparative
safety. Under other circumstances, it would have
afforded matter of much amusement to see the
singular way in which the Esk was drawn forward.
She could not be brought to proceed fifty yards on
the same course, notwithstanding the most prompt
and appropriate adaptation of the sails and helm,
but continued sheering from side to side to the
utmost extent that the rope, by which she was
towed, would allow. On one occasion, this rope
was broken, and we were obliged repeatedly to slack
it out, to prevent a recurrence of the accident.
About 10 A.M. we moored to another sheet of ice,
and immediately proceeded to attempt a rectifica-
tion of the ship’s steerage. For this purpose we
unshipped the rudder and hoisted it upon deck,
where we applied an additional piece to the lower
and back part of it, consisting of a surface of about

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 475

20 square feet of planks on either side, united and
consolidated by blocks of timber. We likewise se-
cured the corners of the fothering sails to staples
driven into the cownters of the ship, whereby less
interruption was made in the course of the water
to the rudder, and consequently a better effect
might be expected from it. And lastly, we filled a
number of empty casks in the after-hold, some with
sea-water out of the ship’s hold, and others with
fresh water from the surface of the ice, for the pur-
pose of trimming the ship more by the stern, to
compensate in some degree for the loss of the after-
keel.

All these matters being cauriraetal we should
have-immediately made sail, but on account of a
strong wind and thick weather we could not, with-
out imminent danger, attempt to penetrate the
compact body of ice, that at this time barred our
escape to the sea. I therefore took the advantage
of the opportunity to procure a long rest, which I
found so refreshing, after the unusual exhaustion I
had experienced, that I arose after many hours,
perfectly restored.

In the forenoon of the 6th of July, ie wind sub-
sided, and the fog cleared away ; we therefore) cast
off from the ice. When the ship was under sail,
we made the necessary experiments of wearing,
tacking, plying, &c. in which we were. pleased to

find, that the rudder answered the intention, though,
2

476 WHALE-FISHERY.

on account of the slow and leewardly motion of the
ship, an attempt to ply to windward entirely failed.
Meeting shortly with an impervious mass of ice,
lying directly across our track, which, on account of
the direction of the wind, and the returm of the fog,
we could neither weather, nor discover a passage
through,—we moored, along with the John, to a
detached piece of ice. The attention of the carpen-
ters in caulking the ceiling of the ship, together
with the advantage derived from the fothering sails,
had now produced an effect so considerable, that, on
Sunday, the 7th of July, the original leakage was
found to be reduced nearly four-fifths! During an
hour, in which we were engaged in the performance
of Divine Service, the pumps were allowed to
“ stand ;” 23 feet of water, which, in this interval,
flowed into the hold, was pumped out in twenty
minutes.

The weather having cleared, (on Sunday even-
ing,) a passage to the eastward was discovered among
the floes. An easterly wind, however, prevailing,
we were unable to make any progress, until the
John took us in tow. After plying 3 or 4 miles to
windward, we entered a narrow channel, leading to
a roomy situation, in a south-easterly direction.
Though a quantity of drift-ice lay in this channel,
and, in one instance, the John had occasion to force
a passage for the Esk, yet we passed through the
midst of it without striking a single piece of ice.

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 477

On the 8th, we stretched to the S.S. E. until
5 a. M., in a free navigation, though ice in vast bo-
dies extended on either side us. A floe then inter-
rupting our course, we were obliged to work to wind-
ward of it; a field afterwards appeared connected
with it, along the side of which we had still to beat
against the wind, towed by the John, a distance of
several miles. At 10 p. M. there appeared a fa-
vourable channel leading to the S. E., which we
pursued ; and, after winding among numerous pieces
of drift-ice, with occasional heavy floes, until the
morning of the 9th, we again had the relief of an
easy navigation. This day we had a gentle favour-
able wind, with pleasant clear weather. Several
ships were seen. Saw a whale, and sent from the
two ships, three boats in pursuit, but were not suc-
cessful. The John, running foul of a piece of ice,
in attempting to drag us round it, launched upon a
tongue, and grounded. She remained about half
an hour immoveable ; meanwhile we proceeded alone.
At mid-night we saw the land, Charles’ Island, or
the Foreland, about 60 miles distant ; at the same
time, we passed clear, to seaward, of all the ice with-
in sight. Latitude 77° 24’ N.

Our carpenter continued his labours in the after-
hold, with some effect, though, in general, fresh
leaks were daily breaking out. For the security of
the ceiling, a great number of stanchions were
placed between it and the beams of the gun-room

ATS WHALE-FISHERY.

deck, to prevent the pressure of the water from
forcing the planks from the timbers.

On the 10th, spoke the Valiant and the Phoenix.
The latter ship furnished us with a spare pump,
which we considered a great acquisition to our means
of security. We had now in readiness four pumps,
two of which were placed in the casks that we had
fitted as pump-wells, in the bilges of the ship. We
saw the last ice on the 11th. To this period, we
had generally half of the John’s crew on board.
We now had twelve men, selected for our service,
whom we classed along with our own crew.

In the morning of the 12th, the wind increased
from the east; the «sky became dark and threaten-
ing; anda heavy swell rolled from the south-east-
ward. ‘The violent agitation of the ship, together
with her increased velocity, very soon tore away
many of the fastenings of the fothering-sails, which
we soon perceived towing astern of the ship. ‘This
circumstance occasioned a considerable alarm. We
had not before ascertained how far the contrivance
of swimming the ship by the ceiling could be de-
pended on: the experiment was therefore made at
a very critical moment, when the sea was so con-
siderable, that it would have been a matter of much
uncertainty, whether we could have escaped on
board the John, in the event of the ship founder-
ing. What added to our apprehensions was, that
the leak appeared to increase, whilst the main pumps

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 479

became almost useless on account of the heeling posi-
tion of the ship, and the accumulation of the water in
the lee-bilge. The bilge-pumps, therefore, became of
essential importance. Steered 8.8. W., with a velo-
city of 3: to 7} miles per hour, under three courses,
the top-sails and jibs. The John carried much
more sail.

The swell continued, with some variation, during
the two following days, though the wind was, in ge-
neral, moderate and fair. On the 15th, our lati-
tude was 71° 40’ N.

I now made some experiments to ascertain the
quantity of water discharged by the pumps, from
which some interesting deductions were made. I
first gauged two tubs that had been used in bail-
ing, one of which was found to be of the capacity of
18 gallons, and the other of 20.. The former, I
found on trial, was, at the common rate of pumping,
filled with eight strokes from one pump. Shortly
after the accident, I had observed, that from 55 to
75 strokes were made by each pump per minute ;
but I shall not consider the mean number more
than 60. Therefore, as this tub was filled by eight
- strokes, and sixty were made in a minute, it would,
of course, be filled 7% times in a minute. Hence,
7; multiplied by 18, (the contents of the tub in
gallons), gives 135 gallons, as the quantity of water,
usually discharged by one pump ina minute. From
these data, together with the estimation of the

480 WHALE-FISHERY.

quantity of water discharged from the ship by bail-
ing, it is not difficult to ascertain, very nearly, the
whole quantity of water that was discharged, from
the time of the accident, to this period. The means
in use for the extrication of the water, during the
early part of the period, were as follow.

Gallons per
Minute.
1. The two large pumps, which discharged....270
a; The extra’ smaller frum, 450. 0 eee 90
3. 'Two large tubs 3 filled 6 times per min....180
4. Two to four pails, 8 times per minute....... 90
630

Hence we may draw the following conclusions :

From the 29th of June, at 2 Pp. M., (the time
when the damage was first discovered), to the 1st of
July, at 10 a. M. a period of 44 hours, all the above
means were in general use, for the discharge of the
water, and were plied by 160 to 220 men, whereby
630 gallons, or 23 tons, on an average, were dis-
charged per minute. Hence 44 hours, or 2640 tons.
MARINAS A) Die 59.3 cst, hg ee be AAS Tato ch Seek wah Rees 6600

The next 7} hours was an interval of rest.

From the Ist of July, at 5} p. M. to the 2d
at 53 A. M., an interval of 12 hours, the three
pumps, and all the bailing vessels, were in the
fullest possible play, whereby the hold was,
for the first time, partly cleared of water.

Carried forward, 6600

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 481

Brought forward, 6600
Therefore, 22 tons, multiplied by 720, the
number of minutes in 12 hours,..........seceeeeeees 1800
From 5; a.M. of the 2d of July, to 3 P. M.
of the 3d, an interval of 333 hours, two pumps
were in almost constant exercise, and some-
times three. Therefore, estimating the quan-
tity of water at 13 tons per minute, we have
33.5 hours X 60! x 1.5 tons,..........ceccecseseecee OLS
From 3 p. M. of the 3d July, to 2 vp. M. of
the 7th, an interval of 95 hours, two pumps
were in frequent exercise. Therefore, esti-
mating the average quantity of water dis-
charged at 3 of a ton per minute, we have
95 hours x 60’ K 0.75 toms,......ccsccesccssecescecnss 4275

Tons, 15690
Hence, at a moderate computation, it appears,
that between the 29th of June and the 7th of July,
an interval only of eight days, the enormous amount
of 15,690 tons of water were pumped and bailed out
of the Esk’s hold!
Hence, also, it appears, that during the first two
days after the accident, the regular leakage was

INOUE: ax sisioshia wacde ace» adastestiyn'atsp 150 tons per hour.
Pirin the 3d day, ....2...0n.o0sss 130 ditto.
BED GAY 25.2548} 6ps5 100 ditto.
BEM ORY scx. o35 dyes vented 70 ditto.
UR MAY, 45) -meivdentan Oe ditto.
TOULGAY ves qnaes vassvaae ditto.
ODN ay ass. 5s sne sci 20 ditto.

VOI.. IL. Hh

482 WHALE-FISHERY.

These estimates, great as they may appear, do
not, I believe, exceed the truth ; especially as they
are confirmed by the mensuration of the internal
cavity of the Hsk’s hold, which affords results cor-
responding with the above, to a surprising nicety.

The 16th of July was a calm day. An oblong
thrumbed sail, which had been several days in pre-
paration, was, after many trials, placed and secured
beneath the wounded part of the ship. It consist-
ed of strong canvas, 8 yards in length and 3 in
breadth; and was covered completely with long
thrumbs of rope-yarns. The two edges were marled
to two pieces of a hawser ; and these ropes connect-
ed by a short piece of chain. The chain being then
introduced between the rudder and the stern-post,
was drawn closely upward; and the hawsers being
extended to the bows, stretched the canvas firmly
across the damaged place. The leak, in consequence,
became for a time inconsiderable ; but on the follow-
ing day, having a fresh gale of wind from the east-
ward and considerable swell, under which we were
sometimes towed with the velocity of 9 knots per
hour, this well-adapted sail was rent, and shortly
shared the same fate as those that preceded it. The
leak immediately increased. ‘The Phoenix joined
us.

Our distance run on the 18th, was 184 miles, on
aS. W. course. The water again alarmed us, by its
accumulation in the lee-bilge, and the appearance

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 483 _

of several fresh leaks when the ship heeled. By
shortening sail, however, and shifting a considerable
weight of different articles to windward, our safety
was secured. Our laticcde 67° 16’ N.

On the 19th, a seven-inch rope by which we were
towed, broke. We had great difficulty in getting
another hawser on board of the John, on account of
the turbulence of the sea; but, by means of several
buoys, and a cask which was sent astern by the
John, we at length succeeded. In the evening, we
had fine weather ; when the wind, for the first time
during the passage from the ice, became contrary.

The 20th was a most agreeable day; the atmo-
sphere was clear, sea smooth, wind moderate, and to-
wards night favourable. Our latitude at noon, was,
64° 39’ N., and our longitude at 9 a. M. by lunar ob-
servation, was, 1° 430’ E. Leak on the increase.

The next day we had a fresh gale of wind from the
eastward, strong south-westerly swell, and fog so
dense, that the John, at the distance of 150 yards,
was scarcely discernible. Our course was 8. W. and
S.b. W.1 W. Latitude at noon, 63° 44’, longitude
by chronometer, 1° 36’ E. This night, the first stars
were seen since the month of April.

The easterly wind increased to a strong gale on
the 22d; and at 3 a.M., when the ship’s velocity
was at 9 knots per hour, the pressure of the helm
strained a new wheel-rope, and carried away the
wheel-stanchion. Considering the stern-post endan-

AS 4 WHALE-FISHERY.

gered, and, consequently, the ship itself, we imme-
diately furled the after-sails, and so reduced the rest
of our canvas, that we were in a great measure
dragged by the John, which continued to carry a
most prodigious press of sail. ‘The sea being heavy,
and the water collecting in the lee-bilge, whilst
the leak was sensibly increased, were circumstances
not a little alarming. A kind Providence, however,
seemed to favour us, for appearances only were
against us; the gale subsided, the ship righted, and
the hold was easily cleared of water.

At 3 a.M. of the following day, we deseried land;
and at 10 a. M. Hangcliff, Shetland, bore W. b. N.
distant about 15 miles. ‘The wind being for a
short tine southerly, we steered towards the land,
with the design of putting into Lerwick, and await-
ing a better opportunity. of pursuing our voyage ;
when, however, we approached within three or four
miles of the coast, a S$. IK. breeze sprung up, which
being favourable, we hauled to the wind on a 8.58.
W. course. Inthe evening, the John having fulfilled
the articles of agreement, as far as was required, we
sent the twelve men belonging to her crew on board,
and after receiving from them a supply of fresh
water, they left us with three cheers, and the usual
display of colours. We were now left to sail by
ourselves; our progress was, in consequence, rather
slow.

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 485

On the 24th, we steered S. b. W.3 W. with an
east wind, instead of S. W.b.S., the usual course,
for fear of getting on a lee-shore, off which, from the
almost unmanageable state of the ship, it would not
have been possible to work. On the 25th, the wind
veered to N. N. W., and our velocity was consider-
able. ‘The Phcenix accompanied us, and assisted
us by towing, during the day.

At 7 a. M. of the following day, we descried the
British land. At noon, St Abb’s Head was at N.
W.b.N., distant fifteen miles. In the afternoon the
Pheenix left us and made sail, by the way of carry-
ing the intelligence of our approach, and was, in a
short time, far a-head*. In the evening we had a
south wind, and at night a westerly breeze, under
which we proceeded with a pressure of sail along the
coast. At day-light of the 27th, we were rejoiced
with a sight of our port. Knowing the flow of water
to be sufficient for the ship, and there being a pro-
bability of reaching the harbour before the tide was
too much fallen, we pressed towards it with every
sail we could set; and having reccived a pilot as we
approached the pier, we immediately entered the
harbour, and grounded at 5) A. M. in a place of
safety.

Thus, through the peculiar favour of Gop, by

whose influence our perseverance was stimulated, and

* The Phenix, owing to some little accident, arrived in
the harbour a tide later than us.

AS6 WHALE-FISHERY.

by whose blessing our contrivances were rendered
effectual, happily terminated a voyage at once ha-
zardous, disastrous, and interesting.

Intelligence relative to the distressed state of the
ship, and the hopelessness of her situation, reached
Whitby the day before us; and involved, in conse-
quence of some exaggerations respecting the loss of
the crew, every interested person in deep distress.
Throughout the town, and in a great measure, in-
deed, throughout the neighbourhood, the event was
considered as a general calamity. Some of the un-
derwriters on the Esk, I was informed, had offered
60 per cent., for the re-assurance of the sums for
which they were liable ; but such was the nature of
the risk, as ascertained from the information of some
ships’ crews by whom we had been assisted, that no
one would undertake the re-assurance even at this
extraordinary premium.

The hearty congratulations I received on landing,
from every acquaintance, were almost overwhelming ;
and these, with the enhanced endearments of my
affectionate and enraptured wife, amply repaid me
for all the toils and anxieties of mind that I had en-
dured.

On the tide ebbing out, the Esk was left dry;
on which, for the first time since the accident, the
whole of the water was drawn out of the hold by
the pumps. The next tide, the ship was removed
above the bridge, to a place of perfect safety, where,

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 487

the pumps being neglected, the water, in the course
of two tides, rose nearly as high within as without.
After the cargo was discharged, the ship was put in-
to dock ; and it was found, that excepting the loss
of 22 feet of keel, left in Greenland, and the removal
of a piece of the starboard garboard-strake, 9 feet in
length, with a portion of dead-wood brought home
upon deck, no other damage of consequence had been
produced. by the ice. The main piece of the rudder,
indeed, was found to be sprung ; all the rudder works
under water, excepting the lowest band, broken ; and
the stern-post shaken loose: but these injuries were
chiefly sustained when the ship was driven into the
ice on the Ist of May. The whole expence of re-
pairs did not, I believe, exceed 200 J.

Though the sacrifice of nearly one-half of our car-
go, was a considerable disappointment to the owners,
who had been apprised of our success in the fishery,
yet, when compared with the salvage which might
have been demanded, had no contract been entered
into for the assistance of the John, the sacrifice ap-
peared to have been a material benefit, having been
productive of the saving of perhaps 2000/7. The
approbation of my conduct by the owners, Messrs
Fishburn and Brodrick, was testified, by their pre-
senting to me a gratuity of 50/.; and the sense en-
tertained by the Whitby underwriters of the preser-
vation of the ship, was pleasingly manifested, by a
present of a handsome piece of plate.

3

488. WHALE-FISHERY.

I may add, in conclusion, that the whole of my
crew, excepting one individual, returned from this
adventurous and trying voyage in safety; and, in
general, in a good state of health. Several of the
men, indeed, were affected, more or less, by the ex-
cessive fatigue, and by the painful exposure to cold
and damp while resting on the ice; but all of them
were, in a great measure, restored, before our arrival
at. home, excepting one man; he, poor fellow, being
of a weak constitution, suffered severely from the
inclement exposure, and died soon after he arrived
in port.

APPEN-

APPENDIX

TO

VOLUME SECOND.

Age’
?

( 491 )

APPENDIX.

No. I.

AN ABSTRACT OF THE ACTS OF PARLIAMENT AT PRESENT
IN FORCE FOR THE REGULATION OF THE WHALE-FISHERIES
OF GREENLAND AND DAVIS STRAITS.

Ships fitted out for and returning from the northern whale-
fisheries, are entitled to a certain bounty, on the condition of
all the requirements of law being fulfilled by the different
persons connected therewith ; and, under certain conditions
and restrictions, are at liberty to import into Great Britain,
&e. any of the produce of whales, or other creatures caught
in the Greenland Seas or Davis’ Straits, not actually free of
duty as formerly, but subject only to a small impost ; but in
default of compliance with such conditions and restrictions,
the produce so imported will be chargeable with the duties
unmposed on the blubber, oil, fins, &c. of foreign fishing, which
are very heavy.

The substance of the acts of Parliament at present in force
relative to, and for the government of, the northern whale-
fisheries, is comprised in the following Abstract.

By the 26th Geo. III. c. 41. (which may be considered as
the fundamental act relativetothe Greenland and Davis’ Straits
whale-fisheries), amended, extended, altered, and continued
by various subsequent acts of Parliament until the 25th March
1820 *, it is enacted, That every British built vessel, owned

* 55th Geo. III. c. 39. § 1. expected to be again extended.

492 ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. [APP. N°Z.

by British subjects, usually residing in Great Britain, or in
the islands of Guernsey, Jersey, or Man, which shall, with-
in the time herein limited, proceed from any port of Great
Britain, or the islands aforesaid, on the whale-fishery to the
Greenland Seas or Davis’ Straits, or to the seas adjacent,
and which shall be manned and navigated with a master, and
three-fourths of the marmers at least, being British subjects,
shall, before she proceeds on such voyage, or be entitled to
the benefits of this act, be visited by the proper officer of the
Customs belonging to such port, who shall examine such ves-
sel, and take an account of the tonnage thereof by admeasure-
ment, and shall certify such his visitation, examination, and ad-
measurement, to the Commissioners of his Majesty’s Customs *;
and if it appears by the certificate that she hath on board such
a number of men, provisions, boats, fishing-lines, and instru-
ments to be used in such fishery, as herein after mentioned ;
that she is strongly built, and otherwise a proper ship for such
voyage and fishery, and hath on board, among her crew, a
sufficient number of harpooners, steersmen, and line-ma-
nagers, who have before been employed in such voyages, (the
names of such persons to be contained in such certificate) ;
and if it further appears, by the oath of one or more owner
or owners +, and of the master or chief officer of such vessel,
written at the foot of such certificate, and made before the
principal officers of the Customs of such ports, or any two of
them, whereof the Collector shall be one, that it is their firm
purpose and determined resolution that such ship shall, as soon
as license shall be granted, proceed, so manned and furnished,
“* on a voyage to the Greenland seas or Davis’ Straits, or the
seas adjacent, and there, in the then approaching season, to
use the utmost endeavours of themselves, and their ship’s

* For the rules given by the Commissioners of the Customs for the go-
:vernment of the surveying officer, vide Appendix No. IV. art. l.

+ ‘Owners, in case of sickness, or unavoidable absence, may take the

oaths required before the sailing of the ship, before a Justice of the Peace,

. affidavit of which shall be accepted, and deemed as effectual as if the owner or
owners had conformed to the said act.”—42d Geo. ILI. c. 22. § 4.

App. N°I.] ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. 493

company, to take whales or other creatures living in the sea,
and on no other design or view of profit in such voyage, save
and except any reward or rewards offered by any act of Par-
liament, for more effectually discovering the longitude at sea,
or encouraging attempts to find a northern passage between
the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and to approach the nor-
thern pole *, and to import the whale-fins, oul, and blubber
thereof, into the kingdom of Great Britain,” (naming the
port); and if the master, after such. certificate had and oath
made, do also become bound, with two sufficient securities, in
the penalty of a sum equal to treble the bounty +, (which bond
is to be in force for three years, for the faithful dealings of
the said master and ship’s company in regard to the said. ship
and voyage,) then, it shall be lawful for any three or more of
the Commissioners of the Customs in England and Scotland
respectively, on receiving such certificates and oaths made,
and it being certified by the Collector and Comptroller of
such port that security hath been given, to grant, and they
are hereby required to grant, to the master and owners of
such ship, full licence to proceed on her voyage.—26th
come AG ©

Every ship, which shall be deemed duly fitted, and pro-
perly qualified for the whale-fishery, if of the burthen of 200
tons, shall have on board 40 fishing-lines of 120 fathoms each,
40 harpoons, 4 boats, with 7 men at the least (including an
harpooner, a steersman, and a line-manager,) to each boat,
making in the whole 28 ment, besides the master and sur-

* 58th Geo. III. c. 15. § 2.
+ For the conditions of this bond, vide Appendix No. IV. art. 3.

+ Hence the number of the different classes of persons in the crew, and
quantity of stores in the outfit, as required by this act for ships-of different di-
mensions, are as follow:

v2) n “
5 1 B & ann s a
Tonnage of Ships. | + 5 35 Ss 2 |ding Master]] > = |:5 A) ss a
is oi°22 49 & Suree o 16 4 q s s
aI @ <a {% surgeon. 7 9 |mca o e
150 and under 200,) 3 3 = 24 3 | 30 | 30
200 250,| 4 4 4 30 4 | 40 | 40
250 ————— 300,| 5 5 5 36 5. 1.50,) 50
300 and upwards, 6 6 6 42 6 | GO | 60

494 ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. [APP, N°X.

geon, with six months provisions * at the least for such num-
ber of men; and every ship of larger burthen, an increase of
6 men, 1 boat, 10 such lines, and 10 harpoons more, for
every fifty tons above 200, (as high as 300), together with
provisions in proportion, [42d Geo. III. c. 41. § 2.] And
every such ship employed in the said fishery, shall have on
board apprentices indentured for three years at least, who
shall not exceed the age of 20 years, nor be under 12 years
of age, at the time they shall be so indentured, in the propor-
tion of one apprentice for every fifty tons burthen, [32d
Geo. IIT. c. 22. § 3.]; and one fresh or green man for every
fifty tons burthen ; which apprentices and green men shall
be accounted in the number of men required to be on board.
—26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 2.

No bounty shall be allowed, unless there be inserted in the
indenture of each apprentice the name or names of the vessel
or yessels on board of which he is bound to serve, or to which
he may have been turned over, [29th Geo. III. c. 53. § 7.]

