Chapter 3 Summary

After stopping in the Azores for provisions, the Essex made its way to the Cape Verde Islands. There, the men were able to purchase a whaleboat to help make up for the ones that had been damaged. They were still short in this area, however, with only four whaleboats. This meant that they would only have one spare, when often whaleships carried up to three spares.

South of the equator, halfway between Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires, the lookout spotted the first whale of the journey. The men began to prepare the whaleboats, placing harpoon line in the boats and sharpening the harpoons, or irons. Within a mile of the whales, the ship was brought to a near standstill and the majority of the men positioned themselves in the boats. Each boat would contain a mate, a boatsteerer, and four oarsmen. Each...