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"1.0.3-CHAPTER.1.Loomings.Call.me.Ishmael.Some.years.ago.never.mind.how.long.precisely.having.little.or.no.money.in.my.purse.and.nothing.particular.to.interest.me.on.shore.I.thought.I.would.sail.about.a.little.and.see.the.watery.part.of.the.world.It.is.a.way.I.have.of.driving.off.the.spleen.and.regulating.the.circulation.Whenever.I.find.myself.growing.grim.about.the.mouth.whenever.it.is.a.damp.drizzly.November.in.my.soul.whenever.I.find.myself.involuntarily.pausing.before.coffin.warehouses.and.bringing.up.the.rear.of.every.funeral.I.meet.and.especially.whenever.my.hypos.get.such.an.upper.hand.of.me.that.it.requires.a.strong.moral.principle.to.prevent.me.from.deliberately.stepping.into.the.street.and.methodically.knocking.peoples.hats.off.then.I.account.it.high.time.to.get.to.sea.as.soon.as.I.can.This.is.my.substitute.for.pistol.and.ball.With.a.philosophical.flourish.Cato.throws.himself.upon.his.sword.I.quietly.take.to.the.ship.There.is.nothing.surprising.in.this.If.they.but.knew.it.almost.all.men.in.their.degree.some.time.or.other.cherish.very.nearly.the.same.feelings.towards.the.ocean.with.me.There.now.is.your.insular.city.of.the.Manhattoes.belted.round.by.wharves.as.Indian.isles.by.coral.reefs.commerce.surrounds.it.with.her.surf.Right.and.left.the.streets.take.you.waterward.Its.extreme.downtown.is.the.battery.where.that.noble.mole.is.washed.by.waves.and.cooled.by.breezes.which.a.few.hours.previous.were.out.of.sight.of.land.Look.at.the.crowds.of.watergazers.there.Circumambulate.the.city.of.a.dreamy.Sabbath.afternoon.Go.from.Corlears.Hook.to.Coenties.Slip.and.from.thence.by.Whitehall.northward.What.do.you.see.Posted.like.silent.sentinels.all.around.the.town.stand.thousands.upon.thousands.of.mortal.men.fixed.in.ocean.reveries.Some.leaning.against.the.spiles.some.seated.upon.the.pierheads.some.looking.over.the.bulwarks.of.ships.from.China.some.high.aloft.in.the.rigging.as.if.striving.to.get.a.still.better.seaward.peep.But.these.are.all.landsmen.of.week.days.pent.up.in.lath.and.plaster.tied.to.counters.nailed.to.benches.clinched.to.desks.How.then.is.this.Are.the.green.fields.gone.What.do.they.here.But.look.here.come.more.crowds.pacing.straight.for.the.water.and.seemingly.bound.for.a.dive.Strange.Nothing.will.content.them.but.the.extremest.limit.of.the.land.loitering.under.the.shady.lee.of.yonder.warehouses.will.not.suffice.No.They.must.get.just.as.nigh.the.water.as.they.possibly.can.without.falling.in.And.there.they.stand.miles.of.them.leagues.Inlanders.all.they.come.from.lanes.and.alleys.streets.and.avenues.north.east.south.and.west.Yet.here.they.all.unite.Tell.me.does.the.magnetic.virtue.of.the.needles.of.the.compasses.of.all.those.ships.attract.them.thither.Once.more.Say.you.are.in.the.country.in.some.high.land.of.lakes.Take.almost.any.path.you.please.and.ten.to.one.it.carries.you.down.in.a.dale.and.leaves.you.there.by.a.pool.in.the.stream.There.is.magic.in.it.Let.the.most.absentminded.of.men.be.plunged.in.his.deepest.reveries.stand.that.man.on.his.legs.set.his.feet.agoing.and.he.will.infallibly.lead.you.to.water.if.water.there.be.in.all.that.region.Should.you.ever.be.athirst.in.the.great.American.desert.try.this.experiment.if.your.caravan.happen.to.be.supplied.with.a.metaphysical.professor.Yes.as.every.one.knows.meditation.and.water.are.wedded.for.ever.But.here.is.an.artist.He.desires.to.paint.you.the.dreamiest.shadiest.quietest.most.enchanting.bit.of.romantic.landscape.in.all.the.valley.of.the.Saco.What.is.the.chief.element.he.employs.There.stand.his.trees.each.with.a.hollow.trunk.as.if.a.hermit.and.a.crucifix.were.within.and.here.sleeps.his.meadow.and.there.sleep.his.cattle.and.up.from.yonder.cottage.goes.a.sleepy.smoke.Deep.into.distant.woodlands.winds.a.mazy.way.reaching.to.overlapping.spurs.of.mountains.bathed.in.their.hillside.blue.But.though.the.picture.lies.thus.tranced.and.though.this.pinetree.shakes.down.its.sighs.like.leaves.upon.this.shepherds.head.yet.all.were.vain.unless.the.shepherds.eye.were.fixed.upon.the.magic.stream.before.him.Go.visit.the.Prairies.in.June.when.for.scores.on.scores.of.miles.you.wade.kneedeep.among.Tigerlilies.what.is.the.one.charm.wanting.Water.there.is.not.a.drop.of.water.there.Were.Niagara.but.a.cataract.of.sand.would.you.travel.your.thousand.miles.to.see.it.Why.did.the.poor.poet.of.Tennessee.upon.suddenly.receiving.two.handfuls.of.silver.deliberate.whether.to.buy.him.a.coat.which.he.sadly.needed.or.invest.his.money.in.a.pedestrian.trip.to.Rockaway.Beach.Why.is.almost.every.robust.healthy.boy.with.a.robust.healthy.soul.in.him.at.some.time.or.other.crazy.to.go.to.sea.Why.upon.your.first.voyage.as.a.passenger.did.you.yourself.feel.such.a.mystical.vibration.when.first.told.that.you.and.your.ship.were.now.out.of.sight.of.land.Why.did.the.old.Persians.hold.the.sea.holy.Why.did.the.Greeks.give.it.a.separate.deity.and.own.brother.of.Jove.Surely.all.this.is.not.without.meaning.And.still.deeper.the.meaning.of.that.story.of.Narcissus.who.because.he.could.not.grasp.the.tormenting.mild.image.he.saw.in.the.fountain.plunged.into.it.and.was.drowned.But.that.same.image.we.ourselves.see.in.all.rivers.and.oceans.It.is.the.image.of.the.ungraspable.phantom.of.life.and.this.is.the.key.to.it.all.Now.when.I.say.that.I.am.in.the.habit.of.going.to.sea.whenever.I.begin.to.grow.hazy.about.the.eyes.and.begin.to.be.over.conscious.of.my.lungs.I.do.not.mean.to.have.it.inferred.that.I.ever.go.to.sea.as.a.passenger.For.to.go.as.a.passenger.you.must.needs.have.a.purse.and.a.purse.is.but.a.rag.unless.you.have.something.in.it.Besides.passengers.get.seasick.grow.quarrelsome.dont.sleep.of.nights.do.not.enjoy.themselves.much.as.a.general.thing.no.I.never.go.as.a.passenger.nor.though.I.am.something.of.a.salt.do.I.ever.go.to.sea.as.a.Commodore.or.a.Captain.or.a.Cook.I.abandon.the.glory.and.distinction.of.such.offices.to.those.who.like.them.For.my.part.I.abominate.all.honorable.respectable.toils.trials.and.tribulations.of.every.kind.whatsoever.It.is.quite.as.much.as.I.can.do.to.take.care.of.myself.without.taking.care.of.ships.barques.brigs.schooners.and.what.not.And.as.for.going.as.cook.though.I.confess.there.is.considerable.glory.in.that.a.cook.being.a.sort.of.officer.on.shipboard.yet.somehow.I.never.fancied.broiling.fowls.though.once.broiled.judiciously.buttered.and.judgmatically.salted.and.peppered.there.is.no.one.who.will.speak.more.respectfully.not.to.say.reverentially.of.a.broiled.fowl.than.I.will.It.is.out.of.the.idolatrous.dotings.of.the.old.Egyptians.upon.broiled.ibis.and.roasted.river.horse.that.you.see.the.mummies.of.those.creatures.in.their.huge.bakehouses.the.pyramids.No.when.I.go.to.sea.I.go.as.a.simple.sailor.right.before.the.mast.plumb.down.into.the.forecastle.aloft.there.to.the.royal.masthead.True.they.rather.order.me.about.some.and.make.me.jump.from.spar.to.spar.like.a.grasshopper.in.a.May.meadow.And.at.first.this.sort.of.thing.is.unpleasant.enough.It.touches.ones.sense.of.honor.particularly.if.you.come.of.an.old.established.family.in.the.land.the.Van.Rensselaers.or.Randolphs.or.Hardicanutes.And.more.than.all.if.just.previous.to.putting.your.hand.into.the.tarpot.you.have.been.lording.it.as.a.country.schoolmaster.making.the.tallest.boys.stand.in.awe.of.you.The.transition.is.a.keen.one.I.assure.you.from.a.schoolmaster.to.a.sailor.and.requires.a.strong.decoction.of.Seneca.and.the.Stoics.to.enable.you.to.grin.and.bear.it.But.even.this.wears.off.in.time.What.of.it.if.some.old.hunks.of.a.seacaptain.orders.me.to.get.a.broom.and.sweep.down.the.decks.What.does.that.indignity.amount.to.weighed.I.mean.in.the.scales.of.the.New.Testament.Do.you.think.the.archangel.Gabriel.thinks.anything.the.less.of.me.because.I.promptly.and.respectfully.obey.that.old.hunks.in.that.particular.instance.Who.aint.a.slave.Tell.me.that.Well.then.however.the.old.seacaptains.may.order.me.about.however.they.may.thump.and.punch.me.about.I.have.the.satisfaction.of.knowing.that.it.is.all.right.that.everybody.else.is.one.way.or.other.served.in.much.the.same.way.either.in.a.physical.or.metaphysical.point.of.view.that.is.and.so.the.universal.thump.is.passed.round.and.all.hands.should.rub.each.others.shoulderblades.and.be.content.Again.I.always.go.to.sea.as.a.sailor.because.they.make.a.point.of.paying.me.for.my.trouble.whereas.they.never.pay.passengers.a.single.penny.that.I.ever.heard.of.On.the.contrary.passengers.themselves.must.pay.And.there.is.all.the.difference.in.the.world.between.paying.and.being.paid.The.act.of.paying.is.perhaps.the.most.uncomfortable.infliction.that.the.two.orchard.thieves.entailed.upon.us.But.being.paid.what.will.compare.with.it.The.urbane.activity.with.which.a.man.receives.money.is.really.marvellous.considering.that.we.so.earnestly.believe.money.to.be.the.root.of.all.earthly.ills.and.that.on.no.account.can.a.monied.man.enter.heaven.Ah.how.cheerfully.we.consign.ourselves.to.perdition.Finally.I.always.go.to.sea.as.a.sailor.because.of.the.wholesome.exercise.and.pure.air.of.the.forecastle.deck.For.as.in.this.world.head.winds.are.far.more.prevalent.than.winds.from.astern.that.is.if.you.never.violate.the.Pythagorean.maxim.so.for.the.most.part.the.Commodore.on.the.quarterdeck.gets.his.atmosphere.at.second.hand.from.the.sailors.on.the.forecastle.He.thinks.he.breathes.it.first.but.not.so.In.much.the.same.way.do.the.commonalty.lead.their.leaders.in.many.other.things.at.the.same.time.that.the.leaders.little.suspect.it.But.wherefore.it.was.that.after.having.repeatedly.smelt.the.sea.as.a.merchant.sailor.I.should.now.take.it.into.my.head.to.go.on.a.whaling.voyage.this.the.invisible.police.officer.of.the.Fates.who.has.the.constant.surveillance.of.me.and.secretly.dogs.me.and.influences.me.in.some.unaccountable.way.he.can.better.answer.than.any.one.else.And.doubtless.my.going.on.this.whaling.voyage.formed.part.of.the.grand.programme.of.Providence.that.was.drawn.up.a.long.time.ago.It.came.in.as.a.sort.of.brief.interlude.and.solo.between.more.extensive.performances.I.take.it.that.this.part.of.the.bill.must.have.run.something.like.this.Grand.Contested.Election.for.the.Presidency.of.the.United.States.WHALING.VOYAGE.BY.ONE.ISHMAEL.BLOODY.BATTLE.IN.AFFGHANISTAN.Though.I.cannot.tell.why.it.was.exactly.that.those.stage.managers.the.Fates.put.me.down.for.this.shabby.part.of.a.whaling.voyage.when.others.were.set.down.for.magnificent.parts.in.high.tragedies.and.short.and.easy.parts.in.genteel.comedies.and.jolly.parts.in.farces.though.I.cannot.tell.why.this.was.exactly.yet.now.that.I.recall.all.the.circumstances.I.think.I.can.see.a.little.into.the.springs.and.motives.which.being.cunningly.presented.to.me.under.various.disguises.induced.me.to.set.about.performing.the.part.I.did.besides.cajoling.me.into.the.delusion.that.it.was.a.choice.resulting.from.my.own.unbiased.freewill.and.discriminating.judgment.Chief.among.these.motives.was.the.overwhelming.idea.of.the.great.whale.himself.Such.a.portentous.and.mysterious.monster.roused.all.my.curiosity.Then.the.wild.and.distant.seas.where.he.rolled.his.island.bulk.the.undeliverable.nameless.perils.of.the.whale.these.with.all.the.attending.marvels.of.a.thousand.Patagonian.sights.and.sounds.helped.to.sway.me.to.my.wish.With.other.men.perhaps.such.things.would.not.have.been.inducements.but.as.for.me.I.am.tormented.with.an.everlasting.itch.for.things.remote.I.love.to.sail.forbidden.seas.and.land.on.barbarous.coasts.Not.ignoring.what.is.good.I.am.quick.to.perceive.a.horror.and.could.still.be.social.with.it.would.they.let.me.since.it.is.but.well.to.be.on.friendly.terms.with.all.the.inmates.of.the.place.one.lodges.in.By.reason.of.these.things.then.the.whaling.voyage.was.welcome.the.great.floodgates.of.the.wonderworld.swung.open.and.in.the.wild.conceits.that.swayed.me.to.my.purpose.two.and.two.there.floated.into.my.inmost.soul.endless.processions.of.the.whale.and.mid.most.of.them.all.one.grand.hooded.phantom.like.a.snow.hill.in.the.air.CHAPTER.2.The.CarpetBag.I.stuffed.a.shirt.or.two.into.my.old.carpetbag.tucked.it.under.my.arm.and.started.for.Cape.Horn.and.the.Pacific.Quitting.the.good.city.of.old.Manhatto.I.duly.arrived.in.New.Bedford.It.was.a.Saturday.night.in.December.Much.was.I.disappointed.upon.learning.that.the.little.packet.for.Nantucket.had.already.sailed.and.that.no.way.of.reaching.that.place.would.offer.till.the.following.Monday.As.most.young.candidates.for.the.pains.and.penalties.of.whaling.stop.at.this.same.New.Bedford.thence.to.embark.on.their.voyage.it.may.as.well.be.related.that.I.for.one.had.no.idea.of.so.doing.For.my.mind.was.made.up.to.sail.in.no.other.than.a.Nantucket.craft.because.there.was.a.fine.boisterous.something.about.everything.connected.with.that.famous.old.island.which.amazingly.pleased.me.Besides.though.New.Bedford.has.of.late.been.gradually.monopolising.the.business.of.whaling.and.though.in.this.matter.poor.old.Nantucket.is.now.much.behind.her.yet.Nantucket.was.her.great.original.the.Tyre.of.this.Carthage.the.place.where.the.first.dead.American.whale.was.stranded.Where.else.but.from.Nantucket.did.those.aboriginal.whalemen.the.RedMen.first.sally.out.in.canoes.to.give.chase.to.the.Leviathan.And.where.but.from.Nantucket.too.did.that.first.adventurous.little.sloop.put.forth.partly.laden.with.imported.cobblestones.so.goes.the.story.to.throw.at.the.whales.in.order.to.discover.when.they.were.nigh.enough.to.risk.a.harpoon.from.the.bowsprit.Now.having.a.night.a.day.and.still.another.night.following.before.me.in.New.Bedford.ere.I.could.embark.for.my.destined.port.it.became.a.matter.of.concernment.where.I.was.to.eat.and.sleep.meanwhile.It.was.a.very.dubiouslooking.nay.a.very.dark.and.dismal.night.bitingly.cold.and.cheerless.I.knew.no.one.in.the.place.With.anxious.grapnels.I.had.sounded.my.pocket.and.only.brought.up.a.few.pieces.of.silver.So.wherever.you.go.Ishmael.said.I.to.myself.as.I.stood.in.the.middle.of.a.dreary.street.shouldering.my.bag.and.comparing.the.gloom.towards.the.north.with.the.darkness.towards.the.south.wherever.in.your.wisdom.you.may.conclude.to.lodge.for.the.night.my.dear.Ishmael.be.sure.to.inquire.the.price.and.dont.be.too.particular.With.halting.steps.I.paced.the.streets.and.passed.the.sign.of.The.Crossed.Harpoons.but.it.looked.too.expensive.and.jolly.there.Further.on.from.the.bright.red.windows.of.the.SwordFish.Inn.there.came.such.fervent.rays.that.it.seemed.to.have.melted.the.packed.snow.and.ice.from.before.the.house.for.everywhere.else.the.congealed.frost.lay.ten.inches.thick.in.a.hard.asphaltic.pavement.rather.weary.for.me.when.I.struck.my.foot.against.the.flinty.projections.because.from.hard.remorseless.service.the.soles.of.my.boots.were.in.a.most.miserable.plight.Too.expensive.and.jolly.again.thought.I.pausing.one.moment.to.watch.the.broad.glare.in.the.street.and.hear.the.sounds.of.the.tinkling.glasses.within.But.go.on.Ishmael.said.I.at.last.dont.you.hear.get.away.from.before.the.door.your.patched.boots.are.stopping.the.way.So.on.I.went.I.now.by.instinct.followed.the.streets.that.took.me.waterward.for.there.doubtless.were.the.cheapest.if.not.the.cheeriest.inns.Such.dreary.streets.blocks.of.blackness.not.houses.on.either.hand.and.here.and.there.a.candle.like.a.candle.moving.about.in.a.tomb.At.this.hour.of.the.night.of.the.last.day.of.the.week.that.quarter.of.the.town.proved.all.but.deserted.But.presently.I.came.to.a.smoky.light.proceeding.from.a.low.wide.building.the.door.of.which.stood.invitingly.open.It.had.a.careless.look.as.if.it.were.meant.for.the.uses.of.the.public.so.entering.the.first.thing.I.did.was.to.stumble.over.an.ashbox.in.the.porch.Ha.thought.I.ha.as.the.flying.particles.almost.choked.me.are.these.ashes.from.that.destroyed.city.Gomorrah.But.The.Crossed.Harpoons.and.The.SwordFish.this.then.must.needs.be.the.sign.of.The.Trap.However.I.picked.myself.up.and.hearing.a.loud.voice.within.pushed.on.and.opened.a.second.interior.door.It.seemed.the.great.Black.Parliament.sitting.in.Tophet.A.hundred.black.faces.turned.round.in.their.rows.to.peer.and.beyond.a.black.Angel.of.Doom.was.beating.a.book.in.a.pulpit.It.was.a.negro.church.and.the.preachers.text.was.about.the.blackness.of.darkness.and.the.weeping.and.wailing.and.teethgnashing.there.Ha.Ishmael.muttered.I.backing.out.Wretched.entertainment.at.the.sign.of.The.Trap.Moving.on.I.at.last.came.to.a.dim.sort.of.light.not.far.from.the.docks.and.heard.a.forlorn.creaking.in.the.air.and.looking.up.saw.a.swinging.sign.over.the.door.with.a.white.painting.upon.it.faintly.representing.a.tall.straight.jet.of.misty.spray.and.these.words.underneath.The.Spouter.Inn.Peter.Coffin.Coffin.Spouter.Rather.ominous.in.that.particular.connexion.thought.I.But.it.is.a.common.name.in.Nantucket.they.say.and.I.suppose.this.Peter.here.is.an.emigrant.from.there.As.the.light.looked.so.dim.and.the.place.for.the.time.looked.quiet.enough.and.the.dilapidated.little.wooden.house.itself.looked.as.if.it.might.have.been.carted.here.from.the.ruins.of.some.burnt.district.and.as.the.swinging.sign.had.a.povertystricken.sort.of.creak.to.it.I.thought.that.here.was.the.very.spot.for.cheap.lodgings.and.the.best.of.pea.coffee.It.was.a.queer.sort.of.place.a.gableended.old.house.one.side.palsied.as.it.were.and.leaning.over.sadly.It.stood.on.a.sharp.bleak.corner.where.that.tempestuous.wind.Euroclydon.kept.up.a.worse.howling.than.ever.it.did.about.poor.Pauls.tossed.craft.Euroclydon.nevertheless.is.a.mighty.pleasant.zephyr.to.any.one.indoors.with.his.feet.on.the.hob.quietly.toasting.for.bed.In.judging.of.that.tempestuous.wind.called.Euroclydon.says.an.old.writer.of.whose.works.I.possess.the.only.copy.extant.it.maketh.a.marvellous.difference.whether.thou.lookest.out.at.it.from.a.glass.window.where.the.frost.is.all.on.the.outside.or.whether.thou.observest.it.from.that.sashless.window.where.the.frost.is.on.both.sides.and.of.which.the.wight.Death.is.the.only.glazier.True.enough.thought.I.as.this.passage.occurred.to.my.mind.old.blackletter.thou.reasonest.well.Yes.these.eyes.are.windows.and.this.body.of.mine.is.the.house.What.a.pity.they.didnt.stop.up.the.chinks.and.the.crannies.though.and.thrust.in.a.little.lint.here.and.there.But.its.too.late.to.make.any.improvements.now.The.universe.is.finished.the.copestone.is.on.and.the.chips.were.carted.off.a.million.years.ago.Poor.Lazarus.there.chattering.his.teeth.against.the.curbstone.for.his.pillow.and.shaking.off.his.tatters.with.his.shiverings.he.might.plug.up.both.ears.with.rags.and.put.a.corncob.into.his.mouth.and.yet.that.would.not.keep.out.the.tempestuous.Euroclydon.Euroclydon.says.old.Dives.in.his.red.silken.wrapper.he.had.a.redder.one.afterwards.pooh.pooh.What.a.fine.frosty.night.how.Orion.glitters.what.northern.lights.Let.them.talk.of.their.oriental.summer.climes.of.everlasting.conservatories.give.me.the.privilege.of.making.my.own.summer.with.my.own.coals.But.what.thinks.Lazarus.Can.he.warm.his.blue.hands.by.holding.them.up.to.the.grand.northern.lights.Would.not.Lazarus.rather.be.in.Sumatra.than.here.Would.he.not.far.rather.lay.him.down.lengthwise.along.the.line.of.the.equator.yea.ye.gods.go.down.to.the.fiery.pit.itself.in.order.to.keep.out.this.frost.Now.that.Lazarus.should.lie.stranded.there.on.the.curbstone.before.the.door.of.Dives.this.is.more.wonderful.than.that.an.iceberg.should.be.moored.to.one.of.the.Moluccas.Yet.Dives.himself.he.too.lives.like.a.Czar.in.an.ice.palace.made.of.frozen.sighs.and.being.a.president.of.a.temperance.society.he.only.drinks.the.tepid.tears.of.orphans.But.no.more.of.this.blubbering.now.we.are.going.awhaling.and.there.is.plenty.of.that.yet.to.come.Let.us.scrape.the.ice.from.our.frosted.feet.and.see.what.sort.of.a.place.this.Spouter.may.be.CHAPTER.3.The.SpouterInn.Entering.that.gableended.SpouterInn.you.found.yourself.in.a.wide.low.straggling.entry.with.oldfashioned.wainscots.reminding.one.of.the.bulwarks.of.some.condemned.old.craft.On.one.side.hung.a.very.large.oilpainting.so.thoroughly.besmoked.and.every.way.defaced.that.in.the.unequal.crosslights.by.which.you.viewed.it.it.was.only.by.diligent.study.and.a.series.of.systematic.visits.to.it.and.careful.inquiry.of.the.neighbors.that.you.could.any.way.arrive.at.an.understanding.of.its.purpose.Such.unaccountable.masses.of.shades.and.shadows.that.at.first.you.almost.thought.some.ambitious.young.artist.in.the.time.of.the.New.England.hags.had.endeavored.to.delineate.chaos.bewitched.But.by.dint.of.much.and.earnest.contemplation.and.oft.repeated.ponderings.and.especially.by.throwing.open.the.little.window.towards.the.back.of.the.entry.you.at.last.come.to.the.conclusion.that.such.an.idea.however.wild.might.not.be.altogether.unwarranted.But.what.most.puzzled.and.confounded.you.was.a.long.limber.portentous.black.mass.of.something.hovering.in.the.centre.of.the.picture.over.three.blue.dim.perpendicular.lines.floating.in.a.nameless.yeast.A.boggy.soggy.squitchy.picture.truly.enough.to.drive.a.nervous.man.distracted.Yet.was.there.a.sort.of.indefinite.halfattained.unimaginable.sublimity.about.it.that.fairly.froze.you.to.it.till.you.involuntarily.took.an.oath.with.yourself.to.find.out.what.that.marvellous.painting.meant.Ever.and.anon.a.bright.but.alas.deceptive.idea.would.dart.you.through.Its.the.Black.Sea.in.a.midnight.gale.Its.the.unnatural.combat.of.the.four.primal.elements.Its.a.blasted.heath.Its.a.Hyperborean.winter.scene.Its.the.breakingup.of.the.icebound.stream.of.Time.But.at.last.all.these.fancies.yielded.to.that.one.portentous.something.in.the.pictures.midst.That.once.found.out.and.all.the.rest.were.plain.But.stop.does.it.not.bear.a.faint.resemblance.to.a.gigantic.fish.even.the.great.leviathan.himself.In.fact.the.artists.design.seemed.this.a.final.theory.of.my.own.partly.based.upon.the.aggregated.opinions.of.many.aged.persons.with.whom.I.conversed.upon.the.subject.The.picture.represents.a.CapeHorner.in.a.great.hurricane.the.halffoundered.ship.weltering.there.with.its.three.dismantled.masts.alone.visible.and.an.exasperated.whale.purposing.to.spring.clean.over.the.craft.is.in.the.enormous.act.of.impaling.himself.upon.the.three.mastheads.The.opposite.wall.of.this.entry.was.hung.all.over.with.a.heathenish.array.of.monstrous.clubs.and.spears.Some.were.thickly.set.with.glittering.teeth.resembling.ivory.saws.others.were.tufted.with.knots.of.human.hair.and.one.was.sickleshaped.with.a.vast.handle.sweeping.round.like.the.segment.made.in.the.newmown.grass.by.a.longarmed.mower.You.shuddered.as.you.gazed.and.wondered.what.monstrous.cannibal.and.savage.could.ever.have.gone.a.deathharvesting.with.such.a.hacking.horrifying.implement.Mixed.with.these.were.rusty.old.whaling.lances.and.harpoons.all.broken.and.deformed.Some.were.storied.weapons.With.this.once.long.lance.now.wildly.elbowed.fifty.years.ago.did.Nathan.Swain.kill.fifteen.whales.between.a.sunrise.and.a.sunset.And.that.harpoon.so.like.a.corkscrew.now.was.flung.in.Javan.seas.and.run.away.with.by.a.whale.years.afterwards.slain.off.the.Cape.of.Blanco.The.original.iron.entered.nigh.the.tail.and.like.a.restless.needle.sojourning.in.the.body.of.a.man.travelled.full.forty.feet.and.at.last.was.found.imbedded.in.the.hump.Crossing.this.dusky.entry.and.on.through.yon.lowarched.way.cut.through.what.in.old.times.must.have.been.a.great.central.chimney.with.fireplaces.all.round.you.enter.the.public.room.A.still.duskier.place.is.this.with.such.low.ponderous.beams.above.and.such.old.wrinkled.planks.beneath.that.you.would.almost.fancy.you.trod.some.old.crafts.cockpits.especially.of.such.a.howling.night.when.this.corneranchored.old.ark.rocked.so.furiously.On.one.side.stood.a.long.low.shelflike.table.covered.with.cracked.glass.cases.filled.with.dusty.rarities.gathered.from.this.wide.worlds.remotest.nooks.Projecting.from.the.further.angle.of.the.room.stands.a.darklooking.den.the.bar.a.rude.attempt.at.a.right.whales.head.Be.that.how.it.may.there.stands.the.vast.arched.bone.of.the.whales.jaw.so.wide.a.coach.might.almost.drive.beneath.it.Within.are.shabby.shelves.ranged.round.with.old.decanters.bottles.flasks.and.in.those.jaws.of.swift.destruction.like.another.cursed.Jonah.by.which.name.indeed.they.called.him.bustles.a.little.withered.old.man.who.for.their.money.dearly.sells.the.sailors.deliriums.and.death.Abominable.are.the.tumblers.into.which.he.pours.his.poison.Though.true.cylinders.without.within.the.villanous.green.goggling.glasses.deceitfully.tapered.downwards.to.a.cheating.bottom.Parallel.meridians.rudely.pecked.into.the.glass.surround.these.footpads.goblets.Fill.to.this.mark.and.your.charge.is.but.a.penny.to.this.a.penny.more.and.so.on.to.the.full.glass.the.Cape.Horn.measure.which.you.may.gulp.down.for.a.shilling.Upon.entering.the.place.I.found.a.number.of.young.seamen.gathered.about.a.table.examining.by.a.dim.light.divers.specimens.of.skrimshander.I.sought.the.landlord.and.telling.him.I.desired.to.be.accommodated.with.a.room.received.for.answer.that.his.house.was.full.not.a.bed.unoccupied.But.avast.he.added.tapping.his.forehead.you.haint.no.objections.to.sharing.a.harpooneers.blanket.have.ye.I.spose.you.are.goin.awhalin.so.youd.better.get.used.to.that.sort.of.thing.I.told.him.that.I.never.liked.to.sleep.two.in.a.bed.that.if.I.should.ever.do.so.it.would.depend.upon.who.the.harpooneer.might.be.and.that.if.he.the.landlord.really.had.no.other.place.for.me.and.the.harpooneer.was.not.decidedly.objectionable.why.rather.than.wander.further.about.a.strange.town.on.so.bitter.a.night.I.would.put.up.with.the.half.of.any.decent.mans.blanket.I.thought.so.All.right.take.a.seat.Supper.you.want.supper.Supperll.be.ready.directly.I.sat.down.on.an.old.wooden.settle.carved.all.over.like.a.bench.on.the.Battery.At.one.end.a.ruminating.tar.was.still.further.adorning.it.with.his.jackknife.stooping.over.and.diligently.working.away.at.the.space.between.his.legs.He.was.trying.his.hand.at.a.ship.under.full.sail.but.he.didnt.make.much.headway.I.thought.At.last.some.four.or.five.of.us.were.summoned.to.our.meal.in.an.adjoining.room.It.was.cold.as.Iceland.no.fire.at.all.the.landlord.said.he.couldnt.afford.it.Nothing.but.two.dismal.tallow.candles.each.in.a.winding.sheet.We.were.fain.to.button.up.our.monkey.jackets.and.hold.to.our.lips.cups.of.scalding.tea.with.our.half.frozen.fingers.But.the.fare.was.of.the.most.substantial.kind.not.only.meat.and.potatoes.but.dumplings.good.heavens.dumplings.for.supper.One.young.fellow.in.a.green.box.coat.addressed.himself.to.these.dumplings.in.a.most.direful.manner.My.boy.said.the.landlord.youll.have.the.nightmare.to.a.dead.sartainty.Landlord.I.whispered.that.aint.the.harpooneer.is.it.Oh.no.said.he.looking.a.sort.of.diabolically.funny.the.harpooneer.is.a.dark.complexioned.chap.He.never.eats.dumplings.he.dont.he.eats.nothing.but.steaks.and.he.likes.em.rare.The.devil.he.does.says.I.Where.is.that.harpooneer.Is.he.here.Hell.be.here.afore.long.was.the.answer.I.could.not.help.it.but.I.began.to.feel.suspicious.of.this.dark.complexioned.harpooneer.At.any.rate.I.made.up.my.mind.that.if.it.so.turned.out.that.we.should.sleep.together.he.must.undress.and.get.into.bed.before.I.did.Supper.over.the.company.went.back.to.the.barroom.when.knowing.not.what.else.to.do.with.myself.I.resolved.to.spend.the.rest.of.the.evening.as.a.looker.on.Presently.a.rioting.noise.was.heard.without.Starting.up.the.landlord.cried.Thats.the.Grampuss.crew.I.seed.her.reported.in.the.offing.this.morning.a.three.years.voyage.and.a.full.ship.Hurrah.boys.now.well.have.the.latest.news.from.the.Feegees.A.tramping.of.sea.boots.was.heard.in.the.entry.the.door.was.flung.open.and.in.rolled.a.wild.set.of.mariners.enough.Enveloped.in.their.shaggy.watch.coats.and.with.their.heads.muffled.in.woollen.comforters.all.bedarned.and.ragged.and.their.beards.stiff.with.icicles.they.seemed.an.eruption.of.bears.from.Labrador.They.had.just.landed.from.their.boat.and.this.was.the.first.house.they.entered.No.wonder.then.that.they.made.a.straight.wake.for.the.whales.mouth.the.bar.when.the.wrinkled.little.old.Jonah.there.officiating.soon.poured.them.out.brimmers.all.round.One.complained.of.a.bad.cold.in.his.head.upon.which.Jonah.mixed.him.a.pitchlike.potion.of.gin.and.molasses.which.he.swore.was.a.sovereign.cure.for.all.colds.and.catarrhs.whatsoever.never.mind.of.how.long.standing.or.whether.caught.off.the.coast.of.Labrador.or.on.the.weather.side.of.an.iceisland.The.liquor.soon.mounted.into.their.heads.as.it.generally.does.even.with.the.arrantest.topers.newly.landed.from.sea.and.they.began.capering.about.most.obstreperously.I.observed.however.that.one.of.them.held.somewhat.aloof.and.though.he.seemed.desirous.not.to.spoil.the.hilarity.of.his.shipmates.by.his.own.sober.face.yet.upon.the.whole.he.refrained.from.making.as.much.noise.as.the.rest.This.man.interested.me.at.once.and.since.the.seagods.had.ordained.that.he.should.soon.become.my.shipmate.though.but.a.sleepingpartner.one.so.far.as.this.narrative.is.concerned.I.will.here.venture.upon.a.little.description.of.him.He.stood.full.six.feet.in.height.with.noble.shoulders.and.a.chest.like.a.cofferdam.I.have.seldom.seen.such.brawn.in.a.man.His.face.was.deeply.brown.and.burnt.making.his.white.teeth.dazzling.by.the.contrast.while.in.the.deep.shadows.of.his.eyes.floated.some.reminiscences.that.did.not.seem.to.give.him.much.joy.His.voice.at.once.announced.that.he.was.a.Southerner.and.from.his.fine.stature.I.thought.he.must.be.one.of.those.tall.mountaineers.from.the.Alleghanian.Ridge.in.Virginia.When.the.revelry.of.his.companions.had.mounted.to.its.height.this.man.slipped.away.unobserved.and.I.saw.no.more.of.him.till.he.became.my.comrade.on.the.sea.In.a.few.minutes.however.he.was.missed.by.his.shipmates.and.being.it.seems.for.some.reason.a.huge.favourite.with.them.they.raised.a.cry.of.Bulkington.Bulkington.wheres.Bulkington.and.darted.out.of.the.house.in.pursuit.of.him.It.was.now.about.nine.oclock.and.the.room.seeming.almost.supernaturally.quiet.after.these.orgies.I.began.to.congratulate.myself.upon.a.little.plan.that.had.occurred.to.me.just.previous.to.the.entrance.of.the.seamen.No.man.prefers.to.sleep.two.in.a.bed.In.fact.you.would.a.good.deal.rather.not.sleep.with.your.own.brother.I.dont.know.how.it.is.but.people.like.to.be.private.when.they.are.sleeping.And.when.it.comes.to.sleeping.with.an.unknown.stranger.in.a.strange.inn.in.a.strange.town.and.that.stranger.a.harpooneer.then.your.objections.indefinitely.multiply.Nor.was.there.any.earthly.reason.why.I.as.a.sailor.should.sleep.two.in.a.bed.more.than.anybody.else.for.sailors.no.more.sleep.two.in.a.bed.at.sea.than.bachelor.Kings.do.ashore.To.be.sure.they.all.sleep.together.in.one.apartment.but.you.have.your.own.hammock.and.cover.yourself.with.your.own.blanket.and.sleep.in.your.own.skin.The.more.I.pondered.over.this.harpooneer.the.more.I.abominated.the.thought.of.sleeping.with.him.It.was.fair.to.presume.that.being.a.harpooneer.his.linen.or.woollen.as.the.case.might.be.would.not.be.of.the.tidiest.certainly.none.of.the.finest.I.began.to.twitch.all.over.Besides.it.was.getting.late.and.my.decent.harpooneer.ought.to.be.home.and.going.bedwards.Suppose.now.he.should.tumble.in.upon.me.at.midnight.how.could.I.tell.from.what.vile.hole.he.had.been.coming.Landlord.Ive.changed.my.mind.about.that.harpooneer.I.shant.sleep.with.him.Ill.try.the.bench.here.Just.as.you.please.Im.sorry.I.cant.spare.ye.a.tablecloth.for.a.mattress.and.its.a.plaguy.rough.board.here.feeling.of.the.knots.and.notches.But.wait.a.bit.Skrimshander.Ive.got.a.carpenters.plane.there.in.the.bar.wait.I.say.and.Ill.make.ye.snug.enough.So.saying.he.procured.the.plane.and.with.his.old.silk.handkerchief.first.dusting.the.bench.vigorously.set.to.planing.away.at.my.bed.the.while.grinning.like.an.ape.The.shavings.flew.right.and.left.till.at.last.the.planeiron.came.bump.against.an.indestructible.knot.The.landlord.was.near.spraining.his.wrist.and.I.told.him.for.heavens.sake.to.quit.the.bed.was.soft.enough.to.suit.me.and.I.did.not.know.how.all.the.planing.in.the.world.could.make.eider.down.of.a.pine.plank.So.gathering.up.the.shavings.with.another.grin.and.throwing.them.into.the.great.stove.in.the.middle.of.the.room.he.went.about.his.business.and.left.me.in.a.brown.study.I.now.took.the.measure.of.the.bench.and.found.that.it.was.a.foot.too.short.but.that.could.be.mended.with.a.chair.But.it.was.a.foot.too.narrow.and.the.other.bench.in.the.room.was.about.four.inches.higher.than.the.planed.one.so.there.was.no.yoking.them.I.then.placed.the.first.bench.lengthwise.along.the.only.clear.space.against.the.wall.leaving.a.little.interval.between.for.my.back.to.settle.down.in.But.I.soon.found.that.there.came.such.a.draught.of.cold.air.over.me.from.under.the.sill.of.the.window.that.this.plan.would.never.do.at.all.especially.as.another.current.from.the.rickety.door.met.the.one.from.the.window.and.both.together.formed.a.series.of.small.whirlwinds.in.the.immediate.vicinity.of.the.spot.where.I.had.thought.to.spend.the.night.The.devil.fetch.that.harpooneer.thought.I.but.stop.couldnt.I.steal.a.march.on.him.bolt.his.door.inside.and.jump.into.his.bed.not.to.be.wakened.by.the.most.violent.knockings.It.seemed.no.bad.idea.but.upon.second.thoughts.I.dismissed.it.For.who.could.tell.but.what.the.next.morning.so.soon.as.I.popped.out.of.the.room.the.harpooneer.might.be.standing.in.the.entry.all.ready.to.knock.me.down.Still.looking.round.me.again.and.seeing.no.possible.chance.of.spending.a.sufferable.night.unless.in.some.other.persons.bed.I.began.to.think.that.after.all.I.might.be.cherishing.unwarrantable.prejudices.against.this.unknown.harpooneer.Thinks.I.Ill.wait.awhile.he.must.be.dropping.in.before.long.Ill.have.a.good.look.at.him.then.and.perhaps.we.may.become.jolly.good.bedfellows.after.all.theres.no.telling.But.though.the.other.boarders.kept.coming.in.by.ones.twos.and.threes.and.going.to.bed.yet.no.sign.of.my.harpooneer.Landlord.said.I.what.sort.of.a.chap.is.he.does.he.always.keep.such.late.hours.It.was.now.hard.upon.twelve.oclock.The.landlord.chuckled.again.with.his.lean.chuckle.and.seemed.to.be.mightily.tickled.at.something.beyond.my.comprehension.No.he.answered.generally.hes.an.early.bird.airley.to.bed.and.airley.to.rise.yes.hes.the.bird.what.catches.the.worm.But.tonight.he.went.out.a.peddling.you.see.and.I.dont.see.what.on.airth.keeps.him.so.late.unless.may.be.he.cant.sell.his.head.Cant.sell.his.head.What.sort.of.a.bamboozingly.story.is.this.you.are.telling.me.getting.into.a.towering.rage.Do.you.pretend.to.say.landlord.that.this.harpooneer.is.actually.engaged.this.blessed.Saturday.night.or.rather.Sunday.morning.in.peddling.his.head.around.this.town.Thats.precisely.it.said.the.landlord.and.I.told.him.he.couldnt.sell.it.here.the.markets.overstocked.With.what.shouted.I.With.heads.to.be.sure.aint.there.too.many.heads.in.the.world.I.tell.you.what.it.is.landlord.said.I.quite.calmly.youd.better.stop.spinning.that.yarn.to.me.Im.not.green.May.be.not.taking.out.a.stick.and.whittling.a.toothpick.but.I.rayther.guess.youll.be.done.brown.if.that.ere.harpooneer.hears.you.a.slanderin.his.head.Ill.break.it.for.him.said.I.now.flying.into.a.passion.again.at.this.unaccountable.farrago.of.the.landlords.Its.broke.aready.said.he.Broke.said.I.broke.do.you.mean.Sartain.and.thats.the.very.reason.he.cant.sell.it.I.guess.Landlord.said.I.going.up.to.him.as.cool.as.Mt.Hecla.in.a.snowstorm.landlord.stop.whittling.You.and.I.must.understand.one.another.and.that.too.without.delay.I.come.to.your.house.and.want.a.bed.you.tell.me.you.can.only.give.me.half.a.one.that.the.other.half.belongs.to.a.certain.harpooneer.And.about.this.harpooneer.whom.I.have.not.yet.seen.you.persist.in.telling.me.the.most.mystifying.and.exasperating.stories.tending.to.beget.in.me.an.uncomfortable.feeling.towards.the.man.whom.you.design.for.my.bedfellow.a.sort.of.connexion.landlord.which.is.an.intimate.and.confidential.one.in.the.highest.degree.I.now.demand.of.you.to.speak.out.and.tell.me.who.and.what.this.harpooneer.is.and.whether.I.shall.be.in.all.respects.safe.to.spend.the.night.with.him.And.in.the.first.place.you.will.be.so.good.as.to.unsay.that.story.about.selling.his.head.which.if.true.I.take.to.be.good.evidence.that.this.harpooneer.is.stark.mad.and.Ive.no.idea.of.sleeping.with.a.madman.and.you.sir.you.I.mean.landlord.you.sir.by.trying.to.induce.me.to.do.so.knowingly.would.thereby.render.yourself.liable.to.a.criminal.prosecution.Wall.said.the.landlord.fetching.a.long.breath.thats.a.purty.long.sarmon.for.a.chap.that.rips.a.little.now.and.then.But.be.easy.be.easy.this.here.harpooneer.I.have.been.tellin.you.of.has.just.arrived.from.the.south.seas.where.he.bought.up.a.lot.of.balmed.New.Zealand.heads.great.curios.you.know.and.hes.sold.all.on.em.but.one.and.that.one.hes.trying.to.sell.tonight.cause.tomorrows.Sunday.and.it.would.not.do.to.be.sellin.human.heads.about.the.streets.when.folks.is.goin.to.churches.He.wanted.to.last.Sunday.but.I.stopped.him.just.as.he.was.goin.out.of.the.door.with.four.heads.strung.on.a.string.for.all.the.airth.like.a.string.of.inions.This.account.cleared.up.the.otherwise.unaccountable.mystery.and.showed.that.the.landlord.after.all.had.had.no.idea.of.fooling.me.but.at.the.same.time.what.could.I.think.of.a.harpooneer.who.stayed.out.of.a.Saturday.night.clean.into.the.holy.Sabbath.engaged.in.such.a.cannibal.business.as.selling.the.heads.of.dead.idolators.Depend.upon.it.landlord.that.harpooneer.is.a.dangerous.man.He.pays.reglar.was.the.rejoinder.But.come.its.getting.dreadful.late.you.had.better.be.turning.flukes.its.a.nice.bed.Sal.and.me.slept.in.that.ere.bed.the.night.we.were.spliced.Theres.plenty.of.room.for.two.to.kick.about.in.that.bed.its.an.almighty.big.bed.that.Why.afore.we.give.it.up.Sal.used.to.put.our.Sam.and.little.Johnny.in.the.foot.of.it.But.I.got.a.dreaming.and.sprawling.about.one.night.and.somehow.Sam.got.pitched.on.the.floor.and.came.near.breaking.his.arm.Arter.that.Sal.said.it.wouldnt.do.Come.along.here.Ill.give.ye.a.glim.in.a.jiffy.and.so.saying.he.lighted.a.candle.and.held.it.towards.me.offering.to.lead.the.way.But.I.stood.irresolute.when.looking.at.a.clock.in.the.corner.he.exclaimed.I.vum.its.Sunday.you.wont.see.that.harpooneer.tonight.hes.come.to.anchor.somewhere.come.along.then.do.come.wont.ye.come.I.considered.the.matter.a.moment.and.then.up.stairs.we.went.and.I.was.ushered.into.a.small.room.cold.as.a.clam.and.furnished.sure.enough.with.a.prodigious.bed.almost.big.enough.indeed.for.any.four.harpooneers.to.sleep.abreast.There.said.the.landlord.placing.the.candle.on.a.crazy.old.sea.chest.that.did.double.duty.as.a.washstand.and.centre.table.there.make.yourself.comfortable.now.and.good.night.to.ye.I.turned.round.from.eyeing.the.bed.but.he.had.disappeared.Folding.back.the.counterpane.I.stooped.over.the.bed.Though.none.of.the.most.elegant.it.yet.stood.the.scrutiny.tolerably.well.I.then.glanced.round.the.room.and.besides.the.bedstead.and.centre.table.could.see.no.other.furniture.belonging.to.the.place.but.a.rude.shelf.the.four.walls.and.a.papered.fireboard.representing.a.man.striking.a.whale.Of.things.not.properly.belonging.to.the.room.there.was.a.hammock.lashed.up.and.thrown.upon.the.floor.in.one.corner.also.a.large.seamans.bag.containing.the.harpooneers.wardrobe.no.doubt.in.lieu.of.a.land.trunk.Likewise.there.was.a.parcel.of.outlandish.bone.fish.hooks.on.the.shelf.over.the.fireplace.and.a.tall.harpoon.standing.at.the.head.of.the.bed.But.what.is.this.on.the.chest.I.took.it.up.and.held.it.close.to.the.light.and.felt.it.and.smelt.it.and.tried.every.way.possible.to.arrive.at.some.satisfactory.conclusion.concerning.it.I.can.compare.it.to.nothing.but.a.large.door.mat.ornamented.at.the.edges.with.little.tinkling.tags.something.like.the.stained.porcupine.quills.round.an.Indian.moccasin.There.was.a.hole.or.slit.in.the.middle.of.this.mat.as.you.see.the.same.in.South.American.ponchos.But.could.it.be.possible.that.any.sober.harpooneer.would.get.into.a.door.mat.and.parade.the.streets.of.any.Christian.town.in.that.sort.of.guise.I.put.it.on.to.try.it.and.it.weighed.me.down.like.a.hamper.being.uncommonly.shaggy.and.thick.and.I.thought.a.little.damp.as.though.this.mysterious.harpooneer.had.been.wearing.it.of.a.rainy.day.I.went.up.in.it.to.a.bit.of.glass.stuck.against.the.wall.and.I.never.saw.such.a.sight.in.my.life.I.tore.myself.out.of.it.in.such.a.hurry.that.I.gave.myself.a.kink.in.the.neck.I.sat.down.on.the.side.of.the.bed.and.commenced.thinking.about.this.headpeddling.harpooneer.and.his.door.mat.After.thinking.some.time.on.the.bedside.I.got.up.and.took.off.my.monkey.jacket.and.then.stood.in.the.middle.of.the.room.thinking.I.then.took.off.my.coat.and.thought.a.little.more.in.my.shirt.sleeves.But.beginning.to.feel.very.cold.now.half.undressed.as.I.was.and.remembering.what.the.landlord.said.about.the.harpooneers.not.coming.home.at.all.that.night.it.being.so.very.late.I.made.no.more.ado.but.jumped.out.of.my.pantaloons.and.boots.and.then.blowing.out.the.light.tumbled.into.bed.and.commended.myself.to.the.care.of.heaven.Whether.that.mattress.was.stuffed.with.corncobs.or.broken.crockery.there.is.no.telling.but.I.rolled.about.a.good.deal.and.could.not.sleep.for.a.long.time.At.last.I.slid.off.into.a.light.doze.and.had.pretty.nearly.made.a.good.offing.towards.the.land.of.Nod.when.I.heard.a.heavy.footfall.in.the.passage.and.saw.a.glimmer.of.light.come.into.the.room.from.under.the.door.Lord.save.me.thinks.I.that.must.be.the.harpooneer.the.infernal.headpeddler.But.I.lay.perfectly.still.and.resolved.not.to.say.a.word.till.spoken.to.Holding.a.light.in.one.hand.and.that.identical.New.Zealand.head.in.the.other.the.stranger.entered.the.room.and.without.looking.towards.the.bed.placed.his.candle.a.good.way.off.from.me.on.the.floor.in.one.corner.and.then.began.working.away.at.the.knotted.cords.of.the.large.bag.I.before.spoke.of.as.being.in.the.room.I.was.all.eagerness.to.see.his.face.but.he.kept.it.averted.for.some.time.while.employed.in.unlacing.the.bags.mouth.This.accomplished.however.he.turned.round.when.good.heavens.what.a.sight.Such.a.face.It.was.of.a.dark.purplish.yellow.colour.here.and.there.stuck.over.with.large.blackish.looking.squares.Yes.its.just.as.I.thought.hes.a.terrible.bedfellow.hes.been.in.a.fight.got.dreadfully.cut.and.here.he.is.just.from.the.surgeon.But.at.that.moment.he.chanced.to.turn.his.face.so.towards.the.light.that.I.plainly.saw.they.could.not.be.stickingplasters.at.all.those.black.squares.on.his.cheeks.They.were.stains.of.some.sort.or.other.At.first.I.knew.not.what.to.make.of.this.but.soon.an.inkling.of.the.truth.occurred.to.me.I.remembered.a.story.of.a.white.man.a.whaleman.too.who.falling.among.the.cannibals.had.been.tattooed.by.them.I.concluded.that.this.harpooneer.in.the.course.of.his.distant.voyages.must.have.met.with.a.similar.adventure.And.what.is.it.thought.I.after.all.Its.only.his.outside.a.man.can.be.honest.in.any.sort.of.skin.But.then.what.to.make.of.his.unearthly.complexion.that.part.of.it.I.mean.lying.round.about.and.completely.independent.of.the.squares.of.tattooing.To.be.sure.it.might.be.nothing.but.a.good.coat.of.tropical.tanning.but.I.never.heard.of.a.hot.suns.tanning.a.white.man.into.a.purplish.yellow.one.However.I.had.never.been.in.the.South.Seas.and.perhaps.the.sun.there.produced.these.extraordinary.effects.upon.the.skin.Now.while.all.these.ideas.were.passing.through.me.like.lightning.this.harpooneer.never.noticed.me.at.all.But.after.some.difficulty.having.opened.his.bag.he.commenced.fumbling.in.it.and.presently.pulled.out.a.sort.of.tomahawk.and.a.sealskin.wallet.with.the.hair.on.Placing.these.on.the.old.chest.in.the.middle.of.the.room.he.then.took.the.New.Zealand.head.a.ghastly.thing.enough.and.crammed.it.down.into.the.bag.He.now.took.off.his.hat.a.new.beaver.hat.when.I.came.nigh.singing.out.with.fresh.surprise.There.was.no.hair.on.his.head.none.to.speak.of.at.least.nothing.but.a.small.scalpknot.twisted.up.on.his.forehead.His.bald.purplish.head.now.looked.for.all.the.world.like.a.mildewed.skull.Had.not.the.stranger.stood.between.me.and.the.door.I.would.have.bolted.out.of.it.quicker.than.ever.I.bolted.a.dinner.Even.as.it.was.I.thought.something.of.slipping.out.of.the.window.but.it.was.the.second.floor.back.I.am.no.coward.but.what.to.make.of.this.headpeddling.purple.rascal.altogether.passed.my.comprehension.Ignorance.is.the.parent.of.fear.and.being.completely.nonplussed.and.confounded.about.the.stranger.I.confess.I.was.now.as.much.afraid.of.him.as.if.it.was.the.devil.himself.who.had.thus.broken.into.my.room.at.the.dead.of.night.In.fact.I.was.so.afraid.of.him.that.I.was.not.game.enough.just.then.to.address.him.and.demand.a.satisfactory.answer.concerning.what.seemed.inexplicable.in.him.Meanwhile.he.continued.the.business.of.undressing.and.at.last.showed.his.chest.and.arms.As.I.live.these.covered.parts.of.him.were.checkered.with.the.same.squares.as.his.face.his.back.too.was.all.over.the.same.dark.squares.he.seemed.to.have.been.in.a.Thirty.Years.War.and.just.escaped.from.it.with.a.stickingplaster.shirt.Still.more.his.very.legs.were.marked.as.if.a.parcel.of.dark.green.frogs.were.running.up.the.trunks.of.young.palms.It.was.now.quite.plain.that.he.must.be.some.abominable.savage.or.other.shipped.aboard.of.a.whaleman.in.the.South.Seas.and.so.landed.in.this.Christian.country.I.quaked.to.think.of.it.A.peddler.of.heads.too.perhaps.the.heads.of.his.own.brothers.He.might.take.a.fancy.to.mine.heavens.look.at.that.tomahawk.But.there.was.no.time.for.shuddering.for.now.the.savage.went.about.something.that.completely.fascinated.my.attention.and.convinced.me.that.he.must.indeed.be.a.heathen.Going.to.his.heavy.grego.or.wrapall.or.dreadnaught.which.he.had.previously.hung.on.a.chair.he.fumbled.in.the.pockets.and.produced.at.length.a.curious.little.deformed.image.with.a.hunch.on.its.back.and.exactly.the.colour.of.a.three.days.old.Congo.baby.Remembering.the.embalmed.head.at.first.I.almost.thought.that.this.black.manikin.was.a.real.baby.preserved.in.some.similar.manner.But.seeing.that.it.was.not.at.all.limber.and.that.it.glistened.a.good.deal.like.polished.ebony.I.concluded.that.it.must.be.nothing.but.a.wooden.idol.which.indeed.it.proved.to.be.For.now.the.savage.goes.up.to.the.empty.fireplace.and.removing.the.papered.fireboard.sets.up.this.little.hunchbacked.image.like.a.tenpin.between.the.andirons.The.chimney.jambs.and.all.the.bricks.inside.were.very.sooty.so.that.I.thought.this.fireplace.made.a.very.appropriate.little.shrine.or.chapel.for.his.Congo.idol.I.now.screwed.my.eyes.hard.towards.the.half.hidden.image.feeling.but.ill.at.ease.meantime.to.see.what.was.next.to.follow.First.he.takes.about.a.double.handful.of.shavings.out.of.his.grego.pocket.and.places.them.carefully.before.the.idol.then.laying.a.bit.of.ship.biscuit.on.top.and.applying.the.flame.from.the.lamp.he.kindled.the.shavings.into.a.sacrificial.blaze.Presently.after.many.hasty.snatches.into.the.fire.and.still.hastier.withdrawals.of.his.fingers.whereby.he.seemed.to.be.scorching.them.badly.he.at.last.succeeded.in.drawing.out.the.biscuit.then.blowing.off.the.heat.and.ashes.a.little.he.made.a.polite.offer.of.it.to.the.little.negro.But.the.little.devil.did.not.seem.to.fancy.such.dry.sort.of.fare.at.all.he.never.moved.his.lips.All.these.strange.antics.were.accompanied.by.still.stranger.guttural.noises.from.the.devotee.who.seemed.to.be.praying.in.a.singsong.or.else.singing.some.pagan.psalmody.or.other.during.which.his.face.twitched.about.in.the.most.unnatural.manner.At.last.extinguishing.the.fire.he.took.the.idol.up.very.unceremoniously.and.bagged.it.again.in.his.grego.pocket.as.carelessly.as.if.he.were.a.sportsman.bagging.a.dead.woodcock.All.these.queer.proceedings.increased.my.uncomfortableness.and.seeing.him.now.exhibiting.strong.symptoms.of.concluding.his.business.operations.and.jumping.into.bed.with.me.I.thought.it.was.high.time.now.or.never.before.the.light.was.put.out.to.break.the.spell.in.which.I.had.so.long.been.bound.But.the.interval.I.spent.in.deliberating.what.to.say.was.a.fatal.one.Taking.up.his.tomahawk.from.the.table.he.examined.the.head.of.it.for.an.instant.and.then.holding.it.to.the.light.with.his.mouth.at.the.handle.he.puffed.out.great.clouds.of.tobacco.smoke.The.next.moment.the.light.was.extinguished.and.this.wild.cannibal.tomahawk.between.his.teeth.sprang.into.bed.with.me.I.sang.out.I.could.not.help.it.now.and.giving.a.sudden.grunt.of.astonishment.he.began.feeling.me.Stammering.out.something.I.knew.not.what.I.rolled.away.from.him.against.the.wall.and.then.conjured.him.whoever.or.whatever.he.might.be.to.keep.quiet.and.let.me.get.up.and.light.the.lamp.again.But.his.guttural.responses.satisfied.me.at.once.that.he.but.ill.comprehended.my.meaning.Whoe.debel.you.he.at.last.said.you.no.speake.damme.I.kille.And.so.saying.the.lighted.tomahawk.began.flourishing.about.me.in.the.dark.Landlord.for.Gods.sake.Peter.Coffin.shouted.I.Landlord.Watch.Coffin.Angels.save.me.Speake.tellee.me.whoee.be.or.damme.I.kille.again.growled.the.cannibal.while.his.horrid.flourishings.of.the.tomahawk.scattered.the.hot.tobacco.ashes.about.me.till.I.thought.my.linen.would.get.on.fire.But.thank.heaven.at.that.moment.the.landlord.came.into.the.room.light.in.hand.and.leaping.from.the.bed.I.ran.up.to.him.Dont.be.afraid.now.said.he.grinning.again.Queequeg.here.wouldnt.harm.a.hair.of.your.head.Stop.your.grinning.shouted.I.and.why.didnt.you.tell.me.that.that.infernal.harpooneer.was.a.cannibal.I.thought.ye.knowd.it.didnt.I.tell.ye.he.was.a.peddlin.heads.around.town.but.turn.flukes.again.and.go.to.sleep.Queequeg.look.here.you.sabbee.me.I.sabbee.you.this.man.sleepe.you.you.sabbee.Me.sabbee.plenty.grunted.Queequeg.puffing.away.at.his.pipe.and.sitting.up.in.bed.You.gettee.in.he.added.motioning.to.me.with.his.tomahawk.and.throwing.the.clothes.to.one.side.He.really.did.this.in.not.only.a.civil.but.a.really.kind.and.charitable.way.I.stood.looking.at.him.a.moment.For.all.his.tattooings.he.was.on.the.whole.a.clean.comely.looking.cannibal.Whats.all.this.fuss.I.have.been.making.about.thought.I.to.myself.the.mans.a.human.being.just.as.I.am.he.has.just.as.much.reason.to.fear.me.as.I.have.to.be.afraid.of.him.Better.sleep.with.a.sober.cannibal.than.a.drunken.Christian.Landlord.said.I.tell.him.to.stash.his.tomahawk.there.or.pipe.or.whatever.you.call.it.tell.him.to.stop.smoking.in.short.and.I.will.turn.in.with.him.But.I.dont.fancy.having.a.man.smoking.in.bed.with.me.Its.dangerous.Besides.I.aint.insured.This.being.told.to.Queequeg.he.at.once.complied.and.again.politely.motioned.me.to.get.into.bed.rolling.over.to.one.side.as.much.as.to.say.I.wont.touch.a.leg.of.ye.Good.night.landlord.said.I.you.may.go.I.turned.in.and.never.slept.better.in.my.life.CHAPTER.4.The.Counterpane.Upon.waking.next.morning.about.daylight.I.found.Queequegs.arm.thrown.over.me.in.the.most.loving.and.affectionate.manner.You.had.almost.thought.I.had.been.his.wife.The.counterpane.was.of.patchwork.full.of.odd.little.particoloured.squares.and.triangles.and.this.arm.of.his.tattooed.all.over.with.an.interminable.Cretan.labyrinth.of.a.figure.no.two.parts.of.which.were.of.one.precise.shade.owing.I.suppose.to.his.keeping.his.arm.at.sea.unmethodically.in.sun.and.shade.his.shirt.sleeves.irregularly.rolled.up.at.various.times.this.same.arm.of.his.I.say.looked.for.all.the.world.like.a.strip.of.that.same.patchwork.quilt.Indeed.partly.lying.on.it.as.the.arm.did.when.I.first.awoke.I.could.hardly.tell.it.from.the.quilt.they.so.blended.their.hues.together.and.it.was.only.by.the.sense.of.weight.and.pressure.that.I.could.tell.that.Queequeg.was.hugging.me.My.sensations.were.strange.Let.me.try.to.explain.them.When.I.was.a.child.I.well.remember.a.somewhat.similar.circumstance.that.befell.me.whether.it.was.a.reality.or.a.dream.I.never.could.entirely.settle.The.circumstance.was.this.I.had.been.cutting.up.some.caper.or.other.I.think.it.was.trying.to.crawl.up.the.chimney.as.I.had.seen.a.little.sweep.do.a.few.days.previous.and.my.stepmother.who.somehow.or.other.was.all.the.time.whipping.me.or.sending.me.to.bed.supperless.my.mother.dragged.me.by.the.legs.out.of.the.chimney.and.packed.me.off.to.bed.though.it.was.only.two.oclock.in.the.afternoon.of.the.21st.June.the.longest.day.in.the.year.in.our.hemisphere.I.felt.dreadfully.But.there.was.no.help.for.it.so.up.stairs.I.went.to.my.little.room.in.the.third.floor.undressed.myself.as.slowly.as.possible.so.as.to.kill.time.and.with.a.bitter.sigh.got.between.the.sheets.I.lay.there.dismally.calculating.that.sixteen.entire.hours.must.elapse.before.I.could.hope.for.a.resurrection.Sixteen.hours.in.bed.the.small.of.my.back.ached.to.think.of.it.And.it.was.so.light.too.the.sun.shining.in.at.the.window.and.a.great.rattling.of.coaches.in.the.streets.and.the.sound.of.gay.voices.all.over.the.house.I.felt.worse.and.worse.at.last.I.got.up.dressed.and.softly.going.down.in.my.stockinged.feet.sought.out.my.stepmother.and.suddenly.threw.myself.at.her.feet.beseeching.her.as.a.particular.favour.to.give.me.a.good.slippering.for.my.misbehaviour.anything.indeed.but.condemning.me.to.lie.abed.such.an.unendurable.length.of.time.But.she.was.the.best.and.most.conscientious.of.stepmothers.and.back.I.had.to.go.to.my.room.For.several.hours.I.lay.there.broad.awake.feeling.a.great.deal.worse.than.I.have.ever.done.since.even.from.the.greatest.subsequent.misfortunes.At.last.I.must.have.fallen.into.a.troubled.nightmare.of.a.doze.and.slowly.waking.from.it.half.steeped.in.dreams.I.opened.my.eyes.and.the.before.sunlit.room.was.now.wrapped.in.outer.darkness.Instantly.I.felt.a.shock.running.through.all.my.frame.nothing.was.to.be.seen.and.nothing.was.to.be.heard.but.a.supernatural.hand.seemed.placed.in.mine.My.arm.hung.over.the.counterpane.and.the.nameless.unimaginable.silent.form.or.phantom.to.which.the.hand.belonged.seemed.closely.seated.by.my.bedside.For.what.seemed.ages.piled.on.ages.I.lay.there.frozen.with.the.most.awful.fears.not.daring.to.drag.away.my.hand.yet.ever.thinking.that.if.I.could.but.stir.it.one.single.inch.the.horrid.spell.would.be.broken.I.knew.not.how.this.consciousness.at.last.glided.away.from.me.but.waking.in.the.morning.I.shudderingly.remembered.it.all.and.for.days.and.weeks.and.months.afterwards.I.lost.myself.in.confounding.attempts.to.explain.the.mystery.Nay.to.this.very.hour.I.often.puzzle.myself.with.it.Now.take.away.the.awful.fear.and.my.sensations.at.feeling.the.supernatural.hand.in.mine.were.very.similar.in.their.strangeness.to.those.which.I.experienced.on.waking.up.and.seeing.Queequegs.pagan.arm.thrown.round.me.But.at.length.all.the.past.nights.events.soberly.recurred.one.by.one.in.fixed.reality.and.then.I.lay.only.alive.to.the.comical.predicament.For.though.I.tried.to.move.his.arm.unlock.his.bridegroom.clasp.yet.sleeping.as.he.was.he.still.hugged.me.tightly.as.though.naught.but.death.should.part.us.twain.I.now.strove.to.rouse.him.Queequeg.but.his.only.answer.was.a.snore.I.then.rolled.over.my.neck.feeling.as.if.it.were.in.a.horsecollar.and.suddenly.felt.a.slight.scratch.Throwing.aside.the.counterpane.there.lay.the.tomahawk.sleeping.by.the.savages.side.as.if.it.were.a.hatchetfaced.baby.A.pretty.pickle.truly.thought.I.abed.here.in.a.strange.house.in.the.broad.day.with.a.cannibal.and.a.tomahawk.Queequeg.in.the.name.of.goodness.Queequeg.wake.At.length.by.dint.of.much.wriggling.and.loud.and.incessant.expostulations.upon.the.unbecomingness.of.his.hugging.a.fellow.male.in.that.matrimonial.sort.of.style.I.succeeded.in.extracting.a.grunt.and.presently.he.drew.back.his.arm.shook.himself.all.over.like.a.Newfoundland.dog.just.from.the.water.and.sat.up.in.bed.stiff.as.a.pikestaff.looking.at.me.and.rubbing.his.eyes.as.if.he.did.not.altogether.remember.how.I.came.to.be.there.though.a.dim.consciousness.of.knowing.something.about.me.seemed.slowly.dawning.over.him.Meanwhile.I.lay.quietly.eyeing.him.having.no.serious.misgivings.now.and.bent.upon.narrowly.observing.so.curious.a.creature.When.at.last.his.mind.seemed.made.up.touching.the.character.of.his.bedfellow.and.he.became.as.it.were.reconciled.to.the.fact.he.jumped.out.upon.the.floor.and.by.certain.signs.and.sounds.gave.me.to.understand.that.if.it.pleased.me.he.would.dress.first.and.then.leave.me.to.dress.afterwards.leaving.the.whole.apartment.to.myself.Thinks.I.Queequeg.under.the.circumstances.this.is.a.very.civilized.overture.but.the.truth.is.these.savages.have.an.innate.sense.of.delicacy.say.what.you.will.it.is.marvellous.how.essentially.polite.they.are.I.pay.this.particular.compliment.to.Queequeg.because.he.treated.me.with.so.much.civility.and.consideration.while.I.was.guilty.of.great.rudeness.staring.at.him.from.the.bed.and.watching.all.his.toilette.motions.for.the.time.my.curiosity.getting.the.better.of.my.breeding.Nevertheless.a.man.like.Queequeg.you.dont.see.every.day.he.and.his.ways.were.well.worth.unusual.regarding.He.commenced.dressing.at.top.by.donning.his.beaver.hat.a.very.tall.one.by.the.by.and.then.still.minus.his.trowsers.he.hunted.up.his.boots.What.under.the.heavens.he.did.it.for.I.cannot.tell.but.his.next.movement.was.to.crush.himself.boots.in.hand.and.hat.on.under.the.bed.when.from.sundry.violent.gaspings.and.strainings.I.inferred.he.was.hard.at.work.booting.himself.though.by.no.law.of.propriety.that.I.ever.heard.of.is.any.man.required.to.be.private.when.putting.on.his.boots.But.Queequeg.do.you.see.was.a.creature.in.the.transition.stage.neither.caterpillar.nor.butterfly.He.was.just.enough.civilized.to.show.off.his.outlandishness.in.the.strangest.possible.manners.His.education.was.not.yet.completed.He.was.an.undergraduate.If.he.had.not.been.a.small.degree.civilized.he.very.probably.would.not.have.troubled.himself.with.boots.at.all.but.then.if.he.had.not.been.still.a.savage.he.never.would.have.dreamt.of.getting.under.the.bed.to.put.them.on.At.last.he.emerged.with.his.hat.very.much.dented.and.crushed.down.over.his.eyes.and.began.creaking.and.limping.about.the.room.as.if.not.being.much.accustomed.to.boots.his.pair.of.damp.wrinkled.cowhide.ones.probably.not.made.to.order.either.rather.pinched.and.tormented.him.at.the.first.go.off.of.a.bitter.cold.morning.Seeing.now.that.there.were.no.curtains.to.the.window.and.that.the.street.being.very.narrow.the.house.opposite.commanded.a.plain.view.into.the.room.and.observing.more.and.more.the.indecorous.figure.that.Queequeg.made.staving.about.with.little.else.but.his.hat.and.boots.on.I.begged.him.as.well.as.I.could.to.accelerate.his.toilet.somewhat.and.particularly.to.get.into.his.pantaloons.as.soon.as.possible.He.complied.and.then.proceeded.to.wash.himself.At.that.time.in.the.morning.any.Christian.would.have.washed.his.face.but.Queequeg.to.my.amazement.contented.himself.with.restricting.his.ablutions.to.his.chest.arms.and.hands.He.then.donned.his.waistcoat.and.taking.up.a.piece.of.hard.soap.on.the.washstand.centre.table.dipped.it.into.water.and.commenced.lathering.his.face.I.was.watching.to.see.where.he.kept.his.razor.when.lo.and.behold.he.takes.the.harpoon.from.the.bed.corner.slips.out.the.long.wooden.stock.unsheathes.the.head.whets.it.a.little.on.his.boot.and.striding.up.to.the.bit.of.mirror.against.the.wall.begins.a.vigorous.scraping.or.rather.harpooning.of.his.cheeks.Thinks.I.Queequeg.this.is.using.Rogerss.best.cutlery.with.a.vengeance.Afterwards.I.wondered.the.less.at.this.operation.when.I.came.to.know.of.what.fine.steel.the.head.of.a.harpoon.is.made.and.how.exceedingly.sharp.the.long.straight.edges.are.always.kept.The.rest.of.his.toilet.was.soon.achieved.and.he.proudly.marched.out.of.the.room.wrapped.up.in.his.great.pilot.monkey.jacket.and.sporting.his.harpoon.like.a.marshals.baton.CHAPTER.5.Breakfast.I.quickly.followed.suit.and.descending.into.the.barroom.accosted.the.grinning.landlord.very.pleasantly.I.cherished.no.malice.towards.him.though.he.had.been.skylarking.with.me.not.a.little.in.the.matter.of.my.bedfellow.However.a.good.laugh.is.a.mighty.good.thing.and.rather.too.scarce.a.good.thing.the.mores.the.pity.So.if.any.one.man.in.his.own.proper.person.afford.stuff.for.a.good.joke.to.anybody.let.him.not.be.backward.but.let.him.cheerfully.allow.himself.to.spend.and.be.spent.in.that.way.And.the.man.that.has.anything.bountifully.laughable.about.him.be.sure.there.is.more.in.that.man.than.you.perhaps.think.for.The.barroom.was.now.full.of.the.boarders.who.had.been.dropping.in.the.night.previous.and.whom.I.had.not.as.yet.had.a.good.look.at.They.were.nearly.all.whalemen.chief.mates.and.second.mates.and.third.mates.and.sea.carpenters.and.sea.coopers.and.sea.blacksmiths.and.harpooneers.and.ship.keepers.a.brown.and.brawny.company.with.bosky.beards.an.unshorn.shaggy.set.all.wearing.monkey.jackets.for.morning.gowns.You.could.pretty.plainly.tell.how.long.each.one.had.been.ashore.This.young.fellows.healthy.cheek.is.like.a.suntoasted.pear.in.hue.and.would.seem.to.smell.almost.as.musky.he.cannot.have.been.three.days.landed.from.his.Indian.voyage.That.man.next.him.looks.a.few.shades.lighter.you.might.say.a.touch.of.satin.wood.is.in.him.In.the.complexion.of.a.third.still.lingers.a.tropic.tawn.but.slightly.bleached.withal.he.doubtless.has.tarried.whole.weeks.ashore.But.who.could.show.a.cheek.like.Queequeg.which.barred.with.various.tints.seemed.like.the.Andes.western.slope.to.show.forth.in.one.array.contrasting.climates.zone.by.zone.Grub.ho.now.cried.the.landlord.flinging.open.a.door.and.in.we.went.to.breakfast.They.say.that.men.who.have.seen.the.world.thereby.become.quite.at.ease.in.manner.quite.selfpossessed.in.company.Not.always.though.Ledyard.the.great.New.England.traveller.and.Mungo.Park.the.Scotch.one.of.all.men.they.possessed.the.least.assurance.in.the.parlor.But.perhaps.the.mere.crossing.of.Siberia.in.a.sledge.drawn.by.dogs.as.Ledyard.did.or.the.taking.a.long.solitary.walk.on.an.empty.stomach.in.the.negro.heart.of.Africa.which.was.the.sum.of.poor.Mungos.performances.this.kind.of.travel.I.say.may.not.be.the.very.best.mode.of.attaining.a.high.social.polish.Still.for.the.most.part.that.sort.of.thing.is.to.be.had.anywhere.These.reflections.just.here.are.occasioned.by.the.circumstance.that.after.we.were.all.seated.at.the.table.and.I.was.preparing.to.hear.some.good.stories.about.whaling.to.my.no.small.surprise.nearly.every.man.maintained.a.profound.silence.And.not.only.that.but.they.looked.embarrassed.Yes.here.were.a.set.of.seadogs.many.of.whom.without.the.slightest.bashfulness.had.boarded.great.whales.on.the.high.seas.entire.strangers.to.them.and.duelled.them.dead.without.winking.and.yet.here.they.sat.at.a.social.breakfast.table.all.of.the.same.calling.all.of.kindred.tastes.looking.round.as.sheepishly.at.each.other.as.though.they.had.never.been.out.of.sight.of.some.sheepfold.among.the.Green.Mountains.A.curious.sight.these.bashful.bears.these.timid.warrior.whalemen.But.as.for.Queequeg.why.Queequeg.sat.there.among.them.at.the.head.of.the.table.too.it.so.chanced.as.cool.as.an.icicle.To.be.sure.I.cannot.say.much.for.his.breeding.His.greatest.admirer.could.not.have.cordially.justified.his.bringing.his.harpoon.into.breakfast.with.him.and.using.it.there.without.ceremony.reaching.over.the.table.with.it.to.the.imminent.jeopardy.of.many.heads.and.grappling.the.beefsteaks.towards.him.But.that.was.certainly.very.coolly.done.by.him.and.every.one.knows.that.in.most.peoples.estimation.to.do.anything.coolly.is.to.do.it.genteelly.We.will.not.speak.of.all.Queequegs.peculiarities.here.how.he.eschewed.coffee.and.hot.rolls.and.applied.his.undivided.attention.to.beefsteaks.done.rare.Enough.that.when.breakfast.was.over.he.withdrew.like.the.rest.into.the.public.room.lighted.his.tomahawkpipe.and.was.sitting.there.quietly.digesting.and.smoking.with.his.inseparable.hat.on.when.I.sallied.out.for.a.stroll.CHAPTER.6.The.Street.If.I.had.been.astonished.at.first.catching.a.glimpse.of.so.outlandish.an.individual.as.Queequeg.circulating.among.the.polite.society.of.a.civilized.town.that.astonishment.soon.departed.upon.taking.my.first.daylight.stroll.through.the.streets.of.New.Bedford.In.thoroughfares.nigh.the.docks.any.considerable.seaport.will.frequently.offer.to.view.the.queerest.looking.nondescripts.from.foreign.parts.Even.in.Broadway.and.Chestnut.streets.Mediterranean.mariners.will.sometimes.jostle.the.affrighted.ladies.Regent.Street.is.not.unknown.to.Lascars.and.Malays.and.at.Bombay.in.the.Apollo.Green.live.Yankees.have.often.scared.the.natives.But.New.Bedford.beats.all.Water.Street.and.Wapping.In.these.lastmentioned.haunts.you.see.only.sailors.but.in.New.Bedford.actual.cannibals.stand.chatting.at.street.corners.savages.outright.many.of.whom.yet.carry.on.their.bones.unholy.flesh.It.makes.a.stranger.stare.But.besides.the.Feegeeans.Tongatobooarrs.Erromanggoans.Pannangians.and.Brighggians.and.besides.the.wild.specimens.of.the.whalingcraft.which.unheeded.reel.about.the.streets.you.will.see.other.sights.still.more.curious.certainly.more.comical.There.weekly.arrive.in.this.town.scores.of.green.Vermonters.and.New.Hampshire.men.all.athirst.for.gain.and.glory.in.the.fishery.They.are.mostly.young.of.stalwart.frames.fellows.who.have.felled.forests.and.now.seek.to.drop.the.axe.and.snatch.the.whalelance.Many.are.as.green.as.the.Green.Mountains.whence.they.came.In.some.things.you.would.think.them.but.a.few.hours.old.Look.there.that.chap.strutting.round.the.corner.He.wears.a.beaver.hat.and.swallowtailed.coat.girdled.with.a.sailorbelt.and.sheathknife.Here.comes.another.with.a.souwester.and.a.bombazine.cloak.No.townbred.dandy.will.compare.with.a.countrybred.one.I.mean.a.downright.bumpkin.dandy.a.fellow.that.in.the.dogdays.will.mow.his.two.acres.in.buckskin.gloves.for.fear.of.tanning.his.hands.Now.when.a.country.dandy.like.this.takes.it.into.his.head.to.make.a.distinguished.reputation.and.joins.the.great.whalefishery.you.should.see.the.comical.things.he.does.upon.reaching.the.seaport.In.bespeaking.his.seaoutfit.he.orders.bellbuttons.to.his.waistcoats.straps.to.his.canvas.trowsers.Ah.poor.HaySeed.how.bitterly.will.burst.those.straps.in.the.first.howling.gale.when.thou.art.driven.straps.buttons.and.all.down.the.throat.of.the.tempest.But.think.not.that.this.famous.town.has.only.harpooneers.cannibals.and.bumpkins.to.show.her.visitors.Not.at.all.Still.New.Bedford.is.a.queer.place.Had.it.not.been.for.us.whalemen.that.tract.of.land.would.this.day.perhaps.have.been.in.as.howling.condition.as.the.coast.of.Labrador.As.it.is.parts.of.her.back.country.are.enough.to.frighten.one.they.look.so.bony.The.town.itself.is.perhaps.the.dearest.place.to.live.in.in.all.New.England.It.is.a.land.of.oil.true.enough.but.not.like.Canaan.a.land.also.of.corn.and.wine.The.streets.do.not.run.with.milk.nor.in.the.springtime.do.they.pave.them.with.fresh.eggs.Yet.in.spite.of.this.nowhere.in.all.America.will.you.find.more.patricianlike.houses.parks.and.gardens.more.opulent.than.in.New.Bedford.Whence.came.they.how.planted.upon.this.once.scraggy.scoria.of.a.country.Go.and.gaze.upon.the.iron.emblematical.harpoons.round.yonder.lofty.mansion.and.your.question.will.be.answered.Yes.all.these.brave.houses.and.flowery.gardens.came.from.the.Atlantic.Pacific.and.Indian.oceans.One.and.all.they.were.harpooned.and.dragged.up.hither.from.the.bottom.of.the.sea.Can.Herr.Alexander.perform.a.feat.like.that.In.New.Bedford.fathers.they.say.give.whales.for.dowers.to.their.daughters.and.portion.off.their.nieces.with.a.few.porpoises.apiece.You.must.go.to.New.Bedford.to.see.a.brilliant.wedding.for.they.say.they.have.reservoirs.of.oil.in.every.house.and.every.night.recklessly.burn.their.lengths.in.spermaceti.candles.In.summer.time.the.town.is.sweet.to.see.full.of.fine.maples.long.avenues.of.green.and.gold.And.in.August.high.in.air.the.beautiful.and.bountiful.horsechestnuts.candelabrawise.proffer.the.passerby.their.tapering.upright.cones.of.congregated.blossoms.So.omnipotent.is.art.which.in.many.a.district.of.New.Bedford.has.superinduced.bright.terraces.of.flowers.upon.the.barren.refuse.rocks.thrown.aside.at.creations.final.day.And.the.women.of.New.Bedford.they.bloom.like.their.own.red.roses.But.roses.only.bloom.in.summer.whereas.the.fine.carnation.of.their.cheeks.is.perennial.as.sunlight.in.the.seventh.heavens.Elsewhere.match.that.bloom.of.theirs.ye.cannot.save.in.Salem.where.they.tell.me.the.young.girls.breathe.such.musk.their.sailor.sweethearts.smell.them.miles.off.shore.as.though.they.were.drawing.nigh.the.odorous.Moluccas.instead.of.the.Puritanic.sands.CHAPTER.7.The.Chapel.In.this.same.New.Bedford.there.stands.a.Whalemans.Chapel.and.few.are.the.moody.fishermen.shortly.bound.for.the.Indian.Ocean.or.Pacific.who.fail.to.make.a.Sunday.visit.to.the.spot.I.am.sure.that.I.did.not.Returning.from.my.first.morning.stroll.I.again.sallied.out.upon.this.special.errand.The.sky.had.changed.from.clear.sunny.cold.to.driving.sleet.and.mist.Wrapping.myself.in.my.shaggy.jacket.of.the.cloth.called.bearskin.I.fought.my.way.against.the.stubborn.storm.Entering.I.found.a.small.scattered.congregation.of.sailors.and.sailors.wives.and.widows.A.muffled.silence.reigned.only.broken.at.times.by.the.shrieks.of.the.storm.Each.silent.worshipper.seemed.purposely.sitting.apart.from.the.other.as.if.each.silent.grief.were.insular.and.incommunicable.The.chaplain.had.not.yet.arrived.and.there.these.silent.islands.of.men.and.women.sat.steadfastly.eyeing.several.marble.tablets.with.black.borders.masoned.into.the.wall.on.either.side.the.pulpit.Three.of.them.ran.something.like.the.following.but.I.do.not.pretend.to.quote.SACRED.TO.THE.MEMORY.OF.JOHN.TALBOT.Who.at.the.age.of.eighteen.was.lost.overboard.Near.the.Isle.of.Desolation.off.Patagonia.November.1st.1836.THIS.TABLET.Is.erected.to.his.Memory.BY.HIS.SISTER.SACRED.TO.THE.MEMORY.OF.ROBERT.LONG.WILLIS.ELLERY.NATHAN.COLEMAN.WALTER.CANNY.SETH.MACY.AND.SAMUEL.GLEIG.Forming.one.of.the.boats.crews.OF.THE.SHIP.ELIZA.Who.were.towed.out.of.sight.by.a.Whale.On.the.Offshore.Ground.in.the.PACIFIC.December.31st.1839.THIS.MARBLE.Is.here.placed.by.their.surviving.SHIPMATES.SACRED.TO.THE.MEMORY.OF.The.late.CAPTAIN.EZEKIEL.HARDY.Who.in.the.bows.of.his.boat.was.killed.by.a.Sperm.Whale.on.the.coast.of.Japan.August.3d.1833.THIS.TABLET.Is.erected.to.his.Memory.BY.HIS.WIDOW.Shaking.off.the.sleet.from.my.iceglazed.hat.and.jacket.I.seated.myself.near.the.door.and.turning.sideways.was.surprised.to.see.Queequeg.near.me.Affected.by.the.solemnity.of.the.scene.there.was.a.wondering.gaze.of.incredulous.curiosity.in.his.countenance.This.savage.was.the.only.person.present.who.seemed.to.notice.my.entrance.because.he.was.the.only.one.who.could.not.read.and.therefore.was.not.reading.those.frigid.inscriptions.on.the.wall.Whether.any.of.the.relatives.of.the.seamen.whose.names.appeared.there.were.now.among.the.congregation.I.knew.not.but.so.many.are.the.unrecorded.accidents.in.the.fishery.and.so.plainly.did.several.women.present.wear.the.countenance.if.not.the.trappings.of.some.unceasing.grief.that.I.feel.sure.that.here.before.me.were.assembled.those.in.whose.unhealing.hearts.the.sight.of.those.bleak.tablets.sympathetically.caused.the.old.wounds.to.bleed.afresh.Oh.ye.whose.dead.lie.buried.beneath.the.green.grass.who.standing.among.flowers.can.say.here.here.lies.my.beloved.ye.know.not.the.desolation.that.broods.in.bosoms.like.these.What.bitter.blanks.in.those.blackbordered.marbles.which.cover.no.ashes.What.despair.in.those.immovable.inscriptions.What.deadly.voids.and.unbidden.infidelities.in.the.lines.that.seem.to.gnaw.upon.all.Faith.and.refuse.resurrections.to.the.beings.who.have.placelessly.perished.without.a.grave.As.well.might.those.tablets.stand.in.the.cave.of.Elephanta.as.here.In.what.census.of.living.creatures.the.dead.of.mankind.are.included.why.it.is.that.a.universal.proverb.says.of.them.that.they.tell.no.tales.though.containing.more.secrets.than.the.Goodwin.Sands.how.it.is.that.to.his.name.who.yesterday.departed.for.the.other.world.we.prefix.so.significant.and.infidel.a.word.and.yet.do.not.thus.entitle.him.if.he.but.embarks.for.the.remotest.Indies.of.this.living.earth.why.the.Life.Insurance.Companies.pay.deathforfeitures.upon.immortals.in.what.eternal.unstirring.paralysis.and.deadly.hopeless.trance.yet.lies.antique.Adam.who.died.sixty.round.centuries.ago.how.it.is.that.we.still.refuse.to.be.comforted.for.those.who.we.nevertheless.maintain.are.dwelling.in.unspeakable.bliss.why.all.the.living.so.strive.to.hush.all.the.dead.wherefore.but.the.rumor.of.a.knocking.in.a.tomb.will.terrify.a.whole.city.All.these.things.are.not.without.their.meanings.But.Faith.like.a.jackal.feeds.among.the.tombs.and.even.from.these.dead.doubts.she.gathers.her.most.vital.hope.It.needs.scarcely.to.be.told.with.what.feelings.on.the.eve.of.a.Nantucket.voyage.I.regarded.those.marble.tablets.and.by.the.murky.light.of.that.darkened.doleful.day.read.the.fate.of.the.whalemen.who.had.gone.before.me.Yes.Ishmael.the.same.fate.may.be.thine.But.somehow.I.grew.merry.again.Delightful.inducements.to.embark.fine.chance.for.promotion.it.seems.aye.a.stove.boat.will.make.me.an.immortal.by.brevet.Yes.there.is.death.in.this.business.of.whaling.a.speechlessly.quick.chaotic.bundling.of.a.man.into.Eternity.But.what.then.Methinks.we.have.hugely.mistaken.this.matter.of.Life.and.Death.Methinks.that.what.they.call.my.shadow.here.on.earth.is.my.true.substance.Methinks.that.in.looking.at.things.spiritual.we.are.too.much.like.oysters.observing.the.sun.through.the.water.and.thinking.that.thick.water.the.thinnest.of.air.Methinks.my.body.is.but.the.lees.of.my.better.being.In.fact.take.my.body.who.will.take.it.I.say.it.is.not.me.And.therefore.three.cheers.for.Nantucket.and.come.a.stove.boat.and.stove.body.when.they.will.for.stave.my.soul.Jove.himself.cannot.CHAPTER.8.The.Pulpit.I.had.not.been.seated.very.long.ere.a.man.of.a.certain.venerable.robustness.entered.immediately.as.the.stormpelted.door.flew.back.upon.admitting.him.a.quick.regardful.eyeing.of.him.by.all.the.congregation.sufficiently.attested.that.this.fine.old.man.was.the.chaplain.Yes.it.was.the.famous.Father.Mapple.so.called.by.the.whalemen.among.whom.he.was.a.very.great.favourite.He.had.been.a.sailor.and.a.harpooneer.in.his.youth.but.for.many.years.past.had.dedicated.his.life.to.the.ministry.At.the.time.I.now.write.of.Father.Mapple.was.in.the.hardy.winter.of.a.healthy.old.age.that.sort.of.old.age.which.seems.merging.into.a.second.flowering.youth.for.among.all.the.fissures.of.his.wrinkles.there.shone.certain.mild.gleams.of.a.newly.developing.bloom.the.spring.verdure.peeping.forth.even.beneath.Februarys.snow.No.one.having.previously.heard.his.history.could.for.the.first.time.behold.Father.Mapple.without.the.utmost.interest.because.there.were.certain.engrafted.clerical.peculiarities.about.him.imputable.to.that.adventurous.maritime.life.he.had.led.When.he.entered.I.observed.that.he.carried.no.umbrella.and.certainly.had.not.come.in.his.carriage.for.his.tarpaulin.hat.ran.down.with.melting.sleet.and.his.great.pilot.cloth.jacket.seemed.almost.to.drag.him.to.the.floor.with.the.weight.of.the.water.it.had.absorbed.However.hat.and.coat.and.overshoes.were.one.by.one.removed.and.hung.up.in.a.little.space.in.an.adjacent.corner.when.arrayed.in.a.decent.suit.he.quietly.approached.the.pulpit.Like.most.old.fashioned.pulpits.it.was.a.very.lofty.one.and.since.a.regular.stairs.to.such.a.height.would.by.its.long.angle.with.the.floor.seriously.contract.the.already.small.area.of.the.chapel.the.architect.it.seemed.had.acted.upon.the.hint.of.Father.Mapple.and.finished.the.pulpit.without.a.stairs.substituting.a.perpendicular.side.ladder.like.those.used.in.mounting.a.ship.from.a.boat.at.sea.The.wife.of.a.whaling.captain.had.provided.the.chapel.with.a.handsome.pair.of.red.worsted.manropes.for.this.ladder.which.being.itself.nicely.headed.and.stained.with.a.mahogany.colour.the.whole.contrivance.considering.what.manner.of.chapel.it.was.seemed.by.no.means.in.bad.taste.Halting.for.an.instant.at.the.foot.of.the.ladder.and.with.both.hands.grasping.the.ornamental.knobs.of.the.manropes.Father.Mapple.cast.a.look.upwards.and.then.with.a.truly.sailorlike.but.still.reverential.dexterity.hand.over.hand.mounted.the.steps.as.if.ascending.the.maintop.of.his.vessel.The.perpendicular.parts.of.this.side.ladder.as.is.usually.the.case.with.swinging.ones.were.of.clothcovered.rope.only.the.rounds.were.of.wood.so.that.at.every.step.there.was.a.joint.At.my.first.glimpse.of.the.pulpit.it.had.not.escaped.me.that.however.convenient.for.a.ship.these.joints.in.the.present.instance.seemed.unnecessary.For.I.was.not.prepared.to.see.Father.Mapple.after.gaining.the.height.slowly.turn.round.and.stooping.over.the.pulpit.deliberately.drag.up.the.ladder.step.by.step.till.the.whole.was.deposited.within.leaving.him.impregnable.in.his.little.Quebec.I.pondered.some.time.without.fully.comprehending.the.reason.for.this.Father.Mapple.enjoyed.such.a.wide.reputation.for.sincerity.and.sanctity.that.I.could.not.suspect.him.of.courting.notoriety.by.any.mere.tricks.of.the.stage.No.thought.I.there.must.be.some.sober.reason.for.this.thing.furthermore.it.must.symbolize.something.unseen.Can.it.be.then.that.by.that.act.of.physical.isolation.he.signifies.his.spiritual.withdrawal.for.the.time.from.all.outward.worldly.ties.and.connexions.Yes.for.replenished.with.the.meat.and.wine.of.the.word.to.the.faithful.man.of.God.this.pulpit.I.see.is.a.selfcontaining.stronghold.a.lofty.Ehrenbreitstein.with.a.perennial.well.of.water.within.the.walls.But.the.side.ladder.was.not.the.only.strange.feature.of.the.place.borrowed.from.the.chaplains.former.seafarings.Between.the.marble.cenotaphs.on.either.hand.of.the.pulpit.the.wall.which.formed.its.back.was.adorned.with.a.large.painting.representing.a.gallant.ship.beating.against.a.terrible.storm.off.a.lee.coast.of.black.rocks.and.snowy.breakers.But.high.above.the.flying.scud.and.darkrolling.clouds.there.floated.a.little.isle.of.sunlight.from.which.beamed.forth.an.angels.face.and.this.bright.face.shed.a.distinct.spot.of.radiance.upon.the.ships.tossed.deck.something.like.that.silver.plate.now.inserted.into.the.Victorys.plank.where.Nelson.fell.Ah.noble.ship.the.angel.seemed.to.say.beat.on.beat.on.thou.noble.ship.and.bear.a.hardy.helm.for.lo.the.sun.is.breaking.through.the.clouds.are.rolling.off.serenest.azure.is.at.hand.Nor.was.the.pulpit.itself.without.a.trace.of.the.same.seataste.that.had.achieved.the.ladder.and.the.picture.Its.panelled.front.was.in.the.likeness.of.a.ships.bluff.bows.and.the.Holy.Bible.rested.on.a.projecting.piece.of.scroll.work.fashioned.after.a.ships.fiddleheaded.beak.What.could.be.more.full.of.meaning.for.the.pulpit.is.ever.this.earths.foremost.part.all.the.rest.comes.in.its.rear.the.pulpit.leads.the.world.From.thence.it.is.the.storm.of.Gods.quick.wrath.is.first.descried.and.the.bow.must.bear.the.earliest.brunt.From.thence.it.is.the.God.of.breezes.fair.or.foul.is.first.invoked.for.favourable.winds.Yes.the.worlds.a.ship.on.its.passage.out.and.not.a.voyage.complete.and.the.pulpit.is.its.prow.CHAPTER.9.The.Sermon.Father.Mapple.rose.and.in.a.mild.voice.of.unassuming.authority.ordered.the.scattered.people.to.condense.Starboard.gangway.there.side.away.to.larboard.larboard.gangway.to.starboard.Midships.midships.There.was.a.low.rumbling.of.heavy.seaboots.among.the.benches.and.a.still.slighter.shuffling.of.womens.shoes.and.all.was.quiet.again.and.every.eye.on.the.preacher.He.paused.a.little.then.kneeling.in.the.pulpits.bows.folded.his.large.brown.hands.across.his.chest.uplifted.his.closed.eyes.and.offered.a.prayer.so.deeply.devout.that.he.seemed.kneeling.and.praying.at.the.bottom.of.the.sea.This.ended.in.prolonged.solemn.tones.like.the.continual.tolling.of.a.bell.in.a.ship.that.is.foundering.at.sea.in.a.fog.in.such.tones.he.commenced.reading.the.following.hymn.but.changing.his.manner.towards.the.concluding.stanzas.burst.forth.with.a.pealing.exultation.and.joy.The.ribs.and.terrors.in.the.whale.Arched.over.me.a.dismal.gloom.While.all.Gods.sunlit.waves.rolled.by.And.lift.me.deepening.down.to.doom.I.saw.the.opening.maw.of.hell.With.endless.pains.and.sorrows.there.Which.none.but.they.that.feel.can.tell.Oh.I.was.plunging.to.despair.In.black.distress.I.called.my.God.When.I.could.scarce.believe.him.mine.He.bowed.his.ear.to.my.complaints.No.more.the.whale.did.me.confine.With.speed.he.flew.to.my.relief.As.on.a.radiant.dolphin.borne.Awful.yet.bright.as.lightning.shone.The.face.of.my.Deliverer.God.My.song.for.ever.shall.record.That.terrible.that.joyful.hour.I.give.the.glory.to.my.God.His.all.the.mercy.and.the.power.Nearly.all.joined.in.singing.this.hymn.which.swelled.high.above.the.howling.of.the.storm.A.brief.pause.ensued.the.preacher.slowly.turned.over.the.leaves.of.the.Bible.and.at.last.folding.his.hand.down.upon.the.proper.page.said.Beloved.shipmates.clinch.the.last.verse.of.the.first.chapter.of.Jonah.And.God.had.prepared.a.great.fish.to.swallow.up.Jonah.Shipmates.this.book.containing.only.four.chapters.four.yarns.is.one.of.the.smallest.strands.in.the.mighty.cable.of.the.Scriptures.Yet.what.depths.of.the.soul.does.Jonahs.deep.sealine.sound.what.a.pregnant.lesson.to.us.is.this.prophet.What.a.noble.thing.is.that.canticle.in.the.fishs.belly.How.billowlike.and.boisterously.grand.We.feel.the.floods.surging.over.us.we.sound.with.him.to.the.kelpy.bottom.of.the.waters.seaweed.and.all.the.slime.of.the.sea.is.about.us.But.what.is.this.lesson.that.the.book.of.Jonah.teaches.Shipmates.it.is.a.twostranded.lesson.a.lesson.to.us.all.as.sinful.men.and.a.lesson.to.me.as.a.pilot.of.the.living.God.As.sinful.men.it.is.a.lesson.to.us.all.because.it.is.a.story.of.the.sin.hardheartedness.suddenly.awakened.fears.the.swift.punishment.repentance.prayers.and.finally.the.deliverance.and.joy.of.Jonah.As.with.all.sinners.among.men.the.sin.of.this.son.of.Amittai.was.in.his.wilful.disobedience.of.the.command.of.God.never.mind.now.what.that.command.was.or.how.conveyed.which.he.found.a.hard.command.But.all.the.things.that.God.would.have.us.do.are.hard.for.us.to.do.remember.that.and.hence.he.oftener.commands.us.than.endeavors.to.persuade.And.if.we.obey.God.we.must.disobey.ourselves.and.it.is.in.this.disobeying.ourselves.wherein.the.hardness.of.obeying.God.consists.With.this.sin.of.disobedience.in.him.Jonah.still.further.flouts.at.God.by.seeking.to.flee.from.Him.He.thinks.that.a.ship.made.by.men.will.carry.him.into.countries.where.God.does.not.reign.but.only.the.Captains.of.this.earth.He.skulks.about.the.wharves.of.Joppa.and.seeks.a.ship.thats.bound.for.Tarshish.There.lurks.perhaps.a.hitherto.unheeded.meaning.here.By.all.accounts.Tarshish.could.have.been.no.other.city.than.the.modern.Cadiz.Thats.the.opinion.of.learned.men.And.where.is.Cadiz.shipmates.Cadiz.is.in.Spain.as.far.by.water.from.Joppa.as.Jonah.could.possibly.have.sailed.in.those.ancient.days.when.the.Atlantic.was.an.almost.unknown.sea.Because.Joppa.the.modern.Jaffa.shipmates.is.on.the.most.easterly.coast.of.the.Mediterranean.the.Syrian.and.Tarshish.or.Cadiz.more.than.two.thousand.miles.to.the.westward.from.that.just.outside.the.Straits.of.Gibraltar.See.ye.not.then.shipmates.that.Jonah.sought.to.flee.worldwide.from.God.Miserable.man.Oh.most.contemptible.and.worthy.of.all.scorn.with.slouched.hat.and.guilty.eye.skulking.from.his.God.prowling.among.the.shipping.like.a.vile.burglar.hastening.to.cross.the.seas.So.disordered.selfcondemning.is.his.look.that.had.there.been.policemen.in.those.days.Jonah.on.the.mere.suspicion.of.something.wrong.had.been.arrested.ere.he.touched.a.deck.How.plainly.hes.a.fugitive.no.baggage.not.a.hatbox.valise.or.carpetbag.no.friends.accompany.him.to.the.wharf.with.their.adieux.At.last.after.much.dodging.search.he.finds.the.Tarshish.ship.receiving.the.last.items.of.her.cargo.and.as.he.steps.on.board.to.see.its.Captain.in.the.cabin.all.the.sailors.for.the.moment.desist.from.hoisting.in.the.goods.to.mark.the.strangers.evil.eye.Jonah.sees.this.but.in.vain.he.tries.to.look.all.ease.and.confidence.in.vain.essays.his.wretched.smile.Strong.intuitions.of.the.man.assure.the.mariners.he.can.be.no.innocent.In.their.gamesome.but.still.serious.way.one.whispers.to.the.other.Jack.hes.robbed.a.widow.or.Joe.do.you.mark.him.hes.a.bigamist.or.Harry.lad.I.guess.hes.the.adulterer.that.broke.jail.in.old.Gomorrah.or.belike.one.of.the.missing.murderers.from.Sodom.Another.runs.to.read.the.bill.thats.stuck.against.the.spile.upon.the.wharf.to.which.the.ship.is.moored.offering.five.hundred.gold.coins.for.the.apprehension.of.a.parricide.and.containing.a.description.of.his.person.He.reads.and.looks.from.Jonah.to.the.bill.while.all.his.sympathetic.shipmates.now.crowd.round.Jonah.prepared.to.lay.their.hands.upon.him.Frighted.Jonah.trembles.and.summoning.all.his.boldness.to.his.face.only.looks.so.much.the.more.a.coward.He.will.not.confess.himself.suspected.but.that.itself.is.strong.suspicion.So.he.makes.the.best.of.it.and.when.the.sailors.find.him.not.to.be.the.man.that.is.advertised.they.let.him.pass.and.he.descends.into.the.cabin.Whos.there.cries.the.Captain.at.his.busy.desk.hurriedly.making.out.his.papers.for.the.Customs.Whos.there.Oh.how.that.harmless.question.mangles.Jonah.For.the.instant.he.almost.turns.to.flee.again.But.he.rallies.I.seek.a.passage.in.this.ship.to.Tarshish.how.soon.sail.ye.sir.Thus.far.the.busy.Captain.had.not.looked.up.to.Jonah.though.the.man.now.stands.before.him.but.no.sooner.does.he.hear.that.hollow.voice.than.he.darts.a.scrutinizing.glance.We.sail.with.the.next.coming.tide.at.last.he.slowly.answered.still.intently.eyeing.him.No.sooner.sir.Soon.enough.for.any.honest.man.that.goes.a.passenger.Ha.Jonah.thats.another.stab.But.he.swiftly.calls.away.the.Captain.from.that.scent.Ill.sail.with.ye.he.says.the.passage.money.how.much.is.that.Ill.pay.now.For.it.is.particularly.written.shipmates.as.if.it.were.a.thing.not.to.be.overlooked.in.this.history.that.he.paid.the.fare.thereof.ere.the.craft.did.sail.And.taken.with.the.context.this.is.full.of.meaning.Now.Jonahs.Captain.shipmates.was.one.whose.discernment.detects.crime.in.any.but.whose.cupidity.exposes.it.only.in.the.penniless.In.this.world.shipmates.sin.that.pays.its.way.can.travel.freely.and.without.a.passport.whereas.Virtue.if.a.pauper.is.stopped.at.all.frontiers.So.Jonahs.Captain.prepares.to.test.the.length.of.Jonahs.purse.ere.he.judge.him.openly.He.charges.him.thrice.the.usual.sum.and.its.assented.to.Then.the.Captain.knows.that.Jonah.is.a.fugitive.but.at.the.same.time.resolves.to.help.a.flight.that.paves.its.rear.with.gold.Yet.when.Jonah.fairly.takes.out.his.purse.prudent.suspicions.still.molest.the.Captain.He.rings.every.coin.to.find.a.counterfeit.Not.a.forger.any.way.he.mutters.and.Jonah.is.put.down.for.his.passage.Point.out.my.stateroom.Sir.says.Jonah.now.Im.travelweary.I.need.sleep.Thou.lookest.like.it.says.the.Captain.theres.thy.room.Jonah.enters.and.would.lock.the.door.but.the.lock.contains.no.key.Hearing.him.foolishly.fumbling.there.the.Captain.laughs.lowly.to.himself.and.mutters.something.about.the.doors.of.convicts.cells.being.never.allowed.to.be.locked.within.All.dressed.and.dusty.as.he.is.Jonah.throws.himself.into.his.berth.and.finds.the.little.stateroom.ceiling.almost.resting.on.his.forehead.The.air.is.close.and.Jonah.gasps.Then.in.that.contracted.hole.sunk.too.beneath.the.ships.waterline.Jonah.feels.the.heralding.presentiment.of.that.stifling.hour.when.the.whale.shall.hold.him.in.the.smallest.of.his.bowels.wards.Screwed.at.its.axis.against.the.side.a.swinging.lamp.slightly.oscillates.in.Jonahs.room.and.the.ship.heeling.over.towards.the.wharf.with.the.weight.of.the.last.bales.received.the.lamp.flame.and.all.though.in.slight.motion.still.maintains.a.permanent.obliquity.with.reference.to.the.room.though.in.truth.infallibly.straight.itself.it.but.made.obvious.the.false.lying.levels.among.which.it.hung.The.lamp.alarms.and.frightens.Jonah.as.lying.in.his.berth.his.tormented.eyes.roll.round.the.place.and.this.thus.far.successful.fugitive.finds.no.refuge.for.his.restless.glance.But.that.contradiction.in.the.lamp.more.and.more.appals.him.The.floor.the.ceiling.and.the.side.are.all.awry.Oh.so.my.conscience.hangs.in.me.he.groans.straight.upwards.so.it.burns.but.the.chambers.of.my.soul.are.all.in.crookedness.Like.one.who.after.a.night.of.drunken.revelry.hies.to.his.bed.still.reeling.but.with.conscience.yet.pricking.him.as.the.plungings.of.the.Roman.racehorse.but.so.much.the.more.strike.his.steel.tags.into.him.as.one.who.in.that.miserable.plight.still.turns.and.turns.in.giddy.anguish.praying.God.for.annihilation.until.the.fit.be.passed.and.at.last.amid.the.whirl.of.woe.he.feels.a.deep.stupor.steals.over.him.as.over.the.man.who.bleeds.to.death.for.conscience.is.the.wound.and.theres.naught.to.staunch.it.so.after.sore.wrestlings.in.his.berth.Jonahs.prodigy.of.ponderous.misery.drags.him.drowning.down.to.sleep.And.now.the.time.of.tide.has.come.the.ship.casts.off.her.cables.and.from.the.deserted.wharf.the.uncheered.ship.for.Tarshish.all.careening.glides.to.sea.That.ship.my.friends.was.the.first.of.recorded.smugglers.the.contraband.was.Jonah.But.the.sea.rebels.he.will.not.bear.the.wicked.burden.A.dreadful.storm.comes.on.the.ship.is.like.to.break.But.now.when.the.boatswain.calls.all.hands.to.lighten.her.when.boxes.bales.and.jars.are.clattering.overboard.when.the.wind.is.shrieking.and.the.men.are.yelling.and.every.plank.thunders.with.trampling.feet.right.over.Jonahs.head.in.all.this.raging.tumult.Jonah.sleeps.his.hideous.sleep.He.sees.no.black.sky.and.raging.sea.feels.not.the.reeling.timbers.and.little.hears.he.or.heeds.he.the.far.rush.of.the.mighty.whale.which.even.now.with.open.mouth.is.cleaving.the.seas.after.him.Aye.shipmates.Jonah.was.gone.down.into.the.sides.of.the.ship.a.berth.in.the.cabin.as.I.have.taken.it.and.was.fast.asleep.But.the.frightened.master.comes.to.him.and.shrieks.in.his.dead.ear.What.meanest.thou.O.sleeper.arise.Startled.from.his.lethargy.by.that.direful.cry.Jonah.staggers.to.his.feet.and.stumbling.to.the.deck.grasps.a.shroud.to.look.out.upon.the.sea.But.at.that.moment.he.is.sprung.upon.by.a.panther.billow.leaping.over.the.bulwarks.Wave.after.wave.thus.leaps.into.the.ship.and.finding.no.speedy.vent.runs.roaring.fore.and.aft.till.the.mariners.come.nigh.to.drowning.while.yet.afloat.And.ever.as.the.white.moon.shows.her.affrighted.face.from.the.steep.gullies.in.the.blackness.overhead.aghast.Jonah.sees.the.rearing.bowsprit.pointing.high.upward.but.soon.beat.downward.again.towards.the.tormented.deep.Terrors.upon.terrors.run.shouting.through.his.soul.In.all.his.cringing.attitudes.the.Godfugitive.is.now.too.plainly.known.The.sailors.mark.him.more.and.more.certain.grow.their.suspicions.of.him.and.at.last.fully.to.test.the.truth.by.referring.the.whole.matter.to.high.Heaven.they.fall.to.casting.lots.to.see.for.whose.cause.this.great.tempest.was.upon.them.The.lot.is.Jonahs.that.discovered.then.how.furiously.they.mob.him.with.their.questions.What.is.thine.occupation.Whence.comest.thou.Thy.country.What.people.But.mark.now.my.shipmates.the.behavior.of.poor.Jonah.The.eager.mariners.but.ask.him.who.he.is.and.where.from.whereas.they.not.only.receive.an.answer.to.those.questions.but.likewise.another.answer.to.a.question.not.put.by.them.but.the.unsolicited.answer.is.forced.from.Jonah.by.the.hard.hand.of.God.that.is.upon.him.I.am.a.Hebrew.he.cries.and.then.I.fear.the.Lord.the.God.of.Heaven.who.hath.made.the.sea.and.the.dry.land.Fear.him.O.Jonah.Aye.well.mightest.thou.fear.the.Lord.God.then.Straightway.he.now.goes.on.to.make.a.full.confession.whereupon.the.mariners.became.more.and.more.appalled.but.still.are.pitiful.For.when.Jonah.not.yet.supplicating.God.for.mercy.since.he.but.too.well.knew.the.darkness.of.his.deserts.when.wretched.Jonah.cries.out.to.them.to.take.him.and.cast.him.forth.into.the.sea.for.he.knew.that.for.his.sake.this.great.tempest.was.upon.them.they.mercifully.turn.from.him.and.seek.by.other.means.to.save.the.ship.But.all.in.vain.the.indignant.gale.howls.louder.then.with.one.hand.raised.invokingly.to.God.with.the.other.they.not.unreluctantly.lay.hold.of.Jonah.And.now.behold.Jonah.taken.up.as.an.anchor.and.dropped.into.the.sea.when.instantly.an.oily.calmness.floats.out.from.the.east.and.the.sea.is.still.as.Jonah.carries.down.the.gale.with.him.leaving.smooth.water.behind.He.goes.down.in.the.whirling.heart.of.such.a.masterless.commotion.that.he.scarce.heeds.the.moment.when.he.drops.seething.into.the.yawning.jaws.awaiting.him.and.the.whale.shootsto.all.his.ivory.teeth.like.so.many.white.bolts.upon.his.prison.Then.Jonah.prayed.unto.the.Lord.out.of.the.fishs.belly.But.observe.his.prayer.and.learn.a.weighty.lesson.For.sinful.as.he.is.Jonah.does.not.weep.and.wail.for.direct.deliverance.He.feels.that.his.dreadful.punishment.is.just.He.leaves.all.his.deliverance.to.God.contenting.himself.with.this.that.spite.of.all.his.pains.and.pangs.he.will.still.look.towards.His.holy.temple.And.here.shipmates.is.true.and.faithful.repentance.not.clamorous.for.pardon.but.grateful.for.punishment.And.how.pleasing.to.God.was.this.conduct.in.Jonah.is.shown.in.the.eventual.deliverance.of.him.from.the.sea.and.the.whale.Shipmates.I.do.not.place.Jonah.before.you.to.be.copied.for.his.sin.but.I.do.place.him.before.you.as.a.model.for.repentance.Sin.not.but.if.you.do.take.heed.to.repent.of.it.like.Jonah.While.he.was.speaking.these.words.the.howling.of.the.shrieking.slanting.storm.without.seemed.to.add.new.power.to.the.preacher.who.when.describing.Jonahs.seastorm.seemed.tossed.by.a.storm.himself.His.deep.chest.heaved.as.with.a.groundswell.his.tossed.arms.seemed.the.warring.elements.at.work.and.the.thunders.that.rolled.away.from.off.his.swarthy.brow.and.the.light.leaping.from.his.eye.made.all.his.simple.hearers.look.on.him.with.a.quick.fear.that.was.strange.to.them.There.now.came.a.lull.in.his.look.as.he.silently.turned.over.the.leaves.of.the.Book.once.more.and.at.last.standing.motionless.with.closed.eyes.for.the.moment.seemed.communing.with.God.and.himself.But.again.he.leaned.over.towards.the.people.and.bowing.his.head.lowly.with.an.aspect.of.the.deepest.yet.manliest.humility.he.spake.these.words.Shipmates.God.has.laid.but.one.hand.upon.you.both.his.hands.press.upon.me.I.have.read.ye.by.what.murky.light.may.be.mine.the.lesson.that.Jonah.teaches.to.all.sinners.and.therefore.to.ye.and.still.more.to.me.for.I.am.a.greater.sinner.than.ye.And.now.how.gladly.would.I.come.down.from.this.masthead.and.sit.on.the.hatches.there.where.you.sit.and.listen.as.you.listen.while.some.one.of.you.reads.me.that.other.and.more.awful.lesson.which.Jonah.teaches.to.me.as.a.pilot.of.the.living.God.How.being.an.anointed.pilotprophet.or.speaker.of.true.things.and.bidden.by.the.Lord.to.sound.those.unwelcome.truths.in.the.ears.of.a.wicked.Nineveh.Jonah.appalled.at.the.hostility.he.should.raise.fled.from.his.mission.and.sought.to.escape.his.duty.and.his.God.by.taking.ship.at.Joppa.But.God.is.everywhere.Tarshish.he.never.reached.As.we.have.seen.God.came.upon.him.in.the.whale.and.swallowed.him.down.to.living.gulfs.of.doom.and.with.swift.slantings.tore.him.along.into.the.midst.of.the.seas.where.the.eddying.depths.sucked.him.ten.thousand.fathoms.down.and.the.weeds.were.wrapped.about.his.head.and.all.the.watery.world.of.woe.bowled.over.him.Yet.even.then.beyond.the.reach.of.any.plummet.out.of.the.belly.of.hell.when.the.whale.grounded.upon.the.oceans.utmost.bones.even.then.God.heard.the.engulphed.repenting.prophet.when.he.cried.Then.God.spake.unto.the.fish.and.from.the.shuddering.cold.and.blackness.of.the.sea.the.whale.came.breeching.up.towards.the.warm.and.pleasant.sun.and.all.the.delights.of.air.and.earth.and.vomited.out.Jonah.upon.the.dry.land.when.the.word.of.the.Lord.came.a.second.time.and.Jonah.bruised.and.beaten.his.ears.like.two.seashells.still.multitudinously.murmuring.of.the.ocean.Jonah.did.the.Almightys.bidding.And.what.was.that.shipmates.To.preach.the.Truth.to.the.face.of.Falsehood.That.was.it.This.shipmates.this.is.that.other.lesson.and.woe.to.that.pilot.of.the.living.God.who.slights.it.Woe.to.him.whom.this.world.charms.from.Gospel.duty.Woe.to.him.who.seeks.to.pour.oil.upon.the.waters.when.God.has.brewed.them.into.a.gale.Woe.to.him.who.seeks.to.please.rather.than.to.appal.Woe.to.him.whose.good.name.is.more.to.him.than.goodness.Woe.to.him.who.in.this.world.courts.not.dishonor.Woe.to.him.who.would.not.be.true.even.though.to.be.false.were.salvation.Yea.woe.to.him.who.as.the.great.Pilot.Paul.has.it.while.preaching.to.others.is.himself.a.castaway.He.dropped.and.fell.away.from.himself.for.a.moment.then.lifting.his.face.to.them.again.showed.a.deep.joy.in.his.eyes.as.he.cried.out.with.a.heavenly.enthusiasm.But.oh.shipmates.on.the.starboard.hand.of.every.woe.there.is.a.sure.delight.and.higher.the.top.of.that.delight.than.the.bottom.of.the.woe.is.deep.Is.not.the.maintruck.higher.than.the.kelson.is.low.Delight.is.to.him.a.far.far.upward.and.inward.delight.who.against.the.proud.gods.and.commodores.of.this.earth.ever.stands.forth.his.own.inexorable.self.Delight.is.to.him.whose.strong.arms.yet.support.him.when.the.ship.of.this.base.treacherous.world.has.gone.down.beneath.him.Delight.is.to.him.who.gives.no.quarter.in.the.truth.and.kills.burns.and.destroys.all.sin.though.he.pluck.it.out.from.under.the.robes.of.Senators.and.Judges.Delight.topgallant.delight.is.to.him.who.acknowledges.no.law.or.lord.but.the.Lord.his.God.and.is.only.a.patriot.to.heaven.Delight.is.to.him.whom.all.the.waves.of.the.billows.of.the.seas.of.the.boisterous.mob.can.never.shake.from.this.sure.Keel.of.the.Ages.And.eternal.delight.and.deliciousness.will.be.his.who.coming.to.lay.him.down.can.say.with.his.final.breath.O.Father.chiefly.known.to.me.by.Thy.rod.mortal.or.immortal.here.I.die.I.have.striven.to.be.Thine.more.than.to.be.this.worlds.or.mine.own.Yet.this.is.nothing.I.leave.eternity.to.Thee.for.what.is.man.that.he.should.live.out.the.lifetime.of.his.God.He.said.no.more.but.slowly.waving.a.benediction.covered.his.face.with.his.hands.and.so.remained.kneeling.till.all.the.people.had.departed.and.he.was.left.alone.in.the.place.CHAPTER.10.A.Bosom.Friend.Returning.to.the.SpouterInn.from.the.Chapel.I.found.Queequeg.there.quite.alone.he.having.left.the.Chapel.before.the.benediction.some.time.He.was.sitting.on.a.bench.before.the.fire.with.his.feet.on.the.stove.hearth.and.in.one.hand.was.holding.close.up.to.his.face.that.little.negro.idol.of.his.peering.hard.into.its.face.and.with.a.jackknife.gently.whittling.away.at.its.nose.meanwhile.humming.to.himself.in.his.heathenish.way.But.being.now.interrupted.he.put.up.the.image.and.pretty.soon.going.to.the.table.took.up.a.large.book.there.and.placing.it.on.his.lap.began.counting.the.pages.with.deliberate.regularity.at.every.fiftieth.page.as.I.fancied.stopping.a.moment.looking.vacantly.around.him.and.giving.utterance.to.a.longdrawn.gurgling.whistle.of.astonishment.He.would.then.begin.again.at.the.next.fifty.seeming.to.commence.at.number.one.each.time.as.though.he.could.not.count.more.than.fifty.and.it.was.only.by.such.a.large.number.of.fifties.being.found.together.that.his.astonishment.at.the.multitude.of.pages.was.excited.With.much.interest.I.sat.watching.him.Savage.though.he.was.and.hideously.marred.about.the.face.at.least.to.my.taste.his.countenance.yet.had.a.something.in.it.which.was.by.no.means.disagreeable.You.cannot.hide.the.soul.Through.all.his.unearthly.tattooings.I.thought.I.saw.the.traces.of.a.simple.honest.heart.and.in.his.large.deep.eyes.fiery.black.and.bold.there.seemed.tokens.of.a.spirit.that.would.dare.a.thousand.devils.And.besides.all.this.there.was.a.certain.lofty.bearing.about.the.Pagan.which.even.his.uncouthness.could.not.altogether.maim.He.looked.like.a.man.who.had.never.cringed.and.never.had.had.a.creditor.Whether.it.was.too.that.his.head.being.shaved.his.forehead.was.drawn.out.in.freer.and.brighter.relief.and.looked.more.expansive.than.it.otherwise.would.this.I.will.not.venture.to.decide.but.certain.it.was.his.head.was.phrenologically.an.excellent.one.It.may.seem.ridiculous.but.it.reminded.me.of.General.Washingtons.head.as.seen.in.the.popular.busts.of.him.It.had.the.same.long.regularly.graded.retreating.slope.from.above.the.brows.which.were.likewise.very.projecting.like.two.long.promontories.thickly.wooded.on.top.Queequeg.was.George.Washington.cannibalistically.developed.Whilst.I.was.thus.closely.scanning.him.halfpretending.meanwhile.to.be.looking.out.at.the.storm.from.the.casement.he.never.heeded.my.presence.never.troubled.himself.with.so.much.as.a.single.glance.but.appeared.wholly.occupied.with.counting.the.pages.of.the.marvellous.book.Considering.how.sociably.we.had.been.sleeping.together.the.night.previous.and.especially.considering.the.affectionate.arm.I.had.found.thrown.over.me.upon.waking.in.the.morning.I.thought.this.indifference.of.his.very.strange.But.savages.are.strange.beings.at.times.you.do.not.know.exactly.how.to.take.them.At.first.they.are.overawing.their.calm.selfcollectedness.of.simplicity.seems.a.Socratic.wisdom.I.had.noticed.also.that.Queequeg.never.consorted.at.all.or.but.very.little.with.the.other.seamen.in.the.inn.He.made.no.advances.whatever.appeared.to.have.no.desire.to.enlarge.the.circle.of.his.acquaintances.All.this.struck.me.as.mighty.singular.yet.upon.second.thoughts.there.was.something.almost.sublime.in.it.Here.was.a.man.some.twenty.thousand.miles.from.home.by.the.way.of.Cape.Horn.that.is.which.was.the.only.way.he.could.get.there.thrown.among.people.as.strange.to.him.as.though.he.were.in.the.planet.Jupiter.and.yet.he.seemed.entirely.at.his.ease.preserving.the.utmost.serenity.content.with.his.own.companionship.always.equal.to.himself.Surely.this.was.a.touch.of.fine.philosophy.though.no.doubt.he.had.never.heard.there.was.such.a.thing.as.that.But.perhaps.to.be.true.philosophers.we.mortals.should.not.be.conscious.of.so.living.or.so.striving.So.soon.as.I.hear.that.such.or.such.a.man.gives.himself.out.for.a.philosopher.I.conclude.that.like.the.dyspeptic.old.woman.he.must.have.broken.his.digester.As.I.sat.there.in.that.now.lonely.room.the.fire.burning.low.in.that.mild.stage.when.after.its.first.intensity.has.warmed.the.air.it.then.only.glows.to.be.looked.at.the.evening.shades.and.phantoms.gathering.round.the.casements.and.peering.in.upon.us.silent.solitary.twain.the.storm.booming.without.in.solemn.swells.I.began.to.be.sensible.of.strange.feelings.I.felt.a.melting.in.me.No.more.my.splintered.heart.and.maddened.hand.were.turned.against.the.wolfish.world.This.soothing.savage.had.redeemed.it.There.he.sat.his.very.indifference.speaking.a.nature.in.which.there.lurked.no.civilized.hypocrisies.and.bland.deceits.Wild.he.was.a.very.sight.of.sights.to.see.yet.I.began.to.feel.myself.mysteriously.drawn.towards.him.And.those.same.things.that.would.have.repelled.most.others.they.were.the.very.magnets.that.thus.drew.me.Ill.try.a.pagan.friend.thought.I.since.Christian.kindness.has.proved.but.hollow.courtesy.I.drew.my.bench.near.him.and.made.some.friendly.signs.and.hints.doing.my.best.to.talk.with.him.meanwhile.At.first.he.little.noticed.these.advances.but.presently.upon.my.referring.to.his.last.nights.hospitalities.he.made.out.to.ask.me.whether.we.were.again.to.be.bedfellows.I.told.him.yes.whereat.I.thought.he.looked.pleased.perhaps.a.little.complimented.We.then.turned.over.the.book.together.and.I.endeavored.to.explain.to.him.the.purpose.of.the.printing.and.the.meaning.of.the.few.pictures.that.were.in.it.Thus.I.soon.engaged.his.interest.and.from.that.we.went.to.jabbering.the.best.we.could.about.the.various.outer.sights.to.be.seen.in.this.famous.town.Soon.I.proposed.a.social.smoke.and.producing.his.pouch.and.tomahawk.he.quietly.offered.me.a.puff.And.then.we.sat.exchanging.puffs.from.that.wild.pipe.of.his.and.keeping.it.regularly.passing.between.us.If.there.yet.lurked.any.ice.of.indifference.towards.me.in.the.Pagans.breast.this.pleasant.genial.smoke.we.had.soon.thawed.it.out.and.left.us.cronies.He.seemed.to.take.to.me.quite.as.naturally.and.unbiddenly.as.I.to.him.and.when.our.smoke.was.over.he.pressed.his.forehead.against.mine.clasped.me.round.the.waist.and.said.that.henceforth.we.were.married.meaning.in.his.countrys.phrase.that.we.were.bosom.friends.he.would.gladly.die.for.me.if.need.should.be.In.a.countryman.this.sudden.flame.of.friendship.would.have.seemed.far.too.premature.a.thing.to.be.much.distrusted.but.in.this.simple.savage.those.old.rules.would.not.apply.After.supper.and.another.social.chat.and.smoke.we.went.to.our.room.together.He.made.me.a.present.of.his.embalmed.head.took.out.his.enormous.tobacco.wallet.and.groping.under.the.tobacco.drew.out.some.thirty.dollars.in.silver.then.spreading.them.on.the.table.and.mechanically.dividing.them.into.two.equal.portions.pushed.one.of.them.towards.me.and.said.it.was.mine.I.was.going.to.remonstrate.but.he.silenced.me.by.pouring.them.into.my.trowsers.pockets.I.let.them.stay.He.then.went.about.his.evening.prayers.took.out.his.idol.and.removed.the.paper.fireboard.By.certain.signs.and.symptoms.I.thought.he.seemed.anxious.for.me.to.join.him.but.well.knowing.what.was.to.follow.I.deliberated.a.moment.whether.in.case.he.invited.me.I.would.comply.or.otherwise.I.was.a.good.Christian.born.and.bred.in.the.bosom.of.the.infallible.Presbyterian.Church.How.then.could.I.unite.with.this.wild.idolator.in.worshipping.his.piece.of.wood.But.what.is.worship.thought.I.Do.you.suppose.now.Ishmael.that.the.magnanimous.God.of.heaven.and.earth.pagans.and.all.included.can.possibly.be.jealous.of.an.insignificant.bit.of.black.wood.Impossible.But.what.is.worship.to.do.the.will.of.God.that.is.worship.And.what.is.the.will.of.God.to.do.to.my.fellow.man.what.I.would.have.my.fellow.man.to.do.to.me.that.is.the.will.of.God.Now.Queequeg.is.my.fellow.man.And.what.do.I.wish.that.this.Queequeg.would.do.to.me.Why.unite.with.me.in.my.particular.Presbyterian.form.of.worship.Consequently.I.must.then.unite.with.him.in.his.ergo.I.must.turn.idolator.So.I.kindled.the.shavings.helped.prop.up.the.innocent.little.idol.offered.him.burnt.biscuit.with.Queequeg.salamed.before.him.twice.or.thrice.kissed.his.nose.and.that.done.we.undressed.and.went.to.bed.at.peace.with.our.own.consciences.and.all.the.world.But.we.did.not.go.to.sleep.without.some.little.chat.How.it.is.I.know.not.but.there.is.no.place.like.a.bed.for.confidential.disclosures.between.friends.Man.and.wife.they.say.there.open.the.very.bottom.of.their.souls.to.each.other.and.some.old.couples.often.lie.and.chat.over.old.times.till.nearly.morning.Thus.then.in.our.hearts.honeymoon.lay.I.and.Queequeg.a.cosy.loving.pair.CHAPTER.11.Nightgown.We.had.lain.thus.in.bed.chatting.and.napping.at.short.intervals.and.Queequeg.now.and.then.affectionately.throwing.his.brown.tattooed.legs.over.mine.and.then.drawing.them.back.so.entirely.sociable.and.free.and.easy.were.we.when.at.last.by.reason.of.our.confabulations.what.little.nappishness.remained.in.us.altogether.departed.and.we.felt.like.getting.up.again.though.daybreak.was.yet.some.way.down.the.future.Yes.we.became.very.wakeful.so.much.so.that.our.recumbent.position.began.to.grow.wearisome.and.by.little.and.little.we.found.ourselves.sitting.up.the.clothes.well.tucked.around.us.leaning.against.the.headboard.with.our.four.knees.drawn.up.close.together.and.our.two.noses.bending.over.them.as.if.our.kneepans.were.warmingpans.We.felt.very.nice.and.snug.the.more.so.since.it.was.so.chilly.out.of.doors.indeed.out.of.bedclothes.too.seeing.that.there.was.no.fire.in.the.room.The.more.so.I.say.because.truly.to.enjoy.bodily.warmth.some.small.part.of.you.must.be.cold.for.there.is.no.quality.in.this.world.that.is.not.what.it.is.merely.by.contrast.Nothing.exists.in.itself.If.you.flatter.yourself.that.you.are.all.over.comfortable.and.have.been.so.a.long.time.then.you.cannot.be.said.to.be.comfortable.any.more.But.if.like.Queequeg.and.me.in.the.bed.the.tip.of.your.nose.or.the.crown.of.your.head.be.slightly.chilled.why.then.indeed.in.the.general.consciousness.you.feel.most.delightfully.and.unmistakably.warm.For.this.reason.a.sleeping.apartment.should.never.be.furnished.with.a.fire.which.is.one.of.the.luxurious.discomforts.of.the.rich.For.the.height.of.this.sort.of.deliciousness.is.to.have.nothing.but.the.blanket.between.you.and.your.snugness.and.the.cold.of.the.outer.air.Then.there.you.lie.like.the.one.warm.spark.in.the.heart.of.an.arctic.crystal.We.had.been.sitting.in.this.crouching.manner.for.some.time.when.all.at.once.I.thought.I.would.open.my.eyes.for.when.between.sheets.whether.by.day.or.by.night.and.whether.asleep.or.awake.I.have.a.way.of.always.keeping.my.eyes.shut.in.order.the.more.to.concentrate.the.snugness.of.being.in.bed.Because.no.man.can.ever.feel.his.own.identity.aright.except.his.eyes.be.closed.as.if.darkness.were.indeed.the.proper.element.of.our.essences.though.light.be.more.congenial.to.our.clayey.part.Upon.opening.my.eyes.then.and.coming.out.of.my.own.pleasant.and.selfcreated.darkness.into.the.imposed.and.coarse.outer.gloom.of.the.unilluminated.twelveoclockatnight.I.experienced.a.disagreeable.revulsion.Nor.did.I.at.all.object.to.the.hint.from.Queequeg.that.perhaps.it.were.best.to.strike.a.light.seeing.that.we.were.so.wide.awake.and.besides.he.felt.a.strong.desire.to.have.a.few.quiet.puffs.from.his.Tomahawk.Be.it.said.that.though.I.had.felt.such.a.strong.repugnance.to.his.smoking.in.the.bed.the.night.before.yet.see.how.elastic.our.stiff.prejudices.grow.when.love.once.comes.to.bend.them.For.now.I.liked.nothing.better.than.to.have.Queequeg.smoking.by.me.even.in.bed.because.he.seemed.to.be.full.of.such.serene.household.joy.then.I.no.more.felt.unduly.concerned.for.the.landlords.policy.of.insurance.I.was.only.alive.to.the.condensed.confidential.comfortableness.of.sharing.a.pipe.and.a.blanket.with.a.real.friend.With.our.shaggy.jackets.drawn.about.our.shoulders.we.now.passed.the.Tomahawk.from.one.to.the.other.till.slowly.there.grew.over.us.a.blue.hanging.tester.of.smoke.illuminated.by.the.flame.of.the.newlit.lamp.Whether.it.was.that.this.undulating.tester.rolled.the.savage.away.to.far.distant.scenes.I.know.not.but.he.now.spoke.of.his.native.island.and.eager.to.hear.his.history.I.begged.him.to.go.on.and.tell.it.He.gladly.complied.Though.at.the.time.I.but.ill.comprehended.not.a.few.of.his.words.yet.subsequent.disclosures.when.I.had.become.more.familiar.with.his.broken.phraseology.now.enable.me.to.present.the.whole.story.such.as.it.may.prove.in.the.mere.skeleton.I.give.CHAPTER.12.Biographical.Queequeg.was.a.native.of.Rokovoko.an.island.far.away.to.the.West.and.South.It.is.not.down.in.any.map.true.places.never.are.When.a.newhatched.savage.running.wild.about.his.native.woodlands.in.a.grass.clout.followed.by.the.nibbling.goats.as.if.he.were.a.green.sapling.even.then.in.Queequegs.ambitious.soul.lurked.a.strong.desire.to.see.something.more.of.Christendom.than.a.specimen.whaler.or.two.His.father.was.a.High.Chief.a.King.his.uncle.a.High.Priest.and.on.the.maternal.side.he.boasted.aunts.who.were.the.wives.of.unconquerable.warriors.There.was.excellent.blood.in.his.veins.royal.stuff.though.sadly.vitiated.I.fear.by.the.cannibal.propensity.he.nourished.in.his.untutored.youth.A.Sag.Harbor.ship.visited.his.fathers.bay.and.Queequeg.sought.a.passage.to.Christian.lands.But.the.ship.having.her.full.complement.of.seamen.spurned.his.suit.and.not.all.the.King.his.fathers.influence.could.prevail.But.Queequeg.vowed.a.vow.Alone.in.his.canoe.he.paddled.off.to.a.distant.strait.which.he.knew.the.ship.must.pass.through.when.she.quitted.the.island.On.one.side.was.a.coral.reef.on.the.other.a.low.tongue.of.land.covered.with.mangrove.thickets.that.grew.out.into.the.water.Hiding.his.canoe.still.afloat.among.these.thickets.with.its.prow.seaward.he.sat.down.in.the.stern.paddle.low.in.hand.and.when.the.ship.was.gliding.by.like.a.flash.he.darted.out.gained.her.side.with.one.backward.dash.of.his.foot.capsized.and.sank.his.canoe.climbed.up.the.chains.and.throwing.himself.at.full.length.upon.the.deck.grappled.a.ringbolt.there.and.swore.not.to.let.it.go.though.hacked.in.pieces.In.vain.the.captain.threatened.to.throw.him.overboard.suspended.a.cutlass.over.his.naked.wrists.Queequeg.was.the.son.of.a.King.and.Queequeg.budged.not.Struck.by.his.desperate.dauntlessness.and.his.wild.desire.to.visit.Christendom.the.captain.at.last.relented.and.told.him.he.might.make.himself.at.home.But.this.fine.young.savage.this.sea.Prince.of.Wales.never.saw.the.Captains.cabin.They.put.him.down.among.the.sailors.and.made.a.whaleman.of.him.But.like.Czar.Peter.content.to.toil.in.the.shipyards.of.foreign.cities.Queequeg.disdained.no.seeming.ignominy.if.thereby.he.might.happily.gain.the.power.of.enlightening.his.untutored.countrymen.For.at.bottom.so.he.told.me.he.was.actuated.by.a.profound.desire.to.learn.among.the.Christians.the.arts.whereby.to.make.his.people.still.happier.than.they.were.and.more.than.that.still.better.than.they.were.But.alas.the.practices.of.whalemen.soon.convinced.him.that.even.Christians.could.be.both.miserable.and.wicked.infinitely.more.so.than.all.his.fathers.heathens.Arrived.at.last.in.old.Sag.Harbor.and.seeing.what.the.sailors.did.there.and.then.going.on.to.Nantucket.and.seeing.how.they.spent.their.wages.in.that.place.also.poor.Queequeg.gave.it.up.for.lost.Thought.he.its.a.wicked.world.in.all.meridians.Ill.die.a.pagan.And.thus.an.old.idolator.at.heart.he.yet.lived.among.these.Christians.wore.their.clothes.and.tried.to.talk.their.gibberish.Hence.the.queer.ways.about.him.though.now.some.time.from.home.By.hints.I.asked.him.whether.he.did.not.propose.going.back.and.having.a.coronation.since.he.might.now.consider.his.father.dead.and.gone.he.being.very.old.and.feeble.at.the.last.accounts.He.answered.no.not.yet.and.added.that.he.was.fearful.Christianity.or.rather.Christians.had.unfitted.him.for.ascending.the.pure.and.undefiled.throne.of.thirty.pagan.Kings.before.him.But.by.and.by.he.said.he.would.return.as.soon.as.he.felt.himself.baptized.again.For.the.nonce.however.he.proposed.to.sail.about.and.sow.his.wild.oats.in.all.four.oceans.They.had.made.a.harpooneer.of.him.and.that.barbed.iron.was.in.lieu.of.a.sceptre.now.I.asked.him.what.might.be.his.immediate.purpose.touching.his.future.movements.He.answered.to.go.to.sea.again.in.his.old.vocation.Upon.this.I.told.him.that.whaling.was.my.own.design.and.informed.him.of.my.intention.to.sail.out.of.Nantucket.as.being.the.most.promising.port.for.an.adventurous.whaleman.to.embark.from.He.at.once.resolved.to.accompany.me.to.that.island.ship.aboard.the.same.vessel.get.into.the.same.watch.the.same.boat.the.same.mess.with.me.in.short.to.share.my.every.hap.with.both.my.hands.in.his.boldly.dip.into.the.Potluck.of.both.worlds.To.all.this.I.joyously.assented.for.besides.the.affection.I.now.felt.for.Queequeg.he.was.an.experienced.harpooneer.and.as.such.could.not.fail.to.be.of.great.usefulness.to.one.who.like.me.was.wholly.ignorant.of.the.mysteries.of.whaling.though.well.acquainted.with.the.sea.as.known.to.merchant.seamen.His.story.being.ended.with.his.pipes.last.dying.puff.Queequeg.embraced.me.pressed.his.forehead.against.mine.and.blowing.out.the.light.we.rolled.over.from.each.other.this.way.and.that.and.very.soon.were.sleeping.CHAPTER.13.Wheelbarrow.Next.morning.Monday.after.disposing.of.the.embalmed.head.to.a.barber.for.a.block.I.settled.my.own.and.comrades.bill.using.however.my.comrades.money.The.grinning.landlord.as.well.as.the.boarders.seemed.amazingly.tickled.at.the.sudden.friendship.which.had.sprung.up.between.me.and.Queequeg.especially.as.Peter.Coffins.cock.and.bull.stories.about.him.had.previously.so.much.alarmed.me.concerning.the.very.person.whom.I.now.companied.with.We.borrowed.a.wheelbarrow.and.embarking.our.things.including.my.own.poor.carpetbag.and.Queequegs.canvas.sack.and.hammock.away.we.went.down.to.the.Moss.the.little.Nantucket.packet.schooner.moored.at.the.wharf.As.we.were.going.along.the.people.stared.not.at.Queequeg.so.much.for.they.were.used.to.seeing.cannibals.like.him.in.their.streets.but.at.seeing.him.and.me.upon.such.confidential.terms.But.we.heeded.them.not.going.along.wheeling.the.barrow.by.turns.and.Queequeg.now.and.then.stopping.to.adjust.the.sheath.on.his.harpoon.barbs.I.asked.him.why.he.carried.such.a.troublesome.thing.with.him.ashore.and.whether.all.whaling.ships.did.not.find.their.own.harpoons.To.this.in.substance.he.replied.that.though.what.I.hinted.was.true.enough.yet.he.had.a.particular.affection.for.his.own.harpoon.because.it.was.of.assured.stuff.well.tried.in.many.a.mortal.combat.and.deeply.intimate.with.the.hearts.of.whales.In.short.like.many.inland.reapers.and.mowers.who.go.into.the.farmers.meadows.armed.with.their.own.scythes.though.in.no.wise.obliged.to.furnish.them.even.so.Queequeg.for.his.own.private.reasons.preferred.his.own.harpoon.Shifting.the.barrow.from.my.hand.to.his.he.told.me.a.funny.story.about.the.first.wheelbarrow.he.had.ever.seen.It.was.in.Sag.Harbor.The.owners.of.his.ship.it.seems.had.lent.him.one.in.which.to.carry.his.heavy.chest.to.his.boarding.house.Not.to.seem.ignorant.about.the.thing.though.in.truth.he.was.entirely.so.concerning.the.precise.way.in.which.to.manage.the.barrow.Queequeg.puts.his.chest.upon.it.lashes.it.fast.and.then.shoulders.the.barrow.and.marches.up.the.wharf.Why.said.I.Queequeg.you.might.have.known.better.than.that.one.would.think.Didnt.the.people.laugh.Upon.this.he.told.me.another.story.The.people.of.his.island.of.Rokovoko.it.seems.at.their.wedding.feasts.express.the.fragrant.water.of.young.cocoanuts.into.a.large.stained.calabash.like.a.punchbowl.and.this.punchbowl.always.forms.the.great.central.ornament.on.the.braided.mat.where.the.feast.is.held.Now.a.certain.grand.merchant.ship.once.touched.at.Rokovoko.and.its.commander.from.all.accounts.a.very.stately.punctilious.gentleman.at.least.for.a.sea.captain.this.commander.was.invited.to.the.wedding.feast.of.Queequegs.sister.a.pretty.young.princess.just.turned.of.ten.Well.when.all.the.wedding.guests.were.assembled.at.the.brides.bamboo.cottage.this.Captain.marches.in.and.being.assigned.the.post.of.honor.placed.himself.over.against.the.punchbowl.and.between.the.High.Priest.and.his.majesty.the.King.Queequegs.father.Grace.being.said.for.those.people.have.their.grace.as.well.as.we.though.Queequeg.told.me.that.unlike.us.who.at.such.times.look.downwards.to.our.platters.they.on.the.contrary.copying.the.ducks.glance.upwards.to.the.great.Giver.of.all.feasts.Grace.I.say.being.said.the.High.Priest.opens.the.banquet.by.the.immemorial.ceremony.of.the.island.that.is.dipping.his.consecrated.and.consecrating.fingers.into.the.bowl.before.the.blessed.beverage.circulates.Seeing.himself.placed.next.the.Priest.and.noting.the.ceremony.and.thinking.himself.being.Captain.of.a.ship.as.having.plain.precedence.over.a.mere.island.King.especially.in.the.Kings.own.house.the.Captain.coolly.proceeds.to.wash.his.hands.in.the.punchbowl.taking.it.I.suppose.for.a.huge.fingerglass.Now.said.Queequeg.what.you.tink.now.Didnt.our.people.laugh.At.last.passage.paid.and.luggage.safe.we.stood.on.board.the.schooner.Hoisting.sail.it.glided.down.the.Acushnet.river.On.one.side.New.Bedford.rose.in.terraces.of.streets.their.icecovered.trees.all.glittering.in.the.clear.cold.air.Huge.hills.and.mountains.of.casks.on.casks.were.piled.upon.her.wharves.and.side.by.side.the.worldwandering.whale.ships.lay.silent.and.safely.moored.at.last.while.from.others.came.a.sound.of.carpenters.and.coopers.with.blended.noises.of.fires.and.forges.to.melt.the.pitch.all.betokening.that.new.cruises.were.on.the.start.that.one.most.perilous.and.long.voyage.ended.only.begins.a.second.and.a.second.ended.only.begins.a.third.and.so.on.for.ever.and.for.aye.Such.is.the.endlessness.yea.the.intolerableness.of.all.earthly.effort.Gaining.the.more.open.water.the.bracing.breeze.waxed.fresh.the.little.Moss.tossed.the.quick.foam.from.her.bows.as.a.young.colt.his.snortings.How.I.snuffed.that.Tartar.air.how.I.spurned.that.turnpike.earth.that.common.highway.all.over.dented.with.the.marks.of.slavish.heels.and.hoofs.and.turned.me.to.admire.the.magnanimity.of.the.sea.which.will.permit.no.records.At.the.same.foamfountain.Queequeg.seemed.to.drink.and.reel.with.me.His.dusky.nostrils.swelled.apart.he.showed.his.filed.and.pointed.teeth.On.on.we.flew.and.our.offing.gained.the.Moss.did.homage.to.the.blast.ducked.and.dived.her.bows.as.a.slave.before.the.Sultan.Sideways.leaning.we.sideways.darted.every.ropeyarn.tingling.like.a.wire.the.two.tall.masts.buckling.like.Indian.canes.in.land.tornadoes.So.full.of.this.reeling.scene.were.we.as.we.stood.by.the.plunging.bowsprit.that.for.some.time.we.did.not.notice.the.jeering.glances.of.the.passengers.a.lubberlike.assembly.who.marvelled.that.two.fellow.beings.should.be.so.companionable.as.though.a.white.man.were.anything.more.dignified.than.a.whitewashed.negro.But.there.were.some.boobies.and.bumpkins.there.who.by.their.intense.greenness.must.have.come.from.the.heart.and.centre.of.all.verdure.Queequeg.caught.one.of.these.young.saplings.mimicking.him.behind.his.back.I.thought.the.bumpkins.hour.of.doom.was.come.Dropping.his.harpoon.the.brawny.savage.caught.him.in.his.arms.and.by.an.almost.miraculous.dexterity.and.strength.sent.him.high.up.bodily.into.the.air.then.slightly.tapping.his.stern.in.midsomerset.the.fellow.landed.with.bursting.lungs.upon.his.feet.while.Queequeg.turning.his.back.upon.him.lighted.his.tomahawk.pipe.and.passed.it.to.me.for.a.puff.Capting.Capting.yelled.the.bumpkin.running.towards.that.officer.Capting.Capting.heres.the.devil.Hallo.you.sir.cried.the.Captain.a.gaunt.rib.of.the.sea.stalking.up.to.Queequeg.what.in.thunder.do.you.mean.by.that.Dont.you.know.you.might.have.killed.that.chap.What.him.say.said.Queequeg.as.he.mildly.turned.to.me.He.say.said.I.that.you.came.near.kille.that.man.there.pointing.to.the.still.shivering.greenhorn.Kille.cried.Queequeg.twisting.his.tattooed.face.into.an.unearthly.expression.of.disdain.ah.him.bevy.smalle.fishe.Queequeg.no.kille.so.smalle.fishe.Queequeg.kille.big.whale.Look.you.roared.the.Captain.Ill.kille.you.you.cannibal.if.you.try.any.more.of.your.tricks.aboard.here.so.mind.your.eye.But.it.so.happened.just.then.that.it.was.high.time.for.the.Captain.to.mind.his.own.eye.The.prodigious.strain.upon.the.mainsail.had.parted.the.weathersheet.and.the.tremendous.boom.was.now.flying.from.side.to.side.completely.sweeping.the.entire.after.part.of.the.deck.The.poor.fellow.whom.Queequeg.had.handled.so.roughly.was.swept.overboard.all.hands.were.in.a.panic.and.to.attempt.snatching.at.the.boom.to.stay.it.seemed.madness.It.flew.from.right.to.left.and.back.again.almost.in.one.ticking.of.a.watch.and.every.instant.seemed.on.the.point.of.snapping.into.splinters.Nothing.was.done.and.nothing.seemed.capable.of.being.done.those.on.deck.rushed.towards.the.bows.and.stood.eyeing.the.boom.as.if.it.were.the.lower.jaw.of.an.exasperated.whale.In.the.midst.of.this.consternation.Queequeg.dropped.deftly.to.his.knees.and.crawling.under.the.path.of.the.boom.whipped.hold.of.a.rope.secured.one.end.to.the.bulwarks.and.then.flinging.the.other.like.a.lasso.caught.it.round.the.boom.as.it.swept.over.his.head.and.at.the.next.jerk.the.spar.was.that.way.trapped.and.all.was.safe.The.schooner.was.run.into.the.wind.and.while.the.hands.were.clearing.away.the.stern.boat.Queequeg.stripped.to.the.waist.darted.from.the.side.with.a.long.living.arc.of.a.leap.For.three.minutes.or.more.he.was.seen.swimming.like.a.dog.throwing.his.long.arms.straight.out.before.him.and.by.turns.revealing.his.brawny.shoulders.through.the.freezing.foam.I.looked.at.the.grand.and.glorious.fellow.but.saw.no.one.to.be.saved.The.greenhorn.had.gone.down.Shooting.himself.perpendicularly.from.the.water.Queequeg.now.took.an.instants.glance.around.him.and.seeming.to.see.just.how.matters.were.dived.down.and.disappeared.A.few.minutes.more.and.he.rose.again.one.arm.still.striking.out.and.with.the.other.dragging.a.lifeless.form.The.boat.soon.picked.them.up.The.poor.bumpkin.was.restored.All.hands.voted.Queequeg.a.noble.trump.the.captain.begged.his.pardon.From.that.hour.I.clove.to.Queequeg.like.a.barnacle.yea.till.poor.Queequeg.took.his.last.long.dive.Was.there.ever.such.unconsciousness.He.did.not.seem.to.think.that.he.at.all.deserved.a.medal.from.the.Humane.and.Magnanimous.Societies.He.only.asked.for.water.fresh.water.something.to.wipe.the.brine.off.that.done.he.put.on.dry.clothes.lighted.his.pipe.and.leaning.against.the.bulwarks.and.mildly.eyeing.those.around.him.seemed.to.be.saying.to.himself.Its.a.mutual.jointstock.world.in.all.meridians.We.cannibals.must.help.these.Christians.CHAPTER.14.Nantucket.Nothing.more.happened.on.the.passage.worthy.the.mentioning.so.after.a.fine.run.we.safely.arrived.in.Nantucket.Nantucket.Take.out.your.map.and.look.at.it.See.what.a.real.corner.of.the.world.it.occupies.how.it.stands.there.away.off.shore.more.lonely.than.the.Eddystone.lighthouse.Look.at.it.a.mere.hillock.and.elbow.of.sand.all.beach.without.a.background.There.is.more.sand.there.than.you.would.use.in.twenty.years.as.a.substitute.for.blotting.paper.Some.gamesome.wights.will.tell.you.that.they.have.to.plant.weeds.there.they.dont.grow.naturally.that.they.import.Canada.thistles.that.they.have.to.send.beyond.seas.for.a.spile.to.stop.a.leak.in.an.oil.cask.that.pieces.of.wood.in.Nantucket.are.carried.about.like.bits.of.the.true.cross.in.Rome.that.people.there.plant.toadstools.before.their.houses.to.get.under.the.shade.in.summer.time.that.one.blade.of.grass.makes.an.oasis.three.blades.in.a.days.walk.a.prairie.that.they.wear.quicksand.shoes.something.like.Laplander.snowshoes.that.they.are.so.shut.up.belted.about.every.way.inclosed.surrounded.and.made.an.utter.island.of.by.the.ocean.that.to.their.very.chairs.and.tables.small.clams.will.sometimes.be.found.adhering.as.to.the.backs.of.sea.turtles.But.these.extravaganzas.only.show.that.Nantucket.is.no.Illinois.Look.now.at.the.wondrous.traditional.story.of.how.this.island.was.settled.by.the.redmen.Thus.goes.the.legend.In.olden.times.an.eagle.swooped.down.upon.the.New.England.coast.and.carried.off.an.infant.Indian.in.his.talons.With.loud.lament.the.parents.saw.their.child.borne.out.of.sight.over.the.wide.waters.They.resolved.to.follow.in.the.same.direction.Setting.out.in.their.canoes.after.a.perilous.passage.they.discovered.the.island.and.there.they.found.an.empty.ivory.casket.the.poor.little.Indians.skeleton.What.wonder.then.that.these.Nantucketers.born.on.a.beach.should.take.to.the.sea.for.a.livelihood.They.first.caught.crabs.and.quohogs.in.the.sand.grown.bolder.they.waded.out.with.nets.for.mackerel.more.experienced.they.pushed.off.in.boats.and.captured.cod.and.at.last.launching.a.navy.of.great.ships.on.the.sea.explored.this.watery.world.put.an.incessant.belt.of.circumnavigations.round.it.peeped.in.at.Behrings.Straits.and.in.all.seasons.and.all.oceans.declared.everlasting.war.with.the.mightiest.animated.mass.that.has.survived.the.flood.most.monstrous.and.most.mountainous.That.Himmalehan.saltsea.Mastodon.clothed.with.such.portentousness.of.unconscious.power.that.his.very.panics.are.more.to.be.dreaded.than.his.most.fearless.and.malicious.assaults.And.thus.have.these.naked.Nantucketers.these.sea.hermits.issuing.from.their.anthill.in.the.sea.overrun.and.conquered.the.watery.world.like.so.many.Alexanders.parcelling.out.among.them.the.Atlantic.Pacific.and.Indian.oceans.as.the.three.pirate.powers.did.Poland.Let.America.add.Mexico.to.Texas.and.pile.Cuba.upon.Canada.let.the.English.overswarm.all.India.and.hang.out.their.blazing.banner.from.the.sun.two.thirds.of.this.terraqueous.globe.are.the.Nantucketers.For.the.sea.is.his.he.owns.it.as.Emperors.own.empires.other.seamen.having.but.a.right.of.way.through.it.Merchant.ships.are.but.extension.bridges.armed.ones.but.floating.forts.even.pirates.and.privateers.though.following.the.sea.as.highwaymen.the.road.they.but.plunder.other.ships.other.fragments.of.the.land.like.themselves.without.seeking.to.draw.their.living.from.the.bottomless.deep.itself.The.Nantucketer.he.alone.resides.and.riots.on.the.sea.he.alone.in.Bible.language.goes.down.to.it.in.ships.to.and.fro.ploughing.it.as.his.own.special.plantation.There.is.his.home.there.lies.his.business.which.a.Noahs.flood.would.not.interrupt.though.it.overwhelmed.all.the.millions.in.China.He.lives.on.the.sea.as.prairie.cocks.in.the.prairie.he.hides.among.the.waves.he.climbs.them.as.chamois.hunters.climb.the.Alps.For.years.he.knows.not.the.land.so.that.when.he.comes.to.it.at.last.it.smells.like.another.world.more.strangely.than.the.moon.would.to.an.Earthsman.With.the.landless.gull.that.at.sunset.folds.her.wings.and.is.rocked.to.sleep.between.billows.so.at.nightfall.the.Nantucketer.out.of.sight.of.land.furls.his.sails.and.lays.him.to.his.rest.while.under.his.very.pillow.rush.herds.of.walruses.and.whales.CHAPTER.15.Chowder.It.was.quite.late.in.the.evening.when.the.little.Moss.came.snugly.to.anchor.and.Queequeg.and.I.went.ashore.so.we.could.attend.to.no.business.that.day.at.least.none.but.a.supper.and.a.bed.The.landlord.of.the.SpouterInn.had.recommended.us.to.his.cousin.Hosea.Hussey.of.the.Try.Pots.whom.he.asserted.to.be.the.proprietor.of.one.of.the.best.kept.hotels.in.all.Nantucket.and.moreover.he.had.assured.us.that.Cousin.Hosea.as.he.called.him.was.famous.for.his.chowders.In.short.he.plainly.hinted.that.we.could.not.possibly.do.better.than.try.potluck.at.the.Try.Pots.But.the.directions.he.had.given.us.about.keeping.a.yellow.warehouse.on.our.starboard.hand.till.we.opened.a.white.church.to.the.larboard.and.then.keeping.that.on.the.larboard.hand.till.we.made.a.corner.three.points.to.the.starboard.and.that.done.then.ask.the.first.man.we.met.where.the.place.was.these.crooked.directions.of.his.very.much.puzzled.us.at.first.especially.as.at.the.outset.Queequeg.insisted.that.the.yellow.warehouse.our.first.point.of.departure.must.be.left.on.the.larboard.hand.whereas.I.had.understood.Peter.Coffin.to.say.it.was.on.the.starboard.However.by.dint.of.beating.about.a.little.in.the.dark.and.now.and.then.knocking.up.a.peaceable.inhabitant.to.inquire.the.way.we.at.last.came.to.something.which.there.was.no.mistaking.Two.enormous.wooden.pots.painted.black.and.suspended.by.asses.ears.swung.from.the.crosstrees.of.an.old.topmast.planted.in.front.of.an.old.doorway.The.horns.of.the.crosstrees.were.sawed.off.on.the.other.side.so.that.this.old.topmast.looked.not.a.little.like.a.gallows.Perhaps.I.was.over.sensitive.to.such.impressions.at.the.time.but.I.could.not.help.staring.at.this.gallows.with.a.vague.misgiving.A.sort.of.crick.was.in.my.neck.as.I.gazed.up.to.the.two.remaining.horns.yes.two.of.them.one.for.Queequeg.and.one.for.me.Its.ominous.thinks.I.A.Coffin.my.Innkeeper.upon.landing.in.my.first.whaling.port.tombstones.staring.at.me.in.the.whalemens.chapel.and.here.a.gallows.and.a.pair.of.prodigious.black.pots.too.Are.these.last.throwing.out.