INTRODUCTION.

[N order to give some coherence to my various narratives, it seems necessary to describe their whereabouts, and my connection with them. As my earliest recollections date back to the time when my parents and grand-parents were residing in Dunkirk, during the latter part of the reign of Louis XVI., I will begin with giving a short account of my grandfather's establishing the whale-fishery in France.

William Rotch was a native of Nantucket, and a member of the Society of Friends. Most of the inhabitants of that island were of that sect, and, professing peace principles, they endeavored to preserve a strict neutrality during the Revolutionary War. The consequence of this was, that they were made the prey of both parties, and my grandfather was often deputed to carry their grievances before the Provisional Government of the Colony, and also to the head-quarters of the British commanders. This was a service of great danger, and his life was often in jeopardy; but his courage and presence of mind were al

ways equal to the occasion, and he saved the island from utter devastation, though not from heavy losses of property. Two hundred vessels were captured by the English, and he lost to the amount of sixty thousand dollars. In one night the boats of a man-of-war, commanded by midshipmen, landed their crews on Nantucket, and burnt ten thousand dollars' worth of oil for my grandfather, besides destroying the property of others.

At the close of the war, when peace and independence had been conquered, the inhabitants of Nantucket found themselves in a ruinous condition; their commerce and their fishery were destroyed, and many left the island to seek their fortunes on the mainland; others preferred to continue in the whale-fishery if they could find a place where it could be pursued to advantage. Before the separation from the mother country, they had there found a market for all the oil they could catch; but the duty was now made so heavy, that it would not pay to send oil to England. The distresses of these once prosperous islanders determined my grandfather to go to England, and endeavor to interest that government in their condition, as Quakers, who from peace principles had never taken up arms against the mother country, and who would be willing to emigrate to England, and carry on from there

the whale-fishery, provided they were aided by British money, and allowed to bring with them, free of duty, their oil and their ships. Deeply interested in this enterprise, he embarked for England on board a vessel of his own, named the Maria, and I have often heard the old gentleman tell with pride and pleasure, that she was the first ship that ever unfurled the flag of the United States in the Thames.

William Rotch was a very handsome man, tall and erect, dressed in a whole suit of light drab broadcloth, with knee-breeches, shoes, and buckles; his head was a little bald, with flowing white locks, while still in the prime of life. His appearance commanded respect, and his manners were as polite ȧs Quaker sincerity would permit. Arrived in London, he soon made his way to the presence of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr. Pitt, who listened patiently to his account of the disasters which had befallen his native island, in consequence of the war and the peace principles of its inhabitants. When he urged their claims on the British government, Mr. Pitt said, “Undoubtedly you are right, sir; what can we do for you ?" Mr. Rotch then told him that a number of families were willing to remove to England and to carry on the whale-fishery, if sufficiently aided and encouraged to do so. Here the conversation ended, and the subject

was laid before the Privy Council. The secretary, Mr. Cotterel, sent a note to my grandfather, saying, the Council would sit on an early day, when they would hear what he had to offer. He waited a whole month for that "early day," and then applied to the secretary to know the reason of the delay. He pleaded their having so much business before them that they had not been able to attend to his; and with this excuse, they kept the American Quaker waiting four months. Then he requested to have a person appointed to confer with him. Unhappily, Lord Hawkesbury was the man fixed upon, and a greater enemy of the United States could not have been found. After several unsatisfactory and very disagreeable interviews, Mr. Rotch refused all further negotiation, and told him that he should carry his proposals to France.

Lord Hawkesbury did not relish the idea of France having the benefit of such a nursery for seamen as the whale-fishery would give them, and he tried hard to bend the Quaker to his purpose, but in vain. He and his son left London immediately, and proceeded in the Maria to Dunkirk, whence they sent their proposals to the French government, and were summoned to appear in Paris. There they were treated with marked attention, and whilst their peculiarities of dress, speech, and manners excited wonder and curi

osity, their scruples were always respected. Every privilege which they asked for was freely granted, so important was it considered to have the whale-fishery established in France.

The Nantucketers settled in Dunkirk were to have the right to bring over their ships loaded with oil, the ships to be registered as French vessels, and the oil to be admitted duty free. All the officers to be employed on board of whalers were to be Americans, and bounties were to be given by the government for every full cargo brought home. In return for these privileges, each vessel was to have on board a certain number of young landsmen bound as apprentices to the owner, and these were to be made good sea

men.

That once flourishing town of Dunkirk had lost its commerce, and grass was growing in its once busy streets; but it appeared to my grandfather very eligible for his purposes, and so it proved. He returned home with his son, to make the necessary preparations for his grand undertaking. My father's chief preparation was getting married, and as it required much time then to build vessels and catch oil enough to fill them, he became a householder, and a father, before he went to France to live.

When he did set sail for Dunkirk with his wife, he was obliged, by her extreme sea-sickness,