The Polynesian., 1841-06-19
SATURDAY, JUNE 10, 1871.

dCtcfiSuC cUeTSy WHICH nau marked the
enterprise of its sturdy settlers soon exhib-
tied itself upon its old field, the ocean.
and the sound Of the broad-aXe and the
hammer was again heard in its backwards.
building and refitting new vessels for its
tavorite enterprise. I'm 1885, the bus-
ness promised great profits. The articles
required for the outfits were low, while
the price of oil was high. This state Of
things continued only short time, for in
the latter part of the succeeding year,
crude sperm oil sold for E21 per ton, and
head matter scarcely commanded E45.
Measures were soon adopted to petition
for its protection, and a bounty was grant
ed by the commonwealth of Massachu-
sets, of five pounds for every ton of white
spermaceti oil, and sixty shillings for eve
ry ton OF brown spermaceti oil; for the
purpose of encouraging the business, ma
ny persons in other parts of the country
were induced to embark in the whale fish
cry, thus increasing the quantity in this
country, and diminishing its value. But
the consumption was not sufficiently large
to make its procuration very profitable;
and the encouragement to this commerce
which had been given by England, and
the consequent quantity carried by their
own mariners into that country, cut off
American whaling merchants from British
markets, especially as duties were reQuir-
ed to be paid for its importation to Great
Britain after the war of the revolution.
Another fact tended to I'M jure in great
measure the profits of the American whale
fishery, which was the establishment of a
colony at Halifax by the English govern
ment for the purpose of carrying on the
trade from that port. This place afforded
I'm excellent harbor that looked out upon
the ocean, and it was thought that a good
market would be here provided for oil as
soon as it was landed. Large inducements
were held out to the people of Nantucket
to remove to that point, and they were sue
cessful, for in 1856 and 1877, we find
considerable number of person from Nan
tucket removing to point opposite Hall
fax, which they called Dartmouth, and
there building dwelling-houses, wharves,
spermaceti candle manufactures, stores.
and dockyards Here they carried on
the whaling business for several years
with success, but were finally induced to
remove to Milford Haven, in the west of
England, there to prosecute the same traG-
fc. The establishment of Dartmouth was
thus broken up. Although Nantucket
suffered considerably by this settlements.
having lost some OF its most active and
enterprising whalcmen, still the auspices
of the whale fisher grew brighter, oil adj
vanced in price, the number and size of
the ships were increased, their voyages
were extended, and the vessels from that
port which had confined themselves to the
West Indies, the coast of Guinea, and dif-
fcrcnt parts of the shores of North Amcr-
ca, now extended their ranging grounds to
the banks of Brazil, where ri ght and sperm
whales were very numerous. The manu-
facture of sperm candles was increased,
and large quantities were not only con-
sumed in this country, but also exported
to the West Indies. About this time the
domestic consumption of oil was much ex-
tended by the establishment of Lighthouse
es, and the introduction of machinery into