The ship Essex, Captain George Pollard, sailed from Nantucket, on the 12th of August, 1819, on a whaling voyage to the Pacific Ocean.  Her crew consisted of twenty-one men, fourteen of whom were whites, mostly belonging to Nantucket, the remainder were blacks.  On the 20th of November, 1820, in latitude 0 deg. 40’ S. longitude 119 deg.  W. a school of whales was discovered, and in pursuing them the mate’s boat was stove, which obliged him to return to the ship, when they commenced repairing the damage.  The captain and second mate were left with their boats pursuing the whales.  During this interval the mate discovered a large spermaceti whale, near the ship, but, not suspecting the approach of any danger, it gave them no alarm, until they saw the whale coming with full speed towards them.  In a moment they were astonished by a tremendous crash.  The whale had struck the ship a little forward of the fore chains.  It was some minutes before the crew recovered from their astonishment, so far as to examine whether any damage had been sustained.  They then tried their pumps, and found that the ship was sinking.  A signal was immediately set for the boats.  The whale now appeared again making for the ship, and coming with great velocity, with the water foaming around him, he struck the ship a second blow, which nearly stove in her bows.  There was now no hope of saving the ship, and the only course to be pursued was, to prepare to leave her with all possible haste.  They collected a few things, hove them into the boat and shoved off.  The ship immediately fell upon one side and sunk to the water’s edge.  When the captain’s and second mate’s boat arrived, such was the consternation, that for some time not a word was spoken.  The danger of their situation at length aroused them, as from a terrific dream, to a no less terrific reality.  They remained by the wreck two or three days, in which time they cut away the masts, which caused her to right a little.  Holes were then cut in the deck, by which means they obtained about six hundred pounds of bread, and as much water as they could take, besides other articles likely to be of use to them.  On the 22d of November, they left the ship, with as gloomy a prospect before them as can well be imagined.  The nearest land was about one thousand miles to the windward of them; they were in open boats, weak and leaky, with a very small pittance of bread and water for support of so many men, during the time they must necessarily be at sea.  Sails had been prepared for the boats, before leaving the ship, which proved of material benefit.  Steering southerly by the wind, they hoped to fall in with some ship, but in this they were disappointed.  After being in the boat twenty-eight days, experiencing many sufferings by gales of wind, want of water, and scanty provisions, they arrived at Duncie’s Island, latitude 24 deg. 40’ S., longitude 124 deg. 40’ W., where they were disappointed in not finding a sufficiency of any kind of food for so large a company to subsist on.  Their boats being very weak and leaky, they were hauled on shore and repaired.  They found a gentle spring of fresh water, flowing out of a rock, at about half ebb of the tide, from which they filled their kegs.  Three of the men chose to stay on the island, and take their chance for some vessel to take them off.