OUTFITTERS. 31 



give employment to a large part of the laboring 

 community, in preparing the articles which they 

 find most necessary to whalemen, and in turn 

 pockot no small share of the earnings of almost 

 every man that sails out of the port. Not only 

 the new beginners do business with these men, 

 but boatsteerers and mates procure their outfits 

 of them, (of course of a superior quality), and 

 they not unfrequently also make considerable 

 advances of money to such individuals as they 

 think trustworthy and sufliciently smart to make 

 a good voyage. 



The New Bedford outfitters are faithfully abused 

 by most who have sailed from that port in the 

 capacity of greenhorns, and it is currently believed 

 that their roguery knows no end. But as a class 

 this report of them is far from correct. So far as 

 I ever had any dealings with them, they seemed 

 to be honest enough. But it must be confessed 

 that many of the poor fellows who make their 

 first voyage from here, offer most tempting induce- 

 ments to traders, to cheat them. Their ignorance 

 is so glaring, and their gullibility so vast, that 1 

 fancy it requires a stronger virtue than dealers in 

 ready made clothing are commonly possessed of, 

 to withstand these combined temptations. If, 

 therefore, occasionally, or perhaps oftener than 

 that, a greenhorn is sent to sea, with a rag-fair 

 outfit, and finds his calico trowsers melting away 

 before the salt water, his dog's hair shirts falling 