In case the time for which any apprentice shall have been
indentured, shall expire during the voyage, such apprentice
shall be accounted and considered as an apprentice for the
whole voyage, and shall, on his return from the fishery, be mus-
tered accordingly. But no apprentice shall be deemed a le-
gal apprentice, unless he be a subject of his Majesty.—32d
Geo III.\c. 22:.§ 7, 8.

Vessels that are not provided with their complement of
men at the port whence they clear out, may proceed, for the
season, to any of the ports in the Frith of Clyde, or m Loch
Ryan, or to Lerwick in the Isles of Shetland, or to Kirkwall
m the Orkneys, and complete their number there, provided
the number wanted doth not exceed three common men for
every fifty tons burthen. On their return, those men may be
set on shore where they were taken on board ; and, upon pro-
ducing a certificate thereof from the Collector and Comptrol-
ler of the Customs, and the master and mate making oath
thereof, such ships shall be deemed to have had their full

“ The quantity of provisions is left to the discretion of the mustering officer.

APP.N°I.] ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. 495

complements from their clearing port, and be entitled to boun-
ty *.—46th Geo. III. c. 9.; 55th Geo. IIT. ¢. 39. § 2.

On the return of such ship to the port of Great Britain,
declared before sailing, the proper officers of the Customs at
such port, shall immediately repair on board, and view the
condition of such ship and her lading, and certify the same,
together with their observations thereon, as also the real ton-
nage of the said ship; and also take an account or schedule
of the names of the master, mate, and other persons on board,
distinguishing the harpooners and persons more immediately
employed in the said fishery, and to certify the same; and
the master and mate shall make oath before two of the prin-
cipal officers of the Customs, whereof the Collector shall
be one, that they did, in pursuance of the licence, (men-
tioning the day of their departure), proceed on a voyage di-
rectly to the places foresaid, and have not since been on
any other voyage, or pursued any other design or view of
profit, save and except any reward or rewards offered
by any act of Parliament, for more effectually discovering
the longitude at sea, or encouraging attempts to find a nor-
thern passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and
to approach the northern pole; and that they did there (men-
tioning the time of their stay in those seas) use the utmost
endeavours of themselves and ship’s company, to take whales,
and other creatures living in those seas; and that all the
whale-fins, oil and blubber, imported (if any) in such ship,
were really and bond fide caught and taken in the said seas,
by the crew of such ship or vessel only, or with the assistance
of the crew of some other British built ship or vessel, licensed
for that voyage, pursuant to the directions of this act, which
oath shall be indorsed on, or annexed to, the licence aforesaid ;
and the said schedule, certificate, licence, and oath, shall be
transmitted by the Collector and Comptroller of such port to
the respective Commissioners for that part of Great Britain
where such ship shall arrive ; and such Commissioners being

* This privilege was limited by the act of 46th Geo. III. c. 9. to the time
of the duration of the war ; but was revived and continued by the 55th Geo. III.
¢. 39. § 2., until the 25th of March 1824,

496 ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. [APP. N°.

fully satisfied of the faithful dealings of the master and other
persons employed in such vessel, with respect to such voyage
and fishery, shall, on demand, cause payment to be made to
the master or owners, of a bounty or premium of 20s. * per
ton, according to the admeasurement of every such ship or
vessel, duly certified as aforesaid.—26th Geo. III. ¢. 41. § 3.;
32d Geo. III. c. 22. § 2.

The Commissioners of the Customs in England and Scot-
land, respectively, shall order the said bounties to be paid out
of any monies that shall be in the hands of the respective
Receivers-General, arising from any of the duties and reve-
nues under their management.—26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 6.

No ship or vessel which shall not, before the 25th of De-
cember 1786, have been employed in the said fishery, al-
though such ship or vessel be above 300 tons + burthen, shall
be entitled to a larger bounty than a ship or vessel of 300
tons would be entitled to, [26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 8.] But
the owner or owners of any vessel above the burthen of 300
tons, shall not be obliged to fit out, equip, and man any such
ship, otherwise than as a ship of 300 tons, in order to entitle
him or them to the bounty. —26th Geo. IIT. ¢. 41. § 9.

And whereas it hath been found by experience, that ships
of 150 tons burthen are fit for the said fishery, every owner
or owners of any ship of 150 tons, therefore, which shall be
employed in,the said fishery, who have conformed themselves,
in proportion to their tonnage, to the rules and directions pre-
scribed to the owners of ships of greater burthen, shall be en-
titled to the said bounty, according to the admeasurement of

* At the time of passing the act 26th Geo. III. the bounty was 30s. per
ton; but in 1792, by act 32d Geo. III. c. 22. it was reduced to 25s., and, af-
ter the year 1795, to 20s. by the same act.

+ Ships employed in the fishery at the time of passing this act, (1786), if
above 400 tons burthen, were entitled to a bounty of 400 tons; and in case
such ships were not worn out, they were to enjoy the same until the 25th of
December 1791, [26th Geo. III. c, 41. § 8.] And such ships were not re-
quired to be fitted out otherwise than as ships of 400 tons, in order to entitle
them to the bounty.—Jbid. § 9.

APP. N° .] ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. 497

every such ship, provided such admeasurement be not less
than 150 tons.—26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 7.

No person shall be entitled to receive the bounty for any
ship which shall proceed upon the said whale-fishery, from any
port of Great Britain, or the islands of Guernsey, &c. unless
such ship shall sail from the port where she shall be surveyed
and cleared, directly on her intended fishery, on or before the
10th day of April in each year, and shall continue with her
crew in the Greenland seas, or Davis’ Straits, or the adjacent
seas, diligently endeavouring to catch whales, or other crea-
tures living in those seas, and shall not depart from thence
before the 10th day of August next following *, unless such
ship, if she be of the burthen of 300 tons, shall be laden with
30 tons of oil, or blubber in proportion thereto, the blubber
to be rated, with respect to the oil, as three to two, and one
ton and a half of whale-fins; or if she be of greater or less
burthen, with a quantity of oil or blubber, and whale-fins, in
like proportion to the tonnage for which every such ship shall
be entitled to the bounty, being the produce of one or more
whale or whales, caught by the crew thereof, or with the as-
sistance of the crew of some other lictnsed ship, before that
time, or shall be forced by some unavoidable accident or ne-
cessity, to depart sooner from those seas; which accident or
necessity shall be verified on the oaths of the master and mate
belonging to such shyp, upon her return from the said fishery,
before the Collector and another principal officer of the Cus-
toms, at the port where she shall arrive, who shall transmit
the same, together with the schedule, licence, and other do-
cuments, to the Commissioners of the Customs for that port
of Great Britain where such ship shall arrive —26th Geo. III.
c. 41. § 4

The owners of any vessel sailing on the whale-fishery of
Greenland or Davis’ Straits from Great Britain, or the islands
of Guernsey, &c. which shall proceed from the port where
she was surveyed and cleared out, directly on her intended

VoL. If. Ii

“ See the next following paragraph, where this limit is modified.

498 ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. [ app. N°r.

voyage on or before the 10th of April each year, shall be en-
titled to the bounty, althcugh she have not taken the quantity
of oil specified in the foregoing act, (namely, 26th Geo. IIT.
c. 41.) if it appear by her log-book that she had continued
in the said seas, diligently endeavouring to catch whales, or
other creatures living therein, and did not depart from thence
until the expiration of sixteen weeks from the time of her
sailing trom the port where she was surveyed and cleared out,
provided she has not touched at any other port in the voyage,
and have complied with all the other regulations of the said
act.—29th Geo. IIT. c. 53. § 2

In case it shall happen, that any ship or vessel shall not
sail from the port where she was surveyed and cleared, on or
before the said 10th day of April, provided it shall be made
appear, to the satisfaction of the Cominissioners of the Cus-
toms in England and Scotland respectively, that such ship
was properly qualified and duly fitted out, and surveyed,
cleared, and ready for sailing before the said 10th of April,
but was prevented from sailing by some unavoidable impedi-
ment, but shall actually have sailed on or before the 25th
day of April, it shall be lawful for the said Commissioners,
or any four or more of them m England, or any three or
more of them in Scotland, to pay the bounty for such ship,
in like manner as if the said ship had actually sailed on or
before the 10th day of April.—26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 4.

No bountv shall be paid to any person or persons what-
ever, on account of any ship employed in the said fishery,
unless a log-book shall have been constantly kept on board,
in which log-book the various situations and occurrences re-
specting such ship, during the whole course of the voyage,
shall be mserted every day, and particularly the times when
such ship shall have been in sight of land, distinguishing what
land, and the bearings thereof, and the supposed distances
therefrom, and the soundings; and also the times when, and
the latitude in which, any whale, or other creature living in
the sea, shall have been killed, taken, or caught by the crew
of such ship; which log-book shall be delivered by the mas-
ter, or other person having the command of such ship, at the

APP. NT] ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. 459

time of his making a report, to the Collector of the Customs,
at the port in Great Britain where such ship shall arrive on
her return from the said fishery, for his inspection and exa-
mination ; and the said master, or other person having the
command of such ship, together with the mate thereof, shall
jomtly and severally verity on oath the contents of such log-
book before such Collector.—26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 10.

In case any such ship shall fall in with any of his Majesty’s
vessels of war, the master, or other person having the com-
mand of her, shall produce to the Captain, or other officer
commanding such vessel of war, the said log-book, and such
Captain or commanding officer shall make a memorandum in
such log-book, of the day in which it was so produced to him,
and shall subscribe his name thereto, and also make an
entry in the log-book of the said vessel of war, of the name
and description of such ship on board of which the log-
book so produced to and signed by him was kept; and
in case such ship, on board of which a log-book is so re-
quired to be kept, shall put into any foreign port, where
there is a British Consul, or other chief British officer, the
master, or other person having the command of such ship,
shall produce such log-book to such British Consul, or other
chief British officer, who shall make a memorandum therein,
of the day on which it was so produced to him, and shall in
like manner subscribe the same.—26th Geo. IIE. c. 41. § 11.

Every ship owned by his Majesty’s subjects residing in Ire-
land, and fitted out from any port in that kingdom, which shall
have complied with the conditions of this aci, to be verified by
certificates, in such manner, and under like rules, regula-
tions, and restrictions, as are required by any law in force be-
fore the passing of this act *, to entitle ships or vessels fitted

out from Ireland to the bounties then existing for the encou-
1i2

* 15th Geo, III. c. 31. § 21. contains the regulations for visiting and licen-
sing, by the revenue-officers in Ireland, vessels fitted out from thence for the
bounties then existing. The regulatiuns are similar to those practised in Great
Britain, and the vessels are required to import their whale-fins, oil, aad blub-
bez, into some port of Great Britain, to be previously named.—Jicicling’s Digest
of the Laws of the Customs.

500 ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. [APP. N° I.

ragement of the Greenland and Davis’ Straits whale-fishery,
shall be entitled to the same bounties as the like ships or vessels
fitted out from Great Britain. —26th Geo. IIT. ¢. 41. § 12.
It shall be lawful for the owner of any ship employed or
designed to be employed in the said fishery, to insure the
bounty which such owner would be entitled to upon the re-
turn of such ship to her proper port; and on the performance
of all other matters directed and appointed to be performed
for obtaining the said bounty.—26th Geo. IIT. ¢. 41. § 13.
Whale-fins, oil, or blubber of whales, seal-oil, or seal-skins,
or any other produce of seals, or other fish or creatures taken
or caught in the said Greenland seas or Davis’ Straits, or m
the seas adjacent, by British subjects usually residing in Great
Britain or Ireland, or the islands of Guernsey, Jersey, Alder-
ney, Sark, or Man, in British built ships or vessels, owned
and navigated as before required, in regard to the bounties,
shall and may be imported into Great Britain, without pay-
ing any custom, subsidy, or other duty for the same *, ex-
cepting only the duties imposed on articles of British fishing,
by consolidation act of the 49th Geo. III. c. 98. Table (A),

inwards +. |

* Thus far the original act of 26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 14, continues in force,
subject only to the annexed exception. For the oath required by the next sec-
tion of this act, that the cargo was caught by the crews of such ships, other
proof is substituted, as stated in act 49th Geo. IIT. c. 98. § 37.

+ Under the regulations of the act 26th Geo. III. c. 41. whale-fins, oil, or
blubber of whales, scal-oil, or seal-skins, &c. were permitted to be imported free
of duty; but in the year 1797, a duty of 1Gs. 10d. per ton was laid on “‘train-oil,
or blubber, fish-oil, or oil of seals, or other creatures living in the seas, not other-
wise enumerated or described”? by the Tonnage-duty act, 38th Geo. III. c. 76.
Table (A) inwards. And upon other produce of the fisheries, such as whale-
fins, skins, &c. because not particularly enumerated or described, a duty of
3 per cent. was imposed by the same act. This act, by which blubber and oil were
equally charged, though these articles bear a proportion to each other as 3 to &
nearly, was amended by 28th and 40th Geo, III. c. 51. § 1. whereby blubber
was permitted to be boiled into oi], under the inspection of the proper officers,
and such oil admitted to entry, and the duty paid thereon. An alteration seems
to have been intended to be made by 42d Geo. III. c. 43. Table (A) inwards ;
but the Consolidation Act of the 43d Geo. ITI. ¢. G3. being passed so soon after

APP. N°1.] ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. 501

Whale-fins, oil, or blubber of whales, seal-oil, or seal-skins,
or other fish, &c. caught in any part of the ocean by British
subjects, usually residmg in Great Britain or Ireland, or
islands of Guernsey, &c. in ships built in either of the said
kingdoms or islands, owned, registered, and navigated accord-
ing to law, although moé fitted out in other respects so as to
be entitled to the bounty, may be imported into Great Bri-
tain, without paying any duty, (excepting the duties of the
consolidation act of the 59th Geo. III. c. 52. subsequently
imposed) ; provided proof be made that the said articles were
actually caught by the crew of the said vessel importing them,

it, on which new duties were laid on Greenland produce, the former appears

not to have been generally enforced.

By consolidation act of 49th Geo. III. c. 98. Schedule (A) inwards, a “ per-
manent duty” of 5s, 3d. per ton, and a “‘ war duty” of 1s. 9d. were laid on
train-oil of British fishing, imported in British built vessels, owned, registered,
and navigated according tolaw. The war duty on Greenland and Davis’ Strait
produce, was continued after the peace until the year 1816, when it was made
permanent by act 56th Geo. III. c. 29. § 1. And an addition of one-fourth to
the original permanent custom-duties, was ordered to be levied by act 53d
Geo. III. c. 33., by which the whole duty on train-oil of British fishing was
increased to $s. 33d. per ton.

The duties now leviable on the produce of the fisheries of Greenland and
Davis’ Strait, as enumerated in the last Consolidation Act of 59th Geo, III.
c. 52. Table (A) inwards, are as follow: ,

‘*¢ Blubber, the produce of fish, or creatures living in the sea, taken and caught
by the crew of a British built ship or vessel, wholly owned by his Majesty’s
subjects, usually residing in Great Britain, Ireland, or the islands of Guern-
sey, Jersey, Alderney, Sark, or Man, registered and navigated according to
law, and imported in any such shipping, the ton, containing 252

gallons, - . - L.0 5 6
“ Train-oil, the produce of fish,” [as above,] per ton, - 08 3
“ Whale-fins, taken and caught,” &c. [as above], per ton of 20 cwt. 2 7 6
** Blubber, the produce of fish or creatures living in the sea, of fo-
reign fishing, the ton, containing 252 gallons, - 22 3 4
* Train-oil, of foreign fishing, per ton, - - 33 5 0
“¢ Whale-fins, of foreign fishing, the ton, containing 20 ewt. 95°0 0
*¢ Bear skins, undressed, imported in a British built vessel, per skin, O 4 6
‘¢ Seal skins, undressed, imported in a British built vessel, per skin, 0 O 3
*¢ Skins and furs, undressed, not particularly enumerated or described,
G

or otherwise charged with duty, per cent. ad val. - 75 0

502 ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. [ApP. N°T.

by oath of the master, and provided a log-book be kept in
the usual way.—32d Geo. IIT. c. 22. § 4.

Before any blubber, train-oil, or spermaceti-oil, or head
matter, or whale-fins, imported into Great Britain, being
the produce of fish or creatures living in the sea, taken by
the crew of a British built vessel, wholly owned by his Ma-
jesty’s subjects, usually residing in Great Britain or Ireland,
Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney, Sark, or Man, registered and na-
vigated according to law, shall be admitted to entry, on paying
the duties imposed by this act, on such blubber, train-oil, &e.
mported in such ship ; the shipmaster, or other person having
the command, shall make oath before the chief officer of the
Customs at the port into which the same shall be imported,
that the same was bond fide the produce of fish, &c. actually
caught by the crew of any such vessel: and the importer,
proprietor, or consignee of such blubber, &c. shall also make
eath before such officer, at the time of the entry, that, to the
best of his knowledge and belief, the articles so imported were
bond fide the produce of fish, &c. actually taken by the crew
of a British built vessel, wholly owned by his Majesty’s sub-
jects, usually residing in Great Britain, Ireland, &c. register-
ed and navigated according to law ; on failure whereof, such
articles shall be deemed and taken to be foreign fishing, and
charged with the duties imposed on such articles of foreign
fishing. —49th Geo. IIT. c. 98. § 37.

If any person or persons shall grant any false certificate for
any of the purposes required or directed by this act, such per-
son or persons shall forfeit the sum of L.500; and if any per-
son or persons shall counterfeit, erase, alter, or falsify any cer-
tificate required or directed by this act, or shall knowingly
make use of any false certificate, or of any certificate so coun-
terfeited, erased, altered, or falsified, such person or persons
shall, for every such offence, forfeit the sum of L. 500, and
every such certificate shall be invalid, and of no effect. —26th
Geo. ITI. c. 41. § 16.

APP. N° 1.] ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. 503

- No harpooner, line-manager, or boat-steerer, who shall be in
or belong to any vessel in the Greenland fishery trade *, and
whose name (distinguishing the capacity in which he is to
serve) shall be inserted in a list, delivered on oath by the
owner of the vessel to the Collector of the Customs at the port
from which she is to proceed on the fishery, shall be impress-
ed from the said service ; and such harpcooner, boat-steerer, or
hne-manager, may, when not employed in the said fishery,
sail in the colliery or coasting} trade, upon giving security } to
the satisfaction of the Commissioners of the Customs, that he
or they will proceed in the said vessel to the Greenland seas,
er Davis’ Straits, on the whale-fishery, the next season ; and
every seaman or common mariner who shall be entered to
serve on board any vessel intended to proceed on the said
fishery, whose name shall be inserted in a list, to be delivered
as aforesaid, and who shall have given security to proceed ac-
cordingly, shall be exempt from being impressed out of the
said service from the Ist of February each year, until the
voyage home from thence shall be fully complete and ended,
and no longer. (26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 17.) Provided al-
ways, that this act shall not extend to protect from the im-
press any greater number of officers than six harpooners, six
boat-steerers, and six-line-managers, belonging to each vessel
of the burthen of 300 tons, and so in proportion of every
vessel of smaller burthen ; one harpooner, one boat-steerer,

* By act 32d Geo. III. c. 22. § 5. harpooners, boat-steerers, line-managers
and seamen belonging to vessels not fitted out under the regulations of the acts
which would entitle them to the bounty, are protected from the impress, on
the same conditions relative to oaths and securities, as those fitted out under
the bounty acts, but with the proviso, that the act do not extend ‘* to protect
from the impress more than 6 harpooners, 6 line-managers, 6 boat-steerers,
and 18 common mariners, belonging to each such vessel of 400 tons burthen,
and so on in proportion for any less tonnage.”

»+ In the original act, the word coasting is omitted ; but it was introduced in
act 31st Geo. ILI. c. 43. and has since been perpetuated.

+ For the conditions and nature of this security, vide Appendix No. IV.
art. 4.

504 ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. [apr. N° XR

and one line-manager less for every 50 tons smaller burthen *.
—42d Geo. IIT. ¢. 22. § 2.

The Greenland Seas and Davis’ Straits, and seas adjacent,
within the intent and meaning of the bounty acts, shall be
deemed and taken to extend to the latitude of fifty-nine de-
grees thirty minutes north, and no farther.—26th Geo. iit.
e. 41. § 18.

No whale-boat belonging to any whale-fishing ship employ-
ed in the above fishery or in the seas to the south thereof,
shall be liable to seizure on account of her built, dimensions,
or construction ; but on the return of such ship from the fish-
ery every season, such boat shall be laid up by the owner or
owners thereof in such place or places as shall be approved
of by the principal officer of the Customs of the port at
which such ship shall arrive, and shall not be employed or
made use of in any way whatever, but in the said fisheries.
—32d Geo. ITT. c. 22. § 6.

If the master of any vessel, or any other person, to whom
any apprentice shall be mdentured, pursuant to act 26th
Geo. III. c. 41. shall suffer him to leave his service (ex-
cept as herein after provided) before the end of the term for
which he is bound, such master, or other person, shall forfeit,
for each offence, fifty pounds, to be recovered by action of
debt, &e. in any of his Majesty’s courts of record. [29th Geo.
III. c. 58. § 5.] Not to extend to any case where an ap-
prentice is legally discharged before a Magistrate, or turned
over from one person to another concerned in the said fisheries,
to serve the remainder of his time in the said fisheries, pursu-
ant to the said act.—29th Geo. III. c. 53. § 6.

Spermaceti-oil, head-matter, train-oil, and all other fish-oil,
blubber, and whale-fins, of British fishing, imported at Lon-

* As neither this nor the fundamental act, (26th Geo. IIT.), limits the number
of seamen to be protected during the voyage, it has become a practice with the
Officers of Customs to assume the number of common seamen required by law
to be on board each ship, (26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 21.), as the amount to be pro-
tected; that is, 16 men in a ship of 300 tons or upwards, and two men less
for every fifty tons smaller burthen.

APP.N°X.] ABSTRACT OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT. 505
!

don * (not by the East India Company, or from the West
Indies), may be landed and secured in approved warehouses,
without the duties being first paid.—43d Geo. III. c. 182.
§ 4. and 5. Table D.

The Commissioners of the Customs for England and Scot-
land respectively shall, at the beginning of every session of
Parliament, lay before both Houses of Parliament, an ac-
count, in writing, of what number of vessels have been em-
ployed in the whale-fishery to Davis’ Straits and the Green-
land Seas, with their respective names and burthens, from
whence they were fitted out, and at what port in Great Bri-
tain they were discharged ; and also what quantity of oil or
blubber, or whale-fins, each ship or vessel shall have import-
ed.— 26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 19.

One moiety of the penalties inflicted by this act shall be to
the use of his Majesty, and the other moiety to such Officer
or Officersof the Customs as shall sue for the same.—26th Geo.
III. c. 41. § 20.

If any action shall be commenced against any person or
persons for any thing done in pursuance of this act, they may
plead the general issue, and give this act and the special mat-
ter in evidence that the same was done by authority of this
act: And if it shall appear so to have been done, then the
jury shall find for the defendant or defendants; and if the
plaintiff shall be nonsuited, &c. the defendant or defendants
shall recover treble costs.—26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 21.

* This indulgence may, by Order in Council, be extended to any other port.
—43d Geo. III. c. 132. § 10.

506 REMARKS ON THE SIZE OF WHALE-SHIPS. [ APP. N° II,

No. II.

1. SomME REMARKS ON THE MOST ADVANTAGEOUS DIMENSIONS
OF A WHALE-SHITP.

It has been remarked (page 189 of this volume), that per-
haps a roomy ship of 330 or 340 tons burden, possesses more
advantages, in the whale-fishing, with fewer disadvantages,
than a vessel of similar build of any other capacity. It may
be useful to examine the truth of this proposition,

In the most favourable and prosperous cases, a ship of
330 tons burden may receive on board about 150 tons of
blubber at once; a ship of 250 tons scarcely 100. Hence,
being soon crowded with blubber, the smaller ship is not ca-
pable of deriving the same advantage from any extraordinary
“ run of fish” as the larger ; the fishing is necessarily suspen-
ded, until the blubber obtained is packed in casks, an ope-
ration requiring so much time, that a favourable opportunity,
such as a run of fish, rarely continues until it is completed,
nor often recurs in one season. But as the larger vessel
might, on such an occasion, have obtained 50 tons of blubber
more than the smaller, before it would be necessary to ‘‘ make
off,” the advantage in the fishery would, of course, be highly
in her favour. Besides, with the most successful issue, the
cargo of a small ship must necessarily be such, that her pro-
fits, under all circumstances, must be comparatively mode-
rate.

