The stratagem, according to the account
given by the younger Scoresby,[1] was such a huge surprise for the enemy
that he suddenly hauled off under full sail and not a shot was fired on
either side.
[Footnote 1: Scoresby, the Rev. William, D.D., "My Father," p. 108.]
After this voyage young Scoresby went back to school again until 1803 when
he became an apprentice on board the _Resolution_, a new ship of Whitby,
commanded and partly owned by his father. For several years he made the
Greenland voyage in the _Resolution_ and was chief officer when, in the
year 1806, his father forced the ship through the pack ice, as far north
as 81 deg. 3O'. This was for long the highest point reached by any vessel and
the ship's cargo was completed in thirty-two days with twenty-four whales,
two seals, two walruses, two bears and a narwhal. The elder Scoresby who
was about six feet in height was a man of extraordinary muscular power.
His many successful voyages reveal his first-class qualities as a seaman
and navigator and his good judgment in emergencies seems to have been
almost instinctive. Although he is described[1] as an Arctic navigator,
exploration was only incidental to whale-catching, but his inventions of
the ice-drill and the crow's-nest did much to make Arctic voyages more
feasible.
[Footnote 1: "Dictionary of National Biography."]
The versatility of his son William was remarkable, for he may be described
as master mariner, author and divine and even then his varied scientific
knowledge is overlooked.
Pages:
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201