188 EEFOKT OF COMMISSIONEK OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



Sperm oil and whale oil then served nearly all the diversified uses 

 for which oil was required, the chief exception being leather-dressing, 

 for wliich neatsfoot and cod oils were largely employed. The prin- 

 cipal nses were as illnminant, lnl)ricator, in cordage-mannfacture, 

 screw-cutting, and steel- tempering. The str-eets of the principal cities 

 were lighted with the oil, and theaters and jjublic buildings were 

 lighted with gas made from the foots. A stock anecdote at the time 

 referred to foreign sailors climbing up the posts of the New York 

 street lamps to drink the whale oil, thus leaving the city in darkness. 



The extent of the fisheries soon began to tell on the abundance of 

 the whales, necessitating much longer and more costlj- voyages, and 

 consequently higher prices for the products. With the increased price 

 came the active search for substitutes, and colza oil and lard oil were 

 largely employed. The competition, however, had little effect on the 

 market for whale products until the adoption of petroleum as an illn- 

 minant, and subsequently as a lubricant. Its dangerous qualities 

 at first greatly checked its use, but as improved methods of refining 

 were introduced it was quite generally adopted and proved most influ- 

 ential in decreasing the profits of the whale fishery. 



The restricted market and the reduced price resulted in a gi-adual 

 decrease of the whale fishery. Various agencies accelerated this 

 decrease, while others retarded it. Among the former may be men- 

 tioned the destructive infiuences of the civil war, including the sink- 

 ing of 30 vessels in blockading Charleston Harbor, and the burjiing 

 of 46 vessels, with outfit, supplies, and cargoes by privateers; also 

 the loss of 3.3 ships in the ice of the Arctic Ocean in 1871, and a similar 

 abandonment of 12 vessels in 1876. Among the agencies tending to 

 retard the decrease in the fishery is the greatly enhanced value of 

 whalebone, which increased from 13 cents per pound in 1833 to $7 per 

 pound in 1801. Indeed it is the whalebone market alone which sus- 

 tains the present right-whale fisheries of the world. The table on 

 page 204, showing the annual product of sperm oil and whale oil from 

 1860 to 1902, inclusive, presents a fair idea of the gradual reduction 

 in extent of the American Avhale fisheries. Owing to the decreased 

 extent of the fishery, sperm whales are increasing in numbers and 

 are apparently more abundant at present than at anj^ time since the 

 fifties. The bowhead and right whales, however, are doul)th'Ss more 

 scarce than at any time since their captui-e became an object of com- 

 mercial pursuit. 



In 1001, the 20 sperm -whalers cruising in the Atlantic Ocean met 

 with good success, especially those on the Ilatteras and Charleston 

 grounds, securing 12,550 barrels of oil, according to the Wlicdenieii's 

 Sliipxnng List, an average of 627 barrels to each vessel. The same 

 season in the Arctic and North Pacific, however, was the poorest for 

 many j'ears. The fleet there consisted of 11 steamers and 6 barks. 

 Three steamers were lost, and the total catch was onlj^ 43 bowheads 

 and 13 right whales, as compared Avith 80 bowheads and 14 right 