Though the cargoes of a large and small ship, when filled,
may be in proportion to their tonnage, yet neither the profits
nor advances are in the same proportion. For since a ship
of $30 tons may, if required, be navigated with the same
crew, and fitted for the fishery at the same expence of stores
as one of 250 tons; the principal pomt in which the expen-
ces of the larger will exceed those of the smaller, will be in
the matter of first cost. Now, the difference in the first eost

APP. N°IIl.] REMARKS ON THE SIZE OF WHALE-sHIPS. 507

of two new ships of 250 and 330 tons will be about 1600. ;
the extra interest of capital, insurance, and wear and tear, on
which may be stated at 1507. per annum. Therefore reckon-
ing the average value of oil to the whale-fishers at 271. per
ton, (‘7/. being deducted for paying the premiums of the mas-
ter and seamen on the oil, with expences of extracting it, &c.)
the larger ship, to return the same profits to the owners as
the smaller, will require a cargo of 53 tons of oil each voyage
more than that of the smaller; but every ton of oil she pro-
cures above that quantity in excess, will be equal to 277. ad-
vantage to the owners. Supposing, then, the two ships to get
full cargoes, the larger will carry about 240 tons, and the
smaller about 160, the difference of which is 80 tons ; this,
reckoned at 27/7. per ton, expences in premiums and manu-
facture being deducted, amounts to 2160/., the additional
profit in favour of the larger vessel. This advantage, how-
ever, can only be casual; yet it is so considerable, that when
connected with the first mentioned advantage of profiting to
a greater extent on meeting with a “ heavy run of fish,” to-
gether with the superior comfort and convenience afforded in
large vessels, it becomes a benefit of much greater moment
than the excess of expences with which it is obtained ; conse-
quently these considerations appear to warrant the equipment
of vessels of 330 or 340 tons, in preference to any of smaller
dimensions, on the ground of their superiority in point of
adaptation, and advantage to the proprietors.
As a roomy vessel of 330 or $40 tons will contain as large
a cargo as can generally be obtained, even in the most favour-
able season, it is probable that a much further increase of ton-
nage would be almost useless; and if so, it must be obtained
at areal expence and disadvantage. How far, however, a
moderate increase or diminution of tonnage might be made,
without becoming unprofitable, must be a matter of opinion
and uneertainty.

508 FORTIFICATIONS OF A GREENLAND SHIP. [APPp. N° IL.

2. FuRTHER NOTICES RESPECTING THE FORTIFICATIONS OF

A GREENLAND SHIP.

[See p. 191.]

A plan for the internal fortifications of a whale-ship, adopt-
ed by Messrs Hurry and Gibson in the fitting out of the
Lady Forbes from Liverpool, and, since then, applied to a
new ship built by Messrs Mottershead and Hays of that
port, seems to possess some advantages over that described in
Chap. iv. sect. 1. of this volume, and, it appears to me, ought
therefore to be noticed. ‘The new ship, which is intended to
be put under my command, is of a very superior and sub-
stantial build, and is fortified within the bow in the manner
following :

The breast-hooks, five in number, are 12 inches square,
and about 12 fect in length, and are placed 12 inches asun-
der. All the breast-hooks are extended by an horizontal tim-
ber applied to each end, and every space is filled up with four
similar timbers, (a little slighter), while three horizontal ranges
of timber of a similar kind are placed beneath the lowest of
the breast-hooks. These altogether form a solid bed of tim-
ber, extending from the hold-beams downward to the foot of
the apron, and occupying the whole interior of the bows to
the distance of 1'7 feet on each side of the stem. This part
of the fortifications intersects, in the direction of its timbers,
the square-frames and cant-timbers of the bows nearly at
right angles, and each hook, intermediate timber and pointer,
is bolted with copper into every frame which it intersects. ©
Across this horizontal range of the fortifications are placed 7
riders, extending from the hold-beams down to the lowest
pointer ; one rider is in the centre, corresponding, in position,
with the stem, another crosses the ends of all the pointers,
and two more on each side are placed at equal intervals be-
tween those in the extremes and in midships: Near about
the centre of the circle, of which the bows at the height of
the hold-beams are arcs, is fixed a square perpendicular tim-
ber called a king-post, of the diameter of 18 or 19 inches

APP. N° III. | SCHEDULE OF FISHING-STORES. 509

each side, and extending from one of the hold-beams to the
kelson. This post is convex on the fore part, present-
ing an arch towards the stem, and receives the interior ends
of the shores, twenty-eight in number, fixed against the ri-
ders. It is supported abaft by two beams, of 12 inches
square, one 24 feet, the other 5 feet below the hold-beams,
which are securely fastened by knees to the timbers in the
bows. As the king-post occupies a central position with re-
gard to the bows of the ship, the shores being set in close or-
der between it and every rider, become radii of the circle of
which the water-line of the bows forms the circumference.
Hence, whenever a blow is received on any part of the bow,
the shock is communicated by the shores directly to the king-
post, and from thence dispersed throughout every part of the
fortifications with whic h it is connected.

No. III.

[Referred to in p. 199.]

SCHEDULE OF THE PRINCIPAL FISHING APPARATUS NECES-
SARY FOR A SHIP OF THREE HUNDRED TONS BURDEN OR
UPWARDS, INTENDED TO BE EMPLOYED IN THE GREEN-
LAND TRADE.

Wood and Iron Work. -
7 or 8 whale-boats, of 5 or 6 oars; those of five oars are the
most convenient, and are usually 25 or 26 feet in length.
25 or 80 pairs of pulling oars, 14 to 16 fect in length.
6 or 8 pairs of steering ours, 18 to 20 feet in length.
60 harpoons.
40 lances.
20 boat-hooks. ,
2 or 8 dozen seal clubs.
7 or 10 splicing-fids.
7 or 8 boat-azes.
7 or 8 grapnels.
2 or more boat-weneces.

a

510 SCHEDULE OF FISHING-STORES. VAPP. N° LI,

7 boat jacks or flags.

2 or more boat compasses (wood-bowls).
7 blowing-horns ?

7 or 8 tail-knives.

8 or 10 blubber-knives.

10 to 15 strand-knives.

3 or 4 whale-bone knives.

1 blubbler cutting appuratus, or 7 chopping knives.
6 gumming-knives.

8 or 10 seal and krenging knives.

3 or 4 krenging-hooks.

6 steels.

12 blubber-spades.

2 (whale)-bone spades.

6 or 8 prickers.

6 or 8 king’s forks.

10 or 12 pick-haaks.

2 pairs of hand-hooks ; or more.

7 pairs of spurs.

3 or 4 pairs of 7s and claws, or sets of bone-geer.
2 (whale)-bone handspikes.

6 iron closhes.

2 to 4 ice-poles, 24 feet in length.

1 ice-anchor, 100 lb. in weight.

1 ditto, 75 Ib.

2 ditto, 50 |b.

2 ditto, 30 lb.

1 bay-ice anchor, 25 lb.

2 ice-grapnels.

6 ice-axes or ice-drills.

1 ice-saw, 12 or 14 feet m length.

2 ditto, with moveable backs, 6 and 9 feet.
1 harpoon-gun, or more.

1 flensing wince, or extra capstern.

1 armourer’s forge.

2 pairs of cant-hooks.

1 pair of chain-slings for casks.

APP. N° rII.] SCHEDULE OF FISHING STORES. 511

1 lull tron.

1 speck trough, with supporting screws for the lid *.

1 harpoon chest, about 6 feet long, 24 broad, and 2} deep.

4 or 6 blubber-pumps t.

1 or 2 grindstones.

280 to 800 tons of casks, of sizes suitable for stowage.

A quantity of hoop-iron and rivets.

A set of cooper’s tools.

A set of armoure?’s tools, including files.

Bungs; spare staves; stave-ends for buckets and speck-
tubs, &c.

Rickers, poles, or other wood for harpoon and lance-stocks;
handles of knives, spades, prickers, pick-haaks, seal-
clubs, ice-axes, ice-poles, boat-hooks, &c. &c. &c. and
wood for tholes, &c.

Blocks and davits.

Davits or cranes for seven boats.

18 boat-tackle, threefold blocks.

12 leading-blocks for the above.

8 or 10 euy-blocks or speck-tackle blocks, 15 or 18 inches.

2 leading-blocks for speck-tackles, iron-bound.

1 large snatch-block, 3 inch mortice, iron-bound.

8 kent-blocks, 2 double, 1 single, 24 inches.

7 boat snatch-blocks.

Cordage.

60 whale-lines, 120 fathoms each. —

1 guy, 8 to 10 inches, tapered.

Boats tackle-falls, 500 fathoms; 2} inches.

Kent tackle-fall, 70 fathoms ; 5 inches.

Speck tackle-falls, and rope for bone-geer, 200 fathoms ;
$1 inches.

5 or 6 tce-hawsers or warps, 80 to 120 fathoms each ; from
4 to 9 inches in circumference.

* When a blubber-cutting apparatus is used, the speck-trough, lull-iron, and
ehopping-knives, are scarcely needed.

+ Figures of most of the above instruments are contained in Plates xviii.
xix. xx. xxi, and xxii, See the last article of this Appendix.

2

512 MANNER OF ADMEASURING WHALE-sHIPS. [APP. N° IV.

No. LY. y
MANNER OF ADMEASURING WHALE-SHIP8, AND MUSTERING

THEIR CREWS, WITH SOME ACCOUNT OF THE AFFIDAVITS,

CERTIFICATES, &€. REQUIRED BY LAW.
[Referred to p. 199.]

An Abstract of the Directions approved and transmitted by
the Commissioners of Customs, for regulating the procced-
ings of Surveying Officers, admeasuring and examining
into the State of Ships intended for the Northern Whale-
Fisheries.

Rules for ADMEASUREMENT, Ke.

1. The ship being aground, dry, and upright, her length
is taken, from the aft side of the main stern-post, (and not
from any false piece attached to it,) ‘‘ on a straight line along
the rabbit of the keel, to the fore part of the main-stem, by a
line immediately under the bowsprit, and squared to the line
of the rabbit of the keel.” This is the length taken.”

2. “ The breadth is to be taken in the broadest part, out-
side and outside, immediately above or below the main-wales,
deducting doubling, sheathing, or any extraordinary thick
stuff worked thereon.” This is ** the extreme breadth.”

3. From “the length taken” deduct three-fifths of the
breadth, and the remaimder is esteemed “ the length of the
keel for tonnage.”

4. Multiply ‘ the length of the keel for tonnage,” by “ the
extreme breadth,” and the product by half the extreme
breadth, and divide the whole by 94, gives the tonnage.
(This article is followed by some hints for performing the ad-
measurements with accuracy.)

5. To ascertain the identity of the crew on the return of
the ships, the mustering officers are directed, on mustering out-
wards, to take down the names of the marmers, the age,
where born and resident, stature and description of each ac-
cording to a prmted form; and if, on the return, the deserip-

APP. N° Ivy.] | MODE OF MUSTERING WHALE-SHIPS. 513

tions do not correspond, the differences are to be represented
to the Collector, &c. and transmitted to the Board. A duphi-
cate of such list is to be entered “ on the back of the certifi-
cate, of the ship’s being properly fitted for the whale-fishery 5

and the owner and master’s oath.”

The Mode of MustrEri1ne Greenland-ships.

1. When the ship is completely fitted according to law,
“* the master or owner gives notice that she will be ready for
muster on a certain day; on which the proper officers go on
board, when a list of the crew is delivered to them by the ma-
ster, in which is described their names and stations, and they
are all ordered on the quarter-deck, close to the tafrail, when
the muster begins.”

2. Master.— The master is called and examined very
strictly, whether he has on board a sufficient quantity of good
and wholesome provisions, to serve the whole crew for six
months with full allowance; an account of which is given in
writing, and afterwards sworn to before the collector.”

3. Surcxon.—* The person nominated as surgeon is next
called, and strictly examined as to his abilities and qualifica-
tions ; if he produces certificates, &c. of his having been regu-
larly bred to that profession he is passed; if not, he is re-
jected, and another proper person is provided before the ship
is suffered to clear out.”

4. Harroonrrs.— The harpooners are calied and exa-
mined separately ; those who have been three voyages in
that fishery, and in the character of boat-steerers, are passed ;
those who have not, are rejected.”

5. Boat-steErers.—** Bouat-steerers are examined; such
as have been ¢wo voyages in this fishery, in the character of
line-managers, are admitted, or otherwise rejected.”

6. Lrye-manacers.— Line-managers are rejected un-
less they have been one or more voyages in the fishery.”

7. GREEN-MEN.—* Green-men are admitted, whether sea-
men or landmen, provided they have never before been on
such a voyage or fishery.”

VOL. II. Kk

514 accoUNT OF AFFIDAVITS AND CERTIFICATES. [ APP. N°IV,

8. Apprentices.—“ Apprentices must be above twelve
and under twenty years of age when bound ; and the inden-
tures must be for three years at least. If any doubt arise as
to the proper age, proof must be made by the master, produ-
cing his parochial register, or otherwise the boy is rejected.
Care is taken, by examining the indentures, to see that the
owners names, and the name of the ship in which they are to
serve, are inserted therein.”

9. “ The number of lines, harpoons, boats, and other re-
quisites prescribed by the act, are examined.”

The muster-list is then made out, “ certified and delivered
to the collector, who thereby clears the ship outwards, and
the board grants her licence to proceed on her voyage *.”

“* On the return, the master gives notice to the mustermg
officers, who go on board, order the crew upon the quarter-
deck, and proceed by calling them by their names. If any
have run, as is frequently the case, the person present is
examined strictly as to his qualifications, and his name 1s pla-
ced in the list, noting in whose room he has served. The
contents of the cargo is inserted in this list.”

Some Account of the Affidavits, Certificates, &c. required by
Law.

1. The Certificate of the mustering officer consists of a co-
py of the “ muster-list,” with a notification of the number of
lines, harpoons, and. boats on board, and a declaration of the
sufficiency of the provisions,—of the vessel being strongly
built, and otherwise a proper ship for such voyage and fishe-
ry,—and of there being among her crew a sufficient number
of harpooners, steersmen, and line-managers, who have before
been employed in such voyages. This, also including the af-
fidavits of the owner and master, with regard to their faithful

* As the Licence is a matter of right, ‘when all the papers expressive of the
conditions of the law having been fulfilled, are regularly prepared, the ship is
not obliged to wait until the arrival of the licence.

APP. Nerv. | ACCOUNT OF AFFIDAVITS AND CERTIFICATES. 515

imtentions as to the design of the voyage, is signed by the
collector and comptroller of the port, and completes the
“certificate of a ship’s bemg properly fitted for the whale-
fishery.”

2. Owners and Masters Oath.—The nature of these affi-
davits is very clearly defined in act 26th Geo. III. c. 41. § 1.
(See third paragraph of Appendix, N° I.)

3. Masier’s Bond—Every master of a whale-ship, before
licence can be granted for the ship to proceed on her voyage,
must be bound, along with two sufficient securities, of whom
the owner who clears the ship is generally one, in the sum of
L. 900, or treble the bounty, for the faithful dealings of him-
self and ship’s company, in regard to the said ship and voy-
age.

This bond, after reciting sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, '7, 8, 9, &
10, of act 26th Geo. ITI. ¢. 41, &c. proceeds to the conditions
of the obligation, which are such, “ that if the said ship F,
now owned, manned, and navigated, and duly qualified for
the said fisher y, in such manner as is, by the said act, direc-
ted and required, shall so continue during the whole voyage ;
and if all the whale-fins, oil and blubber, which shall be real-
ly and truly caught and taken in the said seas, by the crew of
such ship only, or with the assistance of the crew of any other
licensed ship, before that time, shall be imported in the said
ship into some port of Great Britain; and if the said master,
and his ship’s company, do and shall in all respects whatso-
ever, conform themselves to the said act, and deal faithfully
in the execution thereof, then this obligation to be void, or
else to remain and be in full force, effect, and virtue.

Sealed and delivered (being (Signed by the master
first legally stamped) in and each security.)
the presence of

(Collector)
(Comptroller)

4. Protection Bonds.—In time of war, the officers of
whale-fishing ships are protected, while, on coasting-voyages,
Kk2

Gr

16 © ACCOUNT OF AFFIDAVITS AND BONDS. _— [APP. N° EV.

during the intervals of each voyage to the fishery, as well as
during their servitude in the ships to which they belong ; and
the seamen of such ships are likewise protected from the 1st
of February each year, to the end of the next ensuing voy-
age.

Ojjicer’s Bond.—The penalty of this bond is the sum of £250.
After the recapitulation of section 17. of act 26th Geo. ITI.c. 41,
relating to the protection of officers of whale-fishing ships, the
nature of the obligation of this bond, in which the officers are
jointly and severally liable, is stated to be, that they shall re-
turn on board their ship on or before the 10th of March
following, and shall proceed in the said ship to Greenland or
Davis’ Straits, or either of them, on the said fishery ;” then
this obligation to be void, or else to remain in full force.

(Signed, in the presence of the Collector and Comptrol-
ler, by each of the protected officers.)

Seamen's Bond. Penalty L. 250. This bond is similar
to the former. Act 26th Geo. III. § 17. being recited, the
conditions of the obligation are stated to be, that if such nam-
ed men shall remain on board and be employed in the service
of the said ship, all and every of them, and shall proceed in the
said ship to Greenland or Davis’ Straits on the said fishery,
then this obligation to be void, or else to remain in full force *.

5. Master and Mates Oath on the Ship's Return.—In
this affidavit, the act by which it is ordered (26th Geo. ITI.
c. 41. § 3.) is so closely followed that it needs no description.

6. Affidavit of the Truth of the Log-book.—This 1s ano-
ther oath administered te the master and mate. In the form
of it, section 10. of act 26th Geo. III. c. 41. is closely fol-
lowed.

7. Affidavit of the Importer—This oath is taken before
the cargo imported can be admitted to entry on the duties
chargeable on the produce of British fishing, and expresses,
“that all the whale-fins, oil, and blubber, imported in the

* It was, in some ports, a prevailing mistake, that the owners of the whale-
ships were the bondmen of the seamen; whereas, by the nature of the bond, it is
clear that both officers and seamen are alone bound for themselves and for one
another.

APP. N° Iv.] ACCOUNT OF AFFIDAVITS AND BONDS. 517

said ship this present voyage, were really and bona fide
caught and taken in the said seas (of Greenland or Davis’
Straits), by the crew of the said ship only, or with the assis-
tance of the crew of some other British built ship or vessel, li-
censed for this voyage, pursuant” to act of Parliament.

From the construction of this clause, any ship having re-
ceived assistance in the capture of a whale from the crew of a
foreign vessel, or any vessel not duly licensed, whether by ac-
cident or design, there arises a legal incapacity for claiming
the bounty, or even for importing the cargo free of the for-
eign duties! In such cases, however, where it should be
made to appear that the law was not wilfully broken, an ap-
plication only to the Treasury would, probably, be necessary
for restoring to the owners of the vessel their forfeited privi-
leges. Yet the form is objectionable, from the temptation it
offers to make false attestation for avoiding the risk of losing
the bounty, or the trouble of making the necessary applica-
tions for obtaining it, and for getting rid of the heavy duties
chargeable on the produce of foreign fishing.

The oaths required to be taken before the officers of Cus-
toms, while they are extremely painful to conscientious per-
sons, are, perhaps, productive of no real benefit to the reve-
nue. Irom their frequency, they certainly tend to make ap-
peals to the Almighty too familiar, and reduce the solemnity
of an oath into a matter of form. They have, indeed, a still
more dangerous tendency. For it may be observed, that
many oaths administered at a custom-house, are so worded
that it is impossible to attest the truth of the whele of the
points, without applying a construction to the spirit of the
oath, which does not appear in the letter. Hence, it becomes
a practice, almost indispensable, not to swear to the simple
meaning of the words that are read, but to such a construc-
tion of them as the individual to whom they are presented may
believe them capable. Thus, all that is aimed at is to avoid
wilful and corrupt perjury; whilst the act of swearing to the
‘truth of what you know nothing of, becomes occasionally ne-

518 IMPORTANT ACTION RESPECTING A WHALE. [AP?. N° V.

cessary for the transaction of business. When once an oath
loses its solemnity, perjury becomes a crime of little more
y» perjury
weight, in the mind of a person not over scrupulous in moral
duties, than the speaking of an untruth.
? DS

No. V.

ACCOUNT OF A TRIAL RESPECTING THE RIGHT OF THE SHIP
EXPERIMENT, TO A WHALE STRUCK BY ONE OF THE CREW
OF THE NEPTUNE *.

Gale versus Wilkinson.

Mr Sortcrror-GENERAL said, this was an action of trover,
to recover the value of a whale, a harpoon, a line, and a boat.
The question arose out of the whale-fishery. The plainuff
was owner of a Greenland ship called the Neptune; and the
defendant was owner of the Experiment, another ship in the
same trade. One morning in the year 1804, perhaps much such
another cold morning as this was, the two ships’ boats were
fishing near the North Pole. ‘The Neptune’s boat was looking
out near a vast field of ice, about thirty miles in breadth, when
the crew perceived a whale. The harpooner of the Neptune
instantly struck the fish, which plunged, and carried with her
above 1200 yards of line. The crew were determined not to
lose her, and therefore kept the line fast to the boat, and suf-
fered the whale to draw it under the ice. The crew themselves
got upon the ice, and erected a flag, as a signal to the Nep-
tune, that they had struck a fish. They knew the whale
must return m a certain time to get air. The Neptune's
people obeyed the signal, and sent off five boats to assist.
They arrived before any of the boats of the Experiment,
which were fishing at a distance, and which also came to the
spot, in consequence of a signal from that ship. It happen-
ed that the whale rose with her head towards the Experi-

a

“ For this important article I am indebted to James Gale, Esq. of Shad-
well, London.

AYP. N° v.] IMPORTANT ACTION RESPECTING A WHALE. 519

ment’s boats, and their harpoons struck her. She was struck
five or six times, and was at last killed. The captain of the
Neptune expostulated with the captain of the Experiment,
observing, that it was impossible the latter should dispute
his title, as his harpoon, which was first struck, had all along
remained fixed to the boat. He said, that it was evident he
had never left the pursuit of the fish; on the contrary, in-
stead of cutting the line with a hatchet, to save the lives of
the crew, he had given the whale the boat, in order that
when it arose again, it might appear like a buoy crying out,
“«« This is the fish of the Neptune.” He added, that the boats
of the Neptune were at hand to assist ; surely, then, he could
not pretend to have any right to keep the whale. “ Aye,
marry, do I,” replied the other, “ and I claim your harpoon,
line, and boat, too; and, by God’s providence, I will have
them.” This phrase was not without its meaning; for the
people of Greenland, not the most cultivated and polished
place in the world, had a notion that every thing they found
afloat, God’s providence sent, and so they kept it. The
captain of the Neptune did not think proper to decide the
difference by force of arms, but said he should refer it to
the laws of this country. Upon his return, he was anxious
to avoid litigation, and applied for his lme and boat ; but the
defendant said, “ When you get your fish, you shall have
your line and boat, but not before.” The Learned Counsel
submitted, that the principle on which this case ought to be
decided was this: It was not because a particular person
struck a fish, and his harpoon remained in her, that she was
his property ; it must appear that he was in pursuit of her,
and of that fact some evident sign was required. If a boat’s
crew found that a fish was too strong for them, they had al-
ways an hatchet ready to cut the line ; and when they pre-
ferred their own safety to the fish, any one might afterwards
pursue it; but if they meant to retain the occupancy, they
kept the line fixed to the boat. The boat’s crew of the Nep-
tune had done the latter; they had never quitted the line,
but had, at the peril of their lives, given the whale the boat,

520 IMPORTANT ACTION RESPECTING A WHALE. [APP. N° V.

in order that they might not be said to have abandoned their
right. Wut11am Kexp, the harpooner, distinctly proved
the facts stated by Mr Solicitor-General. He said the whale,
as soon as he struck her, ran out five lines, amounting to 650
fathom, or 1300 yards; the lines were fastened to the boat,
and they gave the boat for the safety of the fish ; they got
upon the ice, and made the usual signal ; the boats of both
ships came up, and in about three quarters of an hour the
whale rose, and the Experiment’s boats struck her.

