The peculiar build of the _Truelove_ accounted to a large extent for her many hair-breadth escapes from the danger of being ‘nipped’ in the ice. Her sides bulged outwards like a barrel; or, as sailors put it, they ‘tumbled home’ to the deck. One of the saddest events in the Hull whaling industry was the return home of the _Diana_ in 1867. This was the first steamship to go to the whaling-grounds, and in her voyage of 1866 she had the misfortune to become locked in the ice for six months. The sufferings of her crew can be imagined. Captain Gravill died in December, one of her crew died in February, five died in March, and five more died in April. [Illustration: THE HULL WHALER ‘TRUELOVE’.] The _Truelove_ was sent out from the Humber as a relief ship for the _Diana_, but the two vessels passed each other. With thirty-six men down with the scurvy, and only seven left fit to work the ship, the unfortunate _Diana_ eventually reached home, her dead captain’s coffin on the ship’s bridge. The following year this ill-fated vessel was wrecked on the treacherous flats of Donna Nook, off the Lincolnshire coast at the mouth of the Humber. With her loss the whaling industry of the Humber seamen came to an end. * * * * * During many of the years when the whale fisheries were providing work for East Riding seamen, France and England were at war. Men were consequently needed to man the English navy, and such notices as the following were frequently issued in seaport towns:— RECRUITING FOR THE NAVY. =WANTED.= For the parishes of _Sculcoates_, _Cottingham_, and _Little Weighton_, A few able-bodied SEAMEN or LANDMEN to serve in His Majesty’s Navy during the present War ONLY.... The Families and Friends of Volunteers will receive Monthly Pay, and the Volunteers themselves will have a bountiful supply of Cloathing, Beef, Grog, Flip, and Strong Beer, also a certainty of Prize Money, as the men entered for this service will be sent to capture the rich Spanish Galleons, and in consequence will return loaded with Dollars and Honour, to spend their Days in Peace and Plenty. * * * * * May the constitution of _England_ endure for ever, and the Parishioners of _Sculcoates_, _Cottingham_ and _Little Weighton_ live to see it. Hull, November 28th, 1796. But the results of this ‘Recruiting for the Navy’ were not always satisfactory, notwithstanding the ‘certainty of Prize Money’ and the ‘bountiful supply of ... Grog, Flip, and Strong Beer.’ So recourse was had to the _Press Gang_, and many were the tricks practised by the captains and crews of Hull whalers to reach home safely. [Illustration: THE FIRST STEAMSHIP BUILT ON THE HUMBER.]