6o THE AMERICAN WHALEMAN 



men of good character, sound common sense, and homely 

 wisdom, though much given to undue sternness and astound- 

 ing parsimony on shipboard. But their fitness for the tech- 

 nical and material phases of their positions was beyond ques- 

 tion. The average American whaling captain was a superb 

 seaman, an unexcelled boatman, a consummate navigator, and 

 a skilled and daring whaleman. And the ranks of the mates, 

 in spite of the fact that they harbored many men of undeniably 

 mediocre attainments, included also a large number of poten- 

 tial captains. The resulting enviable reputation of American 

 officers was so well justified by a relatively small percentage of 

 losses that the insurance premiums on American whalers were 

 markedly lower than those paid by British whaling merchants. 

 A post as a whaling officer was anything but a sinecure. The 

 successful master of a large whaler was necessarily a man of 

 versatile attainments. During the course of an average voy- 

 age he was almost certain to act as a physician, surgeon, lawyer, 

 diplomat, financial agent, entrepreneur, task-master, judge, 

 peace-maker, sailor, whaleman, and navigator. The last func- 

 tion of navigator made perhaps the most severe and unrelent- 

 ing demands upon his skill and judgment. With a vessel and 

 outfit valued at thirty to sixty thousand dollars and a crew of 

 twenty-five to thirty-five men entrusted to his care for a period 

 of three to four years, he was expected to take vessel and 

 crew into any or every known or unknown sea where whales 

 might be found, encounter innumerable vicissitudes on sea and 

 land, and in the end come sailing safely into the home port with 

 a "full ship." And few indeed were the circumstances which 

 were regarded as valid excuses for failing to do so! 

 . Such a relatively high percentage of capable, though brutal 

 and tyrannical, officers was due to the obvious advantage of 

 trusting heavy responsibilities only to well-qualified persons. 

 But in addition the deterioration of the foremast hands ren- 

 dered it imperative. Inferior crews had to be counter-balanced 

 by superior officers. Men who were inexperienced, reckless, 

 lazy, depraved, or diseased had to be driven to work by means 

 of stricter discipline, closer supervision, and more careful 

 training. The ability and initiative of the masters and mates, 



