A VISIT TO SOME STRANOE PLACES. Ill 



often had a friendly chat, this was quite out of the 

 ordinary run to have such luck in the " Channel." 



"'Way back in de dark ages, w'en de whaleships 

 war de pi'neers ob commerce, 'n dey wan't no worryin*, 

 poofity-plunkity steamboats a-poundin' along, 'nough ter 

 galley ebery whale clean eout ob dere skin, dey war plenty 

 whaleships fill up in twelve, fifteen, twenty monf after 

 leabin' home. 'N er man hed his pick er places, too — 

 didn' hab ter go moseyin errouu' like some ol' hobo 

 lookin' fer day's work, 'n prayin de good Lord not ter 

 let um fine it. No, sah ; roun yer China Sea, coas' 

 Japan, on de line, off shore, Vasquez, 'mong de islan's, 

 olimos' anywhar, you couldn' hardly git way from 'em. 

 Neow, I clar ter glory I kaint imagine war dey all 

 gone ter, dough we bin eout only six seven monf, 'n got 

 over tousan bar'l below. But I bin two year on er 

 voy'ge and doan hardly see a sparm whale, much less 

 catch one. But " — and here he whispered mysteriously — 

 " dish yer ole man's de bery debbil's own chile, 'n his 

 farder lookin' after him well — dat's my 'pinion. Only 

 yew keep yer head tight shut, an' nebber say er word, 

 but keep er lookin', 'n sure's death you'll see." This 

 conversation made a deep and lasting impression upon 

 me, for I had not before heard even so much as a 

 murmur from an officer against the tyranny of the 

 skipper. Some of the harpooners were fluent enough, 

 too. 



Yet I had often thought that his treatment of them, 

 considering the strenuous nature of their toil, and the 

 willingness with which they worked as long as they had 

 an ounce of energy left, was worth at least a little 

 kindness and courtesy on his part. 



"What the period may have been during which whales 



