124 A HISTORY OF THE WHALE FISHERIES 



eighteenth centuries was that every winter the water 

 round the Pole was frozen more or less down to 76 

 N. Latitude, according to the severity of the weather. 

 The whales were supposed to remain in winter near 

 the edge of the ice pack, where the food was scanty, 

 so that the whales captured in the early part of the 

 season were thin. There was an extensive barrier 

 between Spitsbergen and Nova Zembla. 



In 1707 a Dutch whaling captain named Cornelis 

 Gillis found, towards the end of the season when 

 looking for whales to the eastward, enough open 

 water to go up north among the seven islands and 

 beyond 81 N. From thence 4ie steered east and 

 south-east round N.E. Land. In the parallel of 

 great island he saw high land at a distance of one 

 hundred miles from N.E. Land. 



In some years the Dutch whalers drifted to within 

 a few miles of Greenland in 72 N., but although 

 they often wanted to go ashore, the Whaling 

 Company prevented it. The Dutch whalers have 

 fyeen near the coast of Greenland opposite Iceland. 



Usually the Spitsbergen season closed late in 

 August or early September. 



Since in 1624 a well-laden Dutch ship, which left 

 the fishing grounds in advance of the remainder of 

 the fleet, was captured on the homeward jpurney by 

 a Dunkirk privateer, 1 it became the custom for all 

 the'fleet to assemble together at a given rendezvous 

 at the end of the season and journey home together 

 for mutual protection. 



1 Wassenaer Histt. verh.> fol. 86. 