oblique.hints.touching.Tophet.I.was.called.from.these.reflections.by.the.sight.of.a.freckled.woman.with.yellow.hair.and.a.yellow.gown.standing.in.the.porch.of.the.inn.under.a.dull.red.lamp.swinging.there.that.looked.much.like.an.injured.eye.and.carrying.on.a.brisk.scolding.with.a.man.in.a.purple.woollen.shirt.Get.along.with.ye.said.she.to.the.man.or.Ill.be.combing.ye.Come.on.Queequeg.said.I.all.right.Theres.Mrs.Hussey.And.so.it.turned.out.Mr.Hosea.Hussey.being.from.home.but.leaving.Mrs.Hussey.entirely.competent.to.attend.to.all.his.affairs.Upon.making.known.our.desires.for.a.supper.and.a.bed.Mrs.Hussey.postponing.further.scolding.for.the.present.ushered.us.into.a.little.room.and.seating.us.at.a.table.spread.with.the.relics.of.a.recently.concluded.repast.turned.round.to.us.and.said.Clam.or.Cod.Whats.that.about.Cods.maam.said.I.with.much.politeness.Clam.or.Cod.she.repeated.A.clam.for.supper.a.cold.clam.is.that.what.you.mean.Mrs.Hussey.says.I.but.thats.a.rather.cold.and.clammy.reception.in.the.winter.time.aint.it.Mrs.Hussey.But.being.in.a.great.hurry.to.resume.scolding.the.man.in.the.purple.Shirt.who.was.waiting.for.it.in.the.entry.and.seeming.to.hear.nothing.but.the.word.clam.Mrs.Hussey.hurried.towards.an.open.door.leading.to.the.kitchen.and.bawling.out.clam.for.two.disappeared.Queequeg.said.I.do.you.think.that.we.can.make.out.a.supper.for.us.both.on.one.clam.However.a.warm.savory.steam.from.the.kitchen.served.to.belie.the.apparently.cheerless.prospect.before.us.But.when.that.smoking.chowder.came.in.the.mystery.was.delightfully.explained.Oh.sweet.friends.hearken.to.me.It.was.made.of.small.juicy.clams.scarcely.bigger.than.hazel.nuts.mixed.with.pounded.ship.biscuit.and.salted.pork.cut.up.into.little.flakes.the.whole.enriched.with.butter.and.plentifully.seasoned.with.pepper.and.salt.Our.appetites.being.sharpened.by.the.frosty.voyage.and.in.particular.Queequeg.seeing.his.favourite.fishing.food.before.him.and.the.chowder.being.surpassingly.excellent.we.despatched.it.with.great.expedition.when.leaning.back.a.moment.and.bethinking.me.of.Mrs.Husseys.clam.and.cod.announcement.I.thought.I.would.try.a.little.experiment.Stepping.to.the.kitchen.door.I.uttered.the.word.cod.with.great.emphasis.and.resumed.my.seat.In.a.few.moments.the.savoury.steam.came.forth.again.but.with.a.different.flavor.and.in.good.time.a.fine.codchowder.was.placed.before.us.We.resumed.business.and.while.plying.our.spoons.in.the.bowl.thinks.I.to.myself.I.wonder.now.if.this.here.has.any.effect.on.the.head.Whats.that.stultifying.saying.about.chowderheaded.people.But.look.Queequeg.aint.that.a.live.eel.in.your.bowl.Wheres.your.harpoon.Fishiest.of.all.fishy.places.was.the.Try.Pots.which.well.deserved.its.name.for.the.pots.there.were.always.boiling.chowders.Chowder.for.breakfast.and.chowder.for.dinner.and.chowder.for.supper.till.you.began.to.look.for.fishbones.coming.through.your.clothes.The.area.before.the.house.was.paved.with.clamshells.Mrs.Hussey.wore.a.polished.necklace.of.codfish.vertebra.and.Hosea.Hussey.had.his.account.books.bound.in.superior.old.sharkskin.There.was.a.fishy.flavor.to.the.milk.too.which.I.could.not.at.all.account.for.till.one.morning.happening.to.take.a.stroll.along.the.beach.among.some.fishermens.boats.I.saw.Hoseas.brindled.cow.feeding.on.fish.remnants.and.marching.along.the.sand.with.each.foot.in.a.cods.decapitated.head.looking.very.slipshod.I.assure.ye.Supper.concluded.we.received.a.lamp.and.directions.from.Mrs.Hussey.concerning.the.nearest.way.to.bed.but.as.Queequeg.was.about.to.precede.me.up.the.stairs.the.lady.reached.forth.her.arm.and.demanded.his.harpoon.she.allowed.no.harpoon.in.her.chambers.Why.not.said.I.every.true.whaleman.sleeps.with.his.harpoon.but.why.not.Because.its.dangerous.says.she.Ever.since.young.Stiggs.coming.from.that.unfortnt.vyge.of.his.when.he.was.gone.four.years.and.a.half.with.only.three.barrels.of.ile.was.found.dead.in.my.first.floor.back.with.his.harpoon.in.his.side.ever.since.then.I.allow.no.boarders.to.take.sich.dangerous.weepons.in.their.rooms.at.night.So.Mr.Queequeg.for.she.had.learned.his.name.I.will.just.take.this.here.iron.and.keep.it.for.you.till.morning.But.the.chowder.clam.or.cod.tomorrow.for.breakfast.men.Both.says.I.and.lets.have.a.couple.of.smoked.herring.by.way.of.variety.CHAPTER.16.The.Ship.In.bed.we.concocted.our.plans.for.the.morrow.But.to.my.surprise.and.no.small.concern.Queequeg.now.gave.me.to.understand.that.he.had.been.diligently.consulting.Yojo.the.name.of.his.black.little.god.and.Yojo.had.told.him.two.or.three.times.over.and.strongly.insisted.upon.it.everyway.that.instead.of.our.going.together.among.the.whalingfleet.in.harbor.and.in.concert.selecting.our.craft.instead.of.this.I.say.Yojo.earnestly.enjoined.that.the.selection.of.the.ship.should.rest.wholly.with.me.inasmuch.as.Yojo.purposed.befriending.us.and.in.order.to.do.so.had.already.pitched.upon.a.vessel.which.if.left.to.myself.I.Ishmael.should.infallibly.light.upon.for.all.the.world.as.though.it.had.turned.out.by.chance.and.in.that.vessel.I.must.immediately.ship.myself.for.the.present.irrespective.of.Queequeg.I.have.forgotten.to.mention.that.in.many.things.Queequeg.placed.great.confidence.in.the.excellence.of.Yojos.judgment.and.surprising.forecast.of.things.and.cherished.Yojo.with.considerable.esteem.as.a.rather.good.sort.of.god.who.perhaps.meant.well.enough.upon.the.whole.but.in.all.cases.did.not.succeed.in.his.benevolent.designs.Now.this.plan.of.Queequegs.or.rather.Yojos.touching.the.selection.of.our.craft.I.did.not.like.that.plan.at.all.I.had.not.a.little.relied.upon.Queequegs.sagacity.to.point.out.the.whaler.best.fitted.to.carry.us.and.our.fortunes.securely.But.as.all.my.remonstrances.produced.no.effect.upon.Queequeg.I.was.obliged.to.acquiesce.and.accordingly.prepared.to.set.about.this.business.with.a.determined.rushing.sort.of.energy.and.vigor.that.should.quickly.settle.that.trifling.little.affair.Next.morning.early.leaving.Queequeg.shut.up.with.Yojo.in.our.little.bedroom.for.it.seemed.that.it.was.some.sort.of.Lent.or.Ramadan.or.day.of.fasting.humiliation.and.prayer.with.Queequeg.and.Yojo.that.day.how.it.was.I.never.could.find.out.for.though.I.applied.myself.to.it.several.times.I.never.could.master.his.liturgies.and.XXXIX.Articles.leaving.Queequeg.then.fasting.on.his.tomahawk.pipe.and.Yojo.warming.himself.at.his.sacrificial.fire.of.shavings.I.sallied.out.among.the.shipping.After.much.prolonged.sauntering.and.many.random.inquiries.I.learnt.that.there.were.three.ships.up.for.threeyears.voyages.The.Devildam.the.Titbit.and.the.Pequod.DevilDam.I.do.not.know.the.origin.of.Titbit.is.obvious.Pequod.you.will.no.doubt.remember.was.the.name.of.a.celebrated.tribe.of.Massachusetts.Indians.now.extinct.as.the.ancient.Medes.I.peered.and.pryed.about.the.Devildam.from.her.hopped.over.to.the.Titbit.and.finally.going.on.board.the.Pequod.looked.around.her.for.a.moment.and.then.decided.that.this.was.the.very.ship.for.us.You.may.have.seen.many.a.quaint.craft.in.your.day.for.aught.I.know.squaretoed.luggers.mountainous.Japanese.junks.butterbox.galliots.and.what.not.but.take.my.word.for.it.you.never.saw.such.a.rare.old.craft.as.this.same.rare.old.Pequod.She.was.a.ship.of.the.old.school.rather.small.if.anything.with.an.oldfashioned.clawfooted.look.about.her.Long.seasoned.and.weatherstained.in.the.typhoons.and.calms.of.all.four.oceans.her.old.hulls.complexion.was.darkened.like.a.French.grenadiers.who.has.alike.fought.in.Egypt.and.Siberia.Her.venerable.bows.looked.bearded.Her.masts.cut.somewhere.on.the.coast.of.Japan.where.her.original.ones.were.lost.overboard.in.a.gale.her.masts.stood.stiffly.up.like.the.spines.of.the.three.old.kings.of.Cologne.Her.ancient.decks.were.worn.and.wrinkled.like.the.pilgrimworshipped.flagstone.in.Canterbury.Cathedral.where.Becket.bled.But.to.all.these.her.old.antiquities.were.added.new.and.marvellous.features.pertaining.to.the.wild.business.that.for.more.than.half.a.century.she.had.followed.Old.Captain.Peleg.many.years.her.chiefmate.before.he.commanded.another.vessel.of.his.own.and.now.a.retired.seaman.and.one.of.the.principal.owners.of.the.Pequod.this.old.Peleg.during.the.term.of.his.chiefmateship.had.built.upon.her.original.grotesqueness.and.inlaid.it.all.over.with.a.quaintness.both.of.material.and.device.unmatched.by.anything.except.it.be.ThorkillHakes.carved.buckler.or.bedstead.She.was.apparelled.like.any.barbaric.Ethiopian.emperor.his.neck.heavy.with.pendants.of.polished.ivory.She.was.a.thing.of.trophies.A.cannibal.of.a.craft.tricking.herself.forth.in.the.chased.bones.of.her.enemies.All.round.her.unpanelled.open.bulwarks.were.garnished.like.one.continuous.jaw.with.the.long.sharp.teeth.of.the.sperm.whale.inserted.there.for.pins.to.fasten.her.old.hempen.thews.and.tendons.to.Those.thews.ran.not.through.base.blocks.of.land.wood.but.deftly.travelled.over.sheaves.of.seaivory.Scorning.a.turnstile.wheel.at.her.reverend.helm.she.sported.there.a.tiller.and.that.tiller.was.in.one.mass.curiously.carved.from.the.long.narrow.lower.jaw.of.her.hereditary.foe.The.helmsman.who.steered.by.that.tiller.in.a.tempest.felt.like.the.Tartar.when.he.holds.back.his.fiery.steed.by.clutching.its.jaw.A.noble.craft.but.somehow.a.most.melancholy.All.noble.things.are.touched.with.that.Now.when.I.looked.about.the.quarterdeck.for.some.one.having.authority.in.order.to.propose.myself.as.a.candidate.for.the.voyage.at.first.I.saw.nobody.but.I.could.not.well.overlook.a.strange.sort.of.tent.or.rather.wigwam.pitched.a.little.behind.the.mainmast.It.seemed.only.a.temporary.erection.used.in.port.It.was.of.a.conical.shape.some.ten.feet.high.consisting.of.the.long.huge.slabs.of.limber.black.bone.taken.from.the.middle.and.highest.part.of.the.jaws.of.the.rightwhale.Planted.with.their.broad.ends.on.the.deck.a.circle.of.these.slabs.laced.together.mutually.sloped.towards.each.other.and.at.the.apex.united.in.a.tufted.point.where.the.loose.hairy.fibres.waved.to.and.fro.like.the.topknot.on.some.old.Pottowottamie.Sachems.head.A.triangular.opening.faced.towards.the.bows.of.the.ship.so.that.the.insider.commanded.a.complete.view.forward.And.half.concealed.in.this.queer.tenement.I.at.length.found.one.who.by.his.aspect.seemed.to.have.authority.and.who.it.being.noon.and.the.ships.work.suspended.was.now.enjoying.respite.from.the.burden.of.command.He.was.seated.on.an.oldfashioned.oaken.chair.wriggling.all.over.with.curious.carving.and.the.bottom.of.which.was.formed.of.a.stout.interlacing.of.the.same.elastic.stuff.of.which.the.wigwam.was.constructed.There.was.nothing.so.very.particular.perhaps.about.the.appearance.of.the.elderly.man.I.saw.he.was.brown.and.brawny.like.most.old.seamen.and.heavily.rolled.up.in.blue.pilotcloth.cut.in.the.Quaker.style.only.there.was.a.fine.and.almost.microscopic.network.of.the.minutest.wrinkles.interlacing.round.his.eyes.which.must.have.arisen.from.his.continual.sailings.in.many.hard.gales.and.always.looking.to.windward.for.this.causes.the.muscles.about.the.eyes.to.become.pursed.together.Such.eyewrinkles.are.very.effectual.in.a.scowl.Is.this.the.Captain.of.the.Pequod.said.I.advancing.to.the.door.of.the.tent.Supposing.it.be.the.captain.of.the.Pequod.what.dost.thou.want.of.him.he.demanded.I.was.thinking.of.shipping.Thou.wast.wast.thou.I.see.thou.art.no.Nantucketer.ever.been.in.a.stove.boat.No.Sir.I.never.have.Dost.know.nothing.at.all.about.whaling.I.dare.say.eh.Nothing.Sir.but.I.have.no.doubt.I.shall.soon.learn.Ive.been.several.voyages.in.the.merchant.service.and.I.think.that.Merchant.service.be.damned.Talk.not.that.lingo.to.me.Dost.see.that.leg.Ill.take.that.leg.away.from.thy.stern.if.ever.thou.talkest.of.the.marchant.service.to.me.again.Marchant.service.indeed.I.suppose.now.ye.feel.considerable.proud.of.having.served.in.those.marchant.ships.But.flukes.man.what.makes.thee.want.to.go.a.whaling.eh.it.looks.a.little.suspicious.dont.it.eh.Hast.not.been.a.pirate.hast.thou.Didst.not.rob.thy.last.Captain.didst.thou.Dost.not.think.of.murdering.the.officers.when.thou.gettest.to.sea.I.protested.my.innocence.of.these.things.I.saw.that.under.the.mask.of.these.half.humorous.innuendoes.this.old.seaman.as.an.insulated.Quakerish.Nantucketer.was.full.of.his.insular.prejudices.and.rather.distrustful.of.all.aliens.unless.they.hailed.from.Cape.Cod.or.the.Vineyard.But.what.takes.thee.awhaling.I.want.to.know.that.before.I.think.of.shipping.ye.Well.sir.I.want.to.see.what.whaling.is.I.want.to.see.the.world.Want.to.see.what.whaling.is.eh.Have.ye.clapped.eye.on.Captain.Ahab.Who.is.Captain.Ahab.sir.Aye.aye.I.thought.so.Captain.Ahab.is.the.Captain.of.this.ship.I.am.mistaken.then.I.thought.I.was.speaking.to.the.Captain.himself.Thou.art.speaking.to.Captain.Peleg.thats.who.ye.are.speaking.to.young.man.It.belongs.to.me.and.Captain.Bildad.to.see.the.Pequod.fitted.out.for.the.voyage.and.supplied.with.all.her.needs.including.crew.We.are.part.owners.and.agents.But.as.I.was.going.to.say.if.thou.wantest.to.know.what.whaling.is.as.thou.tellest.ye.do.I.can.put.ye.in.a.way.of.finding.it.out.before.ye.bind.yourself.to.it.past.backing.out.Clap.eye.on.Captain.Ahab.young.man.and.thou.wilt.find.that.he.has.only.one.leg.What.do.you.mean.sir.Was.the.other.one.lost.by.a.whale.Lost.by.a.whale.Young.man.come.nearer.to.me.it.was.devoured.chewed.up.crunched.by.the.monstrousest.parmacetty.that.ever.chipped.a.boat.ah.ah.I.was.a.little.alarmed.by.his.energy.perhaps.also.a.little.touched.at.the.hearty.grief.in.his.concluding.exclamation.but.said.as.calmly.as.I.could.What.you.say.is.no.doubt.true.enough.sir.but.how.could.I.know.there.was.any.peculiar.ferocity.in.that.particular.whale.though.indeed.I.might.have.inferred.as.much.from.the.simple.fact.of.the.accident.Look.ye.now.young.man.thy.lungs.are.a.sort.of.soft.dye.see.thou.dost.not.talk.shark.a.bit.Sure.yeve.been.to.sea.before.now.sure.of.that.Sir.said.I.I.thought.I.told.you.that.I.had.been.four.voyages.in.the.merchant.Hard.down.out.of.that.Mind.what.I.said.about.the.marchant.service.dont.aggravate.me.I.wont.have.it.But.let.us.understand.each.other.I.have.given.thee.a.hint.about.what.whaling.is.do.ye.yet.feel.inclined.for.it.I.do.sir.Very.good.Now.art.thou.the.man.to.pitch.a.harpoon.down.a.live.whales.throat.and.then.jump.after.it.Answer.quick.I.am.sir.if.it.should.be.positively.indispensable.to.do.so.not.to.be.got.rid.of.that.is.which.I.dont.take.to.be.the.fact.Good.again.Now.then.thou.not.only.wantest.to.go.awhaling.to.find.out.by.experience.what.whaling.is.but.ye.also.want.to.go.in.order.to.see.the.world.Was.not.that.what.ye.said.I.thought.so.Well.then.just.step.forward.there.and.take.a.peep.over.the.weatherbow.and.then.back.to.me.and.tell.me.what.ye.see.there.For.a.moment.I.stood.a.little.puzzled.by.this.curious.request.not.knowing.exactly.how.to.take.it.whether.humorously.or.in.earnest.But.concentrating.all.his.crows.feet.into.one.scowl.Captain.Peleg.started.me.on.the.errand.Going.forward.and.glancing.over.the.weather.bow.I.perceived.that.the.ship.swinging.to.her.anchor.with.the.floodtide.was.now.obliquely.pointing.towards.the.open.ocean.The.prospect.was.unlimited.but.exceedingly.monotonous.and.forbidding.not.the.slightest.variety.that.I.could.see.Well.whats.the.report.said.Peleg.when.I.came.back.what.did.ye.see.Not.much.I.replied.nothing.but.water.considerable.horizon.though.and.theres.a.squall.coming.up.I.think.Well.what.does.thou.think.then.of.seeing.the.world.Do.ye.wish.to.go.round.Cape.Horn.to.see.any.more.of.it.eh.Cant.ye.see.the.world.where.you.stand.I.was.a.little.staggered.but.go.awhaling.I.must.and.I.would.and.the.Pequod.was.as.good.a.ship.as.any.I.thought.the.best.and.all.this.I.now.repeated.to.Peleg.Seeing.me.so.determined.he.expressed.his.willingness.to.ship.me.And.thou.mayest.as.well.sign.the.papers.right.off.he.added.come.along.with.ye.And.so.saying.he.led.the.way.below.deck.into.the.cabin.Seated.on.the.transom.was.what.seemed.to.me.a.most.uncommon.and.surprising.figure.It.turned.out.to.be.Captain.Bildad.who.along.with.Captain.Peleg.was.one.of.the.largest.owners.of.the.vessel.the.other.shares.as.is.sometimes.the.case.in.these.ports.being.held.by.a.crowd.of.old.annuitants.widows.fatherless.children.and.chancery.wards.each.owning.about.the.value.of.a.timber.head.or.a.foot.of.plank.or.a.nail.or.two.in.the.ship.People.in.Nantucket.invest.their.money.in.whaling.vessels.the.same.way.that.you.do.yours.in.approved.state.stocks.bringing.in.good.interest.Now.Bildad.like.Peleg.and.indeed.many.other.Nantucketers.was.a.Quaker.the.island.having.been.originally.settled.by.that.sect.and.to.this.day.its.inhabitants.in.general.retain.in.an.uncommon.measure.the.peculiarities.of.the.Quaker.only.variously.and.anomalously.modified.by.things.altogether.alien.and.heterogeneous.For.some.of.these.same.Quakers.are.the.most.sanguinary.of.all.sailors.and.whalehunters.They.are.fighting.Quakers.they.are.Quakers.with.a.vengeance.So.that.there.are.instances.among.them.of.men.who.named.with.Scripture.names.a.singularly.common.fashion.on.the.island.and.in.childhood.naturally.imbibing.the.stately.dramatic.thee.and.thou.of.the.Quaker.idiom.still.from.the.audacious.daring.and.boundless.adventure.of.their.subsequent.lives.strangely.blend.with.these.unoutgrown.peculiarities.a.thousand.bold.dashes.of.character.not.unworthy.a.Scandinavian.seaking.or.a.poetical.Pagan.Roman.And.when.these.things.unite.in.a.man.of.greatly.superior.natural.force.with.a.globular.brain.and.a.ponderous.heart.who.has.also.by.the.stillness.and.seclusion.of.many.long.nightwatches.in.the.remotest.waters.and.beneath.constellations.never.seen.here.at.the.north.been.led.to.think.untraditionally.and.independently.receiving.all.natures.sweet.or.savage.impressions.fresh.from.her.own.virgin.voluntary.and.confiding.breast.and.thereby.chiefly.but.with.some.help.from.accidental.advantages.to.learn.a.bold.and.nervous.lofty.language.that.man.makes.one.in.a.whole.nations.census.a.mighty.pageant.creature.formed.for.noble.tragedies.Nor.will.it.at.all.detract.from.him.dramatically.regarded.if.either.by.birth.or.other.circumstances.he.have.what.seems.a.half.wilful.overruling.morbidness.at.the.bottom.of.his.nature.For.all.men.tragically.great.are.made.so.through.a.certain.morbidness.Be.sure.of.this.O.young.ambition.all.mortal.greatness.is.but.disease.But.as.yet.we.have.not.to.do.with.such.an.one.but.with.quite.another.and.still.a.man.who.if.indeed.peculiar.it.only.results.again.from.another.phase.of.the.Quaker.modified.by.individual.circumstances.Like.Captain.Peleg.Captain.Bildad.was.a.welltodo.retired.whaleman.But.unlike.Captain.Peleg.who.cared.not.a.rush.for.what.are.called.serious.things.and.indeed.deemed.those.selfsame.serious.things.the.veriest.of.all.trifles.Captain.Bildad.had.not.only.been.originally.educated.according.to.the.strictest.sect.of.Nantucket.Quakerism.but.all.his.subsequent.ocean.life.and.the.sight.of.many.unclad.lovely.island.creatures.round.the.Horn.all.that.had.not.moved.this.native.born.Quaker.one.single.jot.had.not.so.much.as.altered.one.angle.of.his.vest.Still.for.all.this.immutableness.was.there.some.lack.of.common.consistency.about.worthy.Captain.Bildad.Though.refusing.from.conscientious.scruples.to.bear.arms.against.land.invaders.yet.himself.had.illimitably.invaded.the.Atlantic.and.Pacific.and.though.a.sworn.foe.to.human.bloodshed.yet.had.he.in.his.straightbodied.coat.spilled.tuns.upon.tuns.of.leviathan.gore.How.now.in.the.contemplative.evening.of.his.days.the.pious.Bildad.reconciled.these.things.in.the.reminiscence.I.do.not.know.but.it.did.not.seem.to.concern.him.much.and.very.probably.he.had.long.since.come.to.the.sage.and.sensible.conclusion.that.a.mans.religion.is.one.thing.and.this.practical.world.quite.another.This.world.pays.dividends.Rising.from.a.little.cabinboy.in.short.clothes.of.the.drabbest.drab.to.a.harpooneer.in.a.broad.shadbellied.waistcoat.from.that.becoming.boatheader.chiefmate.and.captain.and.finally.a.ship.owner.Bildad.as.I.hinted.before.had.concluded.his.adventurous.career.by.wholly.retiring.from.active.life.at.the.goodly.age.of.sixty.and.dedicating.his.remaining.days.to.the.quiet.receiving.of.his.wellearned.income.Now.Bildad.I.am.sorry.to.say.had.the.reputation.of.being.an.incorrigible.old.hunks.and.in.his.seagoing.days.a.bitter.hard.taskmaster.They.told.me.in.Nantucket.though.it.certainly.seems.a.curious.story.that.when.he.sailed.the.old.Categut.whaleman.his.crew.upon.arriving.home.were.mostly.all.carried.ashore.to.the.hospital.sore.exhausted.and.worn.out.For.a.pious.man.especially.for.a.Quaker.he.was.certainly.rather.hardhearted.to.say.the.least.He.never.used.to.swear.though.at.his.men.they.said.but.somehow.he.got.an.inordinate.quantity.of.cruel.unmitigated.hard.work.out.of.them.When.Bildad.was.a.chiefmate.to.have.his.drabcoloured.eye.intently.looking.at.you.made.you.feel.completely.nervous.till.you.could.clutch.something.a.hammer.or.a.marlingspike.and.go.to.work.like.mad.at.something.or.other.never.mind.what.Indolence.and.idleness.perished.before.him.His.own.person.was.the.exact.embodiment.of.his.utilitarian.character.On.his.long.gaunt.body.he.carried.no.spare.flesh.no.superfluous.beard.his.chin.having.a.soft.economical.nap.to.it.like.the.worn.nap.of.his.broadbrimmed.hat.Such.then.was.the.person.that.I.saw.seated.on.the.transom.when.I.followed.Captain.Peleg.down.into.the.cabin.The.space.between.the.decks.was.small.and.there.boltupright.sat.old.Bildad.who.always.sat.so.and.never.leaned.and.this.to.save.his.coat.tails.His.broadbrim.was.placed.beside.him.his.legs.were.stiffly.crossed.his.drab.vesture.was.buttoned.up.to.his.chin.and.spectacles.on.nose.he.seemed.absorbed.in.reading.from.a.ponderous.volume.Bildad.cried.Captain.Peleg.at.it.again.Bildad.eh.Ye.have.been.studying.those.Scriptures.now.for.the.last.thirty.years.to.my.certain.knowledge.How.far.ye.got.Bildad.As.if.long.habituated.to.such.profane.talk.from.his.old.shipmate.Bildad.without.noticing.his.present.irreverence.quietly.looked.up.and.seeing.me.glanced.again.inquiringly.towards.Peleg.He.says.hes.our.man.Bildad.said.Peleg.he.wants.to.ship.Dost.thee.said.Bildad.in.a.hollow.tone.and.turning.round.to.me.I.dost.said.I.unconsciously.he.was.so.intense.a.Quaker.What.do.ye.think.of.him.Bildad.said.Peleg.Hell.do.said.Bildad.eyeing.me.and.then.went.on.spelling.away.at.his.book.in.a.mumbling.tone.quite.audible.I.thought.him.the.queerest.old.Quaker.I.ever.saw.especially.as.Peleg.his.friend.and.old.shipmate.seemed.such.a.blusterer.But.I.said.nothing.only.looking.round.me.sharply.Peleg.now.threw.open.a.chest.and.drawing.forth.the.ships.articles.placed.pen.and.ink.before.him.and.seated.himself.at.a.little.table.I.began.to.think.it.was.high.time.to.settle.with.myself.at.what.terms.I.would.be.willing.to.engage.for.the.voyage.I.was.already.aware.that.in.the.whaling.business.they.paid.no.wages.but.all.hands.including.the.captain.received.certain.shares.of.the.profits.called.lays.and.that.these.lays.were.proportioned.to.the.degree.of.importance.pertaining.to.the.respective.duties.of.the.ships.company.I.was.also.aware.that.being.a.green.hand.at.whaling.my.own.lay.would.not.be.very.large.but.considering.that.I.was.used.to.the.sea.could.steer.a.ship.splice.a.rope.and.all.that.I.made.no.doubt.that.from.all.I.had.heard.I.should.be.offered.at.least.the.275th.lay.that.is.the.275th.part.of.the.clear.net.proceeds.of.the.voyage.whatever.that.might.eventually.amount.to.And.though.the.275th.lay.was.what.they.call.a.rather.long.lay.yet.it.was.better.than.nothing.and.if.we.had.a.lucky.voyage.might.pretty.nearly.pay.for.the.clothing.I.would.wear.out.on.it.not.to.speak.of.my.three.years.beef.and.board.for.which.I.would.not.have.to.pay.one.stiver.It.might.be.thought.that.this.was.a.poor.way.to.accumulate.a.princely.fortune.and.so.it.was.a.very.poor.way.indeed.But.I.am.one.of.those.that.never.take.on.about.princely.fortunes.and.am.quite.content.if.the.world.is.ready.to.board.and.lodge.me.while.I.am.putting.up.at.this.grim.sign.of.the.Thunder.Cloud.Upon.the.whole.I.thought.that.the.275th.lay.would.be.about.the.fair.thing.but.would.not.have.been.surprised.had.I.been.offered.the.200th.considering.I.was.of.a.broadshouldered.make.But.one.thing.nevertheless.that.made.me.a.little.distrustful.about.receiving.a.generous.share.of.the.profits.was.this.Ashore.I.had.heard.something.of.both.Captain.Peleg.and.his.unaccountable.old.crony.Bildad.how.that.they.being.the.principal.proprietors.of.the.Pequod.therefore.the.other.and.more.inconsiderable.and.scattered.owners.left.nearly.the.whole.management.of.the.ships.affairs.to.these.two.And.I.did.not.know.but.what.the.stingy.old.Bildad.might.have.a.mighty.deal.to.say.about.shipping.hands.especially.as.I.now.found.him.on.board.the.Pequod.quite.at.home.there.in.the.cabin.and.reading.his.Bible.as.if.at.his.own.fireside.Now.while.Peleg.was.vainly.trying.to.mend.a.pen.with.his.jackknife.old.Bildad.to.my.no.small.surprise.considering.that.he.was.such.an.interested.party.in.these.proceedings.Bildad.never.heeded.us.but.went.on.mumbling.to.himself.out.of.his.book.Lay.not.up.for.yourselves.treasures.upon.earth.where.moth.Well.Captain.Bildad.interrupted.Peleg.what.dye.say.what.lay.shall.we.give.this.young.man.Thou.knowest.best.was.the.sepulchral.reply.the.seven.hundred.and.seventyseventh.wouldnt.be.too.much.would.it.where.moth.and.rust.do.corrupt.but.lay.Lay.indeed.thought.I.and.such.a.lay.the.seven.hundred.and.seventyseventh.Well.old.Bildad.you.are.determined.that.I.for.one.shall.not.lay.up.many.lays.here.below.where.moth.and.rust.do.corrupt.It.was.an.exceedingly.long.lay.that.indeed.and.though.from.the.magnitude.of.the.figure.it.might.at.first.deceive.a.landsman.yet.the.slightest.consideration.will.show.that.though.seven.hundred.and.seventyseven.is.a.pretty.large.number.yet.when.you.come.to.make.a.teenth.of.it.you.will.then.see.I.say.that.the.seven.hundred.and.seventyseventh.part.of.a.farthing.is.a.good.deal.less.than.seven.hundred.and.seventyseven.gold.doubloons.and.so.I.thought.at.the.time.Why.blast.your.eyes.Bildad.cried.Peleg.thou.dost.not.want.to.swindle.this.young.man.he.must.have.more.than.that.Seven.hundred.and.seventyseventh.again.said.Bildad.without.lifting.his.eyes.and.then.went.on.mumbling.for.where.your.treasure.is.there.will.your.heart.be.also.I.am.going.to.put.him.down.for.the.three.hundredth.said.Peleg.do.ye.hear.that.Bildad.The.three.hundredth.lay.I.say.Bildad.laid.down.his.book.and.turning.solemnly.towards.him.said.Captain.Peleg.thou.hast.a.generous.heart.but.thou.must.consider.the.duty.thou.owest.to.the.other.owners.of.this.ship.widows.and.orphans.many.of.them.and.that.if.we.too.abundantly.reward.the.labors.of.this.young.man.we.may.be.taking.the.bread.from.those.widows.and.those.orphans.The.seven.hundred.and.seventyseventh.lay.Captain.Peleg.Thou.Bildad.roared.Peleg.starting.up.and.clattering.about.the.cabin.Blast.ye.Captain.Bildad.if.I.had.followed.thy.advice.in.these.matters.I.would.afore.now.had.a.conscience.to.lug.about.that.would.be.heavy.enough.to.founder.the.largest.ship.that.ever.sailed.round.Cape.Horn.Captain.Peleg.said.Bildad.steadily.thy.conscience.may.be.drawing.ten.inches.of.water.or.ten.fathoms.I.cant.tell.but.as.thou.art.still.an.impenitent.man.Captain.Peleg.I.greatly.fear.lest.thy.conscience.be.but.a.leaky.one.and.will.in.the.end.sink.thee.foundering.down.to.the.fiery.pit.Captain.Peleg.Fiery.pit.fiery.pit.ye.insult.me.man.past.all.natural.bearing.ye.insult.me.Its.an.allfired.outrage.to.tell.any.human.creature.that.hes.bound.to.hell.Flukes.and.flames.Bildad.say.that.again.to.me.and.start.my.soulbolts.but.Ill.Ill.yes.Ill.swallow.a.live.goat.with.all.his.hair.and.horns.on.Out.of.the.cabin.ye.canting.drabcoloured.son.of.a.wooden.gun.a.straight.wake.with.ye.As.he.thundered.out.this.he.made.a.rush.at.Bildad.but.with.a.marvellous.oblique.sliding.celerity.Bildad.for.that.time.eluded.him.Alarmed.at.this.terrible.outburst.between.the.two.principal.and.responsible.owners.of.the.ship.and.feeling.half.a.mind.to.give.up.all.idea.of.sailing.in.a.vessel.so.questionably.owned.and.temporarily.commanded.I.stepped.aside.from.the.door.to.give.egress.to.Bildad.who.I.made.no.doubt.was.all.eagerness.to.vanish.from.before.the.awakened.wrath.of.Peleg.But.to.my.astonishment.he.sat.down.again.on.the.transom.very.quietly.and.seemed.to.have.not.the.slightest.intention.of.withdrawing.He.seemed.quite.used.to.impenitent.Peleg.and.his.ways.As.for.Peleg.after.letting.off.his.rage.as.he.had.there.seemed.no.more.left.in.him.and.he.too.sat.down.like.a.lamb.though.he.twitched.a.little.as.if.still.nervously.agitated.Whew.he.whistled.at.last.the.squalls.gone.off.to.leeward.I.think.Bildad.thou.used.to.be.good.at.sharpening.a.lance.mend.that.pen.will.ye.My.jackknife.here.needs.the.grindstone.Thats.he.thank.ye.Bildad.Now.then.my.young.man.Ishmaels.thy.name.didnt.ye.say.Well.then.down.ye.go.here.Ishmael.for.the.three.hundredth.lay.Captain.Peleg.said.I.I.have.a.friend.with.me.who.wants.to.ship.too.shall.I.bring.him.down.tomorrow.To.be.sure.said.Peleg.Fetch.him.along.and.well.look.at.him.What.lay.does.he.want.groaned.Bildad.glancing.up.from.the.book.in.which.he.had.again.been.burying.himself.Oh.never.thee.mind.about.that.Bildad.said.Peleg.Has.he.ever.whaled.it.any.turning.to.me.Killed.more.whales.than.I.can.count.Captain.Peleg.Well.bring.him.along.then.And.after.signing.the.papers.off.I.went.nothing.doubting.but.that.I.had.done.a.good.mornings.work.and.that.the.Pequod.was.the.identical.ship.that.Yojo.had.provided.to.carry.Queequeg.and.me.round.the.Cape.But.I.had.not.proceeded.far.when.I.began.to.bethink.me.that.the.Captain.with.whom.I.was.to.sail.yet.remained.unseen.by.me.though.indeed.in.many.cases.a.whaleship.will.be.completely.fitted.out.and.receive.all.her.crew.on.board.ere.the.captain.makes.himself.visible.by.arriving.to.take.command.for.sometimes.these.voyages.are.so.prolonged.and.the.shore.intervals.at.home.so.exceedingly.brief.that.if.the.captain.have.a.family.or.any.absorbing.concernment.of.that.sort.he.does.not.trouble.himself.much.about.his.ship.in.port.but.leaves.her.to.the.owners.till.all.is.ready.for.sea.However.it.is.always.as.well.to.have.a.look.at.him.before.irrevocably.committing.yourself.into.his.hands.Turning.back.I.accosted.Captain.Peleg.inquiring.where.Captain.Ahab.was.to.be.found.And.what.dost.thou.want.of.Captain.Ahab.Its.all.right.enough.thou.art.shipped.Yes.but.I.should.like.to.see.him.But.I.dont.think.thou.wilt.be.able.to.at.present.I.dont.know.exactly.whats.the.matter.with.him.but.he.keeps.close.inside.the.house.a.sort.of.sick.and.yet.he.dont.look.so.In.fact.he.aint.sick.but.no.he.isnt.well.either.Any.how.young.man.he.wont.always.see.me.so.I.dont.suppose.he.will.thee.Hes.a.queer.man.Captain.Ahab.so.some.think.but.a.good.one.Oh.thoult.like.him.well.enough.no.fear.no.fear.Hes.a.grand.ungodly.godlike.man.Captain.Ahab.doesnt.speak.much.but.when.he.does.speak.then.you.may.well.listen.Mark.ye.be.forewarned.Ahabs.above.the.common.Ahabs.been.in.colleges.as.well.as.mong.the.cannibals.been.used.to.deeper.wonders.than.the.waves.fixed.his.fiery.lance.in.mightier.stranger.foes.than.whales.His.lance.aye.the.keenest.and.the.surest.that.out.of.all.our.isle.Oh.he.aint.Captain.Bildad.no.and.he.aint.Captain.Peleg.hes.Ahab.boy.and.Ahab.of.old.thou.knowest.was.a.crowned.king.And.a.very.vile.one.When.that.wicked.king.was.slain.the.dogs.did.they.not.lick.his.blood.Come.hither.to.me.hither.hither.said.Peleg.with.a.significance.in.his.eye.that.almost.startled.me.Look.ye.lad.never.say.that.on.board.the.Pequod.Never.say.it.anywhere.Captain.Ahab.did.not.name.himself.Twas.a.foolish.ignorant.whim.of.his.crazy.widowed.mother.who.died.when.he.was.only.a.twelvemonth.old.And.yet.the.old.squaw.Tistig.at.Gayhead.said.that.the.name.would.somehow.prove.prophetic.And.perhaps.other.fools.like.her.may.tell.thee.the.same.I.wish.to.warn.thee.Its.a.lie.I.know.Captain.Ahab.well.Ive.sailed.with.him.as.mate.years.ago.I.know.what.he.is.a.good.man.not.a.pious.good.man.like.Bildad.but.a.swearing.good.man.something.like.me.only.theres.a.good.deal.more.of.him.Aye.aye.I.know.that.he.was.never.very.jolly.and.I.know.that.on.the.passage.home.he.was.a.little.out.of.his.mind.for.a.spell.but.it.was.the.sharp.shooting.pains.in.his.bleeding.stump.that.brought.that.about.as.any.one.might.see.I.know.too.that.ever.since.he.lost.his.leg.last.voyage.by.that.accursed.whale.hes.been.a.kind.of.moody.desperate.moody.and.savage.sometimes.but.that.will.all.pass.off.And.once.for.all.let.me.tell.thee.and.assure.thee.young.man.its.better.to.sail.with.a.moody.good.captain.than.a.laughing.bad.one.So.goodbye.to.thee.and.wrong.not.Captain.Ahab.because.he.happens.to.have.a.wicked.name.Besides.my.boy.he.has.a.wife.not.three.voyages.wedded.a.sweet.resigned.girl.Think.of.that.by.that.sweet.girl.that.old.man.has.a.child.hold.ye.then.there.can.be.any.utter.hopeless.harm.in.Ahab.No.no.my.lad.stricken.blasted.if.he.be.Ahab.has.his.humanities.As.I.walked.away.I.was.full.of.thoughtfulness.what.had.been.incidentally.revealed.to.me.of.Captain.Ahab.filled.me.with.a.certain.wild.vagueness.of.painfulness.concerning.him.And.somehow.at.the.time.I.felt.a.sympathy.and.a.sorrow.for.him.but.for.I.dont.know.what.unless.it.was.the.cruel.loss.of.his.leg.And.yet.I.also.felt.a.strange.awe.of.him.but.that.sort.of.awe.which.I.cannot.at.all.describe.was.not.exactly.awe.I.do.not.know.what.it.was.But.I.felt.it.and.it.did.not.disincline.me.towards.him.though.I.felt.impatience.at.what.seemed.like.mystery.in.him.so.imperfectly.as.he.was.known.to.me.then.However.my.thoughts.were.at.length.carried.in.other.directions.so.that.for.the.present.dark.Ahab.slipped.my.mind.CHAPTER.17.The.Ramadan.As.Queequegs.Ramadan.or.Fasting.and.Humiliation.was.to.continue.all.day.I.did.not.choose.to.disturb.him.till.towards.nightfall.for.I.cherish.the.greatest.respect.towards.everybodys.religious.obligations.never.mind.how.comical.and.could.not.find.it.in.my.heart.to.undervalue.even.a.congregation.of.ants.worshipping.a.toadstool.or.those.other.creatures.in.certain.parts.of.our.earth.who.with.a.degree.of.footmanism.quite.unprecedented.in.other.planets.bow.down.before.the.torso.of.a.deceased.landed.proprietor.merely.on.account.of.the.inordinate.possessions.yet.owned.and.rented.in.his.name.I.say.we.good.Presbyterian.Christians.should.be.charitable.in.these.things.and.not.fancy.ourselves.so.vastly.superior.to.other.mortals.pagans.and.what.not.because.of.their.halfcrazy.conceits.on.these.subjects.There.was.Queequeg.now.certainly.entertaining.the.most.absurd.notions.about.Yojo.and.his.Ramadan.but.what.of.that.Queequeg.thought.he.knew.what.he.was.about.I.suppose.he.seemed.to.be.content.and.there.let.him.rest.All.our.arguing.with.him.would.not.avail.let.him.be.I.say.and.Heaven.have.mercy.on.us.all.Presbyterians.and.Pagans.alike.for.we.are.all.somehow.dreadfully.cracked.about.the.head.and.sadly.need.mending.Towards.evening.when.I.felt.assured.that.all.his.performances.and.rituals.must.be.over.I.went.up.to.his.room.and.knocked.at.the.door.but.no.answer.I.tried.to.open.it.but.it.was.fastened.inside.Queequeg.said.I.softly.through.the.keyhole.all.silent.I.say.Queequeg.why.dont.you.speak.Its.I.Ishmael.But.all.remained.still.as.before.I.began.to.grow.alarmed.I.had.allowed.him.such.abundant.time.I.thought.he.might.have.had.an.apoplectic.fit.I.looked.through.the.keyhole.but.the.door.opening.into.an.odd.corner.of.the.room.the.keyhole.prospect.was.but.a.crooked.and.sinister.one.I.could.only.see.part.of.the.footboard.of.the.bed.and.a.line.of.the.wall.but.nothing.more.I.was.surprised.to.behold.resting.against.the.wall.the.wooden.shaft.of.Queequegs.harpoon.which.the.landlady.the.evening.previous.had.taken.from.him.before.our.mounting.to.the.chamber.Thats.strange.thought.I.but.at.any.rate.since.the.harpoon.stands.yonder.and.he.seldom.or.never.goes.abroad.without.it.therefore.he.must.be.inside.here.and.no.possible.mistake.Queequeg.Queequeg.all.still.Something.must.have.happened.Apoplexy.I.tried.to.burst.open.the.door.but.it.stubbornly.resisted.Running.down.stairs.I.quickly.stated.my.suspicions.to.the.first.person.I.met.the.chambermaid.La.La.she.cried.I.thought.something.must.be.the.matter.I.went.to.make.the.bed.after.breakfast.and.the.door.was.locked.and.not.a.mouse.to.be.heard.and.its.been.just.so.silent.ever.since.But.I.thought.may.be.you.had.both.gone.off.and.locked.your.baggage.in.for.safe.keeping.La.La.maam.Mistress.murder.Mrs.Hussey.apoplexy.and.with.these.cries.she.ran.towards.the.kitchen.I.following.Mrs.Hussey.soon.appeared.with.a.mustardpot.in.one.hand.and.a.vinegarcruet.in.the.other.having.just.broken.away.from.the.occupation.of.attending.to.the.castors.and.scolding.her.little.black.boy.meantime.Woodhouse.cried.I.which.way.to.it.Run.for.Gods.sake.and.fetch.something.to.pry.open.the.door.the.axe.the.axe.hes.had.a.stroke.depend.upon.it.and.so.saying.I.was.unmethodically.rushing.up.stairs.again.emptyhanded.when.Mrs.Hussey.interposed.the.mustardpot.and.vinegarcruet.and.the.entire.castor.of.her.countenance.Whats.the.matter.with.you.young.man.Get.the.axe.For.Gods.sake.run.for.the.doctor.some.one.while.I.pry.it.open.Look.here.said.the.landlady.quickly.putting.down.the.vinegarcruet.so.as.to.have.one.hand.free.look.here.are.you.talking.about.prying.open.any.of.my.doors.and.with.that.she.seized.my.arm.Whats.the.matter.with.you.Whats.the.matter.with.you.shipmate.In.as.calm.but.rapid.a.manner.as.possible.I.gave.her.to.understand.the.whole.case.Unconsciously.clapping.the.vinegarcruet.to.one.side.of.her.nose.she.ruminated.for.an.instant.then.exclaimed.No.I.havent.seen.it.since.I.put.it.there.Running.to.a.little.closet.under.the.landing.of.the.stairs.she.glanced.in.and.returning.told.me.that.Queequegs.harpoon.was.missing.Hes.killed.himself.she.cried.Its.unfortnate.Stiggs.done.over.again.there.goes.another.counterpane.God.pity.his.poor.mother.it.will.be.the.ruin.of.my.house.Has.the.poor.lad.a.sister.Wheres.that.girl.there.Betty.go.to.Snarles.the.Painter.and.tell.him.to.paint.me.a.sign.with.no.suicides.permitted.here.and.no.smoking.in.the.parlor.might.as.well.kill.both.birds.at.once.Kill.The.Lord.be.merciful.to.his.ghost.Whats.that.noise.there.You.young.man.avast.there.And.running.up.after.me.she.caught.me.as.I.was.again.trying.to.force.open.the.door.I.dont.allow.it.I.wont.have.my.premises.spoiled.Go.for.the.locksmith.theres.one.about.a.mile.from.here.But.avast.putting.her.hand.in.her.sidepocket.heres.a.key.thatll.fit.I.guess.lets.see.And.with.that.she.turned.it.in.the.lock.but.alas.Queequegs.supplemental.bolt.remained.unwithdrawn.within.Have.to.burst.it.open.said.I.and.was.running.down.the.entry.a.little.for.a.good.start.when.the.landlady.caught.at.me.again.vowing.I.should.not.break.down.her.premises.but.I.tore.from.her.and.with.a.sudden.bodily.rush.dashed.myself.full.against.the.mark.With.a.prodigious.noise.the.door.flew.open.and.the.knob.slamming.against.the.wall.sent.the.plaster.to.the.ceiling.and.there.good.heavens.there.sat.Queequeg.altogether.cool.and.selfcollected.right.in.the.middle.of.the.room.squatting.on.his.hams.and.holding.Yojo.on.top.of.his.head.He.looked.neither.one.way.nor.the.other.way.but.sat.like.a.carved.image.with.scarce.a.sign.of.active.life.Queequeg.said.I.going.up.to.him.Queequeg.whats.the.matter.with.you.He.haint.been.a.sittin.so.all.day.has.he.said.the.landlady.But.all.we.said.not.a.word.could.we.drag.out.of.him.I.almost.felt.like.pushing.him.over.so.as.to.change.his.position.for.it.was.almost.intolerable.it.seemed.so.painfully.and.unnaturally.constrained.especially.as.in.all.probability.he.had.been.sitting.so.for.upwards.of.eight.or.ten.hours.going.too.without.his.regular.meals.Mrs.Hussey.said.I.hes.alive.at.all.events.so.leave.us.if.you.please.and.I.will.see.to.this.strange.affair.myself.Closing.the.door.upon.the.landlady.I.endeavored.to.prevail.upon.Queequeg.to.take.a.chair.but.in.vain.There.he.sat.and.all.he.could.do.for.all.my.polite.arts.and.blandishments.he.would.not.move.a.peg.nor.say.a.single.word.nor.even.look.at.me.nor.notice.my.presence.in.the.slightest.way.I.wonder.thought.I.if.this.can.possibly.be.a.part.of.his.Ramadan.do.they.fast.on.their.hams.that.way.in.his.native.island.It.must.be.so.yes.its.part.of.his.creed.I.suppose.well.then.let.him.rest.hell.get.up.sooner.or.later.no.doubt.It.cant.last.for.ever.thank.God.and.his.Ramadan.only.comes.once.a.year.and.I.dont.believe.its.very.punctual.then.I.went.down.to.supper.After.sitting.a.long.time.listening.to.the.long.stories.of.some.sailors.who.had.just.come.from.a.plumpudding.voyage.as.they.called.it.that.is.a.short.whalingvoyage.in.a.schooner.or.brig.confined.to.the.north.of.the.line.in.the.Atlantic.Ocean.only.after.listening.to.these.plumpuddingers.till.nearly.eleven.oclock.I.went.up.stairs.to.go.to.bed.feeling.quite.sure.by.this.time.Queequeg.must.certainly.have.brought.his.Ramadan.to.a.termination.But.no.there.he.was.just.where.I.had.left.him.he.had.not.stirred.an.inch.I.began.to.grow.vexed.with.him.it.seemed.so.downright.senseless.and.insane.to.be.sitting.there.all.day.and.half.the.night.on.his.hams.in.a.cold.room.holding.a.piece.of.wood.on.his.head.For.heavens.sake.Queequeg.get.up.and.shake.yourself.get.up.and.have.some.supper.Youll.starve.youll.kill.yourself.Queequeg.But.not.a.word.did.he.reply.Despairing.of.him.therefore.I.determined.to.go.to.bed.and.to.sleep.and.no.doubt.before.a.great.while.he.would.follow.me.But.previous.to.turning.in.I.took.my.heavy.bearskin.jacket.and.threw.it.over.him.as.it.promised.to.be.a.very.cold.night.and.he.had.nothing.but.his.ordinary.round.jacket.on.For.some.time.do.all.I.would.I.could.not.get.into.the.faintest.doze.I.had.blown.out.the.candle.and.the.mere.thought.of.Queequeg.not.four.feet.off.sitting.there.in.that.uneasy.position.stark.alone.in.the.cold.and.dark.this.made.me.really.wretched.Think.of.it.sleeping.all.night.in.the.same.room.with.a.wide.awake.pagan.on.his.hams.in.this.dreary.unaccountable.Ramadan.But.somehow.I.dropped.off.at.last.and.knew.nothing.more.till.break.of.day.when.looking.over.the.bedside.there.squatted.Queequeg.as.if.he.had.been.screwed.down.to.the.floor.But.as.soon.as.the.first.glimpse.of.sun.entered.the.window.up.he.got.with.stiff.and.grating.joints.but.with.a.cheerful.look.limped.towards.me.where.I.lay.pressed.his.forehead.again.against.mine.and.said.his.Ramadan.was.over.Now.as.I.before.hinted.I.have.no.objection.to.any.persons.religion.be.it.what.it.may.so.long.as.that.person.does.not.kill.or.insult.any.other.person.because.that.other.person.dont.believe.it.also.But.when.a.mans.religion.becomes.really.frantic.when.it.is.a.positive.torment.to.him.and.in.fine.makes.this.earth.of.ours.an.uncomfortable.inn.to.lodge.in.then.I.think.it.high.time.to.take.that.individual.aside.and.argue.the.point.with.him.And.just.so.I.now.did.with.Queequeg.Queequeg.said.I.get.into.bed.now.and.lie.and.listen.to.me.I.then.went.on.beginning.with.the.rise.and.progress.of.the.primitive.religions.and.coming.down.to.the.various.religions.of.the.present.time.during.which.time.I.labored.to.show.Queequeg.that.all.these.Lents.Ramadans.and.prolonged.hamsquattings.in.cold.cheerless.rooms.were.stark.nonsense.bad.for.the.health.useless.for.the.soul.opposed.in.short.to.the.obvious.laws.of.Hygiene.and.common.sense.I.told.him.too.that.he.being.in.other.things.such.an.extremely.sensible.and.sagacious.savage.it.pained.me.very.badly.pained.me.to.see.him.now.so.deplorably.foolish.about.this.ridiculous.Ramadan.of.his.Besides.argued.I.fasting.makes.the.body.cave.in.hence.the.spirit.caves.in.and.all.thoughts.born.of.a.fast.must.necessarily.be.halfstarved.This.is.the.reason.why.most.dyspeptic.religionists.cherish.such.melancholy.notions.about.their.hereafters.In.one.word.Queequeg.said.I.rather.digressively.hell.is.an.idea.first.born.on.an.undigested.appledumpling.and.since.then.perpetuated.through.the.hereditary.dyspepsias.nurtured.by.Ramadans.I.then.asked.Queequeg.whether.he.himself.was.ever.troubled.with.dyspepsia.expressing.the.idea.very.plainly.so.that.he.could.take.it.in.He.said.no.only.upon.one.memorable.occasion.It.was.after.a.great.feast.given.by.his.father.the.king.on.the.gaining.of.a.great.battle.wherein.fifty.of.the.enemy.had.been.killed.by.about.two.oclock.in.the.afternoon.and.all.cooked.and.eaten.that.very.evening.No.more.Queequeg.said.I.shuddering.that.will.do.for.I.knew.the.inferences.without.his.further.hinting.them.I.had.seen.a.sailor.who.had.visited.that.very.island.and.he.told.me.that.it.was.the.custom.when.a.great.battle.had.been.gained.there.to.barbecue.all.the.slain.in.the.yard.or.garden.of.the.victor.and.then.one.by.one.they.were.placed.in.great.wooden.trenchers.and.garnished.round.like.a.pilau.with.breadfruit.and.cocoanuts.and.with.some.parsley.in.their.mouths.were.sent.round.with.the.victors.compliments.to.all.his.friends.just.as.though.these.presents.were.so.many.Christmas.turkeys.After.all.I.do.not.think.that.my.remarks.about.religion.made.much.impression.upon.Queequeg.Because.in.the.first.place.he.somehow.seemed.dull.of.hearing.on.that.important.subject.unless.considered.from.his.own.point.of.view.and.in.the.second.place.he.did.not.more.than.one.third.understand.me.couch.my.ideas.simply.as.I.would.and.finally.he.no.doubt.thought.he.knew.a.good.deal.more.about.the.true.religion.than.I.did.He.looked.at.me.with.a.sort.of.condescending.concern.and.compassion.as.though.he.thought.it.a.great.pity.that.such.a.sensible.young.man.should.be.so.hopelessly.lost.to.evangelical.pagan.piety.At.last.we.rose.and.dressed.and.Queequeg.taking.a.prodigiously.hearty.breakfast.of.chowders.of.all.sorts.so.that.the.landlady.should.not.make.much.profit.by.reason.of.his.Ramadan.we.sallied.out.to.board.the.Pequod.sauntering.along.and.picking.our.teeth.with.halibut.bones.CHAPTER.18.His.Mark.As.we.were.walking.down.the.end.of.the.wharf.towards.the.ship.Queequeg.carrying.his.harpoon.Captain.Peleg.in.his.gruff.voice.loudly.hailed.us.from.his.wigwam.saying.he.had.not.suspected.my.friend.was.a.cannibal.and.furthermore.announcing.that.he.let.no.cannibals.on.board.that.craft.unless.they.previously.produced.their.papers.What.do.you.mean.by.that.Captain.Peleg.said.I.now.jumping.on.the.bulwarks.and.leaving.my.comrade.standing.on.the.wharf.I.mean.he.replied.he.must.show.his.papers.Yes.said.Captain.Bildad.in.his.hollow.voice.sticking.his.head.from.behind.Pelegs.out.of.the.wigwam.He.must.show.that.hes.converted.Son.of.darkness.he.added.turning.to.Queequeg.art.thou.at.present.in.communion.with.any.Christian.church.Why.said.I.hes.a.member.of.the.first.Congregational.Church.Here.be.it.said.that.many.tattooed.savages.sailing.in.Nantucket.ships.at.last.come.to.be.converted.into.the.churches.First.Congregational.Church.cried.Bildad.what.that.worships.in.Deacon.Deuteronomy.Colemans.meetinghouse.and.so.saying.taking.out.his.spectacles.he.rubbed.them.with.his.great.yellow.bandana.handkerchief.and.putting.them.on.very.carefully.came.out.of.the.wigwam.and.leaning.stiffly.over.the.bulwarks.took.a.good.long.look.at.Queequeg.How.long.hath.he.been.a.member.he.then.said.turning.to.me.not.very.long.I.rather.guess.young.man.No.said.Peleg.and.he.hasnt.been.baptized.right.either.or.it.would.have.washed.some.of.that.devils.blue.off.his.face.Do.tell.now.cried.Bildad.is.this.Philistine.a.regular.member.of.Deacon.Deuteronomys.meeting.I.never.saw.him.going.there.and.I.pass.it.every.Lords.day.I.dont.know.anything.about.Deacon.Deuteronomy.or.his.meeting.said.I.all.I.know.is.that.Queequeg.here.is.a.born.member.of.the.First.Congregational.Church.He.is.a.deacon.himself.Queequeg.is.Young.man.said.Bildad.sternly.thou.art.skylarking.with.me.explain.thyself.thou.young.Hittite.What.church.dost.thee.mean.answer.me.Finding.myself.thus.hard.pushed.I.replied.I.mean.sir.the.same.ancient.Catholic.Church.to.which.you.and.I.and.Captain.Peleg.there.and.Queequeg.here.and.all.of.us.and.every.mothers.son.and.soul.of.us.belong.the.great.and.everlasting.First.Congregation.of.this.whole.worshipping.world.we.all.belong.to.that.only.some.of.us.cherish.some.queer.crotchets.no.ways.touching.the.grand.belief.in.that.we.all.join.hands.Splice.thou.meanst.splice.hands.cried.Peleg.drawing.nearer.Young.man.youd.better.ship.for.a.missionary.instead.of.a.foremast.hand.I.never.heard.a.better.sermon.Deacon.Deuteronomy.why.Father.Mapple.himself.couldnt.beat.it.and.hes.reckoned.something.Come.aboard.come.aboard.never.mind.about.the.papers.I.say.tell.Quohog.there.whats.that.you.call.him.tell.Quohog.to.step.along.By.the.great.anchor.what.a.harpoon.hes.got.there.looks.like.good.stuff.that.and.he.handles.it.about.right.I.say.Quohog.or.whatever.your.name.is.did.you.ever.stand.in.the.head.of.a.whaleboat.did.you.ever.strike.a.fish.Without.saying.a.word.Queequeg.in.his.wild.sort.of.way.jumped.upon.the.bulwarks.from.thence.into.the.bows.of.one.of.the.whaleboats.hanging.to.the.side.and.then.bracing.his.left.knee.and.poising.his.harpoon.cried.out.in.some.such.way.as.this.Capain.you.see.him.small.drop.tar.on.water.dere.You.see.him.well.spose.him.one.whale.eye.well.den.and.taking.sharp.aim.at.it.he.darted.the.iron.right.over.old.Bildads.broad.brim.clean.across.the.ships.decks.and.struck.the.glistening.tar.spot.out.of.sight.Now.said.Queequeg.quietly.hauling.in.the.line.sposee.him.whalee.eye.why.dad.whale.dead.Quick.Bildad.said.Peleg.his.partner.who.aghast.at.the.close.vicinity.of.the.flying.harpoon.had.retreated.towards.the.cabin.gangway.Quick.I.say.you.Bildad.and.get.the.ships.papers.We.must.have.Hedgehog.there.I.mean.Quohog.in.one.of.our.boats.Look.ye.Quohog.well.give.ye.the.ninetieth.lay.and.thats.more.than.ever.was.given.a.harpooneer.yet.out.of.Nantucket.So.down.we.went.into.the.cabin.and.to.my.great.joy.Queequeg.was.soon.enrolled.among.the.same.ships.company.to.which.I.myself.belonged.When.all.preliminaries.were.over.and.Peleg.had.got.everything.ready.for.signing.he.turned.to.me.and.said.I.guess.Quohog.there.dont.know.how.to.write.does.he.I.say.Quohog.blast.ye.dost.thou.sign.thy.name.or.make.thy.mark.But.at.this.question.Queequeg.who.had.twice.or.thrice.before.taken.part.in.similar.ceremonies.looked.no.ways.abashed.but.taking.the.offered.pen.copied.upon.the.paper.in.the.proper.place.an.exact.counterpart.of.a.queer.round.figure.which.was.tattooed.upon.his.arm.so.that.through.Captain.Pelegs.obstinate.mistake.touching.his.appellative.it.stood.something.like.this.Quohog.his.X.mark.Meanwhile.Captain.Bildad.sat.earnestly.and.steadfastly.eyeing.Queequeg.and.at.last.rising.solemnly.and.fumbling.in.the.huge.pockets.of.his.broadskirted.drab.coat.took.out.a.bundle.of.tracts.and.selecting.one.entitled.The.Latter.Day.Coming.or.No.Time.to.Lose.placed.it.in.Queequegs.hands.and.then.grasping.them.and.the.book.with.both.his.looked.earnestly.into.his.eyes.and.said.Son.of.darkness.I.must.do.my.duty.by.thee.I.am.part.owner.of.this.ship.and.feel.concerned.for.the.souls.of.all.its.crew.if.thou.still.clingest.to.thy.Pagan.ways.which.I.sadly.fear.I.beseech.thee.remain.not.for.aye.a.Belial.bondsman.Spurn.the.idol.Bell.and.the.hideous.dragon.turn.from.the.wrath.to.come.mind.thine.eye.I.say.oh.goodness.gracious.steer.clear.of.the.fiery.pit.Something.of.the.salt.sea.yet.lingered.in.old.Bildads.language.heterogeneously.mixed.with.Scriptural.and.domestic.phrases.Avast.there.avast.there.Bildad.avast.now.spoiling.our.harpooneer.cried.Peleg.Pious.harpooneers.never.make.good.voyagers.it.takes.the.shark.out.of.em.no.harpooneer.is.worth.a.straw.who.aint.pretty.sharkish.There.was.young.Nat.Swaine.once.the.bravest.boatheader.out.of.all.Nantucket.and.the.Vineyard.he.joined.the.meeting.and.never.came.to.good.He.got.so.frightened.about.his.plaguy.soul.that.he.shrinked.and.sheered.away.from.whales.for.fear.of.afterclaps.in.case.he.got.stove.and.went.to.Davy.Jones.Peleg.Peleg.said.Bildad.lifting.his.eyes.and.hands.thou.thyself.as.I.myself.hast.seen.many.a.perilous.time.thou.knowest.Peleg.what.it.is.to.have.the.fear.of.death.how.then.canst.thou.prate.in.this.ungodly.guise.Thou.beliest.thine.own.heart.Peleg.Tell.me.when.this.same.Pequod.here.had.her.three.masts.overboard.in.that.typhoon.on.Japan.that.same.voyage.when.thou.went.mate.with.Captain.Ahab.didst.thou.not.think.of.Death.and.the.Judgment.then.Hear.him.hear.him.now.cried.Peleg.marching.across.the.cabin.and.thrusting.his.hands.far.down.into.his.pockets.hear.him.all.of.ye.Think.of.that.When.every.moment.we.thought.the.ship.would.sink.Death.and.the.Judgment.then.What.With.all.three.masts.making.such.an.everlasting.thundering.against.the.side.and.every.sea.breaking.over.us.fore.and.aft.Think.of.Death.and.the.Judgment.then.No.no.time.to.think.about.Death.then.Life.was.what.Captain.Ahab.and.I.was.thinking.of.and.how.to.save.all.hands.how.to.rig.jurymasts.how.to.get.into.the.nearest.port.that.was.what.I.was.thinking.of.Bildad.said.no.more.but.buttoning.up.his.coat.stalked.on.deck.where.we.followed.him.There.he.stood.very.quietly.overlooking.some.sailmakers.who.were.mending.a.topsail.in.the.waist.Now.and.then.he.stooped.to.pick.up.a.patch.or.save.an.end.of.tarred.twine.which.otherwise.might.have.been.wasted.CHAPTER.19.The.Prophet.Shipmates.have.ye.shipped.in.that.ship.Queequeg.and.I.had.just.left.the.Pequod.and.were.sauntering.away.from.the.water.for.the.moment.each.occupied.with.his.own.thoughts.when.the.above.words.were.put.to.us.by.a.stranger.who.pausing.before.us.levelled.his.massive.forefinger.at.the.vessel.in.question.He.was.but.shabbily.apparelled.in.faded.jacket.and.patched.trowsers.a.rag.of.a.black.handkerchief.investing.his.neck.A.confluent.smallpox.had.in.all.directions.flowed.over.his.face.and.left.it.like.the.complicated.ribbed.bed.of.a.torrent.when.the.rushing.waters.have.been.dried.up.Have.ye.shipped.in.her.he.repeated.You.mean.the.ship.Pequod.I.suppose.said.I.trying.to.gain.a.little.more.time.for.an.uninterrupted.look.at.him.Aye.the.Pequod.that.ship.there.he.said.drawing.back.his.whole.arm.and.then.rapidly.shoving.it.straight.out.from.him.with.the.fixed.bayonet.of.his.pointed.finger.darted.full.at.the.object.Yes.said.I.we.have.just.signed.the.articles.Anything.down.there.about.your.souls.About.what.Oh.perhaps.you.havnt.got.any.he.said.quickly.No.matter.though.I.know.many.chaps.that.havnt.got.any.good.luck.to.em.and.they.are.all.the.better.off.for.it.A.souls.a.sort.of.a.fifth.wheel.to.a.wagon.What.are.you.jabbering.about.shipmate.said.I.Hes.got.enough.though.to.make.up.for.all.deficiencies.of.that.sort.in.other.chaps.abruptly.said.the.stranger.placing.a.nervous.emphasis.upon.the.word.he.Queequeg.said.I.lets.go.this.fellow.has.broken.loose.from.somewhere.hes.talking.about.something.and.somebody.we.dont.know.Stop.cried.the.stranger.Ye.said.true.ye.havnt.seen.Old.Thunder.yet.have.ye.Whos.Old.Thunder.said.I.again.riveted.with.the.insane.earnestness.of.his.manner.Captain.Ahab.What.the.captain.of.our.ship.the.Pequod.Aye.among.some.of.us.old.sailor.chaps.he.goes.by.that.name.Ye.havnt.seen.him.yet.have.ye.No.we.havnt.Hes.sick.they.say.but.is.getting.better.and.will.be.all.right.again.before.long.All.right.again.before.long.laughed.the.stranger.with.a.solemnly.derisive.sort.of.laugh.Look.ye.when.Captain.Ahab.is.all.right.then.this.left.arm.of.mine.will.be.all.right.not.before.What.do.you.know.about.him.What.did.they.tell.you.about.him.Say.that.They.didnt.tell.much.of.anything.about.him.only.Ive.heard.that.hes.a.good.whalehunter.and.a.good.captain.to.his.crew.Thats.true.thats.true.yes.both.true.enough.But.you.must.jump.when.he.gives.an.order.Step.and.growl.growl.and.go.thats.the.word.with.Captain.Ahab.But.nothing.about.that.thing.that.happened.to.him.off.Cape.Horn.long.ago.when.he.lay.like.dead.for.three.days.and.nights.nothing.about.that.deadly.skrimmage.with.the.Spaniard.afore.the.altar.in.Santa.heard.nothing.about.that.eh.Nothing.about.the.silver.calabash.he.spat.into.And.nothing.about.his.losing.his.leg.last.voyage.according.to.the.prophecy.Didnt.ye.hear.a.word.about.them.matters.and.something.more.eh.No.I.dont.think.ye.did.how.could.ye.Who.knows.it.Not.all.Nantucket.I.guess.But.howsever.mayhap.yeve.heard.tell.about.the.leg.and.how.he.lost.it.aye.ye.have.heard.of.that.I.dare.say.Oh.yes.that.every.one.knows.amost.I.mean.they.know.hes.only.one.leg.and.that.a.parmacetti.took.the.other.off.My.friend.said.I.what.all.this.gibberish.of.yours.is.about.I.dont.know.and.I.dont.much.care.for.it.seems.to.me.that.you.must.be.a.little.damaged.in.the.head.But.if.you.are.speaking.of.Captain.Ahab.of.that.ship.there.the.Pequod.then.let.me.tell.you.that.I.know.all.about.the.loss.of.his.leg.All.about.it.eh.sure.you.do.all.Pretty.sure.With.finger.pointed.and.eye.levelled.at.the.Pequod.the.beggarlike.stranger.stood.a.moment.as.if.in.a.troubled.reverie.then.starting.a.little.turned.and.said.Yeve.shipped.have.ye.Names.down.on.the.papers.Well.well.whats.signed.is.signed.and.whats.to.be.will.be.and.then.again.perhaps.it.wont.be.after.all.Anyhow.its.all.fixed.and.arranged.aready.and.some.sailors.or.other.must.go.with.him.I.suppose.as.well.these.as.any.other.men.God.pity.em.Morning.to.ye.shipmates.morning.the.ineffable.heavens.bless.ye.Im.sorry.I.stopped.ye.Look.here.friend.said.I.if.you.have.anything.important.to.tell.us.out.with.it.but.if.you.are.only.trying.to.bamboozle.us.you.are.mistaken.in.your.game.thats.all.I.have.to.say.And.its.said.very.well.and.I.like.to.hear.a.chap.talk.up.that.way.you.are.just.the.man.for.him.the.likes.of.ye.Morning.to.ye.shipmates.morning.Oh.when.ye.get.there.tell.em.Ive.concluded.not.to.make.one.of.em.Ah.my.dear.fellow.you.cant.fool.us.that.way.you.cant.fool.us.It.is.the.easiest.thing.in.the.world.for.a.man.to.look.as.if.he.had.a.great.secret.in.him.Morning.to.ye.shipmates.morning.Morning.it.is.said.I.Come.along.Queequeg.lets.leave.this.crazy.man.But.stop.tell.me.your.name.will.you.Elijah.Elijah.thought.I.and.we.walked.away.both.commenting.after.each.others.fashion.upon.this.ragged.old.sailor.and.agreed.that.he.was.nothing.but.a.humbug.trying.to.be.a.bugbear.But.we.had.not.gone.perhaps.above.a.hundred.yards.when.chancing.to.turn.a.corner.and.looking.back.as.I.did.so.who.should.be.seen.but.Elijah.following.us.though.at.a.distance.Somehow.the.sight.of.him.struck.me.so.that.I.said.nothing.to.Queequeg.of.his.being.behind.but.passed.on.with.my.comrade.anxious.to.see.whether.the.stranger.would.turn.the.same.corner.that.we.did.He.did.and.then.it.seemed.to.me.that.he.was.dogging.us.but.with.what.intent.I.could.not.for.the.life.of.me.imagine.This.circumstance.coupled.with.his.ambiguous.halfhinting.halfrevealing.shrouded.sort.of.talk.now.begat.in.me.all.kinds.of.vague.wonderments.and.halfapprehensions.and.all.connected.with.the.Pequod.and.Captain.Ahab.and.the.leg.he.had.lost.and.the.Cape.Horn.fit.and.the.silver.calabash.and.what.Captain.Peleg.had.said.of.him.when.I.left.the.ship.the.day.previous.and.the.prediction.of.the.squaw.Tistig.and.the.voyage.we.had.bound.ourselves.to.sail.and.a.hundred.other.shadowy.things.I.was.resolved.to.satisfy.myself.whether.this.ragged.Elijah.was.really.dogging.us.or.not.and.with.that.intent.crossed.the.way.with.Queequeg.and.on.that.side.of.it.retraced.our.steps.But.Elijah.passed.on.without.seeming.to.notice.us.This.relieved.me.and.once.more.and.finally.as.it.seemed.to.me.I.pronounced.him.in.my.heart.a.humbug.CHAPTER.20.All.Astir.A.day.or.two.passed.and.there.was.great.activity.aboard.the.Pequod.Not.only.were.the.old.sails.being.mended.but.new.sails.were.coming.on.board.and.bolts.of.canvas.and.coils.of.rigging.in.short.everything.betokened.that.the.ships.preparations.were.hurrying.to.a.close.Captain.Peleg.seldom.or.never.went.ashore.but.sat.in.his.wigwam.keeping.a.sharp.lookout.upon.the.hands.Bildad.did.all.the.purchasing.and.providing.at.the.stores.and.the.men.employed.in.the.hold.and.on.the.rigging.were.working.till.long.after.nightfall.On.the.day.following.Queequegs.signing.the.articles.word.was.given.at.all.the.inns.where.the.ships.company.were.stopping.that.their.chests.must.be.on.board.before.night.for.there.was.no.telling.how.soon.the.vessel.might.be.sailing.So.Queequeg.and.I.got.down.our.traps.resolving.however.to.sleep.ashore.till.the.last.But.it.seems.they.always.give.very.long.notice.in.these.cases.and.the.ship.did.not.sail.for.several.days.But.no.wonder.there.was.a.good.deal.to.be.done.and.there.is.no.telling.how.many.things.to.be.thought.of.before.the.Pequod.was.fully.equipped.Every.one.knows.what.a.multitude.of.things.beds.saucepans.knives.and.forks.shovels.and.tongs.napkins.nutcrackers.and.what.not.are.indispensable.to.the.business.of.housekeeping.Just.so.with.whaling.which.necessitates.a.threeyears.housekeeping.upon.the.wide.ocean.far.from.all.grocers.costermongers.doctors.bakers.and.bankers.And.though.this.also.holds.true.of.merchant.vessels.yet.not.by.any.means.to.the.same.extent.as.with.whalemen.For.besides.the.great.length.of.the.whaling.voyage.the.numerous.articles.peculiar.to.the.prosecution.of.the.fishery.and.the.impossibility.of.replacing.them.at.the.remote.harbors.usually.frequented.it.must.be.remembered.that.of.all.ships.whaling.vessels.are.the.most.exposed.to.accidents.of.all.kinds.and.especially.to.the.destruction.and.loss.of.the.very.things.upon.which.the.success.of.the.voyage.most.depends.Hence.the.spare.boats.spare.spars.and.spare.lines.and.harpoons.and.spare.everythings.almost.but.a.spare.Captain.and.duplicate.ship.At.the.period.of.our.arrival.at.the.Island.the.heaviest.storage.of.the.Pequod.had.been.almost.completed.comprising.her.beef.bread.water.fuel.and.iron.hoops.and.staves.But.as.before.hinted.for.some.time.there.was.a.continual.fetching.and.carrying.on.board.of.divers.odds.and.ends.of.things.both.large.and.small.Chief.among.those.who.did.this.fetching.and.carrying.was.Captain.Bildads.sister.a.lean.old.lady.of.a.most.determined.and.indefatigable.spirit.but.withal.very.kindhearted.who.seemed.resolved.that.if.she.could.help.it.nothing.should.be.found.wanting.in.the.Pequod.after.once.fairly.getting.to.sea.At.one.time.she.would.come.on.board.with.a.jar.of.pickles.for.the.stewards.pantry.another.time.with.a.bunch.of.quills.for.the.chief.mates.desk.where.he.kept.his.log.a.third.time.with.a.roll.of.flannel.for.the.small.of.some.ones.rheumatic.back.Never.did.any.woman.better.deserve.her.name.which.was.Charity.Aunt.Charity.as.everybody.called.her.And.like.a.sister.of.charity.did.this.charitable.Aunt.Charity.bustle.about.hither.and.thither.ready.to.turn.her.hand.and.heart.to.anything.that.promised.to.yield.safety.comfort.and.consolation.to.all.on.board.a.ship.in.which.her.beloved.brother.Bildad.was.concerned.and.in.which.she.herself.owned.a.score.or.two.of.wellsaved.dollars.But.it.was.startling.to.see.this.excellent.hearted.Quakeress.coming.on.board.as.she.did.the.last.day.with.a.long.oilladle.in.one.hand.and.a.still.longer.whaling.lance.in.the.other.Nor.was.Bildad.himself.nor.Captain.Peleg.at.all.backward.As.for.Bildad.he.carried.about.with.him.a.long.list.of.the.articles.needed.and.at.every.fresh.arrival.down.went.his.mark.opposite.that.article.upon.the.paper.Every.once.in.a.while.Peleg.came.hobbling.out.of.his.whalebone.den.roaring.at.the.men.down.the.hatchways.roaring.up.to.the.riggers.at.the.masthead.and.then.concluded.by.roaring.back.into.his.wigwam.During.these.days.of.preparation.Queequeg.and.I.often.visited.the.craft.and.as.often.I.asked.about.Captain.Ahab.and.how.he.was.and.when.he.was.going.to.come.on.board.his.ship.To.these.questions.they.would.answer.that.he.was.getting.better.and.better.and.was.expected.aboard.every.day.meantime.the.two.captains.Peleg.and.Bildad.could.attend.to.everything.necessary.to.fit.the.vessel.for.the.voyage.If.I.had.been.downright.honest.with.myself.I.would.have.seen.very.plainly.in.my.heart.that.I.did.but.half.fancy.being.committed.this.way.to.so.long.a.voyage.without.once.laying.my.eyes.on.the.man.who.was.to.be.the.absolute.dictator.of.it.so.soon.as.the.ship.sailed.out.upon.the.open.sea.But.when.a.man.suspects.any.wrong.it.sometimes.happens.that.if.he.be.already.involved.in.the.matter.he.insensibly.strives.to.cover.up.his.suspicions.even.from.himself.And.much.this.way.it.was.with.me.I.said.nothing.and.tried.to.think.nothing.At.last.it.was.given.out.that.some.time.next.day.the.ship.would.certainly.sail.So.next.morning.Queequeg.and.I.took.a.very.early.start.CHAPTER.21.Going.Aboard.It.was.nearly.six.oclock.but.only.grey.imperfect.misty.dawn.when.we.drew.nigh.the.wharf.There.are.some.sailors.running.ahead.there.if.I.see.right.said.I.to.Queequeg.it.cant.be.shadows.shes.off.by.sunrise.I.guess.come.on.Avast.cried.a.voice.whose.owner.at.the.same.time.coming.close.behind.us.laid.a.hand.upon.both.our.shoulders.and.then.insinuating.himself.between.us.stood.stooping.forward.a.little.in.the.uncertain.twilight.strangely.peering.from.Queequeg.to.me.It.was.Elijah.Going.aboard.Hands.off.will.you.said.I.Lookee.here.said.Queequeg.shaking.himself.go.way.Aint.going.aboard.then.Yes.we.are.said.I.but.what.business.is.that.of.yours.Do.you.know.Mr.Elijah.that.I.consider.you.a.little.impertinent.No.no.no.I.wasnt.aware.of.that.said.Elijah.slowly.and.wonderingly.looking.from.me.to.Queequeg.with.the.most.unaccountable.glances.Elijah.said.I.you.will.oblige.my.friend.and.me.by.withdrawing.We.are.going.to.the.Indian.and.Pacific.Oceans.and.would.prefer.not.to.be.