Whale

marine 4 fisheries,' having been followed by the Norsemen, and it was a common occupation of the Basque fishermen from the 10th to the 16th century. Then whales became scarce in Central Furopean latitudes, and the more northerly fishery fell into the hands of the Dutch and the English. At the end of the 17th century the Dutch had more than 250 ve els and 14,000 men employed in the industry, and Holland was the chief oil market in the world. But the competition of the British was so severe, that by the end of the 18th century the Dutch industry was more or ISSs defunct. Even at the height of their prosperity, however, the English had never much more than 150 ve els in the trade. At present there is practically no whale fishing industry left, though Dundee and Peter head have between them 20 to 30 ve els employed. profit-sharing system, which is very precarious, as ships sometimes come home ‘clean,’ i.e. without a single fish. value, and gas and various mineral and vegetable oils have supplanted it but sperm oil does still find a ready market. The; whalebone, spermaceti, and ambergris are quite subsidiary products, and are no longer nece ary to civilization. similar species of whale, but it is not really ‘ bone * at all, being more akin to hair than to bone. Its valuable qualities are flexibility, lightne , strength, toughne , deavability, and indifference to heat. It used to be employed in the umbrella trade, but was replaced by steel wire about the middle of this century. An average whale yields about half a ton of whalebone, valued at from £2500 to ^3000 per ton.