Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Volume 1.djvu/789

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FIS

any Perfon with it ; but the Minute he leaves it, it becomes the Due of the firft Captain that comes that way ; but that if a Fifh. be tied to an Anchor, or a Rope faften'd to tho Shoar, it (hall remain to its firft Proprietor, tho' he leave it alone : That if any Perfon be wounded, or lamed in the Service, the Commiffioners of the Fijhery undertake to procure him a reafonable Satisfaction; to which the whole Fleet (hall contribute.

Befide this general Regulation, which all the Captains, Pilots, and Matters of Veffels are oblig'd to fwear to fee obferved, before they put to Sea ; there is alfo a particular one for each Ship's Crew, which they are all fwore to exe- cute, in Prefence of one of the Commiffioners, who goes a-board every Ship, to receive the Oath. — —

This Regulation is a kind of Charter-Party, importing, That they will attend Prayers Morning and Evening, on pain of an Amercement, at the Difcretion of the Captain : That they will not get drunk ; nor draw their Knives, on Forfeiture of half their Wages ; nor fight, on Forfeiture of the whole : That no body (hall lay Wagers, on the good or ill Succefs of the Fifhing ; nor buy, or fell on fuch Con- ditions, In cafe -n'e take one or more Fifh-, on Penalty of 2 5 Florins : That they will be contented with the Provisions allowed them ; and that they will never light Fire, Candle, or Match, by Night or Day, without the Captain's Leave, on the like Penalty.

After the Reading of this Regulation, the Crew are all called, to receive the cuftomary Gratuity before their Set- ting out, with an Affurance of another Sum at their Re- turn, in Proportion to the Succefs of the Fifhing.—

The Captain, on this Occalion, receives from ioo, to 150 Florins; the Pilot, from 40, to tfo; each Harpineer, from 40, to 50 Florins; the other Officers, from 2d, to 36 Florins ; the elder Sailors 20 ; and the younger 12.

The Fleet, which confifts moflly of Fluyts, from two, to three hundred Tuns ; and from 35 Men to 4t. ufually lets Sail about the Beginning of Jljiril, and takes its Courfe by the Ides of Iceland, from 60 to 61 Degrees of Latitude ; after which, leaving them to the Weft, it fleers Northward, thro' 73, 74, and 75 Deg. of Lat. where they begin to find the Ice.

'Tis through thefe huge Heaps of Tee, wherewith the whole Quarter is filled, that they firft begin to fpy the Whales : And there moft of the Veffels fix their Abode for the Fifhing. — ' — But, as the Fifh are larger and fatter, the further North you go ; fome Captains will venture as far as 80, or 82 Deg. of N. Lat.

Each Veffel of 300 Tuns has fix Chaloupes; and each Chaloupe fix Harpineers, with five Seamen, to row it. To every Chaloup there are feven Lines, of three Inches Circumference ; five of them in the Hind-part of the Vef- fel, and two behind. The hind Lines together make fix hundred Fathoms, and with the Addition of the other two, 880. If the Whale dive deeper, or run further underneath the Ice, the Line muft be cut, left the Chaloupe be drawn after it.

The Inffrument, wherewith the Execution is done, is a harping Iron, or Javelin, five or fix Foot long, pointed with Steel, in a triangular Shape, like the Barb of an Arrow.

The Harpineer, upon fight of the Fifh, from one End I of the Chaloupe, where he is plac'd, flings the harping Iron with all his Might againft the Whales Back ; and if he be fo happy as to make it penetrate the Skin and Fat, into the Flefh, he lets go a String, faften'd to the harping Iron, at the End whereof is a dry Gourd, which fwimming on the Water, difcovers whereabout the Whale is; who, the Minute he is (truck, plunges to the Bottom.

If the Whale return to breath in the Air, the Harpi- neer takes occafion to give him a frefh Wound ; till, faint- ing by the Lofs of Blood, the Men have an Opportunity of approaching him ; and thrufling a long fteeled Lance un- der his Gills into his Breaft, and thro' the Inteftinesj which difpatches him : And when the Carcals begins to float, they cut off the Fins, and Tail ; and tying a Rope to the Place where the Tail was, fwim to the Veffel, where he is

taken in. ■

When they have got their Quota of Whales, they begin to take the Blubber, or Fat, and the Fins, or Whale-bone. In order to this, the Whale is hoifted over-board, and kept fufpended above the Water, by two Ropes, the one tied around his Neck, the other about his Tail; and under the Carcafs are two Chaloupes, placed to receive what may chance to drop.

