lyo FOLLOW THE WHALE 



throwing the Greenland whale fisheries open to all in 1672 led to 

 most satisfactory results during the third Dutch-British war in 

 1 672-1 674 and thereafter for ten years, which was the peak of 

 Dutch whahng. 



The history of Dutch whaling after that is one of continued suc- 

 cess for another hundred and fifty years, or until 1799 when the fleet 

 was virtually destroyed, though even after that they still carried on 

 at a reduced tempo but without loss of profits until the Norwegians 

 with their entirely new methods and following new whales — the 

 rorquals — began to take over in the North Atlantic. This is an 

 amazing record and one that is neither widely recognized, even in 

 the Netherlands, nor sufficiently appreciated elsewhere. Neverthe- 

 less, it must be remembered that the Hollanders fished exclusively 

 in the North Atlantic, entering Davis Strait in 1 7 1 8 and thence push- 

 ing on to Baffin Island. Further, their industry was founded almost 

 solely on right whales and, with few exceptions, they clung to this 

 enterprise for almost a century after other nations had learned the 

 art of sperming and had followed these whales to the ultimate ends 

 of the earth. As the number of right whales declined in the North 

 Atlantic, so did the Dutch industry, but it took two centuries to 

 virtually exterminate them, and during this time the Hollanders ac- 

 crued herefrom vast wealth. 



During the period 1675-172 1 alone they employed a total of 5886 

 ships and took 32,907 whales, which, at an average value of $2500 

 each, brought them a gross of $82,267,500, which in that day and 

 age represented a positively enormous sum of money. Regarded 

 from an over-all point of view, and despite the fact that the modern 

 Norwegian industry has more capital invested, takes more whales, 

 markets more products, and makes greater nominal profits in a 

 single year than the Hollanders did in a hundred, we may safely 

 say that the Hollanders have been the most generally successful of 

 all whalers. Year in and year out for almost two centuries they made 

 handsome profits despite monopolies, wars, fluctuating prices, and 

 the normal hazards of the business, and they exploited only one 

 comparatively small area at the expense of only two steadily declin- 

 ing species of whales. 



It is an amazing history but, withal, one singularly lacking in 

 glamour. Dutch ships were as well-found as their owners' businesses. 



