A SULPHUR-BOTTOM WHALE CAPTURED. 267 



pany, and was afterwards corroborated by the crew 

 of another vessel, we were forced to yield credence 

 to the tale. 



On May 1st, a few minutes prior to sunset, we saw 

 boats and a ship whaling. On nearing the scene of 

 operations we found it to be the ship Abigail, of New 

 Bedford, which proved to be unsuccessful. The suc- 

 ceeding day we again saw her boats whaling. We 

 lowered away our own, but to no purpose. They, 

 however, made an acquisition in the shape of an 

 eighty barrel whale. 



On the 6th we gammoned the ship Congress ; she 

 brought from home a budget of letters for us, but 

 had delivered them over to the James Allen, in Oc- 

 tober last, supposing that the latter would see us first — 

 they are now lost to us entirely. The Congress, it will 

 be remembered, returned to the States since we have 

 been on this coast, full of oil ; and in the sixteen 

 months, during which she has been from home this 

 voyage, she has taken sixteen hundred barrels of oil, 

 or nearly double what we have taken in three years. 

 She is commanded by the person who acted as her 

 mate during the last voyage. 



On the 9th we saw a barque to leeward, manoeuvring 

 for whales, and evidently desirous, from her signals, 

 of attracting our observation. On running down to 

 her we found that she had a whale alongside, and 

 that she was the John A. Robb, of Fair Haven, cap- 

 tain Baker, the same who was cast away in the 

 barque Henry H. Crapo ; her whale was a sulphur- 

 bottom, and, as these are seldom captured, much 

 curiosity was manifested to get a sight at him. The 

 head was shaped like an inverted scoop ; the fins and 



