112 FISHERMEN OF THE UNITED STATES. 



miles, are very dangerous to vessels on the passage to and from the Grand Bank and other eastern 

 banks. For a great portion of the year this island is enveloped in dense fogs, and the currents 

 in the vicinity being very irregular, it is extremely difficult for the mariner to tell his exact position. 



There are outlying rocks and ledges off the coast of Nova Scotia which are in the track of vessels 

 going to and from the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the eastern banks. Many serious disasters 

 have occurred on these ledges and rocks and there are several instances of narrow escapes from 

 destruction. 



Dangbes to whalees. — The principal dangers thus far mentioned have been those encoun- 

 tered by vessels in the cod, mackerel, and halibut fisheries from New England. We have yet to 

 consider the dangers to the whaling and sealing fleets. These vessels are, of course, liable to many 

 of the same perils as the fishing craft, especially to heavy gales and squalls. On the passage to 

 the cruising grounds the whaling vessels do not carry so much sail as merchant or fishing ves- 

 sels, time not being to them of such vast importance. Dangers, common to other vessels, are 

 less likely to happen to whalers. From the start of a voyage, men are continually aloft on the 

 watch for whales, and are likely to see approaching danger more quickly than in the case of a 

 merchant ship, where only one man is on the lookout, and he, as a rule, not expecting any imme- 

 diate danger. Whalemen are generally well trained and ready for duty at a moment's notice. 

 Only one-half of the crew, comprising one watch, is on deck at a time, but in case of danger or the 

 approach of whales, all can be quickly summoned. As a rule, the half of a whaling crew includes 

 more men than the entire crew of a merchant vessel of the same size. 



Instances of whaling vessels being blown over or of waves breaking over them, thereby causing 

 damage, are not common. Such disasters sometimes, however, occur to vessels in the Arctic 

 or Antarctic Oceans, where they are exposed to severe gales. 



DANGERS IN LEAVING AND APPEOAOHING THE SHOEE. 



The dangers incurred in approaching and leaving the shores are perhaps more to be dreaded 

 than any others, and great skill, coolness, and prudence are requisite to avoid disaster. This is 

 especially the case in the fisheries of New England, because nearly all of the larger and most fre- 

 quented fishing grounds lie in an easterly direction from the coast. Easterly winds, which are fair 

 for making passages toward the land, are generally accompanied with thick weather. This is 

 especiallj^ the case in winter, when severe snow-storms often overtake the fishermen when but a few 

 miles from land -and on a lee shore. The density of the snow often renders it impossible to discern 

 objects far enough off to clear them, and it is at the utmost hazard that the fishermen undertake to 

 make a harbor. They often approach so near the land before the weather becomes thick that it is 

 as dangerous to attempt to keep off shore as it is to approach it. Fishermen are induced to take 

 the latter risk for the reason that if they do succeed in making harbor they will escape being 

 exposed to the storm on a lee shore, and may also obtain a higher price for their fish. Probably 

 no other class of sea faring men take such great risks in running for the land, but such is the fish- 

 ermen's knowledge of the coast and their skill in handling their vessels that, although there are 

 many hair-breadth escapes, there are comparatively few disasters resulting from this cause. The 

 following are given as a few of the many instances of this character that have occurred to our fish- 

 ing fleet : 



On the 26th of February, 1863, the schooner Mary B. Hiltz was lost off Marblehead during a 

 violent snow-storm while on her homeward passage from Newfoundland, and one of her crew was 

 drowned. 



