APPENDIX B. 



THE whale-fishery originated in Nantucket, in the year 1690, in 

 boats from the shore. 



In 1715, six sloops were fitted from Nantucket to follow the whale into 

 deep water ; no other ports being engaged. 



In 1721, from a list given in M'Pherson's "Annals of Commerce," there 

 were employed in the whale-fishery in Greenland and Davis Strait : from 

 sundry ports of Holland, 351 ships ; from Hamburg, 55 ; from ports in the 

 Bay of Biscay, 30 ; from Bremen, 34 ; from Bergen, in Norway, 5 ; total, 

 355 ships. 



In 1857, the whaling fleet of the United States consisted of 670 vessels ; 

 of which there were ships and barks, 617; the tonnage, 330,000 tons; the 

 capital invested, $32,000,000 ; men employed, 18,000. 



In 1852, only four ships were sent out from England, and the entire ton- 

 nage employed in whaling amounted to 16,113 tons. 



In 1858, France had only three ships, measuring 1650 tons, and Holland 

 had only three ships. 



Thus the business had almost entirely passed into American 

 hands. And it was without governmental support or encourage- 

 ment, by bounties to owners or privileges to mariners, such as I 

 have shown were continually held out by England. In proportion 

 to the persistent policy of England to build up this splendid school 

 for seamen at home, was her jealous hostility to the spontaneous 

 growth of the business in America, and she has never lost an op- 

 portunity to strike at that wonderful prosperity. In the Eevolu- 

 tion the little community of Nantucket alone lost by capture, 134 

 vessels, or about 10,000 tons, out of 14,867 owned in A.D. 1775 ; 

 and large numbers of her young and hardy seamen? trained bpat- 

 steerers, and officers, perished miserably in the horrible prison-ships 

 of England. 



The war of 1812 fell with particular severity on this business, as 

 seven-eighths of the mercantile capital was at sea on distant voy- 



