BULLETIN OE THE UNITED STATES EISH COMMISSION. 11 
3.— NOTES ©IV THE SEAL AND WHALE FISHERY OF 1886. 
Mj THOMAS SOUTHWELL, F. Z. S. 
[From the Zoologist, London, England, May, 1887.] 
We must go back many years in the history of the seal and whale 
fishery before we shall find so disastrous a season in all respects as the 
past has been; certainly it is unparalleled in the history of the Dundee 
fishery. A season of great severity has resulted in poor catches, still 
poorer prices for produce, and in the loss of one ship at Newfoundland 
and four in Davis Strait. It is not likely, with the present prospects, 
that any. of these will be replaced, and it is even doubtful whether all 
the vessels which returned from last season’s fishing will repeat the 
venture in 1887. In addition to this there are rumors of a partial de- 
sertion of the northern .fishing grounds for the purpose of exploring the 
polar seas of the Southern Hemisphere. 
The first disaster occurred on March 27, when the Dundee steamer 
Eesolute was crushed in the ice in Notre Dame Bay, off Newfoundland, 
the crew having barely time to save themselves by jumping on the ice ? 
where they suffered intensely from cold and exposure, having to travel 
70 miles over ice before they reached a place of safety, while three 
of their number, at first believed to have been lost, were subsequently 
picked up by the sealer Hector, and landed safely at Saint John’s. The 
Eesolute at the time of her loss had 20,000 seals on board. Another 
Dundee vessel, the Aurora, had a narrow escape. Four days after 
leaving Saint John’s she discovered the main pack of seals, and had 
every prospect of securing a full cargo, but a gale of great violence 
coming on, which continued for several days, she was driven before 
its force a distance of about 100 miles, ultimately to be stopped by an 
iceberg off Cape Bonavista, where she remained in a position of great 
danger from the falling ice. Soon after, a second iceberg floating down 
upon her crushed one of her boats, and injured the ship so much that 
she began to leak; all this time the weather was of great severity, 
and the snow and mist were blinding. Ultimately the ice eased, to the 
intense relief of her crew, and with the loss of one of her men the 
Aurora returned to Saint John’s to refit. On her second trip she 
secured 640 old seals. 
The total result, so far as the 21 British vessels which took part 
in the Newfoundland fishery were concerned, was one lost, two clean, 
and among the remaining 18 vessels a take of 195,396 seals, against 
211,587 for 19 British vessels last year. Of these the Banger took 35,894, 
the Falcon 24,768, the Wolf 19,521, the Leopard 15,954, and the Green- 
land 15,000. Of the remaining 13 vessels the total catch was 84,259, or 
an average of 6,481; the average of the whole 18 being 10,855 seals, the 
produce of which was worth about £18 10s. ($90) per ton. 
