THE PASSING OF THE WHALE 



colony for many years to come." This advice, however, was 

 not heeded, the only restriction placed on whaling being 

 that stations should not be nearer one another than twenty 

 miles and that but one steamer should be employed. These 

 restrictions were practically of no avail, as one steamer 

 was all that could then be employed to advantage and 

 a run of twenty miles is nothing to a 12-knot vessel. So 

 whaling stations rapidly multiplied until by 1905 eighteen 

 were in operation, occupying all the more favorable loca- 

 tions about Newfoundland, Labrador and the Gulf of St. 

 Lawrence, and fifteen steamers were employed. The effects 

 of this over-multiplication were felt at once, and while in 

 1903 three steamers took 858 whales, or an average of 286 

 each, in 1905 fifteen steamers took but 892 whales, or an 

 average of only 59 a vessel. 



In 1903 3 vessels took 858 whales 



" 1904 10 " 1,257 " 



" 1905 15 " " 892 " 



" 1906 14 " " 429 " 



" 1907 14 " " 48i " 



3.935 whales 



Taken between 1898-1902, esti- 

 mated - 35 " 



4,285 whales 



Thus in ten years more than 4,000 whales have been cap- 

 tured in the immediate vicinity of Newfoundland. The 

 effect was disastrous and caused the ruin of the smaller 

 companies, the chief sufferers being the smaller shareholders 

 who had invested their entire capital. 



Since then the number of stations in operation has been 

 reduced and some of the steamers sold, not more than ten 

 stations being operated in any one year and only six or eight 



299 



