as before, and a bonus would be given covering the fact that the seamen would not receive Norwegian public pensions. This was accepted by the powerful head of the seamen's union, Mr. Ingvald Haugen. Depression and overproduction The purpose of the Viking Whaling Company Ltd was not only to operate its own whale factory ships but to buy shares in Norwegian companies. It bought shares in A/S Vestfold, A/S Sydhavet and A/S Rosshavet, all controlled by Johan Rasmussen & Co. Besides ships these companies had a whaling station on South Shetland. For the years 1924 - 1928, profits were above 60%, with a maximum of 147% as net profit to capital. With the depression the prices collapsed, and in the beginning of the 1930s, there were a number of vessels laid up and restructuring in the business. Næss was closely involved in this, especially with the sale of the new whale factory ship Vestfold () to a newly established company in London, as A/S Vestfold could not service its debtors. This was made possible by Næss's good connections in London, and saved the Norwegian company from bankruptcy. During the years 1932-34, the prices on whale oil sank from £25 to £10 per ton. To counter this the first voluntary reductions of production came forth, as governed by a quota agreement signed 9 June 1932. The agreement set limits on production of whale oil and the length of the season, it was to start 7 October 1932 and end 30 April 1933. This resulted in that the companies Næss was involved with used only the modern Vestfold for that season. A taste of whale hunting and shadows of war In December 1934, Næss travelled to Cape Town to study the whale hunt, and reached the Vestfold in January 1935. He saw the whole process of hunting and processing the whales. He was trying his luck at shooting whales and was very much impressed by the gunners' skill. The largest whale caught was some 33 m with a weight of over 100 tonnes. Næss seemed to regret part of his involvement in the whaling business, as it ended almost exterminating the large whales. Næss was back in London in March 1935, and though the market was still down it had improved, due to large purchases of whale oil by the German government. In the season 1937 - 1938 the market was down