OLD WHALING DAYS. 41 



We stayed at Kemisuack a few days longer, and not 

 seeing any whales, we got under weigh, and proceeded to 

 Neubuyan, arriving there before dark. It is a very fine 

 harbour, but has a reef of rocks across the entrance with a 

 very narrow channel between them. There is another road 

 in, but much further away. We brought up, and were 

 immediately boarded by a large number of natives, many of 

 whom we had known before. The Americans and natives 

 were very intimate with each other, for during the whole 

 twelve months they had been on the most friendly terms. 

 All had made this place their head-quarters during the 

 previous six months. The following morning the boats 

 were sent away before daybreak as usual, but before some of 

 them had got their harpoons in the guns, and nicely away 

 from the ship, a gun suddenly went off. " A fall " was 

 called to our great surprise. One of the boats was about a 

 ship's length away from the ship. Something lying very 

 still was seen close by, and on coming nearer it was found 

 to be a whale asleep. The boats always pull as noiselessly 

 as possible, and it had not heard anything until it felt the 

 harpoon in its back. We very soon had it killed. It 

 proved to be rather a small one, but was thankfully received. 

 Our hopes were raised, for we expected we had fallen in 

 with the smaller whales' resting-place, which was Captain 

 Parker's idea. During his life he believed the smaller 

 whales rested somewhere south, but his thoughts were 

 centered about York Bay, Frozen Straits, and Foxe's 

 Channel, up Hudson's Straits. This proved to be the case 

 some years after he died, for many American whalers got 

 full. Many, however, were wrecked there, and suffered 

 severely. After killing the whale, our friends the Americans 

 were, kind enough t;p undertake to flense it, while we went 

 with our boats in search of more. During our stay in this 

 place, the Americans were employed transferring their oil 

 into our casks, and putting their whalebone on board, an 



