488 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 
Captain Roys, of the bark Superior, of Sag Harbor, N. Y., was the 
first to go into the Arctic for whales. In the Honolulu /riend he gave 
the following account of the opening up of this profitable region: 
I entered the Arctic Ocean about the middle of July, and cruised from continent 
to continent, going as high as latitude 70, and saw whales wherever I went, cutting 
in my last whale on the 23d of August, and returning through Bering Strait on the 
28th of the same month. On account of powerful currents, thick fogs, the near 
vicinity of land and ice, combined with the imperfection of charts and want of 
information respecting the region, I found it both difficult and dangerous to get oil, 
although there were plenty of whales. Hereafter, doubtless, many ships will go 
there, and I think there ought to be some provision made to save the lives of those 
who go there should they be cast away. 
The discovery of this new ground was of inestimable value, as sperm 
whaling was rapidly dying out, owing to the scarcity of these animals 
and the new grounds were soon visited yearly by a large fleet of vessels, 
principally American. The whales secured in this region were of the 
bowhead or Greenland variety. 
From the very beginning American whalers predominated at the 
Hawaiian Islands. In the ‘‘ twenties,” Great Britain was a somewhat 
serious competitor, but she was soon hopelessly distanced. The reasons 
for this are well set forth in the following quotation from one who was 
in a position to know, and who had no love for Americans: * 
The number of vessels fitted out from England for the whale fishery of the Pacific 
was, in 1820, 140, while at present there are not more than 70, the Americans hay- 
ing at least 400 vessels profitably employed in this trade. Say about 24,500 tons 
British shipping and 2,100 seamen; ditto 130,000 tons of American shipping and 
12,000 seamen. This disproportion is but slightly altered by the vessels fitted out 
from British colonies. 
The protection to British fishing vessels was, up to July, 1843, no less than £25 12s. 
per ton on all oils, and is now £15 15s. on spermaceti oil and £6 6s. on black oil. 
Yet there is a falling off in their number of one-half during the last twenty years, 
while the American vessels have increased in a greater ratio. 
It would be easy to detail the causes of the greater success of the Americans in con- 
ducting this profitable trade; among the more prominent of which are, the greater 
sobriety of the officers and the superior character of the crews, both which—recom- 
mendations in any trade—are indispensable in the prosecution of this one. 
He was anxious for Great Britain to seize the islands and make 
Honolulu a depot for the British whaling interests, and created a great 
deal of trouble for the native government before he was recalled. 
The first French whaler to call at the islands was the MWancy, in 
1837, but French vesseis called quite frequently after this. The first 
Prussian and Danish whalers to visit the islands was in 1842. 
The native government was quick to realize the benefits of this trade, 
and made every effort possible to attract the whalers to the islands. 
In 1844 the following regulations in regard to whalers were in force at 
the various ports of the islands: 
General regulations.—Whalers were permitted to sell goods to the 
amount of $200 each without paying any duty whatever. On all 


*The Sandwich Islands, ete. By Alexander Simpson, esq., late acting there as Her Majesty’s con- 
sul. Pamphlet published in London, 18!2. 
