236 WHALE-FISHERY. 



About the year 1763, the price in England was 

 500/. per ton; but after an extensive importation of 

 this article from New England, the price delined to 

 350/.* and subsequently as low as 50/. per ton. Of 

 late years the price has usually been fluctuating be- 

 tween 50/. and 150/. per ton. Whalebone "becomes 

 more valuable as it increases in length and thick- 

 ness. 



On or near the premises 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 sur- 

 face becomes soft. When this effect is sufficiently 

 produced, it is taken out, piece by piece, laid on a 

 plank placed on the ground, where the operator 

 stands, and scrubbed or scoured with sand and wa- 

 ter, 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 attached, until he 

 produces a smooth surface; he or another workman, 

 then applies a knife or a pair of shears to the edge, 

 and completely detaches all the fringe of hair con- 

 nected with it. Another person, who is generally 

 the superintendent of the concern, afterwards re- 



• 



Macphcrson's Annals, vol. iii. p. 371. 



