56 WHALING 



captain if he could help them once they got to open sea, but 

 the Grenville Bay had twenty men on her sick list and could 

 promise no help of any kind. 



On March 11th, with the Norfolk and the Advice still seven 

 miles behind her, the Dee drifted out into open sea. Before 

 the 15th, three more of her crew died, and the scurvy continued, 

 but with light and favourable breezes she struggled on. A 

 ship sighted on April 20th apparently did not see her signals of 

 distress. Meanwhile, twenty more of the crew had died at sea. 

 On the 25th a fishing boat was spoken and the Dee got bearings 

 from them: she was off the Butt of Lewis. 



Incredible as it seems, the fishermen refused to give any sort 

 of help. . . . Let us suppose they feared the plague. 



On the evening of that same day, the barque Washington of 

 Dundee, Barnett master, bore down on the Dee, offered her 

 help, and instantly gave it without stint. Then she took the 

 limping ship in tow and brought her into Stromness harbour, 

 where the little remnant of the crew received proper food and 

 care at last. 



The owners promptly sent new and able hands and on May 5th 

 the first of the ''missing whalers," came wearily into the har- 

 bour of Aberdeen. Provisioned for the six summer months, 

 she had been gone over a year. Forty-six. men had died on 

 board her, including nine from the Thomas; and of her own 

 company of forty-nine, exactly fourteen reached home alive. 