detained.Ye.be.be.ye.Coming.back.afore.breakfast.Hes.cracked.Queequeg.said.I.come.on.Holloa.cried.stationary.Elijah.hailing.us.when.we.had.removed.a.few.paces.Never.mind.him.said.I.Queequeg.come.on.But.he.stole.up.to.us.again.and.suddenly.clapping.his.hand.on.my.shoulder.said.Did.ye.see.anything.looking.like.men.going.towards.that.ship.a.while.ago.Struck.by.this.plain.matteroffact.question.I.answered.saying.Yes.I.thought.I.did.see.four.or.five.men.but.it.was.too.dim.to.be.sure.Very.dim.very.dim.said.Elijah.Morning.to.ye.Once.more.we.quitted.him.but.once.more.he.came.softly.after.us.and.touching.my.shoulder.again.said.See.if.you.can.find.em.now.will.ye.Find.who.Morning.to.ye.morning.to.ye.he.rejoined.again.moving.off.Oh.I.was.going.to.warn.ye.against.but.never.mind.never.mind.its.all.one.all.in.the.family.too.sharp.frost.this.morning.aint.it.Goodbye.to.ye.Shant.see.ye.again.very.soon.I.guess.unless.its.before.the.Grand.Jury.And.with.these.cracked.words.he.finally.departed.leaving.me.for.the.moment.in.no.small.wonderment.at.his.frantic.impudence.At.last.stepping.on.board.the.Pequod.we.found.everything.in.profound.quiet.not.a.soul.moving.The.cabin.entrance.was.locked.within.the.hatches.were.all.on.and.lumbered.with.coils.of.rigging.Going.forward.to.the.forecastle.we.found.the.slide.of.the.scuttle.open.Seeing.a.light.we.went.down.and.found.only.an.old.rigger.there.wrapped.in.a.tattered.peajacket.He.was.thrown.at.whole.length.upon.two.chests.his.face.downwards.and.inclosed.in.his.folded.arms.The.profoundest.slumber.slept.upon.him.Those.sailors.we.saw.Queequeg.where.can.they.have.gone.to.said.I.looking.dubiously.at.the.sleeper.But.it.seemed.that.when.on.the.wharf.Queequeg.had.not.at.all.noticed.what.I.now.alluded.to.hence.I.would.have.thought.myself.to.have.been.optically.deceived.in.that.matter.were.it.not.for.Elijahs.otherwise.inexplicable.question.But.I.beat.the.thing.down.and.again.marking.the.sleeper.jocularly.hinted.to.Queequeg.that.perhaps.we.had.best.sit.up.with.the.body.telling.him.to.establish.himself.accordingly.He.put.his.hand.upon.the.sleepers.rear.as.though.feeling.if.it.was.soft.enough.and.then.without.more.ado.sat.quietly.down.there.Gracious.Queequeg.dont.sit.there.said.I.Oh.perry.dood.seat.said.Queequeg.my.country.way.wont.hurt.him.face.Face.said.I.call.that.his.face.very.benevolent.countenance.then.but.how.hard.he.breathes.hes.heaving.himself.get.off.Queequeg.you.are.heavy.its.grinding.the.face.of.the.poor.Get.off.Queequeg.Look.hell.twitch.you.off.soon.I.wonder.he.dont.wake.Queequeg.removed.himself.to.just.beyond.the.head.of.the.sleeper.and.lighted.his.tomahawk.pipe.I.sat.at.the.feet.We.kept.the.pipe.passing.over.the.sleeper.from.one.to.the.other.Meanwhile.upon.questioning.him.in.his.broken.fashion.Queequeg.gave.me.to.understand.that.in.his.land.owing.to.the.absence.of.settees.and.sofas.of.all.sorts.the.king.chiefs.and.great.people.generally.were.in.the.custom.of.fattening.some.of.the.lower.orders.for.ottomans.and.to.furnish.a.house.comfortably.in.that.respect.you.had.only.to.buy.up.eight.or.ten.lazy.fellows.and.lay.them.round.in.the.piers.and.alcoves.Besides.it.was.very.convenient.on.an.excursion.much.better.than.those.gardenchairs.which.are.convertible.into.walkingsticks.upon.occasion.a.chief.calling.his.attendant.and.desiring.him.to.make.a.settee.of.himself.under.a.spreading.tree.perhaps.in.some.damp.marshy.place.While.narrating.these.things.every.time.Queequeg.received.the.tomahawk.from.me.he.flourished.the.hatchetside.of.it.over.the.sleepers.head.Whats.that.for.Queequeg.Perry.easy.kille.oh.perry.easy.He.was.going.on.with.some.wild.reminiscences.about.his.tomahawkpipe.which.it.seemed.had.in.its.two.uses.both.brained.his.foes.and.soothed.his.soul.when.we.were.directly.attracted.to.the.sleeping.rigger.The.strong.vapor.now.completely.filling.the.contracted.hole.it.began.to.tell.upon.him.He.breathed.with.a.sort.of.muffledness.then.seemed.troubled.in.the.nose.then.revolved.over.once.or.twice.then.sat.up.and.rubbed.his.eyes.Holloa.he.breathed.at.last.who.be.ye.smokers.Shipped.men.answered.I.when.does.she.sail.Aye.aye.ye.are.going.in.her.be.ye.She.sails.today.The.Captain.came.aboard.last.night.What.Captain.Ahab.Who.but.him.indeed.I.was.going.to.ask.him.some.further.questions.concerning.Ahab.when.we.heard.a.noise.on.deck.Holloa.Starbucks.astir.said.the.rigger.Hes.a.lively.chief.mate.that.good.man.and.a.pious.but.all.alive.now.I.must.turn.to.And.so.saying.he.went.on.deck.and.we.followed.It.was.now.clear.sunrise.Soon.the.crew.came.on.board.in.twos.and.threes.the.riggers.bestirred.themselves.the.mates.were.actively.engaged.and.several.of.the.shore.people.were.busy.in.bringing.various.last.things.on.board.Meanwhile.Captain.Ahab.remained.invisibly.enshrined.within.his.cabin.CHAPTER.22.Merry.Christmas.At.length.towards.noon.upon.the.final.dismissal.of.the.ships.riggers.and.after.the.Pequod.had.been.hauled.out.from.the.wharf.and.after.the.everthoughtful.Charity.had.come.off.in.a.whaleboat.with.her.last.gift.a.nightcap.for.Stubb.the.second.mate.her.brotherinlaw.and.a.spare.Bible.for.the.steward.after.all.this.the.two.Captains.Peleg.and.Bildad.issued.from.the.cabin.and.turning.to.the.chief.mate.Peleg.said.Now.Mr.Starbuck.are.you.sure.everything.is.right.Captain.Ahab.is.all.ready.just.spoke.to.him.nothing.more.to.be.got.from.shore.eh.Well.call.all.hands.then.Muster.em.aft.here.blast.em.No.need.of.profane.words.however.great.the.hurry.Peleg.said.Bildad.but.away.with.thee.friend.Starbuck.and.do.our.bidding.How.now.Here.upon.the.very.point.of.starting.for.the.voyage.Captain.Peleg.and.Captain.Bildad.were.going.it.with.a.high.hand.on.the.quarterdeck.just.as.if.they.were.to.be.jointcommanders.at.sea.as.well.as.to.all.appearances.in.port.And.as.for.Captain.Ahab.no.sign.of.him.was.yet.to.be.seen.only.they.said.he.was.in.the.cabin.But.then.the.idea.was.that.his.presence.was.by.no.means.necessary.in.getting.the.ship.under.weigh.and.steering.her.well.out.to.sea.Indeed.as.that.was.not.at.all.his.proper.business.but.the.pilots.and.as.he.was.not.yet.completely.recovered.so.they.said.therefore.Captain.Ahab.stayed.below.And.all.this.seemed.natural.enough.especially.as.in.the.merchant.service.many.captains.never.show.themselves.on.deck.for.a.considerable.time.after.heaving.up.the.anchor.but.remain.over.the.cabin.table.having.a.farewell.merrymaking.with.their.shore.friends.before.they.quit.the.ship.for.good.with.the.pilot.But.there.was.not.much.chance.to.think.over.the.matter.for.Captain.Peleg.was.now.all.alive.He.seemed.to.do.most.of.the.talking.and.commanding.and.not.Bildad.Aft.here.ye.sons.of.bachelors.he.cried.as.the.sailors.lingered.at.the.mainmast.Mr.Starbuck.drive.em.aft.Strike.the.tent.there.was.the.next.order.As.I.hinted.before.this.whalebone.marquee.was.never.pitched.except.in.port.and.on.board.the.Pequod.for.thirty.years.the.order.to.strike.the.tent.was.well.known.to.be.the.next.thing.to.heaving.up.the.anchor.Man.the.capstan.Blood.and.thunder.jump.was.the.next.command.and.the.crew.sprang.for.the.handspikes.Now.in.getting.under.weigh.the.station.generally.occupied.by.the.pilot.is.the.forward.part.of.the.ship.And.here.Bildad.who.with.Peleg.be.it.known.in.addition.to.his.other.officers.was.one.of.the.licensed.pilots.of.the.port.he.being.suspected.to.have.got.himself.made.a.pilot.in.order.to.save.the.Nantucket.pilotfee.to.all.the.ships.he.was.concerned.in.for.he.never.piloted.any.other.craft.Bildad.I.say.might.now.be.seen.actively.engaged.in.looking.over.the.bows.for.the.approaching.anchor.and.at.intervals.singing.what.seemed.a.dismal.stave.of.psalmody.to.cheer.the.hands.at.the.windlass.who.roared.forth.some.sort.of.a.chorus.about.the.girls.in.Booble.Alley.with.hearty.good.will.Nevertheless.not.three.days.previous.Bildad.had.told.them.that.no.profane.songs.would.be.allowed.on.board.the.Pequod.particularly.in.getting.under.weigh.and.Charity.his.sister.had.placed.a.small.choice.copy.of.Watts.in.each.seamans.berth.Meantime.overseeing.the.other.part.of.the.ship.Captain.Peleg.ripped.and.swore.astern.in.the.most.frightful.manner.I.almost.thought.he.would.sink.the.ship.before.the.anchor.could.be.got.up.involuntarily.I.paused.on.my.handspike.and.told.Queequeg.to.do.the.same.thinking.of.the.perils.we.both.ran.in.starting.on.the.voyage.with.such.a.devil.for.a.pilot.I.was.comforting.myself.however.with.the.thought.that.in.pious.Bildad.might.be.found.some.salvation.spite.of.his.seven.hundred.and.seventyseventh.lay.when.I.felt.a.sudden.sharp.poke.in.my.rear.and.turning.round.was.horrified.at.the.apparition.of.Captain.Peleg.in.the.act.of.withdrawing.his.leg.from.my.immediate.vicinity.That.was.my.first.kick.Is.that.the.way.they.heave.in.the.marchant.service.he.roared.Spring.thou.sheephead.spring.and.break.thy.backbone.Why.dont.ye.spring.I.say.all.of.ye.spring.Quohog.spring.thou.chap.with.the.red.whiskers.spring.there.Scotchcap.spring.thou.green.pants.Spring.I.say.all.of.ye.and.spring.your.eyes.out.And.so.saying.he.moved.along.the.windlass.here.and.there.using.his.leg.very.freely.while.imperturbable.Bildad.kept.leading.off.with.his.psalmody.Thinks.I.Captain.Peleg.must.have.been.drinking.something.today.At.last.the.anchor.was.up.the.sails.were.set.and.off.we.glided.It.was.a.short.cold.Christmas.and.as.the.short.northern.day.merged.into.night.we.found.ourselves.almost.broad.upon.the.wintry.ocean.whose.freezing.spray.cased.us.in.ice.as.in.polished.armor.The.long.rows.of.teeth.on.the.bulwarks.glistened.in.the.moonlight.and.like.the.white.ivory.tusks.of.some.huge.elephant.vast.curving.icicles.depended.from.the.bows.Lank.Bildad.as.pilot.headed.the.first.watch.and.ever.and.anon.as.the.old.craft.deep.dived.into.the.green.seas.and.sent.the.shivering.frost.all.over.her.and.the.winds.howled.and.the.cordage.rang.his.steady.notes.were.heard.Sweet.fields.beyond.the.swelling.flood.Stand.dressed.in.living.green.So.to.the.Jews.old.Canaan.stood.While.Jordan.rolled.between.Never.did.those.sweet.words.sound.more.sweetly.to.me.than.then.They.were.full.of.hope.and.fruition.Spite.of.this.frigid.winter.night.in.the.boisterous.Atlantic.spite.of.my.wet.feet.and.wetter.jacket.there.was.yet.it.then.seemed.to.me.many.a.pleasant.haven.in.store.and.meads.and.glades.so.eternally.vernal.that.the.grass.shot.up.by.the.spring.untrodden.unwilted.remains.at.midsummer.At.last.we.gained.such.an.offing.that.the.two.pilots.were.needed.no.longer.The.stout.sailboat.that.had.accompanied.us.began.ranging.alongside.It.was.curious.and.not.unpleasing.how.Peleg.and.Bildad.were.affected.at.this.juncture.especially.Captain.Bildad.For.loath.to.depart.yet.very.loath.to.leave.for.good.a.ship.bound.on.so.long.and.perilous.a.voyage.beyond.both.stormy.Capes.a.ship.in.which.some.thousands.of.his.hard.earned.dollars.were.invested.a.ship.in.which.an.old.shipmate.sailed.as.captain.a.man.almost.as.old.as.he.once.more.starting.to.encounter.all.the.terrors.of.the.pitiless.jaw.loath.to.say.goodbye.to.a.thing.so.every.way.brimful.of.every.interest.to.him.poor.old.Bildad.lingered.long.paced.the.deck.with.anxious.strides.ran.down.into.the.cabin.to.speak.another.farewell.word.there.again.came.on.deck.and.looked.to.windward.looked.towards.the.wide.and.endless.waters.only.bounded.by.the.faroff.unseen.Eastern.Continents.looked.towards.the.land.looked.aloft.looked.right.and.left.looked.everywhere.and.nowhere.and.at.last.mechanically.coiling.a.rope.upon.its.pin.convulsively.grasped.stout.Peleg.by.the.hand.and.holding.up.a.lantern.for.a.moment.stood.gazing.heroically.in.his.face.as.much.as.to.say.Nevertheless.friend.Peleg.I.can.stand.it.yes.I.can.As.for.Peleg.himself.he.took.it.more.like.a.philosopher.but.for.all.his.philosophy.there.was.a.tear.twinkling.in.his.eye.when.the.lantern.came.too.near.And.he.too.did.not.a.little.run.from.cabin.to.deck.now.a.word.below.and.now.a.word.with.Starbuck.the.chief.mate.But.at.last.he.turned.to.his.comrade.with.a.final.sort.of.look.about.him.Captain.Bildad.come.old.shipmate.we.must.go.Back.the.mainyard.there.Boat.ahoy.Stand.by.to.come.close.alongside.now.Careful.careful.come.Bildad.boy.say.your.last.Luck.to.ye.Starbuck.luck.to.ye.Mr.Stubb.luck.to.ye.Mr.Flask.goodbye.and.good.luck.to.ye.all.and.this.day.three.years.Ill.have.a.hot.supper.smoking.for.ye.in.old.Nantucket.Hurrah.and.away.God.bless.ye.and.have.ye.in.His.holy.keeping.men.murmured.old.Bildad.almost.incoherently.I.hope.yell.have.fine.weather.now.so.that.Captain.Ahab.may.soon.be.moving.among.ye.a.pleasant.sun.is.all.he.needs.and.yell.have.plenty.of.them.in.the.tropic.voyage.ye.go.Be.careful.in.the.hunt.ye.mates.Dont.stave.the.boats.needlessly.ye.harpooneers.good.white.cedar.plank.is.raised.full.three.per.cent.within.the.year.Dont.forget.your.prayers.either.Mr.Starbuck.mind.that.cooper.dont.waste.the.spare.staves.Oh.the.sailneedles.are.in.the.green.locker.Dont.whale.it.too.much.a.Lords.days.men.but.dont.miss.a.fair.chance.either.thats.rejecting.Heavens.good.gifts.Have.an.eye.to.the.molasses.tierce.Mr.Stubb.it.was.a.little.leaky.I.thought.If.ye.touch.at.the.islands.Mr.Flask.beware.of.fornication.Goodbye.goodbye.Dont.keep.that.cheese.too.long.down.in.the.hold.Mr.Starbuck.itll.spoil.Be.careful.with.the.butter.twenty.cents.the.pound.it.was.and.mind.ye.if.Come.come.Captain.Bildad.stop.palavering.away.and.with.that.Peleg.hurried.him.over.the.side.and.both.dropt.into.the.boat.Ship.and.boat.diverged.the.cold.damp.night.breeze.blew.between.a.screaming.gull.flew.overhead.the.two.hulls.wildly.rolled.we.gave.three.heavyhearted.cheers.and.blindly.plunged.like.fate.into.the.lone.Atlantic.CHAPTER.23.The.Lee.Shore.Some.chapters.back.one.Bulkington.was.spoken.of.a.tall.newlanded.mariner.encountered.in.New.Bedford.at.the.inn.When.on.that.shivering.winters.night.the.Pequod.thrust.her.vindictive.bows.into.the.cold.malicious.waves.who.should.I.see.standing.at.her.helm.but.Bulkington.I.looked.with.sympathetic.awe.and.fearfulness.upon.the.man.who.in.midwinter.just.landed.from.a.four.years.dangerous.voyage.could.so.unrestingly.push.off.again.for.still.another.tempestuous.term.The.land.seemed.scorching.to.his.feet.Wonderfullest.things.are.ever.the.unmentionable.deep.memories.yield.no.epitaphs.this.sixinch.chapter.is.the.stoneless.grave.of.Bulkington.Let.me.only.say.that.it.fared.with.him.as.with.the.stormtossed.ship.that.miserably.drives.along.the.leeward.land.The.port.would.fain.give.succor.the.port.is.pitiful.in.the.port.is.safety.comfort.hearthstone.supper.warm.blankets.friends.all.thats.kind.to.our.mortalities.But.in.that.gale.the.port.the.land.is.that.ships.direst.jeopardy.she.must.fly.all.hospitality.one.touch.of.land.though.it.but.graze.the.keel.would.make.her.shudder.through.and.through.With.all.her.might.she.crowds.all.sail.off.shore.in.so.doing.fights.gainst.the.very.winds.that.fain.would.blow.her.homeward.seeks.all.the.lashed.seas.landlessness.again.for.refuges.sake.forlornly.rushing.into.peril.her.only.friend.her.bitterest.foe.Know.ye.now.Bulkington.Glimpses.do.ye.seem.to.see.of.that.mortally.intolerable.truth.that.all.deep.earnest.thinking.is.but.the.intrepid.effort.of.the.soul.to.keep.the.open.independence.of.her.sea.while.the.wildest.winds.of.heaven.and.earth.conspire.to.cast.her.on.the.treacherous.slavish.shore.But.as.in.landlessness.alone.resides.highest.truth.shoreless.indefinite.as.God.so.better.is.it.to.perish.in.that.howling.infinite.than.be.ingloriously.dashed.upon.the.lee.even.if.that.were.safety.For.wormlike.then.oh.who.would.craven.crawl.to.land.Terrors.of.the.terrible.is.all.this.agony.so.vain.Take.heart.take.heart.O.Bulkington.Bear.thee.grimly.demigod.Up.from.the.spray.of.thy.oceanperishing.straight.up.leaps.thy.apotheosis.CHAPTER.24.The.Advocate.As.Queequeg.and.I.are.now.fairly.embarked.in.this.business.of.whaling.and.as.this.business.of.whaling.has.somehow.come.to.be.regarded.among.landsmen.as.a.rather.unpoetical.and.disreputable.pursuit.therefore.I.am.all.anxiety.to.convince.ye.ye.landsmen.of.the.injustice.hereby.done.to.us.hunters.of.whales.In.the.first.place.it.may.be.deemed.almost.superfluous.to.establish.the.fact.that.among.people.at.large.the.business.of.whaling.is.not.accounted.on.a.level.with.what.are.called.the.liberal.professions.If.a.stranger.were.introduced.into.any.miscellaneous.metropolitan.society.it.would.but.slightly.advance.the.general.opinion.of.his.merits.were.he.presented.to.the.company.as.a.harpooneer.say.and.if.in.emulation.of.the.naval.officers.he.should.append.the.initials.SWF.Sperm.Whale.Fishery.to.his.visiting.card.such.a.procedure.would.be.deemed.preeminently.presuming.and.ridiculous.Doubtless.one.leading.reason.why.the.world.declines.honoring.us.whalemen.is.this.they.think.that.at.best.our.vocation.amounts.to.a.butchering.sort.of.business.and.that.when.actively.engaged.therein.we.are.surrounded.by.all.manner.of.defilements.Butchers.we.are.that.is.true.But.butchers.also.and.butchers.of.the.bloodiest.badge.have.been.all.Martial.Commanders.whom.the.world.invariably.delights.to.honor.And.as.for.the.matter.of.the.alleged.uncleanliness.of.our.business.ye.shall.soon.be.initiated.into.certain.facts.hitherto.pretty.generally.unknown.and.which.upon.the.whole.will.triumphantly.plant.the.sperm.whaleship.at.least.among.the.cleanliest.things.of.this.tidy.earth.But.even.granting.the.charge.in.question.to.be.true.what.disordered.slippery.decks.of.a.whaleship.are.comparable.to.the.unspeakable.carrion.of.those.battlefields.from.which.so.many.soldiers.return.to.drink.in.all.ladies.plaudits.And.if.the.idea.of.peril.so.much.enhances.the.popular.conceit.of.the.soldiers.profession.let.me.assure.ye.that.many.a.veteran.who.has.freely.marched.up.to.a.battery.would.quickly.recoil.at.the.apparition.of.the.sperm.whales.vast.tail.fanning.into.eddies.the.air.over.his.head.For.what.are.the.comprehensible.terrors.of.man.compared.with.the.interlinked.terrors.and.wonders.of.God.But.though.the.world.scouts.at.us.whale.hunters.yet.does.it.unwittingly.pay.us.the.profoundest.homage.yea.an.allabounding.adoration.for.almost.all.the.tapers.lamps.and.candles.that.burn.round.the.globe.burn.as.before.so.many.shrines.to.our.glory.But.look.at.this.matter.in.other.lights.weigh.it.in.all.sorts.of.scales.see.what.we.whalemen.are.and.have.been.Why.did.the.Dutch.in.De.Witts.time.have.admirals.of.their.whaling.fleets.Why.did.Louis.XVI.of.France.at.his.own.personal.expense.fit.out.whaling.ships.from.Dunkirk.and.politely.invite.to.that.town.some.score.or.two.of.families.from.our.own.island.of.Nantucket.Why.did.Britain.between.the.years.1750.and.1788.pay.to.her.whalemen.in.bounties.upwards.of.1000000.And.lastly.how.comes.it.that.we.whalemen.of.America.now.outnumber.all.the.rest.of.the.banded.whalemen.in.the.world.sail.a.navy.of.upwards.of.seven.hundred.vessels.manned.by.eighteen.thousand.men.yearly.consuming.4000000.of.dollars.the.ships.worth.at.the.time.of.sailing.20000000.and.every.year.importing.into.our.harbors.a.well.reaped.harvest.of.7000000.How.comes.all.this.if.there.be.not.something.puissant.in.whaling.But.this.is.not.the.half.look.again.I.freely.assert.that.the.cosmopolite.philosopher.cannot.for.his.life.point.out.one.single.peaceful.influence.which.within.the.last.sixty.years.has.operated.more.potentially.upon.the.whole.broad.world.taken.in.one.aggregate.than.the.high.and.mighty.business.of.whaling.One.way.and.another.it.has.begotten.events.so.remarkable.in.themselves.and.so.continuously.momentous.in.their.sequential.issues.that.whaling.may.well.be.regarded.as.that.Egyptian.mother.who.bore.offspring.themselves.pregnant.from.her.womb.It.would.be.a.hopeless.endless.task.to.catalogue.all.these.things.Let.a.handful.suffice.For.many.years.past.the.whaleship.has.been.the.pioneer.in.ferreting.out.the.remotest.and.least.known.parts.of.the.earth.She.has.explored.seas.and.archipelagoes.which.had.no.chart.where.no.Cook.or.Vancouver.had.ever.sailed.If.American.and.European.menofwar.now.peacefully.ride.in.once.savage.harbors.let.them.fire.salutes.to.the.honor.and.glory.of.the.whaleship.which.originally.showed.them.the.way.and.first.interpreted.between.them.and.the.savages.They.may.celebrate.as.they.will.the.heroes.of.Exploring.Expeditions.your.Cooks.your.Krusensterns.but.I.say.that.scores.of.anonymous.Captains.have.sailed.out.of.Nantucket.that.were.as.great.and.greater.than.your.Cook.and.your.Krusenstern.For.in.their.succourless.emptyhandedness.they.in.the.heathenish.sharked.waters.and.by.the.beaches.of.unrecorded.javelin.islands.battled.with.virgin.wonders.and.terrors.that.Cook.with.all.his.marines.and.muskets.would.not.willingly.have.dared.All.that.is.made.such.a.flourish.of.in.the.old.South.Sea.Voyages.those.things.were.but.the.lifetime.commonplaces.of.our.heroic.Nantucketers.Often.adventures.which.Vancouver.dedicates.three.chapters.to.these.men.accounted.unworthy.of.being.set.down.in.the.ships.common.log.Ah.the.world.Oh.the.world.Until.the.whale.fishery.rounded.Cape.Horn.no.commerce.but.colonial.scarcely.any.intercourse.but.colonial.was.carried.on.between.Europe.and.the.long.line.of.the.opulent.Spanish.provinces.on.the.Pacific.coast.It.was.the.whaleman.who.first.broke.through.the.jealous.policy.of.the.Spanish.crown.touching.those.colonies.and.if.space.permitted.it.might.be.distinctly.shown.how.from.those.whalemen.at.last.eventuated.the.liberation.of.Peru.Chili.and.Bolivia.from.the.yoke.of.Old.Spain.and.the.establishment.of.the.eternal.democracy.in.those.parts.That.great.America.on.the.other.side.of.the.sphere.Australia.was.given.to.the.enlightened.world.by.the.whaleman.After.its.first.blunderborn.discovery.by.a.Dutchman.all.other.ships.long.shunned.those.shores.as.pestiferously.barbarous.but.the.whaleship.touched.there.The.whaleship.is.the.true.mother.of.that.now.mighty.colony.Moreover.in.the.infancy.of.the.first.Australian.settlement.the.emigrants.were.several.times.saved.from.starvation.by.the.benevolent.biscuit.of.the.whaleship.luckily.dropping.an.anchor.in.their.waters.The.uncounted.isles.of.all.Polynesia.confess.the.same.truth.and.do.commercial.homage.to.the.whaleship.that.cleared.the.way.for.the.missionary.and.the.merchant.and.in.many.cases.carried.the.primitive.missionaries.to.their.first.destinations.If.that.doublebolted.land.Japan.is.ever.to.become.hospitable.it.is.the.whaleship.alone.to.whom.the.credit.will.be.due.for.already.she.is.on.the.threshold.But.if.in.the.face.of.all.this.you.still.declare.that.whaling.has.no.sthetically.noble.associations.connected.with.it.then.am.I.ready.to.shiver.fifty.lances.with.you.there.and.unhorse.you.with.a.split.helmet.every.time.The.whale.has.no.famous.author.and.whaling.no.famous.chronicler.you.will.say.The.whale.no.famous.author.and.whaling.no.famous.chronicler.Who.wrote.the.first.account.of.our.Leviathan.Who.but.mighty.Job.And.who.composed.the.first.narrative.of.a.whalingvoyage.Who.but.no.less.a.prince.than.Alfred.the.Great.who.with.his.own.royal.pen.took.down.the.words.from.Other.the.Norwegian.whalehunter.of.those.times.And.who.pronounced.our.glowing.eulogy.in.Parliament.Who.but.Edmund.Burke.True.enough.but.then.whalemen.themselves.are.poor.devils.they.have.no.good.blood.in.their.veins.No.good.blood.in.their.veins.They.have.something.better.than.royal.blood.there.The.grandmother.of.Benjamin.Franklin.was.Mary.Morrel.afterwards.by.marriage.Mary.Folger.one.of.the.old.settlers.of.Nantucket.and.the.ancestress.to.a.long.line.of.Folgers.and.harpooneers.all.kith.and.kin.to.noble.Benjamin.this.day.darting.the.barbed.iron.from.one.side.of.the.world.to.the.other.Good.again.but.then.all.confess.that.somehow.whaling.is.not.respectable.Whaling.not.respectable.Whaling.is.imperial.By.old.English.statutory.law.the.whale.is.declared.a.royal.fish.Oh.thats.only.nominal.The.whale.himself.has.never.figured.in.any.grand.imposing.way.The.whale.never.figured.in.any.grand.imposing.way.In.one.of.the.mighty.triumphs.given.to.a.Roman.general.upon.his.entering.the.worlds.capital.the.bones.of.a.whale.brought.all.the.way.from.the.Syrian.coast.were.the.most.conspicuous.object.in.the.cymballed.procession.See.subsequent.chapters.for.something.more.on.this.head.Grant.it.since.you.cite.it.but.say.what.you.will.there.is.no.real.dignity.in.whaling.No.dignity.in.whaling.The.dignity.of.our.calling.the.very.heavens.attest.Cetus.is.a.constellation.in.the.South.No.more.Drive.down.your.hat.in.presence.of.the.Czar.and.take.it.off.to.Queequeg.No.more.I.know.a.man.that.in.his.lifetime.has.taken.three.hundred.and.fifty.whales.I.account.that.man.more.honorable.than.that.great.captain.of.antiquity.who.boasted.of.taking.as.many.walled.towns.And.as.for.me.if.by.any.possibility.there.be.any.as.yet.undiscovered.prime.thing.in.me.if.I.shall.ever.deserve.any.real.repute.in.that.small.but.high.hushed.world.which.I.might.not.be.unreasonably.ambitious.of.if.hereafter.I.shall.do.anything.that.upon.the.whole.a.man.might.rather.have.done.than.to.have.left.undone.if.at.my.death.my.executors.or.more.properly.my.creditors.find.any.precious.MSS.in.my.desk.then.here.I.prospectively.ascribe.all.the.honor.and.the.glory.to.whaling.for.a.whaleship.was.my.Yale.College.and.my.Harvard.CHAPTER.25.Postscript.In.behalf.of.the.dignity.of.whaling.I.would.fain.advance.naught.but.substantiated.facts.But.after.embattling.his.facts.an.advocate.who.should.wholly.suppress.a.not.unreasonable.surmise.which.might.tell.eloquently.upon.his.cause.such.an.advocate.would.he.not.be.blameworthy.It.is.well.known.that.at.the.coronation.of.kings.and.queens.even.modern.ones.a.certain.curious.process.of.seasoning.them.for.their.functions.is.gone.through.There.is.a.saltcellar.of.state.so.called.and.there.may.be.a.castor.of.state.How.they.use.the.salt.precisely.who.knows.Certain.I.am.however.that.a.kings.head.is.solemnly.oiled.at.his.coronation.even.as.a.head.of.salad.Can.it.be.though.that.they.anoint.it.with.a.view.of.making.its.interior.run.well.as.they.anoint.machinery.Much.might.be.ruminated.here.concerning.the.essential.dignity.of.this.regal.process.because.in.common.life.we.esteem.but.meanly.and.contemptibly.a.fellow.who.anoints.his.hair.and.palpably.smells.of.that.anointing.In.truth.a.mature.man.who.uses.hairoil.unless.medicinally.that.man.has.probably.got.a.quoggy.spot.in.him.somewhere.As.a.general.rule.he.cant.amount.to.much.in.his.totality.But.the.only.thing.to.be.considered.here.is.this.what.kind.of.oil.is.used.at.coronations.Certainly.it.cannot.be.olive.oil.nor.macassar.oil.nor.castor.oil.nor.bears.oil.nor.train.oil.nor.codliver.oil.What.then.can.it.possibly.be.but.sperm.oil.in.its.unmanufactured.unpolluted.state.the.sweetest.of.all.oils.Think.of.that.ye.loyal.Britons.we.whalemen.supply.your.kings.and.queens.with.coronation.stuff.CHAPTER.26.Knights.and.Squires.The.chief.mate.of.the.Pequod.was.Starbuck.a.native.of.Nantucket.and.a.Quaker.by.descent.He.was.a.long.earnest.man.and.though.born.on.an.icy.coast.seemed.well.adapted.to.endure.hot.latitudes.his.flesh.being.hard.as.twicebaked.biscuit.Transported.to.the.Indies.his.live.blood.would.not.spoil.like.bottled.ale.He.must.have.been.born.in.some.time.of.general.drought.and.famine.or.upon.one.of.those.fast.days.for.which.his.state.is.famous.Only.some.thirty.arid.summers.had.he.seen.those.summers.had.dried.up.all.his.physical.superfluousness.But.this.his.thinness.so.to.speak.seemed.no.more.the.token.of.wasting.anxieties.and.cares.than.it.seemed.the.indication.of.any.bodily.blight.It.was.merely.the.condensation.of.the.man.He.was.by.no.means.illlooking.quite.the.contrary.His.pure.tight.skin.was.an.excellent.fit.and.closely.wrapped.up.in.it.and.embalmed.with.inner.health.and.strength.like.a.revivified.Egyptian.this.Starbuck.seemed.prepared.to.endure.for.long.ages.to.come.and.to.endure.always.as.now.for.be.it.Polar.snow.or.torrid.sun.like.a.patent.chronometer.his.interior.vitality.was.warranted.to.do.well.in.all.climates.Looking.into.his.eyes.you.seemed.to.see.there.the.yet.lingering.images.of.those.thousandfold.perils.he.had.calmly.confronted.through.life.A.staid.steadfast.man.whose.life.for.the.most.part.was.a.telling.pantomime.of.action.and.not.a.tame.chapter.of.sounds.Yet.for.all.his.hardy.sobriety.and.fortitude.there.were.certain.qualities.in.him.which.at.times.affected.and.in.some.cases.seemed.well.nigh.to.overbalance.all.the.rest.Uncommonly.conscientious.for.a.seaman.and.endued.with.a.deep.natural.reverence.the.wild.watery.loneliness.of.his.life.did.therefore.strongly.incline.him.to.superstition.but.to.that.sort.of.superstition.which.in.some.organizations.seems.rather.to.spring.somehow.from.intelligence.than.from.ignorance.Outward.portents.and.inward.presentiments.were.his.And.if.at.times.these.things.bent.the.welded.iron.of.his.soul.much.more.did.his.faraway.domestic.memories.of.his.young.Cape.wife.and.child.tend.to.bend.him.still.more.from.the.original.ruggedness.of.his.nature.and.open.him.still.further.to.those.latent.influences.which.in.some.honesthearted.men.restrain.the.gush.of.daredevil.daring.so.often.evinced.by.others.in.the.more.perilous.vicissitudes.of.the.fishery.I.will.have.no.man.in.my.boat.said.Starbuck.who.is.not.afraid.of.a.whale.By.this.he.seemed.to.mean.not.only.that.the.most.reliable.and.useful.courage.was.that.which.arises.from.the.fair.estimation.of.the.encountered.peril.but.that.an.utterly.fearless.man.is.a.far.more.dangerous.comrade.than.a.coward.Aye.aye.said.Stubb.the.second.mate.Starbuck.there.is.as.careful.a.man.as.youll.find.anywhere.in.this.fishery.But.we.shall.ere.long.see.what.that.word.careful.precisely.means.when.used.by.a.man.like.Stubb.or.almost.any.other.whale.hunter.Starbuck.was.no.crusader.after.perils.in.him.courage.was.not.a.sentiment.but.a.thing.simply.useful.to.him.and.always.at.hand.upon.all.mortally.practical.occasions.Besides.he.thought.perhaps.that.in.this.business.of.whaling.courage.was.one.of.the.great.staple.outfits.of.the.ship.like.her.beef.and.her.bread.and.not.to.be.foolishly.wasted.Wherefore.he.had.no.fancy.for.lowering.for.whales.after.sundown.nor.for.persisting.in.fighting.a.fish.that.too.much.persisted.in.fighting.him.For.thought.Starbuck.I.am.here.in.this.critical.ocean.to.kill.whales.for.my.living.and.not.to.be.killed.by.them.for.theirs.and.that.hundreds.of.men.had.been.so.killed.Starbuck.well.knew.What.doom.was.his.own.fathers.Where.in.the.bottomless.deeps.could.he.find.the.torn.limbs.of.his.brother.With.memories.like.these.in.him.and.moreover.given.to.a.certain.superstitiousness.as.has.been.said.the.courage.of.this.Starbuck.which.could.nevertheless.still.flourish.must.indeed.have.been.extreme.But.it.was.not.in.reasonable.nature.that.a.man.so.organized.and.with.such.terrible.experiences.and.remembrances.as.he.had.it.was.not.in.nature.that.these.things.should.fail.in.latently.engendering.an.element.in.him.which.under.suitable.circumstances.would.break.out.from.its.confinement.and.burn.all.his.courage.up.And.brave.as.he.might.be.it.was.that.sort.of.bravery.chiefly.visible.in.some.intrepid.men.which.while.generally.abiding.firm.in.the.conflict.with.seas.or.winds.or.whales.or.any.of.the.ordinary.irrational.horrors.of.the.world.yet.cannot.withstand.those.more.terrific.because.more.spiritual.terrors.which.sometimes.menace.you.from.the.concentrating.brow.of.an.enraged.and.mighty.man.But.were.the.coming.narrative.to.reveal.in.any.instance.the.complete.abasement.of.poor.Starbucks.fortitude.scarce.might.I.have.the.heart.to.write.it.for.it.is.a.thing.most.sorrowful.nay.shocking.to.expose.the.fall.of.valour.in.the.soul.Men.may.seem.detestable.as.joint.stockcompanies.and.nations.knaves.fools.and.murderers.there.may.be.men.may.have.mean.and.meagre.faces.but.man.in.the.ideal.is.so.noble.and.so.sparkling.such.a.grand.and.glowing.creature.that.over.any.ignominious.blemish.in.him.all.his.fellows.should.run.to.throw.their.costliest.robes.That.immaculate.manliness.we.feel.within.ourselves.so.far.within.us.that.it.remains.intact.though.all.the.outer.character.seem.gone.bleeds.with.keenest.anguish.at.the.undraped.spectacle.of.a.valorruined.man.Nor.can.piety.itself.at.such.a.shameful.sight.completely.stifle.her.upbraidings.against.the.permitting.stars.But.this.august.dignity.I.treat.of.is.not.the.dignity.of.kings.and.robes.but.that.abounding.dignity.which.has.no.robed.investiture.Thou.shalt.see.it.shining.in.the.arm.that.wields.a.pick.or.drives.a.spike.that.democratic.dignity.which.on.all.hands.radiates.without.end.from.God.Himself.The.great.God.absolute.The.centre.and.circumference.of.all.democracy.His.omnipresence.our.divine.equality.If.then.to.meanest.mariners.and.renegades.and.castaways.I.shall.hereafter.ascribe.high.qualities.though.dark.weave.round.them.tragic.graces.if.even.the.most.mournful.perchance.the.most.abased.among.them.all.shall.at.times.lift.himself.to.the.exalted.mounts.if.I.shall.touch.that.workmans.arm.with.some.ethereal.light.if.I.shall.spread.a.rainbow.over.his.disastrous.set.of.sun.then.against.all.mortal.critics.bear.me.out.in.it.thou.just.Spirit.of.Equality.which.hast.spread.one.royal.mantle.of.humanity.over.all.my.kind.Bear.me.out.in.it.thou.great.democratic.God.who.didst.not.refuse.to.the.swart.convict.Bunyan.the.pale.poetic.pearl.Thou.who.didst.clothe.with.doubly.hammered.leaves.of.finest.gold.the.stumped.and.paupered.arm.of.old.Cervantes.Thou.who.didst.pick.up.Andrew.Jackson.from.the.pebbles.who.didst.hurl.him.upon.a.warhorse.who.didst.thunder.him.higher.than.a.throne.Thou.who.in.all.Thy.mighty.earthly.marchings.ever.cullest.Thy.selectest.champions.from.the.kingly.commons.bear.me.out.in.it.O.God.CHAPTER.27.Knights.and.Squires.Stubb.was.the.second.mate.He.was.a.native.of.Cape.Cod.and.hence.according.to.local.usage.was.called.a.CapeCodman.A.happygolucky.neither.craven.nor.valiant.taking.perils.as.they.came.with.an.indifferent.air.and.while.engaged.in.the.most.imminent.crisis.of.the.chase.toiling.away.calm.and.collected.as.a.journeyman.joiner.engaged.for.the.year.Goodhumored.easy.and.careless.he.presided.over.his.whaleboat.as.if.the.most.deadly.encounter.were.but.a.dinner.and.his.crew.all.invited.guests.He.was.as.particular.about.the.comfortable.arrangement.of.his.part.of.the.boat.as.an.old.stagedriver.is.about.the.snugness.of.his.box.When.close.to.the.whale.in.the.very.deathlock.of.the.fight.he.handled.his.unpitying.lance.coolly.and.offhandedly.as.a.whistling.tinker.his.hammer.He.would.hum.over.his.old.rigadig.tunes.while.flank.and.flank.with.the.most.exasperated.monster.Long.usage.had.for.this.Stubb.converted.the.jaws.of.death.into.an.easy.chair.What.he.thought.of.death.itself.there.is.no.telling.Whether.he.ever.thought.of.it.at.all.might.be.a.question.but.if.he.ever.did.chance.to.cast.his.mind.that.way.after.a.comfortable.dinner.no.doubt.like.a.good.sailor.he.took.it.to.be.a.sort.of.call.of.the.watch.to.tumble.aloft.and.bestir.themselves.there.about.something.which.he.would.find.out.when.he.obeyed.the.order.and.not.sooner.What.perhaps.with.other.things.made.Stubb.such.an.easygoing.unfearing.man.so.cheerily.trudging.off.with.the.burden.of.life.in.a.world.full.of.grave.pedlars.all.bowed.to.the.ground.with.their.packs.what.helped.to.bring.about.that.almost.impious.goodhumor.of.his.that.thing.must.have.been.his.pipe.For.like.his.nose.his.short.black.little.pipe.was.one.of.the.regular.features.of.his.face.You.would.almost.as.soon.have.expected.him.to.turn.out.of.his.bunk.without.his.nose.as.without.his.pipe.He.kept.a.whole.row.of.pipes.there.ready.loaded.stuck.in.a.rack.within.easy.reach.of.his.hand.and.whenever.he.turned.in.he.smoked.them.all.out.in.succession.lighting.one.from.the.other.to.the.end.of.the.chapter.then.loading.them.again.to.be.in.readiness.anew.For.when.Stubb.dressed.instead.of.first.putting.his.legs.into.his.trowsers.he.put.his.pipe.into.his.mouth.I.say.this.continual.smoking.must.have.been.one.cause.at.least.of.his.peculiar.disposition.for.every.one.knows.that.this.earthly.air.whether.ashore.or.afloat.is.terribly.infected.with.the.nameless.miseries.of.the.numberless.mortals.who.have.died.exhaling.it.and.as.in.time.of.the.cholera.some.people.go.about.with.a.camphorated.handkerchief.to.their.mouths.so.likewise.against.all.mortal.tribulations.Stubbs.tobacco.smoke.might.have.operated.as.a.sort.of.disinfecting.agent.The.third.mate.was.Flask.a.native.of.Tisbury.in.Marthas.Vineyard.A.short.stout.ruddy.young.fellow.very.pugnacious.concerning.whales.who.somehow.seemed.to.think.that.the.great.leviathans.had.personally.and.hereditarily.affronted.him.and.therefore.it.was.a.sort.of.point.of.honor.with.him.to.destroy.them.whenever.encountered.So.utterly.lost.was.he.to.all.sense.of.reverence.for.the.many.marvels.of.their.majestic.bulk.and.mystic.ways.and.so.dead.to.anything.like.an.apprehension.of.any.possible.danger.from.encountering.them.that.in.his.poor.opinion.the.wondrous.whale.was.but.a.species.of.magnified.mouse.or.at.least.waterrat.requiring.only.a.little.circumvention.and.some.small.application.of.time.and.trouble.in.order.to.kill.and.boil.This.ignorant.unconscious.fearlessness.of.his.made.him.a.little.waggish.in.the.matter.of.whales.he.followed.these.fish.for.the.fun.of.it.and.a.three.years.voyage.round.Cape.Horn.was.only.a.jolly.joke.that.lasted.that.length.of.time.As.a.carpenters.nails.are.divided.into.wrought.nails.and.cut.nails.so.mankind.may.be.similarly.divided.Little.Flask.was.one.of.the.wrought.ones.made.to.clinch.tight.and.last.long.They.called.him.KingPost.on.board.of.the.Pequod.because.in.form.he.could.be.well.likened.to.the.short.square.timber.known.by.that.name.in.Arctic.whalers.and.which.by.the.means.of.many.radiating.side.timbers.inserted.into.it.serves.to.brace.the.ship.against.the.icy.concussions.of.those.battering.seas.Now.these.three.mates.Starbuck.Stubb.and.Flask.were.momentous.men.They.it.was.who.by.universal.prescription.commanded.three.of.the.Pequods.boats.as.headsmen.In.that.grand.order.of.battle.in.which.Captain.Ahab.would.probably.marshal.his.forces.to.descend.on.the.whales.these.three.headsmen.were.as.captains.of.companies.Or.being.armed.with.their.long.keen.whaling.spears.they.were.as.a.picked.trio.of.lancers.even.as.the.harpooneers.were.flingers.of.javelins.And.since.in.this.famous.fishery.each.mate.or.headsman.like.a.Gothic.Knight.of.old.is.always.accompanied.by.his.boatsteerer.or.harpooneer.who.in.certain.conjunctures.provides.him.with.a.fresh.lance.when.the.former.one.has.been.badly.twisted.or.elbowed.in.the.assault.and.moreover.as.there.generally.subsists.between.the.two.a.close.intimacy.and.friendliness.it.is.therefore.but.meet.that.in.this.place.we.set.down.who.the.Pequods.harpooneers.were.and.to.what.headsman.each.of.them.belonged.First.of.all.was.Queequeg.whom.Starbuck.the.chief.mate.had.selected.for.his.squire.But.Queequeg.is.already.known.Next.was.Tashtego.an.unmixed.Indian.from.Gay.Head.the.most.westerly.promontory.of.Marthas.Vineyard.where.there.still.exists.the.last.remnant.of.a.village.of.red.men.which.has.long.supplied.the.neighboring.island.of.Nantucket.with.many.of.her.most.daring.harpooneers.In.the.fishery.they.usually.go.by.the.generic.name.of.GayHeaders.Tashtegos.long.lean.sable.hair.his.high.cheek.bones.and.black.rounding.eyes.for.an.Indian.Oriental.in.their.largeness.but.Antarctic.in.their.glittering.expression.all.this.sufficiently.proclaimed.him.an.inheritor.of.the.unvitiated.blood.of.those.proud.warrior.hunters.who.in.quest.of.the.great.New.England.moose.had.scoured.bow.in.hand.the.aboriginal.forests.of.the.main.But.no.longer.snuffing.in.the.trail.of.the.wild.beasts.of.the.woodland.Tashtego.now.hunted.in.the.wake.of.the.great.whales.of.the.sea.the.unerring.harpoon.of.the.son.fitly.replacing.the.infallible.arrow.of.the.sires.To.look.at.the.tawny.brawn.of.his.lithe.snaky.limbs.you.would.almost.have.credited.the.superstitions.of.some.of.the.earlier.Puritans.and.halfbelieved.this.wild.Indian.to.be.a.son.of.the.Prince.of.the.Powers.of.the.Air.Tashtego.was.Stubb.the.second.mates.squire.Third.among.the.harpooneers.was.Daggoo.a.gigantic.coalblack.negrosavage.with.a.lionlike.tread.an.Ahasuerus.to.behold.Suspended.from.his.ears.were.two.golden.hoops.so.large.that.the.sailors.called.them.ringbolts.and.would.talk.of.securing.the.topsail.halyards.to.them.In.his.youth.Daggoo.had.voluntarily.shipped.on.board.of.a.whaler.lying.in.a.lonely.bay.on.his.native.coast.And.never.having.been.anywhere.in.the.world.but.in.Africa.Nantucket.and.the.pagan.harbors.most.frequented.by.whalemen.and.having.now.led.for.many.years.the.bold.life.of.the.fishery.in.the.ships.of.owners.uncommonly.heedful.of.what.manner.of.men.they.shipped.Daggoo.retained.all.his.barbaric.virtues.and.erect.as.a.giraffe.moved.about.the.decks.in.all.the.pomp.of.six.feet.five.in.his.socks.There.was.a.corporeal.humility.in.looking.up.at.him.and.a.white.man.standing.before.him.seemed.a.white.flag.come.to.beg.truce.of.a.fortress.Curious.to.tell.this.imperial.negro.Ahasuerus.Daggoo.was.the.Squire.of.little.Flask.who.looked.like.a.chessman.beside.him.As.for.the.residue.of.the.Pequods.company.be.it.said.that.at.the.present.day.not.one.in.two.of.the.many.thousand.men.before.the.mast.employed.in.the.American.whale.fishery.are.Americans.born.though.pretty.nearly.all.the.officers.are.Herein.it.is.the.same.with.the.American.whale.fishery.as.with.the.American.army.and.military.and.merchant.navies.and.the.engineering.forces.employed.in.the.construction.of.the.American.Canals.and.Railroads.The.same.I.say.because.in.all.these.cases.the.native.American.liberally.provides.the.brains.the.rest.of.the.world.as.generously.supplying.the.muscles.No.small.number.of.these.whaling.seamen.belong.to.the.Azores.where.the.outward.bound.Nantucket.whalers.frequently.touch.to.augment.their.crews.from.the.hardy.peasants.of.those.rocky.shores.In.like.manner.the.Greenland.whalers.sailing.out.of.Hull.or.London.put.in.at.the.Shetland.Islands.to.receive.the.full.complement.of.their.crew.Upon.the.passage.homewards.they.drop.them.there.again.How.it.is.there.is.no.telling.but.Islanders.seem.to.make.the.best.whalemen.They.were.nearly.all.Islanders.in.the.Pequod.Isolatoes.too.I.call.such.not.acknowledging.the.common.continent.of.men.but.each.Isolato.living.on.a.separate.continent.of.his.own.Yet.now.federated.along.one.keel.what.a.set.these.Isolatoes.were.An.Anacharsis.Clootz.deputation.from.all.the.isles.of.the.sea.and.all.the.ends.of.the.earth.accompanying.Old.Ahab.in.the.Pequod.to.lay.the.worlds.grievances.before.that.bar.from.which.not.very.many.of.them.ever.come.back.Black.Little.Pip.he.never.did.oh.no.he.went.before.Poor.Alabama.boy.On.the.grim.Pequods.forecastle.ye.shall.ere.long.see.him.beating.his.tambourine.prelusive.of.the.eternal.time.when.sent.for.to.the.great.quarterdeck.on.high.he.was.bid.strike.in.with.angels.and.beat.his.tambourine.in.glory.called.a.coward.here.hailed.a.hero.there.CHAPTER.28.Ahab.For.several.days.after.leaving.Nantucket.nothing.above.hatches.was.seen.of.Captain.Ahab.The.mates.regularly.relieved.each.other.at.the.watches.and.for.aught.that.could.be.seen.to.the.contrary.they.seemed.to.be.the.only.commanders.of.the.ship.only.they.sometimes.issued.from.the.cabin.with.orders.so.sudden.and.peremptory.that.after.all.it.was.plain.they.but.commanded.vicariously.Yes.their.supreme.lord.and.dictator.was.there.though.hitherto.unseen.by.any.eyes.not.permitted.to.penetrate.into.the.now.sacred.retreat.of.the.cabin.Every.time.I.ascended.to.the.deck.from.my.watches.below.I.instantly.gazed.aft.to.mark.if.any.strange.face.were.visible.for.my.first.vague.disquietude.touching.the.unknown.captain.now.in.the.seclusion.of.the.sea.became.almost.a.perturbation.This.was.strangely.heightened.at.times.by.the.ragged.Elijahs.diabolical.incoherences.uninvitedly.recurring.to.me.with.a.subtle.energy.I.could.not.have.before.conceived.of.But.poorly.could.I.withstand.them.much.as.in.other.moods.I.was.almost.ready.to.smile.at.the.solemn.whimsicalities.of.that.outlandish.prophet.of.the.wharves.But.whatever.it.was.of.apprehensiveness.or.uneasiness.to.call.it.so.which.I.felt.yet.whenever.I.came.to.look.about.me.in.the.ship.it.seemed.against.all.warrantry.to.cherish.such.emotions.For.though.the.harpooneers.with.the.great.body.of.the.crew.were.a.far.more.barbaric.heathenish.and.motley.set.than.any.of.the.tame.merchantship.companies.which.my.previous.experiences.had.made.me.acquainted.with.still.I.ascribed.this.and.rightly.ascribed.it.to.the.fierce.uniqueness.of.the.very.nature.of.that.wild.Scandinavian.vocation.in.which.I.had.so.abandonedly.embarked.But.it.was.especially.the.aspect.of.the.three.chief.officers.of.the.ship.the.mates.which.was.most.forcibly.calculated.to.allay.these.colourless.misgivings.and.induce.confidence.and.cheerfulness.in.every.presentment.of.the.voyage.Three.better.more.likely.seaofficers.and.men.each.in.his.own.different.way.could.not.readily.be.found.and.they.were.every.one.of.them.Americans.a.Nantucketer.a.Vineyarder.a.Cape.man.Now.it.being.Christmas.when.the.ship.shot.from.out.her.harbor.for.a.space.we.had.biting.Polar.weather.though.all.the.time.running.away.from.it.to.the.southward.and.by.every.degree.and.minute.of.latitude.which.we.sailed.gradually.leaving.that.merciless.winter.and.all.its.intolerable.weather.behind.us.It.was.one.of.those.less.lowering.but.still.grey.and.gloomy.enough.mornings.of.the.transition.when.with.a.fair.wind.the.ship.was.rushing.through.the.water.with.a.vindictive.sort.of.leaping.and.melancholy.rapidity.that.as.I.mounted.to.the.deck.at.the.call.of.the.forenoon.watch.so.soon.as.I.levelled.my.glance.towards.the.taffrail.foreboding.shivers.ran.over.me.Reality.outran.apprehension.Captain.Ahab.stood.upon.his.quarterdeck.There.seemed.no.sign.of.common.bodily.illness.about.him.nor.of.the.recovery.from.any.He.looked.like.a.man.cut.away.from.the.stake.when.the.fire.has.overrunningly.wasted.all.the.limbs.without.consuming.them.or.taking.away.one.particle.from.their.compacted.aged.robustness.His.whole.high.broad.form.seemed.made.of.solid.bronze.and.shaped.in.an.unalterable.mould.like.Cellinis.cast.Perseus.Threading.its.way.out.from.among.his.grey.hairs.and.continuing.right.down.one.side.of.his.tawny.scorched.face.and.neck.till.it.disappeared.in.his.clothing.you.saw.a.slender.rodlike.mark.lividly.whitish.It.resembled.that.perpendicular.seam.sometimes.made.in.the.straight.lofty.trunk.of.a.great.tree.when.the.upper.lightning.tearingly.darts.down.it.and.without.wrenching.a.single.twig.peels.and.grooves.out.the.bark.from.top.to.bottom.ere.running.off.into.the.soil.leaving.the.tree.still.greenly.alive.but.branded.Whether.that.mark.was.born.with.him.or.whether.it.was.the.scar.left.by.some.desperate.wound.no.one.could.certainly.say.By.some.tacit.consent.throughout.the.voyage.little.or.no.allusion.was.made.to.it.especially.by.the.mates.But.once.Tashtegos.senior.an.old.GayHead.Indian.among.the.crew.superstitiously.asserted.that.not.till.he.was.full.forty.years.old.did.Ahab.become.that.way.branded.and.then.it.came.upon.him.not.in.the.fury.of.any.mortal.fray.but.in.an.elemental.strife.at.sea.Yet.this.wild.hint.seemed.inferentially.negatived.by.what.a.grey.Manxman.insinuated.an.old.sepulchral.man.who.having.never.before.sailed.out.of.Nantucket.had.never.ere.this.laid.eye.upon.wild.Ahab.Nevertheless.the.old.seatraditions.the.immemorial.credulities.popularly.invested.this.old.Manxman.with.preternatural.powers.of.discernment.So.that.no.white.sailor.seriously.contradicted.him.when.he.said.that.if.ever.Captain.Ahab.should.be.tranquilly.laid.out.which.might.hardly.come.to.pass.so.he.muttered.then.whoever.should.do.that.last.office.for.the.dead.would.find.a.birthmark.on.him.from.crown.to.sole.So.powerfully.did.the.whole.grim.aspect.of.Ahab.affect.me.and.the.livid.brand.which.streaked.it.that.for.the.first.few.moments.I.hardly.noted.that.not.a.little.of.this.overbearing.grimness.was.owing.to.the.barbaric.white.leg.upon.which.he.partly.stood.It.had.previously.come.to.me.that.this.ivory.leg.had.at.sea.been.fashioned.from.the.polished.bone.of.the.sperm.whales.jaw.Aye.he.was.dismasted.off.Japan.said.the.old.GayHead.Indian.once.but.like.his.dismasted.craft.he.shipped.another.mast.without.coming.home.for.it.He.has.a.quiver.of.em.I.was.struck.with.the.singular.posture.he.maintained.Upon.each.side.of.the.Pequods.quarter.deck.and.pretty.close.to.the.mizzen.shrouds.there.was.an.auger.hole.bored.about.half.an.inch.or.so.into.the.plank.His.bone.leg.steadied.in.that.hole.one.arm.elevated.and.holding.by.a.shroud.Captain.Ahab.stood.erect.looking.straight.out.beyond.the.ships.everpitching.prow.There.was.an.infinity.of.firmest.fortitude.a.determinate.unsurrenderable.wilfulness.in.the.fixed.and.fearless.forward.dedication.of.that.glance.Not.a.word.he.spoke.nor.did.his.officers.say.aught.to.him.though.by.all.their.minutest.gestures.and.expressions.they.plainly.showed.the.uneasy.if.not.painful.consciousness.of.being.under.a.troubled.mastereye.And.not.only.that.but.moody.stricken.Ahab.stood.before.them.with.a.crucifixion.in.his.face.in.all.the.nameless.regal.overbearing.dignity.of.some.mighty.woe.Ere.long.from.his.first.visit.in.the.air.he.withdrew.into.his.cabin.But.after.that.morning.he.was.every.day.visible.to.the.crew.either.standing.in.his.pivothole.or.seated.upon.an.ivory.stool.he.had.or.heavily.walking.the.deck.As.the.sky.grew.less.gloomy.indeed.began.to.grow.a.little.genial.he.became.still.less.and.less.a.recluse.as.if.when.the.ship.had.sailed.from.home.nothing.but.the.dead.wintry.bleakness.of.the.sea.had.then.kept.him.so.secluded.And.by.and.by.it.came.to.pass.that.he.was.almost.continually.in.the.air.but.as.yet.for.all.that.he.said.or.perceptibly.did.on.the.at.last.sunny.deck.he.seemed.as.unnecessary.there.as.another.mast.But.the.Pequod.was.only.making.a.passage.now.not.regularly.cruising.nearly.all.whaling.preparatives.needing.supervision.the.mates.were.fully.competent.to.so.that.there.was.little.or.nothing.out.of.himself.to.employ.or.excite.Ahab.now.and.thus.chase.away.for.that.one.interval.the.clouds.that.layer.upon.layer.were.piled.upon.his.brow.as.ever.all.clouds.choose.the.loftiest.peaks.to.pile.themselves.upon.Nevertheless.ere.long.the.warm.warbling.persuasiveness.of.the.pleasant.holiday.weather.we.came.to.seemed.gradually.to.charm.him.from.his.mood.For.as.when.the.redcheeked.dancing.girls.April.and.May.trip.home.to.the.wintry.misanthropic.woods.even.the.barest.ruggedest.most.thundercloven.old.oak.will.at.least.send.forth.some.few.green.sprouts.to.welcome.such.gladhearted.visitants.so.Ahab.did.in.the.end.a.little.respond.to.the.playful.allurings.of.that.girlish.air.More.than.once.did.he.put.forth.the.faint.blossom.of.a.look.which.in.any.other.man.would.have.soon.flowered.out.in.a.smile.CHAPTER.29.Enter.Ahab.to.Him.Stubb.Some.days.elapsed.and.ice.and.icebergs.all.astern.the.Pequod.now.went.rolling.through.the.bright.Quito.spring.which.at.sea.almost.perpetually.reigns.on.the.threshold.of.the.eternal.August.of.the.Tropic.The.warmly.cool.clear.ringing.perfumed.overflowing.redundant.days.were.as.crystal.goblets.of.Persian.sherbet.heaped.up.flaked.up.with.rosewater.snow.The.starred.and.stately.nights.seemed.haughty.dames.in.jewelled.velvets.nursing.at.home.in.lonely.pride.the.memory.of.their.absent.conquering.Earls.the.golden.helmeted.suns.For.sleeping.man.twas.hard.to.choose.between.such.winsome.days.and.such.seducing.nights.But.all.the.witcheries.of.that.unwaning.weather.did.not.merely.lend.new.spells.and.potencies.to.the.outward.world.Inward.they.turned.upon.the.soul.especially.when.the.still.mild.hours.of.eve.came.on.then.memory.shot.her.crystals.as.the.clear.ice.most.forms.of.noiseless.twilights.And.all.these.subtle.agencies.more.and.more.they.wrought.on.Ahabs.texture.Old.age.is.always.wakeful.as.if.the.longer.linked.with.life.the.less.man.has.to.do.with.aught.that.looks.like.death.Among.seacommanders.the.old.greybeards.will.oftenest.leave.their.berths.to.visit.the.nightcloaked.deck.It.was.so.with.Ahab.only.that.now.of.late.he.seemed.so.much.to.live.in.the.open.air.that.truly.speaking.his.visits.were.more.to.the.cabin.than.from.the.cabin.to.the.planks.It.feels.like.going.down.into.ones.tomb.he.would.mutter.to.himself.for.an.old.captain.like.me.to.be.descending.this.narrow.scuttle.to.go.to.my.gravedug.berth.So.almost.every.twentyfour.hours.when.the.watches.of.the.night.were.set.and.the.band.on.deck.sentinelled.the.slumbers.of.the.band.below.and.when.if.a.rope.was.to.be.hauled.upon.the.forecastle.the.sailors.flung.it.not.rudely.down.as.by.day.but.with.some.cautiousness.dropt.it.to.its.place.for.fear.of.disturbing.their.slumbering.shipmates.when.this.sort.of.steady.quietude.would.begin.to.prevail.habitually.the.silent.steersman.would.watch.the.cabinscuttle.and.ere.long.the.old.man.would.emerge.gripping.at.the.iron.banister.to.help.his.crippled.way.Some.considering.touch.of.humanity.was.in.him.for.at.times.like.these.he.usually.abstained.from.patrolling.the.quarterdeck.because.to.his.wearied.mates.seeking.repose.within.six.inches.of.his.ivory.heel.such.would.have.been.the.reverberating.crack.and.din.of.that.bony.step.that.their.dreams.would.have.been.on.the.crunching.teeth.of.sharks.But.once.the.mood.was.on.him.too.deep.for.common.regardings.and.as.with.heavy.lumberlike.pace.he.was.measuring.the.ship.from.taffrail.to.mainmast.Stubb.the.old.second.mate.came.up.from.below.with.a.certain.unassured.deprecating.humorousness.hinted.that.if.Captain.Ahab.was.pleased.to.walk.the.planks.then.no.one.could.say.nay.but.there.might.be.some.way.of.muffling.the.noise.hinting.something.indistinctly.and.hesitatingly.about.a.globe.of.tow.and.the.insertion.into.it.of.the.ivory.heel.Ah.Stubb.thou.didst.not.know.Ahab.then.Am.I.a.cannonball.Stubb.said.Ahab.that.thou.wouldst.wad.me.that.fashion.But.go.thy.ways.I.had.forgot.Below.to.thy.nightly.grave.where.such.as.ye.sleep.between.shrouds.to.use.ye.to.the.filling.one.at.last.Down.dog.and.kennel.Starting.at.the.unforseen.concluding.exclamation.of.the.so.suddenly.scornful.old.man.Stubb.was.speechless.a.moment.then.said.excitedly.I.am.not.used.to.be.spoken.to.that.way.sir.I.do.but.less.than.half.like.it.sir.Avast.gritted.Ahab.between.his.set.teeth.and.violently.moving.away.as.if.to.avoid.some.passionate.temptation.No.sir.not.yet.said.Stubb.emboldened.I.will.not.tamely.be.called.a.dog.sir.Then.be.called.ten.times.a.donkey.and.a.mule.and.an.ass.and.begone.or.Ill.clear.the.world.of.thee.As.he.said.this.Ahab.advanced.upon.him.with.such.overbearing.terrors.in.his.aspect.that.Stubb.involuntarily.retreated.I.was.never.served.so.before.without.giving.a.hard.blow.for.it.muttered.Stubb.as.he.found.himself.descending.the.cabinscuttle.Its.very.queer.Stop.Stubb.somehow.now.I.dont.well.know.whether.to.go.back.and.strike.him.or.whats.that.down.here.on.my.knees.and.pray.for.him.Yes.that.was.the.thought.coming.up.in.me.but.it.would.be.the.first.time.I.ever.did.pray.Its.queer.very.queer.and.hes.queer.too.aye.take.him.fore.and.aft.hes.about.the.queerest.old.man.Stubb.ever.sailed.with.How.he.flashed.at.me.his.eyes.like.powderpans.is.he.mad.Anyway.theres.something.on.his.mind.as.sure.as.there.must.be.something.on.a.deck.when.it.cracks.He.aint.in.his.bed.now.either.more.than.three.hours.out.of.the.twentyfour.and.he.dont.sleep.then.Didnt.that.DoughBoy.the.steward.tell.me.that.of.a.morning.he.always.finds.the.old.mans.hammock.clothes.all.rumpled.and.tumbled.and.the.sheets.down.at.the.foot.and.the.coverlid.almost.tied.into.knots.and.the.pillow.a.sort.of.frightful.hot.as.though.a.baked.brick.had.been.on.it.A.hot.old.man.I.guess.hes.got.what.some.folks.ashore.call.a.conscience.its.a.kind.of.TicDollyrow.they.say.worse.nor.a.toothache.Well.well.I.dont.know.what.it.is.but.the.Lord.keep.me.from.catching.it.Hes.full.of.riddles.I.wonder.what.he.goes.into.the.after.hold.for.every.night.as.DoughBoy.tells.me.he.suspects.whats.that.for.I.should.like.to.know.Whos.made.appointments.with.him.in.the.hold.Aint.that.queer.now.But.theres.no.telling.its.the.old.game.Here.goes.for.a.snooze.Damn.me.its.worth.a.fellows.while.to.be.born.into.the.world.if.only.to.fall.right.asleep.And.now.that.I.think.of.it.thats.about.the.first.thing.babies.do.and.thats.a.sort.of.queer.too.Damn.me.but.all.things.are.queer.come.to.think.of.em.But.thats.against.my.principles.Think.not.is.my.eleventh.commandment.and.sleep.when.you.can.is.my.twelfth.So.here.goes.again.But.hows.that.didnt.he.call.me.a.dog.blazes.he.called.me.ten.times.a.donkey.and.piled.a.lot.of.jackasses.on.top.of.that.He.might.as.well.have.kicked.me.and.done.with.it.Maybe.he.did.kick.me.and.I.didnt.observe.it.I.was.so.taken.all.aback.with.his.brow.somehow.It.flashed.like.a.bleached.bone.What.the.devils.the.matter.with.me.I.dont.stand.right.on.my.legs.Coming.afoul.of.that.old.man.has.a.sort.of.turned.me.wrong.side.out.By.the.Lord.I.must.have.been.dreaming.though.How.how.how.but.the.only.ways.to.stash.it.so.here.goes.to.hammock.again.and.in.the.morning.Ill.see.how.this.plaguey.juggling.thinks.over.by.daylight.CHAPTER.30.The.Pipe.When.Stubb.had.departed.Ahab.stood.for.a.while.leaning.over.the.bulwarks.and.then.as.had.been.usual.with.him.of.late.calling.a.sailor.of.the.watch.he.sent.him.below.for.his.ivory.stool.and.also.his.pipe.Lighting.the.pipe.at.the.binnacle.lamp.and.planting.the.stool.on.the.weather.side.of.the.deck.he.sat.and.smoked.In.old.Norse.times.the.thrones.of.the.sealoving.Danish.kings.were.fabricated.saith.tradition.of.the.tusks.of.the.narwhale.How.could.one.look.at.Ahab.then.seated.on.that.tripod.of.bones.without.bethinking.him.of.the.royalty.it.symbolized.For.a.Khan.of.the.plank.and.a.king.of.the.sea.and.a.great.lord.of.Leviathans.was.Ahab.Some.moments.passed.during.which.the.thick.vapor.came.from.his.mouth.in.quick.and.constant.puffs.which.blew.back.again.into.his.face.How.now.he.soliloquized.at.last.withdrawing.the.tube.this.smoking.no.longer.soothes.Oh.my.pipe.hard.must.it.go.with.me.if.thy.charm.be.gone.Here.have.I.been.unconsciously.toiling.not.pleasuring.aye.and.ignorantly.smoking.to.windward.all.the.while.to.windward.and.with.such.nervous.whiffs.as.if.like.the.dying.whale.my.final.jets.were.the.strongest.and.fullest.of.trouble.What.business.have.I.with.this.pipe.This.thing.that.is.meant.for.sereneness.to.send.up.mild.white.vapors.among.mild.white.hairs.not.among.torn.irongrey.locks.like.mine.Ill.smoke.no.more.He.tossed.the.still.lighted.pipe.into.the.sea.The.fire.hissed.in.the.waves.the.same.instant.the.ship.shot.by.the.bubble.the.sinking.pipe.made.With.slouched.hat.Ahab.lurchingly.paced.the.planks.CHAPTER.31.Queen.Mab.Next.morning.Stubb.accosted.Flask.Such.a.queer.dream.KingPost.I.never.had.You.know.the.old.mans.ivory.leg.well.I.dreamed.he.kicked.me.with.it.and.when.I.tried.to.kick.back.upon.my.soul.my.little.man.I.kicked.my.leg.right.off.And.then.presto.Ahab.seemed.a.pyramid.and.I.like.a.blazing.fool.kept.kicking.at.it.But.what.was.still.more.curious.Flask.you.know.how.curious.all.dreams.are.through.all.this.rage.that.I.was.in.I.somehow.seemed.to.be.thinking.to.myself.that.after.all.it.was.not.much.of.an.insult.that.kick.from.Ahab.Why.thinks.I.whats.the.row.Its.not.a.real.leg.only.a.false.leg.And.theres.a.mighty.difference.between.a.living.thump.and.a.dead.thump.Thats.what.makes.a.blow.from.the.hand.Flask.fifty.times.more.savage.to.bear.than.a.blow.from.a.cane.The.living.member.that.makes.the.living.insult.my.little.man.And.thinks.I.to.myself.all.the.while.mind.while.I.was.stubbing.my.silly.toes.against.that.cursed.pyramid.so.confoundedly.contradictory.was.it.all.all.the.while.I.say.I.was.thinking.to.myself.whats.his.leg.now.but.a.cane.a.whalebone.cane.Yes.thinks.I.it.was.only.a.playful.cudgelling.in.fact.only.a.whaleboning.that.he.gave.me.not.a.base.kick.Besides.thinks.I.look.at.it.once.why.the.end.of.it.the.foot.part.what.a.small.sort.of.end.it.is.whereas.if.a.broad.footed.farmer.kicked.me.theres.a.devilish.broad.insult.But.this.insult.is.whittled.down.to.a.point.only.But.now.comes.the.greatest.joke.of.the.dream.Flask.While.I.was.battering.away.at.the.pyramid.a.sort.of.badgerhaired.old.merman.with.a.hump.on.his.back.takes.me.by.the.shoulders.and.slews.me.round.What.are.you.bout.says.he.Slid.man.but.I.was.frightened.Such.a.phiz.But.somehow.next.moment.I.was.over.the.fright.What.am.I.about.says.I.at.last.And.what.business.is.that.of.yours.I.should.like.to.know.Mr.Humpback.Do.you.want.a.kick.By.the.lord.Flask.I.had.no.sooner.said.that.than.he.turned.round.his.stern.to.me.bent.over.and.dragging.up.a.lot.of.seaweed.he.had.for.a.clout.what.do.you.think.I.saw.why.thunder.alive.man.his.stern.was.stuck.full.of.marlinspikes.with.the.points.out.Says.I.on.second.thoughts.I.guess.I.wont.kick.you.old.fellow.Wise.Stubb.said.he.wise.Stubb.and.kept.muttering.it.all.the.time.a.sort.of.eating.of.his.own.gums.like.a.chimney.hag.Seeing.he.wasnt.going.to.stop.saying.over.his.wise.Stubb.wise.Stubb.I.thought.I.might.as.well.fall.to.kicking.the.pyramid.again.But.I.had.only.just.lifted.my.foot.for.it.when.he.roared.out.Stop.that.kicking.Halloa.says.I.whats.the.matter.now.old.fellow.Look.ye.here.says.he.lets.argue.the.insult.Captain.Ahab.kicked.ye.didnt.he.Yes.he.did.says.I.right.here.it.was.Very.good.says.he.he.used.his.ivory.leg.didnt.he.Yes.he.did.says.I.Well.then.says.he.wise.Stubb.what.have.you.to.complain.of.Didnt.he.kick.with.right.good.will.it.wasnt.a.common.pitch.pine.leg.he.kicked.with.was.it.No.you.were.kicked.by.a.great.man.and.with.a.beautiful.ivory.leg.Stubb.Its.an.honor.I.consider.it.an.honor.Listen.wise.Stubb.In.old.England.the.greatest.lords.think.it.great.glory.to.be.slapped.by.a.queen.and.made.garterknights.of.but.be.your.boast.Stubb.that.ye.were.kicked.by.old.Ahab.and.made.a.wise.man.of.Remember.what.I.say.be.kicked.by.him.account.his.kicks.honors.and.on.no.account.kick.back.for.you.cant.help.yourself.wise.Stubb.Dont.you.see.that.pyramid.With.that.he.all.of.a.sudden.seemed.somehow.in.some.queer.fashion.to.swim.off.into.the.air.I.snored.rolled.over.and.there.I.was.in.my.hammock.Now.what.do.you.think.of.that.dream.Flask.I.dont.know.it.seems.a.sort.of.foolish.to.me.tho.May.be.may.be.But.its.made.a.wise.man.of.me.Flask.Dye.see.Ahab.standing.there.sideways.looking.over.the.stern.Well.the.best.thing.you.can.do.Flask.is.to.let.the.old.man.alone.never.speak.to.him.whatever.he.says.Halloa.Whats.that.he.shouts.Hark.Masthead.there.Look.sharp.all.of.ye.There.are.whales.hereabouts.If.ye.see.a.white.one.split.your.lungs.for.him.What.do.you.think.of.that.now.Flask.aint.there.a.small.drop.of.something.queer.about.that.eh.A.white.whale.did.ye.mark.that.man.Look.ye.theres.something.special.in.the.wind.Stand.by.for.it.Flask.Ahab.has.that.thats.bloody.on.his.mind.But.mum.he.comes.this.way.CHAPTER.32.Cetology.Already.we.are.boldly.launched.upon.the.deep.but.soon.we.shall.be.lost.in.its.unshored.harbourless.immensities.Ere.that.come.to.pass.ere.the.Pequods.weedy.hull.rolls.side.by.side.with.the.barnacled.hulls.of.the.leviathan.at.the.outset.it.is.but.well.to.attend.to.a.matter.almost.indispensable.to.a.thorough.appreciative.understanding.of.the.more.special.leviathanic.revelations.and.allusions.of.all.sorts.which.are.to.follow.It.is.some.systematized.exhibition.of.the.whale.in.his.broad.genera.that.I.would.now.fain.put.before.you.Yet.is.it.no.easy.task.The.classification.of.the.constituents.of.a.chaos.nothing.less.is.here.essayed.Listen.to.what.the.best.and.latest.authorities.have.laid.down.No.branch.of.Zoology.is.so.much.involved.as.that.which.is.entitled.Cetology.says.Captain.Scoresby.AD.1820.It.is.not.my.intention.were.it.in.my.power.to.enter.into.the.inquiry.as.to.the.true.method.of.dividing.the.cetacea.into.groups.and.families.Utter.confusion.exists.among.the.historians.of.this.animal.sperm.whale.says.Surgeon.Beale.AD.1839.Unfitness.to.pursue.our.research.in.the.unfathomable.waters.Impenetrable.veil.covering.our.knowledge.of.the.cetacea.A.field.strewn.with.thorns.All.these.incomplete.indications.but.serve.to.torture.us.naturalists.Thus.speak.of.the.whale.the.great.Cuvier.and.John.Hunter.and.Lesson.those.lights.of.zoology.and.anatomy.Nevertheless.though.of.real.knowledge.there.be.little.yet.of.books.there.are.a.plenty.and.so.in.some.small.degree.with.cetology.or.the.science.of.whales.Many.are.the.men.small.and.great.old.and.new.landsmen.and.seamen.who.have.at.large.or.in.little.written.of.the.whale.Run.over.a.few.The.Authors.of.the.Bible.Aristotle.Pliny.Aldrovandi.Sir.Thomas.Browne.Gesner.Ray.Linnus.Rondeletius.Willoughby.Green.Artedi.Sibbald.Brisson.Marten.Lacpde.Bonneterre.Desmarest.Baron.Cuvier.Frederick.Cuvier.John.Hunter.Owen.Scoresby.Beale.Bennett.J.Ross.Browne.the.Author.of.Miriam.Coffin.Olmstead.and.the.Rev.T.Cheever.But.to.what.ultimate.generalizing.purpose.all.these.have.written.the.above.cited.extracts.will.show.Of.the.names.in.this.list.of.whale.authors.only.those.following.Owen.ever.saw.living.whales.and.but.one.of.them.was.a.real.professional.harpooneer.and.whaleman.I.mean.Captain.Scoresby.On.the.separate.subject.of.the.Greenland.or.rightwhale.he.is.the.best.existing.authority.But.Scoresby.knew.nothing.and.says.nothing.of.the.great.sperm.whale.compared.with.which.the.Greenland.whale.is.almost.unworthy.mentioning.And.here.be.it.said.that.the.Greenland.whale.is.an.usurper.upon.the.throne.of.the.seas.He.is.not.even.by.any.means.the.largest.of.