CRUISING GROUND. 91 



rally is in those portions of the tropics where steady 

 winds prevail. ''Cruising ground" is a very 

 indefinitely defined portion of the sea, chosen by 

 each captain according to his particular fancy, 

 or %s the experience of previous voyages may 

 dictate. Our captain had cruised on these shores, 

 and up the Mozambique channel on his last 

 voyage had met with tolerable success and now 

 returned to the same place in hopes that his good 

 fortune would be renewed. 



New cruising grounds are continually being 

 discovered by enterprising shipmasters, who steer 

 boldly for those parts of the East Indian seas but 

 little frequented by merchant vessels; and often 

 make great voyages. Some years ago the captain 

 of a New Bedford ship, on speaking a merchant- 

 man, was informed that near a certain part of the 

 coast of the island of Ceylon, great numbers of 

 whales had been seen that year. His vessel was 

 then a year out from home, and so poorly had 

 they hitherto prospered, that, in whaleman's 

 language, "they had scarce oil enough on board to 

 grease their irons." Ascertaining the precise lati- 

 tude and longitude in which whales had been 

 met, and judging from the description given of 

 them, that they were beyond doubt sperm whales, 

 the captain made all sail for the place, and found 

 whales in such plenty that he was enabled in little 

 more than a year's time, to fill up his ship. They 

 were mostly cow whales, who had probably found 

 this a new and pleasant haunt, where they hoped 