On his cross examination, he said, it was not for the crew
to remain in the boat; if they had, the whale would have
given them a journey under the sea.

Lord ELLENBorRovcH observed, that the question was re-
duced to the mere title to the boat. As to the whale, the oc-
cupancy was gone, The crew of the Neptune’s boat had
ceased to hold the fish ; and they could not be said to hold it
more, because the boat was attached to the line, than if any
other weight had been affixed to it. .He was of opinion, that
the harpoon and other things used as instruments of chase,
might be cast away in the adventure.. A man who wounded
a bird, which another afterwards killed, might as well claim
the shot.

Mr Erskine said, that after what had fallen from his
Lordship, it was not necessary for him to enter fully into the
subject. He was persuaded his Lordship would not suffer a
custom to be violated, which had been over and over again
established, more especially after it had been observed by a
learned Judge (Buller), that as the subjects of all nations
were engaged in the fishery of these seas, it would be highly
inconvenient for the courts of one nation, to alter the general
custom established by all. The doctrine had even gone the
Jength of saying, that after a whale had been killed, brought
alongside a ship, and the operation of flensing, or cutting out
the blubber, had commenced, if a sea came and washed her
away, she became what was called a loose fish, and any ves-
sel might take her. He referred to the crim. con. cause tried
some years ago, in which he had elucidated the subject in dis-

APP. N° vI.] SIGNALS USED IN THE FISHERY. 521

cussion, by comparing Mrs E. to a loose fish, whom any one
had a right to seize. In that case, Mr E. the husband, had
originally harpooned the lady ; he had her fast; but when he
found she ran out too much line, he left her to plunge into
the sea of folly and dissipation by herself, dragging the weight
of her marriage vow along with her. But he did not the less
abandon her because she was fastened to his boat. When he
wished to recover her, or damages for her loss, it was said,
No,—he had given her up,—he had left her to her fate, and
as another had harpooned her, he had a right to retain her.
He admitted that the Solicitor-General had put the present
case very fairly, when he said the boat was placed like a
buoy, to cry out, “ This is the fish of the Neptune.” If such
an argument could prevail, it would only be necessary to tie
a buoy to a line, and it might cry stinking fish long enough
before any one would be at the trouble of saving the whale
attached to it. He concluded, by expressing his firm convic-
tion that the law was with the defendant.

Lord Extrenzoroven said, he could not help making a
distinction as to the boat, which the men quitted in order to
save themselves. With regard to the harpoon and line, the
fish, when it made off with them, acquired, if he might use
the phrase, a kind of property in them, and any body who af-
terwards took the fish had a right to the harpoon in it.

The defendant undertook to return the boat, and the Jury
gave a verdict for the plaintiff. Damages 1s.; costs 40s.

No. VI.

SIGNAES USED IN THE WHALE-FISHERY.

The commanding view which is obtained from a ship’s
mast-head, enables a person on the look-out in the crow’s
nest to form a much more correct idea of the movements of a
whale, and of the position of boats, ice, &c. than it is possible
for the most experienced person to do from a. boat moving on

522 SIGNALS USED IN THE FISHERY. [ APP. N° vi.

the surface of the water. Hence, it is usual for the captain
of every whale-fishing ship, to adopt a few simple signals,
whereby he can direct his boats when at a distance beyond the
reach of his voice. Signals used in the fishery may be class-
ed under two kinds, General and Particular.

I. Under the term General Signals, I include such signals
as are universally used and understood by every person con-
yversant with the fishery. The articles employed for the pur-
pose of making these signals consist of a “ Bucket” or ball, a
Union-jack or other smal] square flag,an Ancient, and a Wheft.

1. The Bucket.—This consists of a cylinder, or globe of
canvas, extended by means of iron or wooden hoops, and
usually coloured black. When the bucket is displayed at
the mast-head, it recalls the boats to their ship from the pur-
suit of a fish, or from any other embassy. When it is vio-
Jently drawn up, and alternately let down for many times
successively, 1t isan urgent call to the boats to return. When
hoisted half way up from its usual resting-place to the mast-
head, it may either signify that one boat is only wanted when
many are away, or that the officers in the boats may use their
pleasure in attending to it; that is, they may remain abroad
if they conceive they have any prospect of success, if not, they
are expected to return to their ship.

2. The Jack.—In the fishery, this flag is used to indicate,
that the boats belonging to the ship bearmg it are engaged
with a fish. Its intention seems originally to have been ex-
tremely liberal. By it, a ship fishing might be distinguished
among a number, and others might be directed to the same
place, where probably more fish were to be found. It has,
however, additional uses in the present day. It serves to in-
timate that a fish is harpooned, to the other boats belonging to
the same ship which may happen to be at a distance, and not
aware of the circumstance: but most usually, it is displayed
as a precautionary measure, to prevent the interference of any
other ship with the fish so struck, excepting in the way of an
auxiliary, in which case it gives a friend an opportunity of as-

APP. N° Vi. | SIGNALS USED IN THE FISHERY. §23

sisting. To prevent disputes with regard to the title to a fish
that has been struck, it is generally good policy, when other
ships are near, to keep the jack flying until the fish is killed.

When a jack is moved violently up and down the mast, it
proclaims the appearance of the fast fish on the surface of the
water ; and when it is thus accompanied with the bucket, it
expresses that the fish is in the line of or near to the ship.

Before the commencement of the fishing season, a jack or
ancient is used as a kind of complimentary signal to a friend,
expressing as much as the usual greeting “* How do you do ?”
and on sealing stations, the jack is sometimes substituted for
the bucket in recalling the boats.

3. The Ancient.—When this flag is hoisted at the mizen
peak, or mizen top-mast head, in the latter end of the fishing
season, it indicates that the ship carrying it is “ full,” and
homeward bound.

Hoisted m the main top-mast rigging, or indeed in any
other situation wnion downward, the ancient, or national flag,
is a universal sea signal of distress. The ancient is also used
as a complimentary signal, and sometimes as a signal express-
ing a desire to speak with the captain of the ship to which it
is addressed.

4. A Wheft.—An ancient tied together in such a way as
to prevent its being extended up and downwise, but which
does not prevent its horizontal extension under a breeze of
wind, is called a wheft. It is a signal used in the fishery in
very urgent cases. When displayed to a ship, it expresses an
earnest wish to speak with the captain ; and when in the fish-
ery, addressed to the boats, it is usually meant to recall them
peremptorily, howsoever they may be engaged ; under which
they are authorised, when fast to a fish, to cut or break
the line, or at least they are commanded by this signal to
make every possible exertion to join their ship. The cases
wherein this signal is principally requisite, are in storms and
in closing ice, or when the ship and boats are in danger of
getting beset in a hazardous situation, or the crews of the
oats of perishing by delay.

524 BIGNALS USED IN THE FISHERY. [ arr. N° vr.

5. Distant Signals.—Vesides these signals, the sails of the
ship are frequently used as distant signals. ‘Thus, top-gal-
lant sails loosed but kept cleared up, is a recall for the boats
when at such a distance that the bucket cannot be seen; the
jib half hoisted is a signal for a fish a-head of the ship, &e.

II. Particular Signals are such as are contrived by the cap-
tain of any ship for the direction of his harpooners when on
the fishery, to whom they are addressed ; or such as may be
agreed upon between any two or more captains, for making
certain communications to each other when at a distance.
The former, which are of most general use, consist of waving
or pointing in a particular way and manner with a kind of
screen, hat, or speaking trumpet, whereby a single boat can,
at a short distance, be very accurately directed. A bugle-
horn has been adopted for the same purpose, in combination
with other signals ; but signals with balls are of all others the
most expressive, and at the same time perhaps the most sim-
ple. This kind of ‘signal has been occasionally adopted, but
only very partially, and has been generally abandoned on ac-
count of the mistakes on the part of the seamen to whom they
were addressed, owing to the want of simplicity in the signals
themselves. By means of a signal yard, placed across a pole
erected at the top-gallant-mast head, three distinct positions
for signals are obtained, the two yard arms and the pole end
or signal-mast head. Now, by the different arrangement of
balls in these three positions, not exceeding three in num-
ber, thirty-one distinct signals may be made. It may, how-
ever, be observed, that im accomplishing this number, it is al-
ways necessary that the people in the boats to whom the sig-
nals are addressed, should be able to distinguish the star-
board from the larboard yard-arm. This will be self-evident
when they are ahead or astern of the ship, provided they can
see which way the ship is lying; and when the boats are a-
beam of the ship, the starboard yard-arm may always be dis-
tinguished by bracing it forward. In addition. to this, the
starboard yard-arm might be painted red, and one of the

APP. N° VII. | EXPERIMENTS ON WHALE. OIL. 525

balls, to be displayed always on the same side, might be of
the same colour. By this arrangement, the number of signals
with three balls would be reduced to twenty-nine ; but this
would be sufficient for every purpose in the fishery.

Thus much refers to signals for clear weather; in a fog,
however, other signals are requisite. These, from the nature
of the circumstances, can only be conveyed by means of
sounds, and are, therefore, extremely confined as to their ex-
plicitness, as well as their variety. They can be used only
for directing the boats towards each other, or towards the
ship. They consist of various sounds, such as shouting, a
number of men at the same time, the ship’s bell, horns, drums,
muskets, or cannon. By means of a bugle, indeed, some-
thing more can be done than is usually practised ; but as it
would be a matter of difficulty to instruct the sailors in the
meaning of the various notes, and combination of notes, of the
bugle, and at the same time would require a considerable
command of the instrument on the part of the person sound-
ing it, it is not likely that this instrument will ever be brought
into general use.

No. VII.

ACCOUNT OF SOME EXPERIMENTS FOR DETERMINING THE
RELATIONS BETWEEN WEIGHT AND MEASURE, IN CER-
TAIN QUANTITIES OF WHALE-OIL.

Gauging is a process, which, though founded on correct
principles, is of doubtful result, owing to the uncertain thick-
ness of the staves of casks, and the irregular form of their in-
terior. ‘The thickness of the staves can only be estimated by
the appearance of the ends of the cask, and of the bung
stave; the latter, which is the principal guide of the gauger,
if made half an inch thinner than the rest of the staves,
would produce in a ton cask an error, in favour of the seller,
of about 14 gallons. Besides, where no such fraudulent con-

526 EXPERIMENTS ON WHALE-OIL. | APP. N° VIT.

struction is given to the bung-stave, there is always a liability
to considerable error. I have often seen in the same cask,
when gauged by two persons equally expert in the art, a dif-
ference of 10 gallons in its calculated contents ; and even the
same cask, brought twice within an hour before the same per-
son, and he a “ sworn gauger,” has been estimated with a dif-
ference in the second trial of 7 or 8 gallons in its capacity. This
being the case, the propriety of selling oil by weight has been
generally acknowledged ; yet the usual allowance of 7} lb. to
the gallon bemg found to fall short of the gallon by gauge, all
buyers prefer gauge to weight. With a view of determining
the exact equivalent by weight of a gallon of 231 cubic inches,
the following experiments were made.

J. A light pear-shaped glass vessel, having a narrow neck
and ground-stopper, weighed, when empty, 583.7 grains ;
when filled to the stepper with ice-water, temperature 60°, the
weight was 1596.4 grains ; hence the difference 1012.7 graims,
was the contents of the vessel in water.

2. The same vessel filled with refined whale-oil, tempera-
ture 53°, weighed 1523.4 grains; from which deducting
583.7 the weight of the glass, we have 929.7 for the weight
of the contained oil.

Hence, as 1012.7, the contents of the vessel in water, is to
1.000 the specific gravity of the water, so is 939.7, the contents
of the vessel in oil, to 0.9279 the specific gravity of the oil.

Now, a grain of pure water, temperature 60° (according to
the experiments of Sir G. S. Evelyn, corrected by Mr Flet-
cher in the 4th volume of the Philoscphical Journal) weighs
252.506 grains troy. And according to the best experiments,
the pound avoirdupois is equal to 7004.5 grains troy. So
that 252.506 multiplied by 231, the number of cubic inches
in a wine gallon, gives 58328.886, the weight of a gallon of
water temperature 60° in grams troy. This divided by
7004.5, gives a quotient of 8.32734, or the weight of the
gallon of water in pounds avoirdupois. .

2

APP. N° VII.] EXPERIMENTS ON WHALE-OIL, 527

Therefore; As 1.000, the specific gravity of water, is to
8.32734, the weight in pounds avoirdupois of a gallon of wa-
ter, so is 0.9279, the specific gravity of the oil to 7.72694, or
7lb. 11 oz. 10.1 drams the weight of a gallon of refined oil at
temperature 53”.

But this oil appears to be somewhat heavier than the oil
of commerce ; for the following results, derived in a similar
way, were obtained from experiments with the common
whale-oil.

Specific gravity, temperature 32°, = 0.9312
p Facet ees — 40, = 0.9289
— 44, = 0.9268
———$ ——$—_——— ——_——— 60, = 0.9214
——— 03, = 0.9204

The change of specific gravity from temperature 32° to 63°
is 0.0108, or 0.00035 for every degree of temperature. This
proportion applied in a regular ratio gives the specific gravity
of oil: at every 5 degrees of temperature, from 30 to 70, as
follows :

Temperature. Approximate Specific gravity
Specific Gravity. | by experiment.
30° 0.9320 ee
(32 0.9313 0.9312)
35 0.9302 en wenieees
40 0.9285 0.9289
(44 0.9270 0.9268)
45 0.9267 aarreees
50 0.9250 nawpecns
55 0.9232 santas
60 0.9215 0.9214
(63 0.9204. 0.9204)
65 0.9198 anaawane

0.9180

ete lid

528 EXPERIMENTS ON WHALE-UIL. [APP. N° VIT. °

From these specific gravities, the following weights of whale-
oil, at different temperatures, are derived ; and it may be ob-
served, that the weights, as calculated from the approximate
specific gravities, in no instance differ above the tenth of a
dram (less than $ grains troy) in a gallon, from the weights
derived more immediately from experiment.

Weight of a Gallon Weight of a Ton of
Temperature- of Whale oil. Whale oil.

(252 gallons.)
Ib. “oz: “dr: Ib. oz. dr.

30 1 12% °2:8387 1955 15 4
40 1 Ay MSS 1948 9 2
50 YT bh. 3.914 1941 3 0
60 t AO. 2452 1933 12 14
70 7 10 4.991 1926 6 12

Now, if we compare these results with the usual allowance
of 7} lb. of oil to the gallon, or 1890 lb. to the ton, we shall
find that at tenyperature 60° there is a difference of 5} gallons
in the ton.

On some future occasion, perhaps, I may publish tables of
the weight of any number of gallons of oil from 1 to 300, at
different temperatures, by means of which the contents of
casks (the neat weight of the oil bemg known) will be given
by inspection.

Were the plan of selling oil by weight, instead of measure,
adopted, it would greatly facilitate the calculations, by em-
ploying decimal weights. And were the largest weight made
use of 100 lb. there would be no danger of confounding it
with any weights at present in use. All the variety necessary
would be weights of 100 lb. 50 Ib. 30 Ib. 20 Ib. 10 Ib. 5 lb.
3 lb. 2 Ib. 1 Ib., and decimals of a pound if required.

2

APP. N° vit. } ACCOUNT OF THE S. SEA WHALE-FISHERY. 529

No. VIIT.

SOME ACCOUNT OF THER WHALE-FISHERY CONDUCTED IN THE
SOUTHERN SEAS.

When I first entered on this work, it was my intention to
include in it an account of all the known fisheries for the
whale; but some reflection induced me to decide, that it
would be better to present to the public a work, which, though
partial, would be particular and original, than one that, if
more general, would be indebted, to a considerable extent, to
the information of others.

While I maintained my first intention, however, I address-
ed a letter to Captain Day of London, a respectable and suc-
cessful southern fisher, through William Mellish, Esq. and
received in reply a communication, possessing so much inte-
rest, that I should scarcely think it right to suppress it. The
following queries formed the substance of my letter to Cap-
tain Day ; the answers are the substance of his reply.

1. In what latitude and longitude, or near what land do
you usually find the greatest plenty of right (mysticete)
whales ?

An. The situations resorted to by the right whales, are
numerous. Among many others, I may mention, that thev
occur “on the Brazil Bank, from latitude 36° to 48° S. in
the former parallel, in the months of November, December,
and January, and in the latter in February, March, and
April.” In the same months are to be found many of these
whales in the Derwent River, New Holland; also about the
Tristian Islands; and in June, July, August and September
they occur in Walwick Bay, and other inlets, on the coast of
Africa. ‘The same animals are likewise met with near the
island of St Catharine, on the coast of Brazil; they also re-
sort to some of the bays to the westward of Cape Horn, and
to the northward of Coquimbo on the west coast of South

VOL. IT. rh

530 AcCOUNT OF THE $. SEA WHALE-FISHERY. [APP. N° VIII.

America. ‘ The whales resorting to the latter situations are
females, which go into shoal water for the purpose of depesi-
ting and rearing their young until nature has given them suf-
ficient strength and powers to follow the older animals in all
their meandrings in a deeper element than where they are
first brought into existence.”

2. In what situations are the largest quantities of spermace-
ti-whales usually found ?

An. On the coasts of Chili, Peru, and California; about
the Gallipago Islands and Marquesas; and indeed almost
throughout the Pacific Ocean, the sperm-whales are to be
found in great abundance.

3. Is there any particular season of the year for entering
on the voyage ont, and for prosecuting the fishery ?

An. There is no particular season for the sperm whale ; for
the right whale, the seasons at which they usually visit cer-
tain coasts, as mentioned in answer to query Ist, must be at-
tended to.

4. Do you ever take any other kind of whale besides the
mysticetus or right whale, and the sperm whale ?

An. Hunch-backs, finners, and sulphur-bottoms, are occa-
sionally taken; the latter is a species of finner, very long, and
swift in its going. The blubber on each of these kinds is
seldom more than 6 inches thick, except on the breast; the
whale-bone not longer than from 18 to 24 inches.

5. What is the usual length of time occupied in the passage
out ;—on the fishimg-stations ;—and on the voyage altogether ?

An. The passage to the fishery beyond Cape Horn is usu-
ally about 4 months; on this side the Cape about 3 months.
The stay on the fishery depends entirely on the success.
The voyage in the sperm-fishery is seldom less than two
years.

6. How many officers, men, harpoons, lances, whale-lines,
and boats, are required for a ship of 300 tons ?

An. There are three mates, who, with the master, are the
principal harpooners; the whole crew consists of about 30

APP. N° vilt.] ACCOUNT OF THE S, SEA WHALE-FISHERY. 531

men and boys; the number of harpoons taken out are 100,
lances 36, lines 28, boats 5.

7. Do you make a point of putting into any harbours in the
course of the voyage ?

An. Sometimes at the Cape de Verd Islands; at the Bra-
ails and Falkland Islands; at the Gallipagoes, Marquesas,
and other Islands in the Pacific; at New Zealand, Botany
Bay, Lima, Valparisso, Conception, Paita, Quiaquil ; which
places are visited for procuring hogs, goats, fruit, and other
refreshments, at an easy expence.

8. What kind of provisions do you chiefly use ?
An. Beef, pork, bread, flour, pease, barley, and oatmeal.

9. Do you carry out a sufficiency of provisions for a whole
voyage? or do you depend upon getting a replenish during
your absence from home ?

An. A sufficient quantity of provisions and stores for serv-
ing the whole voyage is always taken out.

10. Do you practise the same method of capture in your
attacks on both the right whale and the sperm whale ?
An. Invariably the same.

11. Which of the two do you reckon the most dangerous
to attack, the sperm whale or the right whale ?

An, There appears to be little difference : but both species
of whales, generally speaking, are more active and dangerous
in the tropical regions than they are in the Arctic seas ; they
therefore require more address in attacking, and caution in
killmg them, otherwise casualties, sometimes of a serious na-
ture, would be innumerable.

12. Which of the animals that you attack are the swift-
est ?

An. The sulphur-bottom, (probably either the B. physalis,
or B. musculus), appears to be the swiftest of the whale kind.

13. Is it usual for ships to fit out for both the fishery of
the sperm and the right whale ?
An. Ships, when fitted for the sperm-fishery, are adapted
for taking any other kind of whale.
. Lr1@

532 ACCOUNT OF THE 8. SEA WHALE-FISHERY. [APP. N° VIIE

14. How many ships, English and foreign, do you sup-
pose are at present (January 1818) in the trade?
An. Including Americans, at least 200 sail of ships.

15. Has any increase lately taken place in the number of
shipping employed in the southern fishery ?

An. The number is one-half more now than during the
war.

16. What do you suppose was the magnitude of the largest
sperm-whale you ever saw taken ? :

An. Extreme length 90 feet, girth about 30 feet (suppos-
ed), made 12 tons of oil, including 5 tons of head matter.

17. What might be the size of the largest whale of any
other kind that you ever met with ?

An. Length 86 feet, girth uncertain, produce in oil 13
(or 15 ?) tons.

18.. The captain and crew, it seems, are rewarded for their
exertions by certain shares of the cargo: of what proportions
may these shares respectively consist ?

An. Allowance to captain, officers and crew, something less
than one-third (?) of the neat amount of sales. (‘This an-
swer is not very satisfactory.)

19. What may be the usual expences of a ship fitted for
the southern whale-fishery, in a voyage of medium ‘length,
and with a full or at least a good cargo ?

An. If completely fitted, not less than 40002. exclusive of
the value of the ship.

20. Are there any instances of a ship returning without a
sufficient cargo to defray the expences ?

An. Such a case is very rare: when it does occur, it gene-
rally arises out of some mismanagement, or is to be attribut-
ed, sometimes, to fortuitous causes, which human prudence
can neither foresee nor prevent.

21. What was the greatest freight, or most valuable cargo,

that you ever knew obtained in one voyage ?
An. Freight 30,0007.

APP. N° VIII.] ACCOUNT OF THE S. SEA WHALE-FISHERY. 583

22. Can you furnish any anecdotes as to the dangers at-
tendant on the southern fishery ?

An. Many; but as they would appear rather of a marvel-
lous description, they might be misunderstood, or considered
as exaggerated, if communicated.

23. Do you ever procure any ambergrease? if so, do you
get it from the rectum of the whale, or is it found*floating in
the sea ?

An. Ambergrease is frequently procured from the rectum
of the whale, and sometimes found floating on the water.
This substance appears to be formed in the rectum, and arises
out of an extreme costive habit of the body of the animal.
It is frequently voided during any extraordinary exertion or
emotion, particularly on the whale being struck with a har-
poon or lance,

The following additional remarks on this subject, obtained
from conversations with various southern fishers, will con-
clude this article ;

1. Fishery of the Spermaceti Whale.—This fishery 1s con-
ducted on the western coast of America, in various parts of
the Pacific Ocean, or in the Indian or China Seas, particular-
ly about the island Timor.

The sperm whale is a gregarious animal, generally occur-
ring in herds, sometimes of 200 or upwards. In such cases,
there may often be seen one, two or three old bul/-whales,
which constitute the lords of the herd, the rest being princi-
pally, if not all, females. When other whales approach the
herd, and attach themselves to any of the females, hard con-
flicts with the dulls will ensue, in which case they excoriate
one another in a formidable manner, These whales divide
themselves into classes, according to their age or sex; young
males being found by themselves ; young females under the
protection of old cows; half-grown males by themselves, and
soon. When the young males obtain sufficient strength,
they venture into a herd under the protection of some very
old bulls; this trespass on the seraglio is generally followed

534 aCCOUNT OF THE $. SEA WHALE-FISHERY. [ APP. N° VIII.

by a conflict, which establishes them in the herd, or drives
them off, according to the issue.

