[3] THE NORWEGIAN FISHERIES IN 1883. 361 



17 wbales. Later the yield of these fisheries, not counting those whales 

 which were cast ashore, has been as follows : 



Whales. 



1870 ■• 36 



1871 20 



1872 40 



1873 36 



1874 51 



1875 37 



1876 42 



1877 32 



1878 130 



1879 123 



1880 145 



1881 279 



1882 ; 386 



1883 506 



In all, since 1866 1, 911 



In 1877 a new association was formed at Jarfiord, and in 1881 one 

 new establishment was founded in East Finmark, at Yardoe, and two 

 in West Finmark, 2 at Tufiord, and 1 at Sorvser. lu 1882 the whale 

 fisheries were carried on by 8 associations, with 12 vessels, which num- 

 ber in 1883 rose to 14 associations, with 23 vessels. There are at pres- 

 ent 11 establishments in East Finmark and 3 in West Finmark. 



The seal fisheries in the Polai^ Sea. — This fishery yielded 

 121,072 skins, 48 bottle-noses, 25 bears, 22,140 tons of fat, and 1,800 

 tons of train-oil, the total value being estimated at 1,900,000 crowns 

 [$509,200], while the expenses of fitting out were 30,000 crowns [$8,040] 

 per vessel. The total number of vessels engaged in these fisheries was 

 16, all of them steamers. 



The first Norwegian who engaged in these fisheries, which for a long 

 time had been in the hands of the English, was Svend Foyn, of Tons- 

 berg, who in 1847 fitted out a vessel for the seal fisheries. Till 1852 

 he sent out only this one vessel, but in th^t year he sent out 3 vessels ; 

 in 1853, 5 (among these 1 from Ohristiansand) ; in 1854, 9 ; and in 1855, 

 13 (among these one from Sandefiord). During the next five years these 

 fisheries developed gradually, and several others towns sent out vessels. 

 In 1860, 21 Norwegian vessels were engaged in the seal fisheries, viz., 1 

 from Frederikshald, 1 from Frederikstad, 2 from Drammen (from 1859), 

 13 from Tonsberg, 1 from Sandefiord, 2 from Laurvig (1857), and 1 

 from Christiansand. From 1856 to 1858 Holmestrand sent 1 vessel. 

 During the ten years 1861 to 1870 the number of vessels annually en- 

 gaged in the seal fisheries varied from 15 to 18. In 1866 steamers were 

 enployed for the -first time, viz., 2 from Tonsberg. It was some time, 

 however, before steamers were more generally employed, for in 1871 



