68 WHALE-FISHERr: 



third of each ship's company, being British sub- 

 jects *. Two years afterwards, by another act of 

 Parliament, the same privileges were extended to 

 speculators in the Davis' Straits Whale-fishery, 

 which fishery, had, since the year 1719, been car- 

 ried on by the Dutch, with such success as to en- 

 courage its continuation, and induce about one-third 

 part of their shipping employed in the whale-fish- 

 ery to resort thither f. This act expressly includ- 

 ed the exemption, not only of the produce of the 

 whale from all custom whatever, but likewise the 

 fat, skins, and tusks of the seal, bear, walrus, or 

 any other fish or creature caught in the Seas of 

 Greenland or Davis' Straits |. 



The South Sea Company not being able to com- 

 mence the whale-fishery the same year in which 

 they had adopted the resolution to that effect, caused 

 a fleet of twelve new ships of about 306 tons bur- 

 den each, to be built in the River Thames for the 

 purpose, equipped each vessel with the necessary 

 supplies of cordage, casks, and fishing instruments, 

 and engaged for their use the Duke of Bedford's 

 wet-dock at Deptford, where boiling houses and 

 other conveniences were constructed ^. In the en- 



* lOth Geo. I. c. G2. 



t Reste's Histoire des Peches, torn. iii. p. 208, &c. 



|. 12th Geo. I. c. 26. 



§ Anderson's Commerce, a. d. ITSl- 