When a number of fish are seen, four boats, each furnish-
ed with 2 or 3 lines, 2 harpoons, 4 lances, and a crew of
six men, proceed in pursuit ; and, if practicable, each boat
* fastens to,” or strikes a distinct fish, and each crew kill
their own, When in distant pursuit, the harpooner generally
steers the boat, and in such cases the proper boat-steerer
sometimes strikes the fish, but the harponeer generally kills
it. When a fish belonging to a herd is struck, it generally
takes the lead, and the whole herd follow it. A §¢ fast-fish”
seldom goes far under water; it generally swims off with ex-
treme rapidity when struck, but usually stops after a short
race, so that the boat can be hauled up by the line, or rowed
sufficiently near to lance it. The dying struggles of the ani-
mal are so tremendous, that the water is beat by its fins and
tail into a foam. The boats at this crisis, which is generally
known to be approaching by the tall jets of blood discharged
from the blow-holes, keep aloof, or otherwise they would be
liable to be dashed to pieces,

Sometimes 10 or 12 fish are killed “ at a fall ;” but though
many are occasionally wounded by the people in the fast
boats, yet they rarely capture any that have not been har-
pooned. When the fish with which the boats are entangled
are killed, they are towed to the ship; if more fish are then
astir, and the weather fine, part of. them, sometimes all, pro-
ceed again to the attack.

The flensing or “‘ cutting in” process is somewhat different
from that employed in the polar fisheries. A strap of blub-
ber is cut in a spiral direction, and being raised. by certain
purchases, turns the fish round as on an axis, until nearly the
whole of the blubber is stripped off. The head-matter, con-
sisting of spermaceti mixed with oil, which, when warm, is in
a fluid state, is taken out of large whales in buckets while
they remain in the water; but the part of the head contain-
ing the spermaceti in small whales, is hoisted up in one mass,
and opened on its arrival upon deck, ‘The head-matter con-

APP. N° VIII.] ACCOUNT OF THE S. SEA WHALE-FISHERY. 535

geals when it is cold; it is put into casks in its crude state,
and refined on shore at the conclusion of the voyage. ‘The

blubber, however, is reduced into oil soon after it is taken,
in * try-works,” with which every ship is provided for this
purpose. The coppers in the try-works are two in number,
and are placed, side by side, near the fore hatchway ; these,
with their furnaces, and casing of brick-work, occupy a space
of 5 or 6 feet fore and aftways, 8 or 9 feet athwart ships, and
4 or 5 feet in height. The cavity of the arches of brick-
work, on which the coppers and furnaces are raised, forms a
cistern for water; so that when the fire is on, the deck is de-
fended from injury by the changing of the water in the cis-
tern twice or thrice every watch. As the oil is extracted, it
is put into coolers, from whence, after standing about twenty-
four hours, it is transferred into casks. The coppers are heat-
ed, in the first instance, with wood, but subsequently with the
fritters of the blubber, which, containing a considerable quan-
tity of oil, produce a fierce fire. A large fish, of the species
most usually taken, produces about three tons of oil; a small fish
from one to two tons. Sometimes.the cargo of the ship will
consist of abeve 100 whales, the produce of which, in boiled
spermaceti oil, may be from 150 to 200 tons, besides head-
matter.

2. Fishery of the “ right Whale,” or Mysticetus.—This
animal is found in soundings, on the western coast of Africa,
on the eastern coast of South America, &c. It seldom oc-
curs so large as the kind met with in the seas of Greenland
and Davis’ Straits, the most usual size being that of 9 feet
(whale) bone; perhaps 35 or 40 fect in length. The head
is frequently covered with a bed of bernicles, consisting of
several strata, so that its appearance is very different from
that of the northern mysticetus, being altogether of a white
colour. When struck, the southern mysticetus often dives to
the bottom, the depth being seldom more than 200 fathoms,
returns to the surface after an interval of a few minutes, and
occasionally dives a second, a third, or a fourth time. But
sometimes it takes a horizontal course, and “ runs” along

f

536 ACCOUNT OF THE S. SEA WHALE-FISHERY. [APY. N° VIII.

shore 20 or 30 miles in a direct line. When it is seen by
any others of the species, they usually take the alarm, and,
running off, are followed by the fast fish as long as it is able. _
The first striker endeavours to ‘ fasten” two harpoons in the
first attack, both attached to the same line, by which he has a
double security of the fish. 'The harpoons are usually thrown
at the whale when at the distance of six or eight yards; and
the lances, which are kept in fine order, are sometimes used
in the same way. ‘Two boats are considered sufficient to
kill a right whale; so that when it can be accomplished, two
are struck at the same time. The fast-boat is hauled up to
the fish by the lines, whenever it appears at the surface ; thus
affording an opportunity to the harponeer to lance it, and
enabling him sometimes to kill the fish without the assistance
of any other boat.

When the right whale is flensed, the crown or upper jaw,
with all the whalebone attached, is usually hove in altoge-
ther. The whalebone is then divided ito junks, these, at
the first leisure, are subdivided into single blades, ‘* gum-
med,” and stowed away. If a storm happens to arise before
a fish can be flensed, a hawser is fastened to it, and the ship
rides by it; at the conclusion of the gale, it is taken along-
side and “ cut in.” If, however, an interval of more than
two or three days occur before the flensing is commenced, the
whale swells, the blubber becomes impregnated with blood,
and is not worth taking in,

The voyage to the Pacific for the sperm-fishery sometimes
occupies three years, but when the mysticetus is also attacked,
it may be stated at from twenty months to two years. In the
course of the yoyage, they occasionally put into harbours to
refit and refresh the crew. Their provisions for general use
are salt; the quantity that can be allowed for so long a
yoyage is sometimes sparing, the quality often indifferent.
The officers and crew are stimulated to exertion by certain
shares of the cargo obtained. The captain receives, perhaps,
a twelfth, the surgeon an eightieth, each of the harpooners 4

APP. N° Ix.] MAGNETICAL OBSERYATIONS. 537

fortieth, and every seaman from a one hundred and fortieth
toatwo hundredth part of the neat produce.

No. IX.

ON THE ANOMALY IN THE VARIATION OF THE MAGNETIC
NEEDLE, AS OBSERVED ON SHIP-BOARD. By W.ScorEsBy
gun. Communicated to the Royal Society of London by
the Right Hon. Sir Josrru Banks, Bart. G.C. B. P. R.S.

Read Feb. 4. 1819.

The anomalies discovered in magnetical observations con-
ducted on ship-board, were usually attributed to the imper-
fection of the azimuth compass, until Captaim FiiNpers, n
his modest and enlightened paper on this subject, publish-
ed in the Philosophical Transactions, suggested that they
were probably owing to the magnetic influence of the iron
made use of in the construction of the ship. The truth of
this suggestion, and the accuracy of his observations, have
since met with full confirmation, and some of his practical
rules founded thereon have received additional support, from
the “ Essay” of Mr Bary, “ On the Variation of the Com-
pass,” lately published.

As I have been materially anticipated by Mr Bain ina
series of observations on the variation of the compass, which
I conducted on the coast of Spitzbergen, in the years 1815
and 1817, it will be unnecessary here to enter into the
detail of these observations, or enlarge upon the probable
cause of the anomalies observed; it may be sufficient to
give a table of the most accurate of my observations, and
annex to it the few general inferences which were drawn
from it, during the voyage in which most of the observa-
tions were made, (1817,) together with such remarks on each
inference as seemed to me calculated for its elucidation. I
shall, however, just premise, that I am not unconscious of the

great liability to error in observations of this kind, and of
3

538 MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. [APP. N° Lx.

the variety of causes (arising out of the unequal distribution
of iron in different ships, whereby numerous local attractions
are formed) which contribute to the multiplication of those
errors : it is, therefore, with deference that I submit these
deductions, particularly as I conceive it will require observa-
tions to be made under a vast variety of circumstances, and
in many different vessels, before correct and satisfactory con-
clusions can be drawn. It is only then as a step towards fa-
cilitating such general conclusions, the importance of which
to our maritime concerns is so obvious, that I am induced te
offer these observations and remarks.

TABLE

ajlan [To front p. 538. Vol. II. App. N°. IX.

TABLE of Magnetical Observations made on board of the Ship Esx, m ee to the Greenland or Spitzbergen Whale Fishery; with a
view to investigate the laws by which the Anomalies, or Errors, discovered in the Indications of the Mariner's Compass on Shipboard are

regulated.

Errors produced in the observed
variation by the attraction of the =

Sun’s Azimuth. Variation. ship on the compass needle.

; Time. 5 ; 5 =
3 3 ene De sane ge eee Ship’s head | Situation of the compass by which
2 & h. Chrono- a P 2y | produce’ °Y iby the bin- the Sun’s azimuth [col. as
Ba Sp [ch. a = Z position of ja change in|a change in 1 b a vam
oa } meter. ] : 3 § 2 § |the ship’s the position|the position Meee Sepa QUREEVEES
3 | (4p. Appa- 5 & a BE head. [Diff.Jof the ship’s|of the.com-|P***
rent.] 3 < 3 of col. viti. |head. [From|pass. [From

and 1x. col. vir, | col, v11I.]

XI. XIi.

_——$—$$— —-

Vv. VI. VII. xX.

Ill.

Als
1815
June 30.

77°.19/N.|12°.15'E.| Ap. Noon. |S. 7°W.] South. W.| 14°.0/ Starboard side of the main deck.

eee SILO ’

Aen Aor 38 South, 38.00 Larboard ditto.

ececreecee| 17.00

aiaiene aaeaie 21 South, 21.00 Centre of main hatches.

h Oo
June 6. |77.56 0.15 W. |Ch. 6254 P.M. |N, 36 W.| N. 73° W. | 37.00 |32.30 4.30 On. the binnacle amidships of the
Sys B15 jocasesaas MeasdbO- EO fecteown| eiiiedl:
“Bow 7.28 353 64.30 | 28-45 |32.30 | 3.45 East. aaa Sd
ialidexe oisiars 9.15. +.
eves 7.28 45 64.30 19-30 |32.30 | 13.00 East. Compass on a stand on the middle
26.0 cece eseee of the quarter-deck, 6 feet abaft
statis 6.54 274 73.00 | 45.30 |32.30 | 13.00 W.4S. capstern spindle.
ose 7.32 33 63.30 | 30-30 |32.30 2.00 E.458.| Starboard side of the main deck.
Siatajsysisveqere 145...
ateteye 1.33 31 63.15 3215 |32*30 0.15 E.38.| Larboard side of the main deck.
2.35 W. |Ap. 11.38 S.25W.| 5S. 5.30 E.| 30-30 |36:00 5.30 E. byS.| On the binnacle, 10 ft. from taffrail.
6.30 |. eee eeees
see vial o 11.20 at 10.00 | 37-00 |36.00 1.00 N. Ditto.
Sah soo 12.03 343 S. 0.45 W.| 34-00 |36.00 2.00.. NE.} E.| Ditto.

NNE.|_ Starboard side of the main deck.
Gisiate, ec siaietel Mere Sea Olara

aces cane 7.38 164 67.11 50°41 |37.00 | -13.41 NNE,| Larboard ditto.

0.30 W. |Ch. 6.33 60 N. 79.54 W.| 19-54 |33.00 | 13.06
Syeoppood) octal) o3¢

4.45 W.|Ch 7.34 N. 46 W.|N. 68.11 W.| 22.11 |37.00 | 14.49
peo Seg 6.36 ‘33 79.09 46.09 |33.00 | 13.09

ata Starboard side of the main deck,

Kaocoosad) Uilindéae

South. Larboard ditto.
South.

South.
South.

South.

6.31 46 80.24 34°24 |33.00 . \ Centre of main hatches.

aerate SAaG 6.44 53 77.09 24.09 Centre of fore hatches.

33.00 8.51

6.43 4) 17.24 36:24 |33.00 3.24 Larboard side of the fore-castle near
the windlass end.

Starboard ditto.

6.41 70 77.54 7-54 133.00 | 25.06.. !

The azimuths contained in the above Table, [col, VI.] were taken, either by the needle of a theodolite, or by a compass fitted up at sea for the purpose, with a card made ex-
tremely light, and a bar fastened edgewise to it by two brass screws, as represented in Plate II. fig. 4. The compass being small, the card light, and the needle very powerful, owing
to the thickness of its ends, it performed incomparably better than an expensive azimuth compass of larger dimensions, which, indeed, was so sluggish and erroneous in its indications,
that I could make no good use of it. I prefer a needle on its edge to one with broad flat ends of the usual form, because it must fix itself more accurately and certainly in the magnetic
meridian. A broad flat needle, on the other hand, by having its ends ill tempered, may have the two poles at the two opposite corners, so that the magnetic axis may run diagonally.
In this case, the middle of the bar may point 2 or 3 degrees or more, to the east pr west of its proper position. The directive property of a horizontal magnetical needle being extremely
small, in very high latitudes, it is of essential importance for the quick traversing of a compass, that the card and needle be as light as possible ; for, in proportion as the weight of the
card with its appendages is diminished, the friction on the point on which it traverses must be less. Hence, as the power of a magnet depends, probably, more on the extent of the sur-
face of its ends than on its weight, I mean to prepare a compass for future obseryations with a hollow needle.

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| 4 F Sy

APP. N° 1X.] |= MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. 539

From these observations, and from the assistance afforded
by the lucid remarks of Captain FLinpers, the inferences
which follow are deduced *.

1. In the construction of every ship, a large quantity of
iron being used, the portions thereof which have a perpen-
dicular position, such as standard and hanging knees, the
nails and bolts in the deck, the capstern spindle, flukes of
the anchors (when stowed as at sea), chain-plates, iron stan-
chions and riders; the eye-bolts, joint-bolts, transom-bolts, and
hind axle-tree bolts of gun-carriages, and possibly the upper
surfaces of the guns themselves, &c. &c. have a tendency to
become magnetical, the upper ends being south poles and the
lower north poles, in this hemisphere, where the north end of
the needle dips, but the contrary in the southern hemisphere,
where the south end of the needle dips.

(a.) That the attraction of a ship on the compass, depends
principally on such iron as has an upright position
there can be little doubt ; though I believe this ex-
planation of the cause of the anomaly in magnetic
observations made on ship-board, has not been before
suggested. ‘This idea admits of a simple illustration.
Take any magnetic needle suspended on a centre,
a pocket compass, for instance, and present to it
a bit of iron-wire, a nail, or any other piece of soft
iron of a lengthened form, not being magnetic,

© The greater part of these inferences were drawn up during my voyage ta
the whale-fishery in 1817; and the whole paper, as now given, excepting a few
notes that have been added, was sent to Sir Joseph Banks November 3, 1818,
and was read before the Royal Society on the 4th February 1819. The
additional notes are distinguished by the numbers prefixed being inclosed in
parentheses. A paper by Captain Sabine, ‘‘ On irregularities observed in the
direction of the Compass needles of H. M.S. Isabella and Alexander, in their
late voyage of discovery, and caused by the attraction of the iron contained in
the ships,” was also read before the Royal Society on February 18, 1819; and
another paper, by the same author, containing ‘¢ Observations on the Dip and
Variation of the Magnetic needle, and on the Intensity of the Magnetic Force,
during the late Voyage in search of a North-west passage,”
25th of the same month. : 3

was read on the

540

MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. [app. N° Ix,

and the following effects will be invariably produc-
ed. If the upper end of the nail, when im an erect
position, be presented to the north end of the
needle, it will attract the needle, and draw it aside;
but if presented to the south pole, the nail will repel
the needle. If the nail be then reversed, and the con-
trary end now upwards, (which before the change of
position would have attracted the south pole of the
needle, and repelled the north), be presented to the
compass, it will be found to attract the north end of
the needle. Hence, it is clear, that the moment the
soft iron is placed nearly in the position of the dip-
ping needle, it becomes &4 magnet, the upper end be-
ing a south pole, and the lower end a north pole.
But as it has no power to retain the magnetism that
it has acquired, its poles are immediately changed, if
its position be reversed. And if the nail be laid na
position almost horizontal, or rather, if it be placed in
a position at right angles to that of the dipping needle,
it ceases to be a magnet, and, excepting when very
near the magnetic needle, evidences no attraction for
it whatever. For illustrating these properties of bar-
iron, I have constructed a small apparatus, in which
a piece of thick iron-wire, 63 inches long, is attached
to a plane of mahogany that is moyeable through 260
degrees of a vertical circle, so that the end of the bar
is always at the same distance from a magnetic needle,
and can be presented to it at any given angle, by
means of a vertical graduated circle of brass. On
performing some experments with this apparatus, the
following results were obtained :—1, When the bar
was in the plane of the magnetic meridian, and the
north pole of the magnetic needle was placed about
an inch to one side of the end of the bar, no deflection
whatever was produced, so long as the bar was in the
direction of the magnetic equator ; but an attraction
of 22° was produced when the upper end of the bar

APP. N° ax] MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. 541

was presented in the direction of the dip,—an attrac-
tion of 34° when the bar was in an horizontal position,
—and a repulsion of 44° when the lower end was pre-
sented in a vertical direction. The great difference of
the deflective power of the upper and lower ends arises
thus: When the upper end of the bar was presented
to the N. end of the needle, it was attracted, and the
S. end thrown off to a distance of nearly 3 inches, and
into a position of such obliquity, that the effect of re-
pulsion on this end was trifling; but when the lower
end, or north pole of the bar, was presented, the north
end of the needle being repelled, the south end approach-
ed the bar to within an inch and a half, and came into a
right-angular position to the attractive force, by which
the effect of the bar was doubled, the south pole be-
ing attracted as much as the north pole was repelled.
2. A steel bar, hardened at the ends, and very slightly
magnetised, being substituted for the iron bar, the
effects produced on the needle were varied. When
the north end of the steel bar, in the magnetic equa-
tor, was presented to the north end of the needle, the
repulsion was about 44°;.in the direction of the mag-
netic poles, the repulsion, with the south end depres-
sed, was only 13°; but, with the south end elevated,
it was nearly 100°. Hence, magnetised steel is evident-
ly stronger in its polarity, when in the direction of the
dip or magnetic poles, than in any other position.

In these two experiments, it will be observed, the lower
end of the iron bar, when in a vertical position, and
the north end of the magnetised steel bar, when in the
position of the magnetic equator, had exactly the same
influence over the magnetic needle, each producing a
deflection from its natural position of 44°. If, there-
fore, the quantities of deflection of a magnetic needle,
freely suspended, be measures of the force of the po-
larities of any magnets presented to it at similar dis-
tances, and in the same position, as is reasonable to

42

MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. [ APP. N° IX.

suppose, then, it would appear, that the iron bar and
the steel bar, when in certain different positions, pos-
sessed the same strength of polarity, thei deflective
power over the magnetic needle being equal. But
though their polarities appeared to be similar, their
powers of attraction for iron were different; each of
them, indeed, when presented (in the magnetic meri-
dian, and in the same positions as when the polari-
ties were found to be similar,) to a piece of fine iron
wire, freed from magnetism, floating on a surface of
water, attracted it forward; but the steel bar was ca-
pable of lifting the wire when it was sunk in the wa-
ter, while the iron bar could not so much as move the
smallest fragment of the same. Hence, it would ap-
pear, that that property of magnets by which polarity
is produced, is not the same as that by which they at-
tract iron. In making the above experiments, the
iron bar was heated red hot, and allowed to cool gra-
dually in the position of the magnetic equator, imme-
diately before it was used, by which it was entirely
freed from a sensible degree of magnetism that it had
accidentally acquired.

2. The combined influence of the iron distributed through
all parts of the ship, seems to be concentrated into a kind of
magnetic, focus of attraction, the principal south pole of which
being upward in the northern hemisphere, is probably situa-
ted, in general, near the middle of the upper deck, but
nearer to the stem than the stern.

a. Wrought iron having a much greater attraction for the

magnetic needle than cast-iron, the anchors, which
usually lie about the bows, possess much more in-
fluence over the compass than guns; hence the focus
of attraction lies nearer to the bows than to the stern.

3. This focus of attraction so imfluences the compass
needle, that it is subject to an anomaly or variation from

APP. N° 1x.] MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. 548

the true meridian, different from what is observed by a com-
pass on shore; the north point of the compass being con-
stantly drawn towards the focus of attraction, which appears
to bea south pole m north dip; and the south point being at-
tracted in south dip, where the focus of attraction becomes a
north pole.

a. The phenomenon of a ship appearing to lie nearer the
wind when beating to the northward, with the wind at
north, than when beating to the southward, with a
southerly wind, was observed by my father at least
20 years avo, which phenomenon he attributed to the
“attraction of ‘the shrp upon the compass ;” and ever

ince the year 1805, { have been in the habit of al-
lowing only 2 to 21 potnts variation on the passage
outward to Greenland, with a northerly or north-eas-
terly course, but generally three points variation on
the homeward passage when the course steered was
S.W. or S.W.b. W. Without this difference of al-
lowance, a Greenland ship outward bound will be ge-
nerally found to be several leagues to the eastward of
the reckoning, and homeward bound will be as much
as 4 or 5 degrees to the eastward of it.

4. This anomaly in the variation of the compass, occasioned
by the attraction of the iron in the ship, is lable to change
with every alteration in the dip of the needle, in the position
of the compass, or in the direction of the ship’s head.

a. If the intensity of the terrestrial magnetism be not equal
in all parts of the globe, then the anomaly in the va-
riation of the compass will be also liable to change with
every alteration in the magnetic influence of the earth.
This is a point of such importance, I conceive, in the
science of magnetism, that I was very anxious to pro-
cure a dipping needle on my last voyage to Green-
land, (in 1818), to ascertain, by its oscillations, whe-
ther the magnetism of the carth, by which the dipping

644

MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. [aPp. N° Ix.

needle is influenced, be not greater near the magnetic
pole than it isin England. If it be equal, the oscil-
lations of the same dipping needle would be perform-
ed, circumstances as to temperature and local attrac-
tion being the same, in equal spaces of time in both
places ; but if the magnetic power in either place be
greater, the oscillations of the needle would there be
quicker.

6. The number of vibrations of a horizontal needle, per-

(c.)

formed in a certain space of time in Greenland, is to
the number performed in an equal space of time in
England as 5 to 6, each longer vibration in England
bemg performed in five seconds, and in Greenland in
six. No alteration was observed as to the time re-
quired for each vibration, whether the temperature
was high or low, but I think in a low temperature the
vibrations performed by the needle before it stopped
were fewer..

The time of oscillation of the same dipping needle, un-
der different degrees of magnetic force, appears to me
to be reciprocally proportional to the square root of
the magnetic force; or the square of the number of
oscillations performed in a certain interval of time, will
be directly proportional to the magnetic intensity.
Now, from the observations of Captain Sabine “ On
the intensity of the Magnetic Force,” (Phil. Trans.
1819, p. 132.), it appears, that the times in which
100 vibrations of a dipping needle were made in dif-
ferent situations, during the late voyage of Captain
Ross, were as follows:

APP. N° Ix. | MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. 545

Lati- |Longi-

Perpendi-| _.. : - a i
tude,’ |) tude, cular to. |Fitst Dip. imate othe Dippipe
North.| West. meridian. |“ ’

of ov mis ° On hoy

51.31] 0.08 8.18.3 | 90 |]70.34.39 |Regent’s Park ; London.
60.09} 1.12 7.59.5 | 90 |}74.21.28 |Shetland.
68.22 | 53.50 7.33 90 |}84.08.07 |On ice: Davis’ Straits.
70.26 | 54.52 7.26 90 |}82.48.47 |Hare Island.
70.35 | 66.55 7.18.5 | 90 ||84.39.21 |On ice; Baffin’s Bay.
75.05 | 60.23 7.26 90 |184.25.06 |On ice; Baffin’s Bay.
75.51 | 63.06 0.00 — |}84.44.30 |On ice; Baffin’s Bay.
76.08 | 78.21 7.18 90. 1185.59.31 |On ice; Baftin’s Bay.
76.45 | 76.00 7.26 90 |186.09.13 |On ice; Baffin’s Bay.
51.31 | 0.08 8.18 90 ||70.33.16 |Regent’s Park ; London.

After the return of the
Expedition.

