THE SOUTHERN FISHERY 215 



covered the general rendezvous of these whales from 

 the coast of Mexico, Peru, and the Gulf of Panama 

 who came there to calve. 



He definitely recommends these islands as the best 

 meeting place for British whalers seeking the Pacific 

 grounds. The Rattler returned to England after an 

 absence of twenty-two months. It does not appear 

 that the voyage was successful from a whaling stand- 

 point, though much surveying was done, and this 

 doubtless proved useful to subsequent whalers. 



Thomas Beale was a Surgeon and Demonstrator 

 of Anatomy to the Eclectic Society of London. On 

 the 1 6th October, 1830, he left England on board the 

 South Sea whaler, Kent. They sailed straight for 

 Cape Horn, passing it on the 5th January, 1831, and 

 thence up along the west coast of South America to 

 Valparaiso and Coquimbo. The latter town was left 

 on the 1 6th February, 1831, and a course set for the 

 Pacific whaling grounds, along the Peruvian coast. 



The whalers appeared to be in no particular hurry, 

 and it was not until the 28th March, 1831, that they 

 left Monta Christa, four days afterwards encounter- 

 ing their first school of Sperm Whales. Four of 

 these were killed, nearly six months after leaving 

 England. The course was now for the Sandwich 

 Islands, sighted on the 4th May, 1831, en route for 

 the Japan grounds which the captain desired to reach 

 in June. 



The " off-shore " Japan fishery lies in the Pacific 

 Ocean between 140 to 160 E. and 28 to 

 32 N. latitude, the best time of the year being from 