the.whales.Yet.owing.to.the.long.priority.of.his.claims.and.the.profound.ignorance.which.till.some.seventy.years.back.invested.the.then.fabulous.or.utterly.unknown.spermwhale.and.which.ignorance.to.this.present.day.still.reigns.in.all.but.some.few.scientific.retreats.and.whaleports.this.usurpation.has.been.every.way.complete.Reference.to.nearly.all.the.leviathanic.allusions.in.the.great.poets.of.past.days.will.satisfy.you.that.the.Greenland.whale.without.one.rival.was.to.them.the.monarch.of.the.seas.But.the.time.has.at.last.come.for.a.new.proclamation.This.is.Charing.Cross.hear.ye.good.people.all.the.Greenland.whale.is.deposed.the.great.sperm.whale.now.reigneth.There.are.only.two.books.in.being.which.at.all.pretend.to.put.the.living.sperm.whale.before.you.and.at.the.same.time.in.the.remotest.degree.succeed.in.the.attempt.Those.books.are.Beales.and.Bennetts.both.in.their.time.surgeons.to.English.SouthSea.whaleships.and.both.exact.and.reliable.men.The.original.matter.touching.the.sperm.whale.to.be.found.in.their.volumes.is.necessarily.small.but.so.far.as.it.goes.it.is.of.excellent.quality.though.mostly.confined.to.scientific.description.As.yet.however.the.sperm.whale.scientific.or.poetic.lives.not.complete.in.any.literature.Far.above.all.other.hunted.whales.his.is.an.unwritten.life.Now.the.various.species.of.whales.need.some.sort.of.popular.comprehensive.classification.if.only.an.easy.outline.one.for.the.present.hereafter.to.be.filled.in.all.its.departments.by.subsequent.laborers.As.no.better.man.advances.to.take.this.matter.in.hand.I.hereupon.offer.my.own.poor.endeavors.I.promise.nothing.complete.because.any.human.thing.supposed.to.be.complete.must.for.that.very.reason.infallibly.be.faulty.I.shall.not.pretend.to.a.minute.anatomical.description.of.the.various.species.or.in.this.place.at.least.to.much.of.any.description.My.object.here.is.simply.to.project.the.draught.of.a.systematization.of.cetology.I.am.the.architect.not.the.builder.But.it.is.a.ponderous.task.no.ordinary.lettersorter.in.the.PostOffice.is.equal.to.it.To.grope.down.into.the.bottom.of.the.sea.after.them.to.have.ones.hands.among.the.unspeakable.foundations.ribs.and.very.pelvis.of.the.world.this.is.a.fearful.thing.What.am.I.that.I.should.essay.to.hook.the.nose.of.this.leviathan.The.awful.tauntings.in.Job.might.well.appal.me.Will.he.the.leviathan.make.a.covenant.with.thee.Behold.the.hope.of.him.is.vain.But.I.have.swam.through.libraries.and.sailed.through.oceans.I.have.had.to.do.with.whales.with.these.visible.hands.I.am.in.earnest.and.I.will.try.There.are.some.preliminaries.to.settle.First.The.uncertain.unsettled.condition.of.this.science.of.Cetology.is.in.the.very.vestibule.attested.by.the.fact.that.in.some.quarters.it.still.remains.a.moot.point.whether.a.whale.be.a.fish.In.his.System.of.Nature.AD.1776.Linnus.declares.I.hereby.separate.the.whales.from.the.fish.But.of.my.own.knowledge.I.know.that.down.to.the.year.1850.sharks.and.shad.alewives.and.herring.against.Linnuss.express.edict.were.still.found.dividing.the.possession.of.the.same.seas.with.the.Leviathan.The.grounds.upon.which.Linnus.would.fain.have.banished.the.whales.from.the.waters.he.states.as.follows.On.account.of.their.warm.bilocular.heart.their.lungs.their.movable.eyelids.their.hollow.ears.penem.intrantem.feminam.mammis.lactantem.and.finally.ex.lege.natur.jure.meritoque.I.submitted.all.this.to.my.friends.Simeon.Macey.and.Charley.Coffin.of.Nantucket.both.messmates.of.mine.in.a.certain.voyage.and.they.united.in.the.opinion.that.the.reasons.set.forth.were.altogether.insufficient.Charley.profanely.hinted.they.were.humbug.Be.it.known.that.waiving.all.argument.I.take.the.good.old.fashioned.ground.that.the.whale.is.a.fish.and.call.upon.holy.Jonah.to.back.me.This.fundamental.thing.settled.the.next.point.is.in.what.internal.respect.does.the.whale.differ.from.other.fish.Above.Linnus.has.given.you.those.items.But.in.brief.they.are.these.lungs.and.warm.blood.whereas.all.other.fish.are.lungless.and.cold.blooded.Next.how.shall.we.define.the.whale.by.his.obvious.externals.so.as.conspicuously.to.label.him.for.all.time.to.come.To.be.short.then.a.whale.is.a.spouting.fish.with.a.horizontal.tail.There.you.have.him.However.contracted.that.definition.is.the.result.of.expanded.meditation.A.walrus.spouts.much.like.a.whale.but.the.walrus.is.not.a.fish.because.he.is.amphibious.But.the.last.term.of.the.definition.is.still.more.cogent.as.coupled.with.the.first.Almost.any.one.must.have.noticed.that.all.the.fish.familiar.to.landsmen.have.not.a.flat.but.a.vertical.or.upanddown.tail.Whereas.among.spouting.fish.the.tail.though.it.may.be.similarly.shaped.invariably.assumes.a.horizontal.position.By.the.above.definition.of.what.a.whale.is.I.do.by.no.means.exclude.from.the.leviathanic.brotherhood.any.sea.creature.hitherto.identified.with.the.whale.by.the.best.informed.Nantucketers.nor.on.the.other.hand.link.with.it.any.fish.hitherto.authoritatively.regarded.as.alien.Hence.all.the.smaller.spouting.and.horizontal.tailed.fish.must.be.included.in.this.groundplan.of.Cetology.Now.then.come.the.grand.divisions.of.the.entire.whale.host.I.am.aware.that.down.to.the.present.time.the.fish.styled.Lamatins.and.Dugongs.Pigfish.and.Sowfish.of.the.Coffins.of.Nantucket.are.included.by.many.naturalists.among.the.whales.But.as.these.pigfish.are.a.noisy.contemptible.set.mostly.lurking.in.the.mouths.of.rivers.and.feeding.on.wet.hay.and.especially.as.they.do.not.spout.I.deny.their.credentials.as.whales.and.have.presented.them.with.their.passports.to.quit.the.Kingdom.of.Cetology.First.According.to.magnitude.I.divide.the.whales.into.three.primary.BOOKS.subdivisible.into.CHAPTERS.and.these.shall.comprehend.them.all.both.small.and.large.I.THE.FOLIO.WHALE.II.the.OCTAVO.WHALE.III.the.DUODECIMO.WHALE.As.the.type.of.the.FOLIO.I.present.the.Sperm.Whale.of.the.OCTAVO.the.Grampus.of.the.DUODECIMO.the.Porpoise.FOLIOS.Among.these.I.here.include.the.following.chapters.I.The.Sperm.Whale.II.the.Right.Whale.III.the.FinBack.Whale.IV.the.Humpbacked.Whale.V.the.Razor.Back.Whale.VI.the.Sulphur.Bottom.Whale.BOOK.I.Folio.CHAPTER.I.Sperm.Whale.This.whale.among.the.English.of.old.vaguely.known.as.the.Trumpa.whale.and.the.Physeter.whale.and.the.Anvil.Headed.whale.is.the.present.Cachalot.of.the.French.and.the.Pottsfich.of.the.Germans.and.the.Macrocephalus.of.the.Long.Words.He.is.without.doubt.the.largest.inhabitant.of.the.globe.the.most.formidable.of.all.whales.to.encounter.the.most.majestic.in.aspect.and.lastly.by.far.the.most.valuable.in.commerce.he.being.the.only.creature.from.which.that.valuable.substance.spermaceti.is.obtained.All.his.peculiarities.will.in.many.other.places.be.enlarged.upon.It.is.chiefly.with.his.name.that.I.now.have.to.do.Philologically.considered.it.is.absurd.Some.centuries.ago.when.the.Sperm.whale.was.almost.wholly.unknown.in.his.own.proper.individuality.and.when.his.oil.was.only.accidentally.obtained.from.the.stranded.fish.in.those.days.spermaceti.it.would.seem.was.popularly.supposed.to.be.derived.from.a.creature.identical.with.the.one.then.known.in.England.as.the.Greenland.or.Right.Whale.It.was.the.idea.also.that.this.same.spermaceti.was.that.quickening.humor.of.the.Greenland.Whale.which.the.first.syllable.of.the.word.literally.expresses.In.those.times.also.spermaceti.was.exceedingly.scarce.not.being.used.for.light.but.only.as.an.ointment.and.medicament.It.was.only.to.be.had.from.the.druggists.as.you.nowadays.buy.an.ounce.of.rhubarb.When.as.I.opine.in.the.course.of.time.the.true.nature.of.spermaceti.became.known.its.original.name.was.still.retained.by.the.dealers.no.doubt.to.enhance.its.value.by.a.notion.so.strangely.significant.of.its.scarcity.And.so.the.appellation.must.at.last.have.come.to.be.bestowed.upon.the.whale.from.which.this.spermaceti.was.really.derived.BOOK.I.Folio.CHAPTER.II.Right.Whale.In.one.respect.this.is.the.most.venerable.of.the.leviathans.being.the.one.first.regularly.hunted.by.man.It.yields.the.article.commonly.known.as.whalebone.or.baleen.and.the.oil.specially.known.as.whale.oil.an.inferior.article.in.commerce.Among.the.fishermen.he.is.indiscriminately.designated.by.all.the.following.titles.The.Whale.the.Greenland.Whale.the.Black.Whale.the.Great.Whale.the.True.Whale.the.Right.Whale.There.is.a.deal.of.obscurity.concerning.the.identity.of.the.species.thus.multitudinously.baptised.What.then.is.the.whale.which.I.include.in.the.second.species.of.my.Folios.It.is.the.Great.Mysticetus.of.the.English.naturalists.the.Greenland.Whale.of.the.English.whalemen.the.Baleine.Ordinaire.of.the.French.whalemen.the.Growlands.Walfish.of.the.Swedes.It.is.the.whale.which.for.more.than.two.centuries.past.has.been.hunted.by.the.Dutch.and.English.in.the.Arctic.seas.it.is.the.whale.which.the.American.fishermen.have.long.pursued.in.the.Indian.ocean.on.the.Brazil.Banks.on.the.Nor.West.Coast.and.various.other.parts.of.the.world.designated.by.them.Right.Whale.Cruising.Grounds.Some.pretend.to.see.a.difference.between.the.Greenland.whale.of.the.English.and.the.right.whale.of.the.Americans.But.they.precisely.agree.in.all.their.grand.features.nor.has.there.yet.been.presented.a.single.determinate.fact.upon.which.to.ground.a.radical.distinction.It.is.by.endless.subdivisions.based.upon.the.most.inconclusive.differences.that.some.departments.of.natural.history.become.so.repellingly.intricate.The.right.whale.will.be.elsewhere.treated.of.at.some.length.with.reference.to.elucidating.the.sperm.whale.BOOK.I.Folio.CHAPTER.III.FinBack.Under.this.head.I.reckon.a.monster.which.by.the.various.names.of.FinBack.TallSpout.and.LongJohn.has.been.seen.almost.in.every.sea.and.is.commonly.the.whale.whose.distant.jet.is.so.often.descried.by.passengers.crossing.the.Atlantic.in.the.New.York.packettracks.In.the.length.he.attains.and.in.his.baleen.the.Finback.resembles.the.right.whale.but.is.of.a.less.portly.girth.and.a.lighter.colour.approaching.to.olive.His.great.lips.present.a.cablelike.aspect.formed.by.the.intertwisting.slanting.folds.of.large.wrinkles.His.grand.distinguishing.feature.the.fin.from.which.he.derives.his.name.is.often.a.conspicuous.object.This.fin.is.some.three.or.four.feet.long.growing.vertically.from.the.hinder.part.of.the.back.of.an.angular.shape.and.with.a.very.sharp.pointed.end.Even.if.not.the.slightest.other.part.of.the.creature.be.visible.this.isolated.fin.will.at.times.be.seen.plainly.projecting.from.the.surface.When.the.sea.is.moderately.calm.and.slightly.marked.with.spherical.ripples.and.this.gnomonlike.fin.stands.up.and.casts.shadows.upon.the.wrinkled.surface.it.may.well.be.supposed.that.the.watery.circle.surrounding.it.somewhat.resembles.a.dial.with.its.style.and.wavy.hourlines.graved.on.it.On.that.Ahazdial.the.shadow.often.goes.back.The.FinBack.is.not.gregarious.He.seems.a.whalehater.as.some.men.are.manhaters.Very.shy.always.going.solitary.unexpectedly.rising.to.the.surface.in.the.remotest.and.most.sullen.waters.his.straight.and.single.lofty.jet.rising.like.a.tall.misanthropic.spear.upon.a.barren.plain.gifted.with.such.wondrous.power.and.velocity.in.swimming.as.to.defy.all.present.pursuit.from.man.this.leviathan.seems.the.banished.and.unconquerable.Cain.of.his.race.bearing.for.his.mark.that.style.upon.his.back.From.having.the.baleen.in.his.mouth.the.FinBack.is.sometimes.included.with.the.right.whale.among.a.theoretic.species.denominated.Whalebone.whales.that.is.whales.with.baleen.Of.these.so.called.Whalebone.whales.there.would.seem.to.be.several.varieties.most.of.which.however.are.little.known.Broadnosed.whales.and.beaked.whales.pikeheaded.whales.bunched.whales.underjawed.whales.and.rostrated.whales.are.the.fishermens.names.for.a.few.sorts.In.connection.with.this.appellative.of.Whalebone.whales.it.is.of.great.importance.to.mention.that.however.such.a.nomenclature.may.be.convenient.in.facilitating.allusions.to.some.kind.of.whales.yet.it.is.in.vain.to.attempt.a.clear.classification.of.the.Leviathan.founded.upon.either.his.baleen.or.hump.or.fin.or.teeth.notwithstanding.that.those.marked.parts.or.features.very.obviously.seem.better.adapted.to.afford.the.basis.for.a.regular.system.of.Cetology.than.any.other.detached.bodily.distinctions.which.the.whale.in.his.kinds.presents.How.then.The.baleen.hump.backfin.and.teeth.these.are.things.whose.peculiarities.are.indiscriminately.dispersed.among.all.sorts.of.whales.without.any.regard.to.what.may.be.the.nature.of.their.structure.in.other.and.more.essential.particulars.Thus.the.sperm.whale.and.the.humpbacked.whale.each.has.a.hump.but.there.the.similitude.ceases.Then.this.same.humpbacked.whale.and.the.Greenland.whale.each.of.these.has.baleen.but.there.again.the.similitude.ceases.And.it.is.just.the.same.with.the.other.parts.above.mentioned.In.various.sorts.of.whales.they.form.such.irregular.combinations.or.in.the.case.of.any.one.of.them.detached.such.an.irregular.isolation.as.utterly.to.defy.all.general.methodization.formed.upon.such.a.basis.On.this.rock.every.one.of.the.whalenaturalists.has.split.But.it.may.possibly.be.conceived.that.in.the.internal.parts.of.the.whale.in.his.anatomy.there.at.least.we.shall.be.able.to.hit.the.right.classification.Nay.what.thing.for.example.is.there.in.the.Greenland.whales.anatomy.more.striking.than.his.baleen.Yet.we.have.seen.that.by.his.baleen.it.is.impossible.correctly.to.classify.the.Greenland.whale.And.if.you.descend.into.the.bowels.of.the.various.leviathans.why.there.you.will.not.find.distinctions.a.fiftieth.part.as.available.to.the.systematizer.as.those.external.ones.already.enumerated.What.then.remains.nothing.but.to.take.hold.of.the.whales.bodily.in.their.entire.liberal.volume.and.boldly.sort.them.that.way.And.this.is.the.Bibliographical.system.here.adopted.and.it.is.the.only.one.that.can.possibly.succeed.for.it.alone.is.practicable.To.proceed.BOOK.I.Folio.CHAPTER.IV.Hump.Back.This.whale.is.often.seen.on.the.northern.American.coast.He.has.been.frequently.captured.there.and.towed.into.harbor.He.has.a.great.pack.on.him.like.a.peddler.or.you.might.call.him.the.Elephant.and.Castle.whale.At.any.rate.the.popular.name.for.him.does.not.sufficiently.distinguish.him.since.the.sperm.whale.also.has.a.hump.though.a.smaller.one.His.oil.is.not.very.valuable.He.has.baleen.He.is.the.most.gamesome.and.lighthearted.of.all.the.whales.making.more.gay.foam.and.white.water.generally.than.any.other.of.them.BOOK.I.Folio.CHAPTER.V.Razor.Back.Of.this.whale.little.is.known.but.his.name.I.have.seen.him.at.a.distance.off.Cape.Horn.Of.a.retiring.nature.he.eludes.both.hunters.and.philosophers.Though.no.coward.he.has.never.yet.shown.any.part.of.him.but.his.back.which.rises.in.a.long.sharp.ridge.Let.him.go.I.know.little.more.of.him.nor.does.anybody.else.BOOK.I.Folio.CHAPTER.VI.Sulphur.Bottom.Another.retiring.gentleman.with.a.brimstone.belly.doubtless.got.by.scraping.along.the.Tartarian.tiles.in.some.of.his.profounder.divings.He.is.seldom.seen.at.least.I.have.never.seen.him.except.in.the.remoter.southern.seas.and.then.always.at.too.great.a.distance.to.study.his.countenance.He.is.never.chased.he.would.run.away.with.ropewalks.of.line.Prodigies.are.told.of.him.Adieu.Sulphur.Bottom.I.can.say.nothing.more.that.is.true.of.ye.nor.can.the.oldest.Nantucketer.Thus.ends.BOOK.I.Folio.and.now.begins.BOOK.II.Octavo.OCTAVOES.These.embrace.the.whales.of.middling.magnitude.among.which.present.may.be.numbered.I.the.Grampus.II.the.Black.Fish.III.the.Narwhale.IV.the.Thrasher.V.the.Killer.Why.this.book.of.whales.is.not.denominated.the.Quarto.is.very.plain.Because.while.the.whales.of.this.order.though.smaller.than.those.of.the.former.order.nevertheless.retain.a.proportionate.likeness.to.them.in.figure.yet.the.bookbinders.Quarto.volume.in.its.dimensioned.form.does.not.preserve.the.shape.of.the.Folio.volume.but.the.Octavo.volume.does.BOOK.II.Octavo.CHAPTER.I.Grampus.Though.this.fish.whose.loud.sonorous.breathing.or.rather.blowing.has.furnished.a.proverb.to.landsmen.is.so.well.known.a.denizen.of.the.deep.yet.is.he.not.popularly.classed.among.whales.But.possessing.all.the.grand.distinctive.features.of.the.leviathan.most.naturalists.have.recognised.him.for.one.He.is.of.moderate.octavo.size.varying.from.fifteen.to.twentyfive.feet.in.length.and.of.corresponding.dimensions.round.the.waist.He.swims.in.herds.he.is.never.regularly.hunted.though.his.oil.is.considerable.in.quantity.and.pretty.good.for.light.By.some.fishermen.his.approach.is.regarded.as.premonitory.of.the.advance.of.the.great.sperm.whale.BOOK.II.Octavo.CHAPTER.II.Black.Fish.I.give.the.popular.fishermens.names.for.all.these.fish.for.generally.they.are.the.best.Where.any.name.happens.to.be.vague.or.inexpressive.I.shall.say.so.and.suggest.another.I.do.so.now.touching.the.Black.Fish.socalled.because.blackness.is.the.rule.among.almost.all.whales.So.call.him.the.Hyena.Whale.if.you.please.His.voracity.is.well.known.and.from.the.circumstance.that.the.inner.angles.of.his.lips.are.curved.upwards.he.carries.an.everlasting.Mephistophelean.grin.on.his.face.This.whale.averages.some.sixteen.or.eighteen.feet.in.length.He.is.found.in.almost.all.latitudes.He.has.a.peculiar.way.of.showing.his.dorsal.hooked.fin.in.swimming.which.looks.something.like.a.Roman.nose.When.not.more.profitably.employed.the.sperm.whale.hunters.sometimes.capture.the.Hyena.whale.to.keep.up.the.supply.of.cheap.oil.for.domestic.employment.as.some.frugal.housekeepers.in.the.absence.of.company.and.quite.alone.by.themselves.burn.unsavory.tallow.instead.of.odorous.wax.Though.their.blubber.is.very.thin.some.of.these.whales.will.yield.you.upwards.of.thirty.gallons.of.oil.BOOK.II.Octavo.CHAPTER.III.Narwhale.that.is.Nostril.whale.Another.instance.of.a.curiously.named.whale.so.named.I.suppose.from.his.peculiar.horn.being.originally.mistaken.for.a.peaked.nose.The.creature.is.some.sixteen.feet.in.length.while.its.horn.averages.five.feet.though.some.exceed.ten.and.even.attain.to.fifteen.feet.Strictly.speaking.this.horn.is.but.a.lengthened.tusk.growing.out.from.the.jaw.in.a.line.a.little.depressed.from.the.horizontal.But.it.is.only.found.on.the.sinister.side.which.has.an.ill.effect.giving.its.owner.something.analogous.to.the.aspect.of.a.clumsy.lefthanded.man.What.precise.purpose.this.ivory.horn.or.lance.answers.it.would.be.hard.to.say.It.does.not.seem.to.be.used.like.the.blade.of.the.swordfish.and.billfish.though.some.sailors.tell.me.that.the.Narwhale.employs.it.for.a.rake.in.turning.over.the.bottom.of.the.sea.for.food.Charley.Coffin.said.it.was.used.for.an.icepiercer.for.the.Narwhale.rising.to.the.surface.of.the.Polar.Sea.and.finding.it.sheeted.with.ice.thrusts.his.horn.up.and.so.breaks.through.But.you.cannot.prove.either.of.these.surmises.to.be.correct.My.own.opinion.is.that.however.this.onesided.horn.may.really.be.used.by.the.Narwhale.however.that.may.be.it.would.certainly.be.very.convenient.to.him.for.a.folder.in.reading.pamphlets.The.Narwhale.I.have.heard.called.the.Tusked.whale.the.Horned.whale.and.the.Unicorn.whale.He.is.certainly.a.curious.example.of.the.Unicornism.to.be.found.in.almost.every.kingdom.of.animated.nature.From.certain.cloistered.old.authors.I.have.gathered.that.this.same.seaunicorns.horn.was.in.ancient.days.regarded.as.the.great.antidote.against.poison.and.as.such.preparations.of.it.brought.immense.prices.It.was.also.distilled.to.a.volatile.salts.for.fainting.ladies.the.same.way.that.the.horns.of.the.male.deer.are.manufactured.into.hartshorn.Originally.it.was.in.itself.accounted.an.object.of.great.curiosity.Black.Letter.tells.me.that.Sir.Martin.Frobisher.on.his.return.from.that.voyage.when.Queen.Bess.did.gallantly.wave.her.jewelled.hand.to.him.from.a.window.of.Greenwich.Palace.as.his.bold.ship.sailed.down.the.Thames.when.Sir.Martin.returned.from.that.voyage.saith.Black.Letter.on.bended.knees.he.presented.to.her.highness.a.prodigious.long.horn.of.the.Narwhale.which.for.a.long.period.after.hung.in.the.castle.at.Windsor.An.Irish.author.avers.that.the.Earl.of.Leicester.on.bended.knees.did.likewise.present.to.her.highness.another.horn.pertaining.to.a.land.beast.of.the.unicorn.nature.The.Narwhale.has.a.very.picturesque.leopardlike.look.being.of.a.milkwhite.ground.colour.dotted.with.round.and.oblong.spots.of.black.His.oil.is.very.superior.clear.and.fine.but.there.is.little.of.it.and.he.is.seldom.hunted.He.is.mostly.found.in.the.circumpolar.seas.BOOK.II.Octavo.CHAPTER.IV.Killer.Of.this.whale.little.is.precisely.known.to.the.Nantucketer.and.nothing.at.all.to.the.professed.naturalist.From.what.I.have.seen.of.him.at.a.distance.I.should.say.that.he.was.about.the.bigness.of.a.grampus.He.is.very.savage.a.sort.of.Feegee.fish.He.sometimes.takes.the.great.Folio.whales.by.the.lip.and.hangs.there.like.a.leech.till.the.mighty.brute.is.worried.to.death.The.Killer.is.never.hunted.I.never.heard.what.sort.of.oil.he.has.Exception.might.be.taken.to.the.name.bestowed.upon.this.whale.on.the.ground.of.its.indistinctness.For.we.are.all.killers.on.land.and.on.sea.Bonapartes.and.Sharks.included.BOOK.II.Octavo.CHAPTER.V.Thrasher.This.gentleman.is.famous.for.his.tail.which.he.uses.for.a.ferule.in.thrashing.his.foes.He.mounts.the.Folio.whales.back.and.as.he.swims.he.works.his.passage.by.flogging.him.as.some.schoolmasters.get.along.in.the.world.by.a.similar.process.Still.less.is.known.of.the.Thrasher.than.of.the.Killer.Both.are.outlaws.even.in.the.lawless.seas.Thus.ends.BOOK.II.Octavo.and.begins.BOOK.III.Duodecimo.DUODECIMOES.These.include.the.smaller.whales.I.The.Huzza.Porpoise.II.The.Algerine.Porpoise.III.The.Mealymouthed.Porpoise.To.those.who.have.not.chanced.specially.to.study.the.subject.it.may.possibly.seem.strange.that.fishes.not.commonly.exceeding.four.or.five.feet.should.be.marshalled.among.WHALES.a.word.which.in.the.popular.sense.always.conveys.an.idea.of.hugeness.But.the.creatures.set.down.above.as.Duodecimoes.are.infallibly.whales.by.the.terms.of.my.definition.of.what.a.whale.is.ie.a.spouting.fish.with.a.horizontal.tail.BOOK.III.Duodecimo.CHAPTER.1.Huzza.Porpoise.This.is.the.common.porpoise.found.almost.all.over.the.globe.The.name.is.of.my.own.bestowal.for.there.are.more.than.one.sort.of.porpoises.and.something.must.be.done.to.distinguish.them.I.call.him.thus.because.he.always.swims.in.hilarious.shoals.which.upon.the.broad.sea.keep.tossing.themselves.to.heaven.like.caps.in.a.FourthofJuly.crowd.Their.appearance.is.generally.hailed.with.delight.by.the.mariner.Full.of.fine.spirits.they.invariably.come.from.the.breezy.billows.to.windward.They.are.the.lads.that.always.live.before.the.wind.They.are.accounted.a.lucky.omen.If.you.yourself.can.withstand.three.cheers.at.beholding.these.vivacious.fish.then.heaven.help.ye.the.spirit.of.godly.gamesomeness.is.not.in.ye.A.wellfed.plump.Huzza.Porpoise.will.yield.you.one.good.gallon.of.good.oil.But.the.fine.and.delicate.fluid.extracted.from.his.jaws.is.exceedingly.valuable.It.is.in.request.among.jewellers.and.watchmakers.Sailors.put.it.on.their.hones.Porpoise.meat.is.good.eating.you.know.It.may.never.have.occurred.to.you.that.a.porpoise.spouts.Indeed.his.spout.is.so.small.that.it.is.not.very.readily.discernible.But.the.next.time.you.have.a.chance.watch.him.and.you.will.then.see.the.great.Sperm.whale.himself.in.miniature.BOOK.III.Duodecimo.CHAPTER.II.Algerine.Porpoise.A.pirate.Very.savage.He.is.only.found.I.think.in.the.Pacific.He.is.somewhat.larger.than.the.Huzza.Porpoise.but.much.of.the.same.general.make.Provoke.him.and.he.will.buckle.to.a.shark.I.have.lowered.for.him.many.times.but.never.yet.saw.him.captured.BOOK.III.Duodecimo.CHAPTER.III.Mealymouthed.Porpoise.The.largest.kind.of.Porpoise.and.only.found.in.the.Pacific.so.far.as.it.is.known.The.only.English.name.by.which.he.has.hitherto.been.designated.is.that.of.the.fishers.RightWhale.Porpoise.from.the.circumstance.that.he.is.chiefly.found.in.the.vicinity.of.that.Folio.In.shape.he.differs.in.some.degree.from.the.Huzza.Porpoise.being.of.a.less.rotund.and.jolly.girth.indeed.he.is.of.quite.a.neat.and.gentlemanlike.figure.He.has.no.fins.on.his.back.most.other.porpoises.have.he.has.a.lovely.tail.and.sentimental.Indian.eyes.of.a.hazel.hue.But.his.mealymouth.spoils.all.Though.his.entire.back.down.to.his.side.fins.is.of.a.deep.sable.yet.a.boundary.line.distinct.as.the.mark.in.a.ships.hull.called.the.bright.waist.that.line.streaks.him.from.stem.to.stern.with.two.separate.colours.black.above.and.white.below.The.white.comprises.part.of.his.head.and.the.whole.of.his.mouth.which.makes.him.look.as.if.he.had.just.escaped.from.a.felonious.visit.to.a.mealbag.A.most.mean.and.mealy.aspect.His.oil.is.much.like.that.of.the.common.porpoise.Beyond.the.DUODECIMO.this.system.does.not.proceed.inasmuch.as.the.Porpoise.is.the.smallest.of.the.whales.Above.you.have.all.the.Leviathans.of.note.But.there.are.a.rabble.of.uncertain.fugitive.halffabulous.whales.which.as.an.American.whaleman.I.know.by.reputation.but.not.personally.I.shall.enumerate.them.by.their.forecastle.appellations.for.possibly.such.a.list.may.be.valuable.to.future.investigators.who.may.complete.what.I.have.here.but.begun.If.any.of.the.following.whales.shall.hereafter.be.caught.and.marked.then.he.can.readily.be.incorporated.into.this.System.according.to.his.Folio.Octavo.or.Duodecimo.magnitude.The.BottleNose.Whale.the.Junk.Whale.the.PuddingHeaded.Whale.the.Cape.Whale.the.Leading.Whale.the.Cannon.Whale.the.Scragg.Whale.the.Coppered.Whale.the.Elephant.Whale.the.Iceberg.Whale.the.Quog.Whale.the.Blue.Whale.etc.From.Icelandic.Dutch.and.old.English.authorities.there.might.be.quoted.other.lists.of.uncertain.whales.blessed.with.all.manner.of.uncouth.names.But.I.omit.them.as.altogether.obsolete.and.can.hardly.help.suspecting.them.for.mere.sounds.full.of.Leviathanism.but.signifying.nothing.Finally.It.was.stated.at.the.outset.that.this.system.would.not.be.here.and.at.once.perfected.You.cannot.but.plainly.see.that.I.have.kept.my.word.But.I.now.leave.my.cetological.System.standing.thus.unfinished.even.as.the.great.Cathedral.of.Cologne.was.left.with.the.crane.still.standing.upon.the.top.of.the.uncompleted.tower.For.small.erections.may.be.finished.by.their.first.architects.grand.ones.true.ones.ever.leave.the.copestone.to.posterity.God.keep.me.from.ever.completing.anything.This.whole.book.is.but.a.draught.nay.but.the.draught.of.a.draught.Oh.Time.Strength.Cash.and.Patience.CHAPTER.33.The.Specksnyder.Concerning.the.officers.of.the.whalecraft.this.seems.as.good.a.place.as.any.to.set.down.a.little.domestic.peculiarity.on.shipboard.arising.from.the.existence.of.the.harpooneer.class.of.officers.a.class.unknown.of.course.in.any.other.marine.than.the.whalefleet.The.large.importance.attached.to.the.harpooneers.vocation.is.evinced.by.the.fact.that.originally.in.the.old.Dutch.Fishery.two.centuries.and.more.ago.the.command.of.a.whale.ship.was.not.wholly.lodged.in.the.person.now.called.the.captain.but.was.divided.between.him.and.an.officer.called.the.Specksnyder.Literally.this.word.means.FatCutter.usage.however.in.time.made.it.equivalent.to.Chief.Harpooneer.In.those.days.the.captains.authority.was.restricted.to.the.navigation.and.general.management.of.the.vessel.while.over.the.whalehunting.department.and.all.its.concerns.the.Specksnyder.or.Chief.Harpooneer.reigned.supreme.In.the.British.Greenland.Fishery.under.the.corrupted.title.of.Specksioneer.this.old.Dutch.official.is.still.retained.but.his.former.dignity.is.sadly.abridged.At.present.he.ranks.simply.as.senior.Harpooneer.and.as.such.is.but.one.of.the.captains.more.inferior.subalterns.Nevertheless.as.upon.the.good.conduct.of.the.harpooneers.the.success.of.a.whaling.voyage.largely.depends.and.since.in.the.American.Fishery.he.is.not.only.an.important.officer.in.the.boat.but.under.certain.circumstances.night.watches.on.a.whaling.ground.the.command.of.the.ships.deck.is.also.his.therefore.the.grand.political.maxim.of.the.sea.demands.that.he.should.nominally.live.apart.from.the.men.before.the.mast.and.be.in.some.way.distinguished.as.their.professional.superior.though.always.by.them.familiarly.regarded.as.their.social.equal.Now.the.grand.distinction.drawn.between.officer.and.man.at.sea.is.this.the.first.lives.aft.the.last.forward.Hence.in.whaleships.and.merchantmen.alike.the.mates.have.their.quarters.with.the.captain.and.so.too.in.most.of.the.American.whalers.the.harpooneers.are.lodged.in.the.after.part.of.the.ship.That.is.to.say.they.take.their.meals.in.the.captains.cabin.and.sleep.in.a.place.indirectly.communicating.with.it.Though.the.long.period.of.a.Southern.whaling.voyage.by.far.the.longest.of.all.voyages.now.or.ever.made.by.man.the.peculiar.perils.of.it.and.the.community.of.interest.prevailing.among.a.company.all.of.whom.high.or.low.depend.for.their.profits.not.upon.fixed.wages.but.upon.their.common.luck.together.with.their.common.vigilance.intrepidity.and.hard.work.though.all.these.things.do.in.some.cases.tend.to.beget.a.less.rigorous.discipline.than.in.merchantmen.generally.yet.never.mind.how.much.like.an.old.Mesopotamian.family.these.whalemen.may.in.some.primitive.instances.live.together.for.all.that.the.punctilious.externals.at.least.of.the.quarterdeck.are.seldom.materially.relaxed.and.in.no.instance.done.away.Indeed.many.are.the.Nantucket.ships.in.which.you.will.see.the.skipper.parading.his.quarterdeck.with.an.elated.grandeur.not.surpassed.in.any.military.navy.nay.extorting.almost.as.much.outward.homage.as.if.he.wore.the.imperial.purple.and.not.the.shabbiest.of.pilotcloth.And.though.of.all.men.the.moody.captain.of.the.Pequod.was.the.least.given.to.that.sort.of.shallowest.assumption.and.though.the.only.homage.he.ever.exacted.was.implicit.instantaneous.obedience.though.he.required.no.man.to.remove.the.shoes.from.his.feet.ere.stepping.upon.the.quarterdeck.and.though.there.were.times.when.owing.to.peculiar.circumstances.connected.with.events.hereafter.to.be.detailed.he.addressed.them.in.unusual.terms.whether.of.condescension.or.in.terrorem.or.otherwise.yet.even.Captain.Ahab.was.by.no.means.unobservant.of.the.paramount.forms.and.usages.of.the.sea.Nor.perhaps.will.it.fail.to.be.eventually.perceived.that.behind.those.forms.and.usages.as.it.were.he.sometimes.masked.himself.incidentally.making.use.of.them.for.other.and.more.private.ends.than.they.were.legitimately.intended.to.subserve.That.certain.sultanism.of.his.brain.which.had.otherwise.in.a.good.degree.remained.unmanifested.through.those.forms.that.same.sultanism.became.incarnate.in.an.irresistible.dictatorship.For.be.a.mans.intellectual.superiority.what.it.will.it.can.never.assume.the.practical.available.supremacy.over.other.men.without.the.aid.of.some.sort.of.external.arts.and.entrenchments.always.in.themselves.more.or.less.paltry.and.base.This.it.is.that.for.ever.keeps.Gods.true.princes.of.the.Empire.from.the.worlds.hustings.and.leaves.the.highest.honors.that.this.air.can.give.to.those.men.who.become.famous.more.through.their.infinite.inferiority.to.the.choice.hidden.handful.of.the.Divine.Inert.than.through.their.undoubted.superiority.over.the.dead.level.of.the.mass.Such.large.virtue.lurks.in.these.small.things.when.extreme.political.superstitions.invest.them.that.in.some.royal.instances.even.to.idiot.imbecility.they.have.imparted.potency.But.when.as.in.the.case.of.Nicholas.the.Czar.the.ringed.crown.of.geographical.empire.encircles.an.imperial.brain.then.the.plebeian.herds.crouch.abased.before.the.tremendous.centralization.Nor.will.the.tragic.dramatist.who.would.depict.mortal.indomitableness.in.its.fullest.sweep.and.direct.swing.ever.forget.a.hint.incidentally.so.important.in.his.art.as.the.one.now.alluded.to.But.Ahab.my.Captain.still.moves.before.me.in.all.his.Nantucket.grimness.and.shagginess.and.in.this.episode.touching.Emperors.and.Kings.I.must.not.conceal.that.I.have.only.to.do.with.a.poor.old.whalehunter.like.him.and.therefore.all.outward.majestical.trappings.and.housings.are.denied.me.Oh.Ahab.what.shall.be.grand.in.thee.it.must.needs.be.plucked.at.from.the.skies.and.dived.for.in.the.deep.and.featured.in.the.unbodied.air.CHAPTER.34.The.CabinTable.It.is.noon.and.DoughBoy.the.steward.thrusting.his.pale.loafofbread.face.from.the.cabinscuttle.announces.dinner.to.his.lord.and.master.who.sitting.in.the.lee.quarterboat.has.just.been.taking.an.observation.of.the.sun.and.is.now.mutely.reckoning.the.latitude.on.the.smooth.medallionshaped.tablet.reserved.for.that.daily.purpose.on.the.upper.part.of.his.ivory.leg.From.his.complete.inattention.to.the.tidings.you.would.think.that.moody.Ahab.had.not.heard.his.menial.But.presently.catching.hold.of.the.mizen.shrouds.he.swings.himself.to.the.deck.and.in.an.even.unexhilarated.voice.saying.Dinner.Mr.Starbuck.disappears.into.the.cabin.When.the.last.echo.of.his.sultans.step.has.died.away.and.Starbuck.the.first.Emir.has.every.reason.to.suppose.that.he.is.seated.then.Starbuck.rouses.from.his.quietude.takes.a.few.turns.along.the.planks.and.after.a.grave.peep.into.the.binnacle.says.with.some.touch.of.pleasantness.Dinner.Mr.Stubb.and.descends.the.scuttle.The.second.Emir.lounges.about.the.rigging.awhile.and.then.slightly.shaking.the.main.brace.to.see.whether.it.will.be.all.right.with.that.important.rope.he.likewise.takes.up.the.old.burden.and.with.a.rapid.Dinner.Mr.Flask.follows.after.his.predecessors.But.the.third.Emir.now.seeing.himself.all.alone.on.the.quarterdeck.seems.to.feel.relieved.from.some.curious.restraint.for.tipping.all.sorts.of.knowing.winks.in.all.sorts.of.directions.and.kicking.off.his.shoes.he.strikes.into.a.sharp.but.noiseless.squall.of.a.hornpipe.right.over.the.Grand.Turks.head.and.then.by.a.dexterous.sleight.pitching.his.cap.up.into.the.mizentop.for.a.shelf.he.goes.down.rollicking.so.far.at.least.as.he.remains.visible.from.the.deck.reversing.all.other.processions.by.bringing.up.the.rear.with.music.But.ere.stepping.into.the.cabin.doorway.below.he.pauses.ships.a.new.face.altogether.and.then.independent.hilarious.little.Flask.enters.King.Ahabs.presence.in.the.character.of.Abjectus.or.the.Slave.It.is.not.the.least.among.the.strange.things.bred.by.the.intense.artificialness.of.seausages.that.while.in.the.open.air.of.the.deck.some.officers.will.upon.provocation.bear.themselves.boldly.and.defyingly.enough.towards.their.commander.yet.ten.to.one.let.those.very.officers.the.next.moment.go.down.to.their.customary.dinner.in.that.same.commanders.cabin.and.straightway.their.inoffensive.not.to.say.deprecatory.and.humble.air.towards.him.as.he.sits.at.the.head.of.the.table.this.is.marvellous.sometimes.most.comical.Wherefore.this.difference.A.problem.Perhaps.not.To.have.been.Belshazzar.King.of.Babylon.and.to.have.been.Belshazzar.not.haughtily.but.courteously.therein.certainly.must.have.been.some.touch.of.mundane.grandeur.But.he.who.in.the.rightly.regal.and.intelligent.spirit.presides.over.his.own.private.dinnertable.of.invited.guests.that.mans.unchallenged.power.and.dominion.of.individual.influence.for.the.time.that.mans.royalty.of.state.transcends.Belshazzars.for.Belshazzar.was.not.the.greatest.Who.has.but.once.dined.his.friends.has.tasted.what.it.is.to.be.Csar.It.is.a.witchery.of.social.czarship.which.there.is.no.withstanding.Now.if.to.this.consideration.you.superadd.the.official.supremacy.of.a.shipmaster.then.by.inference.you.will.derive.the.cause.of.that.peculiarity.of.sealife.just.mentioned.Over.his.ivoryinlaid.table.Ahab.presided.like.a.mute.maned.sealion.on.the.white.coral.beach.surrounded.by.his.warlike.but.still.deferential.cubs.In.his.own.proper.turn.each.officer.waited.to.be.served.They.were.as.little.children.before.Ahab.and.yet.in.Ahab.there.seemed.not.to.lurk.the.smallest.social.arrogance.With.one.mind.their.intent.eyes.all.fastened.upon.the.old.mans.knife.as.he.carved.the.chief.dish.before.him.I.do.not.suppose.that.for.the.world.they.would.have.profaned.that.moment.with.the.slightest.observation.even.upon.so.neutral.a.topic.as.the.weather.No.And.when.reaching.out.his.knife.and.fork.between.which.the.slice.of.beef.was.locked.Ahab.thereby.motioned.Starbucks.plate.towards.him.the.mate.received.his.meat.as.though.receiving.alms.and.cut.it.tenderly.and.a.little.started.if.perchance.the.knife.grazed.against.the.plate.and.chewed.it.noiselessly.and.swallowed.it.not.without.circumspection.For.like.the.Coronation.banquet.at.Frankfort.where.the.German.Emperor.profoundly.dines.with.the.seven.Imperial.Electors.so.these.cabin.meals.were.somehow.solemn.meals.eaten.in.awful.silence.and.yet.at.table.old.Ahab.forbade.not.conversation.only.he.himself.was.dumb.What.a.relief.it.was.to.choking.Stubb.when.a.rat.made.a.sudden.racket.in.the.hold.below.And.poor.little.Flask.he.was.the.youngest.son.and.little.boy.of.this.weary.family.party.His.were.the.shinbones.of.the.saline.beef.his.would.have.been.the.drumsticks.For.Flask.to.have.presumed.to.help.himself.this.must.have.seemed.to.him.tantamount.to.larceny.in.the.first.degree.Had.he.helped.himself.at.that.table.doubtless.never.more.would.he.have.been.able.to.hold.his.head.up.in.this.honest.world.nevertheless.strange.to.say.Ahab.never.forbade.him.And.had.Flask.helped.himself.the.chances.were.Ahab.had.never.so.much.as.noticed.it.Least.of.all.did.Flask.presume.to.help.himself.to.butter.Whether.he.thought.the.owners.of.the.ship.denied.it.to.him.on.account.of.its.clotting.his.clear.sunny.complexion.or.whether.he.deemed.that.on.so.long.a.voyage.in.such.marketless.waters.butter.was.at.a.premium.and.therefore.was.not.for.him.a.subaltern.however.it.was.Flask.alas.was.a.butterless.man.Another.thing.Flask.was.the.last.person.down.at.the.dinner.and.Flask.is.the.first.man.up.Consider.For.hereby.Flasks.dinner.was.badly.jammed.in.point.of.time.Starbuck.and.Stubb.both.had.the.start.of.him.and.yet.they.also.have.the.privilege.of.lounging.in.the.rear.If.Stubb.even.who.is.but.a.peg.higher.than.Flask.happens.to.have.but.a.small.appetite.and.soon.shows.symptoms.of.concluding.his.repast.then.Flask.must.bestir.himself.he.will.not.get.more.than.three.mouthfuls.that.day.for.it.is.against.holy.usage.for.Stubb.to.precede.Flask.to.the.deck.Therefore.it.was.that.Flask.once.admitted.in.private.that.ever.since.he.had.arisen.to.the.dignity.of.an.officer.from.that.moment.he.had.never.known.what.it.was.to.be.otherwise.than.hungry.more.or.less.For.what.he.ate.did.not.so.much.relieve.his.hunger.as.keep.it.immortal.in.him.Peace.and.satisfaction.thought.Flask.have.for.ever.departed.from.my.stomach.I.am.an.officer.but.how.I.wish.I.could.fish.a.bit.of.oldfashioned.beef.in.the.forecastle.as.I.used.to.when.I.was.before.the.mast.Theres.the.fruits.of.promotion.now.theres.the.vanity.of.glory.theres.the.insanity.of.life.Besides.if.it.were.so.that.any.mere.sailor.of.the.Pequod.had.a.grudge.against.Flask.in.Flasks.official.capacity.all.that.sailor.had.to.do.in.order.to.obtain.ample.vengeance.was.to.go.aft.at.dinnertime.and.get.a.peep.at.Flask.through.the.cabin.skylight.sitting.silly.and.dumfoundered.before.awful.Ahab.Now.Ahab.and.his.three.mates.formed.what.may.be.called.the.first.table.in.the.Pequods.cabin.After.their.departure.taking.place.in.inverted.order.to.their.arrival.the.canvas.cloth.was.cleared.or.rather.was.restored.to.some.hurried.order.by.the.pallid.steward.And.then.the.three.harpooneers.were.bidden.to.the.feast.they.being.its.residuary.legatees.They.made.a.sort.of.temporary.servants.hall.of.the.high.and.mighty.cabin.In.strange.contrast.to.the.hardly.tolerable.constraint.and.nameless.invisible.domineerings.of.the.captains.table.was.the.entire.carefree.license.and.ease.the.almost.frantic.democracy.of.those.inferior.fellows.the.harpooneers.While.their.masters.the.mates.seemed.afraid.of.the.sound.of.the.hinges.of.their.own.jaws.the.harpooneers.chewed.their.food.with.such.a.relish.that.there.was.a.report.to.it.They.dined.like.lords.they.filled.their.bellies.like.Indian.ships.all.day.loading.with.spices.Such.portentous.appetites.had.Queequeg.and.Tashtego.that.to.fill.out.the.vacancies.made.by.the.previous.repast.often.the.pale.DoughBoy.was.fain.to.bring.on.a.great.baron.of.saltjunk.seemingly.quarried.out.of.the.solid.ox.And.if.he.were.not.lively.about.it.if.he.did.not.go.with.a.nimble.hopskipandjump.then.Tashtego.had.an.ungentlemanly.way.of.accelerating.him.by.darting.a.fork.at.his.back.harpoonwise.And.once.Daggoo.seized.with.a.sudden.humor.assisted.DoughBoys.memory.by.snatching.him.up.bodily.and.thrusting.his.head.into.a.great.empty.wooden.trencher.while.Tashtego.knife.in.hand.began.laying.out.the.circle.preliminary.to.scalping.him.He.was.naturally.a.very.nervous.shuddering.sort.of.little.fellow.this.breadfaced.steward.the.progeny.of.a.bankrupt.baker.and.a.hospital.nurse.And.what.with.the.standing.spectacle.of.the.black.terrific.Ahab.and.the.periodical.tumultuous.visitations.of.these.three.savages.DoughBoys.whole.life.was.one.continual.lipquiver.Commonly.after.seeing.the.harpooneers.furnished.with.all.things.they.demanded.he.would.escape.from.their.clutches.into.his.little.pantry.adjoining.and.fearfully.peep.out.at.them.through.the.blinds.of.its.door.till.all.was.over.It.was.a.sight.to.see.Queequeg.seated.over.against.Tashtego.opposing.his.filed.teeth.to.the.Indians.crosswise.to.them.Daggoo.seated.on.the.floor.for.a.bench.would.have.brought.his.hearseplumed.head.to.the.low.carlines.at.every.motion.of.his.colossal.limbs.making.the.low.cabin.framework.to.shake.as.when.an.African.elephant.goes.passenger.in.a.ship.But.for.all.this.the.great.negro.was.wonderfully.abstemious.not.to.say.dainty.It.seemed.hardly.possible.that.by.such.comparatively.small.mouthfuls.he.could.keep.up.the.vitality.diffused.through.so.broad.baronial.and.superb.a.person.But.doubtless.this.noble.savage.fed.strong.and.drank.deep.of.the.abounding.element.of.air.and.through.his.dilated.nostrils.snuffed.in.the.sublime.life.of.the.worlds.Not.by.beef.or.by.bread.are.giants.made.or.nourished.But.Queequeg.he.had.a.mortal.barbaric.smack.of.the.lip.in.eating.an.ugly.sound.enough.so.much.so.that.the.trembling.DoughBoy.almost.looked.to.see.whether.any.marks.of.teeth.lurked.in.his.own.lean.arms.And.when.he.would.hear.Tashtego.singing.out.for.him.to.produce.himself.that.his.bones.might.be.picked.the.simplewitted.steward.all.but.shattered.the.crockery.hanging.round.him.in.the.pantry.by.his.sudden.fits.of.the.palsy.Nor.did.the.whetstone.which.the.harpooneers.carried.in.their.pockets.for.their.lances.and.other.weapons.and.with.which.whetstones.at.dinner.they.would.ostentatiously.sharpen.their.knives.that.grating.sound.did.not.at.all.tend.to.tranquillize.poor.DoughBoy.How.could.he.forget.that.in.his.Island.days.Queequeg.for.one.must.certainly.have.been.guilty.of.some.murderous.convivial.indiscretions.Alas.DoughBoy.hard.fares.the.white.waiter.who.waits.upon.cannibals.Not.a.napkin.should.he.carry.on.his.arm.but.a.buckler.In.good.time.though.to.his.great.delight.the.three.saltsea.warriors.would.rise.and.depart.to.his.credulous.fablemongering.ears.all.their.martial.bones.jingling.in.them.at.every.step.like.Moorish.scimetars.in.scabbards.But.though.these.barbarians.dined.in.the.cabin.and.nominally.lived.there.still.being.anything.but.sedentary.in.their.habits.they.were.scarcely.ever.in.it.except.at.mealtimes.and.just.before.sleepingtime.when.they.passed.through.it.to.their.own.peculiar.quarters.In.this.one.matter.Ahab.seemed.no.exception.to.most.American.whale.captains.who.as.a.set.rather.incline.to.the.opinion.that.by.rights.the.ships.cabin.belongs.to.them.and.that.it.is.by.courtesy.alone.that.anybody.else.is.at.any.time.permitted.there.So.that.in.real.truth.the.mates.and.harpooneers.of.the.Pequod.might.more.properly.be.said.to.have.lived.out.of.the.cabin.than.in.it.For.when.they.did.enter.it.it.was.something.as.a.streetdoor.enters.a.house.turning.inwards.for.a.moment.only.to.be.turned.out.the.next.and.as.a.permanent.thing.residing.in.the.open.air.Nor.did.they.lose.much.hereby.in.the.cabin.was.no.companionship.socially.Ahab.was.inaccessible.Though.nominally.included.in.the.census.of.Christendom.he.was.still.an.alien.to.it.He.lived.in.the.world.as.the.last.of.the.Grisly.Bears.lived.in.settled.Missouri.And.as.when.Spring.and.Summer.had.departed.that.wild.Logan.of.the.woods.burying.himself.in.the.hollow.of.a.tree.lived.out.the.winter.there.sucking.his.own.paws.so.in.his.inclement.howling.old.age.Ahabs.soul.shut.up.in.the.caved.trunk.of.his.body.there.fed.upon.the.sullen.paws.of.its.gloom.CHAPTER.35.The.MastHead.It.was.during.the.more.pleasant.weather.that.in.due.rotation.with.the.other.seamen.my.first.masthead.came.round.In.most.American.whalemen.the.mastheads.are.manned.almost.simultaneously.with.the.vessels.leaving.her.port.even.though.she.may.have.fifteen.thousand.miles.and.more.to.sail.ere.reaching.her.proper.cruising.ground.And.if.after.a.three.four.or.five.years.voyage.she.is.drawing.nigh.home.with.anything.empty.in.her.say.an.empty.vial.even.then.her.mastheads.are.kept.manned.to.the.last.and.not.till.her.skysailpoles.sail.in.among.the.spires.of.the.port.does.she.altogether.relinquish.the.hope.of.capturing.one.whale.more.Now.as.the.business.of.standing.mastheads.ashore.or.afloat.is.a.very.ancient.and.interesting.one.let.us.in.some.measure.expatiate.here.I.take.it.that.the.earliest.standers.of.mastheads.were.the.old.Egyptians.because.in.all.my.researches.I.find.none.prior.to.them.For.though.their.progenitors.the.builders.of.Babel.must.doubtless.by.their.tower.have.intended.to.rear.the.loftiest.masthead.in.all.Asia.or.Africa.either.yet.ere.the.final.truck.was.put.to.it.as.that.great.stone.mast.of.theirs.may.be.said.to.have.gone.by.the.board.in.the.dread.gale.of.Gods.wrath.therefore.we.cannot.give.these.Babel.builders.priority.over.the.Egyptians.And.that.the.Egyptians.were.a.nation.of.masthead.standers.is.an.assertion.based.upon.the.general.belief.among.archologists.that.the.first.pyramids.were.founded.for.astronomical.purposes.a.theory.singularly.supported.by.the.peculiar.stairlike.formation.of.all.four.sides.of.those.edifices.whereby.with.prodigious.long.upliftings.of.their.legs.those.old.astronomers.were.wont.to.mount.to.the.apex.and.sing.out.for.new.stars.even.as.the.lookouts.of.a.modern.ship.sing.out.for.a.sail.or.a.whale.just.bearing.in.sight.In.Saint.Stylites.the.famous.Christian.hermit.of.old.times.who.built.him.a.lofty.stone.pillar.in.the.desert.and.spent.the.whole.latter.portion.of.his.life.on.its.summit.hoisting.his.food.from.the.ground.with.a.tackle.in.him.we.have.a.remarkable.instance.of.a.dauntless.standerofmastheads.who.was.not.to.be.driven.from.his.place.by.fogs.or.frosts.rain.hail.or.sleet.but.valiantly.facing.everything.out.to.the.last.literally.died.at.his.post.Of.modern.standersofmastheads.we.have.but.a.lifeless.set.mere.stone.iron.and.bronze.men.who.though.well.capable.of.facing.out.a.stiff.gale.are.still.entirely.incompetent.to.the.business.of.singing.out.upon.discovering.any.strange.sight.There.is.Napoleon.who.upon.the.top.of.the.column.of.Vendome.stands.with.arms.folded.some.one.hundred.and.fifty.feet.in.the.air.careless.now.who.rules.the.decks.below.whether.Louis.Philippe.Louis.Blanc.or.Louis.the.Devil.Great.Washington.too.stands.high.aloft.on.his.towering.mainmast.in.Baltimore.and.like.one.of.Hercules.pillars.his.column.marks.that.point.of.human.grandeur.beyond.which.few.mortals.will.go.Admiral.Nelson.also.on.a.capstan.of.gunmetal.stands.his.masthead.in.Trafalgar.Square.and.ever.when.most.obscured.by.that.London.smoke.token.is.yet.given.that.a.hidden.hero.is.there.for.where.there.is.smoke.must.be.fire.But.neither.great.Washington.nor.Napoleon.nor.Nelson.will.answer.a.single.hail.from.below.however.madly.invoked.to.befriend.by.their.counsels.the.distracted.decks.upon.which.they.gaze.however.it.may.be.surmised.that.their.spirits.penetrate.through.the.thick.haze.of.the.future.and.descry.what.shoals.and.what.rocks.must.be.shunned.It.may.seem.unwarrantable.to.couple.in.any.respect.the.masthead.standers.of.the.land.with.those.of.the.sea.but.that.in.truth.it.is.not.so.is.plainly.evinced.by.an.item.for.which.Obed.Macy.the.sole.historian.of.Nantucket.stands.accountable.The.worthy.Obed.tells.us.that.in.the.early.times.of.the.whale.fishery.ere.ships.were.regularly.launched.in.pursuit.of.the.game.the.people.of.that.island.erected.lofty.spars.along.the.seacoast.to.which.the.lookouts.ascended.by.means.of.nailed.cleats.something.as.fowls.go.upstairs.in.a.henhouse.A.few.years.ago.this.same.plan.was.adopted.by.the.Bay.whalemen.of.New.Zealand.who.upon.descrying.the.game.gave.notice.to.the.readymanned.boats.nigh.the.beach.But.this.custom.has.now.become.obsolete.turn.we.then.to.the.one.proper.masthead.that.of.a.whaleship.at.sea.The.three.mastheads.are.kept.manned.from.sunrise.to.sunset.the.seamen.taking.their.regular.turns.as.at.the.helm.and.relieving.each.other.every.two.hours.In.the.serene.weather.of.the.tropics.it.is.exceedingly.pleasant.the.masthead.nay.to.a.dreamy.meditative.man.it.is.delightful.There.you.stand.a.hundred.feet.above.the.silent.decks.striding.along.the.deep.as.if.the.masts.were.gigantic.stilts.while.beneath.you.and.between.your.legs.as.it.were.swim.the.hugest.monsters.of.the.sea.even.as.ships.once.sailed.between.the.boots.of.the.famous.Colossus.at.old.Rhodes.There.you.stand.lost.in.the.infinite.series.of.the.sea.with.nothing.ruffled.but.the.waves.The.tranced.ship.indolently.rolls.the.drowsy.trade.winds.blow.everything.resolves.you.into.languor.For.the.most.part.in.this.tropic.whaling.life.a.sublime.uneventfulness.invests.you.you.hear.no.news.read.no.gazettes.extras.with.startling.accounts.of.commonplaces.never.delude.you.into.unnecessary.excitements.you.hear.of.no.domestic.afflictions.bankrupt.securities.fall.of.stocks.are.never.troubled.with.the.thought.of.what.you.shall.have.for.dinner.for.all.your.meals.for.three.years.and.more.are.snugly.stowed.in.casks.and.your.bill.of.fare.is.immutable.In.one.of.those.southern.whalesmen.on.a.long.three.or.four.years.voyage.as.often.happens.the.sum.of.the.various.hours.you.spend.at.the.masthead.would.amount.to.several.entire.months.And.it.is.much.to.be.deplored.that.the.place.to.which.you.devote.so.considerable.a.portion.of.the.whole.term.of.your.natural.life.should.be.so.sadly.destitute.of.anything.approaching.to.a.cosy.inhabitiveness.or.adapted.to.breed.a.comfortable.localness.of.feeling.such.as.pertains.to.a.bed.a.hammock.a.hearse.a.sentry.box.a.pulpit.a.coach.or.any.other.of.those.small.and.snug.contrivances.in.which.men.temporarily.isolate.themselves.Your.most.usual.point.of.perch.is.the.head.of.the.t.gallantmast.where.you.stand.upon.two.thin.parallel.sticks.almost.peculiar.to.whalemen.called.the.t.gallant.crosstrees.Here.tossed.about.by.the.sea.the.beginner.feels.about.as.cosy.as.he.would.standing.on.a.bulls.horns.To.be.sure.in.cold.weather.you.may.carry.your.house.aloft.with.you.in.the.shape.of.a.watchcoat.but.properly.speaking.the.thickest.watchcoat.is.no.more.of.a.house.than.the.unclad.body.for.as.the.soul.is.glued.inside.of.its.fleshy.tabernacle.and.cannot.freely.move.about.in.it.nor.even.move.out.of.it.without.running.great.risk.of.perishing.like.an.ignorant.pilgrim.crossing.the.snowy.Alps.in.winter.so.a.watchcoat.is.not.so.much.of.a.house.as.it.is.a.mere.envelope.or.additional.skin.encasing.you.You.cannot.put.a.shelf.or.chest.of.drawers.in.your.body.and.no.more.can.you.make.a.convenient.closet.of.your.watchcoat.Concerning.all.this.it.is.much.to.be.deplored.that.the.mastheads.of.a.southern.whale.ship.are.unprovided.with.those.enviable.little.tents.or.pulpits.called.crowsnests.in.which.the.lookouts.of.a.Greenland.whaler.are.protected.from.the.inclement.weather.of.the.frozen.seas.In.the.fireside.narrative.of.Captain.Sleet.entitled.A.Voyage.among.the.Icebergs.in.quest.of.the.Greenland.Whale.and.incidentally.for.the.rediscovery.of.the.Lost.Icelandic.Colonies.of.Old.Greenland.in.this.admirable.volume.all.standers.of.mastheads.are.furnished.with.a.charmingly.circumstantial.account.of.the.then.recently.invented.crowsnest.of.the.Glacier.which.was.the.name.of.Captain.Sleets.good.craft.He.called.it.the.Sleets.crowsnest.in.honor.of.himself.he.being.the.original.inventor.and.patentee.and.free.from.all.ridiculous.false.delicacy.and.holding.that.if.we.call.our.own.children.after.our.own.names.we.fathers.being.the.original.inventors.and.patentees.so.likewise.should.we.denominate.after.ourselves.any.other.apparatus.we.may.beget.In.shape.the.Sleets.crowsnest.is.something.like.a.large.tierce.or.pipe.it.is.open.above.however.where.it.is.furnished.with.a.movable.sidescreen.to.keep.to.windward.of.your.head.in.a.hard.gale.Being.fixed.on.the.summit.of.the.mast.you.ascend.into.it.through.a.little.traphatch.in.the.bottom.On.the.after.side.or.side.next.the.stern.of.the.ship.is.a.comfortable.seat.with.a.locker.underneath.for.umbrellas.comforters.and.coats.In.front.is.a.leather.rack.in.which.to.keep.your.speaking.trumpet.pipe.telescope.and.other.nautical.conveniences.When.Captain.Sleet.in.person.stood.his.masthead.in.this.crowsnest.of.his.he.tells.us.that.he.always.had.a.rifle.with.him.also.fixed.in.the.rack.together.with.a.powder.flask.and.shot.for.the.purpose.of.popping.off.the.stray.narwhales.or.vagrant.sea.unicorns.infesting.those.waters.for.you.cannot.successfully.shoot.at.them.from.the.deck.owing.to.the.resistance.of.the.water.but.to.shoot.down.upon.them.is.a.very.different.thing.Now.it.was.plainly.a.labor.of.love.for.Captain.Sleet.to.describe.as.he.does.all.the.little.detailed.conveniences.of.his.crowsnest.but.though.he.so.enlarges.upon.many.of.these.and.though.he.treats.us.to.a.very.scientific.account.of.his.experiments.in.this.crowsnest.with.a.small.compass.he.kept.there.for.the.purpose.of.counteracting.the.errors.resulting.from.what.is.called.the.local.attraction.of.all.binnacle.magnets.an.error.ascribable.to.the.horizontal.vicinity.of.the.iron.in.the.ships.planks.and.in.the.Glaciers.case.perhaps.to.there.having.been.so.many.brokendown.blacksmiths.among.her.crew.I.say.that.though.the.Captain.is.very.discreet.and.scientific.here.yet.for.all.his.learned.binnacle.deviations.azimuth.compass.observations.and.approximate.errors.he.knows.very.well.Captain.Sleet.that.he.was.not.so.much.immersed.in.those.profound.magnetic.meditations.as.to.fail.being.attracted.occasionally.towards.that.well.replenished.little.casebottle.so.nicely.tucked.in.on.one.side.of.his.crows.nest.within.easy.reach.of.his.hand.Though.upon.the.whole.I.greatly.admire.and.even.love.the.brave.the.honest.and.learned.Captain.yet.I.take.it.very.ill.of.him.that.he.should.so.utterly.ignore.that.casebottle.seeing.what.a.faithful.friend.and.comforter.it.must.have.been.while.with.mittened.fingers.and.hooded.head.he.was.studying.the.mathematics.aloft.there.in.that.birds.nest.within.three.or.four.perches.of.the.pole.But.if.we.Southern.whalefishers.are.not.so.snugly.housed.aloft.as.Captain.Sleet.and.his.Greenlandmen.were.yet.that.disadvantage.is.greatly.counterbalanced.by.the.widely.contrasting.serenity.of.those.seductive.seas.in.which.we.South.fishers.mostly.float.For.one.I.used.to.lounge.up.the.rigging.very.leisurely.resting.in.the.top.to.have.a.chat.with.Queequeg.or.any.one.else.off.duty.whom.I.might.find.there.then.ascending.a.little.way.further.and.throwing.a.lazy.leg.over.the.topsail.yard.take.a.preliminary.view.of.the.watery.pastures.and.so.at.last.mount.to.my.ultimate.destination.Let.me.make.a.clean.breast.of.it.here.and.frankly.admit.that.I.kept.but.sorry.guard.With.the.problem.of.the.universe.revolving.in.me.how.could.I.being.left.completely.to.myself.at.such.a.thoughtengendering.altitude.how.could.I.but.lightly.hold.my.obligations.to.observe.all.whaleships.standing.orders.Keep.your.weather.eye.open.and.sing.out.every.time.And.let.me.in.this.place.movingly.admonish.you.ye.shipowners.of.Nantucket.Beware.of.enlisting.in.your.vigilant.fisheries.any.lad.with.lean.brow.and.hollow.eye.given.to.unseasonable.meditativeness.and.who.offers.to.ship.with.the.Phdon.instead.of.Bowditch.in.his.head.Beware.of.such.an.one.I.say.your.whales.must.be.seen.before.they.can.be.killed.and.this.sunkeneyed.young.Platonist.will.tow.you.ten.wakes.round.the.world.and.never.make.you.one.pint.of.sperm.the.richer.Nor.are.these.monitions.at.all.unneeded.For.nowadays.the.whalefishery.furnishes.an.asylum.for.many.romantic.melancholy.and.absentminded.young.men.disgusted.with.the.carking.cares.of.earth.and.seeking.sentiment.in.tar.and.blubber.Childe.Harold.not.unfrequently.perches.himself.upon.the.masthead.of.some.luckless.disappointed.whaleship.and.in.moody.phrase.ejaculates.Roll.on.thou.deep.and.dark.blue.ocean.roll.Ten.thousand.blubberhunters.sweep.over.thee.in.vain.Very.often.do.the.captains.of.such.ships.take.those.absentminded.young.philosophers.to.task.upbraiding.them.with.not.feeling.sufficient.interest.in.the.voyage.halfhinting.that.they.are.so.hopelessly.lost.to.all.honorable.ambition.as.that.in.their.secret.souls.they.would.rather.not.see.whales.than.otherwise.But.all.in.vain.those.young.Platonists.have.a.notion.that.their.vision.is.imperfect.they.are.shortsighted.what.use.then.to.strain.the.visual.nerve.They.have.left.their.operaglasses.at.home.Why.thou.monkey.said.a.harpooneer.to.one.of.these.lads.weve.been.cruising.now.hard.upon.three.years.and.thou.hast.not.raised.a.whale.yet.Whales.are.scarce.as.hens.teeth.whenever.thou.art.up.here.Perhaps.they.were.or.perhaps.there.might.have.been.shoals.of.them.in.the.far.horizon.but.lulled.into.such.an.opiumlike.listlessness.of.vacant.unconscious.reverie.is.this.absentminded.youth.by.the.blending.cadence.of.waves.with.thoughts.that.at.last.he.loses.his.identity.takes.the.mystic.ocean.at.his.feet.for.the.visible.image.of.that.deep.blue.bottomless.soul.pervading.mankind.and.nature.and.every.strange.halfseen.gliding.beautiful.thing.that.eludes.him.every.dimlydiscovered.uprising.fin.of.some.undiscernible.form.seems.to.him.the.embodiment.of.those.elusive.thoughts.that.only.people.the.soul.by.continually.flitting.through.it.In.this.enchanted.mood.thy.spirit.ebbs.away.to.whence.it.came.becomes.diffused.through.time.and.space.like.Cranmers.sprinkled.Pantheistic.ashes.forming.at.last.a.part.of.every.shore.the.round.globe.over.There.is.no.life.in.thee.now.except.that.rocking.life.imparted.by.a.gently.rolling.ship.by.her.borrowed.from.the.sea.by.the.sea.from.the.inscrutable.tides.of.God.But.while.this.sleep.this.dream.is.on.ye.move.your.foot.or.hand.an.inch.slip.your.hold.at.all.and.your.identity.comes.back.in.horror.Over.Descartian.vortices.you.hover.And.perhaps.at.midday.in.the.fairest.weather.with.one.halfthrottled.shriek.you.drop.through.that.transparent.air.into.the.summer.sea.no.more.to.rise.for.ever.Heed.it.well.ye.Pantheists.CHAPTER.36.The.QuarterDeck.Enter.Ahab.Then.all.It.was.not.a.great.while.after.the.affair.of.the.pipe.that.one.morning.shortly.after.breakfast.Ahab.as.was.his.wont.ascended.the.cabingangway.to.the.deck.There.most.seacaptains.usually.walk.at.that.hour.as.country.gentlemen.after.the.same.meal.take.a.few.turns.in.the.garden.Soon.his.steady.ivory.stride.was.heard.as.to.and.fro.he.paced.his.old.rounds.upon.planks.so.familiar.to.his.tread.that.they.were.all.over.dented.like.geological.stones.with.the.peculiar.mark.of.his.walk.Did.you.fixedly.gaze.too.upon.that.ribbed.and.dented.brow.there.also.you.would.see.still.stranger.footprints.the.footprints.of.his.one.unsleeping.everpacing.thought.But.on.the.occasion.in.question.those.dents.looked.deeper.even.as.his.nervous.step.that.morning.left.a.deeper.mark.And.so.full.of.his.thought.was.Ahab.that.at.every.uniform.turn.that.he.made.now.at.the.mainmast.and.now.at.the.binnacle.you.could.almost.see.that.thought.turn.in.him.as.he.turned.and.pace.in.him.as.he.paced.so.completely.possessing.him.indeed.that.it.all.but.seemed.the.inward.mould.of.every.outer.movement.Dye.mark.him.Flask.whispered.Stubb.the.chick.thats.in.him.pecks.the.shell.Twill.soon.be.out.The.hours.wore.on.Ahab.now.shut.up.within.his.cabin.anon.pacing.the.deck.with.the.same.intense.bigotry.of.purpose.in.his.aspect.It.drew.near.the.close.of.day.Suddenly.he.came.to.a.halt.by.the.bulwarks.and.inserting.his.bone.leg.into.the.augerhole.there.and.with.one.hand.grasping.a.shroud.he.ordered.Starbuck.to.send.everybody.aft.Sir.said.the.mate.astonished.at.an.order.seldom.or.never.given.on.shipboard.except.in.some.extraordinary.case.Send.everybody.aft.repeated.Ahab.Mastheads.there.come.down.When.the.entire.ships.company.were.assembled.and.with.curious.and.not.wholly.unapprehensive.faces.were.eyeing.him.for.he.looked.not.unlike.the.weather.horizon.when.a.storm.is.coming.up.Ahab.after.rapidly.glancing.over.the.bulwarks.and.then.darting.his.eyes.among.the.crew.started.from.his.standpoint.and.as.though.not.a.soul.were.nigh.him.resumed.his.heavy.turns.upon.the.deck.With.bent.head.and.halfslouched.hat.he.continued.to.pace.unmindful.of.the.wondering.whispering.among.the.men.till.Stubb.cautiously.whispered.to.Flask.that.Ahab.must.have.summoned.them.there.for.the.purpose.of.witnessing.a.pedestrian.feat.But.this.did.not.last.long.Vehemently.pausing.he.cried.What.do.ye.do.when.ye.see.a.whale.men.Sing.out.for.him.was.the.impulsive.rejoinder.from.a.score.of.clubbed.voices.Good.cried.Ahab.with.a.wild.approval.in.his.tones.observing.the.hearty.animation.into.which.his.unexpected.question.had.so.magnetically.thrown.them.And.what.do.ye.next.men.Lower.away.and.after.him.And.what.tune.is.it.ye.pull.to.men.A.dead.whale.or.a.stove.boat.More.and.more.strangely.and.fiercely.glad.and.approving.grew.the.countenance.of.the.old.man.at.every.shout.while.the.mariners.began.to.gaze.curiously.at.each.other.as.if.marvelling.how.it.was.that.they.themselves.became.so.excited.at.such.seemingly.purposeless.questions.But.they.were.all.eagerness.again.as.Ahab.now.halfrevolving.in.his.pivothole.with.one.hand.reaching.high.up.a.shroud.and.tightly.almost.convulsively.grasping.it.addressed.them.thus.All.ye.mastheaders.have.before.now.heard.me.give.orders.about.a.white.whale.Look.ye.dye.see.this.Spanish.ounce.of.gold.holding.up.a.broad.bright.coin.to.the.sun.it.is.a.sixteen.dollar.piece.men.Dye.see.it.Mr.Starbuck.hand.me.yon.topmaul.While.the.mate.was.getting.the.hammer.Ahab.without.speaking.was.slowly.rubbing.the.gold.piece.against.the.skirts.of.his.jacket.as.if.to.heighten.its.lustre.and.without.using.any.words.was.meanwhile.lowly.humming.to.himself.producing.a.sound.so.strangely.muffled.and.inarticulate.that.it.seemed.the.mechanical.humming.of.the.wheels.of.his.vitality.in.him.Receiving.the.topmaul.from.Starbuck.he.advanced.towards.the.mainmast.with.the.hammer.uplifted.in.one.hand.exhibiting.the.gold.with.the.other.and.with.a.high.raised.voice.exclaiming.Whosoever.of.ye.raises.me.a.whiteheaded.whale.with.a.wrinkled.brow.and.a.crooked.jaw.whosoever.of.ye.raises.me.that.whiteheaded.whale.with.three.holes.punctured.in.his.starboard.fluke.look.ye.whosoever.of.ye.raises.me.that.same.white.whale.he.shall.have.this.gold.ounce.my.boys.Huzza.huzza.cried.the.seamen.as.with.swinging.tarpaulins.they.hailed.the.act.of.nailing.the.gold.to.the.mast.Its.a.white.whale.I.say.resumed.Ahab.as.he.threw.down.the.topmaul.a.white.whale.Skin.your.eyes.for.him.men.look.sharp.for.white.water.if.ye.see.but.a.bubble.sing.out.All.this.while.Tashtego.Daggoo.and.Queequeg.had.looked.on.with.even.more.intense.interest.and.surprise.than.the.rest.and.at.the.mention.of.the.wrinkled.brow.and.crooked.jaw.they.had.started.as.if.each.was.separately.touched.by.some.specific.recollection.Captain.Ahab.said.Tashtego.that.white.whale.must.be.the.same.that.some.call.Moby.Dick.Moby.Dick.shouted.Ahab.Do.ye.know.the.white.whale.then.Tash.Does.he.fantail.a.little.curious.sir.before.he.goes.down.said.the.GayHeader.deliberately.And.has.he.a.curious.spout.too.said.Daggoo.very.bushy.even.for.a.parmacetty.and.mighty.quick.Captain.Ahab.And.he.have.one.two.three.oh.good.many.iron.in.him.hide.too.Captain.cried.Queequeg.disjointedly.all.twisketee.betwisk.like.him.him.faltering.hard.for.a.word.and.screwing.his.hand.round.and.round.as.though.uncorking.a.bottle.like.him.him.Corkscrew.cried.Ahab.aye.Queequeg.the.harpoons.lie.all.twisted.and.wrenched.in.him.aye.Daggoo.his.spout.is.a.big.one.like.a.whole.shock.of.wheat.and.white.as.a.pile.of.our.Nantucket.wool.after.the.great.annual.sheepshearing.aye.Tashtego.and.he.fantails.like.a.split.jib.in.a.squall.Death.and.devils.men.it.is.Moby.Dick.ye.have.seen.Moby.Dick.Moby.Dick.Captain.Ahab.said.Starbuck.who.with.Stubb.and.Flask.had.thus.far.been.eyeing.his.superior.with.increasing.surprise.but.at.last.seemed.struck.with.a.thought.which.somewhat.explained.all.the.wonder.Captain.Ahab.I.have.heard.of.Moby.Dick.but.it.was.not.Moby.Dick.that.took.off.thy.leg.Who.told.thee.that.cried.Ahab.then.pausing.Aye.Starbuck.aye.my.hearties.all.round.it.was.Moby.Dick.that.dismasted.me.Moby.Dick.that.brought.me.to.this.dead.stump.I.stand.on.now.Aye.aye.he.shouted.with.a.terrific.loud.animal.sob.like.that.of.a.heartstricken.moose.Aye.aye.it.was.that.accursed.white.whale.that.razed.me.made.a.poor.pegging.lubber.of.me.for.ever.and.a.day.Then.tossing.both.arms.with.measureless.imprecations.he.shouted.out.Aye.aye.and.Ill.chase.him.round.Good.Hope.and.round.the.Horn.and.round.the.Norway.Maelstrom.and.round.perditions.flames.before.I.give.him.up.And.this.is.what.ye.have.shipped.for.men.to.chase.that.white.whale.on.both.sides.of.land.and.over.all.sides.of.earth.till.he.spouts.black.blood.and.rolls.fin.out.What.say.ye.men.will.ye.splice.hands.on.it.now.I.think.ye.do.look.brave.Aye.aye.shouted.the.harpooneers.and.seamen.running.closer.to.the.excited.old.man.A.sharp.eye.for.the.white.whale.a.sharp.lance.for.Moby.Dick.God.bless.ye.he.seemed.to.half.sob.and.half.shout.God.bless.ye.men.Steward.go.draw.the.great.measure.of.grog.But.whats.this.long.face.about.Mr.Starbuck.wilt.thou.not.chase.the.white.whale.art.not.game.for.Moby.Dick.I.am.game.for.his.crooked.jaw.and.for.the.jaws.of.Death.too.Captain.Ahab.if.it.fairly.comes.in.the.way.of.the.business.we.follow.but.I.came.here.to.hunt.whales.not.my.commanders.vengeance.How.many.barrels.will.thy.vengeance.yield.thee.even.if.thou.gettest.it.Captain.Ahab.it.will.not.fetch.thee.much.in.our.Nantucket.market.Nantucket.market.Hoot.But.come.closer.Starbuck.thou.requirest.a.little.lower.layer.If.moneys.to.be.the.measurer.man.and.the.accountants.have.computed.their.great.countinghouse.the.globe.by.girdling.it.with.guineas.one.to.every.three.parts.of.an.inch.then.let.me.tell.thee.that.my.vengeance.will.fetch.a.great.premium.here.He.smites.his.chest.whispered.Stubb.whats.that.for.methinks.it.rings.most.vast.but.hollow.Vengeance.on.a.dumb.brute.cried.Starbuck.that.simply.smote.thee.from.blindest.instinct.Madness.To.be.enraged.with.a.dumb.thing.Captain.Ahab.seems.blasphemous.Hark.ye.yet.again.the.little.lower.layer.All.visible.objects.man.are.but.as.pasteboard.masks.But.in.each.event.in.the.living.act.the.undoubted.deed.there.some.unknown.but.still.reasoning.thing.puts.forth.the.mouldings.of.its.features.from.behind.the.unreasoning.mask.If.man.will.strike.strike.through.the.mask.How.can.the.prisoner.reach.outside.except.by.thrusting.through.the.wall.To.me.the.white.whale.is.that.wall.shoved.near.to.me.Sometimes.I.think.theres.naught.beyond.But.tis.enough.He.tasks.me.he.heaps.me.I.see.in.him.outrageous.strength.with.an.inscrutable.malice.sinewing.it.That.inscrutable.thing.is.chiefly.what.I.hate.and.be.the.white.whale.agent.or.be.the.white.whale.principal.I.will.wreak.that.hate.upon.him.Talk.not.to.me.of.blasphemy.man.Id.strike.the.sun.if.it.insulted.me.For.could.the.sun.do.that.then.could.I.do.the.other.since.there.is.ever.a.sort.of.fair.play.herein.jealousy.presiding.over.all.creations.But.not.my.master.man.is.even.that.fair.play.Whos.over.me.Truth.hath.no.confines.Take.off.thine.eye.more.intolerable.than.fiends.glarings.is.a.doltish.stare.So.so.thou.reddenest.and.palest.my.heat.has.melted.thee.to.angerglow.But.look.ye.Starbuck.what.is.said.in.heat.that.thing.unsays.itself.There.are.men.from.whom.warm.words.are.small.indignity.I.meant.not.to.incense.thee.Let.it.go.Look.see.yonder.Turkish.cheeks.of.spotted.tawn.living.breathing.pictures.painted.by.the.sun.The.Pagan.leopards.the.unrecking.and.unworshipping.things.that.live.and.seek.and.give.no.reasons.for.the.torrid.life.they.feel.The.crew.man.the.crew.Are.they.not.one.and.all.with.Ahab.in.this.matter.of.the.whale.See.Stubb.he.laughs.See.yonder.Chilian.he.snorts.to.think.of.it.Stand.up.amid.the.general.hurricane.thy.one.tost.sapling.cannot.Starbuck.And.what.is.it.Reckon.it.Tis.but.to.help.strike.a.fin.no.wondrous.feat.for.Starbuck.What.is.it.more.From.this.one.poor.hunt.then.the.best.lance.out.of.all.Nantucket.surely.he.will.not.hang.back.when.every.foremasthand.has.clutched.a.whetstone.Ah.constrainings.seize.thee.I.see.the.billow.lifts.thee.Speak.but.speak.Aye.aye.thy.silence.then.that.voices.thee.Aside.Something.shot.from.my.dilated.nostrils.he.has.inhaled.it.in.his.lungs.Starbuck.now.is.mine.cannot.oppose.me.now.without.rebellion.God.keep.me.keep.us.all.murmured.Starbuck.lowly.But.in.his.joy.at.the.enchanted.tacit.acquiescence.of.the.mate.Ahab.did.not.hear.his.foreboding.invocation.nor.yet.the.low.laugh.from.the.hold.nor.yet.the.presaging.vibrations.of.the.winds.in.the.cordage.nor.yet.the.hollow.flap.of.the.sails.against.the.masts.as.for.a.moment.their.hearts.sank.in.For.again.Starbucks.downcast.eyes.lighted.up.with.the.stubbornness.of.life.the.subterranean.laugh.died.away.the.winds.blew.on.the.sails.filled.out.the.ship.heaved.and.rolled.as.before.Ah.ye.admonitions.and.warnings.why.stay.ye.not.when.ye.come.But.rather.are.ye.predictions.than.warnings.ye.shadows.Yet.not.so.much.predictions.from.without.as.verifications.of.the.foregoing.things.within.For.with.little.external.to.constrain.us.the.innermost.necessities.in.our.being.these.still.drive.us.on.The.measure.the.measure.cried.Ahab.Receiving.the.brimming.pewter.and.turning.to.the.harpooneers.he.ordered.them.to.produce.their.weapons.Then.ranging.them.before.him.near.the.capstan.with.their.harpoons.in.their.hands.while.his.three.mates.stood.at.his.side.with.their.lances.and.the.rest.of.the.ships.company.formed.a.circle.round.the.group.he.stood.for.an.instant.searchingly.eyeing.every.man.of.his.crew.But.those.wild.eyes.met.his.as.the.bloodshot.eyes.of.the.prairie.wolves.meet.the.eye.of.their.leader.ere.he.rushes.on.at.their.head.in.the.trail.of.the.bison.but.alas.only.to.fall.into.the.hidden.snare.of.the.Indian.Drink.and.pass.he.cried.handing.the.heavy.charged.flagon.to.the.nearest.seaman.The.crew.alone.now.drink.Round.with.it.round.Short.draughts.long.swallows.men.tis.hot.as.Satans.hoof.So.so.it.goes.round.excellently.It.spiralizes.in.ye.forks.out.at.the.serpentsnapping.eye.Well.done.almost.drained.That.way.it.went.this.way.it.comes.Hand.it.me.heres.a.hollow.Men.ye.seem.the.years.so.brimming.life.is.gulped.and.gone.Steward.refill.Attend.now.my.braves.I.have.mustered.ye.all.round.this.capstan.and.ye.mates.flank.me.with.your.lances.and.ye.harpooneers.stand.there.with.your.irons.and.ye.stout.mariners.ring.me.in.that.I.may.in.some.sort.revive.a.noble.custom.of.my.fisherman.fathers.before.me.O.men.you.will.yet.see.that.Ha.boy.come.back.bad.pennies.come.not.sooner.Hand.it.me.Why.now.this.pewter.had.run.brimming.again.wert.not.thou.St.Vitus.imp.away.thou.ague.Advance.ye.mates.Cross.your.lances.full.before.me.Well.done.Let.me.touch.the.axis.So.saying.with.extended.arm.he.grasped.the.three.level.radiating.lances.at.their.crossed.centre.while.so.doing.suddenly.and.nervously.twitched.them.meanwhile.glancing.intently.from.Starbuck.to.Stubb.from.Stubb.to.Flask.It.seemed.as.though.by.some.nameless.interior.volition.he.would.fain.have.shocked.into.them.the.same.fiery.emotion.accumulated.within.the.Leyden.jar.of.his.own.magnetic.life.The.three.mates.quailed.before.his.strong.sustained.and.mystic.aspect.Stubb.and.Flask.looked.sideways.from.him.the.honest.eye.of.Starbuck.fell.downright.In.vain.cried.Ahab.but.maybe.tis.well.For.did.ye.three.but.once.take.the.fullforced.shock.then.mine.own.electric.thing.that.had.perhaps.expired.from.out.me.Perchance.too.it.would.have.dropped.ye.dead.Perchance.ye.need.it.not.Down.lances.And.now.ye.mates.I.do.appoint.ye.three.cupbearers.to.my.three.pagan.kinsmen.there.yon.three.most.honorable.gentlemen.and.noblemen.my.valiant.harpooneers.Disdain.the.task.What.when.the.great.Pope.washes.the.feet.of.beggars.using.his.tiara.for.ewer.Oh.my.sweet.cardinals.your.own.condescension.that.shall.bend.ye.to.it.I.do.not.order.ye.ye.will.it.Cut.your.seizings.and.draw.the.poles.ye.harpooneers.Silently.obeying.the.order.the.three.harpooneers.now.stood.with.the.detached.iron.part.of.their.harpoons.some.three.feet.long.held.barbs.up.before.him.Stab.me.not.with.that.keen.steel.Cant.them.cant.them.over.know.ye.not.the.goblet.end.Turn.up.the.socket.So.so.now.ye.cupbearers.advance.The.irons.take.them.hold.them.while.I.fill.Forthwith.slowly.going.from.one.officer.to.the.other.he.brimmed.the.harpoon.sockets.with.the.fiery.waters.from.the.pewter.Now.three.to.three.ye.stand.Commend.the.murderous.chalices.Bestow.them.ye.who.are.now.made.parties.to.this.indissoluble.league.Ha.Starbuck.but.the.deed.is.done.Yon.ratifying.sun.now.waits.to.sit.upon.it.Drink.ye.harpooneers.drink.and.swear.ye.men.that.man.the.deathful.whaleboats.bow.Death.to.Moby.Dick.God.hunt.us.all.if.we.do.not.hunt.Moby.Dick.to.his.death.The.long.barbed.steel.goblets.were.lifted.and.to.cries.and.maledictions.against.the.white.whale.the.spirits.were.simultaneously.quaffed.down.with.a.hiss.Starbuck.paled.and.turned.and.shivered.Once.more.and.finally.the.replenished.pewter.went.the.rounds.among.the.frantic.crew.when.waving.his.free.hand.to.them.they.all.dispersed.and.Ahab.retired.within.his.cabin.CHAPTER.37.Sunset.The.cabin.by.the.stern.windows.Ahab.sitting.alone.and.gazing.out.I.leave.a.white.and.turbid.wake.pale.waters.paler.cheeks.whereer.I.sail.The.envious.billows.sidelong.swell.to.whelm.my.track.let.them.but.first.I.pass.Yonder.by.everbrimming.goblets.rim.the.warm.waves.blush.like.wine.The.gold.brow.plumbs.the.blue.The.diver.sun.slow.dived.from.noon.goes.down.my.soul.mounts.up.she.wearies.with.her.endless.hill.Is.then.the.crown.too.heavy.that.I.wear.this.Iron.Crown.of.Lombardy.Yet.is.it.bright.with.many.a.gem.I.the.wearer.see.not.its.far.flashings.but.darkly.feel.that.I.wear.that.that.dazzlingly.confounds.Tis.iron.that.I.know.not.gold.Tis.split.too.that.I.feel.the.jagged.edge.galls.me.so.my.brain.seems.to.beat.against.the.solid.metal.aye.steel.skull.mine.the.sort.that.needs.no.helmet.in.the.most.brainbattering.fight.Dry.heat.upon.my.brow.Oh.time.was.when.as.the.sunrise.nobly.spurred.me.so.the.sunset.soothed.No.more.This.lovely.light.it.lights.not.me.all.loveliness.is.anguish.to.me.since.I.can.neer.enjoy.Gifted.with.the.high.perception.I.lack.the.low.enjoying.power.damned.most.subtly.and.most.malignantly.damned.in.the.midst.of.Paradise.Good.night.good.night.waving.his.hand.he.moves.from.the.window.Twas.not.so.hard.a.task.I.thought.to.find.one.stubborn.at.the.least.but.my.one.cogged.circle.fits.into.all.their.various.wheels.and.they.revolve.Or.if.you.will.like.so.many.anthills.of.powder.they.all.stand.before.me.and.I.their.match.Oh.hard.that.to.fire.others.the.match.itself.must.needs.be.wasting.What.Ive.dared.Ive.willed.and.what.Ive.willed.Ill.do.They.think.me.mad.Starbuck.does.but.Im.demoniac.I.am.madness.maddened.That.wild.madness.thats.only.calm.to.comprehend.itself.The.prophecy.was.that.I.should.be.dismembered.and.Aye.I.lost.this.leg.I.now.prophesy.that.I.will.dismember.my.dismemberer.Now.then.be.the.prophet.and.the.fulfiller.one.Thats.more.than.ye.ye.great.gods.ever.were.I.laugh.and.hoot.at.ye.ye.cricketplayers.ye.pugilists.ye.deaf.Burkes.and.blinded.Bendigoes.I.will.not.say.as.schoolboys.do.to.bullies.Take.some.one.of.your.own.size.dont.pommel.me.No.yeve.knocked.me.down.and.I.am.up.again.but.ye.have.run.and.hidden.Come.forth.from.behind.your.cotton.bags.I.have.no.long.gun.to.reach.ye.Come.Ahabs.compliments.to.ye.come.and.see.if.ye.can.swerve.me.Swerve.me.ye.cannot.swerve.me.else.ye.swerve.yourselves.man.has.ye.there.Swerve.me.The.path.to.my.fixed.purpose.is.laid.with.iron.rails.whereon.my.soul.is.grooved.to.run.Over.unsounded.gorges.through.the.rifled.hearts.of.mountains.under.torrents.beds.unerringly.I.rush.Naughts.an.obstacle.naughts.an.angle.to.the.iron.way.CHAPTER.38.Dusk.By.the.Mainmast.Starbuck.leaning.against.it.My.soul.is.more.than.matched.shes.overmanned.and.by.a.madman.Insufferable.sting.that.sanity.should.ground.arms.on.such.a.field.But.he.drilled.deep.down.and.blasted.all.my.reason.out.of.me.I.think.I.see.his.impious.end.but.feel.that.I.must.help.him.to.it.Will.I.nill.I.the.ineffable.thing.has.tied.me.to.him.tows.me.with.a.cable.I.have.no.knife.to.cut.Horrible.old.man.Whos.over.him.he.cries.aye.he.would.be.a.democrat.to.all.above.look.how.he.lords.it.over.all.below.Oh.I.plainly.see.my.miserable.office.to.obey.rebelling.and.worse.yet.to.hate.with.touch.of.pity.For.in.his.eyes.I.read.some.lurid.woe.would.shrivel.me.up.had.I.it.Yet.is.there.hope.Time.and.tide.flow.wide.The.hated.whale.has.the.round.watery.world.to.swim.in.as.the.small.goldfish.has.its.glassy.globe.His.heaveninsulting.purpose.God.may.wedge.aside.I.would.up.heart.were.it.not.like.lead.But.my.whole.clocks.run.down.my.heart.the.allcontrolling.weight.I.have.no.key.to.lift.again.A.burst.of.revelry.from.the.forecastle.Oh.God.to.sail.with.such.a.heathen.crew.that.have.small.touch.of.human.mothers.in.them.Whelped.somewhere.by.the.sharkish.sea.The.white.whale.is.their.demigorgon.Hark.the.infernal.orgies.that.revelry.is.forward.mark.the.unfaltering.silence.aft.Methinks.it.pictures.life.Foremost.through.the.sparkling.sea.shoots.on.the.gay.embattled.bantering.bow.but.only.to.drag.dark.Ahab.after.it.where.he.broods.within.his.sternward.cabin.builded.over.the.dead.water.of.the.wake.and.further.on.hunted.by.its.wolfish.gurglings.The.long.howl.thrills.me.through.Peace.ye.revellers.and.set.the.watch.Oh.life.tis.in.an.hour.like.this.with.soul.beat.down.and.held.to.knowledge.as.wild.untutored.things.are.forced.to.feed.Oh.life.tis.now.that.I.do.feel.the.latent.horror.in.thee.but.tis.not.me.that.horrors.out.of.me.and.with.the.soft.feeling.of.the.human.in.me.yet.will.I.try.to.fight.ye.ye.grim.phantom.futures.Stand.by.me.hold.me.bind.me.O.ye.blessed.influences.CHAPTER.39.First.NightWatch.ForeTop.Stubb.solus.and.mending.a.brace.Ha.ha.ha.ha.hem.clear.my.throat.Ive.been.thinking.over.it.ever.since.and.that.ha.has.the.final.consequence.Why.so.Because.a.laughs.the.wisest.easiest.answer.to.all.thats.queer.and.come.what.will.one.comforts.always.left.that.unfailing.comfort.is.its.all.predestinated.I.heard.not.all.his.talk.with.Starbuck.but.to.my.poor.eye.Starbuck.then.looked.something.as.I.the.other.evening.felt.Be.sure.the.old.Mogul.has.fixed.him.too.I.twigged.it.knew.it.had.had.the.gift.might.readily.have.prophesied.it.for.when.I.clapped.my.eye.upon.his.skull.I.saw.it.Well.Stubb.wise.Stubb.thats.my.title.well.Stubb.what.of.it.Stubb.Heres.a.carcase.I.know.not.all.that.may.be.coming.but.be.it.what.it.will.Ill.go.to.it.laughing.Such.a.waggish.leering.as.lurks.in.all.your.horribles.I.feel.funny.Fa.la.lirra.skirra.Whats.my.juicy.little.pear.at.home.doing.now.Crying.its.eyes.out.Giving.a.party.to.the.last.arrived.harpooneers.I.dare.say.gay.as.a.frigates.pennant.and.so.am.I.fa.la.lirra.skirra.Oh.Well.drink.tonight.with.hearts.as.light.To.love.as.gay.and.fleeting.As.bubbles.that.swim.on.the.beakers.brim.And.break.on.the.lips.while.meeting.A.brave.stave.that.who.calls.Mr.Starbuck.Aye.aye.sir.Aside.hes.my.superior.he.has.his.too.if.Im.not.mistaken.Aye.aye.sir.just.through.with.this.job.coming.CHAPTER.40.Midnight.Forecastle.HARPOONEERS.AND.SAILORS.Foresail.rises.and.discovers.the.watch.standing.lounging.leaning.and.lying.in.various.attitudes.all.singing.in.chorus.Farewell.and.adieu.to.you.Spanish.ladies.Farewell.and.adieu.to.you.ladies.of.Spain.Our.captains.commanded.1ST.NANTUCKET.SAILOR.Oh.boys.dont.be.sentimental.its.bad.for.the.digestion.Take.a.tonic.follow.me.Sings.and.all.follow.Our.captain.stood.upon.the.deck.A.spyglass.in.his.hand.A.viewing.of.those.gallant.whales.That.blew.at.every.strand.Oh.your.tubs.in.your.boats.my.boys.And.by.your.braces.stand.And.well.have.one.of.those.fine.whales.Hand.boys.over.hand.So.be.cheery.my.lads.may.your.hearts.never.fail.While.the.bold.harpooner.is.striking.the.whale.MATES.VOICE.FROM.THE.QUARTERDECK.Eight.bells.there.forward.2ND.NANTUCKET.SAILOR.Avast.the.chorus.Eight.bells.there.dye.hear.bellboy.Strike.the.bell.eight.thou.Pip.thou.blackling.and.let.me.call.the.watch.Ive.the.sort.of.mouth.for.that.the.hogshead.mouth.So.so.thrusts.his.head.down.the.scuttle.Starboleens.ahoy.Eight.bells.there.below.Tumble.up.DUTCH.SAILOR.Grand.snoozing.tonight.maty.fat.night.for.that.I.mark.this.in.our.old.Moguls.wine.its.quite.as.deadening.to.some.as.filliping.to.others.We.sing.they.sleep.aye.lie.down.there.like.groundtier.butts.At.em.again.There.take.this.copperpump.and.hail.em.through.it.Tell.em.to.avast.dreaming.of.their.lasses.Tell.em.its.the.resurrection.they.must.kiss.their.last.and.come.to.judgment.Thats.the.way.thats.it.thy.throat.aint.spoiled.with.eating.Amsterdam.butter.FRENCH.SAILOR.Hist.boys.lets.have.a.jig.or.two.before.we.ride.to.anchor.in.Blanket.Bay.What.say.ye.There.comes.the.other.watch.Stand.by.all.legs.Pip.little.Pip.hurrah.with.your.tambourine.PIP.Sulky.and.sleepy.Dont.know.where.it.is.FRENCH.SAILOR.Beat.thy.belly.then.and.wag.thy.ears.Jig.it.men.I.say.merrys.the.word.hurrah.Damn.me.wont.you.dance.Form.now.Indianfile.and.gallop.into.the.doubleshuffle.Throw.yourselves.Legs.legs.ICELAND.SAILOR.I.dont.like.your.floor.maty.its.too.springy.to.my.taste.Im.used.to.icefloors.Im.sorry.to.throw.cold.water.on.the.subject.but.excuse.me.MALTESE.SAILOR.Me.too.wheres.your.girls.Who.but.a.fool.would.take.his.left.hand.by.his.right.and.say.to.himself.how.dye.do.Partners.I.must.have.partners.SICILIAN.SAILOR.Aye.girls.and.a.green.then.Ill.hop.with.ye.yea.turn.grasshopper.LONGISLAND.SAILOR.Well.well.ye.sulkies.theres.plenty.more.of.us.Hoe.corn.when.you.may.say.I.All.legs.go.to.harvest.soon.Ah.here.comes.the.music.now.for.it.AZORE.SAILOR.Ascending.and.pitching.the.tambourine.up.the.scuttle.Here.you.are.Pip.and.theres.the.windlassbitts.up.you.mount.Now.boys.The.half.of.them.dance.to.the.tambourine.some.go.below.some.sleep.or.lie.among.the.coils.of.rigging.Oaths.aplenty.AZORE.SAILOR.Dancing.Go.it.Pip.Bang.it.bellboy.Rig.it.dig.it.stig.it.quig.it.bellboy.Make.fireflies.break.the.jinglers.PIP.Jinglers.you.say.there.goes.another.dropped.off.I.pound.it.so.CHINA.SAILOR.Rattle.thy.teeth.then.and.pound.away.make.a.pagoda.of.thyself.FRENCH.SAILOR.Merrymad.Hold.up.thy.hoop.Pip.till.I.jump.through.it.Split.jibs.tear.yourselves.TASHTEGO.Quietly.smoking.Thats.a.white.man.he.calls.that.fun.humph.I.save.my.sweat.OLD.MANX.SAILOR.I.wonder.whether.those.jolly.lads.bethink.them.of.what.they.are.dancing.over.Ill.dance.over.your.grave.I.will.thats.the.bitterest.threat.of.your.nightwomen.that.beat.headwinds.round.corners.O.Christ.to.think.of.the.green.navies.and.the.greenskulled.crews.Well.well.belike.the.whole.worlds.a.ball.as.you.scholars.have.it.and.so.tis.right.to.make.one.ballroom.of.it.Dance.on.lads.youre.young.I.was.once.3D.NANTUCKET.SAILOR.Spell.oh.whew.this.is.worse.than.pulling.after.whales.in.a.calm.give.us.a.whiff.Tash.They.cease.dancing.and.gather.in.clusters.Meantime.the.sky.darkens.the.wind.rises.LASCAR.SAILOR.By.Brahma.boys.itll.be.douse.sail.soon.The.skyborn.hightide.Ganges.turned.to.wind.Thou.showest.thy.black.brow.Seeva.MALTESE.SAILOR.Reclining.and.shaking.his.cap.Its.the.waves.the.snows.caps.turn.to.jig.it.now.Theyll.shake.their.tassels.soon.Now.would.all.the.waves.were.women.then.Id.go.drown.and.chassee.with.them.evermore.Theres.naught.so.sweet.on.earth.heaven.may.not.match.it.as.those.swift.glances.of.warm.wild.bosoms.in.the.dance.when.the.overarboring.arms.hide.such.ripe.bursting.grapes.SICILIAN.SAILOR.Reclining.Tell.me.not.of.it.Hark.ye.lad.fleet.interlacings.of.the.limbs.lithe.swayings.coyings.flutterings.lip.heart.hip.all.graze.unceasing.touch.and.go.not.taste.observe.ye.else.come.satiety.Eh.Pagan.Nudging.TAHITAN.SAILOR.Reclining.on.a.mat.Hail.holy.nakedness.of.our.dancing.girls.the.HeevaHeeva.Ah.low.veiled.high.palmed.Tahiti.I.still.rest.me.on.thy.mat.but.the.soft.soil.has.slid.I.saw.thee.woven.in.the.wood.my.mat.green.the.first.day.I.brought.ye.thence.now.worn.and.wilted.quite.Ah.me.not.thou.nor.I.can.bear.the.change.How.then.if.so.be.transplanted.to.yon.sky.Hear.I.the.roaring.streams.from.Pirohitees.peak.of.spears.when.they.leap.down.the.crags.and.drown.the.villages.The.blast.the.blast.Up.spine.and.meet.it.Leaps.to.his.feet.PORTUGUESE.SAILOR.How.the.sea.rolls.swashing.gainst.the.side.Stand.by.for.reefing.hearties.the.winds.are.just.crossing.swords.pellmell.theyll.go.lunging.presently.DANISH.SAILOR.Crack.crack.old.ship.so.long.as.thou.crackest.thou.holdest.Well.done.The.mate.there.holds.ye.to.it.stiffly.Hes.no.more.afraid.than.the.isle.fort.at.Cattegat.put.there.to.fight.the.Baltic.with.stormlashed.guns.on.which.the.seasalt.cakes.4TH.NANTUCKET.SAILOR.He.has.his.orders.mind.ye.that.I.heard.old.Ahab.tell.him.he.must.always.kill.a.squall.something.as.they.burst.a.waterspout.with.a.pistol.fire.your.ship.right.into.it.ENGLISH.SAILOR.Blood.but.that.old.mans.a.grand.old.cove.We.are.the.lads.to.hunt.him.up.his.whale.ALL.Aye.aye.OLD.MANX.SAILOR.How.the.three.pines.shake.Pines.are.the.hardest.sort.of.tree.to.live.when.shifted.to.any.other.soil.and.here.theres.none.but.the.crews.cursed.clay.Steady.helmsman.steady.This.is.the.sort.of.weather.when.brave.hearts.snap.ashore.and.keeled.hulls.split.at.sea.Our.captain.has.his.birthmark.look.yonder.boys.theres.another.in.the.sky.luridlike.ye.see.all.else.pitch.black.DAGGOO.What.of.that.Whos.afraid.of.blacks.afraid.of.me.Im.quarried.out.of.it.SPANISH.SAILOR.Aside.He.wants.to.bully.ah.the.old.grudge.makes.me.touchy.Advancing.Aye.harpooneer.thy.race.is.the.undeniable.dark.side.of.mankind.devilish.dark.at.that.No.offence.DAGGOO.grimly.None.ST.JAGOS.SAILOR.That.Spaniards.mad.or.drunk.But.that.cant.be.or.else.in.his.one.case.our.old.Moguls.firewaters.are.somewhat.long.in.working.5TH.NANTUCKET.SAILOR.Whats.that.I.saw.lightning.Yes.SPANISH.SAILOR.No.Daggoo.showing.his.teeth.DAGGOO.springing.Swallow.thine.mannikin.White.skin.white.liver.SPANISH.SAILOR.meeting.him.Knife.thee.heartily.big.frame.small.spirit.ALL.A.row.a.row.a.row.TASHTEGO.with.a.whiff.A.row.alow.and.a.row.aloft.Gods.and.men.both.brawlers.Humph.BELFAST.SAILOR.A.row.arrah.a.row.The.Virgin.be.blessed.a.row.Plunge.in.with.ye.ENGLISH.SAILOR.Fair.play.Snatch.the.Spaniards.knife.A.ring.a.ring.OLD.MANX.SAILOR.Ready.formed.There.the.ringed.horizon.In.that.ring.Cain.struck.Abel.Sweet.work.right.work.No.Why.then.God.madst.thou.the.ring.MATES.VOICE.FROM.THE.QUARTERDECK.Hands.by.the.halyards.in.topgallant.sails.Stand.by.to.reef.topsails.ALL.The.squall.the.squall.jump.my.jollies.They.scatter.PIP.shrinking.under.the.windlass.Jollies.Lord.help.such.jollies.Crish.crash.there.goes.the.jibstay.Blangwhang.God.Duck.lower.Pip.here.comes.the.royal.yard.Its.worse.than.being.in.the.whirled.woods.the.last.day.of.the.year.Whod.go.climbing.after.chestnuts.now.But.there.they.go.all.cursing.and.here.I.dont.Fine.prospects.to.em.theyre.on.the.road.to.heaven.Hold.on.hard.Jimmini.what.a.squall.But.those.chaps.there.are.worse.yet.they.are.your.white.squalls.they.White.squalls.white.whale.shirr.shirr.Here.have.I.heard.all.their.chat.just.now.and.the.white.whale.shirr.shirr.but.spoken.of.once.and.only.this.evening.it.makes.me.jingle.all.over.like.my.tambourine.that.anaconda.of.an.old.man.swore.em.in.to.hunt.him.Oh.thou.big.white.God.aloft.there.somewhere.in.yon.darkness.have.mercy.on.this.small.black.boy.down.here.preserve.him.from.all.men.that.have.no.bowels.to.feel.fear.CHAPTER.41.Moby.Dick.I.Ishmael.was.one.of.that.crew.my.shouts.had.gone.up.with.the.rest.my.oath.had.been.welded.with.theirs.and.stronger.I.shouted.and.more.did.I.hammer.and.clinch.my.oath.because.of.the.dread.in.my.soul.A.wild.mystical.sympathetical.feeling.was.in.me.Ahabs.quenchless.feud.seemed.mine.With.greedy.ears.I.learned.the.history.of.that.murderous.monster.against.whom.I.and.all.the.others.had.taken.our.oaths.of.violence.and.revenge.For.some.time.past.though.at.intervals.only.the.unaccompanied.secluded.White.Whale.had.haunted.those.uncivilized.seas.mostly.frequented.by.the.Sperm.Whale.fishermen.But.not.all.of.them.knew.of.his.existence.only.a.few.of.them.comparatively.had.knowingly.seen.him.while.the.number.who.as.yet.had.actually.and.knowingly.given.battle.to.him.was.small.indeed.For.owing.to.the.large.number.of.whalecruisers.the.disorderly.way.they.were.sprinkled.over.the.entire.watery.circumference.many.of.them.adventurously.pushing.their.quest.along.solitary.latitudes.so.as.seldom.or.never.for.a.whole.twelvemonth.or.more.on.a.stretch.to.encounter.a.single.newstelling.sail.of.any.sort.the.inordinate.length.of.each.separate.voyage.the.irregularity.of.the.times.of.sailing.from.home.all.these.with.other.circumstances.direct.and.indirect.long.obstructed.the.spread.through.the.whole.worldwide.whalingfleet.of.the.special.individualizing.tidings.concerning.Moby.Dick.It.was.hardly.to.be.doubted.that.several.vessels.reported.to.have.encountered.at.such.or.such.a.time.or.on.such.or.such.a.meridian.a.Sperm.Whale.of.uncommon.magnitude.and.malignity.which.whale.after.doing.great.mischief.to.his.assailants.had.completely.escaped.them.to.some.minds.it.was.not.an.unfair.presumption.I.say.that.the.whale.in.question.must.have.been.no.other.than.Moby.Dick.Yet.as.of.late.the.Sperm.Whale.fishery.had.been.marked.by.various.and.not.unfrequent.instances.of.great.ferocity.cunning.and.malice.in.the.monster.attacked.therefore.it.was.that.those.who.by.accident.ignorantly.gave.battle.to.Moby.Dick.such.hunters.perhaps.for.the.most.part.were.content.to.ascribe.the.peculiar.terror.he.bred.more.as.it.were.to.the.perils.of.the.Sperm.Whale.fishery.at.large.than.to.the.individual.cause.In.that.way.mostly.the.disastrous.encounter.between.Ahab.and.the.whale.had.hitherto.been.popularly.regarded.And.as.for.those.who.previously.hearing.of.the.White.Whale.by.chance.caught.sight.of.him.in.the.beginning.of.the.thing.they.had.every.one.of.them.almost.as.boldly.and.fearlessly.lowered.for.him.as.for.any.other.whale.of.that.species.But.at.length.such.calamities.did.ensue.in.these.assaults.not.restricted.to.sprained.wrists.and.ankles.broken.limbs.or.devouring.amputations.but.fatal.to.the.last.degree.of.fatality.those.repeated.disastrous.repulses.all.accumulating.and.piling.their.terrors.upon.Moby.Dick.those.things.had.gone.far.to.shake.the.fortitude.of.many.brave.hunters.to.whom.the.story.of.the.White.Whale.had.eventually.come.Nor.did.wild.rumors.of.all.sorts.fail.to.exaggerate.and.still.the.more.horrify.the.true.histories.of.these.deadly.encounters.For.not.only.do.fabulous.rumors.naturally.grow.out.of.the.very.body.of.all.surprising.terrible.events.as.the.smitten.tree.gives.birth.to.its.fungi.but.in.maritime.life.far.more.than.in.that.of.terra.firma.wild.rumors.abound.wherever.there.is.any.adequate.reality.for.them.to.cling.to.And.as.the.sea.surpasses.the.land.in.this.matter.so.the.whale.fishery.surpasses.every.other.sort.of.maritime.life.in.the.wonderfulness.and.fearfulness.of.the.rumors.which.sometimes.circulate.there.For.not.only.are.whalemen.as.a.body.unexempt.from.that.ignorance.and.superstitiousness.hereditary.to.all.sailors.but.of.all.sailors.they.are.by.all.odds.the.most.directly.brought.into.contact.with.whatever.is.appallingly.astonishing.in.the.sea.face.to.face.they.not.only.eye.its.greatest.marvels.but.hand.to.jaw.give.battle.to.them.Alone.in.such.remotest.waters.that.though.you.sailed.a.thousand.miles.and.passed.a.thousand.shores.you.would.not.come.to.any.chiseled.hearthstone.or.aught.hospitable.beneath.that.part.of.the.sun.in.such.latitudes.and.longitudes.pursuing.too.such.a.calling.as.he.does.the.whaleman.is.wrapped.by.influences.all.tending.to.make.his.fancy.pregnant.with.many.a.mighty.birth.No.wonder.then.that.ever.gathering.volume.from.the.mere.transit.over.the.widest.watery.spaces.the.outblown.rumors.of.the.White.Whale.did.in.the.end.incorporate.with.themselves.all.manner.of.morbid.hints.and.halfformed.ftal.suggestions.of.supernatural.agencies.which.eventually.invested.Moby.Dick.with.new.terrors.unborrowed.from.anything.that.visibly.appears.So.that.in.many.cases.such.a.panic.did.he.finally.strike.that.few.who.by.those.rumors.at.least.had.heard.of.the.White.Whale.few.of.those.hunters.were.willing.to.encounter.the.perils.of.his.jaw.But.there.were.still.other.and.more.vital.practical.influences.at.work.Not.even.at.the.present.day.has.the.original.prestige.of.the.Sperm.Whale.as.fearfully.distinguished.from.all.other.species.of.the.leviathan.died.out.of.the.minds.of.the.whalemen.as.a.body.There.are.those.this.day.among.them.who.though.intelligent.and.courageous.enough.in.offering.battle.to.the.Greenland.or.Right.whale.would.perhaps.either.from.professional.inexperience.or.incompetency.or.timidity.decline.a.contest.with.the.Sperm.Whale.at.any.rate.there.are.plenty.of.whalemen.especially.among.those.whaling.nations.not.sailing.under.the.American.flag.who.have.never.hostilely.encountered.the.Sperm.Whale.but.whose.sole.knowledge.of.the.leviathan.is.restricted.to.the.ignoble.monster.primitively.pursued.in.the.North.seated.on.their.hatches.these.men.will.hearken.with.a.childish.fireside.interest.and.awe.to.the.wild.strange.tales.of.Southern.whaling.Nor.is.the.preeminent.tremendousness.of.the.great.Sperm.Whale.anywhere.more.feelingly.comprehended.than.on.board.of.those.prows.which.stem.him.And.as.if.the.now.tested.reality.of.his.might.had.in.former.legendary.times.thrown.its.shadow.before.it.we.find.some.book.naturalists.Olassen.and.Povelson.declaring.the.Sperm.Whale.not.only.to.be.a.consternation.to.every.other.creature.in.the.sea.but.also.to.be.so.incredibly.ferocious.as.continually.to.be.athirst.for.human.blood.Nor.even.down.to.so.late.a.time.as.Cuviers.were.these.or.almost.similar.impressions.effaced.For.in.his.Natural.History.the.Baron.himself.affirms.that.at.sight.of.the.Sperm.Whale.all.fish.sharks.included.are.struck.with.the.most.lively.terrors.and.often.in.the.precipitancy.of.their.flight.dash.themselves.against.the.rocks.with.such.violence.as.to.cause.instantaneous.death.And.however.the.general.experiences.in.the.fishery.may.amend.such.reports.as.these.yet.in.their.full.terribleness.even.to.the.bloodthirsty.item.of.Povelson.the.superstitious.belief.in.them.is.in.some.vicissitudes.of.their.vocation.revived.in.the.minds.of.the.hunters.So.that.overawed.by.the.rumors.and.portents.concerning.him.not.a.few.of.the.fishermen.recalled.in.reference.to.Moby.Dick.the.earlier.days.of.the.Sperm.Whale.fishery.when.it.was.oftentimes.hard.to.induce.long.practised.Right.whalemen.to.embark.in.the.perils.of.this.new.and.daring.warfare.such.men.protesting.that.although.other.leviathans.might.be.hopefully.pursued.yet.to.chase.and.point.lance.at.such.an.apparition.as.the.Sperm.Whale.was.not.for.mortal.man.That.to.attempt.it.would.be.inevitably.to.be.torn.into.a.quick.eternity.On.this.head.there.are.some.remarkable.documents.that.may.be.consulted.Nevertheless.some.there.were.who.even.in.the.face.of.these.things.were.ready.to.give.chase.to.Moby.Dick.and.a.still.greater.number.who.chancing.only.to.hear.of.him.distantly.and.vaguely.without.the.specific.details.of.any.certain.calamity.and.without.superstitious.accompaniments.were.sufficiently.hardy.not.to.flee.from.the.battle.if.offered.One.of.the.wild.suggestions.referred.to.as.at.last.coming.to.be.linked.with.the.White.Whale.in.the.minds.of.the.superstitiously.inclined.was.the.unearthly.conceit.that.Moby.Dick.was.ubiquitous.that.he.had.actually.been.encountered.in.opposite.latitudes.at.one.and.the.same.instant.of.time.Nor.credulous.as.such.minds.must.have.been.was.this.conceit.altogether.without.some.faint.show.of.superstitious.probability.For.as.the.secrets.of.the.currents.in.the.seas.have.never.yet.been.divulged.even.to.the.most.erudite.research.so.the.hidden.ways.of.the.Sperm.Whale.when.beneath.the.surface.remain.in.great.part.unaccountable.to.his.pursuers.and.from.time.to.time.have.originated.the.most.curious.and.contradictory.speculations.regarding.them.especially.concerning.the.mystic.modes.whereby.after.sounding.to.a.great.depth.he.transports.himself.with.such.vast.swiftness.to.the.most.widely.distant.points.It.is.a.thing.well.known.to.both.American.and.English.whaleships.and.as.well.a.thing.placed.upon.authoritative.record.years.ago.by.Scoresby.that.some.whales.have.been.captured.far.north.in.the.Pacific.in.whose.bodies.have.been.found.the.barbs.of.harpoons.darted.in.the.Greenland.seas.Nor.is.it.to.be.gainsaid.that.in.some.of.these.instances.it.has.been.declared.that.the.interval.of.time.between.the.two.assaults.could.not.have.exceeded.very.many.days.Hence.by.inference.it.has.been.believed.by.some.whalemen.that.the.Nor.West.Passage.so.long.a.problem.to.man.was.never.a.problem.to.the.whale.So.that.here.in.the.real.living.experience.of.living.men.the.prodigies.related.in.old.times.of.the.inland.Strello.mountain.in.Portugal.near.whose.top.there.was.said.to.be.a.lake.in.which.the.wrecks.of.ships.floated.up.to.the.surface.and.that.still.more.wonderful.story.of.the.Arethusa.fountain.near.Syracuse.whose.waters.were.believed.to.have.come.from.the.Holy.Land.by.an.underground.passage.these.fabulous.narrations.are.almost.fully.equalled.by.the.realities.of.the.whalemen.Forced.into.familiarity.then.with.such.prodigies.as.these.and.knowing.that.after.repeated.intrepid.assaults.the.White.Whale.had.escaped.alive.it.cannot.be.much.matter.of.surprise.that.some.whalemen.should.go.still.further.in.their.superstitions.declaring.Moby.Dick.not.only.ubiquitous.but.immortal.for.immortality.is.but.ubiquity.in.time.that.though.groves.of.spears.should.be.planted.in.his.flanks.he.would.still.swim.away.unharmed.or.if.indeed.he.should.ever.be.made.to.spout.thick.blood.such.a.sight.would.be.but.a.ghastly.deception.for.again.in.unensanguined.billows.hundreds.of.leagues.away.his.unsullied.jet.would.once.more.be.seen.But.even.stripped.of.these.supernatural.surmisings.there.was.enough.in.the.earthly.make.and.incontestable.character.of.the.monster.to.strike.the.imagination.with.unwonted.power.For.it.was.not.so.much.his.uncommon.bulk.that.so.much.distinguished.him.from.other.sperm.whales.but.as.was.elsewhere.thrown.out.a.peculiar.snowwhite.wrinkled.forehead.and.a.high.pyramidical.white.hump.These.were.his.prominent.features.the.tokens.whereby.even.in.the.limitless.uncharted.seas.he.revealed.his.identity.at.a.long.distance.to.those.who.knew.him.The.rest.of.his.body.was.so.streaked.and.spotted.and.marbled.with.the.same.shrouded.hue.that.in.the.end.he.had.gained.his.distinctive.appellation.of.the.White.Whale.a.name.indeed.literally.justified.by.his.vivid.aspect.when.seen.gliding.at.high.noon.through.a.dark.blue.sea.leaving.a.milkyway.wake.of.creamy.foam.all.spangled.with.golden.gleamings.Nor.was.it.his.unwonted.magnitude.nor.his.remarkable.hue.nor.yet.his.deformed.lower.jaw.that.so.much.invested.the.whale.with.natural.terror.as.that.unexampled.intelligent.malignity.which.according.to.specific.accounts.he.had.over.and.over.again.evinced.in.his.assaults.More.than.all.his.treacherous.retreats.struck.more.of.dismay.than.perhaps.aught.else.For.when.swimming.before.his.exulting.pursuers.with.every.apparent.symptom.of.alarm.he.had.several.times.been.known.to.turn.round.suddenly.and.bearing.down.upon.them.either.stave.their.boats.to.splinters.or.drive.them.back.in.consternation.to.their.ship.Already.several.fatalities.had.attended.his.chase.But.though.similar.disasters.however.little.bruited.ashore.were.by.no.means.unusual.in.the.fishery.yet.in.most.instances.such.seemed.the.White.Whales.infernal.aforethought.of.ferocity.that.every.dismembering.or.death.that.he.caused.was.not.wholly.regarded.as.having.been.inflicted.by.an.unintelligent.agent.Judge.then.to.what.pitches.of.inflamed.distracted.fury.the.minds.of.his.more.desperate.hunters.were.impelled.when.amid.the.chips.of.chewed.boats.and.the.sinking.limbs.of.torn.comrades.they.swam.out.of.the.white.curds.of.the.whales.direful.wrath.into.the.serene.exasperating.sunlight.that.smiled.on.as.if.at.a.birth.or.a.bridal.His.three.boats.stove.around.him.and.oars.and.men.both.whirling.in.the.eddies.one.captain.seizing.the.lineknife.from.his.broken.prow.had.dashed.at.the.whale.as.an.Arkansas.duellist.at.his.foe.blindly.seeking.with.a.six.inch.blade.to.reach.the.fathomdeep.life.of.the.whale.That.captain.was.Ahab.And.then.it.was.that.suddenly.sweeping.his.sickleshaped.lower.jaw.beneath.him.Moby.Dick.had.reaped.away.Ahabs.leg.as.a.mower.a.blade.of.grass.in.the.field.No.turbaned.Turk.no.hired.Venetian.or.Malay.could.have.smote.him.with.more.seeming.malice.Small.reason.was.there.to.doubt.then.that.ever.since.that.almost.fatal.encounter.Ahab.had.cherished.a.wild.vindictiveness.against.the.whale.all.the.more.fell.for.that.in.his.frantic.morbidness.he.at.last.came.to.identify.with.him.not.only.all.his.bodily.woes.but.all.his.intellectual.and.spiritual.exasperations.The.White.Whale.swam.before.him.as.the.monomaniac.incarnation.of.all.those.malicious.agencies.which.some.deep.men.feel.eating.in.them.till.they.are.left.living.on.with.half.a.heart.and.half.a.lung.That.intangible.malignity.which.has.been.from.the.beginning.to.whose.dominion.even.the.modern.Christians.ascribe.onehalf.of.the.worlds.which.the.ancient.Ophites.of.the.east.reverenced.in.their.statue.devil.Ahab.did.not.fall.down.and.worship.it.like.them.but.deliriously.transferring.its.idea.to.the.abhorred.white.whale.he.pitted.himself.all.mutilated.against.it.All.that.most.maddens.and.torments.all.that.stirs.up.the.lees.of.things.all.truth.with.malice.in.it.all.that.cracks.the.sinews.and.cakes.the.brain.all.the.subtle.demonisms.of.life.and.thought.all.evil.to.crazy.Ahab.were.visibly.personified.and.made.practically.assailable.in.Moby.Dick.He.piled.upon.the.whales.white.hump.the.sum.of.all.the.general.rage.and.hate.felt.by.his.whole.race.from.Adam.down.and.then.as.if.his.chest.had.been.a.mortar.he.burst.his.hot.hearts.shell.upon.it.It.is.not.probable.that.this.monomania.in.him.took.its.instant.rise.at.the.precise.time.of.his.bodily.dismemberment.Then.in.darting.at.the.monster.knife.in.hand.he.had.but.given.loose.to.a.sudden.passionate.corporal.animosity.and.when.he.received.the.stroke.that.tore.him.he.probably.but.felt.the.agonizing.bodily.laceration.but.nothing.more.Yet.when.by.this.collision.forced.to.turn.towards.home.and.for.long.months.of.days.and.weeks.Ahab.and.anguish.lay.stretched.together.in.one.hammock.rounding.in.mid.winter.that.dreary.howling.Patagonian.Cape.then.it.was.that.his.torn.body.and.gashed.soul.bled.into.one.another.and.so.interfusing.made.him.mad.That.it.was.only.then.on.the.homeward.voyage.after.the.encounter.that.the.final.monomania.seized.him.seems.all.but.certain.from.the.fact.that.at.intervals.during.the.passage.he.was.a.raving.lunatic.and.though.unlimbed.of.a.leg.yet.such.vital.strength.yet.lurked.in.his.Egyptian.chest.and.was.moreover.intensified.by.his.delirium.that.his.mates.were.forced.to.lace.him.fast.even.there.as.he.sailed.raving.in.his.hammock.In.a.straitjacket.he.swung.to.the.mad.rockings.of.the.gales.And.when.running.into.more.sufferable.latitudes.the.ship.with.mild.stunsails.spread.floated.across.the.tranquil.tropics.and.to.all.appearances.the.old.mans.delirium.seemed.left.behind.him.with.the.Cape.Horn.swells.and.he.came.forth.from.his.dark.den.into.the.blessed.light.and.air.even.then.when.he.bore.that.firm.collected.front.however.pale.and.issued.his.calm.orders.once.again.and.his.mates.thanked.God.the.direful.madness.was.now.gone.even.then.Ahab.in.his.hidden.self.raved.on.Human.madness.is.oftentimes.a.cunning.and.most.feline.thing.When.you.think.it.fled.it.may.have.but.become.transfigured.into.some.still.subtler.form.Ahabs.full.lunacy.subsided.not.but.deepeningly.contracted.like.the.unabated.Hudson.when.that.noble.Northman.flows.narrowly.but.unfathomably.through.the.Highland.gorge.But.as.in.his.narrowflowing.monomania.not.one.jot.of.Ahabs.broad.madness.had.been.left.behind.so.in.that.broad.madness.not.one.jot.of.his.great.natural.intellect.had.perished.That.before.living.agent.now.became.the.living.instrument.If.such.a.furious.trope.may.stand.his.special.lunacy.stormed.his.general.sanity.and.carried.it.and.turned.all.its.concentred.cannon.upon.its.own.mad.mark.so.that.far.from.having.lost.his.strength.Ahab.to.that.one.end.did.now.possess.a.thousand.fold.more.potency.than.ever.he.had.sanely.brought.to.bear.upon.any.one.reasonable.object.This.is.much.yet.Ahabs.larger.darker.deeper.part.remains.unhinted.But.vain.to.popularize.profundities.and.all.truth.is.profound.Winding.far.down.from.within.the.very.heart.of.this.spiked.Hotel.de.Cluny.where.we.here.stand.however.grand.and.wonderful.now.quit.it.and.take.your.way.ye.nobler.sadder.souls.to.those.vast.Roman.halls.of.Thermes.where.far.beneath.the.fantastic.towers.of.mans.upper.earth.his.root.of.grandeur.his.whole.awful.essence.sits.in.bearded.state.an.antique.buried.beneath.antiquities.and.throned.on.torsoes.So.with.a.broken.throne.the.great.gods.mock.that.captive.king.so.like.a.Caryatid.he.patient.sits.upholding.on.his.frozen.brow.the.piled.entablatures.of.ages.Wind.ye.down.there.ye.prouder.sadder.souls.question.that.proud.sad.king.A.family.likeness.aye.he.did.beget.ye.ye.young.exiled.royalties.and.from.your.grim.sire.only.will.the.old.Statesecret.come.Now.in.his.heart.Ahab.had.some.glimpse.of.this.namely.all.my.means.are.sane.my.motive.and.my.object.mad.Yet.without.power.to.kill.or.change.or.shun.the.fact.he.likewise.knew.that.to.mankind.he.did.long.dissemble.in.some.sort.did.still.But.that.thing.of.his.dissembling.was.only.subject.to.his.perceptibility.not.to.his.will.determinate.Nevertheless.so.well.did.he.succeed.in.that.dissembling.that.when.with.ivory.leg.he.stepped.ashore.at.last.no.Nantucketer.thought.him.otherwise.than.but.naturally.grieved.and.that.to.the.quick.with.the.terrible.casualty.which.had.overtaken.him.The.report.of.his.undeniable.delirium.at.sea.was.likewise.popularly.ascribed.to.a.kindred.cause.And.so.too.all.the.added.moodiness.which.always.afterwards.to.the.very.day.of.sailing.in.the.Pequod.on.the.present.voyage.sat.brooding.on.his.brow.Nor.is.it.so.very.unlikely.that.far.from.distrusting.his.fitness.for.another.whaling.voyage.on.account.of.such.dark.symptoms.the.calculating.people.of.that.prudent.isle.were.inclined.to.harbor.the.conceit.that.for.those.very.reasons.he.was.all.the.better.qualified.and.set.on.edge.for.a.pursuit.so.full.of.rage.and.wildness.as.the.bloody.hunt.of.whales.Gnawed.within.and.scorched.without.with.the.infixed.unrelenting.fangs.of.some.incurable.idea.such.an.one.could.he.be.found.would.seem.the.very.man.to.dart.his.iron.and.lift.his.lance.against.the.most.appalling.of.all.brutes.Or.if.for.any.reason.thought.to.be.corporeally.incapacitated.for.that.yet.such.an.one.would.seem.superlatively.competent.to.cheer.and.howl.on.his.underlings.to.the.attack.But.be.all.this.as.it.may.certain.it.is.that.with.the.mad.secret.of.his.unabated.rage.bolted.up.and.keyed.in.him.Ahab.had.purposely.sailed.upon.the.present.voyage.with.the.one.only.and.allengrossing.object.of.hunting.the.White.Whale.Had.any.one.of.his.old.acquaintances.on.shore.but.half.dreamed.of.what.was.lurking.in.him.then.how.soon.would.their.aghast.and.righteous.souls.have.wrenched.the.ship.from.such.a.fiendish.man.They.were.bent.on.profitable.cruises.the.profit.to.be.counted.down.in.dollars.from.the.mint.He.was.intent.on.an.audacious.immitigable.and.supernatural.revenge.Here.then.was.this.greyheaded.ungodly.old.man.chasing.with.curses.a.Jobs.whale.round.the.world.at.the.head.of.a.crew.too.chiefly.made.up.of.mongrel.renegades.and.castaways.and.cannibals.morally.enfeebled.also.by.the.incompetence.of.mere.unaided.virtue.or.rightmindedness.in.Starbuck.the.invulnerable.jollity.of.indifference.and.recklessness.in.Stubb.and.the.pervading.mediocrity.in.Flask.Such.a.crew.so.officered.seemed.specially.picked.and.packed.by.some.infernal.fatality.to.help.him.to.his.monomaniac.revenge.How.it.was.that.they.so.aboundingly.responded.to.the.old.mans.ire.by.what.evil.magic.their.souls.were.possessed.that.at.times.his.hate.seemed.almost.theirs.the.White.Whale.as.much.their.insufferable.foe.as.his.how.all.this.came.to.be.what.the.White.Whale.was.to.them.or.how.to.their.unconscious.understandings.also.in.some.dim.unsuspected.way.he.might.have.seemed.the.gliding.great.demon.of.the.seas.of.life.all.this.to.explain.would.be.to.dive.deeper.than.Ishmael.can.go.The.subterranean.miner.that.works.in.us.all.how.can.one.tell.whither.leads.his.shaft.by.the.ever.shifting.muffled.sound.of.his.pick.Who.does.not.feel.the.irresistible.arm.drag.What.skiff.in.tow.of.a.seventyfour.can.stand.still.For.one.I.gave.myself.up.to.the.abandonment.of.the.time.and.the.place.but.while.yet.all.arush.to.encounter.the.whale.could.see.naught.in.that.brute.but.the.deadliest.ill.CHAPTER.42.The.Whiteness.of.the.Whale.What.the.white.whale.was.to.Ahab.has.been.hinted.what.at.times.he.was.to.me.as.yet.remains.unsaid.Aside.from.those.more.obvious.considerations.touching.Moby.Dick.which.could.not.but.occasionally.awaken.in.any.mans.soul.some.alarm.there.was.another.thought.or.rather.vague.nameless.horror.concerning.him.which.at.times.by.its.intensity.completely.overpowered.all.the.rest.and.yet.so.mystical.and.well.nigh.ineffable.was.it.that.I.almost.despair.of.putting.it.in.a.comprehensible.form.It.was.the.whiteness.of.the.whale.that.above.all.things.appalled.me.But.how.can.I.hope.to.explain.myself.here.and.yet.in.some.dim.random.way.explain.myself.I.must.else.all.these.chapters.might.be.naught.Though.in.many.natural.objects.whiteness.refiningly.enhances.beauty.as.if.imparting.some.special.virtue.of.its.own.as.in.marbles.japonicas.and.pearls.and.though.various.nations.have.in.some.way.recognised.a.certain.royal.preeminence.in.this.hue.even.the.barbaric.grand.old.kings.of.Pegu.placing.the.title.Lord.of.the.White.Elephants.above.all.their.other.magniloquent.ascriptions.of.dominion.and.the.modern.kings.of.Siam.unfurling.the.same.snowwhite.quadruped.in.the.royal.standard.and.the.Hanoverian.flag.bearing.the.one.figure.of.a.snowwhite.charger.and.the.great.Austrian.Empire.Csarian.heir.to.overlording.Rome.having.for.the.imperial.colour.the.same.imperial.hue.and.though.this.preeminence.in.it.applies.to.the.human.race.itself.giving.the.white.man.ideal.mastership.over.every.dusky.tribe.and.though.besides.all.this.whiteness.has.been.even.made.significant.of.gladness.for.among.the.Romans.a.white.stone.marked.a.joyful.day.and.though.in.other.mortal.sympathies.and.symbolizings.this.same.hue.is.made.the.emblem.of.many.touching.noble.things.the.innocence.of.brides.the.benignity.of.age.though.among.the.Red.Men.of.America.the.giving.of.the.white.belt.of.wampum.was.the.deepest.pledge.of.honor.though.in.many.climes.whiteness.typifies.the.majesty.of.Justice.in.the.ermine.of.the.Judge.and.contributes.to.the.daily.state.of.kings.and.queens.drawn.by.milkwhite.steeds.though.even.in.the.higher.mysteries.of.the.most.august.religions.it.has.been.made.the.symbol.of.the.divine.spotlessness.and.power.by.the.Persian.fire.worshippers.the.white.forked.flame.being.held.the.holiest.on.the.altar.and.in.the.Greek.mythologies.Great.Jove.himself.being.made.incarnate.in.a.snowwhite.bull.and.though.to.the.noble.Iroquois.the.midwinter.sacrifice.of.the.sacred.White.Dog.was.by.far.the.holiest.festival.of.their.theology.that.spotless.faithful.creature.being.held.the.purest.envoy.they.could.send.to.the.Great.Spirit.with.the.annual.tidings.of.their.own.fidelity.and.though.directly.from.the.Latin.word.for.white.all.Christian.priests.derive.the.name.of.one.part.of.their.sacred.vesture.the.alb.or.tunic.worn.beneath.the.cassock.and.though.among.the.holy.pomps.of.the.Romish.faith.white.is.specially.employed.in.the.celebration.of.the.Passion.of.our.Lord.though.in.the.Vision.of.St.John.white.robes.are.given.to.the.redeemed.and.the.fourandtwenty.elders.stand.clothed.in.white.before.the.great.white.throne.and.the.Holy.One.that.sitteth.there.white.like.wool.yet.for.all.these.accumulated.associations.with.whatever.is.sweet.and.honorable.and.sublime.there.yet.lurks.an.elusive.something.in.the.innermost.idea.of.this.hue.which.strikes.more.of.panic.to.the.soul.than.that.redness.which.affrights.in.blood.This.elusive.quality.it.is.which.causes.the.thought.of.whiteness.when.divorced.from.more.kindly.associations.and.coupled.with.any.object.terrible.in.itself.to.heighten.that.terror.to.the.furthest.bounds.Witness.the.white.bear.of.the.poles.and.the.white.shark.of.the.tropics.what.but.their.smooth.flaky.whiteness.makes.them.the.transcendent.horrors.they.are.That.ghastly.whiteness.it.is.which.imparts.such.an.abhorrent.mildness.even.more.loathsome.than.terrific.to.the.dumb.gloating.of.their.aspect.So.that.not.the.fiercefanged.tiger.in.his.heraldic.coat.can.so.stagger.courage.as.the.whiteshrouded.bear.or.shark.With.reference.to.the.Polar.bear.it.may.possibly.be.urged.by.him.who.would.fain.go.still.deeper.into.this.matter.that.it.is.not.the.whiteness.separately.regarded.which.heightens.the.intolerable.hideousness.of.that.brute.for.analysed.that.heightened.hideousness.it.might.be.said.only.rises.from.the.circumstance.that.the.irresponsible.ferociousness.of.the.creature.stands.invested.in.the.fleece.of.celestial.innocence.and.love.and.hence.by.bringing.together.two.such.opposite.emotions.in.our.minds.the.Polar.bear.frightens.us.with.so.unnatural.a.contrast.But.even.assuming.all.this.to.be.true.yet.were.it.not.for.the.whiteness.you.would.not.have.that.intensified.terror.As.for.the.white.shark.the.white.gliding.ghostliness.of.repose.in.that.creature.when.beheld.in.his.ordinary.moods.strangely.tallies.with.the.same.quality.in.the.Polar.quadruped.This.peculiarity.is.most.vividly.hit.by.the.French.in.the.name.they.bestow.upon.that.fish.The.Romish.mass.for.the.dead.begins.with.Requiem.eternam.eternal.rest.whence.Requiem.denominating.the.mass.itself.and.any.other.funeral.music.Now.in.allusion.to.the.white.silent.stillness.of.death.in.this.shark.and.the.mild.deadliness.of.his.habits.the.French.call.him.Requin.Bethink.thee.of.the.albatross.whence.come.those.clouds.of.spiritual.wonderment.and.pale.dread.in.which.that.white.phantom.sails.in.all.imaginations.Not.Coleridge.first.threw.that.spell.but.Gods.great.unflattering.laureate.Nature.I.remember.the.first.albatross.I.ever.saw.It.was.during.a.prolonged.gale.in.waters.hard.upon.the.Antarctic.seas.From.my.forenoon.watch.below.I.ascended.to.the.overclouded.deck.and.there.dashed.upon.the.main.hatches.I.saw.a.regal.feathery.thing.of.unspotted.whiteness.and.with.a.hooked.Roman.bill.sublime.At.intervals.it.arched.forth.its.vast.archangel.wings.as.if.to.embrace.some.holy.ark.Wondrous.flutterings.and.throbbings.shook.it.Though.bodily.unharmed.it.uttered.cries.as.some.kings.ghost.in.supernatural.distress.Through.its.inexpressible.strange.eyes.methought.I.peeped.to.secrets.which.took.hold.of.God.As.Abraham.before.the.angels.I.bowed.myself.the.white.thing.was.so.white.its.wings.so.wide.and.in.those.for.ever.exiled.waters.I.had.lost.the.miserable.warping.memories.of.traditions.and.of.towns.Long.I.gazed.at.that.prodigy.of.plumage.I.cannot.tell.can.only.hint.the.things.that.darted.through.me.then.But.at.last.I.awoke.and.turning.asked.a.sailor.what.bird.was.this.A.goney.he.replied.Goney.never.had.heard.that.name.before.is.it.conceivable.that.this.glorious.thing.is.utterly.unknown.to.men.ashore.never.But.some.time.after.I.learned.that.goney.was.some.seamans.name.for.albatross.So.that.by.no.possibility.could.Coleridges.wild.Rhyme.have.had.aught.to.do.with.those.mystical.impressions.which.were.mine.when.I.saw.that.bird.upon.our.deck.For.neither.had.I.then.read.the.Rhyme.nor.knew.the.bird.to.be.an.albatross.Yet.in.saying.this.I.do.but.indirectly.burnish.a.little.brighter.the.noble.merit.of.the.poem.and.the.poet.I.assert.then.that.in.the.wondrous.bodily.whiteness.of.the.bird.chiefly.lurks.the.secret.of.the.spell.a.truth.the.more.evinced.in.this.that.by.a.solecism.of.terms.there.are.birds.called.grey.albatrosses.and.these.I.have.frequently.seen.but.never.with.such.emotions.as.when.I.beheld.the.Antarctic.fowl.But.how.had.the.mystic.thing.been.caught.Whisper.it.not.and.I.will.tell.with.a.treacherous.hook.and.line.as.the.fowl.floated.on.the.sea.At.last.the.Captain.made.a.postman.of.it.tying.a.lettered.leathern.tally.round.its.neck.with.the.ships.time.and.place.and.then.letting.it.escape.But.I.doubt.not.that.leathern.tally.meant.for.man.was.taken.off.in.Heaven.when.the.white.fowl.flew.to.join.the.wingfolding.the.invoking.and.adoring.cherubim.Most.famous.in.our.Western.annals.and.Indian.traditions.is.that.of.the.White.Steed.of.the.Prairies.a.magnificent.milkwhite.charger.largeeyed.smallheaded.bluffchested.and.with.the.dignity.of.a.thousand.monarchs.in.his.lofty.overscorning.carriage.He.was.the.elected.Xerxes.of.vast.herds.of.wild.horses.whose.pastures.in.those.days.were.only.fenced.by.the.Rocky.Mountains.and.the.Alleghanies.At.their.flaming.head.he.westward.trooped.it.like.that.chosen.star.which.every.evening.leads.on.the.hosts.of.light.The.flashing.cascade.of.his.mane.the.curving.comet.of.his.tail.invested.him.with.housings.more.resplendent.than.gold.and.silverbeaters.could.have.furnished.him.A.most.imperial.and.archangelical.apparition.of.that.unfallen.western.world.which.to.the.eyes.of.the.old.trappers.and.hunters.revived.the.glories.of.those.primeval.times.when.Adam.walked.majestic.as.a.god.bluffbrowed.and.fearless.as.this.mighty.steed.Whether.marching.amid.his.aides.and.marshals.in.the.van.of.countless.cohorts.that.endlessly.streamed.it.over.the.plains.like.an.Ohio.or.whether.with.his.circumambient.subjects.browsing.all.around.at.the.horizon.the.White.Steed.gallopingly.reviewed.them.with.warm.nostrils.reddening.through.his.cool.milkiness.in.whatever.aspect.he.presented.himself.always.to.the.bravest.Indians.he.was.the.object.of.trembling.reverence.and.awe.Nor.can.it.be.questioned.from.what.stands.on.legendary.record.of.this.noble.horse.that.it.was.his.spiritual.whiteness.chiefly.which.so.clothed.him.with.divineness.and.that.this.divineness.had.that.in.it.which.though.commanding.worship.at.the.same.time.enforced.a.certain.nameless.terror.But.there.are.other.instances.where.this.whiteness.loses.all.that.accessory.and.strange.glory.which.invests.it.in.the.White.Steed.and.Albatross.What.is.it.that.in.the.Albino.man.so.peculiarly.repels.and.often.shocks.the.eye.as.that.sometimes.he.is.loathed.by.his.own.kith.and.kin.It.is.that.whiteness.which.invests.him.a.thing.expressed.by.the.name.he.bears.The.Albino.is.as.well.made.as.other.men.has.no.substantive.deformity.and.yet.this.mere.aspect.of.allpervading.whiteness.makes.him.more.strangely.hideous.than.the.ugliest.abortion.Why.should.this.be.so.Nor.in.quite.other.aspects.does.Nature.in.her.least.palpable.but.not.the.less.malicious.agencies.fail.to.enlist.among.her.forces.this.crowning.attribute.of.the.terrible.From.its.snowy.aspect.the.gauntleted.ghost.of.the.Southern.Seas.has.been.denominated.the.White.Squall.Nor.in.some.historic.instances.has.the.art.of.human.malice.omitted.so.potent.an.auxiliary.How.wildly.it.heightens.the.effect.of.that.passage.in.Froissart.when.masked.in.the.snowy.symbol.of.their.faction.the.desperate.White.Hoods.of.Ghent.murder.their.bailiff.in.the.marketplace.Nor.in.some.things.does.the.common.hereditary.experience.of.all.mankind.fail.to.bear.witness.to.the.supernaturalism.of.this.hue.It.cannot.well.be.doubted.that.the.one.visible.quality.in.the.aspect.of.the.dead.which.most.appals.the.gazer.is.the.marble.pallor.lingering.there.as.if.indeed.that.pallor.were.as.much.like.the.badge.of.consternation.in.the.other.world.as.of.mortal.trepidation.here.And.from.that.pallor.of.the.dead.we.borrow.the.expressive.hue.of.the.shroud.in.which.we.wrap.them.Nor.even.in.our.superstitions.do.we.fail.to.throw.the.same.snowy.mantle.round.our.phantoms.all.ghosts.rising.in.a.milkwhite.fog.Yea.while.these.terrors.seize.us.let.us.add.that.even.the.king.of.terrors.when.personified.by.the.evangelist.rides.on.his.pallid.horse.Therefore.in.his.other.moods.symbolize.whatever.grand.or.gracious.thing.he.will.by.whiteness.no.man.can.deny.that.in.its.profoundest.idealized.significance.it.calls.up.a.peculiar.apparition.to.the.soul.But.though.without.dissent.this.point.be.fixed.how.is.mortal.man.to.account.for.it.To.analyse.it.would.seem.impossible.Can.we.then.by.the.citation.of.some.of.those.instances.wherein.this.thing.of.whiteness.though.for.the.time.either.wholly.or.in.great.part.stripped.of.all.direct.associations.calculated.to.impart.to.it.aught.fearful.but.nevertheless.is.found.to.exert.over.us.the.same.sorcery.however.modified.can.we.thus.hope.to.light.upon.some.chance.clue.to.conduct.us.to.the.hidden.cause.we.seek.Let.us.try.But.in.a.matter.like.this.subtlety.appeals.to.subtlety.and.without.imagination.no.man.can.follow.another.into.these.halls.And.though.doubtless.some.at.least.of.the.imaginative.impressions.about.to.be.presented.may.have.been.shared.by.most.men.yet.few.perhaps.were.entirely.conscious.of.them.at.the.time.and.therefore.may.not.be.able.to.recall.them.now.Why.to.the.man.of.untutored.ideality.who.happens.to.be.but.loosely.acquainted.with.the.peculiar.character.of.the.day.does.the.bare.mention.of.Whitsuntide.marshal.in.the.fancy.such.long.dreary.speechless.processions.of.slowpacing.pilgrims.downcast.and.hooded.with.newfallen.snow.Or.to.the.unread.unsophisticated.Protestant.of.the.Middle.American.States.why.does.the.passing.mention.of.a.White.Friar.or.a.White.Nun.evoke.such.an.eyeless.statue.in.the.soul.Or.what.is.there.apart.from.the.traditions.of.dungeoned.warriors.and.kings.which.will.not.wholly.account.for.it.that.makes.the.White.Tower.of.London.tell.so.much.more.strongly.on.the.imagination.of.an.untravelled.American.than.those.other.storied.structures.its.neighbors.the.Byward.Tower.or.even.the.Bloody.And.those.sublimer.towers.the.White.Mountains.of.New.Hampshire.whence.in.peculiar.moods.comes.that.gigantic.ghostliness.over.the.soul.at.the.bare.mention.of.that.name.while.the.thought.of.Virginias.Blue.Ridge.is.full.of.a.soft.dewy.distant.dreaminess.Or.why.irrespective.of.all.latitudes.and.longitudes.does.the.name.of.the.White.Sea.exert.such.a.spectralness.over.the.fancy.while.that.of.the.Yellow.Sea.lulls.us.with.mortal.thoughts.of.long.lacquered.mild.afternoons.on.the.waves.followed.by.the.gaudiest.and.yet.sleepiest.of.sunsets.Or.to.choose.a.wholly.unsubstantial.instance.purely.addressed.to.the.fancy.why.in.reading.the.old.fairy.tales.of.Central.Europe.does.the.tall.pale.man.of.the.Hartz.forests.whose.changeless.pallor.unrustlingly.glides.through.the.green.of.the.groves.why.is.this.phantom.more.terrible.than.all.the.whooping.imps.of.the.Blocksburg.Nor.is.it.altogether.the.remembrance.of.her.cathedraltoppling.earthquakes.nor.the.stampedoes.of.her.frantic.seas.nor.the.tearlessness.of.arid.skies.that.never.rain.nor.the.sight.of.her.wide.field.of.leaning.spires.wrenched.copestones.and.crosses.all.adroop.like.canted.yards.of.anchored.fleets.and.her.suburban.avenues.of.housewalls.lying.over.upon.each.other.as.a.tossed.pack.of.cards.it.is.not.these.things.alone.which.make.tearless.Lima.the.strangest.saddest.city.thou.canst.see.For.Lima.has.taken.the.white.veil.and.there.is.a.higher.horror.in.this.whiteness.of.her.woe.Old.as.Pizarro.this.whiteness.keeps.her.ruins.for.ever.new.admits.not.the.cheerful.greenness.of.complete.decay.spreads.over.her.broken.ramparts.the.rigid.pallor.of.an.apoplexy.that.fixes.its.own.distortions.I.know.that.to.the.common.apprehension.this.phenomenon.of.whiteness.is.not.confessed.to.be.the.prime.agent.in.exaggerating.the.terror.of.objects.otherwise.terrible.nor.to.the.unimaginative.mind.is.there.aught.of.terror.in.those.appearances.whose.awfulness.to.another.mind.almost.solely.consists.in.this.one.phenomenon.especially.when.exhibited.under.any.form.at.all.approaching.to.muteness.or.universality.What.I.mean.by.these.two.statements.may.perhaps.be.respectively.elucidated.by.the.following.examples.First.The.mariner.when.drawing.nigh.the.coasts.of.foreign.lands.if.by.night.he.hear.the.roar.of.breakers.starts.to.vigilance.and.feels.just.enough.of.trepidation.to.sharpen.all.his.faculties.but.under.precisely.similar.circumstances.let.him.be.called.from.his.hammock.to.view.his.ship.sailing.through.a.midnight.sea.of.milky.whiteness.as.if.from.encircling.headlands.shoals.of.combed.white.bears.were.swimming.round.him.then.he.feels.a.silent.superstitious.dread.the.shrouded.phantom.of.the.whitened.waters.is.horrible.to.him.as.a.real.ghost.in.vain.the.lead.assures.him.he.is.still.off.soundings.heart.and.helm.they.both.go.down.he.never.rests.till.blue.water.is.under.him.again.Yet.where.is.the.mariner.who.will.tell.thee.Sir.it.was.not.so.much.the.fear.of.striking.hidden.rocks.as.the.fear.of.that.hideous.whiteness.that.so.stirred.me.Second.To.the.native.Indian.of.Peru.the.continual.sight.of.the.snowhowdahed.Andes.conveys.naught.of.dread.except.perhaps.in.the.mere.fancying.of.the.eternal.frosted.desolateness.reigning.at.such.vast.altitudes.and.the.natural.conceit.of.what.a.fearfulness.it.would.be.to.lose.oneself.in.such.inhuman.solitudes.Much.the.same.is.it.with.the.backwoodsman.of.the.West.who.with.comparative.indifference.views.an.unbounded.prairie.sheeted.with.driven.snow.no.shadow.of.tree.or.twig.to.break.the.fixed.trance.of.whiteness.Not.so.the.sailor.beholding.the.scenery.of.the.Antarctic.seas.where.at.times.by.some.infernal.trick.of.legerdemain.in.the.powers.of.frost.and.air.he.shivering.and.half.shipwrecked.instead.of.rainbows.speaking.hope.and.solace.to.his.misery.views.what.seems.a.boundless.churchyard.grinning.upon.him.with.its.lean.ice.monuments.and.splintered.crosses.But.thou.sayest.methinks.that.whitelead.chapter.about.whiteness.is.but.a.white.flag.hung.out.from.a.craven.soul.thou.surrenderest.to.a.hypo.Ishmael.Tell.me.why.this.strong.young.colt.foaled.in.some.peaceful.valley.of.Vermont.far.removed.from.all.beasts.of.prey.why.is.it.that.upon.the.sunniest.day.if.you.but.shake.a.fresh.buffalo.robe.behind.him.so.that.he.cannot.even.see.it.but.only.smells.its.wild.animal.muskiness.why.will.he.start.snort.and.with.bursting.eyes.paw.the.ground.in.phrensies.of.affright.There.is.no.remembrance.in.him.of.any.gorings.of.wild.creatures.in.his.green.northern.home.so.that.the.strange.muskiness.he.smells.cannot.recall.to.him.anything.associated.with.the.experience.of.former.perils.for.what.knows.he.this.New.England.colt.of.the.black.bisons.of.distant.Oregon.No.but.here.thou.beholdest.even.in.a.dumb.brute.the.instinct.of.the.knowledge.of.the.demonism.in.the.world.Though.thousands.of.miles.from.Oregon.still.when.he.smells.that.savage.musk.the.rending.goring.bison.herds.are.as.present.as.to.the.deserted.wild.foal.of.the.prairies.which.this.instant.they.may.be.trampling.into.dust.Thus.then.the.muffled.rollings.of.a.milky.sea.the.bleak.rustlings.of.the.festooned.frosts.of.mountains.the.desolate.shiftings.of.the.windrowed.snows.of.prairies.all.these.to.Ishmael.are.as.the.shaking.of.that.buffalo.robe.to.the.frightened.colt.Though.neither.knows.where.lie.the.nameless.things.of.which.the.mystic.sign.gives.forth.such.hints.yet.with.me.as.with.the.colt.somewhere.those.things.must.exist.Though.in.many.of.its.aspects.this.visible.world.seems.formed.in.love.the.invisible.spheres.were.formed.in.fright.But.not.yet.have.we.solved.the.incantation.of.this.whiteness.and.learned.why.it.appeals.with.such.power.to.the.soul.and.more.strange.and.far.more.portentous.why.as.we.have.seen.it.is.at.once.the.most.meaning.symbol.of.spiritual.things.nay.the.very.veil.of.the.Christians.Deity.and.yet.should.be.as.it.is.the.intensifying.agent.in.things.the.most.appalling.to.mankind.Is.it.that.by.its.indefiniteness.it.shadows.forth.the.heartless.voids.and.immensities.of.the.universe.and.thus.stabs.us.from.behind.with.the.thought.of.annihilation.when.beholding.the.white.depths.of.the.milky.way.Or.is.it.that.as.in.essence.whiteness.is.not.so.much.a.colour.as.the.visible.absence.of.colour.and.at.the.same.time.the.concrete.of.all.colours.is.it.for.these.reasons.that.there.is.such.a.dumb.blankness.full.of.meaning.in.a.wide.landscape.of.snows.a.colourless.allcolour.of.atheism.from.which.we.shrink.And.when.we.consider.that.other.theory.of.the.natural.philosophers.that.all.other.earthly.hues.every.stately.or.lovely.emblazoning.the.sweet.tinges.of.sunset.skies.and.woods.yea.and.the.gilded.velvets.of.butterflies.and.the.butterfly.cheeks.of.young.girls.all.these.are.but.subtile.deceits.not.actually.inherent.in.substances.but.only.laid.on.from.without.so.that.all.deified.Nature.absolutely.paints.like.the.harlot.whose.allurements.cover.nothing.but.the.charnelhouse.within.and.when.we.proceed.further.and.consider.that.the.mystical.cosmetic.which.produces.every.one.of.her.hues.the.great.principle.of.light.for.ever.remains.white.or.colorless.in.itself.and.if.operating.without.medium.upon.matter.would.touch.all.objects.even.tulips.and.roses.with.its.own.blank.tinge.pondering.all.this.the.palsied.universe.lies.before.us.a.leper.and.like.wilful.travellers.in.Lapland.who.refuse.to.wear.coloured.and.colouring.glasses.upon.their.eyes.so.the.wretched.infidel.gazes.himself.blind.at.the.monumental.white.shroud.that.wraps.all.the.prospect.around.him.And.of.all.these.things.the.Albino.whale.was.the.symbol.Wonder.ye.then.at.the.fiery.hunt.CHAPTER.43.Hark.HIST.Did.you.hear.that.noise.Cabaco.It.was.the.middlewatch.a.fair.moonlight.the.seamen.were.standing.in.a.cordon.extending.from.one.of.the.freshwater.butts.in.the.waist.to.the.scuttlebutt.near.the.taffrail.In.this.manner.they.passed.the.buckets.to.fill.the.scuttlebutt.Standing.for.the.most.part.on.the.hallowed.precincts.of.the.quarterdeck.they.were.careful.not.to.speak.or.rustle.their.feet.From.hand.to.hand.the.buckets.went.in.the.deepest.silence.only.broken.by.the.occasional.flap.of.a.sail.and.the.steady.hum.of.the.unceasingly.advancing.keel.It.was.in.the