HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN WHALE FISHERY. Ill 



a rivalry in the furnishing adding perhaps considerably to the outlay. 

 Vessels were obliged to relit each season at the various islands in the 

 Pacific, usually at the port of Honolulu when passing in its vicinity, 

 and the bills drawn upon the owners on these occasions were so enor- 



axes, 5 spades, 1 tunnel, 4 barrels flour, 12 bushels corn, 14 bushels meal, 100 pounds 

 rice, 2 barrels rum, 55 gallons molasses, 20 pounds candles, 314 feet boards, 230 feet 

 boat-boards, 600 fathoms tow-line, 130 fathoms main-warp, 28 guns, 12 lances, 3 cod- 

 lines, 2 log-lines, 6 gimlets, 3 skeins twine, 6 bowls, 6 knives and forks, 6 plates, 4 

 pounds tea, 5 pounds chocolate, 15 pounds coffee, 100 pounds sugar, 50 pounds hog's-fat, 5 

 bushels beans, 1 platter, 2 brooms, 2 hour-glasses, 1 lantern, 50 pounds spun yarn, 4 

 pump-bolts, 3 pump-brakes, 6 upper boxes, 4 lower boxes, 1 pump-hook, 1 draw-bucket, 

 2 cedar pails, 1 hand-pump, 2 hnishing-planes, 1 pound pepper, 1 speaking-trumpet, 2 

 half-minute glasses, 1 punch-bowl, 6 tea-cups and saucers, 1^ pounds powder and shot, 

 1 drawingkuife, 1 candlestick, 3 skeins marling, 3 skeins housing, 8 spare blocks, 1 cat- 

 block, 40 fathoms spare rigging, 1 sounding-lead, 1 boat-hook, 12 sail-needles, 18 yards 

 mending-cloth, 1 penknife, 1 jackknife, 10 pounds chalk, 1 bung-borer, 3 chisels, 1 

 handsaw, 1 large hammer, 1 pump-hammer. 



The ship Beaver, of Nantucket, which sailed for a Pacific sperm whaling voyage in 

 1791, cost, with her outfit, $10,212. She was a ship of 240 tons, carried 17 men, and 

 required in outfitting, among other articles, 400 iron-hooped casks (this was before iron 

 came into general use for this purpose, and the remainder of her casks, to the capacity 

 of 1,400 barrels, were wooden-hooped), 40 barrels of salt provisions, 3£ tons bread, 30 

 bushels beans and peas, 1,000 pounds of rice, 40 gallons molasses, 24 barrels of flour. 

 All the additional provisions used were 200 pounds of bread. She made a seventeen- 

 months' voyage. — (Macy.) 



The whaling- fleet in 1831 consisted of about 290 ships and barks, (170 sperm and 

 120 right whalers.) This fleet required in outfitting, among other things, 36,000 barrels 

 of flour, 30,000 barrels of beef and pork, 18,000 bolts of duck, 3,000 tons of hoop-iron, 

 6,000,000 staves, 2,000 tons cordage, besides large quantities of iron, (for harpoons, 

 lances, spades, blubber-hooks, and camboose-grates,) molasses, rice, beans, peas, corn, 

 tea, coffee, sugar, &c. The annual consumption of copper amounted to 700,000 pounds. 



It has been said, and probably with a very great degree of truth, that the " whaling- 

 fleet made Honolulu," and when one considers for how many years large fleets of 

 whalemen (formerly English, French, and American, but latterly exclusively from the 

 latter country,) rendezvoused there, the known prodigality of the sailor, and the in- 

 creasingly heavy bills for refitting, of all of which Honolulu reaped the benefit, it is 

 easy to believe the statement. Several merchants removed thence also from the 

 United States and purchased and fitted whaling- vessels from that port, the first whaler 

 belonging to Honolulu being fitted in 1832 by Henry A. Pierce, of New Bedford. 



The principal articles used in fitting out the whaling-fleet sailing from New Bed- 

 ford alone in 1858,65 ships, amounted in gross to $1,950,000, and included 13,650 bar- 

 rels flour, 260 of meal, 10,400 of beef, 7,150 of pork, 19,500 bushels of salt, 97,500 gal- 

 lons molasses, 39,000 pounds rice, 1,300 bushels beans, 39,000 pounds dried apples, 

 78,000 of sugar, 78,000 of butter, 19,500 of cheese, 16,300 of ham, 32,500 of cod- 

 fish, 18,000 of coffee, 14,300 of tea, 13,300 of raisins, 1,950 bushels corn, 2,600 of pota- 

 toes, 1,300 of onions, 400 barrels vinegar, 2,000 pounds sperm-candles, 32,500 barrels 

 fresh water, 1,200 cords oak wood, 260 of pine, 1,000,000 staves, 260,000 feet heading, 

 1,000 tons iron hoops, 33,000 pounds rivets, 520,000 pounds sheathing-copper and yel- 

 low-metal, 15,000 of sheath-nails, 52.000 of coppering nails, 400 barrels tar, 739,000 

 pounds cordage, 450 whale-boats, 32,500 feet boat-boards, 65,000 feet pine boards, 36,000 

 feet oars, 8,500 iron poles, 22,500 pounds flags, 23,000 bricks, 200 casks lime, 205,000 

 yards canvas, 13,000 pounds cotton-twine, 234,000 yards assorted cotton-cloth, 130,000 

 pounds tobacco, 39,000 gallons white lead, 5,200 pounds linseed-oil, 400 gallons turpen- 

 tine, 13,000 pounds paints, 2,600 gallons new rum, 1,000 gallons other liquors, 120 casks 

 powder, besides clothing, &c. The advance-wageB alone amounted to $130,000. 



