My Father, meanwhile, whose spirit of enterprise, if not wearied, had become somewhat less constraining in furtherance of fresh undertakings, was content, for the first time during a period of above thirty years service, to remain for a season (that of the year 1815) unemployed. But, ill at ease in a condition of entire idleness, he undertook, for a couple of voyages, to sail out of Whitby (without engagement of property in the adventure) in charge of the _Mars_, a new ship of 343 tons, belonging to his old and steady friends, Messrs. Fishburn and Brodrick. The cargoes, in this instance obtained, did not correspond with those which had hitherto claimed for him an unrivalled superiority. They were still characterised, when compared with the results of the fishery in general, as superior; but superior only to an extent of one-fourth or one-fifth beyond the common average. Another year of retirement from the sea-service, as a commander, succeeded his engagement in the command of the Mars; but the time was not spent, as before, without any professional object; my Father, in the autumn of 1817, having purchased, solely on his own account, another teak-built ship, the _Fame_, of 370 tons burden, originally brought into England as a prize from the French. The fitting out of the Fame was deferred until a period very inconveniently late, under the idea, perhaps, of her being employed by the Government for Arctic researches,—just at this time proposed to be renewed; and this idea he might well be supposed to entertain, because of the knowledge of the fact,—that it was in consequence of information communicated by myself to the President of the Royal Society, Sir Joseph Banks, that the attention of the Council of the Royal Society and the Government had been directed to the long dormant enterprise, and that that distinguished patron of science, with whom we both had frequent intercourse, was very desirous that I should be employed (having requested me to be sent for to London with this view) in the proposed adventure.[M] Our expectations herein, however, I need hardly add, were altogether disappointed, and, so far as _expense_, at least, was concerned, much to the national disadvantage, as we could have accomplished one of those enterprises (the Polar research of 1818) at one-tenth of the cost of the appointed expedition, and, at all events, with as much effectiveness; for, on that unfortunate occasion, _less_ could not have been accomplished.