SEALS AND WHALES OF THE BRITISH SEAS. 5 



sixteen ships was 35,044 Seals ; four ships from Dundee visited Newfoundland 

 and captured 70,355 Seals, making a total for the British ships alone of 105,399 

 Seals, exclusive of those wounded and lost, or otherwise destroyed. These pro- 

 duced 1280 tons of oil, worth about £2^ per ton, or ^^32,000, exclusive of skins, 

 which sell for about 5s. each. The majority of the Norwegian vessels also 

 bring their cargoes to this country. Captain David Gray informs me that 

 the seal-fishery was commenced from the Port of Peterhead, in the year 18 19, 

 since which time to the close of the season of 1879, the large number of 

 1.673.052 Seals have been taken by the vessels belonging to that port. 

 The Dundee vessels did not take part in the seal-fishery till the year i860, 

 but have from that time to 1879 taken 917,278 Seals. This total is greatly 

 swollen by the results of the Newfoundland fishery ; four Dundee vessels 

 in 1879 took 70,355 Seals in Newfoundland, whereas, in the same season, 

 eleven Dundee and five Peterhead vessels took only 35,044 Seals in the 

 Greenland fishery. The Dundee ships, after the Newfoundland fishery is 

 ended, generally land their oil and skins at St. John's, and proceed on their 

 whaling voyage to Greenland and Davis' Straits. 



Dr. Wallace* estimates the annual produce of the Greenland Seal-fishery 

 alone at the sum of ^r 16,000; the bulk of the seals taken are the Harp-. 

 Seal (PJioca groenlandica). 



Several attempts had been made to establish a seal-fishery at Newfound- 

 land, from the port of Dundee, but with small success till the year 1876: in 

 that year Messrs. Alexander Stephen and Son secured premises at St. John's, 

 and sent out two vessels to be manned chiefly by a Newfoundland crew; 

 the result was a great success, and this firm has since prosecuted the fishing 

 with very satisfactory results. The Dundee Seal and Whale P'ishing Com- 

 pany have also three steamers in the trade, in addition to those engaged at 



* Dr. Brown's 'Seals of Greenland,' Proc. Zool. Soc, June, 1868, reprinted in the 'Arctic 

 Manual,' p. 67. 