This done, three or four Men go down upon the Whale, with a kind of Calkers, or Irons on their Feet to prevent their Slipping. They begin to open him on the Side, and proceed downwards the Belly ; cutting off all the Lard or Fat, in Pieces of about three Foot broad,, and eight long : Befide the Fat on the Sides, they Jikewife cut off that of the Throat, and the under Lip,' leaving all the lean be-

u d ' They next P rocce< J t0 'he Whale-bone, which

they cut off with a Hatchet, made for the purpofe, from

the upper Jaw of the Fifh, and make it up in Packets. The Fat and Bone thus procured, what remains of the Whale, they leave for the Bears, who are very fond of it.

In Proportion as the large Pieces of Fat are cut off, the reft of the Crew are employed in flici-g them (mailer, and picking out all tke lean. When this is prepare.', they flow it under the Deck, where it lies, till the Fat of all the Whales is on Board : Then, cutting it ftill (mailer, they put it up in Tubs, in the Hold, or Bottom of the Veffel, cram- ming them very full and clofe.

Nothing now remains, but to fail homewards, where the Fat is to be boiled, and melted down into strain OH, See Whale.

'Produce of One Tears Whale Fifhery.

To ftate the Produce, we make choice of the Fijhery of 1S97. as being the greateft, and moft fortunate that ever was known: To which we (hall add that of the prefent Tear.

In the Tear 1697. there were an hundred, ninety eight Veffels of divers Nations; whereof an hundred, twenty nine were Dutch; forty feven Hamburgh er s ; two Snaeedifh; four Danifh ; twelve of Bremen ; two of Embden ; and one of Lilbeck.

In the prefent Tear 1725. there were 226 Veffels '; where- of 144. were Dutch ; twelve Englijh ; forty three Ham- burghers ; twenty three Bremers ; one and twenty of Bcrghen ; two of Flensburg. Their Captures each Tear were as follow.

In 1697,

129 Dutch Veffels took' — - 47 Hamburghers — - a Stxeeds • — ■ — — 4 Danes — — - 12 Bremers — — — 2 Embden -— — 1 Zubeck — —

1255 Whales.

449 •

113 —

52 ,

9 6

In all, 197 Veffels took

— ij«8 Whales.

In 1725,

144 Dutch Veffels took 248I Whales.

12 Englijh — 25- ' ■

43 Hamburghers ■ 4S —

23 Bremers — 29

2 Berghen — o — ■ — *

2 Flensburg ■ — ■ — — «

In all, 22S Veffels took

349 Whales.

The Dutch Captures in 1697 produced 41344 Punchions of The Hamburghers — — 1*414 (Blubber

The Snxeeds — — — 540 —

The Danes — — 1710 —

The Bremers — — — 379° ~

The Embdeners — — 28 —

The Englijh Captures in 1725 produced iooo Puncheons 6f Blubber, and 20 Tuns of Whale Bone.

Now, eftimating the Puncheon of Blubber at 30 Florins' Dutch ; or 2 /. 1 5 s. Englijh, the currant Price in the Tear 1*97, the total Produce of the Tears Fifhing amounting to 638215 Puncheons, yields

I. 175511 — 10 J. Sterl. As to Fins, or Whale Bones, fetting them at 2000 Weight pr Whale ; and hundred Weight at 4 /. 4 s. they will yield

fo~7*»33

Total /. 346754 Whereof, the Share belonging to the Dutch, was 228737

On the fame Footing might the Produce of the Fifhery of the prefent Tear be eafily (fated. It will come far fhort of that of 1697 ; which indeed vaflly tranfeends what has ever been known: Each Veffel, taking one with another, caught that Tear 10 Whales, T J : And the prefent Tear only one Whale 2- ; tho' the Englifi, more happy than the reft,; caught above two a-piece. But it may 'be added, that the Whales of the prefent Tear being larger and fatter thari. thofe of 1697, produced one with anotiier 40 Puncheons of Blubber; and thefe other only 33 Puncheons.

Herring Fishery.

The Herring is a fmall Salt-water Fifh, with a blueiirj

Back, and a white filver'd Belly, not unlike the little Shad

Fifh ; whence it is called in Latin Jlofi minor. Rondele-

tius calls it Harengus. . ■ *, j t t ™ ,

It is a popular Error to believe the Herring to be the Hake of the Romans. The Halec was no particular Fifh, but a kind of Sauce, made of any fort of Salt FJh t The modern

Herring