.midst.of.this.repose.that.Archy.one.of.the.cordon.whose.post.was.near.the.afterhatches.whispered.to.his.neighbor.a.Cholo.the.words.above.Hist.did.you.hear.that.noise.Cabaco.Take.the.bucket.will.ye.Archy.what.noise.dye.mean.There.it.is.again.under.the.hatches.dont.you.hear.it.a.cough.it.sounded.like.a.cough.Cough.be.damned.Pass.along.that.return.bucket.There.again.there.it.is.it.sounds.like.two.or.three.sleepers.turning.over.now.Caramba.have.done.shipmate.will.ye.Its.the.three.soaked.biscuits.ye.eat.for.supper.turning.over.inside.of.ye.nothing.else.Look.to.the.bucket.Say.what.ye.will.shipmate.Ive.sharp.ears.Aye.you.are.the.chap.aint.ye.that.heard.the.hum.of.the.old.Quakeresss.knittingneedles.fifty.miles.at.sea.from.Nantucket.youre.the.chap.Grin.away.well.see.what.turns.up.Hark.ye.Cabaco.there.is.somebody.down.in.the.afterhold.that.has.not.yet.been.seen.on.deck.and.I.suspect.our.old.Mogul.knows.something.of.it.too.I.heard.Stubb.tell.Flask.one.morning.watch.that.there.was.something.of.that.sort.in.the.wind.Tish.the.bucket.CHAPTER.44.The.Chart.Had.you.followed.Captain.Ahab.down.into.his.cabin.after.the.squall.that.took.place.on.the.night.succeeding.that.wild.ratification.of.his.purpose.with.his.crew.you.would.have.seen.him.go.to.a.locker.in.the.transom.and.bringing.out.a.large.wrinkled.roll.of.yellowish.sea.charts.spread.them.before.him.on.his.screweddown.table.Then.seating.himself.before.it.you.would.have.seen.him.intently.study.the.various.lines.and.shadings.which.there.met.his.eye.and.with.slow.but.steady.pencil.trace.additional.courses.over.spaces.that.before.were.blank.At.intervals.he.would.refer.to.piles.of.old.logbooks.beside.him.wherein.were.set.down.the.seasons.and.places.in.which.on.various.former.voyages.of.various.ships.sperm.whales.had.been.captured.or.seen.While.thus.employed.the.heavy.pewter.lamp.suspended.in.chains.over.his.head.continually.rocked.with.the.motion.of.the.ship.and.for.ever.threw.shifting.gleams.and.shadows.of.lines.upon.his.wrinkled.brow.till.it.almost.seemed.that.while.he.himself.was.marking.out.lines.and.courses.on.the.wrinkled.charts.some.invisible.pencil.was.also.tracing.lines.and.courses.upon.the.deeply.marked.chart.of.his.forehead.But.it.was.not.this.night.in.particular.that.in.the.solitude.of.his.cabin.Ahab.thus.pondered.over.his.charts.Almost.every.night.they.were.brought.out.almost.every.night.some.pencil.marks.were.effaced.and.others.were.substituted.For.with.the.charts.of.all.four.oceans.before.him.Ahab.was.threading.a.maze.of.currents.and.eddies.with.a.view.to.the.more.certain.accomplishment.of.that.monomaniac.thought.of.his.soul.Now.to.any.one.not.fully.acquainted.with.the.ways.of.the.leviathans.it.might.seem.an.absurdly.hopeless.task.thus.to.seek.out.one.solitary.creature.in.the.unhooped.oceans.of.this.planet.But.not.so.did.it.seem.to.Ahab.who.knew.the.sets.of.all.tides.and.currents.and.thereby.calculating.the.driftings.of.the.sperm.whales.food.and.also.calling.to.mind.the.regular.ascertained.seasons.for.hunting.him.in.particular.latitudes.could.arrive.at.reasonable.surmises.almost.approaching.to.certainties.concerning.the.timeliest.day.to.be.upon.this.or.that.ground.in.search.of.his.prey.So.assured.indeed.is.the.fact.concerning.the.periodicalness.of.the.sperm.whales.resorting.to.given.waters.that.many.hunters.believe.that.could.he.be.closely.observed.and.studied.throughout.the.world.were.the.logs.for.one.voyage.of.the.entire.whale.fleet.carefully.collated.then.the.migrations.of.the.sperm.whale.would.be.found.to.correspond.in.invariability.to.those.of.the.herringshoals.or.the.flights.of.swallows.On.this.hint.attempts.have.been.made.to.construct.elaborate.migratory.charts.of.the.sperm.whale.Since.the.above.was.written.the.statement.is.happily.borne.out.by.an.official.circular.issued.by.Lieutenant.Maury.of.the.National.Observatory.Washington.April.16th.1851.By.that.circular.it.appears.that.precisely.such.a.chart.is.in.course.of.completion.and.portions.of.it.are.presented.in.the.circular.This.chart.divides.the.ocean.into.districts.of.five.degrees.of.latitude.by.five.degrees.of.longitude.perpendicularly.through.each.of.which.districts.are.twelve.columns.for.the.twelve.months.and.horizontally.through.each.of.which.districts.are.three.lines.one.to.show.the.number.of.days.that.have.been.spent.in.each.month.in.every.district.and.the.two.others.to.show.the.number.of.days.in.which.whales.sperm.or.right.have.been.seen.Besides.when.making.a.passage.from.one.feedingground.to.another.the.sperm.whales.guided.by.some.infallible.instinct.say.rather.secret.intelligence.from.the.Deity.mostly.swim.in.veins.as.they.are.called.continuing.their.way.along.a.given.oceanline.with.such.undeviating.exactitude.that.no.ship.ever.sailed.her.course.by.any.chart.with.one.tithe.of.such.marvellous.precision.Though.in.these.cases.the.direction.taken.by.any.one.whale.be.straight.as.a.surveyors.parallel.and.though.the.line.of.advance.be.strictly.confined.to.its.own.unavoidable.straight.wake.yet.the.arbitrary.vein.in.which.at.these.times.he.is.said.to.swim.generally.embraces.some.few.miles.in.width.more.or.less.as.the.vein.is.presumed.to.expand.or.contract.but.never.exceeds.the.visual.sweep.from.the.whaleships.mastheads.when.circumspectly.gliding.along.this.magic.zone.The.sum.is.that.at.particular.seasons.within.that.breadth.and.along.that.path.migrating.whales.may.with.great.confidence.be.looked.for.And.hence.not.only.at.substantiated.times.upon.well.known.separate.feedinggrounds.could.Ahab.hope.to.encounter.his.prey.but.in.crossing.the.widest.expanses.of.water.between.those.grounds.he.could.by.his.art.so.place.and.time.himself.on.his.way.as.even.then.not.to.be.wholly.without.prospect.of.a.meeting.There.was.a.circumstance.which.at.first.sight.seemed.to.entangle.his.delirious.but.still.methodical.scheme.But.not.so.in.the.reality.perhaps.Though.the.gregarious.sperm.whales.have.their.regular.seasons.for.particular.grounds.yet.in.general.you.cannot.conclude.that.the.herds.which.haunted.such.and.such.a.latitude.or.longitude.this.year.say.will.turn.out.to.be.identically.the.same.with.those.that.were.found.there.the.preceding.season.though.there.are.peculiar.and.unquestionable.instances.where.the.contrary.of.this.has.proved.true.In.general.the.same.remark.only.within.a.less.wide.limit.applies.to.the.solitaries.and.hermits.among.the.matured.aged.sperm.whales.So.that.though.Moby.Dick.had.in.a.former.year.been.seen.for.example.on.what.is.called.the.Seychelle.ground.in.the.Indian.ocean.or.Volcano.Bay.on.the.Japanese.Coast.yet.it.did.not.follow.that.were.the.Pequod.to.visit.either.of.those.spots.at.any.subsequent.corresponding.season.she.would.infallibly.encounter.him.there.So.too.with.some.other.feeding.grounds.where.he.had.at.times.revealed.himself.But.all.these.seemed.only.his.casual.stoppingplaces.and.oceaninns.so.to.speak.not.his.places.of.prolonged.abode.And.where.Ahabs.chances.of.accomplishing.his.object.have.hitherto.been.spoken.of.allusion.has.only.been.made.to.whatever.wayside.antecedent.extra.prospects.were.his.ere.a.particular.set.time.or.place.were.attained.when.all.possibilities.would.become.probabilities.and.as.Ahab.fondly.thought.every.possibility.the.next.thing.to.a.certainty.That.particular.set.time.and.place.were.conjoined.in.the.one.technical.phrase.the.SeasonontheLine.For.there.and.then.for.several.consecutive.years.Moby.Dick.had.been.periodically.descried.lingering.in.those.waters.for.awhile.as.the.sun.in.its.annual.round.loiters.for.a.predicted.interval.in.any.one.sign.of.the.Zodiac.There.it.was.too.that.most.of.the.deadly.encounters.with.the.white.whale.had.taken.place.there.the.waves.were.storied.with.his.deeds.there.also.was.that.tragic.spot.where.the.monomaniac.old.man.had.found.the.awful.motive.to.his.vengeance.But.in.the.cautious.comprehensiveness.and.unloitering.vigilance.with.which.Ahab.threw.his.brooding.soul.into.this.unfaltering.hunt.he.would.not.permit.himself.to.rest.all.his.hopes.upon.the.one.crowning.fact.above.mentioned.however.flattering.it.might.be.to.those.hopes.nor.in.the.sleeplessness.of.his.vow.could.he.so.tranquillize.his.unquiet.heart.as.to.postpone.all.intervening.quest.Now.the.Pequod.had.sailed.from.Nantucket.at.the.very.beginning.of.the.SeasonontheLine.No.possible.endeavor.then.could.enable.her.commander.to.make.the.great.passage.southwards.double.Cape.Horn.and.then.running.down.sixty.degrees.of.latitude.arrive.in.the.equatorial.Pacific.in.time.to.cruise.there.Therefore.he.must.wait.for.the.next.ensuing.season.Yet.the.premature.hour.of.the.Pequods.sailing.had.perhaps.been.correctly.selected.by.Ahab.with.a.view.to.this.very.complexion.of.things.Because.an.interval.of.three.hundred.and.sixtyfive.days.and.nights.was.before.him.an.interval.which.instead.of.impatiently.enduring.ashore.he.would.spend.in.a.miscellaneous.hunt.if.by.chance.the.White.Whale.spending.his.vacation.in.seas.far.remote.from.his.periodical.feedinggrounds.should.turn.up.his.wrinkled.brow.off.the.Persian.Gulf.or.in.the.Bengal.Bay.or.China.Seas.or.in.any.other.waters.haunted.by.his.race.So.that.Monsoons.Pampas.NorWesters.Harmattans.Trades.any.wind.but.the.Levanter.and.Simoon.might.blow.Moby.Dick.into.the.devious.zigzag.worldcircle.of.the.Pequods.circumnavigating.wake.But.granting.all.this.yet.regarded.discreetly.and.coolly.seems.it.not.but.a.mad.idea.this.that.in.the.broad.boundless.ocean.one.solitary.whale.even.if.encountered.should.be.thought.capable.of.individual.recognition.from.his.hunter.even.as.a.whitebearded.Mufti.in.the.thronged.thoroughfares.of.Constantinople.Yes.For.the.peculiar.snowwhite.brow.of.Moby.Dick.and.his.snowwhite.hump.could.not.but.be.unmistakable.And.have.I.not.tallied.the.whale.Ahab.would.mutter.to.himself.as.after.poring.over.his.charts.till.long.after.midnight.he.would.throw.himself.back.in.reveries.tallied.him.and.shall.he.escape.His.broad.fins.are.bored.and.scalloped.out.like.a.lost.sheeps.ear.And.here.his.mad.mind.would.run.on.in.a.breathless.race.till.a.weariness.and.faintness.of.pondering.came.over.him.and.in.the.open.air.of.the.deck.he.would.seek.to.recover.his.strength.Ah.God.what.trances.of.torments.does.that.man.endure.who.is.consumed.with.one.unachieved.revengeful.desire.He.sleeps.with.clenched.hands.and.wakes.with.his.own.bloody.nails.in.his.palms.Often.when.forced.from.his.hammock.by.exhausting.and.intolerably.vivid.dreams.of.the.night.which.resuming.his.own.intense.thoughts.through.the.day.carried.them.on.amid.a.clashing.of.phrensies.and.whirled.them.round.and.round.and.round.in.his.blazing.brain.till.the.very.throbbing.of.his.lifespot.became.insufferable.anguish.and.when.as.was.sometimes.the.case.these.spiritual.throes.in.him.heaved.his.being.up.from.its.base.and.a.chasm.seemed.opening.in.him.from.which.forked.flames.and.lightnings.shot.up.and.accursed.fiends.beckoned.him.to.leap.down.among.them.when.this.hell.in.himself.yawned.beneath.him.a.wild.cry.would.be.heard.through.the.ship.and.with.glaring.eyes.Ahab.would.burst.from.his.state.room.as.though.escaping.from.a.bed.that.was.on.fire.Yet.these.perhaps.instead.of.being.the.unsuppressable.symptoms.of.some.latent.weakness.or.fright.at.his.own.resolve.were.but.the.plainest.tokens.of.its.intensity.For.at.such.times.crazy.Ahab.the.scheming.unappeasedly.steadfast.hunter.of.the.white.whale.this.Ahab.that.had.gone.to.his.hammock.was.not.the.agent.that.so.caused.him.to.burst.from.it.in.horror.again.The.latter.was.the.eternal.living.principle.or.soul.in.him.and.in.sleep.being.for.the.time.dissociated.from.the.characterizing.mind.which.at.other.times.employed.it.for.its.outer.vehicle.or.agent.it.spontaneously.sought.escape.from.the.scorching.contiguity.of.the.frantic.thing.of.which.for.the.time.it.was.no.longer.an.integral.But.as.the.mind.does.not.exist.unless.leagued.with.the.soul.therefore.it.must.have.been.that.in.Ahabs.case.yielding.up.all.his.thoughts.and.fancies.to.his.one.supreme.purpose.that.purpose.by.its.own.sheer.inveteracy.of.will.forced.itself.against.gods.and.devils.into.a.kind.of.selfassumed.independent.being.of.its.own.Nay.could.grimly.live.and.burn.while.the.common.vitality.to.which.it.was.conjoined.fled.horrorstricken.from.the.unbidden.and.unfathered.birth.Therefore.the.tormented.spirit.that.glared.out.of.bodily.eyes.when.what.seemed.Ahab.rushed.from.his.room.was.for.the.time.but.a.vacated.thing.a.formless.somnambulistic.being.a.ray.of.living.light.to.be.sure.but.without.an.object.to.colour.and.therefore.a.blankness.in.itself.God.help.thee.old.man.thy.thoughts.have.created.a.creature.in.thee.and.he.whose.intense.thinking.thus.makes.him.a.Prometheus.a.vulture.feeds.upon.that.heart.for.ever.that.vulture.the.very.creature.he.creates.CHAPTER.45.The.Affidavit.So.far.as.what.there.may.be.of.a.narrative.in.this.book.and.indeed.as.indirectly.touching.one.or.two.very.interesting.and.curious.particulars.in.the.habits.of.sperm.whales.the.foregoing.chapter.in.its.earlier.part.is.as.important.a.one.as.will.be.found.in.this.volume.but.the.leading.matter.of.it.requires.to.be.still.further.and.more.familiarly.enlarged.upon.in.order.to.be.adequately.understood.and.moreover.to.take.away.any.incredulity.which.a.profound.ignorance.of.the.entire.subject.may.induce.in.some.minds.as.to.the.natural.verity.of.the.main.points.of.this.affair.I.care.not.to.perform.this.part.of.my.task.methodically.but.shall.be.content.to.produce.the.desired.impression.by.separate.citations.of.items.practically.or.reliably.known.to.me.as.a.whaleman.and.from.these.citations.I.take.it.the.conclusion.aimed.at.will.naturally.follow.of.itself.First.I.have.personally.known.three.instances.where.a.whale.after.receiving.a.harpoon.has.effected.a.complete.escape.and.after.an.interval.in.one.instance.of.three.years.has.been.again.struck.by.the.same.hand.and.slain.when.the.two.irons.both.marked.by.the.same.private.cypher.have.been.taken.from.the.body.In.the.instance.where.three.years.intervened.between.the.flinging.of.the.two.harpoons.and.I.think.it.may.have.been.something.more.than.that.the.man.who.darted.them.happening.in.the.interval.to.go.in.a.trading.ship.on.a.voyage.to.Africa.went.ashore.there.joined.a.discovery.party.and.penetrated.far.into.the.interior.where.he.travelled.for.a.period.of.nearly.two.years.often.endangered.by.serpents.savages.tigers.poisonous.miasmas.with.all.the.other.common.perils.incident.to.wandering.in.the.heart.of.unknown.regions.Meanwhile.the.whale.he.had.struck.must.also.have.been.on.its.travels.no.doubt.it.had.thrice.circumnavigated.the.globe.brushing.with.its.flanks.all.the.coasts.of.Africa.but.to.no.purpose.This.man.and.this.whale.again.came.together.and.the.one.vanquished.the.other.I.say.I.myself.have.known.three.instances.similar.to.this.that.is.in.two.of.them.I.saw.the.whales.struck.and.upon.the.second.attack.saw.the.two.irons.with.the.respective.marks.cut.in.them.afterwards.taken.from.the.dead.fish.In.the.threeyear.instance.it.so.fell.out.that.I.was.in.the.boat.both.times.first.and.last.and.the.last.time.distinctly.recognised.a.peculiar.sort.of.huge.mole.under.the.whales.eye.which.I.had.observed.there.three.years.previous.I.say.three.years.but.I.am.pretty.sure.it.was.more.than.that.Here.are.three.instances.then.which.I.personally.know.the.truth.of.but.I.have.heard.of.many.other.instances.from.persons.whose.veracity.in.the.matter.there.is.no.good.ground.to.impeach.Secondly.It.is.well.known.in.the.Sperm.Whale.Fishery.however.ignorant.the.world.ashore.may.be.of.it.that.there.have.been.several.memorable.historical.instances.where.a.particular.whale.in.the.ocean.has.been.at.distant.times.and.places.popularly.cognisable.Why.such.a.whale.became.thus.marked.was.not.altogether.and.originally.owing.to.his.bodily.peculiarities.as.distinguished.from.other.whales.for.however.peculiar.in.that.respect.any.chance.whale.may.be.they.soon.put.an.end.to.his.peculiarities.by.killing.him.and.boiling.him.down.into.a.peculiarly.valuable.oil.No.the.reason.was.this.that.from.the.fatal.experiences.of.the.fishery.there.hung.a.terrible.prestige.of.perilousness.about.such.a.whale.as.there.did.about.Rinaldo.Rinaldini.insomuch.that.most.fishermen.were.content.to.recognise.him.by.merely.touching.their.tarpaulins.when.he.would.be.discovered.lounging.by.them.on.the.sea.without.seeking.to.cultivate.a.more.intimate.acquaintance.Like.some.poor.devils.ashore.that.happen.to.know.an.irascible.great.man.they.make.distant.unobtrusive.salutations.to.him.in.the.street.lest.if.they.pursued.the.acquaintance.further.they.might.receive.a.summary.thump.for.their.presumption.But.not.only.did.each.of.these.famous.whales.enjoy.great.individual.celebrity.Nay.you.may.call.it.an.oceanwide.renown.not.only.was.he.famous.in.life.and.now.is.immortal.in.forecastle.stories.after.death.but.he.was.admitted.into.all.the.rights.privileges.and.distinctions.of.a.name.had.as.much.a.name.indeed.as.Cambyses.or.Csar.Was.it.not.so.O.Timor.Tom.thou.famed.leviathan.scarred.like.an.iceberg.who.so.long.didst.lurk.in.the.Oriental.straits.of.that.name.whose.spout.was.oft.seen.from.the.palmy.beach.of.Ombay.Was.it.not.so.O.New.Zealand.Jack.thou.terror.of.all.cruisers.that.crossed.their.wakes.in.the.vicinity.of.the.Tattoo.Land.Was.it.not.so.O.Morquan.King.of.Japan.whose.lofty.jet.they.say.at.times.assumed.the.semblance.of.a.snowwhite.cross.against.the.sky.Was.it.not.so.O.Don.Miguel.thou.Chilian.whale.marked.like.an.old.tortoise.with.mystic.hieroglyphics.upon.the.back.In.plain.prose.here.are.four.whales.as.well.known.to.the.students.of.Cetacean.History.as.Marius.or.Sylla.to.the.classic.scholar.But.this.is.not.all.New.Zealand.Tom.and.Don.Miguel.after.at.various.times.creating.great.havoc.among.the.boats.of.different.vessels.were.finally.gone.in.quest.of.systematically.hunted.out.chased.and.killed.by.valiant.whaling.captains.who.heaved.up.their.anchors.with.that.express.object.as.much.in.view.as.in.setting.out.through.the.Narragansett.Woods.Captain.Butler.of.old.had.it.in.his.mind.to.capture.that.notorious.murderous.savage.Annawon.the.headmost.warrior.of.the.Indian.King.Philip.I.do.not.know.where.I.can.find.a.better.place.than.just.here.to.make.mention.of.one.or.two.other.things.which.to.me.seem.important.as.in.printed.form.establishing.in.all.respects.the.reasonableness.of.the.whole.story.of.the.White.Whale.more.especially.the.catastrophe.For.this.is.one.of.those.disheartening.instances.where.truth.requires.full.as.much.bolstering.as.error.So.ignorant.are.most.landsmen.of.some.of.the.plainest.and.most.palpable.wonders.of.the.world.that.without.some.hints.touching.the.plain.facts.historical.and.otherwise.of.the.fishery.they.might.scout.at.Moby.Dick.as.a.monstrous.fable.or.still.worse.and.more.detestable.a.hideous.and.intolerable.allegory.First.Though.most.men.have.some.vague.flitting.ideas.of.the.general.perils.of.the.grand.fishery.yet.they.have.nothing.like.a.fixed.vivid.conception.of.those.perils.and.the.frequency.with.which.they.recur.One.reason.perhaps.is.that.not.one.in.fifty.of.the.actual.disasters.and.deaths.by.casualties.in.the.fishery.ever.finds.a.public.record.at.home.however.transient.and.immediately.forgotten.that.record.Do.you.suppose.that.that.poor.fellow.there.who.this.moment.perhaps.caught.by.the.whaleline.off.the.coast.of.New.Guinea.is.being.carried.down.to.the.bottom.of.the.sea.by.the.sounding.leviathan.do.you.suppose.that.that.poor.fellows.name.will.appear.in.the.newspaper.obituary.you.will.read.tomorrow.at.your.breakfast.No.because.the.mails.are.very.irregular.between.here.and.New.Guinea.In.fact.did.you.ever.hear.what.might.be.called.regular.news.direct.or.indirect.from.New.Guinea.Yet.I.tell.you.that.upon.one.particular.voyage.which.I.made.to.the.Pacific.among.many.others.we.spoke.thirty.different.ships.every.one.of.which.had.had.a.death.by.a.whale.some.of.them.more.than.one.and.three.that.had.each.lost.a.boats.crew.For.Gods.sake.be.economical.with.your.lamps.and.candles.not.a.gallon.you.burn.but.at.least.one.drop.of.mans.blood.was.spilled.for.it.Secondly.People.ashore.have.indeed.some.indefinite.idea.that.a.whale.is.an.enormous.creature.of.enormous.power.but.I.have.ever.found.that.when.narrating.to.them.some.specific.example.of.this.twofold.enormousness.they.have.significantly.complimented.me.upon.my.facetiousness.when.I.declare.upon.my.soul.I.had.no.more.idea.of.being.facetious.than.Moses.when.he.wrote.the.history.of.the.plagues.of.Egypt.But.fortunately.the.special.point.I.here.seek.can.be.established.upon.testimony.entirely.independent.of.my.own.That.point.is.this.The.Sperm.Whale.is.in.some.cases.sufficiently.powerful.knowing.and.judiciously.malicious.as.with.direct.aforethought.to.stave.in.utterly.destroy.and.sink.a.large.ship.and.what.is.more.the.Sperm.Whale.has.done.it.First.In.the.year.1820.the.ship.Essex.Captain.Pollard.of.Nantucket.was.cruising.in.the.Pacific.Ocean.One.day.she.saw.spouts.lowered.her.boats.and.gave.chase.to.a.shoal.of.sperm.whales.Ere.long.several.of.the.whales.were.wounded.when.suddenly.a.very.large.whale.escaping.from.the.boats.issued.from.the.shoal.and.bore.directly.down.upon.the.ship.Dashing.his.forehead.against.her.hull.he.so.stove.her.in.that.in.less.than.ten.minutes.she.settled.down.and.fell.over.Not.a.surviving.plank.of.her.has.been.seen.since.After.the.severest.exposure.part.of.the.crew.reached.the.land.in.their.boats.Being.returned.home.at.last.Captain.Pollard.once.more.sailed.for.the.Pacific.in.command.of.another.ship.but.the.gods.shipwrecked.him.again.upon.unknown.rocks.and.breakers.for.the.second.time.his.ship.was.utterly.lost.and.forthwith.forswearing.the.sea.he.has.never.tempted.it.since.At.this.day.Captain.Pollard.is.a.resident.of.Nantucket.I.have.seen.Owen.Chace.who.was.chief.mate.of.the.Essex.at.the.time.of.the.tragedy.I.have.read.his.plain.and.faithful.narrative.I.have.conversed.with.his.son.and.all.this.within.a.few.miles.of.the.scene.of.the.catastrophe.The.following.are.extracts.from.Chaces.narrative.Every.fact.seemed.to.warrant.me.in.concluding.that.it.was.anything.but.chance.which.directed.his.operations.he.made.two.several.attacks.upon.the.ship.at.a.short.interval.between.them.both.of.which.according.to.their.direction.were.calculated.to.do.us.the.most.injury.by.being.made.ahead.and.thereby.combining.the.speed.of.the.two.objects.for.the.shock.to.effect.which.the.exact.manuvres.which.he.made.were.necessary.His.aspect.was.most.horrible.and.such.as.indicated.resentment.and.fury.He.came.directly.from.the.shoal.which.we.had.just.before.entered.and.in.which.we.had.struck.three.of.his.companions.as.if.fired.with.revenge.for.their.sufferings.Again.At.all.events.the.whole.circumstances.taken.together.all.happening.before.my.own.eyes.and.producing.at.the.time.impressions.in.my.mind.of.decided.calculating.mischief.on.the.part.of.the.whale.many.of.which.impressions.I.cannot.now.recall.induce.me.to.be.satisfied.that.I.am.correct.in.my.opinion.Here.are.his.reflections.some.time.after.quitting.the.ship.during.a.black.night.in.an.open.boat.when.almost.despairing.of.reaching.any.hospitable.shore.The.dark.ocean.and.swelling.waters.were.nothing.the.fears.of.being.swallowed.up.by.some.dreadful.tempest.or.dashed.upon.hidden.rocks.with.all.the.other.ordinary.subjects.of.fearful.contemplation.seemed.scarcely.entitled.to.a.moments.thought.the.dismal.looking.wreck.and.the.horrid.aspect.and.revenge.of.the.whale.wholly.engrossed.my.reflections.until.day.again.made.its.appearance.In.another.place.p.45.he.speaks.of.the.mysterious.and.mortal.attack.of.the.animal.Secondly.The.ship.Union.also.of.Nantucket.was.in.the.year.1807.totally.lost.off.the.Azores.by.a.similar.onset.but.the.authentic.particulars.of.this.catastrophe.I.have.never.chanced.to.encounter.though.from.the.whale.hunters.I.have.now.and.then.heard.casual.allusions.to.it.Thirdly.Some.eighteen.or.twenty.years.ago.Commodore.J.then.commanding.an.American.sloopofwar.of.the.first.class.happened.to.be.dining.with.a.party.of.whaling.captains.on.board.a.Nantucket.ship.in.the.harbor.of.Oahu.Sandwich.Islands.Conversation.turning.upon.whales.the.Commodore.was.pleased.to.be.sceptical.touching.the.amazing.strength.ascribed.to.them.by.the.professional.gentlemen.present.He.peremptorily.denied.for.example.that.any.whale.could.so.smite.his.stout.sloopofwar.as.to.cause.her.to.leak.so.much.as.a.thimbleful.Very.good.but.there.is.more.coming.Some.weeks.after.the.Commodore.set.sail.in.this.impregnable.craft.for.Valparaiso.But.he.was.stopped.on.the.way.by.a.portly.sperm.whale.that.begged.a.few.moments.confidential.business.with.him.That.business.consisted.in.fetching.the.Commodores.craft.such.a.thwack.that.with.all.his.pumps.going.he.made.straight.for.the.nearest.port.to.heave.down.and.repair.I.am.not.superstitious.but.I.consider.the.Commodores.interview.with.that.whale.as.providential.Was.not.Saul.of.Tarsus.converted.from.unbelief.by.a.similar.fright.I.tell.you.the.sperm.whale.will.stand.no.nonsense.I.will.now.refer.you.to.Langsdorffs.Voyages.for.a.little.circumstance.in.point.peculiarly.interesting.to.the.writer.hereof.Langsdorff.you.must.know.by.the.way.was.attached.to.the.Russian.Admiral.Krusensterns.famous.Discovery.Expedition.in.the.beginning.of.the.present.century.Captain.Langsdorff.thus.begins.his.seventeenth.chapter.By.the.thirteenth.of.May.our.ship.was.ready.to.sail.and.the.next.day.we.were.out.in.the.open.sea.on.our.way.to.Ochotsh.The.weather.was.very.clear.and.fine.but.so.intolerably.cold.that.we.were.obliged.to.keep.on.our.fur.clothing.For.some.days.we.had.very.little.wind.it.was.not.till.the.nineteenth.that.a.brisk.gale.from.the.northwest.sprang.up.An.uncommon.large.whale.the.body.of.which.was.larger.than.the.ship.itself.lay.almost.at.the.surface.of.the.water.but.was.not.perceived.by.any.one.on.board.till.the.moment.when.the.ship.which.was.in.full.sail.was.almost.upon.him.so.that.it.was.impossible.to.prevent.its.striking.against.him.We.were.thus.placed.in.the.most.imminent.danger.as.this.gigantic.creature.setting.up.its.back.raised.the.ship.three.feet.at.least.out.of.the.water.The.masts.reeled.and.the.sails.fell.altogether.while.we.who.were.below.all.sprang.instantly.upon.the.deck.concluding.that.we.had.struck.upon.some.rock.instead.of.this.we.saw.the.monster.sailing.off.with.the.utmost.gravity.and.solemnity.Captain.DWolf.applied.immediately.to.the.pumps.to.examine.whether.or.not.the.vessel.had.received.any.damage.from.the.shock.but.we.found.that.very.happily.it.had.escaped.entirely.uninjured.Now.the.Captain.DWolf.here.alluded.to.as.commanding.the.ship.in.question.is.a.New.Englander.who.after.a.long.life.of.unusual.adventures.as.a.seacaptain.this.day.resides.in.the.village.of.Dorchester.near.Boston.I.have.the.honor.of.being.a.nephew.of.his.I.have.particularly.questioned.him.concerning.this.passage.in.Langsdorff.He.substantiates.every.word.The.ship.however.was.by.no.means.a.large.one.a.Russian.craft.built.on.the.Siberian.coast.and.purchased.by.my.uncle.after.bartering.away.the.vessel.in.which.he.sailed.from.home.In.that.up.and.down.manly.book.of.oldfashioned.adventure.so.full.too.of.honest.wonders.the.voyage.of.Lionel.Wafer.one.of.ancient.Dampiers.old.chums.I.found.a.little.matter.set.down.so.like.that.just.quoted.from.Langsdorff.that.I.cannot.forbear.inserting.it.here.for.a.corroborative.example.if.such.be.needed.Lionel.it.seems.was.on.his.way.to.John.Ferdinando.as.he.calls.the.modern.Juan.Fernandes.In.our.way.thither.he.says.about.four.oclock.in.the.morning.when.we.were.about.one.hundred.and.fifty.leagues.from.the.Main.of.America.our.ship.felt.a.terrible.shock.which.put.our.men.in.such.consternation.that.they.could.hardly.tell.where.they.were.or.what.to.think.but.every.one.began.to.prepare.for.death.And.indeed.the.shock.was.so.sudden.and.violent.that.we.took.it.for.granted.the.ship.had.struck.against.a.rock.but.when.the.amazement.was.a.little.over.we.cast.the.lead.and.sounded.but.found.no.ground.The.suddenness.of.the.shock.made.the.guns.leap.in.their.carriages.and.several.of.the.men.were.shaken.out.of.their.hammocks.Captain.Davis.who.lay.with.his.head.on.a.gun.was.thrown.out.of.his.cabin.Lionel.then.goes.on.to.impute.the.shock.to.an.earthquake.and.seems.to.substantiate.the.imputation.by.stating.that.a.great.earthquake.somewhere.about.that.time.did.actually.do.great.mischief.along.the.Spanish.land.But.I.should.not.much.wonder.if.in.the.darkness.of.that.early.hour.of.the.morning.the.shock.was.after.all.caused.by.an.unseen.whale.vertically.bumping.the.hull.from.beneath.I.might.proceed.with.several.more.examples.one.way.or.another.known.to.me.of.the.great.power.and.malice.at.times.of.the.sperm.whale.In.more.than.one.instance.he.has.been.known.not.only.to.chase.the.assailing.boats.back.to.their.ships.but.to.pursue.the.ship.itself.and.long.withstand.all.the.lances.hurled.at.him.from.its.decks.The.English.ship.Pusie.Hall.can.tell.a.story.on.that.head.and.as.for.his.strength.let.me.say.that.there.have.been.examples.where.the.lines.attached.to.a.running.sperm.whale.have.in.a.calm.been.transferred.to.the.ship.and.secured.there.the.whale.towing.her.great.hull.through.the.water.as.a.horse.walks.off.with.a.cart.Again.it.is.very.often.observed.that.if.the.sperm.whale.once.struck.is.allowed.time.to.rally.he.then.acts.not.so.often.with.blind.rage.as.with.wilful.deliberate.designs.of.destruction.to.his.pursuers.nor.is.it.without.conveying.some.eloquent.indication.of.his.character.that.upon.being.attacked.he.will.frequently.open.his.mouth.and.retain.it.in.that.dread.expansion.for.several.consecutive.minutes.But.I.must.be.content.with.only.one.more.and.a.concluding.illustration.a.remarkable.and.most.significant.one.by.which.you.will.not.fail.to.see.that.not.only.is.the.most.marvellous.event.in.this.book.corroborated.by.plain.facts.of.the.present.day.but.that.these.marvels.like.all.marvels.are.mere.repetitions.of.the.ages.so.that.for.the.millionth.time.we.say.amen.with.Solomon.Verily.there.is.nothing.new.under.the.sun.In.the.sixth.Christian.century.lived.Procopius.a.Christian.magistrate.of.Constantinople.in.the.days.when.Justinian.was.Emperor.and.Belisarius.general.As.many.know.he.wrote.the.history.of.his.own.times.a.work.every.way.of.uncommon.value.By.the.best.authorities.he.has.always.been.considered.a.most.trustworthy.and.unexaggerating.historian.except.in.some.one.or.two.particulars.not.at.all.affecting.the.matter.presently.to.be.mentioned.Now.in.this.history.of.his.Procopius.mentions.that.during.the.term.of.his.prefecture.at.Constantinople.a.great.seamonster.was.captured.in.the.neighboring.Propontis.or.Sea.of.Marmora.after.having.destroyed.vessels.at.intervals.in.those.waters.for.a.period.of.more.than.fifty.years.A.fact.thus.set.down.in.substantial.history.cannot.easily.be.gainsaid.Nor.is.there.any.reason.it.should.be.Of.what.precise.species.this.seamonster.was.is.not.mentioned.But.as.he.destroyed.ships.as.well.as.for.other.reasons.he.must.have.been.a.whale.and.I.am.strongly.inclined.to.think.a.sperm.whale.And.I.will.tell.you.why.For.a.long.time.I.fancied.that.the.sperm.whale.had.been.always.unknown.in.the.Mediterranean.and.the.deep.waters.connecting.with.it.Even.now.I.am.certain.that.those.seas.are.not.and.perhaps.never.can.be.in.the.present.constitution.of.things.a.place.for.his.habitual.gregarious.resort.But.further.investigations.have.recently.proved.to.me.that.in.modern.times.there.have.been.isolated.instances.of.the.presence.of.the.sperm.whale.in.the.Mediterranean.I.am.told.on.good.authority.that.on.the.Barbary.coast.a.Commodore.Davis.of.the.British.navy.found.the.skeleton.of.a.sperm.whale.Now.as.a.vessel.of.war.readily.passes.through.the.Dardanelles.hence.a.sperm.whale.could.by.the.same.route.pass.out.of.the.Mediterranean.into.the.Propontis.In.the.Propontis.as.far.as.I.can.learn.none.of.that.peculiar.substance.called.brit.is.to.be.found.the.aliment.of.the.right.whale.But.I.have.every.reason.to.believe.that.the.food.of.the.sperm.whale.squid.or.cuttlefish.lurks.at.the.bottom.of.that.sea.because.large.creatures.but.by.no.means.the.largest.of.that.sort.have.been.found.at.its.surface.If.then.you.properly.put.these.statements.together.and.reason.upon.them.a.bit.you.will.clearly.perceive.that.according.to.all.human.reasoning.Procopiuss.seamonster.that.for.half.a.century.stove.the.ships.of.a.Roman.Emperor.must.in.all.probability.have.been.a.sperm.whale.CHAPTER.46.Surmises.Though.consumed.with.the.hot.fire.of.his.purpose.Ahab.in.all.his.thoughts.and.actions.ever.had.in.view.the.ultimate.capture.of.Moby.Dick.though.he.seemed.ready.to.sacrifice.all.mortal.interests.to.that.one.passion.nevertheless.it.may.have.been.that.he.was.by.nature.and.long.habituation.far.too.wedded.to.a.fiery.whalemans.ways.altogether.to.abandon.the.collateral.prosecution.of.the.voyage.Or.at.least.if.this.were.otherwise.there.were.not.wanting.other.motives.much.more.influential.with.him.It.would.be.refining.too.much.perhaps.even.considering.his.monomania.to.hint.that.his.vindictiveness.towards.the.White.Whale.might.have.possibly.extended.itself.in.some.degree.to.all.sperm.whales.and.that.the.more.monsters.he.slew.by.so.much.the.more.he.multiplied.the.chances.that.each.subsequently.encountered.whale.would.prove.to.be.the.hated.one.he.hunted.But.if.such.an.hypothesis.be.indeed.exceptionable.there.were.still.additional.considerations.which.though.not.so.strictly.according.with.the.wildness.of.his.ruling.passion.yet.were.by.no.means.incapable.of.swaying.him.To.accomplish.his.object.Ahab.must.use.tools.and.of.all.tools.used.in.the.shadow.of.the.moon.men.are.most.apt.to.get.out.of.order.He.knew.for.example.that.however.magnetic.his.ascendency.in.some.respects.was.over.Starbuck.yet.that.ascendency.did.not.cover.the.complete.spiritual.man.any.more.than.mere.corporeal.superiority.involves.intellectual.mastership.for.to.the.purely.spiritual.the.intellectual.but.stand.in.a.sort.of.corporeal.relation.Starbucks.body.and.Starbucks.coerced.will.were.Ahabs.so.long.as.Ahab.kept.his.magnet.at.Starbucks.brain.still.he.knew.that.for.all.this.the.chief.mate.in.his.soul.abhorred.his.captains.quest.and.could.he.would.joyfully.disintegrate.himself.from.it.or.even.frustrate.it.It.might.be.that.a.long.interval.would.elapse.ere.the.White.Whale.was.seen.During.that.long.interval.Starbuck.would.ever.be.apt.to.fall.into.open.relapses.of.rebellion.against.his.captains.leadership.unless.some.ordinary.prudential.circumstantial.influences.were.brought.to.bear.upon.him.Not.only.that.but.the.subtle.insanity.of.Ahab.respecting.Moby.Dick.was.noways.more.significantly.manifested.than.in.his.superlative.sense.and.shrewdness.in.foreseeing.that.for.the.present.the.hunt.should.in.some.way.be.stripped.of.that.strange.imaginative.impiousness.which.naturally.invested.it.that.the.full.terror.of.the.voyage.must.be.kept.withdrawn.into.the.obscure.background.for.few.mens.courage.is.proof.against.protracted.meditation.unrelieved.by.action.that.when.they.stood.their.long.night.watches.his.officers.and.men.must.have.some.nearer.things.to.think.of.than.Moby.Dick.For.however.eagerly.and.impetuously.the.savage.crew.had.hailed.the.announcement.of.his.quest.yet.all.sailors.of.all.sorts.are.more.or.less.capricious.and.unreliable.they.live.in.the.varying.outer.weather.and.they.inhale.its.fickleness.and.when.retained.for.any.object.remote.and.blank.in.the.pursuit.however.promissory.of.life.and.passion.in.the.end.it.is.above.all.things.requisite.that.temporary.interests.and.employments.should.intervene.and.hold.them.healthily.suspended.for.the.final.dash.Nor.was.Ahab.unmindful.of.another.thing.In.times.of.strong.emotion.mankind.disdain.all.base.considerations.but.such.times.are.evanescent.The.permanent.constitutional.condition.of.the.manufactured.man.thought.Ahab.is.sordidness.Granting.that.the.White.Whale.fully.incites.the.hearts.of.this.my.savage.crew.and.playing.round.their.savageness.even.breeds.a.certain.generous.knighterrantism.in.them.still.while.for.the.love.of.it.they.give.chase.to.Moby.Dick.they.must.also.have.food.for.their.more.common.daily.appetites.For.even.the.high.lifted.and.chivalric.Crusaders.of.old.times.were.not.content.to.traverse.two.thousand.miles.of.land.to.fight.for.their.holy.sepulchre.without.committing.burglaries.picking.pockets.and.gaining.other.pious.perquisites.by.the.way.Had.they.been.strictly.held.to.their.one.final.and.romantic.object.that.final.and.romantic.object.too.many.would.have.turned.from.in.disgust.I.will.not.strip.these.men.thought.Ahab.of.all.hopes.of.cash.aye.cash.They.may.scorn.cash.now.but.let.some.months.go.by.and.no.perspective.promise.of.it.to.them.and.then.this.same.quiescent.cash.all.at.once.mutinying.in.them.this.same.cash.would.soon.cashier.Ahab.Nor.was.there.wanting.still.another.precautionary.motive.more.related.to.Ahab.personally.Having.impulsively.it.is.probable.and.perhaps.somewhat.prematurely.revealed.the.prime.but.private.purpose.of.the.Pequods.voyage.Ahab.was.now.entirely.conscious.that.in.so.doing.he.had.indirectly.laid.himself.open.to.the.unanswerable.charge.of.usurpation.and.with.perfect.impunity.both.moral.and.legal.his.crew.if.so.disposed.and.to.that.end.competent.could.refuse.all.further.obedience.to.him.and.even.violently.wrest.from.him.the.command.From.even.the.barely.hinted.imputation.of.usurpation.and.the.possible.consequences.of.such.a.suppressed.impression.gaining.ground.Ahab.must.of.course.have.been.most.anxious.to.protect.himself.That.protection.could.only.consist.in.his.own.predominating.brain.and.heart.and.hand.backed.by.a.heedful.closely.calculating.attention.to.every.minute.atmospheric.influence.which.it.was.possible.for.his.crew.to.be.subjected.to.For.all.these.reasons.then.and.others.perhaps.too.analytic.to.be.verbally.developed.here.Ahab.plainly.saw.that.he.must.still.in.a.good.degree.continue.true.to.the.natural.nominal.purpose.of.the.Pequods.voyage.observe.all.customary.usages.and.not.only.that.but.force.himself.to.evince.all.his.well.known.passionate.interest.in.the.general.pursuit.of.his.profession.Be.all.this.as.it.may.his.voice.was.now.often.heard.hailing.the.three.mastheads.and.admonishing.them.to.keep.a.bright.lookout.and.not.omit.reporting.even.a.porpoise.This.vigilance.was.not.long.without.reward.CHAPTER.47.The.MatMaker.It.was.a.cloudy.sultry.afternoon.the.seamen.were.lazily.lounging.about.the.decks.or.vacantly.gazing.over.into.the.leadcoloured.waters.Queequeg.and.I.were.mildly.employed.weaving.what.is.called.a.swordmat.for.an.additional.lashing.to.our.boat.So.still.and.subdued.and.yet.somehow.preluding.was.all.the.scene.and.such.an.incantation.of.reverie.lurked.in.the.air.that.each.silent.sailor.seemed.resolved.into.his.own.invisible.self.I.was.the.attendant.or.page.of.Queequeg.while.busy.at.the.mat.As.I.kept.passing.and.repassing.the.filling.or.woof.of.marline.between.the.long.yarns.of.the.warp.using.my.own.hand.for.the.shuttle.and.as.Queequeg.standing.sideways.ever.and.anon.slid.his.heavy.oaken.sword.between.the.threads.and.idly.looking.off.upon.the.water.carelessly.and.unthinkingly.drove.home.every.yarn.I.say.so.strange.a.dreaminess.did.there.then.reign.all.over.the.ship.and.all.over.the.sea.only.broken.by.the.intermitting.dull.sound.of.the.sword.that.it.seemed.as.if.this.were.the.Loom.of.Time.and.I.myself.were.a.shuttle.mechanically.weaving.and.weaving.away.at.the.Fates.There.lay.the.fixed.threads.of.the.warp.subject.to.but.one.single.ever.returning.unchanging.vibration.and.that.vibration.merely.enough.to.admit.of.the.crosswise.interblending.of.other.threads.with.its.own.This.warp.seemed.necessity.and.here.thought.I.with.my.own.hand.I.ply.my.own.shuttle.and.weave.my.own.destiny.into.these.unalterable.threads.Meantime.Queequegs.impulsive.indifferent.sword.sometimes.hitting.the.woof.slantingly.or.crookedly.or.strongly.or.weakly.as.the.case.might.be.and.by.this.difference.in.the.concluding.blow.producing.a.corresponding.contrast.in.the.final.aspect.of.the.completed.fabric.this.savages.sword.thought.I.which.thus.finally.shapes.and.fashions.both.warp.and.woof.this.easy.indifferent.sword.must.be.chance.aye.chance.free.will.and.necessity.nowise.incompatible.all.interweavingly.working.together.The.straight.warp.of.necessity.not.to.be.swerved.from.its.ultimate.course.its.every.alternating.vibration.indeed.only.tending.to.that.free.will.still.free.to.ply.her.shuttle.between.given.threads.and.chance.though.restrained.in.its.play.within.the.right.lines.of.necessity.and.sideways.in.its.motions.directed.by.free.will.though.thus.prescribed.to.by.both.chance.by.turns.rules.either.and.has.the.last.featuring.blow.at.events.Thus.we.were.weaving.and.weaving.away.when.I.started.at.a.sound.so.strange.long.drawn.and.musically.wild.and.unearthly.that.the.ball.of.free.will.dropped.from.my.hand.and.I.stood.gazing.up.at.the.clouds.whence.that.voice.dropped.like.a.wing.High.aloft.in.the.crosstrees.was.that.mad.GayHeader.Tashtego.His.body.was.reaching.eagerly.forward.his.hand.stretched.out.like.a.wand.and.at.brief.sudden.intervals.he.continued.his.cries.To.be.sure.the.same.sound.was.that.very.moment.perhaps.being.heard.all.over.the.seas.from.hundreds.of.whalemens.lookouts.perched.as.high.in.the.air.but.from.few.of.those.lungs.could.that.accustomed.old.cry.have.derived.such.a.marvellous.cadence.as.from.Tashtego.the.Indians.As.he.stood.hovering.over.you.half.suspended.in.air.so.wildly.and.eagerly.peering.towards.the.horizon.you.would.have.thought.him.some.prophet.or.seer.beholding.the.shadows.of.Fate.and.by.those.wild.cries.announcing.their.coming.There.she.blows.there.there.there.she.blows.she.blows.Whereaway.On.the.leebeam.about.two.miles.off.a.school.of.them.Instantly.all.was.commotion.The.Sperm.Whale.blows.as.a.clock.ticks.with.the.same.undeviating.and.reliable.uniformity.And.thereby.whalemen.distinguish.this.fish.from.other.tribes.of.his.genus.There.go.flukes.was.now.the.cry.from.Tashtego.and.the.whales.disappeared.Quick.steward.cried.Ahab.Time.time.DoughBoy.hurried.below.glanced.at.the.watch.and.reported.the.exact.minute.to.Ahab.The.ship.was.now.kept.away.from.the.wind.and.she.went.gently.rolling.before.it.Tashtego.reporting.that.the.whales.had.gone.down.heading.to.leeward.we.confidently.looked.to.see.them.again.directly.in.advance.of.our.bows.For.that.singular.craft.at.times.evinced.by.the.Sperm.Whale.when.sounding.with.his.head.in.one.direction.he.nevertheless.while.concealed.beneath.the.surface.mills.round.and.swiftly.swims.off.in.the.opposite.quarter.this.deceitfulness.of.his.could.not.now.be.in.action.for.there.was.no.reason.to.suppose.that.the.fish.seen.by.Tashtego.had.been.in.any.way.alarmed.or.indeed.knew.at.all.of.our.vicinity.One.of.the.men.selected.for.shipkeepers.that.is.those.not.appointed.to.the.boats.by.this.time.relieved.the.Indian.at.the.mainmast.head.The.sailors.at.the.fore.and.mizzen.had.come.down.the.line.tubs.were.fixed.in.their.places.the.cranes.were.thrust.out.the.mainyard.was.backed.and.the.three.boats.swung.over.the.sea.like.three.samphire.baskets.over.high.cliffs.Outside.of.the.bulwarks.their.eager.crews.with.one.hand.clung.to.the.rail.while.one.foot.was.expectantly.poised.on.the.gunwale.So.look.the.long.line.of.manofwars.men.about.to.throw.themselves.on.board.an.enemys.ship.But.at.this.critical.instant.a.sudden.exclamation.was.heard.that.took.every.eye.from.the.whale.With.a.start.all.glared.at.dark.Ahab.who.was.surrounded.by.five.dusky.phantoms.that.seemed.fresh.formed.out.of.air.CHAPTER.48.The.First.Lowering.The.phantoms.for.so.they.then.seemed.were.flitting.on.the.other.side.of.the.deck.and.with.a.noiseless.celerity.were.casting.loose.the.tackles.and.bands.of.the.boat.which.swung.there.This.boat.had.always.been.deemed.one.of.the.spare.boats.though.technically.called.the.captains.on.account.of.its.hanging.from.the.starboard.quarter.The.figure.that.now.stood.by.its.bows.was.tall.and.swart.with.one.white.tooth.evilly.protruding.from.its.steellike.lips.A.rumpled.Chinese.jacket.of.black.cotton.funereally.invested.him.with.wide.black.trowsers.of.the.same.dark.stuff.But.strangely.crowning.this.ebonness.was.a.glistening.white.plaited.turban.the.living.hair.braided.and.coiled.round.and.round.upon.his.head.Less.swart.in.aspect.the.companions.of.this.figure.were.of.that.vivid.tigeryellow.complexion.peculiar.to.some.of.the.aboriginal.natives.of.the.Manillas.a.race.notorious.for.a.certain.diabolism.of.subtilty.and.by.some.honest.white.mariners.supposed.to.be.the.paid.spies.and.secret.confidential.agents.on.the.water.of.the.devil.their.lord.whose.countingroom.they.suppose.to.be.elsewhere.While.yet.the.wondering.ships.company.were.gazing.upon.these.strangers.Ahab.cried.out.to.the.whiteturbaned.old.man.at.their.head.All.ready.there.Fedallah.Ready.was.the.halfhissed.reply.Lower.away.then.dye.hear.shouting.across.the.deck.Lower.away.there.I.say.Such.was.the.thunder.of.his.voice.that.spite.of.their.amazement.the.men.sprang.over.the.rail.the.sheaves.whirled.round.in.the.blocks.with.a.wallow.the.three.boats.dropped.into.the.sea.while.with.a.dexterous.offhanded.daring.unknown.in.any.other.vocation.the.sailors.goatlike.leaped.down.the.rolling.ships.side.into.the.tossed.boats.below.Hardly.had.they.pulled.out.from.under.the.ships.lee.when.a.fourth.keel.coming.from.the.windward.side.pulled.round.under.the.stern.and.showed.the.five.strangers.rowing.Ahab.who.standing.erect.in.the.stern.loudly.hailed.Starbuck.Stubb.and.Flask.to.spread.themselves.widely.so.as.to.cover.a.large.expanse.of.water.But.with.all.their.eyes.again.riveted.upon.the.swart.Fedallah.and.his.crew.the.inmates.of.the.other.boats.obeyed.not.the.command.Captain.Ahab.said.Starbuck.Spread.yourselves.cried.Ahab.give.way.all.four.boats.Thou.Flask.pull.out.more.to.leeward.Aye.aye.sir.cheerily.cried.little.KingPost.sweeping.round.his.great.steering.oar.Lay.back.addressing.his.crew.There.there.there.again.There.she.blows.right.ahead.boys.lay.back.Never.heed.yonder.yellow.boys.Archy.Oh.I.dont.mind.em.sir.said.Archy.I.knew.it.all.before.now.Didnt.I.hear.em.in.the.hold.And.didnt.I.tell.Cabaco.here.of.it.What.say.ye.Cabaco.They.are.stowaways.Mr.Flask.Pull.pull.my.fine.heartsalive.pull.my.children.pull.my.little.ones.drawlingly.and.soothingly.sighed.Stubb.to.his.crew.some.of.whom.still.showed.signs.of.uneasiness.Why.dont.you.break.your.backbones.my.boys.What.is.it.you.stare.at.Those.chaps.in.yonder.boat.Tut.They.are.only.five.more.hands.come.to.help.us.never.mind.from.where.the.more.the.merrier.Pull.then.do.pull.never.mind.the.brimstone.devils.are.good.fellows.enough.So.so.there.you.are.now.thats.the.stroke.for.a.thousand.pounds.thats.the.stroke.to.sweep.the.stakes.Hurrah.for.the.gold.cup.of.sperm.oil.my.heroes.Three.cheers.men.all.hearts.alive.Easy.easy.dont.be.in.a.hurry.dont.be.in.a.hurry.Why.dont.you.snap.your.oars.you.rascals.Bite.something.you.dogs.So.so.so.then.softly.softly.Thats.it.thats.it.long.and.strong.Give.way.there.give.way.The.devil.fetch.ye.ye.ragamuffin.rapscallions.ye.are.all.asleep.Stop.snoring.ye.sleepers.and.pull.Pull.will.ye.pull.cant.ye.pull.wont.ye.Why.in.the.name.of.gudgeons.and.gingercakes.dont.ye.pull.pull.and.break.something.pull.and.start.your.eyes.out.Here.whipping.out.the.sharp.knife.from.his.girdle.every.mothers.son.of.ye.draw.his.knife.and.pull.with.the.blade.between.his.teeth.Thats.it.thats.it.Now.ye.do.something.that.looks.like.it.my.steelbits.Start.her.start.her.my.silverspoons.Start.her.marlingspikes.Stubbs.exordium.to.his.crew.is.given.here.at.large.because.he.had.rather.a.peculiar.way.of.talking.to.them.in.general.and.especially.in.inculcating.the.religion.of.rowing.But.you.must.not.suppose.from.this.specimen.of.his.sermonizings.that.he.ever.flew.into.downright.passions.with.his.congregation.Not.at.all.and.therein.consisted.his.chief.peculiarity.He.would.say.the.most.terrific.things.to.his.crew.in.a.tone.so.strangely.compounded.of.fun.and.fury.and.the.fury.seemed.so.calculated.merely.as.a.spice.to.the.fun.that.no.oarsman.could.hear.such.queer.invocations.without.pulling.for.dear.life.and.yet.pulling.for.the.mere.joke.of.the.thing.Besides.he.all.the.time.looked.so.easy.and.indolent.himself.so.loungingly.managed.his.steeringoar.and.so.broadly.gaped.openmouthed.at.times.that.the.mere.sight.of.such.a.yawning.commander.by.sheer.force.of.contrast.acted.like.a.charm.upon.the.crew.Then.again.Stubb.was.one.of.those.odd.sort.of.humorists.whose.jollity.is.sometimes.so.curiously.ambiguous.as.to.put.all.inferiors.on.their.guard.in.the.matter.of.obeying.them.In.obedience.to.a.sign.from.Ahab.Starbuck.was.now.pulling.obliquely.across.Stubbs.bow.and.when.for.a.minute.or.so.the.two.boats.were.pretty.near.to.each.other.Stubb.hailed.the.mate.Mr.Starbuck.larboard.boat.there.ahoy.a.word.with.ye.sir.if.ye.please.Halloa.returned.Starbuck.turning.round.not.a.single.inch.as.he.spoke.still.earnestly.but.whisperingly.urging.his.crew.his.face.set.like.a.flint.from.Stubbs.What.think.ye.of.those.yellow.boys.sir.Smuggled.on.board.somehow.before.the.ship.sailed.Strong.strong.boys.in.a.whisper.to.his.crew.then.speaking.out.loud.again.A.sad.business.Mr.Stubb.seethe.her.seethe.her.my.lads.but.never.mind.Mr.Stubb.all.for.the.best.Let.all.your.crew.pull.strong.come.what.will.Spring.my.men.spring.Theres.hogsheads.of.sperm.ahead.Mr.Stubb.and.thats.what.ye.came.for.Pull.my.boys.Sperm.sperms.the.play.This.at.least.is.duty.duty.and.profit.hand.in.hand.Aye.aye.I.thought.as.much.soliloquized.Stubb.when.the.boats.diverged.as.soon.as.I.clapt.eye.on.em.I.thought.so.Aye.and.thats.what.he.went.into.the.after.hold.for.so.often.as.DoughBoy.long.suspected.They.were.hidden.down.there.The.White.Whales.at.the.bottom.of.it.Well.well.so.be.it.Cant.be.helped.All.right.Give.way.men.It.aint.the.White.Whale.today.Give.way.Now.the.advent.of.these.outlandish.strangers.at.such.a.critical.instant.as.the.lowering.of.the.boats.from.the.deck.this.had.not.unreasonably.awakened.a.sort.of.superstitious.amazement.in.some.of.the.ships.company.but.Archys.fancied.discovery.having.some.time.previous.got.abroad.among.them.though.indeed.not.credited.then.this.had.in.some.small.measure.prepared.them.for.the.event.It.took.off.the.extreme.edge.of.their.wonder.and.so.what.with.all.this.and.Stubbs.confident.way.of.accounting.for.their.appearance.they.were.for.the.time.freed.from.superstitious.surmisings.though.the.affair.still.left.abundant.room.for.all.manner.of.wild.conjectures.as.to.dark.Ahabs.precise.agency.in.the.matter.from.the.beginning.For.me.I.silently.recalled.the.mysterious.shadows.I.had.seen.creeping.on.board.the.Pequod.during.the.dim.Nantucket.dawn.as.well.as.the.enigmatical.hintings.of.the.unaccountable.Elijah.Meantime.Ahab.out.of.hearing.of.his.officers.having.sided.the.furthest.to.windward.was.still.ranging.ahead.of.the.other.boats.a.circumstance.bespeaking.how.potent.a.crew.was.pulling.him.Those.tiger.yellow.creatures.of.his.seemed.all.steel.and.whalebone.like.five.triphammers.they.rose.and.fell.with.regular.strokes.of.strength.which.periodically.started.the.boat.along.the.water.like.a.horizontal.burst.boiler.out.of.a.Mississippi.steamer.As.for.Fedallah.who.was.seen.pulling.the.harpooneer.oar.he.had.thrown.aside.his.black.jacket.and.displayed.his.naked.chest.with.the.whole.part.of.his.body.above.the.gunwale.clearly.cut.against.the.alternating.depressions.of.the.watery.horizon.while.at.the.other.end.of.the.boat.Ahab.with.one.arm.like.a.fencers.thrown.half.backward.into.the.air.as.if.to.counterbalance.any.tendency.to.trip.Ahab.was.seen.steadily.managing.his.steering.oar.as.in.a.thousand.boat.lowerings.ere.the.White.Whale.had.torn.him.All.at.once.the.outstretched.arm.gave.a.peculiar.motion.and.then.remained.fixed.while.the.boats.five.oars.were.seen.simultaneously.peaked.Boat.and.crew.sat.motionless.on.the.sea.Instantly.the.three.spread.boats.in.the.rear.paused.on.their.way.The.whales.had.irregularly.settled.bodily.down.into.the.blue.thus.giving.no.distantly.discernible.token.of.the.movement.though.from.his.closer.vicinity.Ahab.had.observed.it.Every.man.look.out.along.his.oars.cried.Starbuck.Thou.Queequeg.stand.up.Nimbly.springing.up.on.the.triangular.raised.box.in.the.bow.the.savage.stood.erect.there.and.with.intensely.eager.eyes.gazed.off.towards.the.spot.where.the.chase.had.last.been.descried.Likewise.upon.the.extreme.stern.of.the.boat.where.it.was.also.triangularly.platformed.level.with.the.gunwale.Starbuck.himself.was.seen.coolly.and.adroitly.balancing.himself.to.the.jerking.tossings.of.his.chip.of.a.craft.and.silently.eyeing.the.vast.blue.eye.of.the.sea.Not.very.far.distant.Flasks.boat.was.also.lying.breathlessly.still.its.commander.recklessly.standing.upon.the.top.of.the.loggerhead.a.stout.sort.of.post.rooted.in.the.keel.and.rising.some.two.feet.above.the.level.of.the.stern.platform.It.is.used.for.catching.turns.with.the.whale.line.Its.top.is.not.more.spacious.than.the.palm.of.a.mans.hand.and.standing.upon.such.a.base.as.that.Flask.seemed.perched.at.the.masthead.of.some.ship.which.had.sunk.to.all.but.her.trucks.But.little.KingPost.was.small.and.short.and.at.the.same.time.little.KingPost.was.full.of.a.large.and.tall.ambition.so.that.this.loggerhead.standpoint.of.his.did.by.no.means.satisfy.KingPost.I.cant.see.three.seas.off.tip.us.up.an.oar.there.and.let.me.on.to.that.Upon.this.Daggoo.with.either.hand.upon.the.gunwale.to.steady.his.way.swiftly.slid.aft.and.then.erecting.himself.volunteered.his.lofty.shoulders.for.a.pedestal.Good.a.masthead.as.any.sir.Will.you.mount.That.I.will.and.thank.ye.very.much.my.fine.fellow.only.I.wish.you.fifty.feet.taller.Whereupon.planting.his.feet.firmly.against.two.opposite.planks.of.the.boat.the.gigantic.negro.stooping.a.little.presented.his.flat.palm.to.Flasks.foot.and.then.putting.Flasks.hand.on.his.hearseplumed.head.and.bidding.him.spring.as.he.himself.should.toss.with.one.dexterous.fling.landed.the.little.man.high.and.dry.on.his.shoulders.And.here.was.Flask.now.standing.Daggoo.with.one.lifted.arm.furnishing.him.with.a.breastband.to.lean.against.and.steady.himself.by.At.any.time.it.is.a.strange.sight.to.the.tyro.to.see.with.what.wondrous.habitude.of.unconscious.skill.the.whaleman.will.maintain.an.erect.posture.in.his.boat.even.when.pitched.about.by.the.most.riotously.perverse.and.crossrunning.seas.Still.more.strange.to.see.him.giddily.perched.upon.the.loggerhead.itself.under.such.circumstances.But.the.sight.of.little.Flask.mounted.upon.gigantic.Daggoo.was.yet.more.curious.for.sustaining.himself.with.a.cool.indifferent.easy.unthought.of.barbaric.majesty.the.noble.negro.to.every.roll.of.the.sea.harmoniously.rolled.his.fine.form.On.his.broad.back.flaxenhaired.Flask.seemed.a.snowflake.The.bearer.looked.nobler.than.the.rider.Though.truly.vivacious.tumultuous.ostentatious.little.Flask.would.now.and.then.stamp.with.impatience.but.not.one.added.heave.did.he.thereby.give.to.the.negros.lordly.chest.So.have.I.seen.Passion.and.Vanity.stamping.the.living.magnanimous.earth.but.the.earth.did.not.alter.her.tides.and.her.seasons.for.that.Meanwhile.Stubb.the.third.mate.betrayed.no.such.fargazing.solicitudes.The.whales.might.have.made.one.of.their.regular.soundings.not.a.temporary.dive.from.mere.fright.and.if.that.were.the.case.Stubb.as.his.wont.in.such.cases.it.seems.was.resolved.to.solace.the.languishing.interval.with.his.pipe.He.withdrew.it.from.his.hatband.where.he.always.wore.it.aslant.like.a.feather.He.loaded.it.and.rammed.home.the.loading.with.his.thumbend.but.hardly.had.he.ignited.his.match.across.the.rough.sandpaper.of.his.hand.when.Tashtego.his.harpooneer.whose.eyes.had.been.setting.to.windward.like.two.fixed.stars.suddenly.dropped.like.light.from.his.erect.attitude.to.his.seat.crying.out.in.a.quick.phrensy.of.hurry.Down.down.all.and.give.way.there.they.are.To.a.landsman.no.whale.nor.any.sign.of.a.herring.would.have.been.visible.at.that.moment.nothing.but.a.troubled.bit.of.greenish.white.water.and.thin.scattered.puffs.of.vapor.hovering.over.it.and.suffusingly.blowing.off.to.leeward.like.the.confused.scud.from.white.rolling.billows.The.air.around.suddenly.vibrated.and.tingled.as.it.were.like.the.air.over.intensely.heated.plates.of.iron.Beneath.this.atmospheric.waving.and.curling.and.partially.beneath.a.thin.layer.of.water.also.the.whales.were.swimming.Seen.in.advance.of.all.the.other.indications.the.puffs.of.vapor.they.spouted.seemed.their.forerunning.couriers.and.detached.flying.outriders.All.four.boats.were.now.in.keen.pursuit.of.that.one.spot.of.troubled.water.and.air.But.it.bade.fair.to.outstrip.them.it.flew.on.and.on.as.a.mass.of.interblending.bubbles.borne.down.a.rapid.stream.from.the.hills.Pull.pull.my.good.boys.said.Starbuck.in.the.lowest.possible.but.intensest.concentrated.whisper.to.his.men.while.the.sharp.fixed.glance.from.his.eyes.darted.straight.ahead.of.the.bow.almost.seemed.as.two.visible.needles.in.two.unerring.binnacle.compasses.He.did.not.say.much.to.his.crew.though.nor.did.his.crew.say.anything.to.him.Only.the.silence.of.the.boat.was.at.intervals.startlingly.pierced.by.one.of.his.peculiar.whispers.now.harsh.with.command.now.soft.with.entreaty.How.different.the.loud.little.KingPost.Sing.out.and.say.something.my.hearties.Roar.and.pull.my.thunderbolts.Beach.me.beach.me.on.their.black.backs.boys.only.do.that.for.me.and.Ill.sign.over.to.you.my.Marthas.Vineyard.plantation.boys.including.wife.and.children.boys.Lay.me.on.lay.me.on.O.Lord.Lord.but.I.shall.go.stark.staring.mad.See.see.that.white.water.And.so.shouting.he.pulled.his.hat.from.his.head.and.stamped.up.and.down.on.it.then.picking.it.up.flirted.it.far.off.upon.the.sea.and.finally.fell.to.rearing.and.plunging.in.the.boats.stern.like.a.crazed.colt.from.the.prairie.Look.at.that.chap.now.philosophically.drawled.Stubb.who.with.his.unlighted.short.pipe.mechanically.retained.between.his.teeth.at.a.short.distance.followed.after.Hes.got.fits.that.Flask.has.Fits.yes.give.him.fits.thats.the.very.word.pitch.fits.into.em.Merrily.merrily.heartsalive.Pudding.for.supper.you.know.merrys.the.word.Pull.babes.pull.sucklings.pull.all.But.what.the.devil.are.you.hurrying.about.Softly.softly.and.steadily.my.men.Only.pull.and.keep.pulling.nothing.more.Crack.all.your.backbones.and.bite.your.knives.in.two.thats.all.Take.it.easy.why.dont.ye.take.it.easy.I.say.and.burst.all.your.livers.and.lungs.But.what.it.was.that.inscrutable.Ahab.said.to.that.tigeryellow.crew.of.his.these.were.words.best.omitted.here.for.you.live.under.the.blessed.light.of.the.evangelical.land.Only.the.infidel.sharks.in.the.audacious.seas.may.give.ear.to.such.words.when.with.tornado.brow.and.eyes.of.red.murder.and.foamglued.lips.Ahab.leaped.after.his.prey.Meanwhile.all.the.boats.tore.on.The.repeated.specific.allusions.of.Flask.to.that.whale.as.he.called.the.fictitious.monster.which.he.declared.to.be.incessantly.tantalizing.his.boats.bow.with.its.tail.these.allusions.of.his.were.at.times.so.vivid.and.lifelike.that.they.would.cause.some.one.or.two.of.his.men.to.snatch.a.fearful.look.over.the.shoulder.But.this.was.against.all.rule.for.the.oarsmen.must.put.out.their.eyes.and.ram.a.skewer.through.their.necks.usage.pronouncing.that.they.must.have.no.organs.but.ears.and.no.limbs.but.arms.in.these.critical.moments.It.was.a.sight.full.of.quick.wonder.and.awe.The.vast.swells.of.the.omnipotent.sea.the.surging.hollow.roar.they.made.as.they.rolled.along.the.eight.gunwales.like.gigantic.bowls.in.a.boundless.bowlinggreen.the.brief.suspended.agony.of.the.boat.as.it.would.tip.for.an.instant.on.the.knifelike.edge.of.the.sharper.waves.that.almost.seemed.threatening.to.cut.it.in.two.the.sudden.profound.dip.into.the.watery.glens.and.hollows.the.keen.spurrings.and.goadings.to.gain.the.top.of.the.opposite.hill.the.headlong.sledlike.slide.down.its.other.side.all.these.with.the.cries.of.the.headsmen.and.harpooneers.and.the.shuddering.gasps.of.the.oarsmen.with.the.wondrous.sight.of.the.ivory.Pequod.bearing.down.upon.her.boats.with.outstretched.sails.like.a.wild.hen.after.her.screaming.brood.all.this.was.thrilling.Not.the.raw.recruit.marching.from.the.bosom.of.his.wife.into.the.fever.heat.of.his.first.battle.not.the.dead.mans.ghost.encountering.the.first.unknown.phantom.in.the.other.world.neither.of.these.can.feel.stranger.and.stronger.emotions.than.that.man.does.who.for.the.first.time.finds.himself.pulling.into.the.charmed.churned.circle.of.the.hunted.sperm.whale.The.dancing.white.water.made.by.the.chase.was.now.becoming.more.and.more.visible.owing.to.the.increasing.darkness.of.the.dun.cloudshadows.flung.upon.the.sea.The.jets.of.vapor.no.longer.blended.but.tilted.everywhere.to.right.and.left.the.whales.seemed.separating.their.wakes.The.boats.were.pulled.more.apart.Starbuck.giving.chase.to.three.whales.running.dead.to.leeward.Our.sail.was.now.set.and.with.the.still.rising.wind.we.rushed.along.the.boat.going.with.such.madness.through.the.water.that.the.lee.oars.could.scarcely.be.worked.rapidly.enough.to.escape.being.torn.from.the.rowlocks.Soon.we.were.running.through.a.suffusing.wide.veil.of.mist.neither.ship.nor.boat.to.be.seen.Give.way.men.whispered.Starbuck.drawing.still.further.aft.the.sheet.of.his.sail.there.is.time.to.kill.a.fish.yet.before.the.squall.comes.Theres.white.water.again.close.to.Spring.Soon.after.two.cries.in.quick.succession.on.each.side.of.us.denoted.that.the.other.boats.had.got.fast.but.hardly.were.they.overheard.when.with.a.lightninglike.hurtling.whisper.Starbuck.said.Stand.up.and.Queequeg.harpoon.in.hand.sprang.to.his.feet.Though.not.one.of.the.oarsmen.was.then.facing.the.life.and.death.peril.so.close.to.them.ahead.yet.with.their.eyes.on.the.intense.countenance.of.the.mate.in.the.stern.of.the.boat.they.knew.that.the.imminent.instant.had.come.they.heard.too.an.enormous.wallowing.sound.as.of.fifty.elephants.stirring.in.their.litter.Meanwhile.the.boat.was.still.booming.through.the.mist.the.waves.curling.and.hissing.around.us.like.the.erected.crests.of.enraged.serpents.Thats.his.hump.There.there.give.it.to.him.whispered.Starbuck.A.short.rushing.sound.leaped.out.of.the.boat.it.was.the.darted.iron.of.Queequeg.Then.all.in.one.welded.commotion.came.an.invisible.push.from.astern.while.forward.the.boat.seemed.striking.on.a.ledge.the.sail.collapsed.and.exploded.a.gush.of.scalding.vapor.shot.up.near.by.something.rolled.and.tumbled.like.an.earthquake.beneath.us.The.whole.crew.were.half.suffocated.as.they.were.tossed.helterskelter.into.the.white.curdling.cream.of.the.squall.Squall.whale.and.harpoon.had.all.blended.together.and.the.whale.merely.grazed.by.the.iron.escaped.Though.completely.swamped.the.boat.was.nearly.unharmed.Swimming.round.it.we.picked.up.the.floating.oars.and.lashing.them.across.the.gunwale.tumbled.back.to.our.places.There.we.sat.up.to.our.knees.in.the.sea.the.water.covering.every.rib.and.plank.so.that.to.our.downward.gazing.eyes.the.suspended.craft.seemed.a.coral.boat.grown.up.to.us.from.the.bottom.of.the.ocean.The.wind.increased.to.a.howl.the.waves.dashed.their.bucklers.together.the.whole.squall.roared.forked.and.crackled.around.us.like.a.white.fire.upon.the.prairie.in.which.unconsumed.we.were.burning.immortal.in.these.jaws.of.death.In.vain.we.hailed.the.other.boats.as.well.roar.to.the.live.coals.down.the.chimney.of.a.flaming.furnace.as.hail.those.boats.in.that.storm.Meanwhile.the.driving.scud.rack.and.mist.grew.darker.with.the.shadows.of.night.no.sign.of.the.ship.could.be.seen.The.rising.sea.forbade.all.attempts.to.bale.out.the.boat.The.oars.were.useless.as.propellers.performing.now.the.office.of.lifepreservers.So.cutting.the.lashing.of.the.waterproof.match.keg.after.many.failures.Starbuck.contrived.to.ignite.the.lamp.in.the.lantern.then.stretching.it.on.a.waif.pole.handed.it.to.Queequeg.as.the.standardbearer.of.this.forlorn.hope.There.then.he.sat.holding.up.that.imbecile.candle.in.the.heart.of.that.almighty.forlornness.There.then.he.sat.the.sign.and.symbol.of.a.man.without.faith.hopelessly.holding.up.hope.in.the.midst.of.despair.Wet.drenched.through.and.shivering.cold.despairing.of.ship.or.boat.we.lifted.up.our.eyes.as.the.dawn.came.on.The.mist.still.spread.over.the.sea.the.empty.lantern.lay.crushed.in.the.bottom.of.the.boat.Suddenly.Queequeg.started.to.his.feet.hollowing.his.hand.to.his.ear.We.all.heard.a.faint.creaking.as.of.ropes.and.yards.hitherto.muffled.by.the.storm.The.sound.came.nearer.and.nearer.the.thick.mists.were.dimly.parted.by.a.huge.vague.form.Affrighted.we.all.sprang.into.the.sea.as.the.ship.at.last.loomed.into.view.bearing.right.down.upon.us.within.a.distance.of.not.much.more.than.its.length.Floating.on.the.waves.we.saw.the.abandoned.boat.as.for.one.instant.it.tossed.and.gaped.beneath.the.ships.bows.like.a.chip.at.the.base.of.a.cataract.and.then.the.vast.hull.rolled.over.it.and.it.was.seen.no.more.till.it.came.up.weltering.astern.Again.we.swam.for.it.were.dashed.against.it.by.the.seas.and.were.at.last.taken.up.and.safely.landed.on.board.Ere.the.squall.came.close.to.the.other.boats.had.cut.loose.from.their.fish.and.returned.to.the.ship.in.good.time.The.ship.had.given.us.up.but.was.still.cruising.if.haply.it.might.light.upon.some.token.of.our.perishing.an.oar.or.a.lance.pole.CHAPTER.49.The.Hyena.There.are.certain.queer.times.and.occasions.in.this.strange.mixed.affair.we.call.life.when.a.man.takes.this.whole.universe.for.a.vast.practical.joke