The Dickinson press. (Dickinson, Stark County, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1883-1927, 1888-09-29
OLD TIME NANTUCKET.
WHEN THE TOWN WAS AT ITS
HIGHEST WHALING PROSPERITY.

HIGHEST WHALING PROSPERITY.
The Old Merchant and His Ways-Picturo
of AN Old Fashioned Sailur-His Cos-
tune and Charactcr-Aslorc for IL Hol-
iday-GOod Luck.
Forty-tive Years ago Nantucket was at its
highest tide of whaling prosperity. 1t sent
out fleet of 100 whalers Itsreturncd ships
lay III tiers two deep at those now ruined
wliarNcs. Then acres of ground were COW
cred with oil casks winter storedr under
|tawred; then full oil casks obtrudcd them
selves ON the water edge sidewalks, and rem
drrcd Il lady 5 passage i'll a silk dress a diff
cult, if not costly experiments then acres of
ground, now grass grown or turned to salt
meadows, were covered with boat builders
shop" hia"ksmitls' shops, rope walks, ship
yards and r"opers' shops, whose noisy ham
hr'S int'lns around full or empty casks
lrNcf!"racl through tho entire town IA
COOPER with one hammer, ono casl, and one
il'n hoop to tighten ON it can make more
n"l>" than twenty men engaged in any other
work.; then every other man smelled Of oil
and the talk on all sides was of oil and the
price per gallon of oil, whale or sperm. and
the names "i the far distant seas from whence
were gathered oil, or where Nantuclc;'s ships
put i'll for repairs or provisions, were on
| every lip.
THE OLD WHALING MERCHANT
The whaling merchant Of Old Nantucket
was men with Il bit of good horse flesh driv
ing hrlskly about from the ship under repair
to his Office, from Office To dwelling, and back
again. He was ever III consultation with his
Nhip'arpcnter, his cooper, his blacksmith, his
liSger, or with his ''stevcdorc," who bosscd
tn" cntlrc ships repair. He wore a black
si"Ncpipc hat and II high standing collar
iS"t" boards we termed them, and his neck
was cramped i'll black stock, kept in its
! place by IL stout steel spring concealed within
1t, which suggested n Spanish garrote. He
Wore II swallow tailed coat whether ut bus-
ncs, or not, and from his waistband there
danglcd huge geld fob chain and a great
seal attached.
He wrote with quill pen and knew how
4" mend 1t. He sanded his letters to dry the
INK from black or red sand pepper box on
his desk He ST. folded his letter that it would
| uinkr its own envelope, for envelopes were
then not known or used, and he sealed it
with n red wafer or sealing wax He spliccd
the nainlrncc at | o'clock regularly will, n
horn of Jamaica rum, and kept n tlecanter of
lA" same always ready for action on his side
| board ut home
The shore dress of the Nantucket sailor of
l"!iy years ago was IL fancy rig as compared
WITH tha' OF the sailor Of today. He wore {;
round tar,G'iin hata straw hat, hard
r'f,i"d with tar and about as comfortable on
"'i"S head nS an iron skillet 1t was pic;ur-
'~'lu", b|it painful-llkra II tight set of corsets
and would knock II mans front teeth out if
thrown hard enough at him-T mea,, the hist,
mol the rorsrts. y half yard of black ribbon
iluii"I''l from the liat-his liberty day signal,
possibly, that his 'coppcrs were hot and hi,
money burned in his pocket In his ears
We're gold earrings. If the rings We're not
'i'rr" 'hr li;l"Se holes Were. His hair some
times hung IN rillslrtS tp his shoulders, and
thrs, he had rurlnl and oiled and rrfu,lul
"N"n after they We're gray; for Il man can Nv.
rs Valil as a woman and has right tn be-
y POCKET FULL OF DOLLARS.
! IL" w"'" n short jacket sometimes of green
i'''iz' SOMETHING'S "t blue cloth, having many
'''lil"ns sewn closely together Arms. bosom
and sometimes whole body were tai;oocd IN
rod and blue India ink, with sli,, under full
al and llag1 of varols nationalities, as
""ll a' his nam" for purpose of ilcntificu-
'i'n. in rasr of sudden death I'M foreign
lands. On his feet we're low Slipper, on
pumps, ahi IN his hand Il light whni"bol!e
rli", hn'l inside his right or left check II
lump "t tobacco, and ii there wer";nv Span
iNl dollars i'll his pocket he mad. them get
ont as quickly as possible
HIS lhs'ii"SS ON shore was to enjoy himself
and spend his money, and in such pursuit l!e
hlr"d teams and Tip up carts and filed
iiHnn with girls and possibly a fiddler, and
drove 4" Sr"n5"tt or Madeque,, and danced
all nI@ht and drove bach To tus.n and ,iro.-~
i'rI"lISly for all tho biggest stones or decpcS,
frlt, III tli, road, and if he cnpsiznd the car,
''I"i all IN II, :" much the better: and IN
| coming INTO town on occasions he vcrren
and M""l ainl Tackled, and close hauled on
III" wind, and often managed to carr, away
on smash up something of his own horse or
| wagon nr that of somebody else,
That IL strange good luck which at.
tended this fleet Of whaors for gcmclations
In il"s,. i!,tlc Ships not nearly as large as
niuiI "i our present roaSing s,hooners, they
"u!'d year after year III far distant, ull-
| l!"s,I, and then almost unmappcd seas
im'', SalI"d IN the light aud in the darkness,
tao, "iI seas bts't with rocks and reefs above
"i.i /" !"Nv water. They were exposed to
I currents sefiins them on dangerous shores
tnc, ram many risks from the savage and
t"nrh"r"lts natives of the South Sea
Glands. They crniscd in the far
A"'1h amid h"es and iccb"rgs, These
l'i" not short cXrllsi'-l trips. Their voy-
";oi l;,oiel two, three, four years, always
exposed IL some on" on other Of these dan.
| se!-. 50 "oyasns they explored and dis
"',E'1'i and We're familiar with tribes and
'frniibtl races long years before costly naval
and government expeditions rctol,l the
"iiai"!nanS story in series Of pun,lerou,
'"I''Ines. 50, wandering over ocean after
ocean for 50 many thousands of miles and
'i'irIhS 50 many years. yet for over 200 years
irr!r-li:ths Of Nantuc,.ts whaling fleet re
tirlm'l home >;,fc.-lrcnticc Mulford in New
| York Star
| In Spite OF Himself.
Ex-Commissioner Rolin NJ Squire Is
noted story teller, and whenever he appears
In public place is surrounded by group of
acquaintance intent OF listening to him.
Que of bis stories told rec ltly was that Of
IN Irish drill sergeant who hao been put IL.
charge of an awkward squad At the word
OF command Right facer" one of the recruits
turned completely about bringing himself IN