Chapter IX: Section II: His Second Adventure, and commencing Prosperity

Under the fitting authority yielded to my Father, in respect to the absolute selection and engagement of his officers and crew, he acted with equal wisdom and decision. His first act was to discharge the whole of his old and self-assumed accomplished or experienced officers, and to replace them with younger and more tractable men; some of those who had served with him in his first command, whose characters he had appreciated, being advanced from inferior stations to places of responsibility.

The principle that had been conceded by the owner to his captain, as to the absolute selection of his crew, was, however, in a very minor appointment, attempted to be interfered with; but it only served to bring out in greater distinctiveness the character with whom he had to deal. The circumstance was this:--On the fitting out of the ship in the spring of 1792, my Father, on going on board one morning for his usual superintendence of the work, observed a stranger,--one whom he had not himself engaged,--busily employed, as if quite installed in office, about the cooking department. In surprise he asked the would-be _cook_ "who had sent him there?" "The owner," he replied, "had _shipped_ him as the cook."

Without a word further, and without regarding consequences, so momentous to himself which might result, he gave himself up to the manly impulse of his mind, determining either to have the appointment revoked, or to relinquish a post which had formed at once the object of his aspirings and the summit of his hopes. His manner on the occasion, whilst most respectful to his superior, was as unequivocally firm, as his mind was decided. Taking the "ship's papers" from their safe custody in a compartment of the cabin, viz. the ship's register, certain bonds claimed by the Customs and Excise, and other documents required to be held by the ship's commander,--he proceeded immediately on shore to Mr. Piper's apartments, at once presenting them, and in so doing, resigning his command into the hands of the astonished owner. His astonishment was hardly lessened when, on being asked the reason of this strange conduct, my Father referred him to the appointment, without his personal sanction, of a cook to the ship. The remonstrative "pooh! pooh! pooh!" proved of no more avail than on a former occasion; but Mr. Piper's naturally good sense prevailing over his mortified pride of authority, he conceded this point also, and my Father, returning on board with his papers, sent the intruding cook to the right-about, leaving him and Mr. Piper to settle the disagreeables as well as they might.

The principle, the firmness, and the tact of my Father, in respect to the engagement and selection of his crew, were amply vindicated in the happy result of his second adventure as commander. Men who had been selected and appointed by him, readily deferred to him. Men who, contrary to ordinary slow progress, step by step, had been advanced, _per saltum_, to places of responsibility, gave spontaneous respect and honour to one who could so estimate ability, and confide in the application of untried talents. Discipline was easily preserved, and active, confiding, and cordial obedience succeeded to the former disaffection. The commanding talent of the director of the adventure thus obtained its proper scope, and resulted in an almost unprecedented measure of success.[D] No less than _eighteen_ whales were captured, yielding 112 tuns of oil, on this, to my Father, very momentous voyage; for, whilst a second failure might have permanently blighted his hopes and prevented his prosperity, this extraordinary success directed admiring attention to the commander, who had had largeness of mind to contemplate, and superiority of ability to accomplish, so enterprising and profitable an advance beyond what his predecessors from the port of Whitby had either deemed in any way practicable, or had been limited, by their too narrow conceptions of sufficiency, from attempting.