So that from this Table it would seem, that in Captain
Ross’s voyage, the intensity of the magnetic force was
the greatest where the dip was the greatest, and gene-
rally, though not uniformly, increased as the dip in-
creased. In London, where the dip is 70°.34’, 12.45
vibrations of the dipping needle, when in the meridian,
were performed in a minute; and in Baffin’s Bay,
where the dip was 86°.9’, 15.8 vibrations were per-
formed in the same interval.

Hence the magnetic force in the two positions, appears to be
as the square of 12.45, or 155, the number of vibrations
in London, to the square of 13.8 or 190, the number
performed in Baffin’s Bay. These observations would
have been much more valuable, had they been accom-
panied by a corresponding number of observations per-
formed in the same situation by a horizontal needle.

(d.) Captain Ross informs us, m the Appendix to his “¢ Voy-
age of Discovery,” that in his experiments on local at-
traction, the magnetic anomaly or “ deviation appeared
to be materially affected by heat and cold, as well as
by atmospheric humidity and density ;” and that the
direction of the wind seemed to have an irregular effect
on the deviation.

VOL. II. Mm

546

MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. [APP. N° Ix.

5. The anomaly of variation bears a certain proportion to
the dip of the needle, being greatest where the dip is great-.
est, diminishing as the dip decreases, and disappearing alto-
gether on the magnetic equator.

a. Captain Flinders ascertained, that the medium error or

anomaly for 8 points deviation of the Investigator’s
head, on either side of the magnetic meridian, was
very nearly z',th of the dip, .05 the decimal expression
of which, ke considered to be the common multiplier to.
the dip, for obtaining the radius of error at any si-
tuation in the southern hemisphere ; and .053 to be the
common multiplier, from England to the magnetic
equator.

6. This, however, can only be correct within certain limits,

(c.)

as on the magnetic pole, where the anomaly would
probably be equal to the dip, or 90°, the decimal
multiplier would require to be increased to 1.0. Hence
it was suggested, by an officer in the expedition un-
der Captain Ross, that in those parts of the globe
where the dip is 90°, the compass needle would pro-
bably always stand N. and S., by the attraction of
the ship. This position clearly follows from the infe-
rence above, provided the compass be placed near the
ship’s stern in mid-ships; but if placed as described in
inference No. 8. the ship’s head by the compass on the
starboard side of the main deck, would always appear
to be east, and on the larboard side west.

This last remark is further established, by the increasing
power of the local attraction in high latitudes, and
the diminishing energy of the compass needle. For
the directive power on a horizontal magnetic needle,
supposing the magnetic force to be always equal, is
proportional to the cosines of the dip. Hence, if the
directive force on the magnetic equator be called 1.0,
under a dip of 60°, it will be equal to }; under a dip
of '70°.32’, to }; under a dip of 75°.31’, to}; under
a dip of 78°.28', to +; under a dip of 80°24’, to 3;

APP. N° Ix.] MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. 547

under a dip of 81°.47', to 4; under a dip of 28°.49,
to; under a dip of 83°.37, to }; under a dip of
84°.15’, to $5; under a dip of 87°.8, to 4,; under.a
dip of 88°.5' to 3; and under a dip of 90°, the cosine
being 0, the directive power of a horizontal needle will
also be 0; so that the local attraction must operate al-
together.

(d.) But as the magnetic force is found to increase as we ap-
proach the magnetic poles, the directive power on a
compass needle, with an increase of dip, must diminish
in a somewhat less ratio than the cosines of the dip.
Let d be the dip, v the number of vibrations in a cer-
tain interval, say a minute, of the dipping needle tra-
versing in the magnetic meridian, and 2 the directive
power on a horizontal needle; then

xz = cos d. v?.

(e.) The increase of the magnetic anomaly on approaching
to the magnetic pole, has been clearly shown by Cap-
tain Ross, (“ Voyage to Baffin’s Bay,” Appendix,
N° I.) By observations on the deviation of the com-
pass made on board of the Isabella in Shetland, where
the dip is 74°.211’, the maximum of error was —5°.34’
on an E.S. E. course, and + 5°.46’ on a W.N. W.
course, giving 11°.20' of extreme difference. But in
Baffin’s Bay, latitude 75—76°, where the variation of
the compass was between 86° and 96° W. and the dip
between 841° and 86°, the maximumof error on a course
E. 17° S. had increased to — 20°.30’, and to + 22°
on acourse W. 17° N.; thus affording an extreme dif-
ference of 42°.30’. Hence, while the multiplier to
the dip, on Captain Flinders’ principles, was in Shet-
land only .076, in Baffin’s Bay it had increased to
0.25.

6. A compass placed near the stern, amidships of the
quarter-deck, is subject to the greatest anomaly or deflec-
tion from the magnetical meridian, when the ship’s course

Mm 2

548 MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. [arp. N® @x.

is about west or east; because the focus of attraction then
operates at mght angles to the position of the compass-
needle ; but the anomaly generally disappears when the course
is about north or south, because the focus of attraction is
then in a line with, or parallel to, the compass-needle, and
consequently has no power to deflect it from its direct posi-
tion. (See Observations in the prefixed table, Nos. 4, 5. 10.
11. and 12.)

a. This situation for the bimnacle is deemed one of the best
in the ship, and is very properly preferred. Being
abaft the focus of attraction, the north point of the
compass, in this magnetic hemisphere, is always at-
tracted forward, and the errors at equal distances from
the magnetic meridian, in the same dip, are alike in
quantity both on easterly and westerly courses, and
always (excepting in cases where any large mass of
iron is placed near the compass) towards the north ;
the correction, when applied to the apparent course,
must therefore be towards the south, to give the true
course steered. Thus, the ship’s head being west by
the compass, where there is 10° of local attraction or
anomaly on each side of the magnetic meridian, the
true course will be W. 10° S., and her head being
east per compass, the course corrected will be E. 10°S.;
and hence, in high northern latitudes, where the ano-
maly is thus great, a ship steering west by the com-
pass 100 leagues, and then east 100 leagues, instead
of coming to the place from whence she started, will
be 104 miles to the southward of it!

(6.) Where the distribution of iron in a ship is unequal, more
being on one side of the midship line than on the other,
the course of no anomaly will not be north and south,
but something to the right or left of it, accordingly as
the greater mass of iron may be on the starboard or
larboard side. Hence, in the Isabella, when under
the command of Captain Ross, the line of no deviation
was found to be 17° from the magnetic meridian ; or
when the course was N. 17° E. and 8S. 17° W.

Se

APP. N° IX.] MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. 549

(c.) Although the after-part of the quarter-deck appears to

be the best situation for the binnacle, yet it is desirable
to have a compass, for reference, placed as far as pos-
sible, out of the attraction of the iron im the ship. A
compass at the jib-boom end, where the travellers and
hoops are of copper, or at the top-gallant-mast head,
which is better, is found to be scarcely at all influenced
by the attraction of the ship, Hence, I have been
in the habit of carrying a compass, occasionally, in the
crow’s nest, fixed at the mast head, where it was found
to be free from those anomalies which are so sensible
in a compass on deck,

7. The greatest anomaly with the compass in the position
last described, being ascertained by observation, the error
on every other point of the compass may be easily calcula-
ted; the anomalies produced by the attraction of the iron
in the ship, being found to be proportionate to the sines of
the angles between the ship’s head and the point of no ano-
maly, which point is most commonly the magnetic meridian.

(4.)

(>.)

On the supposition that the point of no anomaly eccurs
when the position of the ship corresponds with the
magnetic meridian, that is, when her head lies north or
south, Captain Flinders has given the following rule:
—As the sine of eight points (or radius) is to the sine
of the angle between the ship’s head and the magnetic
meridian, (or sine of the course reckoned from south
or north), so is the anomaly found at east or west by
observation, to the anomaly on the course steered ; or,
the anomaly on any other course being found by ob-
servation, the error on that position of the ship’s head
** would be to the error at east or west, at the same
dip, as the sine of the angle between the ship’s head
and the magnetic meridian, to the sine of eight points,
or radius.”

As, however, the line of greatest error is not always
north and south, the above rule has been modified by

550

MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. [APP. N° Ix.

Captain Sabine as follows: —The error produced in
any direction of the ship’s head, will be to the error at
the point of greatest irregularity, [instead of east and
west], as the sine of the angle between the ship’s head
and the points of no error, {instead of the magnetic
meridian], to the sine of eight points or radius.

(c.) 'To find the greatest anomaly and the point of change,

or no anomaly, the following rude appears one of the
most simple. Take the bearing of the sun, or any
other distant object whose true bearing from the ship
is known, with the binnacle compass when the ship’s
head is put upon each rhomb; if they are all the same,
there is no anomaly; but their differences from the
true bearing, after the application of the variation,
(which should be determined out of the vessel),
will give the anomalies on the respective courses ;
and the points on which there are no differences,
will be the points of change. When the sun is
the object observed, it is only necessary to take an al-
titude, along with two or three of the bearings, and
the intervals of time, by an easy approximation, will
give the true bearings for the intermediate observa-
tions. When the sun is near the meridian, and par-
ticularly in high latitudes in summer, an allowance of
a degree of azimuth for 4 minutes of time, will be
sufficiently accurate for intervals of an hour. The
true bearing of a distant fixed object may be found, in
a perfectly smooth sea, by sending a copper-fastened
boat in the direction of the object, for, when exactly in
the required line, the true bearing of the object from
the boat will give the true bearimg from the ship.
When among ice, or near shore, the same result may
be obtained more accurately, by sending an observer
to some distance in the required line, for taking the
bearing of the object. The transit bearings of two
objects, of which the position with regard to one an-

other is known, is preferable perhaps to any thing else.

APP. N° IX.]| MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. 551

8. A compass placed on either side of the ship’s deck,
directly opposite te, or abreast of, the focus of attraction,
gives a correct indication on an east or west course, but is
subject to the greatest anomaly when the ship’s head is north
or south ; and being here nearer the focus of attraction, the
anomaly is much greater than that observed on an east or
west course with the compass placed in the binnacle near the
ship’s stern.

a. This inference is founded on Observations No. 1, 2, 3,
8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 16. and 17. of the prefixed table.
The latter part of the inference, namely, that the
greatest anomaly occurs here when the ship’s head is
north or south, is fully and uniformly established ; but
the former part rests only on the authority of Obser-
vations No. 8. and 9, though it derived additional sup-
port from several observations which I have exclu-
ded, because neither the sun, nor any other distant
object, calculated for proving the accuracy of the ob-
servations and determining the clear effect of the
‘* local attraction,” was visible.

9. A compass placed within six or eight feet of a cap-
stern spindle, or anchor, or other large mass of wrought iron,
foregoes, in a great measure, the influence of the focus of
attraction, and submits to that of the nearer body of iron.

a. The effect of this is various, according to the relative
position of the compass and the iron. When the com-
pass is placed directly abaft the body of iron, the in-
fluence is similar to, but greater than, that of the
focus of attraction on a compass placed near the stern,
as described in inference No. 6. (See Table of obser-
vations prefixed, No. 6, and 7.) When placed di-
rectly before it, the anomaly is similar in quantity,
but has its sign reversed ; and when placed on either
side of the mass of iron, the influence corresponds
more nearly with that of the focus of attraction on a
compass placed in the sides of a ship opposite to it,
as described in inference No. 8. A compass placed

552 MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS. [APP. N° Ix.

upon the drwm-head of the capstern, anywhere out of
the centre, will have its north point so forcibly attract-
ed by the upper end or south pole of the spindle,
that the ship’s head may be made to appear to be
directed to any point whatever, at the pleasure of the
experimenter. I have sometimes excited the astonish-
ment of my officers by taking the binnacle compass,
and so placing it on the capstern-head, that the ship
has appeared to be steering a course directly contrary
to that intended.

10. When the iron in a ship is pretty equally distributed
throughout both sides, so that the focus of attraction occurs
in midships, a compass placed on the midship line of the deck,
(drawn longitudinally) will be free from any anomaly from
one end of the ship to the other, when the course is north or
south ; but on every other course an anomaly will generally
appear, increasing as the angle between the ship’s head and
the magnetic meridian increases, until the error is at a maxi-
mum, when the course is east or west.

a. The unequal distribution of iron in the ship, on board
of which I made all my experiments, prevented the
above effect from bemg realized. A blacksmith’s shop
was situated between decks, on the larboard side of
the fore-hatchway. It was lined with sheet-iron ; and
besides the armourer’s forge, vice, &c. contained a large
quantity of other iron. The effect of this, together
with the anchors, windlass-necks, &c. was very re-
markable on a compass placed in different parts of
the deck near the foremast. (See Observations 18,

19, and 20. of the prefixed 'Table.)

11. As a compass placed on the midship line of the deck is
subject to no anomaly fore and aft, in certain ships, on a north
or south course (Inference Ne. 10), and as a compass in either
side of the ship, opposite to the focus of attraction, shows no
anomaly on a west or east course (Inference No. 8), the inter-

APP. N° Ix.] MAGNETICAL OBSERVATIONS, 553

section of the line joming the two situations in opposite sides
of the ship, with the midship line traced fore and aft, will
probably point out a situation directly over the top of the focus
of attraction, where no anomaly on any course whatever will
appear.

a. The Esk, in which I made my magnetical observations,
had, as above stated, an armourer’s forge near the lar-
board bow, which, with the varying position of large
‘quantities of iron-work, composing our whale-fishing
apparatus, contributed to vary this point, where no
anomaly is supposed to exist, and prevented me from
ascertaining satisfactorily, at any time, its precise si-
tuation. I made, indeed, but few observations with
this view, and these, I find, neither establish nor re-
fute the inference.

12. The anomaly of variation is probably the greatest in
men of war, and in ships which contain large quantities of
iron ; but it exists in a very considerable degree also in mer-
chantmen, where iron forms no part of the cargo, especially
in high latitudes, where the dip of the needle is great.

(a.) A model of a vessel built of timber and plank, and fas-
tened with iron, which I have procured for showing
the nature of the magnetic anomaly, as connected with
the course steered and the position of the compass, is
capable of illustrating almost the whole of the preceding
inferences. In this model, as well as in actual prac-
tice, the vertical iron only is found to be capable of
affecting the indications of the compass; the largest
pieces of iron placed horizontally, unless within an inch
of the needle, having little or no influence, while
the same, in a vertical position, produce a sensible
effect at the distance of almost a foot.

(b.) While I was copying this paper for the press, a little

model of a vessel was shown me by Dr Traill, made
by a Mr Bywater of Liverpool, for exhibiting the

superior attraction of upright bars of iron over hori-

554 EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES. [app. N° x.

zontal bars: it also shows, in one position, the nature
of the local attraction. It acts entirely on the prin-
ciple stated in the Ist inference, and illustrates the

6th.
No, xX

EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES.

The Roman numerals and Arabic figures after the name of any article,’ point
out the volume and page of the Work, where such figure is particularly re-
ferred to or described.

Frontispiece. A representation of the ship Esk when
in distress. |The particulars of this misfortune,
with the successful issue of the voyage, are given
in chapter vii. of this volume. [See Vol. IT.
p- 457.]

No

I. General map of the Polar Regions. This map was
drawn with great care, partly from the beautiful
eight sheet map of the world on Mercator’s pro-
jection, by Arrowsmith, and partly from the best
charts of the sea coast of Europe and N. Ameri-
ca, including some original surveys, and, through
the liberality of Captain Ross, the whole of his

| survey of Baffin’s Bay.

II. Instruments, &c.

1. Stone lance found in a whale taken near Spitz-
bergen. I. 11.
2, Marine diver. I. 186.
3. Lines of temperature. I. 538.
4. Improved compass needle. II. 538. Note, Table. |
III. Appearances of Spitzbergen and adjacent islands.
1. View of Cherie Island. I. 153.
. The Three Crowns. I. 99.
. Middle Hook of the Foreland. I. 97.
. Horn Mount. I. 96.
. Hakluyt’s Headland and the Norways.

Cr = © 2

APP. N° X.] EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES. j 555

No.
IV. Survey of Spitzbergen, the west coast original.
I. 113.
V. Appearance of Jan Mayen Island. I. 163.
VI. Survey of Jan Mayen Island, the S. E. coast ori-
ginal. I. 154.
VII. Chart of the situation of the ice in the Greenland
Sea, in the years 1806, 1817, 1818, &c. I. 284.
VII.)
TX.) i
Xx. p Figures of snow crystals. I. 427, 431.
XI. J
XII. Representations of whales.
1. Side view of the Balana Mysticetus or com-
mon whale. Described in Vol. I. p. 449.
[Scale ;\,th of an inch to a foot. ]
2. Cub of the B. Mysticetus. [Same scale. |
3. Narwal or Unicorn. [Same scale. ]
* XII. Belly view of the Balana Mysticetus. I. 449.
XIII. Whale and Dolphin.
Adah Delphinus deductor. I. 496.
2. Balena rostrata. I. 485.
XIV. Beluga or White Whale. I. 500.
XV. Narwal and Shark.
1. Male Narwal. [Scale 3ths of an inch to a
foot.] I. 486.

. Belly view of the same.

. Squalus Groenlandicus. [Same scale.] I. 538.

. Belly view of ditto.

. The eye of the Shark, on a larger scale, show-
ing the form of a curious appendage that is
generally found attached to the pupil.
I, 539.

XVI. Figures of Meduse and other animals, constituting

the principal food of the whale.
1, 2. {Natural size. {

Or we OO 2

556

No.

EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES. [APP. NX.

3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8. Medusz, described in
Vol. I. p. 548-550.

9. An orange-coloured animal, possibly of the
same genus. I. p. 550.

10. Clio borealis or C. limacina. I. 544.

11, 12. Clio helicina. I. 543.

13. Cancer boreas. I. 542.

14, Squilla.

15. Beautiful little animal brought up by the
marine-diver I. 545.

16, 17, 18, 19 and 20. Minute medusz and ani-
malcules. I. 545.

x Vir: Representation of a singular accident that occurred

in the whale-fishery. II. 368.

XVIII. Apparatus used in the Northern Whale-Fishery.

[ Scale one inch to a foot. |

1. Gun-harpoon. II. 229.

2. The harpoon. IT. 223.

3. Gun-harpoon. IT. 229.

4, 5, 6. Lances. II. 227.

7, 8, 9,10. Blubber-spades. IT. 299.
11, 12. Prickers. ITI. 309.

XIX. Apparatus used in the Northern Whale-Fishery.

1. Harpoon-gun. [Scale two inches to a foot.]
II. 229.

2. Boat’s Wince, or apparatus used in the
whale-boats for heaving in the lme when
a great quantity has been withdrawn.
[Scale an inch to a foot.] II. 233.

. Hand-hooks. IT. 308.

. Ice-drill. IT. 349.

. Another form of a gun-harpoon.

. Seal-club. An instrument by which seals
are usually killed. I. 412.

7. King’s fork. An instrument by which
pieces of blubber are moved about from

Sor S OO

APY. N° x.]| EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES. 557

No.
one place to another. To compensate in
some degree, perhaps, for the laborious na-
ture of the office of the person who uses it,
he is honoured with the title of King.

XX. Apparatus used in the Northern Whale-Fishery.

[Scale an inch to a foot. |

. Blubber-knife. II. 299.

. Chopping-knife. IT. 309.

. Strand-knife. II. 299.

Tail-knife. II. 233.

- Bone-geer. II. 300.

. Bone-wedge. II. 300.

. Mik or rest for the harpoon. II. 233.

. Third-hand. Used in flensing.

. Pick-haak. IT. 299. 308.

. Closh, improved by my father. IT. 308.

. Grapnel. II. 233.

. Ice-grapnel, used in warping.

. Krenging-hook. IT. 308.

. Krenging-knife. ITI. 308.

. Spurs. IT. 298.

. Axe. IT. 233.

17. Snatch-block. IT. 233.

X XI. Ice and fishing apparatus. [Scale an inch to a foot. }

1. Ice-axe. II. 349.

2, 3. Ice-anchors. II. 349.

4. Bay ice-anchor. The lower part of this an-
chor, near the crown, has a broad flat sur-
face, by which it takes hold of a large por-
tion of ice, and retains its hold, even in very
thin ice, under a considerable strain. [Ori-
ginal. |

5. Blubber-pump. A pump used for taking
the water out of such of the blubber casks
as are filled for ballast. It is somewhat
less in diameter than the bung-hole of the

1

a
Cr Ot BOO WT HS OW 2 OT B OO 0

558

EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES. [APP. N° x.

casks. When this pump ceases to act, on
the water beimg nearly withdrawn, what
little remains is removed by means of a
swab.

6. Bone hand-spike. II. 300.
7. Ice-saw. The length of this saw, which is used

for cutting ice, is 14 feet. Being too long
to be represented wholly in the plate, a
part of the middle of the instrument is left
out. When used, two handles passing a~
cross each other, are put through the rings
at the top, by which 12 to 16 men can be
employed in working it at the same time.
When a great extent of thick ice is to be
cut, the larger saws are generally worked
by ropes from the top of a tripod.

8. Another saw, with a moveable back, used

for thinner ice. It is furnished with two
parallel handles. The two parts of the saw
being extended when in use, the back part
serves to keep the lower extremity forward,
and to preserve the saw in a perpendicular
position.

XXII. Apparatus for cutting blubber.

1. Appearance of the cutting apparatus when

fitted up for use. IT. 310.

2, Horizontal section of the same. IT. 310.

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INDEX.

[The Figures within parentheses refer to the Appendix in Vol. 1.]

Air, its dissolving power at different
temperatures, i. 422

Alca alle, remarks on, i. 528

arctica, common at Spitzbergen,
i. 527

Alderman Jones’ Sound discovered by
Baffin, i. 85

America or the West Indies discovered
in the 12th century, i. 67—British
colonies in, their whale-fishery, ii.
134

Amphibia, account of, i. 538

Anas bernicla, notice of, i. 527

mollissima, mention of, i. 527

Anecdotes,—Courageous exploit of a
sailor, ii. 263—Of whales, ii. 276—
Respecting the whale-fishery, 276,
294, 297, 302, 331—Of accidents
from ice, ii. 342—Of accidents aris-
ing from fogs, ii. 346

Animalcula in the Polar Seas, account
of, i, 544

Apparatus used in the whale-fishery,
ii. 223—List of, ii. 509

Arctic gull, account of, i. 534

Ascaris, mention of, i, 543

Ascidia, mention of, 1. 543

Asterias, notice of, i. 550

Atmosphere, tendency to equilibrium
in, i. 349—Pressure of, changeable
in the Arctic Regions, i. 371—Ap-
pearance of the atmosphere, i. 377
—Colour and transparency, ib.—
Density of, 378—occasional bright-
ness of, i. 379—Extreme dryness
of, i. 380—Electricity of, i, 382—
Phenomenon in, produced by re-
fraction, i. 384—Decrease in the
temperature of, on ascending, i. (72)

VOL. II.

Atmospherology, observations on,ji.|323

Attraction, magnetie, focus of, in a
ship, ii. 542

Auk, Little, remarks on, i. 528

Aurora borealis, common in high la~
titudes, i. 416—State of the weather
when observed, i. 417—Appearance
of, portentous, ib.

Baffin, an enterprising character and
able navigator, i. 89—Discovered
Baffin’s Bay, i. 84—Suggested that
a profitable whale-fishery might be
conducted there, ii. 184

Baftin’s Bay discovered, i. 84

Balena mysticetus, description of, i.
449—See Whale.

Balznoptera acuto-rostrata, described,
i. 485

gibbar, description of, i.
478—See Physalis.

—_—_——— jubartes, description of, i,
484

— rorqual, description of, i.

482

Banks’, Sir Joseph, apparatus for de
termining temperature of the sea,
furnished by, i. 185

Barclay, Dr, his anatomical examina-
tion of a beluga, i. 500

Barometer, table of remarkable changes
in, in high latitudes, i. 371—These
changes portentous, i. 373—Rela-
tions between the state of the baro~
meter and the weather, i. 374— Va-
lue of, in predicting the weather, i.
399, 401

Barrington’s, Hon. D. account of nae
vigators having reached extraordi-
nary high Jatitudes, not to be relied

Nn

®

562

on, i. 42—Evidenee of this conclu-
sion, i, 43, 45
Basques, early whale-fishers, ii. 16
Bear, Polar, account of, i. 517—Affec-
tion of, for its young, i. 520—In-
stances of sagacity in, i. 521—Fero-
city of, i. 523—Seamen killed by, i.
524
Bear Island discovered by Barentz, i.
79
Behring’s Strait, currents in, i. 211—
Discovery of, i. (65)
Beluga, description of, i. 500
Birds, Bay of, discovered by Barentz,
* 7. 80
Biscayans, expert and early whale-
fishers, ii. 16—Pursued the whales
to Iceland and Newfoundland, i. 17
—Assisted other powers in the cap-
ture of whales, ii. 26—Fished them-
selves at Spitzbergen, ii. 161
Blubber, nature of, i. 460—Proportion
of, to oil, i. 461—Process of redu-
cing into oil, ii. 400—Proportion of
refuse in, ii. 403°
Boats, whale, description of, ii. 221—
Manner of equipping for the fishery,
ii. 232—Sunk by whales, ii. 362—
Thrown into the air by the whale,
ii, 365
Boat-steerers, nature of their office, ii.
235
Boatswain, gull, account of, i. 534
Bones of whales, uses of, ii. 434
Botany of Spitzbergen, i. (75)
Bounty for encouraging the whale-
fishery, offered, ii. 72—Increased, ii.
73— Occasions a revival of the whale-
fishery, ii. 75—Being reduced, pro-
duces a depression in the trade, ii.
81—Trade again increases with the
increase of the bounty, ii. 82—Boun-
ty reduced, ii. 83, 87—Rate at pre-
sent, ii, 496
by the King of Denmark, ii.

given by the Government of
Holland, ii. 94

Brent goose, mention of, i. 527

British whale-fishery, ii. 98—Very suc-
cessful in 1814, a. 121

Brodrick, Cape, Jan Mayen, i. 166

Buccinum carinatum, notice of, i, 551

Burgomaster, (bird) account of, i. 535

INDEX.

Ca’ing whale, description of, i. 496

Cancer ampulla, notice of, i. 542

——— boreas, mention of, i. 542

nugax, notice of, i. 542

pulex, notice of, i. 542

Canis lagopus, remarks on, i. 517

Carey Island discovered by Baffin, i. 88

Cellepora pumicosa, notice of, i. 551

Cervus 'Tarandus, i. 526

Cherie Island, description of, i. 152

Chidley, Cape, discovered, i. 78

China, first attempts to reach by sea,
i 2

Chiton ruber, notice of, i. 551

Christianity introduced into Iceland and
Greenland, i, 66

Chronometer, valuable instrument. in
high latitudes, i. 380

Climate of the Arctic Regions, i. 323
—Of Jan Mayen in winter, i. (78)
— Of Spitzbergen, i. 137

Clio borealis, account of, i. 544

— helicina, remarks on, i. 543

Clouds of the Polar Regions, i, 419

Coal, occurs in Spitzbergen, i, 149—In
Cherie Island, i. 153

Coal-fish, notice of, i. 540

Cockin Sound, i. 89

Cold, in the Arctic Regions, intense, i.
329 —Prevents compasses traversing,
i. 332— Remarkable effects of severe
cold, i. 334—Effects observed by
James in Hudson’s Bay, i. 334—By
Ellis, ibn— By Middleton, i. 335—
By Janzen near Spitzbergen, ib.— By
Pelham, i. 336—By seven Dutch
seamen, ib.—By Barentz in Nova
Zembla, i. 337—By Egedé in Green-.
land, i, 337— Morbid effects of cold,
i. 338, 340—Transition from heat
to cold, not dangerous, i. 339—An-
tiseptical property of cold, i. 241—
Preserves meat fresh during several
months, i. 342

Colymbus glacialis, notice of, i. 533

grylle, remarks on, i. 532

troile, account of, i. 532

Compass, its traversing affected by'cold,
i. 332—Affected by the iron in ships,
ii. 376—Deviation of, productive of
great errors in reckoning, ii. 377—
Cause of the anomaly in the varia-
tion of, investigated, ii. 537—-Devia-
tion of, increases as the magnetic
dip increases, ii, 546—Table of ob-~

INDEX.

servations for determining the ano-
malies in, ii. 538— Vibrations in the
needle of, at Spitzbergen, ii. 544—
Maenetie directive force on, under
different dips, ii. 546

Corone and parhelia, remarks on, i.
392 i

Crow’s nest, described, ii. 203—Its use
in the fishery, ii. 237 ‘

Crystallization, remarks on the cause
of, i. 438

Cumberland (Island) discovered by Da-
vis, 1. 76

Cumberland Strait, discovered by Da-
vis, i. 76

Currents in the Arctic Seas, i, 4—Near
Spitzbergen, i. 147, 204.—Difficul-
ties of determining, i. 205—Some
effects of, i. 207—Proofs of, in the
Greenland Seas, i. 212—Intimate
the existence of a communication
between the Atlantic and Pacific,
i. 4,

Customs, regulations of, on the impor-
tation of the produce of the whale-
fishery, ii. 3783—Duties of, on Green-
land produce, ii. 501— Mustering of
Greenland ships by the officers of,
ii. 513—Affidavits, certificates, &c.
by the, required, ii. 514

Cuttle-fish, food of the narwhal, i. 544

Cyclopterus liparis, notice of, i. 540

Davis’ Strait discovered, i. 73—Whale-
fishery of, commenced by the Dutch,
ii. 64—suggested by Baffin, ii. 184
—Account of the fishery of, ii. 382
Compared with that of Greenland,
ii. 390

Delphinus deductor, description of, i.
496—Numbers stranded in Orkney,
Faroe, Iceland, &c. i. 499

Denmark, King of, encourages the
whale-fishery by a bounty, ii. 83—
Account of the whale-fishery from,
ii. 166

Deviation of the compass, ii. 537—See

Compass.

Dier’s Cape discovered by Davis, i. 76

Discovery, adventurous spirit in, ma-
nifested by our early voyagers, i. 22
—Vessels of 10,35 and 50 tons em-
ployed in, i, 23—Hints for conduct-
ing in the Polar Seas, i. 24—Class
of vessels most suitable for, i, 24, 27

2

563

=-Small vessels strunger than large,
i. 24—-Proofs of this assertion, i. 26
—Practical knowledge of the polar
regions, in navigators, necessary for
making discoveries, i. 28—Evidences
of this remark, i. 27—-Advantages
of wintering in Baffin’s Bay to na-
vigators on discovery, i. 29—Ves-
sels might be secured from ice, by
hauling them on land by means of
Morton’s patent slip, i. 30 —Premi-
ums by act of Parliament for making
discoveries; i. 53

journeys on land in N. Ame-
rica, most likely mode of discover-
ing the seas between Behring’s Strait
and the Greenland seas, i. 33—Mode
of travelling on snow, i. ib.—Pro-
visions used by travellers, i. 35—
Suggestions for performing journeys
of discovery, i. 37

voyages of, in the Arctic
Seas, led to the Spitzbergen whale-
fishery, ii. 19—Also to the Arch-
angel trade, ib.

voyages of,—Alargon, i. (57)
—Aubert or Hubert, i. 71, (56)—
Baffin, William, i. 84, (61)—Ba-
rentz, William, i. 79, (59)—Behring,
Vitus, i. (65)—Bennet, Stephen, i.
(59)—Billings, Joseph, i. (69)—
Biorn, i, 64, (55)—Blefkens, Dith-
mar, i- (57)—Buchan, David, i. (71)
—Burrough, Stephen, i. 72, 74, (57)
—Busch, Henry, i. (64)—Button,
Sir Thomas, i. $3, (61)—Bylot, Ro-
bert, i. 84, (61)—Cabot, John, i. 69,
(55)—Cabot, Sebastian, i. 69, (55)
—Cabrillo, Juan Rodriguez de, i,
(57)—Camart, i. (56)—Cartier, Jac-
ques, i. (56)—Chancellor, Richard, i.
72, (57)—Chaque, Martin, i. (57)—
Christopher, i. (67)— Clerke, Charles,
i. (69)—Columbus, i. 68, (55)—
Cook, James, i. (68)—Cornelison,
i. 79, (59)— Coronado, i. (57)—Cor-
tereal, Gaspar, i. 69, (56—Cortere.
al, John Vaz Costa, i. 69, (55)—Cor-
tereal, Michael, i. 70, (56)—Danell,
i. (63)— Davis, John, i. 75, (58)—
Denis, Jean, i. (56)— Deschnew, Se-
meon, i. (63)—Duncan, Charles, i.
(70)—Egedé, i. (69) - Fenton, Ed-
ward, i. (58)—Flawes, William, i.
(64) — Flocke, i. 62, (54) — Fo-

nn@g

564

therby, i. (61)—Fox, Luke, i. (62)
— Franklin, John, i. (71)— Fro-
bisher, Martin, i. 74, (57)—Fuea,
Juan de, i. (59)—Gama, Vasquez de,
i. 68—Gibbons, i.(61)—Gilbert, Sir
Humphry, i. (58)—Gillam, Zach. i.
(63)—Gomez, Estevan, i. 71, (56)—
Gualle, Francisco, i, (58)—Gun-
biorn, i. 63, (55)—Gwosdew, i. (65)
—Hall, James, i. 82, (59)— Hawks-
bridge, i. (62)—Hearn, Samuel, i.
(67) — Heceta, Bruno, i, (68)—
Heemskirk, Jacob van, i. 79— Hein-
son, Morgen, i. 112— Hudson, Hen-
ry, i. 82, (60)—Ignatiew, Isai, i. (62)
—Ingolf, i. 62, (54)—Jackman,
Charles, i. (58)—James, Thomas, i.
(62) — Knight, James, i. (64) —
Knight, John, i. $2, (60)—Kosche-
lew, i. (66)—Kotzbue, i (70)~Kru-
pischew, i. (65)—Laptiew, Dmitri,
i. (66) — Lassenius, i. (65) — Leif,
i. 62, 64, (54)—Lowenorn, i. (69)
—Mackenzie, Alexander, i. (69)—
Madoc, i. 67, (55)—Malaspina, i.
(70)—Maldonado, i. (58)—-Markoff,
Alexei, i. (64)—Melguer, i. (63)—
Middleton, Christopher, i. (66)--Mly-
agin, i. (66)—Moor, William, i. (66)
—Morovieff, i. (65)—Munk, Jens,
i. (62)—Naddodd, 1. 62, (54)—Oh-
there, i. 62, (55)—Owzen, i, (66)—
Parry, William Edward, i. (71)—
Pet, Arthur, i. (58)— Phipps, Const.
John, i. (68)—Pickersgill, Richard,
i. (68)— Poole, Jonas, i. (60)— Pron-
tschitscheff, i. (65)— Rauda, Eric, i.
63, (55)—Richard, Lieut, i. (65)—
Roche, Marquis de la. i, (59)—Ross,
John, i. (71)—Ryp, Cornelis, i. 79
Schap, H. C. i. (62)—Scroggs, John,
1. (65)— Shalauroff, i. (67y—Skura-
tow, i. (66)—Smith, Francis, i. (67)
—Swaine, Charles, i. (67)—Thorfin,
i. 65, (55)—Thorwald, i. 64, (55)—
Tschirikow, i. (66)—Uhlefeld, Baron
von, i. (67)—Ulloa, Francisco, i. (57)
—Urdanietta, Andrea, i. (57)—Van-
couver, George, i. (70)—V erazzani,
Juan, i. (56), — Vizcaino, Sebas-
tiano, i. (59)—Vriez, M. H. van,
i. (62)—Wagin, Mercurei, i. (64)—
Weymouth, George, i. 81, (59)—
Wilder, i. (68)—Willoughby, Sir
Hugh, i. 71, (57)—Wood, John,
i. (64)——Young, Walter, i. (68)—

INDEX.

Zeno, Antonio, i. 68, (55)—Zens,
Nicholas, i. 68, (55)

Doveca, account of, i, 532 /

Drift wood, i. 131, 161—An evidence
of a northern communication be-
tween the Atlantic and Pacific, i. 6

Dunkirk, extensive whale-fishery from,
ii. 88

Dutch, seht ships to the Spitzbergen
fishery, iis 23—-Were driven away
by the English, ii. 24—-Were at-
tacked,'and one ship captured, ii. 27
—Afterwards attacked the English,
34—Attempt to establish a colony
in Spitzbergen, ii. 49—-They found
the village of Smeerenberg, ii. 52—
Procured great success in the fishery,
ii. 54, 56—Historical account of
their whale-fishery, ii. 138—Profits
derived by, from the whale-fishery,
ii. 156

Duties on Greenland produce, ii. 501

Edge, Thomas, the first whale-fisher
at Spitzbergen, ii. 21
Hider-duck, abundant in Greenland,
_ &e. i. 527
Electricity of the atmosphere, i. 382
Emberiza nivalis, notice of, i. 537
English, probably ancient whale-fish-
ers, ii. 15—Their first fishery at
Cape Breton, ii. 18—Were the ori-
ginal discoverers of the Spitzbergen
fishery, ii. 19——Their first adventure
unfortunate, ii. 21—They drive fo-
reigners away from the fishery, ii.
24_Their fishery prosperous, ii. 31
—Afterwards suffer heavy losses, ii-
60, 70—Their trade revives on the
offer of a bounty, ii. 75
historical account of their
whale-fishery, ii. 98—extent of, to
Greenland and Davis’ Strait, ii. 119
Esk Mountain, Jan Mayen, discovered,
i. 166
Esk, ship, narrative of proceedings on
board of, ii. 438—Dangerous situa-
tion of, ii. 439-——Damage sustained
by, ii. 447—Attempt to invert, ii.
457—Contracts for assistanee, ii.
465, 468—Immense influx of wa-
ter, ii. 447—SLeak diminished, ii.
473—Ship unmanageable, ii. 474—
Immense quantity of water dis-
charged from, ii. 481—Arrives safe
in port, ii. 485

INDEX.

Exeter Sound, discovered by Davis, i.
76

Expences of a whale-ship, ii. 393——Of
extracting oil, ii. 396

Experiments for determining the rela-
tion between weight and measure in
whale-oil, ii. 525

Fall, the alarm of a whale being har-
pooned, ii. 243

Fast-fish, what constitutes a, ii. 319

Fenks, derived from blubber, ii. 402
—Uses of, ii. 434

Fields, fishery among, ii. 259.
Ice.

Fin-whale, first attacked by Europeans,
ii. 16

Fishburn Cape, Jan Mayen, named, i.
166

Fleming, Rev. Dr, his description of
the narwal, good, i. 495

Flensing, process of, how conducted,
li. 298

Flustra pilosa, notice of, i. 551

Fog, frequent in polar seas, i. 440—
Not always wetting, i. 44.1—Incon-
veniences of, i. 44.2—-Method of ob-
taining the sun’s altitude during, i.
443—Of fishing during, ii. 273—
Dangers of, to the whalers, ii. 346

Fog-bow, description of, i. 394

Foreland, description of mountains on,
i. 97

Formule for finding temperature, i.
353, (53)

Fortifying of Greenland ships, manner
of, ii. 191, 508

Fox, Arctic, remarks on, i. 517

French, ancient whale-fishers, ii. 11—
Historical account of their whale-
fishery, ii. 163

Fringilla linaria, remarks on, i. 537

Frobisher’s Strait discovered, i. 75

Frost-rime, description of, i. 434—
Cause of, i. 435

Fulmar, account of, i. 528

See

Gadus carbonarius, notice of, i. 540
Gale, action by, respecting a whale, ii.
518
Gama, Vasquez de, first sailed to In-
dia, i. 2
Gammarus arcticus, description of, i.
541
Gas, from oil casks, nature of, ii. 309

565

Gas, from whale-oil, account of, ii.
421—Superiority over that obtained
from coal, ii. 424—Properties of, ‘ii.
425—Economy of, ii. 426

Gas-lamp, portable one described, ii.
428

Germans, whale-fishery by, ii. 166

Glue, made from whales tail, ii. 434

God’s Mercy, Cape of, discovered by
Davis, i. 76

Gold and treasure, the discovery of,
was the secret design of some of the
voyages towards the north-west, i.
16

Greenland, discovered by an Iceland
colonist, i. 63—-Colonized from Ice-
land, ib.—Extensive settlements, i.
66—lIntercourse between this coun-
try and the rest of the world inter-
cepted, i. 262—Various unsuccess-

_ ful attempts made by the Danes for
the recovery of this country, i. 67

Greenland, East, or Spitzbergen, i. 93

Greenland Company established at Lon-
don, ii. 59—Lose $2,000/. in the
whale-fishery, ii. 60 —Cause of their
failure, ii. 62

Greenland Company of Bergen esta~
blished, ii. 65—Revived, ii. 72

Greenland fishery. See Whale-fishery.

Greenland Sea, situation of, i. 172. See
Sea.

Gulf-stream, course of, i. 206

Gull Island, produces lead-glance, i,
153

Gulls, account of, i. 534

Hail, uncommon in high latitudes, i.
422

Hakluyt’s Island discovered, i. 88

Hamburgh, extensive fishery from, ii,
168

Harpoon, description of, ii. 223—
Mode of preparing for use, ii. 230

Harpoon guns, invented, ii. T0—Re-
introduced, ii. 79—History of, ii.
227—Description of, ii. 228—Pre-
miums for shooting whales, ib.

Harpooners, the Biscayans, engaged as,
by the English and Dutch, ii. 20,
26, 39—Nature of their office, ii.
234,

Heinson’s, Morgens, ship said to have
been stopped by concealed magnetic

506
rocks; explanation of the circum-
stance, i, 112

Hoar-frost, description of, i. 436—De-
posited in beautiful crystals, i. 437
—Speculation concerning, i. 438

Hope Island, description of, i. 151

Horn Sound, discovered by Baffin, i.
86

Hudson’s Bay discovered, i. 82—The
discoverer lost his life by a mutiny
among his crew, i. 83

Hudson’s Strait, first discovered by
Weymouth, i. 81

Hull, merchants of, early whale-fish-
ers, ii. 2O—A grant of Jan Mayen
Island given them for a fishing sta-
tion, ii. 40—Fresent fishery from; ii.
124

Hutton, Dr James, his theory of rain,
i, 421

Ice, Greenland or polar account of, i.
225—Various kinds described, i. ib.
Sea-water ice, i. 230—Fresh-water
ice, i, 232, 320—Density of ice, i.
233—Experiment in forming ice, i.
235—In melting, becomes prisma-
tical, i. 237— Formation of sea-ice,
i. 238—HVirst crystals, i. 239—Bay
ice, i. 240, 318 —Driftice, i. 319—
Description of ice-fields, i. 241—
Their formation, i. 244, 320—Ten-
dency to drift to the south west-

- ward, i. 246, 291—Movements, i.
247—Destructive effects on vessels,
i, 248—Severe concussion, i. 249—
Icebergs, their magnitude, i, 251—
Where met with; ib.—Form, i. 253.
Colour, i. 254—Icebergs useful to
the fishers, i. 256—-Sometimes fra-
gile, i, 257—How generated on land,
i. 258, 319—At a distance from
land, i, 261, 319—Situation or out-
line of the polar ice, i. 262—Whale-
fishers’ bight, i. 266—Changes in
the ice at different seasons, i. 270—
in the summer astonishing, i. 273
—Situation in the years 1803 and 4,
i. 276—In 1805, 6 and 7, i. 277—
In 1808, 9 and 10, i. 278—In 1811
and 12, i.'279—In 1813, 14, i. 281
—In 1815, 16 and 17, i. 282—In
2818, i. 283—Ice has a tendency to

INDEX.

separate during calms, 4, 284—Clo-
sing and opening uncertain i. 285—
Fields are subject to extraordinary
movements, i. 286—Changes in the
position of the ice often unaecount-
able, i. 287—Singular instance, i.
288—Besetment of the ship Esk, i.
291—Effects of ice on the sea and
atmosphere, 1. 296 Ice, causes
a diminution of the wind, i. 296
Repels storms. i. 297 — Pro-
duces a deposition of snow, ib,x—Oc-
casions a brightness in the sky, i-
299—Equalises temperature, i. 300.
328—Produces fogs, ib.—Ice and
sea produce a reciprocal action on
each other, i, 301—Dangers of a
swell among ice, to shipping, i. 302
—Ice streams resist the sea, i. 304
Increase of ice proportionate to the
waste, 1.305, 321—Its hinderance to
approaching the Poles, i. 306—Suc-
cessful efforts in penetrating to a
high latitude, (814 N.) i. 309—Ab-
stract of observations on the polar
ice, i. 318—Quantity greater in the
Southern than in the Northern He-
misphere. i. 321—Specifie gravity
of, determined, i. (81) — Quantity
destroyed intimates the existence of
a northern communieation between
the Atlantic and Pacific, i. 5—Ice,
dreaded by the first whale-fishers, 1i.
100—Danger of, to the fishers, ii.
342—Various accidents by, ib.—
Accident on the Esk by, ii. 446
Icebergs, description of, i. 101, 159,
250—Origin of, i. 101, 107, 258—
Why rare in the Greenland seas, i.
103—Fall of one, i. 105—Dangers
of to shipping, i. 106, 256, 258
Ice-blink, described, i. 299-—Advanta-
ges of, to the fishers, i. 383
Iceland, discovered by Naddod in 861,
i. 62—Visited by some Swedes and
Norwegians, soon after its discove-
ry, ib.—A_ colony established in it,
ib,—Tremendous storms occur in it,
i, 412 5
Icelanders, early whale-fishers, ii. 11
—Pursued the whales to Newfound-
land, ii. 17

INDEX.

Impress, seamen of whale-ships pro-
tected from, ii. 85

Instruments used in the whale-fishery,
list of, ii. 509—Harpoon, ii. 223—
Lance, ii. 227.

Intestina, notice of, i. 543

Ireland, whale-fishery from, ii. 132

Iron, polarity of, ii. 540—Its polarity
dependant on position, ib.

Jameson Bay, Jan Mayen, named, i.
166

Jan Mayen Island, account of, i. 154
—Named Mauritius’ Island and
Trinity Island, ib.—Singular Moun-
tain on, i. 158—Icebergs, i. 159—
Examination of a part of the coast,
i. 160—Found to be volcanic, i. 161
Crater, i. 162—Some seamen at-
tempting to winter in this island,
perished, i. 167—State of the wea-
ther in, during winter, i. (78)—An
important whale-fishing station, ii.
33—-Two voyages made thither in
one season, ii. 54

Kittywake, account of, i. 534

Labrador, whale-fishery on the coast
of, ii. 386.

Lamps, oil, caution in trimming, ii.
433

Lance, description of, ii. 227 *

Larus crepidatus, habits of, i. 534

eburneus, account of. 535

glaucus, remarks on, i. 534

parasiticus, habits of, i. ib.

rissa, account of, i. ib.

Latitude, a desideratum in foggy wea-
ther, i. 442—-Method of obtaining,
i. 443—Latitudes and longitudes in
Spitzbergen, i. (73)—In Jan Mayen,
i. (74)

Laws of the whale-fishery, ii. 312—
Among the Dutch, ii. 313—Among
all nations, ii. 319—With regard to
wrecks, ii. 328 — Circumstance il-
lustrative of the nature of, ii. 331

Lead-ore, occurs in Cherie Island, i.
153

Lernza branchialis, notice of, i. 543

Leslie, Professor, his researches on
the cause of rain, i. 421—TIllustra-
tions founded on these, i. 422

567

Light, intensity of, among ice, i. 379
—Contrivance of the Indians for de-
fending the eyes in such light, i. ib.

Lightning, seldom seen in the Arctic
Zone, i. 415

Lines, whale, quantity carried in a
boat, ii. 232—-Danger of their get-
ting entangled, ii. 246, 357—Im-
mense quantity withdrawn by a
whale, ii. 281

London, mean temperature of, i. (51)
Whale-fishery from, ii. 124

London Coast, Davis’ Strait, discover.
ed by Davis, i. 78

Longitude, mistakes in, by vessels re-
turning from Spitzbergen or Arch-
angel, ii. 375—Oceasioned by the
attraction of iron on the compasses,
ii. 376—Quantity of error in, estima-
ted, ii. 377

Loom, account of, i. 533

Looming, phenomenon of, i. 384

Loose fish, free prize of any one, ii.
322

Low Island, description of, i. 150

Lumley’s Inlet, named, i. 78

Mackenzie, Sir Alexander, his voyage
to the Frozen Ocean, i. 37—Evi-
dence of his having been at the Fro-
zen Sea, or in a river falling into it,
ib.

