Sentence:  I was already aware that in the whaling business they paid no wages; but all hands, including the captain, received certain shares of the profits called <WSD>lays</WSD>, and that these <WSD>lays</WSD> were proportioned to the degree of importance pertaining to the respective duties of the ship's company. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  A share of the profits in a business.