196 OLD WHALING DAYS. 



for the Greenland and Davis's Straits fisheries, which formed 

 a nursery for seamen. The year 1869 saw the last of them. 

 The Greenland Yards, so-called on account of the oil being 

 boiled and the whalebone cleaned there, gave employment 

 to many people during the winter. 



These places are now converted into warehouses, and the 

 trade is a thing of the past. 



This ends my career of seventeen years in the Arctic 

 regions. 



During the time I was in this trade, I occupied every 

 position on board ship, from apprentice to master. I have 

 in this history of a now departed trade, given the times 

 when the ships left Hull and other ports, for their adven- 

 turous voyages in the Arctic regions, and also the times that 

 we usually returned. From this it will be seen that the 

 crews of these whalers and sealers were at home only during 

 the winter months, and not, in fact, the whole of these, as 

 they commenced their voyages usually in February, or early 

 in March. The result was in my own case (seeing that I 

 did not miss a year for the seal or whale fisheries for full 

 seventeen years) that during this long period I never saw 

 either blossom or fruit upon the trees, and my eyes and 

 senses were never blessed with the scent of growing flowers, 

 the sight of ripening corn, or the subsequent harvest 

 operations. On the contrary, my most constant surroundings 

 during those years were ice, snow, fogs, or the boundless 

 expanse of ocean. 



When the trade was at its height, there were occasionally 

 fair fortunes made, and the crews at times were well 

 paid. The life was frequently one of great privation, 

 and at all times of deep denial and not a little danger. 

 There was, however, much of fascination in the pursuit of 

 seals, whales, and other creatures in the far north, and one 

 cannot help a feeling of regret that these days have passed 

 away never to return. 