Magnetic force, table of, ii. 545

Magnetism of iron, ii. 540. See Com-
pass

Making off, process of, described, ii.
804

Mallemuk, account of, i. 528

Marine diver, description of, i. 186

Markoff’s, Alexei, journey of 800
miles over ice, i. 59

Mayer, formula by, for calculating
mean temperature, i. 353

Medusa, description of various kinds,
i. 544, 548 !

5 immense number of, in the
Greenland seas, i. 179—Economy
of, i. 546—Physiology of their pre-
servation, ib.

Meteors,—Winds, i. 295—Lightning,
i, 415—Aurora borealis, i. 416
Clouds, i. 419—Rain, i. 420—Hail,
i. 424—Snow, i. 425—Frost-rime,

568

i. 434—Hoar-frost, i. 436—Fog, i.
440

Meteorological Tables, extensive series
of, i. (2)—Results of 12 years obser-
vations in the Spitzbergen Sea, 1.
(48)

Meteorology, general remarks on, i.

. $45—As a science, imperfect, i.
348

Millepora polymorpha, notice of, i.
551

Minerals of Spitzbergen, i. (76)

Moffen Island, description of, i. 149

Monodon monoceros, description of, 1.
486. See Narwal.

Morton, Mr Thomas, of Leith, inven-
tion for hauling ships on land, use-
ful in discovery vessels, i. 30

Moscow, visited by Richard Chancel-
lor, i. 73

Mount Raleigh, discovered, i. 76

Mountains, altitude of, in Spitzbergen,
i. 96—Danger of climbing, i. 1OO—
Jan Mayen, i. 158.—Elevation, ib.

Mullus barbatus, notice of, i. 541

Musculus, Balena, description of, i.
482—Stranded on the coasts of Bri-
tain, i. 483

Mustering whale ships, manner of, ii,
513

Mya truncata, notice of, i. 551

Mysticetus, Balzena, i. 44.9. See Whale.

Mytilus rugosus, notice of, i. 551

Narwal, description of, i. 486—Size of
its tooth, i. 489—Use of the tooth,
j. 491—Skeleton of, i. 493—Dimen-
sions of a narwal, i. 495.

Navigation from Spitzbergen to Bri-
tain, remarks on, ii. 369—Set out
from an uncertain point, 1b.

Neill, Mr Patrick, his examination of
a fin-whale, 484—Of a ca’ing-whale,
i. 496—Of a beluga, i. 500

Nelson River discovered by Button, i.
83

Newfoundland discovered, i. (55)

Newland, a name given to Spitzbergen,
i. 93.

North, account of the progress of dis-
coveries in, i. 61

North Cape, named by Stephen Bur-
rough, i. 72

INDEX.

North Pole, nearest approaches to, iL
41, 306—Nearest approaches in Baf-
fin’s Bay, Behring Strait, &c. i. 315.
Erroneous statements concerning
approaches to, i, 42—Bias in voy-
agers to exaggeration, i. 44—In-
stances of it, i, 42, 45—Premiums
for approaching within one degree,
&c. i. 50, and within seven,&c. i. 53
—aActs of ‘Parliament and Order in
Council respecting premiums, i. 51,
53, and 71— Close approach to in the.
ship Resolution, i. 307—abstract of
a journal kept in this voyage, ib.—
Open sea‘at the, chimerical, i. 46--So-
lar influence not sufficient to dissolve
the ice around the Pole, i. 47—Tem-
perature of the Pole, i. 360.—Only
way of reaching seems to be by a
journey over the ice, i. 54— Difficul-
ties with regard to rough packed ice,
answered, i. 55— Evidences of such
a journey being practicable, i. 57—
Instances of extensive journeys over
snow and ice being performed, i. 58
—60

North-east passage, remarks on the
existence of, i. 12—-Has been in a
great measure navigated by the Rus-
sians, i. 12——-Voyages attempted by
Europeans, i. 15

North-west passage, remarks on its
existence, i. 16.—Yet uncertain, i.
17—Arguments for its existence, i.
1%—Its discovery could be of no use
in voyages to the Pacific, i. 21—
Might be of benefit to geography
and science, ic 22—-Premiums for
discovery towards the passage, i. 53.
(68)

Northern passage between the Atlan-
tic and Pacific Oceans, remarks on
the existence of, i. 1:

across the North Pole, i. 40
—First suggested by Robert Thorne,
i. 2 and 40—List of voyagers who
have attempted it, i. 41—Highest
latitude reached not exceeding 81°,
ib.

Northern lights, i. 416

Nova Zembla, discovered by Sir Hugh
Willoughby, i. 72—Wintered in by
Barentz, i. 80

es

INDEX.

Oaths, taken at Customhouse, account
of, ii 515 and 516—Immoral ten-
dency of, ii. 517

Ohthere, whale-fishery known to, in the
ninth century, ii. 6

Oil, mode of extracting, from blubber
by the first fishers, ii. 174—Extract-
ed in Spitzbergen, ib.—Expences of
extracting, and prem) 97s of sailors
on, ii. 398—Premisses used for ex-
tracting, ii. 397—Process of ex-
tracting, ii. 400—Uses of, ii. 420—
For making gas, ii. 421—Proper-
ties of gas from, ii. 425

— description of, ii, 408—Proportion
between weight and measure in, ii.
409. and 525—Price of, in different
years, ii. 4J0—Cause of the smell
of, ii. 411—Refined oil, properties
of, ii. 413—Processes for refining, ii.
431—Specific gravity of, determi-
ned, ii. 527

Oniscus ceti, account of, i. 543

Orosius, the work of, translated by
Alfred the Great, ii. 7—Examina-
tion of a difficult passage in, ii. 9

Parhelia and coronz, description of, i.
392

Parliament, acts of, relating to the
importation of the produce of the
whale-fishery, ii. 378—For the re-
gulation of the whale-fishery, ii. 491
Number of officers and quantity of
stores for ships of different classes
required by, ii. 493—A ffidavits and
certificates required by, ii. 514

Phoce, seals, account of, i. 508

Physalis, balzna, description of, i. 478
—Magnitude. i. 479—Difficulty of
capture, i. 480

Plants, catalogue of, found in Spitz-
bergen, i. (75)

Pole. See North Pole.

Poole, Jonas, suggested the whale-
fishery at Spitzbergen, ii. 20

Pressure of the sea on a whale equal
to the weight of 60 men of war, ii.
250

Procellaria glacialis, account of, i. 528

Protections from impress, granted to
officers and seamen of whale ships,
ii-.503—Bonds required before ob-
taining, ii. 515

569

Providence, laudable dependence on,
by our early voyagers, i. 23
Puffin, common at Spitzbergen, i. 527

Rain, in Arctic countries, i. 420—
Cause of, i. 421—TIllustrations of
Hutton’s Theory of, i. 422

Razor-back whale, description of, i.
478

Red-pole, lesser, account of, i. 537

Refraction, beautiful effect of, i. 385
—Occasions a division in the sen-
sible horizon, i. 387—Shews the ho-
rison 83 miles more distant than
usual, i. 389—Remarks on the cause
of, i. 391

Rein-deer, mention of, i. 526.

Resolution, ship, expences of the
equipment of, ii, 393—Profits of,
li. 395.

Rostrata, Balena, described, i. 485—
One stranded in Orkney, ib.

Royal Society, abstract of thermome-
tric observations, kept at the apart-
ments of, i. (51)

Russia Company, first sent ships to the
Spitzbergen whale-fishery, ii. 22—
Obtain a Royal Charter for a mo-
nopoly of the fishery, ii. 25—Drive
out all interlopers, ii. 26—Capture
a Dutch vessel, ii. 27—Successful
fishers, ii. 31

Russian hunters in Spitzbergen, i. 140

Sabella frustulosa, notice of, 9. 551

St John’s Island discovered, i. 69

St Lawrence’s River discovered, i. 70

Sandpiper, notice of, i. 537

Scoresby, Captain senior, sailed to la-
titude 81°.30’, i. 42—His account of
a boat soaked with water in conse-
quence of pressure, i. 191—His re-
marks on winds, i. 401—His contri-
vance for reducing blubber to oil by
steam, ii. 403

Scotland, whale-fishery commenced
from ii. 116

Scurvy, dangerous disorder in cold cli-
mates, i. 340—Occasioned by the
use of salt provisions, &c. i. 340

Sea, Greenland, survey of, i. 170
— Situation of, i. 172 —Saltness,
i, 171—Colour, i, 173—Peculiarity

570

of its colour accounted for, i. 177—

Immense number of Meduse dis-

covered in, i. 179—Its transparen-

cy, it 181—Specific gravity, i.

181 —Saline contents, i. 182 —

Table of specific gravity, ib—Tem-

perature of, at great depths, i. 184

—Table of temperature, &c. i. 187

—Depth, i. 188—Suggestions for
obtaining soundings in deep seas, i.
190—Pressure at great depths, sin-
gular effects of, i. 191, 203, and ii.
249—Experiments on the impreg-
nation of wood with sea-water by
pressure, i. 193—Tables of effects
produced, i. 195, 200—Currents in,
i. 204—Difficulties of determining,
i. 205—Some effects of, i. 207—
Illustrations of currents, i. 212—Its
waves, 1. 217—Its colour useful to
whale-fishers, ii. 336

Sea-horse, description of, i. 502—Fish-
ery for, i. 505—Practised in the 9th
century, ii. 7

Seals, account of, i. 508—Uses of, i.
510—Fishery for, i. 512—Dangers
of the seal fishery, i. 513—-Dreadful
catastrophe, i. 514

Seamen belonging whale-ships protect-
ed from the impress, ii. 85

Sepia, food of narwals, i. 544

Serpula, notice of, i. 551

Shark, Greenland, description of, i. 538
—Singular appendage to tlie eye of,
i. 539

Shetland, bank to the westward of, dis-
covered, ii. 372—Lighthouses to be
erected on, ii. 373—Dangerous tides
near, ii. 374

Ships, destruction among, in the seal-
fishery, i. 514—Thirty-three lost in
a storm near Spitzbergen, ii. 73

Greenland or whale, best size for
the fishery, ii. 187 and 506—Man-
ner of strengthening or fortifying,
ii, 190 and 508—Peculiarities of
equipment, ii. 196, 203—Crew re-
quired for, ii. 199—Proceedings of
in the outward passage, ii. 199, 205
—Of navigating homewards, ii. 369
—Expences of equipment, ii. 393—
Profits of one, ii. 395—Manner of
measuring and Mustering, ii. 512

Shipwrecks, fatal, in Davis’ Strait, ii.
394 —Thirty-three in one year, ii. 73

INDEX.

—Of first whale-ships at Spitzber-
gen; ii. 21

Shrimps, account of, i. 541, 542

Sir Dudley Diggs’, Cape, discovered
by Baffin, i. 87

Sir James Lancaster’s Sound discoyer-
ed by Baffin, i, 88 ‘

Sir Thomas Smith’s Sound discovered
by Baffin, 7. 38

Skreelingers, the aborigines of Winland,
i. 65

Smeerenberg, Spitzbergen, founded by
the Dutch, ii. 52

Snow, remarks on, i. 425—Variety of
form, ib,—Red snow, i, 426—Va-
rious modifications of snow, i. 477
—tLamellar crystals, ib.—Nucleus
with spines, i. 429—Spicule, ib.—
Hexagonal pyramids, i. 480—Spi-
cule with lamellar crystals at the
ends, ib.—State of the atmosphere
when different forms oceur, i. 433

Snow-bird, account of, i. 535

Snow-bunting, notice of, i, 537

Society of Arts, premiums given by,
for shooting whales, ii. 228

Soundings, hints for obtaining in deep
seas, 1. 190-— Near Shetland, a guide
to the navigator, in determining his
position, ii. 371

South Pole, closest approximation of,
1..317

South Sea whale-fishery, account of,
li, 529

South Sea Company, whale-fishery
commenced by, ii. 69 —Suffered great
loss, ii. 72—After eight years trial
abandoned the trade, ii. 71

Southampton Island discovered, i. 83

Specific gravity of sea-water, i. 182
—Of ice, i (81)—Of whale-oil, ii.
408

Spermaceti whale, fishery of, ii, 583

Spiritous liquors not useful for resist-
ing cold, i. 35

Spitzbergen, discovered by Barentz, i.
80, 93—Description of, i 92--Moun-
tainous country, i. 94—-Mountains,
i, 94— Altitude of some, i, 96—
Their regularity, i. 98—Danger of
climbing them, i. 100—Deception
in their apparent distance, i. 1J0—
Icebergs, i. 107, 109—Latitudes and
longitudes in, i. (73)—Scenery inte-
resting, i. 109—Its bays and sounds,

INDEX.

i. 113—Rocks and banks, i. 114
Anchorages, ib.——Examination and
exploration of, 7 118—At Mitre
Cape, difficulties in climbing the
mountains, i. 120—Air mild at the
height of 3000 feet, i. 123—Snow
dissolves at the top of the moun-
tains, i. 124.--Besutiful prospect from
the mountain s3mmit, i, 128—
Dangers of descending, i. 129—
Bones, huts, &c. i. 130—Animals
met with, i. 131—Drift wood, ib.—
Sea-weed, i. 132—Dead whale dis-
covered, ib.—Exploration in King’s
Bay, i. 134——Climate, i. 135—Pro-
gress of the seasons, i. ,137—Ac-
count of persons wintering in, i, 139
—Russian hunters, i. 140—Currents
and tides, i. 147—Plants of, i. (75)
—Minerals, i. (76)—Attempt by the
Dutch to colonize it, ii. 47—Smee-
renberg founded in, ii. 52—Build-
ings in, erected by the whale-fishers,
ii. 177—Whale-fishery of, discovered
by the English, ii. 19. See Whale-
fishery.

Squalus borealis, description of, i. 538

Star-fish, notice of, i. 550

Sterna hirundo, remarks on, i. 533

Stockholm, abstract of fifty years obser-
vations on the temperature of, i, (52)

Stockholm, Whale-fishing Company of,
ii. 80

Storms, phenomena of sudden, i. 398
—tExamples, i. 399 — Sometimes
heard before they appeared, i. 402
—Intermitting storms, instances of,
ib.—Local, examples of, i. 406—
Tremendous in autumn, i. 412—
Suppressed by G'iffs at Disco, i. 414
—Catastrophe’ from, in the seal-
fishery, i. 514—Storms repelled by
ice, i. 297—Thirty-three ships lost
during one, near Spitzbergen, ii. 73
—Terrors of, among ice, ii. 439

Success in the whale-fishery, on what
it depends, ii. 333

Swallow, sea, remarks on, i. 533

Sweden, whale-fishery from, encou-
raged, ii. 171

Synoicum turgens, notice of, i. 551

Table of specific gravity and tempera-
ure of the Greenland sea, i. 152

571

Table of changes of specific gravity for
every 5° of temperature, i. 183

of temperature and specific gra-

vity of sea-water below the surface,

i. 187

of effects produced on wood by

the impregnation of water, i. 195,

200

of remarkable changes of tempe-

rature, i. 327

of monthly range and monthly

extremes of temperature, i. 366

of winds, average, i. 411

of the state of the weather when

the aurora borealis was seen, i. 417

of the disselving power of air, i.

422

of the state of the atmosphere,

when different crystals of snow were

observed, i. 433

of the quantity of oil afforded by

whales of different sizes, i, 462

of the comparative dimensions of

six different whales, i. 464

of meteorological observations,

twelve years, i. (2)

of meteorological results, twelve

years observations, i. (48)

for determining the mean tem-

perature of latitude 78° and North

Pole, i. (49)

for determining do. month of

April, i. (50)

for determining do. month of

July, ib.

of abstract of observations on

temperature made at London, i. (41)

of do. at Stockholm, i. (52)

of mean monthly temperature,

latitude 78°, i. (54)

of latitudes and longitudes in

Spitzbergen and Jan Mayen, i. (73)

of wind and weather in Jan

Mayen, i. (78)

of the extent of the British whale-

fisheries, ii. 119

of the comparative success of ves-

sels from different British ports, ii.

131

of the expences and profits of the

Dutch whale-fishery during 107

years, ii. 156

of duties on the produce of the

whale-fisheries, ii. 501

O74

of specific gravity of whale-oil,
ii. 527
of weight of certain quantities of
oil, ii. 528
of anomalies observed in the
compass on ship-board, ii. 538
of the oscillations of a dipping
needle, and intensity of magnetic
force, ii. 545
Taylor, Messrs J. and P. their inven-
tion of an apparatus for procuring
gas from oil, ii. 422
Temperature of the Arctic Regions,
changeable in winter, i. 323—Uni-
form in summer, i. 325—Table of

remarkable changes, i. 327—Effects ~

of sudden changes, i. 330—Of very
low temperatures, i. 332, 334--Tem-
perature has a tendency to equality,
i. 349—Mean annual temperature
varies little, i 350—May be deter-
mined by afew years observations
to within a degree, i. 352—Formula
for calculating the mean tempera-
ture of any parallel, i. 353—-Errone-
ous on approaching ice, i. 354—
Data for determining mean tempe-
rature, i. 354-—That of the Aretic
Regions determined, i. 357, (49)—
Table of temperature of different
months, i. 358—Temperature of
unobserved months determined, 1.
359—Formule for effecting this, i.
(53)—Attempt to estimate the tem-
perature of the North Pole, i. 360,
(49}—Table of monthly range of
temperature near Spitzbergen, i. 366
—lInferences regarding mean tem-
perature, i. 367—-Temperature of
April determined, i. (50)—Tem-
perature of July, i. (50)—Tempera-
ture of London, i. (51)—Tempe-
rature of Stogkholn, i. (52)—De-
crease of, in ascending in the at-
mosphere, i- (72) — Temperature
of the Sea, i. 184, 187

Tern, great, account of, i. 533

Thermometer, useful in predicting the
weather, i. 328, 399

Thunder, rare in Arctic regions, i.
415

Tides, in Hudson’s Bay, favour the
supposition of the existence of a
North-west Passage, i. 18 — At
Spitzbergen, i. L147

INDEX.

Totness Road, discovered by Davis,
i. 76

Traill, Dr, Delphmus deductor descri-
bed and named by, i. 496

Trial respecting the right to a whale,
account of, ii. 518

Trichecus rosmarus, description of, i.
502 (

Tringa hypoleucc*, notice of, i. 537

Turbo helicinus, notice of, i. 551

Unicorn, description of, i. 486—Its
horn or tooth, i, 489. See Narwal.
Ursus maritimus, account of, i. 517

Variation of the compass, anomaly in,
ii. 537 See Compass.

Vermes, remarks on, ii, 543.

Voyages, Polar. See Discovery.

Walrus, description of, i. 502

Walsingham, Cape, discovered by Da-
vis, i. 76

Warwick’s Foreland discovered by
Davis, 1. 78

Watch, classification of a ship’s crew
into, ii. 235

Watson, James, Esq. his drawing of a
beaked whale, i. 485—Of a Delphi-
nus deductor, i. 496—His observa-
tions on the deductor, i. 497

Waves, remarks on, i. 217—Velocity
of, i. 219—lLffect of atmospheric
pressure on, i. 221—Waves dimi-
nished by rain, i. 222—Several dis-
tinct waves may prevail together, ib.
—Waves resisted by ice, i. 304

Weather, cloudy, the most favourable
for the whale-fishery, i. 220

Weigatz Island discovered by S. Bur-
rough, i. 75

West Indies discovered by Columbus,
i. 68

Whale, (Greenland or common), de-
scription of, i. 449 —— Bulk has
been overrated, i. 450———Was ne-
ver larger than in the present day,
i, 452— Magnitude of, i. 454—
Whalebone of, i. 457—-Blubber of, i.
460—Proportion of blubber to oil,
i. 461—Bones, porous and full of
oil, i. 463—Comparative dimensions
of six different whales, i. 464—In
blowing do not eject water, i.
—Speed of, i. 467—Vood of, i. 469
—Its maternal affection, i, 471—

INDEX. 578

Places it resorts to, i, 4723—Its ene-
mies, i. 474——Flesh used as food, i.
A753 ii. 14—Characters of whales
in general, i. 477

Whale, instance of one struck by a
Greenland whaler being killed in the
sea of Tartary, i. 8—One stranded
on Kamtchatka with a European
harpoon in it, iy 9—A stone lance
found in the blubber of one, i. 10
—And harpoon of bone, ib.

one capiured by a singular

exploit, ii. 264—Others on a novel

plan, ii, 269—Surprising vigour cf

one, ii. 276—One survived forty

hours after being struck, ii. 289

trial respecting the title to a,
ii. 518

Whalebone, largest size of, i. 457—In-
equalities in, may be the measure of
the age of the whale, ib.— Produce
of the whale estimated by the length
of, i. 462—Large importation of, in-
to London from Holland, ii. 64—
More afforded by whales taken near
Spitzbergen than in Davis’ Strait, ii-
392—Description of, ii. 415—Oc-
easional value of, ii. 417—Method
of preparing, ii. 418—Uses of, ii.
435 —List of patents for its appro-
priation, ii. 436

Whale-fishery, chronological history
of, ii. 1—Probable origin of, ii. 3—
Prosecuted in the 9th century, ii. 6
—At ‘an early period by the Ice-
landers, ii. LI—Also by the French,
ii. 12—And probably by the English,
ii. 15—But most expertly by the
Basques and Biscayans, ii. 16—Fin-
whale the object of capture, ii. 16
—Spitzbergen fishery discovered by
the English, ii. 19 —Quarrels among
different nations resorting thither,
ii. 26, 32, 3i—National importance
of, ii. 57—-Encouraged by bounties,
ii. 72, 73—Revived by the English,
ii. 75—Greatest cargo, from the, ii.
123—Comparative success, in of ves-
sels from different ports of Britain,
ii. 131—national benefit of, to the
Dutch, ii. 154, 159—Profits derived
by the Dutch from, ii. 156

comparative view of,

among different nations, ii. 95—By

‘the British, ii, 98—Of London, ii.

124—Hull, ib,—Whitby, ii. 126—
Treland, ii. 132—British colonies in
America, ii. 184—Dutch, ii. 138—
Biscayans, ii. 161—French, ii. 163
—Danes, ii. 166—Germans, ii, 168
—Prussians, ii. 171—Swedes, ib.
where at first conduct-
ed, ii. 172—-How carried on, ib.—
Alterations fin the manner of con-
ducting, ii. 179—Season for em-
barking in, i. 273; ii. 207—-Where
now conducted, ii. 208—On what
success depends, ii. 333—Acts of
Parliament for the regulation of, ii.
491

——

——~— boats and instruments
used in, described, ii. 221—Sche-
dule of apparatus necessary for, ii,
509—Preparations for conducting
the, ii. 230—Measures for com-
mencing the, ii. 236—Manner of
conducting the, ii. 240—How con-
ducted among packed ice, ii. 257—
Among fields, ii. 259-—— Among
crowded ice, ii. 266—-Among bay
ice, ii. 268—In storms, ii. 272—
In foggy weather, ii. 273—-Proceed-
ings in, before flensing, ii. 292—
Flensing process in, ii. 298—Ma-
king off, process in, ii. 304—Signals
used in the, ii. 521

anecdotes illustrative of
the nature of, ii. 276, 294, 297, 302,
331—Laws of, ii, 312—Dangers
of, ii. 340-—F rom ice, ii. 342—From
fogs, ii, 346—-From storms, ii. 348
—From cold, ti. 355—From the
entanglement of lines, ii. 357—From
blows from whales, ii. 358 :
—— produce of, subject to
legislative regulations on importa-
tion, ii. 378

of Davis’ Strait, account

of, ii. 382—Of Greenland and Davis’

Strait compared, ii. 390

Of the Southern Seas,
account of, ii. 529—For the com-
mon whale, ii. 535

Whale-fishing stations, situation of,
ii. 210—Proceedings of ships on, ii.
236

Whales shelter themselves among ice, i.
268--Sustain immense pressure when
at great depths in the sea, ii. 249

used to resort to the Bay of

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