.though.the.wit.thereof.he.but.dimly.discerns.and.more.than.suspects.that.the.joke.is.at.nobodys.expense.but.his.own.However.nothing.dispirits.and.nothing.seems.worth.while.disputing.He.bolts.down.all.events.all.creeds.and.beliefs.and.persuasions.all.hard.things.visible.and.invisible.never.mind.how.knobby.as.an.ostrich.of.potent.digestion.gobbles.down.bullets.and.gun.flints.And.as.for.small.difficulties.and.worryings.prospects.of.sudden.disaster.peril.of.life.and.limb.all.these.and.death.itself.seem.to.him.only.sly.goodnatured.hits.and.jolly.punches.in.the.side.bestowed.by.the.unseen.and.unaccountable.old.joker.That.odd.sort.of.wayward.mood.I.am.speaking.of.comes.over.a.man.only.in.some.time.of.extreme.tribulation.it.comes.in.the.very.midst.of.his.earnestness.so.that.what.just.before.might.have.seemed.to.him.a.thing.most.momentous.now.seems.but.a.part.of.the.general.joke.There.is.nothing.like.the.perils.of.whaling.to.breed.this.free.and.easy.sort.of.genial.desperado.philosophy.and.with.it.I.now.regarded.this.whole.voyage.of.the.Pequod.and.the.great.White.Whale.its.object.Queequeg.said.I.when.they.had.dragged.me.the.last.man.to.the.deck.and.I.was.still.shaking.myself.in.my.jacket.to.fling.off.the.water.Queequeg.my.fine.friend.does.this.sort.of.thing.often.happen.Without.much.emotion.though.soaked.through.just.like.me.he.gave.me.to.understand.that.such.things.did.often.happen.Mr.Stubb.said.I.turning.to.that.worthy.who.buttoned.up.in.his.oiljacket.was.now.calmly.smoking.his.pipe.in.the.rain.Mr.Stubb.I.think.I.have.heard.you.say.that.of.all.whalemen.you.ever.met.our.chief.mate.Mr.Starbuck.is.by.far.the.most.careful.and.prudent.I.suppose.then.that.going.plump.on.a.flying.whale.with.your.sail.set.in.a.foggy.squall.is.the.height.of.a.whalemans.discretion.Certain.Ive.lowered.for.whales.from.a.leaking.ship.in.a.gale.off.Cape.Horn.Mr.Flask.said.I.turning.to.little.KingPost.who.was.standing.close.by.you.are.experienced.in.these.things.and.I.am.not.Will.you.tell.me.whether.it.is.an.unalterable.law.in.this.fishery.Mr.Flask.for.an.oarsman.to.break.his.own.back.pulling.himself.backforemost.into.deaths.jaws.Cant.you.twist.that.smaller.said.Flask.Yes.thats.the.law.I.should.like.to.see.a.boats.crew.backing.water.up.to.a.whale.face.foremost.Ha.ha.the.whale.would.give.them.squint.for.squint.mind.that.Here.then.from.three.impartial.witnesses.I.had.a.deliberate.statement.of.the.entire.case.Considering.therefore.that.squalls.and.capsizings.in.the.water.and.consequent.bivouacks.on.the.deep.were.matters.of.common.occurrence.in.this.kind.of.life.considering.that.at.the.superlatively.critical.instant.of.going.on.to.the.whale.I.must.resign.my.life.into.the.hands.of.him.who.steered.the.boat.oftentimes.a.fellow.who.at.that.very.moment.is.in.his.impetuousness.upon.the.point.of.scuttling.the.craft.with.his.own.frantic.stampings.considering.that.the.particular.disaster.to.our.own.particular.boat.was.chiefly.to.be.imputed.to.Starbucks.driving.on.to.his.whale.almost.in.the.teeth.of.a.squall.and.considering.that.Starbuck.notwithstanding.was.famous.for.his.great.heedfulness.in.the.fishery.considering.that.I.belonged.to.this.uncommonly.prudent.Starbucks.boat.and.finally.considering.in.what.a.devils.chase.I.was.implicated.touching.the.White.Whale.taking.all.things.together.I.say.I.thought.I.might.as.well.go.below.and.make.a.rough.draft.of.my.will.Queequeg.said.I.come.along.you.shall.be.my.lawyer.executor.and.legatee.It.may.seem.strange.that.of.all.men.sailors.should.be.tinkering.at.their.last.wills.and.testaments.but.there.are.no.people.in.the.world.more.fond.of.that.diversion.This.was.the.fourth.time.in.my.nautical.life.that.I.had.done.the.same.thing.After.the.ceremony.was.concluded.upon.the.present.occasion.I.felt.all.the.easier.a.stone.was.rolled.away.from.my.heart.Besides.all.the.days.I.should.now.live.would.be.as.good.as.the.days.that.Lazarus.lived.after.his.resurrection.a.supplementary.clean.gain.of.so.many.months.or.weeks.as.the.case.might.be.I.survived.myself.my.death.and.burial.were.locked.up.in.my.chest.I.looked.round.me.tranquilly.and.contentedly.like.a.quiet.ghost.with.a.clean.conscience.sitting.inside.the.bars.of.a.snug.family.vault.Now.then.thought.I.unconsciously.rolling.up.the.sleeves.of.my.frock.here.goes.for.a.cool.collected.dive.at.death.and.destruction.and.the.devil.fetch.the.hindmost.CHAPTER.50.Ahabs.Boat.and.Crew.Fedallah.Who.would.have.thought.it.Flask.cried.Stubb.if.I.had.but.one.leg.you.would.not.catch.me.in.a.boat.unless.maybe.to.stop.the.plughole.with.my.timber.toe.Oh.hes.a.wonderful.old.man.I.dont.think.it.so.strange.after.all.on.that.account.said.Flask.If.his.leg.were.off.at.the.hip.now.it.would.be.a.different.thing.That.would.disable.him.but.he.has.one.knee.and.good.part.of.the.other.left.you.know.I.dont.know.that.my.little.man.I.never.yet.saw.him.kneel.Among.whalewise.people.it.has.often.been.argued.whether.considering.the.paramount.importance.of.his.life.to.the.success.of.the.voyage.it.is.right.for.a.whaling.captain.to.jeopardize.that.life.in.the.active.perils.of.the.chase.So.Tamerlanes.soldiers.often.argued.with.tears.in.their.eyes.whether.that.invaluable.life.of.his.ought.to.be.carried.into.the.thickest.of.the.fight.But.with.Ahab.the.question.assumed.a.modified.aspect.Considering.that.with.two.legs.man.is.but.a.hobbling.wight.in.all.times.of.danger.considering.that.the.pursuit.of.whales.is.always.under.great.and.extraordinary.difficulties.that.every.individual.moment.indeed.then.comprises.a.peril.under.these.circumstances.is.it.wise.for.any.maimed.man.to.enter.a.whaleboat.in.the.hunt.As.a.general.thing.the.jointowners.of.the.Pequod.must.have.plainly.thought.not.Ahab.well.knew.that.although.his.friends.at.home.would.think.little.of.his.entering.a.boat.in.certain.comparatively.harmless.vicissitudes.of.the.chase.for.the.sake.of.being.near.the.scene.of.action.and.giving.his.orders.in.person.yet.for.Captain.Ahab.to.have.a.boat.actually.apportioned.to.him.as.a.regular.headsman.in.the.hunt.above.all.for.Captain.Ahab.to.be.supplied.with.five.extra.men.as.that.same.boats.crew.he.well.knew.that.such.generous.conceits.never.entered.the.heads.of.the.owners.of.the.Pequod.Therefore.he.had.not.solicited.a.boats.crew.from.them.nor.had.he.in.any.way.hinted.his.desires.on.that.head.Nevertheless.he.had.taken.private.measures.of.his.own.touching.all.that.matter.Until.Cabacos.published.discovery.the.sailors.had.little.foreseen.it.though.to.be.sure.when.after.being.a.little.while.out.of.port.all.hands.had.concluded.the.customary.business.of.fitting.the.whaleboats.for.service.when.some.time.after.this.Ahab.was.now.and.then.found.bestirring.himself.in.the.matter.of.making.tholepins.with.his.own.hands.for.what.was.thought.to.be.one.of.the.spare.boats.and.even.solicitously.cutting.the.small.wooden.skewers.which.when.the.line.is.running.out.are.pinned.over.the.groove.in.the.bow.when.all.this.was.observed.in.him.and.particularly.his.solicitude.in.having.an.extra.coat.of.sheathing.in.the.bottom.of.the.boat.as.if.to.make.it.better.withstand.the.pointed.pressure.of.his.ivory.limb.and.also.the.anxiety.he.evinced.in.exactly.shaping.the.thigh.board.or.clumsy.cleat.as.it.is.sometimes.called.the.horizontal.piece.in.the.boats.bow.for.bracing.the.knee.against.in.darting.or.stabbing.at.the.whale.when.it.was.observed.how.often.he.stood.up.in.that.boat.with.his.solitary.knee.fixed.in.the.semicircular.depression.in.the.cleat.and.with.the.carpenters.chisel.gouged.out.a.little.here.and.straightened.it.a.little.there.all.these.things.I.say.had.awakened.much.interest.and.curiosity.at.the.time.But.almost.everybody.supposed.that.this.particular.preparative.heedfulness.in.Ahab.must.only.be.with.a.view.to.the.ultimate.chase.of.Moby.Dick.for.he.had.already.revealed.his.intention.to.hunt.that.mortal.monster.in.person.But.such.a.supposition.did.by.no.means.involve.the.remotest.suspicion.as.to.any.boats.crew.being.assigned.to.that.boat.Now.with.the.subordinate.phantoms.what.wonder.remained.soon.waned.away.for.in.a.whaler.wonders.soon.wane.Besides.now.and.then.such.unaccountable.odds.and.ends.of.strange.nations.come.up.from.the.unknown.nooks.and.ashholes.of.the.earth.to.man.these.floating.outlaws.of.whalers.and.the.ships.themselves.often.pick.up.such.queer.castaway.creatures.found.tossing.about.the.open.sea.on.planks.bits.of.wreck.oars.whaleboats.canoes.blownoff.Japanese.junks.and.what.not.that.Beelzebub.himself.might.climb.up.the.side.and.step.down.into.the.cabin.to.chat.with.the.captain.and.it.would.not.create.any.unsubduable.excitement.in.the.forecastle.But.be.all.this.as.it.may.certain.it.is.that.while.the.subordinate.phantoms.soon.found.their.place.among.the.crew.though.still.as.it.were.somehow.distinct.from.them.yet.that.hairturbaned.Fedallah.remained.a.muffled.mystery.to.the.last.Whence.he.came.in.a.mannerly.world.like.this.by.what.sort.of.unaccountable.tie.he.soon.evinced.himself.to.be.linked.with.Ahabs.peculiar.fortunes.nay.so.far.as.to.have.some.sort.of.a.halfhinted.influence.Heaven.knows.but.it.might.have.been.even.authority.over.him.all.this.none.knew.But.one.cannot.sustain.an.indifferent.air.concerning.Fedallah.He.was.such.a.creature.as.civilized.domestic.people.in.the.temperate.zone.only.see.in.their.dreams.and.that.but.dimly.but.the.like.of.whom.now.and.then.glide.among.the.unchanging.Asiatic.communities.especially.the.Oriental.isles.to.the.east.of.the.continent.those.insulated.immemorial.unalterable.countries.which.even.in.these.modern.days.still.preserve.much.of.the.ghostly.aboriginalness.of.earths.primal.generations.when.the.memory.of.the.first.man.was.a.distinct.recollection.and.all.men.his.descendants.unknowing.whence.he.came.eyed.each.other.as.real.phantoms.and.asked.of.the.sun.and.the.moon.why.they.were.created.and.to.what.end.when.though.according.to.Genesis.the.angels.indeed.consorted.with.the.daughters.of.men.the.devils.also.add.the.uncanonical.Rabbins.indulged.in.mundane.amours.CHAPTER.51.The.SpiritSpout.Days.weeks.passed.and.under.easy.sail.the.ivory.Pequod.had.slowly.swept.across.four.several.cruisinggrounds.that.off.the.Azores.off.the.Cape.de.Verdes.on.the.Plate.so.called.being.off.the.mouth.of.the.Rio.de.la.Plata.and.the.Carrol.Ground.an.unstaked.watery.locality.southerly.from.St.Helena.It.was.while.gliding.through.these.latter.waters.that.one.serene.and.moonlight.night.when.all.the.waves.rolled.by.like.scrolls.of.silver.and.by.their.soft.suffusing.seethings.made.what.seemed.a.silvery.silence.not.a.solitude.on.such.a.silent.night.a.silvery.jet.was.seen.far.in.advance.of.the.white.bubbles.at.the.bow.Lit.up.by.the.moon.it.looked.celestial.seemed.some.plumed.and.glittering.god.uprising.from.the.sea.Fedallah.first.descried.this.jet.For.of.these.moonlight.nights.it.was.his.wont.to.mount.to.the.mainmast.head.and.stand.a.lookout.there.with.the.same.precision.as.if.it.had.been.day.And.yet.though.herds.of.whales.were.seen.by.night.not.one.whaleman.in.a.hundred.would.venture.a.lowering.for.them.You.may.think.with.what.emotions.then.the.seamen.beheld.this.old.Oriental.perched.aloft.at.such.unusual.hours.his.turban.and.the.moon.companions.in.one.sky.But.when.after.spending.his.uniform.interval.there.for.several.successive.nights.without.uttering.a.single.sound.when.after.all.this.silence.his.unearthly.voice.was.heard.announcing.that.silvery.moonlit.jet.every.reclining.mariner.started.to.his.feet.as.if.some.winged.spirit.had.lighted.in.the.rigging.and.hailed.the.mortal.crew.There.she.blows.Had.the.trump.of.judgment.blown.they.could.not.have.quivered.more.yet.still.they.felt.no.terror.rather.pleasure.For.though.it.was.a.most.unwonted.hour.yet.so.impressive.was.the.cry.and.so.deliriously.exciting.that.almost.every.soul.on.board.instinctively.desired.a.lowering.Walking.the.deck.with.quick.sidelunging.strides.Ahab.commanded.the.tgallant.sails.and.royals.to.be.set.and.every.stunsail.spread.The.best.man.in.the.ship.must.take.the.helm.Then.with.every.masthead.manned.the.piledup.craft.rolled.down.before.the.wind.The.strange.upheaving.lifting.tendency.of.the.taffrail.breeze.filling.the.hollows.of.so.many.sails.made.the.buoyant.hovering.deck.to.feel.like.air.beneath.the.feet.while.still.she.rushed.along.as.if.two.antagonistic.influences.were.struggling.in.her.one.to.mount.direct.to.heaven.the.other.to.drive.yawingly.to.some.horizontal.goal.And.had.you.watched.Ahabs.face.that.night.you.would.have.thought.that.in.him.also.two.different.things.were.warring.While.his.one.live.leg.made.lively.echoes.along.the.deck.every.stroke.of.his.dead.limb.sounded.like.a.coffintap.On.life.and.death.this.old.man.walked.But.though.the.ship.so.swiftly.sped.and.though.from.every.eye.like.arrows.the.eager.glances.shot.yet.the.silvery.jet.was.no.more.seen.that.night.Every.sailor.swore.he.saw.it.once.but.not.a.second.time.This.midnightspout.had.almost.grown.a.forgotten.thing.when.some.days.after.lo.at.the.same.silent.hour.it.was.again.announced.again.it.was.descried.by.all.but.upon.making.sail.to.overtake.it.once.more.it.disappeared.as.if.it.had.never.been.And.so.it.served.us.night.after.night.till.no.one.heeded.it.but.to.wonder.at.it.Mysteriously.jetted.into.the.clear.moonlight.or.starlight.as.the.case.might.be.disappearing.again.for.one.whole.day.or.two.days.or.three.and.somehow.seeming.at.every.distinct.repetition.to.be.advancing.still.further.and.further.in.our.van.this.solitary.jet.seemed.for.ever.alluring.us.on.Nor.with.the.immemorial.superstition.of.their.race.and.in.accordance.with.the.preternaturalness.as.it.seemed.which.in.many.things.invested.the.Pequod.were.there.wanting.some.of.the.seamen.who.swore.that.whenever.and.wherever.descried.at.however.remote.times.or.in.however.far.apart.latitudes.and.longitudes.that.unnearable.spout.was.cast.by.one.selfsame.whale.and.that.whale.Moby.Dick.For.a.time.there.reigned.too.a.sense.of.peculiar.dread.at.this.flitting.apparition.as.if.it.were.treacherously.beckoning.us.on.and.on.in.order.that.the.monster.might.turn.round.upon.us.and.rend.us.at.last.in.the.remotest.and.most.savage.seas.These.temporary.apprehensions.so.vague.but.so.awful.derived.a.wondrous.potency.from.the.contrasting.serenity.of.the.weather.in.which.beneath.all.its.blue.blandness.some.thought.there.lurked.a.devilish.charm.as.for.days.and.days.we.voyaged.along.through.seas.so.wearily.lonesomely.mild.that.all.space.in.repugnance.to.our.vengeful.errand.seemed.vacating.itself.of.life.before.our.urnlike.prow.But.at.last.when.turning.to.the.eastward.the.Cape.winds.began.howling.around.us.and.we.rose.and.fell.upon.the.long.troubled.seas.that.are.there.when.the.ivorytusked.Pequod.sharply.bowed.to.the.blast.and.gored.the.dark.waves.in.her.madness.till.like.showers.of.silver.chips.the.foamflakes.flew.over.her.bulwarks.then.all.this.desolate.vacuity.of.life.went.away.but.gave.place.to.sights.more.dismal.than.before.Close.to.our.bows.strange.forms.in.the.water.darted.hither.and.thither.before.us.while.thick.in.our.rear.flew.the.inscrutable.searavens.And.every.morning.perched.on.our.stays.rows.of.these.birds.were.seen.and.spite.of.our.hootings.for.a.long.time.obstinately.clung.to.the.hemp.as.though.they.deemed.our.ship.some.drifting.uninhabited.craft.a.thing.appointed.to.desolation.and.therefore.fit.roostingplace.for.their.homeless.selves.And.heaved.and.heaved.still.unrestingly.heaved.the.black.sea.as.if.its.vast.tides.were.a.conscience.and.the.great.mundane.soul.were.in.anguish.and.remorse.for.the.long.sin.and.suffering.it.had.bred.Cape.of.Good.Hope.do.they.call.ye.Rather.Cape.Tormentoso.as.called.of.yore.for.long.allured.by.the.perfidious.silences.that.before.had.attended.us.we.found.ourselves.launched.into.this.tormented.sea.where.guilty.beings.transformed.into.those.fowls.and.these.fish.seemed.condemned.to.swim.on.everlastingly.without.any.haven.in.store.or.beat.that.black.air.without.any.horizon.But.calm.snowwhite.and.unvarying.still.directing.its.fountain.of.feathers.to.the.sky.still.beckoning.us.on.from.before.the.solitary.jet.would.at.times.be.descried.During.all.this.blackness.of.the.elements.Ahab.though.assuming.for.the.time.the.almost.continual.command.of.the.drenched.and.dangerous.deck.manifested.the.gloomiest.reserve.and.more.seldom.than.ever.addressed.his.mates.In.tempestuous.times.like.these.after.everything.above.and.aloft.has.been.secured.nothing.more.can.be.done.but.passively.to.await.the.issue.of.the.gale.Then.Captain.and.crew.become.practical.fatalists.So.with.his.ivory.leg.inserted.into.its.accustomed.hole.and.with.one.hand.firmly.grasping.a.shroud.Ahab.for.hours.and.hours.would.stand.gazing.dead.to.windward.while.an.occasional.squall.of.sleet.or.snow.would.all.but.congeal.his.very.eyelashes.together.Meantime.the.crew.driven.from.the.forward.part.of.the.ship.by.the.perilous.seas.that.burstingly.broke.over.its.bows.stood.in.a.line.along.the.bulwarks.in.the.waist.and.the.better.to.guard.against.the.leaping.waves.each.man.had.slipped.himself.into.a.sort.of.bowline.secured.to.the.rail.in.which.he.swung.as.in.a.loosened.belt.Few.or.no.words.were.spoken.and.the.silent.ship.as.if.manned.by.painted.sailors.in.wax.day.after.day.tore.on.through.all.the.swift.madness.and.gladness.of.the.demoniac.waves.By.night.the.same.muteness.of.humanity.before.the.shrieks.of.the.ocean.prevailed.still.in.silence.the.men.swung.in.the.bowlines.still.wordless.Ahab.stood.up.to.the.blast.Even.when.wearied.nature.seemed.demanding.repose.he.would.not.seek.that.repose.in.his.hammock.Never.could.Starbuck.forget.the.old.mans.aspect.when.one.night.going.down.into.the.cabin.to.mark.how.the.barometer.stood.he.saw.him.with.closed.eyes.sitting.straight.in.his.floorscrewed.chair.the.rain.and.halfmelted.sleet.of.the.storm.from.which.he.had.some.time.before.emerged.still.slowly.dripping.from.the.unremoved.hat.and.coat.On.the.table.beside.him.lay.unrolled.one.of.those.charts.of.tides.and.currents.which.have.previously.been.spoken.of.His.lantern.swung.from.his.tightly.clenched.hand.Though.the.body.was.erect.the.head.was.thrown.back.so.that.the.closed.eyes.were.pointed.towards.the.needle.of.the.telltale.that.swung.from.a.beam.in.the.ceiling.The.cabincompass.is.called.the.telltale.because.without.going.to.the.compass.at.the.helm.the.Captain.while.below.can.inform.himself.of.the.course.of.the.ship.Terrible.old.man.thought.Starbuck.with.a.shudder.sleeping.in.this.gale.still.thou.steadfastly.eyest.thy.purpose.CHAPTER.52.The.Albatross.Southeastward.from.the.Cape.off.the.distant.Crozetts.a.good.cruising.ground.for.Right.Whalemen.a.sail.loomed.ahead.the.Goney.Albatross.by.name.As.she.slowly.drew.nigh.from.my.lofty.perch.at.the.foremasthead.I.had.a.good.view.of.that.sight.so.remarkable.to.a.tyro.in.the.far.ocean.fisheries.a.whaler.at.sea.and.long.absent.from.home.As.if.the.waves.had.been.fullers.this.craft.was.bleached.like.the.skeleton.of.a.stranded.walrus.All.down.her.sides.this.spectral.appearance.was.traced.with.long.channels.of.reddened.rust.while.all.her.spars.and.her.rigging.were.like.the.thick.branches.of.trees.furred.over.with.hoarfrost.Only.her.lower.sails.were.set.A.wild.sight.it.was.to.see.her.longbearded.lookouts.at.those.three.mastheads.They.seemed.clad.in.the.skins.of.beasts.so.torn.and.bepatched.the.raiment.that.had.survived.nearly.four.years.of.cruising.Standing.in.iron.hoops.nailed.to.the.mast.they.swayed.and.swung.over.a.fathomless.sea.and.though.when.the.ship.slowly.glided.close.under.our.stern.we.six.men.in.the.air.came.so.nigh.to.each.other.that.we.might.almost.have.leaped.from.the.mastheads.of.one.ship.to.those.of.the.other.yet.those.forlornlooking.fishermen.mildly.eyeing.us.as.they.passed.said.not.one.word.to.our.own.lookouts.while.the.quarterdeck.hail.was.being.heard.from.below.Ship.ahoy.Have.ye.seen.the.White.Whale.But.as.the.strange.captain.leaning.over.the.pallid.bulwarks.was.in.the.act.of.putting.his.trumpet.to.his.mouth.it.somehow.fell.from.his.hand.into.the.sea.and.the.wind.now.rising.amain.he.in.vain.strove.to.make.himself.heard.without.it.Meantime.his.ship.was.still.increasing.the.distance.between.While.in.various.silent.ways.the.seamen.of.the.Pequod.were.evincing.their.observance.of.this.ominous.incident.at.the.first.mere.mention.of.the.White.Whales.name.to.another.ship.Ahab.for.a.moment.paused.it.almost.seemed.as.though.he.would.have.lowered.a.boat.to.board.the.stranger.had.not.the.threatening.wind.forbade.But.taking.advantage.of.his.windward.position.he.again.seized.his.trumpet.and.knowing.by.her.aspect.that.the.stranger.vessel.was.a.Nantucketer.and.shortly.bound.home.he.loudly.hailed.Ahoy.there.This.is.the.Pequod.bound.round.the.world.Tell.them.to.address.all.future.letters.to.the.Pacific.ocean.and.this.time.three.years.if.I.am.not.at.home.tell.them.to.address.them.to.At.that.moment.the.two.wakes.were.fairly.crossed.and.instantly.then.in.accordance.with.their.singular.ways.shoals.of.small.harmless.fish.that.for.some.days.before.had.been.placidly.swimming.by.our.side.darted.away.with.what.seemed.shuddering.fins.and.ranged.themselves.fore.and.aft.with.the.strangers.flanks.Though.in.the.course.of.his.continual.voyagings.Ahab.must.often.before.have.noticed.a.similar.sight.yet.to.any.monomaniac.man.the.veriest.trifles.capriciously.carry.meanings.Swim.away.from.me.do.ye.murmured.Ahab.gazing.over.into.the.water.There.seemed.but.little.in.the.words.but.the.tone.conveyed.more.of.deep.helpless.sadness.than.the.insane.old.man.had.ever.before.evinced.But.turning.to.the.steersman.who.thus.far.had.been.holding.the.ship.in.the.wind.to.diminish.her.headway.he.cried.out.in.his.old.lion.voice.Up.helm.Keep.her.off.round.the.world.Round.the.world.There.is.much.in.that.sound.to.inspire.proud.feelings.but.whereto.does.all.that.circumnavigation.conduct.Only.through.numberless.perils.to.the.very.point.whence.we.started.where.those.that.we.left.behind.secure.were.all.the.time.before.us.Were.this.world.an.endless.plain.and.by.sailing.eastward.we.could.for.ever.reach.new.distances.and.discover.sights.more.sweet.and.strange.than.any.Cyclades.or.Islands.of.King.Solomon.then.there.were.promise.in.the.voyage.But.in.pursuit.of.those.far.mysteries.we.dream.of.or.in.tormented.chase.of.that.demon.phantom.that.some.time.or.other.swims.before.all.human.hearts.while.chasing.such.over.this.round.globe.they.either.lead.us.on.in.barren.mazes.or.midway.leave.us.whelmed.CHAPTER.53.The.Gam.The.ostensible.reason.why.Ahab.did.not.go.on.board.of.the.whaler.we.had.spoken.was.this.the.wind.and.sea.betokened.storms.But.even.had.this.not.been.the.case.he.would.not.after.all.perhaps.have.boarded.her.judging.by.his.subsequent.conduct.on.similar.occasions.if.so.it.had.been.that.by.the.process.of.hailing.he.had.obtained.a.negative.answer.to.the.question.he.put.For.as.it.eventually.turned.out.he.cared.not.to.consort.even.for.five.minutes.with.any.stranger.captain.except.he.could.contribute.some.of.that.information.he.so.absorbingly.sought.But.all.this.might.remain.inadequately.estimated.were.not.something.said.here.of.the.peculiar.usages.of.whalingvessels.when.meeting.each.other.in.foreign.seas.and.especially.on.a.common.cruisingground.If.two.strangers.crossing.the.Pine.Barrens.in.New.York.State.or.the.equally.desolate.Salisbury.Plain.in.England.if.casually.encountering.each.other.in.such.inhospitable.wilds.these.twain.for.the.life.of.them.cannot.well.avoid.a.mutual.salutation.and.stopping.for.a.moment.to.interchange.the.news.and.perhaps.sitting.down.for.a.while.and.resting.in.concert.then.how.much.more.natural.that.upon.the.illimitable.Pine.Barrens.and.Salisbury.Plains.of.the.sea.two.whaling.vessels.descrying.each.other.at.the.ends.of.the.earth.off.lone.Fannings.Island.or.the.far.away.Kings.Mills.how.much.more.natural.I.say.that.under.such.circumstances.these.ships.should.not.only.interchange.hails.but.come.into.still.closer.more.friendly.and.sociable.contact.And.especially.would.this.seem.to.be.a.matter.of.course.in.the.case.of.vessels.owned.in.one.seaport.and.whose.captains.officers.and.not.a.few.of.the.men.are.personally.known.to.each.other.and.consequently.have.all.sorts.of.dear.domestic.things.to.talk.about.For.the.long.absent.ship.the.outwardbounder.perhaps.has.letters.on.board.at.any.rate.she.will.be.sure.to.let.her.have.some.papers.of.a.date.a.year.or.two.later.than.the.last.one.on.her.blurred.and.thumbworn.files.And.in.return.for.that.courtesy.the.outwardbound.ship.would.receive.the.latest.whaling.intelligence.from.the.cruisingground.to.which.she.may.be.destined.a.thing.of.the.utmost.importance.to.her.And.in.degree.all.this.will.hold.true.concerning.whaling.vessels.crossing.each.others.track.on.the.cruisingground.itself.even.though.they.are.equally.long.absent.from.home.For.one.of.them.may.have.received.a.transfer.of.letters.from.some.third.and.now.far.remote.vessel.and.some.of.those.letters.may.be.for.the.people.of.the.ship.she.now.meets.Besides.they.would.exchange.the.whaling.news.and.have.an.agreeable.chat.For.not.only.would.they.meet.with.all.the.sympathies.of.sailors.but.likewise.with.all.the.peculiar.congenialities.arising.from.a.common.pursuit.and.mutually.shared.privations.and.perils.Nor.would.difference.of.country.make.any.very.essential.difference.that.is.so.long.as.both.parties.speak.one.language.as.is.the.case.with.Americans.and.English.Though.to.be.sure.from.the.small.number.of.English.whalers.such.meetings.do.not.very.often.occur.and.when.they.do.occur.there.is.too.apt.to.be.a.sort.of.shyness.between.them.for.your.Englishman.is.rather.reserved.and.your.Yankee.he.does.not.fancy.that.sort.of.thing.in.anybody.but.himself.Besides.the.English.whalers.sometimes.affect.a.kind.of.metropolitan.superiority.over.the.American.whalers.regarding.the.long.lean.Nantucketer.with.his.nondescript.provincialisms.as.a.sort.of.seapeasant.But.where.this.superiority.in.the.English.whalemen.does.really.consist.it.would.be.hard.to.say.seeing.that.the.Yankees.in.one.day.collectively.kill.more.whales.than.all.the.English.collectively.in.ten.years.But.this.is.a.harmless.little.foible.in.the.English.whalehunters.which.the.Nantucketer.does.not.take.much.to.heart.probably.because.he.knows.that.he.has.a.few.foibles.himself.So.then.we.see.that.of.all.ships.separately.sailing.the.sea.the.whalers.have.most.reason.to.be.sociable.and.they.are.so.Whereas.some.merchant.ships.crossing.each.others.wake.in.the.midAtlantic.will.oftentimes.pass.on.without.so.much.as.a.single.word.of.recognition.mutually.cutting.each.other.on.the.high.seas.like.a.brace.of.dandies.in.Broadway.and.all.the.time.indulging.perhaps.in.finical.criticism.upon.each.others.rig.As.for.MenofWar.when.they.chance.to.meet.at.sea.they.first.go.through.such.a.string.of.silly.bowings.and.scrapings.such.a.ducking.of.ensigns.that.there.does.not.seem.to.be.much.rightdown.hearty.goodwill.and.brotherly.love.about.it.at.all.As.touching.Slaveships.meeting.why.they.are.in.such.a.prodigious.hurry.they.run.away.from.each.other.as.soon.as.possible.And.as.for.Pirates.when.they.chance.to.cross.each.others.crossbones.the.first.hail.is.How.many.skulls.the.same.way.that.whalers.hail.How.many.barrels.And.that.question.once.answered.pirates.straightway.steer.apart.for.they.are.infernal.villains.on.both.sides.and.dont.like.to.see.overmuch.of.each.others.villanous.likenesses.But.look.at.the.godly.honest.unostentatious.hospitable.sociable.freeandeasy.whaler.What.does.the.whaler.do.when.she.meets.another.whaler.in.any.sort.of.decent.weather.She.has.a.Gam.a.thing.so.utterly.unknown.to.all.other.ships.that.they.never.heard.of.the.name.even.and.if.by.chance.they.should.hear.of.it.they.only.grin.at.it.and.repeat.gamesome.stuff.about.spouters.and.blubberboilers.and.such.like.pretty.exclamations.Why.it.is.that.all.Merchantseamen.and.also.all.Pirates.and.ManofWars.men.and.Slaveship.sailors.cherish.such.a.scornful.feeling.towards.Whaleships.this.is.a.question.it.would.be.hard.to.answer.Because.in.the.case.of.pirates.say.I.should.like.to.know.whether.that.profession.of.theirs.has.any.peculiar.glory.about.it.It.sometimes.ends.in.uncommon.elevation.indeed.but.only.at.the.gallows.And.besides.when.a.man.is.elevated.in.that.odd.fashion.he.has.no.proper.foundation.for.his.superior.altitude.Hence.I.conclude.that.in.boasting.himself.to.be.high.lifted.above.a.whaleman.in.that.assertion.the.pirate.has.no.solid.basis.to.stand.on.But.what.is.a.Gam.You.might.wear.out.your.indexfinger.running.up.and.down.the.columns.of.dictionaries.and.never.find.the.word.Dr.Johnson.never.attained.to.that.erudition.Noah.Websters.ark.does.not.hold.it.Nevertheless.this.same.expressive.word.has.now.for.many.years.been.in.constant.use.among.some.fifteen.thousand.true.born.Yankees.Certainly.it.needs.a.definition.and.should.be.incorporated.into.the.Lexicon.With.that.view.let.me.learnedly.define.it.GAM.NOUN.A.social.meeting.of.two.or.more.Whaleships.generally.on.a.cruisingground.when.after.exchanging.hails.they.exchange.visits.by.boats.crews.the.two.captains.remaining.for.the.time.on.board.of.one.ship.and.the.two.chief.mates.on.the.other.There.is.another.little.item.about.Gamming.which.must.not.be.forgotten.here.All.professions.have.their.own.little.peculiarities.of.detail.so.has.the.whale.fishery.In.a.pirate.manofwar.or.slave.ship.when.the.captain.is.rowed.anywhere.in.his.boat.he.always.sits.in.the.stern.sheets.on.a.comfortable.sometimes.cushioned.seat.there.and.often.steers.himself.with.a.pretty.little.milliners.tiller.decorated.with.gay.cords.and.ribbons.But.the.whaleboat.has.no.seat.astern.no.sofa.of.that.sort.whatever.and.no.tiller.at.all.High.times.indeed.if.whaling.captains.were.wheeled.about.the.water.on.castors.like.gouty.old.aldermen.in.patent.chairs.And.as.for.a.tiller.the.whaleboat.never.admits.of.any.such.effeminacy.and.therefore.as.in.gamming.a.complete.boats.crew.must.leave.the.ship.and.hence.as.the.boat.steerer.or.harpooneer.is.of.the.number.that.subordinate.is.the.steersman.upon.the.occasion.and.the.captain.having.no.place.to.sit.in.is.pulled.off.to.his.visit.all.standing.like.a.pine.tree.And.often.you.will.notice.that.being.conscious.of.the.eyes.of.the.whole.visible.world.resting.on.him.from.the.sides.of.the.two.ships.this.standing.captain.is.all.alive.to.the.importance.of.sustaining.his.dignity.by.maintaining.his.legs.Nor.is.this.any.very.easy.matter.for.in.his.rear.is.the.immense.projecting.steering.oar.hitting.him.now.and.then.in.the.small.of.his.back.the.afteroar.reciprocating.by.rapping.his.knees.in.front.He.is.thus.completely.wedged.before.and.behind.and.can.only.expand.himself.sideways.by.settling.down.on.his.stretched.legs.but.a.sudden.violent.pitch.of.the.boat.will.often.go.far.to.topple.him.because.length.of.foundation.is.nothing.without.corresponding.breadth.Merely.make.a.spread.angle.of.two.poles.and.you.cannot.stand.them.up.Then.again.it.would.never.do.in.plain.sight.of.the.worlds.riveted.eyes.it.would.never.do.I.say.for.this.straddling.captain.to.be.seen.steadying.himself.the.slightest.particle.by.catching.hold.of.anything.with.his.hands.indeed.as.token.of.his.entire.buoyant.selfcommand.he.generally.carries.his.hands.in.his.trowsers.pockets.but.perhaps.being.generally.very.large.heavy.hands.he.carries.them.there.for.ballast.Nevertheless.there.have.occurred.instances.well.authenticated.ones.too.where.the.captain.has.been.known.for.an.uncommonly.critical.moment.or.two.in.a.sudden.squall.say.to.seize.hold.of.the.nearest.oarsmans.hair.and.hold.on.there.like.grim.death.CHAPTER.54.The.TownHos.Story.As.told.at.the.Golden.Inn.The.Cape.of.Good.Hope.and.all.the.watery.region.round.about.there.is.much.like.some.noted.four.corners.of.a.great.highway.where.you.meet.more.travellers.than.in.any.other.part.It.was.not.very.long.after.speaking.the.Goney.that.another.homewardbound.whaleman.the.TownHo.was.encountered.She.was.manned.almost.wholly.by.Polynesians.In.the.short.gam.that.ensued.she.gave.us.strong.news.of.Moby.Dick.To.some.the.general.interest.in.the.White.Whale.was.now.wildly.heightened.by.a.circumstance.of.the.TownHos.story.which.seemed.obscurely.to.involve.with.the.whale.a.certain.wondrous.inverted.visitation.of.one.of.those.so.called.judgments.of.God.which.at.times.are.said.to.overtake.some.men.This.latter.circumstance.with.its.own.particular.accompaniments.forming.what.may.be.called.the.secret.part.of.the.tragedy.about.to.be.narrated.never.reached.the.ears.of.Captain.Ahab.or.his.mates.For.that.secret.part.of.the.story.was.unknown.to.the.captain.of.the.TownHo.himself.It.was.the.private.property.of.three.confederate.white.seamen.of.that.ship.one.of.whom.it.seems.communicated.it.to.Tashtego.with.Romish.injunctions.of.secrecy.but.the.following.night.Tashtego.rambled.in.his.sleep.and.revealed.so.much.of.it.in.that.way.that.when.he.was.wakened.he.could.not.well.withhold.the.rest.Nevertheless.so.potent.an.influence.did.this.thing.have.on.those.seamen.in.the.Pequod.who.came.to.the.full.knowledge.of.it.and.by.such.a.strange.delicacy.to.call.it.so.were.they.governed.in.this.matter.that.they.kept.the.secret.among.themselves.so.that.it.never.transpired.abaft.the.Pequods.mainmast.Interweaving.in.its.proper.place.this.darker.thread.with.the.story.as.publicly.narrated.on.the.ship.the.whole.of.this.strange.affair.I.now.proceed.to.put.on.lasting.record.The.ancient.whalecry.upon.first.sighting.a.whale.from.the.masthead.still.used.by.whalemen.in.hunting.the.famous.Gallipagos.terrapin.For.my.humors.sake.I.shall.preserve.the.style.in.which.I.once.narrated.it.at.Lima.to.a.lounging.circle.of.my.Spanish.friends.one.saints.eve.smoking.upon.the.thickgilt.tiled.piazza.of.the.Golden.Inn.Of.those.fine.cavaliers.the.young.Dons.Pedro.and.Sebastian.were.on.the.closer.terms.with.me.and.hence.the.interluding.questions.they.occasionally.put.and.which.are.duly.answered.at.the.time.Some.two.years.prior.to.my.first.learning.the.events.which.I.am.about.rehearsing.to.you.gentlemen.the.TownHo.Sperm.Whaler.of.Nantucket.was.cruising.in.your.Pacific.here.not.very.many.days.sail.eastward.from.the.eaves.of.this.good.Golden.Inn.She.was.somewhere.to.the.northward.of.the.Line.One.morning.upon.handling.the.pumps.according.to.daily.usage.it.was.observed.that.she.made.more.water.in.her.hold.than.common.They.supposed.a.swordfish.had.stabbed.her.gentlemen.But.the.captain.having.some.unusual.reason.for.believing.that.rare.good.luck.awaited.him.in.those.latitudes.and.therefore.being.very.averse.to.quit.them.and.the.leak.not.being.then.considered.at.all.dangerous.though.indeed.they.could.not.find.it.after.searching.the.hold.as.low.down.as.was.possible.in.rather.heavy.weather.the.ship.still.continued.her.cruisings.the.mariners.working.at.the.pumps.at.wide.and.easy.intervals.but.no.good.luck.came.more.days.went.by.and.not.only.was.the.leak.yet.undiscovered.but.it.sensibly.increased.So.much.so.that.now.taking.some.alarm.the.captain.making.all.sail.stood.away.for.the.nearest.harbor.among.the.islands.there.to.have.his.hull.hove.out.and.repaired.Though.no.small.passage.was.before.her.yet.if.the.commonest.chance.favoured.he.did.not.at.all.fear.that.his.ship.would.founder.by.the.way.because.his.pumps.were.of.the.best.and.being.periodically.relieved.at.them.those.sixandthirty.men.of.his.could.easily.keep.the.ship.free.never.mind.if.the.leak.should.double.on.her.In.truth.well.nigh.the.whole.of.this.passage.being.attended.by.very.prosperous.breezes.the.TownHo.had.all.but.certainly.arrived.in.perfect.safety.at.her.port.without.the.occurrence.of.the.least.fatality.had.it.not.been.for.the.brutal.overbearing.of.Radney.the.mate.a.Vineyarder.and.the.bitterly.provoked.vengeance.of.Steelkilt.a.Lakeman.and.desperado.from.Buffalo.Lakeman.Buffalo.Pray.what.is.a.Lakeman.and.where.is.Buffalo.said.Don.Sebastian.rising.in.his.swinging.mat.of.grass.On.the.eastern.shore.of.our.Lake.Erie.Don.but.I.crave.your.courtesy.may.be.you.shall.soon.hear.further.of.all.that.Now.gentlemen.in.squaresail.brigs.and.threemasted.ships.wellnigh.as.large.and.stout.as.any.that.ever.sailed.out.of.your.old.Callao.to.far.Manilla.this.Lakeman.in.the.landlocked.heart.of.our.America.had.yet.been.nurtured.by.all.those.agrarian.freebooting.impressions.popularly.connected.with.the.open.ocean.For.in.their.interflowing.aggregate.those.grand.freshwater.seas.of.ours.Erie.and.Ontario.and.Huron.and.Superior.and.Michigan.possess.an.oceanlike.expansiveness.with.many.of.the.oceans.noblest.traits.with.many.of.its.rimmed.varieties.of.races.and.of.climes.They.contain.round.archipelagoes.of.romantic.isles.even.as.the.Polynesian.waters.do.in.large.part.are.shored.by.two.great.contrasting.nations.as.the.Atlantic.is.they.furnish.long.maritime.approaches.to.our.numerous.territorial.colonies.from.the.East.dotted.all.round.their.banks.here.and.there.are.frowned.upon.by.batteries.and.by.the.goatlike.craggy.guns.of.lofty.Mackinaw.they.have.heard.the.fleet.thunderings.of.naval.victories.at.intervals.they.yield.their.beaches.to.wild.barbarians.whose.red.painted.faces.flash.from.out.their.peltry.wigwams.for.leagues.and.leagues.are.flanked.by.ancient.and.unentered.forests.where.the.gaunt.pines.stand.like.serried.lines.of.kings.in.Gothic.genealogies.those.same.woods.harboring.wild.Afric.beasts.of.prey.and.silken.creatures.whose.exported.furs.give.robes.to.Tartar.Emperors.they.mirror.the.paved.capitals.of.Buffalo.and.Cleveland.as.well.as.Winnebago.villages.they.float.alike.the.fullrigged.merchant.ship.the.armed.cruiser.of.the.State.the.steamer.and.the.beech.canoe.they.are.swept.by.Borean.and.dismasting.blasts.as.direful.as.any.that.lash.the.salted.wave.they.know.what.shipwrecks.are.for.out.of.sight.of.land.however.inland.they.have.drowned.full.many.a.midnight.ship.with.all.its.shrieking.crew.Thus.gentlemen.though.an.inlander.Steelkilt.was.wildocean.born.and.wildocean.nurtured.as.much.of.an.audacious.mariner.as.any.And.for.Radney.though.in.his.infancy.he.may.have.laid.him.down.on.the.lone.Nantucket.beach.to.nurse.at.his.maternal.sea.though.in.after.life.he.had.long.followed.our.austere.Atlantic.and.your.contemplative.Pacific.yet.was.he.quite.as.vengeful.and.full.of.social.quarrel.as.the.backwoods.seaman.fresh.from.the.latitudes.of.buckhorn.handled.Bowieknives.Yet.was.this.Nantucketer.a.man.with.some.goodhearted.traits.and.this.Lakeman.a.mariner.who.though.a.sort.of.devil.indeed.might.yet.by.inflexible.firmness.only.tempered.by.that.common.decency.of.human.recognition.which.is.the.meanest.slaves.right.thus.treated.this.Steelkilt.had.long.been.retained.harmless.and.docile.At.all.events.he.had.proved.so.thus.far.but.Radney.was.doomed.and.made.mad.and.Steelkilt.but.gentlemen.you.shall.hear.It.was.not.more.than.a.day.or.two.at.the.furthest.after.pointing.her.prow.for.her.island.haven.that.the.TownHos.leak.seemed.again.increasing.but.only.so.as.to.require.an.hour.or.more.at.the.pumps.every.day.You.must.know.that.in.a.settled.and.civilized.ocean.like.our.Atlantic.for.example.some.skippers.think.little.of.pumping.their.whole.way.across.it.though.of.a.still.sleepy.night.should.the.officer.of.the.deck.happen.to.forget.his.duty.in.that.respect.the.probability.would.be.that.he.and.his.shipmates.would.never.again.remember.it.on.account.of.all.hands.gently.subsiding.to.the.bottom.Nor.in.the.solitary.and.savage.seas.far.from.you.to.the.westward.gentlemen.is.it.altogether.unusual.for.ships.to.keep.clanging.at.their.pumphandles.in.full.chorus.even.for.a.voyage.of.considerable.length.that.is.if.it.lie.along.a.tolerably.accessible.coast.or.if.any.other.reasonable.retreat.is.afforded.them.It.is.only.when.a.leaky.vessel.is.in.some.very.out.of.the.way.part.of.those.waters.some.really.landless.latitude.that.her.captain.begins.to.feel.a.little.anxious.Much.this.way.had.it.been.with.the.TownHo.so.when.her.leak.was.found.gaining.once.more.there.was.in.truth.some.small.concern.manifested.by.several.of.her.company.especially.by.Radney.the.mate.He.commanded.the.upper.sails.to.be.well.hoisted.sheeted.home.anew.and.every.way.expanded.to.the.breeze.Now.this.Radney.I.suppose.was.as.little.of.a.coward.and.as.little.inclined.to.any.sort.of.nervous.apprehensiveness.touching.his.own.person.as.any.fearless.unthinking.creature.on.land.or.on.sea.that.you.can.conveniently.imagine.gentlemen.Therefore.when.he.betrayed.this.solicitude.about.the.safety.of.the.ship.some.of.the.seamen.declared.that.it.was.only.on.account.of.his.being.a.part.owner.in.her.So.when.they.were.working.that.evening.at.the.pumps.there.was.on.this.head.no.small.gamesomeness.slily.going.on.among.them.as.they.stood.with.their.feet.continually.overflowed.by.the.rippling.clear.water.clear.as.any.mountain.spring.gentlemen.that.bubbling.from.the.pumps.ran.across.the.deck.and.poured.itself.out.in.steady.spouts.at.the.lee.scupperholes.Now.as.you.well.know.it.is.not.seldom.the.case.in.this.conventional.world.of.ours.watery.or.otherwise.that.when.a.person.placed.in.command.over.his.fellowmen.finds.one.of.them.to.be.very.significantly.his.superior.in.general.pride.of.manhood.straightway.against.that.man.he.conceives.an.unconquerable.dislike.and.bitterness.and.if.he.have.a.chance.he.will.pull.down.and.pulverize.that.subalterns.tower.and.make.a.little.heap.of.dust.of.it.Be.this.conceit.of.mine.as.it.may.gentlemen.at.all.events.Steelkilt.was.a.tall.and.noble.animal.with.a.head.like.a.Roman.and.a.flowing.golden.beard.like.the.tasseled.housings.of.your.last.viceroys.snorting.charger.and.a.brain.and.a.heart.and.a.soul.in.him.gentlemen.which.had.made.Steelkilt.Charlemagne.had.he.been.born.son.to.Charlemagnes.father.But.Radney.the.mate.was.ugly.as.a.mule.yet.as.hardy.as.stubborn.as.malicious.He.did.not.love.Steelkilt.and.Steelkilt.knew.it.Espying.the.mate.drawing.near.as.he.was.toiling.at.the.pump.with.the.rest.the.Lakeman.affected.not.to.notice.him.but.unawed.went.on.with.his.gay.banterings.Aye.aye.my.merry.lads.its.a.lively.leak.this.hold.a.cannikin.one.of.ye.and.lets.have.a.taste.By.the.Lord.its.worth.bottling.I.tell.ye.what.men.old.Rads.investment.must.go.for.it.he.had.best.cut.away.his.part.of.the.hull.and.tow.it.home.The.fact.is.boys.that.swordfish.only.began.the.job.hes.come.back.again.with.a.gang.of.shipcarpenters.sawfish.and.filefish.and.what.not.and.the.whole.posse.of.em.are.now.hard.at.work.cutting.and.slashing.at.the.bottom.making.improvements.I.suppose.If.old.Rad.were.here.now.Id.tell.him.to.jump.overboard.and.scatter.em.Theyre.playing.the.devil.with.his.estate.I.can.tell.him.But.hes.a.simple.old.soul.Rad.and.a.beauty.too.Boys.they.say.the.rest.of.his.property.is.invested.in.lookingglasses.I.wonder.if.hed.give.a.poor.devil.like.me.the.model.of.his.nose.Damn.your.eyes.whats.that.pump.stopping.for.roared.Radney.pretending.not.to.have.heard.the.sailors.talk.Thunder.away.at.it.Aye.aye.sir.said.Steelkilt.merry.as.a.cricket.Lively.boys.lively.now.And.with.that.the.pump.clanged.like.fifty.fireengines.the.men.tossed.their.hats.off.to.it.and.ere.long.that.peculiar.gasping.of.the.lungs.was.heard.which.denotes.the.fullest.tension.of.lifes.utmost.energies.Quitting.the.pump.at.last.with.the.rest.of.his.band.the.Lakeman.went.forward.all.panting.and.sat.himself.down.on.the.windlass.his.face.fiery.red.his.eyes.bloodshot.and.wiping.the.profuse.sweat.from.his.brow.Now.what.cozening.fiend.it.was.gentlemen.that.possessed.Radney.to.meddle.with.such.a.man.in.that.corporeally.exasperated.state.I.know.not.but.so.it.happened.Intolerably.striding.along.the.deck.the.mate.commanded.him.to.get.a.broom.and.sweep.down.the.planks.and.also.a.shovel.and.remove.some.offensive.matters.consequent.upon.allowing.a.pig.to.run.at.large.Now.gentlemen.sweeping.a.ships.deck.at.sea.is.a.piece.of.household.work.which.in.all.times.but.raging.gales.is.regularly.attended.to.every.evening.it.has.been.known.to.be.done.in.the.case.of.ships.actually.foundering.at.the.time.Such.gentlemen.is.the.inflexibility.of.seausages.and.the.instinctive.love.of.neatness.in.seamen.some.of.whom.would.not.willingly.drown.without.first.washing.their.faces.But.in.all.vessels.this.broom.business.is.the.prescriptive.province.of.the.boys.if.boys.there.be.aboard.Besides.it.was.the.stronger.men.in.the.TownHo.that.had.been.divided.into.gangs.taking.turns.at.the.pumps.and.being.the.most.athletic.seaman.of.them.all.Steelkilt.had.been.regularly.assigned.captain.of.one.of.the.gangs.consequently.he.should.have.been.freed.from.any.trivial.business.not.connected.with.truly.nautical.duties.such.being.the.case.with.his.comrades.I.mention.all.these.particulars.so.that.you.may.understand.exactly.how.this.affair.stood.between.the.two.men.But.there.was.more.than.this.the.order.about.the.shovel.was.almost.as.plainly.meant.to.sting.and.insult.Steelkilt.as.though.Radney.had.spat.in.his.face.Any.man.who.has.gone.sailor.in.a.whaleship.will.understand.this.and.all.this.and.doubtless.much.more.the.Lakeman.fully.comprehended.when.the.mate.uttered.his.command.But.as.he.sat.still.for.a.moment.and.as.he.steadfastly.looked.into.the.mates.malignant.eye.and.perceived.the.stacks.of.powdercasks.heaped.up.in.him.and.the.slowmatch.silently.burning.along.towards.them.as.he.instinctively.saw.all.this.that.strange.forbearance.and.unwillingness.to.stir.up.the.deeper.passionateness.in.any.already.ireful.being.a.repugnance.most.felt.when.felt.at.all.by.really.valiant.men.even.when.aggrieved.this.nameless.phantom.feeling.gentlemen.stole.over.Steelkilt.Therefore.in.his.ordinary.tone.only.a.little.broken.by.the.bodily.exhaustion.he.was.temporarily.in.he.answered.him.saying.that.sweeping.the.deck.was.not.his.business.and.he.would.not.do.it.And.then.without.at.all.alluding.to.the.shovel.he.pointed.to.three.lads.as.the.customary.sweepers.who.not.being.billeted.at.the.pumps.had.done.little.or.nothing.all.day.To.this.Radney.replied.with.an.oath.in.a.most.domineering.and.outrageous.manner.unconditionally.reiterating.his.command.meanwhile.advancing.upon.the.still.seated.Lakeman.with.an.uplifted.coopers.club.hammer.which.he.had.snatched.from.a.cask.near.by.Heated.and.irritated.as.he.was.by.his.spasmodic.toil.at.the.pumps.for.all.his.first.nameless.feeling.of.forbearance.the.sweating.Steelkilt.could.but.ill.brook.this.bearing.in.the.mate.but.somehow.still.smothering.the.conflagration.within.him.without.speaking.he.remained.doggedly.rooted.to.his.seat.till.at.last.the.incensed.Radney.shook.the.hammer.within.a.few.inches.of.his.face.furiously.commanding.him.to.do.his.bidding.Steelkilt.rose.and.slowly.retreating.round.the.windlass.steadily.followed.by.the.mate.with.his.menacing.hammer.deliberately.repeated.his.intention.not.to.obey.Seeing.however.that.his.forbearance.had.not.the.slightest.effect.by.an.awful.and.unspeakable.intimation.with.his.twisted.hand.he.warned.off.the.foolish.and.infatuated.man.but.it.was.to.no.purpose.And.in.this.way.the.two.went.once.slowly.round.the.windlass.when.resolved.at.last.no.longer.to.retreat.bethinking.him.that.he.had.now.forborne.as.much.as.comported.with.his.humor.the.Lakeman.paused.on.the.hatches.and.thus.spoke.to.the.officer.Mr.Radney.I.will.not.obey.you.Take.that.hammer.away.or.look.to.yourself.But.the.predestinated.mate.coming.still.closer.to.him.where.the.Lakeman.stood.fixed.now.shook.the.heavy.hammer.within.an.inch.of.his.teeth.meanwhile.repeating.a.string.of.insufferable.maledictions.Retreating.not.the.thousandth.part.of.an.inch.stabbing.him.in.the.eye.with.the.unflinching.poniard.of.his.glance.Steelkilt.clenching.his.right.hand.behind.him.and.creepingly.drawing.it.back.told.his.persecutor.that.if.the.hammer.but.grazed.his.cheek.he.Steelkilt.would.murder.him.But.gentlemen.the.fool.had.been.branded.for.the.slaughter.by.the.gods.Immediately.the.hammer.touched.the.cheek.the.next.instant.the.lower.jaw.of.the.mate.was.stove.in.his.head.he.fell.on.the.hatch.spouting.blood.like.a.whale.Ere.the.cry.could.go.aft.Steelkilt.was.shaking.one.of.the.backstays.leading.far.aloft.to.where.two.of.his.comrades.were.standing.their.mastheads.They.were.both.Canallers.Canallers.cried.Don.Pedro.We.have.seen.many.whaleships.in.our.harbours.but.never.heard.of.your.Canallers.Pardon.who.and.what.are.they.Canallers.Don.are.the.boatmen.belonging.to.our.grand.Erie.Canal.You.must.have.heard.of.it.Nay.Senor.hereabouts.in.this.dull.warm.most.lazy.and.hereditary.land.we.know.but.little.of.your.vigorous.North.Aye.Well.then.Don.refill.my.cup.Your.chichas.very.fine.and.ere.proceeding.further.I.will.tell.ye.what.our.Canallers.are.for.such.information.may.throw.sidelight.upon.my.story.For.three.hundred.and.sixty.miles.gentlemen.through.the.entire.breadth.of.the.state.of.New.York.through.numerous.populous.cities.and.most.thriving.villages.through.long.dismal.uninhabited.swamps.and.affluent.cultivated.fields.unrivalled.for.fertility.by.billiardroom.and.barroom.through.the.holyofholies.of.great.forests.on.Roman.arches.over.Indian.rivers.through.sun.and.shade.by.happy.hearts.or.broken.through.all.the.wide.contrasting.scenery.of.those.noble.Mohawk.counties.and.especially.by.rows.of.snowwhite.chapels.whose.spires.stand.almost.like.milestones.flows.one.continual.stream.of.Venetianly.corrupt.and.often.lawless.life.Theres.your.true.Ashantee.gentlemen.there.howl.your.pagans.where.you.ever.find.them.next.door.to.you.under.the.longflung.shadow.and.the.snug.patronising.lee.of.churches.For.by.some.curious.fatality.as.it.is.often.noted.of.your.metropolitan.freebooters.that.they.ever.encamp.around.the.halls.of.justice.so.sinners.gentlemen.most.abound.in.holiest.vicinities.Is.that.a.friar.passing.said.Don.Pedro.looking.downwards.into.the.crowded.plazza.with.humorous.concern.Well.for.our.northern.friend.Dame.Isabellas.Inquisition.wanes.in.Lima.laughed.Don.Sebastian.Proceed.Senor.A.moment.Pardon.cried.another.of.the.company.In.the.name.of.all.us.Limeese.I.but.desire.to.express.to.you.sir.sailor.that.we.have.by.no.means.overlooked.your.delicacy.in.not.substituting.present.Lima.for.distant.Venice.in.your.corrupt.comparison.Oh.do.not.bow.and.look.surprised.you.know.the.proverb.all.along.this.coast.Corrupt.as.Lima.It.but.bears.out.your.saying.too.churches.more.plentiful.than.billiardtables.and.for.ever.open.and.Corrupt.as.Lima.So.too.Venice.I.have.been.there.the.holy.city.of.the.blessed.evangelist.St.Mark.St.Dominic.purge.it.Your.cup.Thanks.here.I.refill.now.you.pour.out.again.Freely.depicted.in.his.own.vocation.gentlemen.the.Canaller.would.make.a.fine.dramatic.hero.so.abundantly.and.picturesquely.wicked.is.he.Like.Mark.Antony.for.days.and.days.along.his.greenturfed.flowery.Nile.he.indolently.floats.openly.toying.with.his.redcheeked.Cleopatra.ripening.his.apricot.thigh.upon.the.sunny.deck.But.ashore.all.this.effeminacy.is.dashed.The.brigandish.guise.which.the.Canaller.so.proudly.sports.his.slouched.and.gailyribboned.hat.betoken.his.grand.features.A.terror.to.the.smiling.innocence.of.the.villages.through.which.he.floats.his.swart.visage.and.bold.swagger.are.not.unshunned.in.cities.Once.a.vagabond.on.his.own.canal.I.have.received.good.turns.from.one.of.these.Canallers.I.thank.him.heartily.would.fain.be.not.ungrateful.but.it.is.often.one.of.the.prime.redeeming.qualities.of.your.man.of.violence.that.at.times.he.has.as.stiff.an.arm.to.back.a.poor.stranger.in.a.strait.as.to.plunder.a.wealthy.one.In.sum.gentlemen.what.the.wildness.of.this.canal.life.is.is.emphatically.evinced.by.this.that.our.wild.whalefishery.contains.so.many.of.its.most.finished.graduates.and.that.scarce.any.race.of.mankind.except.Sydney.men.are.so.much.distrusted.by.our.whaling.captains.Nor.does.it.at.all.diminish.the.curiousness.of.this.matter.that.to.many.thousands.of.our.rural.boys.and.young.men.born.along.its.line.the.probationary.life.of.the.Grand.Canal.furnishes.the.sole.transition.between.quietly.reaping.in.a.Christian.cornfield.and.recklessly.ploughing.the.waters.of.the.most.barbaric.seas.I.see.I.see.impetuously.exclaimed.Don.Pedro.spilling.his.chicha.upon.his.silvery.ruffles.No.need.to.travel.The.worlds.one.Lima.I.had.thought.now.that.at.your.temperate.North.the.generations.were.cold.and.holy.as.the.hills.But.the.story.I.left.off.gentlemen.where.the.Lakeman.shook.the.backstay.Hardly.had.he.done.so.when.he.was.surrounded.by.the.three.junior.mates.and.the.four.harpooneers.who.all.crowded.him.to.the.deck.But.sliding.down.the.ropes.like.baleful.comets.the.two.Canallers.rushed.into.the.uproar.and.sought.to.drag.their.man.out.of.it.towards.the.forecastle.Others.of.the.sailors.joined.with.them.in.this.attempt.and.a.twisted.turmoil.ensued.while.standing.out.of.harms.way.the.valiant.captain.danced.up.and.down.with.a.whalepike.calling.upon.his.officers.to.manhandle.that.atrocious.scoundrel.and.smoke.him.along.to.the.quarterdeck.At.intervals.he.ran.close.up.to.the.revolving.border.of.the.confusion.and.prying.into.the.heart.of.it.with.his.pike.sought.to.prick.out.the.object.of.his.resentment.But.Steelkilt.and.his.desperadoes.were.too.much.for.them.all.they.succeeded.in.gaining.the.forecastle.deck.where.hastily.slewing.about.three.or.four.large.casks.in.a.line.with.the.windlass.these.seaParisians.entrenched.themselves.behind.the.barricade.Come.out.of.that.ye.pirates.roared.the.captain.now.menacing.them.with.a.pistol.in.each.hand.just.brought.to.him.by.the.steward.Come.out.of.that.ye.cutthroats.Steelkilt.leaped.on.the.barricade.and.striding.up.and.down.there.defied.the.worst.the.pistols.could.do.but.gave.the.captain.to.understand.distinctly.that.his.Steelkilts.death.would.be.the.signal.for.a.murderous.mutiny.on.the.part.of.all.hands.Fearing.in.his.heart.lest.this.might.prove.but.too.true.the.captain.a.little.desisted.but.still.commanded.the.insurgents.instantly.to.return.to.their.duty.Will.you.promise.not.to.touch.us.if.we.do.demanded.their.ringleader.Turn.to.turn.to.I.make.no.promise.to.your.duty.Do.you.want.to.sink.the.ship.by.knocking.off.at.a.time.like.this.Turn.to.and.he.once.more.raised.a.pistol.Sink.the.ship.cried.Steelkilt.Aye.let.her.sink.Not.a.man.of.us.turns.to.unless.you.swear.not.to.raise.a.ropeyarn.against.us.What.say.ye.men.turning.to.his.comrades.A.fierce.cheer.was.their.response.The.Lakeman.now.patrolled.the.barricade.all.the.while.keeping.his.eye.on.the.Captain.and.jerking.out.such.sentences.as.these.Its.not.our.fault.we.didnt.want.it.I.told.him.to.take.his.hammer.away.it.was.boys.business.he.might.have.known.me.before.this.I.told.him.not.to.prick.the.buffalo.I.believe.I.have.broken.a.finger.here.against.his.cursed.jaw.aint.those.mincing.knives.down.in.the.forecastle.there.men.look.to.those.handspikes.my.hearties.Captain.by.God.look.to.yourself.say.the.word.dont.be.a.fool.forget.it.all.we.are.ready.to.turn.to.treat.us.decently.and.were.your.men.but.we.wont.be.flogged.Turn.to.I.make.no.promises.turn.to.I.say.Look.ye.now.cried.the.Lakeman.flinging.out.his.arm.towards.him.there.are.a.few.of.us.here.and.I.am.one.of.them.who.have.shipped.for.the.cruise.dye.see.now.as.you.well.know.sir.we.can.claim.our.discharge.as.soon.as.the.anchor.is.down.so.we.dont.want.a.row.its.not.our.interest.we.want.to.be.peaceable.we.are.ready.to.work.but.we.wont.be.flogged.Turn.to.roared.the.Captain.Steelkilt.glanced.round.him.a.moment.and.then.said.I.tell.you.what.it.is.now.Captain.rather.than.kill.ye.and.be.hung.for.such.a.shabby.rascal.we.wont.lift.a.hand.against.ye.unless.ye.attack.us.but.till.you.say.the.word.about.not.flogging.us.we.dont.do.a.hands.turn.Down.into.the.forecastle.then.down.with.ye.Ill.keep.ye.there.till.yere.sick.of.it.Down.ye.go.Shall.we.cried.the.ringleader.to.his.men.Most.of.them.were.against.it.but.at.length.in.obedience.to.Steelkilt.they.preceded.him.down.into.their.dark.den.growlingly.disappearing.like.bears.into.a.cave.As.the.Lakemans.bare.head.was.just.level.with.the.planks.the.Captain.and.his.posse.leaped.the.barricade.and.rapidly.drawing.over.the.slide.of.the.scuttle.planted.their.group.of.hands.upon.it.and.loudly.called.for.the.steward.to.bring.the.heavy.brass.padlock.belonging.to.the.companionway.Then.opening.the.slide.a.little.the.Captain.whispered.something.down.the.crack.closed.it.and.turned.the.key.upon.them.ten.in.number.leaving.on.deck.some.twenty.or.more.who.thus.far.had.remained.neutral.All.night.a.wideawake.watch.was.kept.by.all.the.officers.forward.and.aft.especially.about.the.forecastle.scuttle.and.fore.hatchway.at.which.last.place.it.was.feared.the.insurgents.might.emerge.after.breaking.through.the.bulkhead.below.But.the.hours.of.darkness.passed.in.peace.the.men.who.still.remained.at.their.duty.toiling.hard.at.the.pumps.whose.clinking.and.clanking.at.intervals.through.the.dreary.night.dismally.resounded.through.the.ship.At.sunrise.the.Captain.went.forward.and.knocking.on.the.deck.summoned.the.prisoners.to.work.but.with.a.yell.they.refused.Water.was.then.lowered.down.to.them.and.a.couple.of.handfuls.of.biscuit.were.tossed.after.it.when.again.turning.the.key.upon.them.and.pocketing.it.the.Captain.returned.to.the.quarterdeck.Twice.every.day.for.three.days.this.was.repeated.but.on.the.fourth.morning.a.confused.wrangling.and.then.a.scuffling.was.heard.as.the.customary.summons.was.delivered.and.suddenly.four.men.burst.up.from.the.forecastle.saying.they.were.ready.to.turn.to.The.fetid.closeness.of.the.air.and.a.famishing.diet.united.perhaps.to.some.fears.of.ultimate.retribution.had.constrained.them.to.surrender.at.discretion.Emboldened.by.this.the.Captain.reiterated.his.demand.to.the.rest.but.Steelkilt.shouted.up.to.him.a.terrific.hint.to.stop.his.babbling.and.betake.himself.where.he.belonged.On.the.fifth.morning.three.others.of.the.mutineers.bolted.up.into.the.air.from.the.desperate.arms.below.that.sought.to.restrain.them.Only.three.were.left.Better.turn.to.now.said.the.Captain.with.a.heartless.jeer.Shut.us.up.again.will.ye.cried.Steelkilt.Oh.certainly.said.the.Captain.and.the.key.clicked.It.was.at.this.point.gentlemen.that.enraged.by.the.defection.of.seven.of.his.former.associates.and.stung.by.the.mocking.voice.that.had.last.hailed.him.and.maddened.by.his.long.entombment.in.a.place.as.black.as.the.bowels.of.despair.it.was.then.that.Steelkilt.proposed.to.the.two.Canallers.thus.far.apparently.of.one.mind.with.him.to.burst.out.of.their.hole.at.the.next.summoning.of.the.garrison.and.armed.with.their.keen.mincing.knives.long.crescentic.heavy.implements.with.a.handle.at.each.end.run.amuck.from.the.bowsprit.to.the.taffrail.and.if.by.any.devilishness.of.desperation.possible.seize.the.ship.For.himself.he.would.do.this.he.said.whether.they.joined.him.or.not.That.was.the.last.night.he.should.spend.in.that.den.But.the.scheme.met.with.no.opposition.on.the.part.of.the.other.two.they.swore.they.were.ready.for.that.or.for.any.other.mad.thing.for.anything.in.short.but.a.surrender.And.what.was.more.they.each.insisted.upon.being.the.first.man.on.deck.when.the.time.to.make.the.rush.should.come.But.to.this.their.leader.as.fiercely.objected.reserving.that.priority.for.himself.particularly.as.his.two.comrades.would.not.yield.the.one.to.the.other.in.the.matter.and.both.of.them.could.not.be.first.for.the.ladder.would.but.admit.one.man.at.a.time.And.here.gentlemen.the.foul.play.of.these.miscreants.must.come.out.Upon.hearing.the.frantic.project.of.their.leader.each.in.his.own.separate.soul.had.suddenly.lighted.it.would.seem.upon.the.same.piece.of.treachery.namely.to.be.foremost.in.breaking.out.in.order.to.be.the.first.of.the.three.though.the.last.of.the.ten.to.surrender.and.thereby.secure.whatever.small.chance.of.pardon.such.conduct.might.merit.But.when.Steelkilt.made.known.his.determination.still.to.lead.them.to.the.last.they.in.some.way.by.some.subtle.chemistry.of.villany.mixed.their.before.secret.treacheries.together.and.when.their.leader.fell.into.a.doze.verbally.opened.their.souls.to.each.other.in.three.sentences.and.bound.the.sleeper.with.cords.and.gagged.him.with.cords.and.shrieked.out.for.the.Captain.at.midnight.Thinking.murder.at.hand.and.smelling.in.the.dark.for.the.blood.he.and.all.his.armed.mates.and.harpooneers.rushed.for.the.forecastle.In.a.few.minutes.the.scuttle.was.opened.and.bound.hand.and.foot.the.still.struggling.ringleader.was.shoved.up.into.the.air.by.his.perfidious.allies.who.at.once.claimed.the.honor.of.securing.a.man.who.had.been.fully.ripe.for.murder.But.all.these.were.collared.and.dragged.along.the.deck.like.dead.cattle.and.side.by.side.were.seized.up.into.the.mizzen.rigging.like.three.quarters.of.meat.and.there.they.hung.till.morning.Damn.ye.cried.the.Captain.pacing.to.and.fro.before.them.the.vultures.would.not.touch.ye.ye.villains.At.sunrise.he.summoned.all.hands.and.separating.those.who.had.rebelled.from.those.who.had.taken.no.part.in.the.mutiny.he.told.the.former.that.he.had.a.good.mind.to.flog.them.all.round.thought.upon.the.whole.he.would.do.so.he.ought.to.justice.demanded.it.but.for.the.present.considering.their.timely.surrender.he.would.let.them.go.with.a.reprimand.which.he.accordingly.administered.in.the.vernacular.But.as.for.you.ye.carrion.rogues.turning.to.the.three.men.in.the.rigging.for.you.I.mean.to.mince.ye.up.for.the.trypots.and.seizing.a.rope.he.applied.it.with.all.his.might.to.the.backs.of.the.two.traitors.till.they.yelled.no.more.but.lifelessly.hung.their.heads.sideways.as.the.two.crucified.thieves.are.drawn.My.wrist.is.sprained.with.ye.he.cried.at.last.but.there.is.still.rope.enough.left.for.you.my.fine.bantam.that.wouldnt.give.up.Take.that.gag.from.his.mouth.and.let.us.hear.what.he.can.say.for.himself.For.a.moment.the.exhausted.mutineer.made.a.tremulous.motion.of.his.cramped.jaws.and.then.painfully.twisting.round.his.head.said.in.a.sort.of.hiss.What.I.say.is.this.and.mind.it.well.if.you.flog.me.I.murder.you.Say.ye.so.then.see.how.ye.frighten.me.and.the.Captain.drew.off.with.the.rope.to.strike.Best.not.hissed.the.Lakeman.But.I.must.and.the.rope.was.once.more.drawn.back.for.the.stroke.Steelkilt.here.hissed.out.something.inaudible.to.all.but.the.Captain.who.to.the.amazement.of.all.hands.started.back.paced.the.deck.rapidly.two.or.three.times.and.then.suddenly.throwing.down.his.rope.said.I.wont.do.it.let.him.go.cut.him.down.dye.hear.But.as.the.junior.mates.were.hurrying.to.execute.the.order.a.pale.man.with.a.bandaged.head.arrested.them.Radney.the.chief.mate.Ever.since.the.blow.he.had.lain.in.his.berth.but.that.morning.hearing.the.tumult.on.the.deck.he.had.crept.out.and.thus.far.had.watched.the.whole.scene.Such.was.the.state.of.his.mouth.that.he.could.hardly.speak.but.mumbling.something.about.his.being.willing.and.able.to.do.what.the.captain.dared.not.attempt.he.snatched.the.rope.and.advanced.to.his.pinioned.foe.You.are.a.coward.hissed.the.Lakeman.So.I.am.but.take.that.The.mate.was.in.the.very.act.of.striking.when.another.hiss.stayed.his.uplifted.arm.He.paused.and.then.pausing.no.more.made.good.his.word.spite.of.Steelkilts.threat.whatever.that.might.have.been.The.three.men.were.then.cut.down.all.hands.were.turned.to.and.sullenly.worked.by.the.moody.seamen.the.iron.pumps.clanged.as.before.Just.after.dark.that.day.when.one.watch.had.retired.below.a.clamor.was.heard.in.the.forecastle.and.the.two.trembling.traitors.running.up.besieged.the.cabin.door.saying.they.durst.not.consort.with.the.crew.Entreaties.cuffs.and.kicks.could.not.drive.them.back.so.at.their.own.instance.they.were.put.down.in.the.ships.run.for.salvation.Still.no.sign.of.mutiny.reappeared.among.the.rest.On.the.contrary.it.seemed.that.mainly.at.Steelkilts.instigation.they.had.resolved.to.maintain.the.strictest.peacefulness.obey.all.orders.to.the.last.and.when.the.ship.reached.port.desert.her.in.a.body.But.in.order.to.insure.the.speediest.end.to.the.voyage.they.all.agreed.to.another.thing.namely.not.to.sing.out.for.whales.in.case.any.should.be.discovered.For.spite.of.her.leak.and.spite.of.all.her.other.perils.the.TownHo.still.maintained.her.mastheads.and.her.captain.was.just.as.willing.to.lower.for.a.fish.that.moment.as.on.the.day.his.craft.first.struck.the.cruising.ground.and.Radney.the.mate.was.quite.as.ready.to.change.his.berth.for.a.boat.and.with.his.bandaged.mouth.seek.to.gag.in.death.the.vital.jaw.of.the.whale.But.though.the.Lakeman.had.induced.the.seamen.to.adopt.this.sort.of.passiveness.in.their.conduct.he.kept.his.own.counsel.at.least.till.all.was.over.concerning.his.own.proper.and.private.revenge.upon.the.man.who.had.stung.him.in.the.ventricles.of.his.heart.He.was.in.Radney.the.chief.mates.watch.and.as.if.the.infatuated.man.sought.to.run.more.than.half.way.to.meet.his.doom.after.the.scene.at.the.rigging.he.insisted.against.the.express.counsel.of.the.captain.upon.resuming.the.head.of.his.watch.at.night.Upon.this.and.one.or.two.other.circumstances.Steelkilt.systematically.built.the.plan.of.his.revenge.During.the.night.Radney.had.an.unseamanlike.way.of.sitting.on.the.bulwarks.of.the.quarterdeck.and.leaning.his.arm.upon.the.gunwale.of.the.boat.which.was.hoisted.up.there.a.little.above.the.ships.side.In.this.attitude.it.was.well.known.he.sometimes.dozed.There.was.a.considerable.vacancy.between.the.boat.and.the.ship.and.down.between.this.was.the.sea.Steelkilt.calculated.his.time.and.found.that.his.next.trick.at.the.helm.would.come.round.at.two.oclock.in.the.morning.of.the.third.day.from.that.in.which.he.had.been.betrayed.At.his.leisure.he.employed.the.interval.in.braiding.something.very.carefully.in.his.watches.below.What.are.you.making.there.said.a.shipmate.What.do.you.think.what.does.it.look.like.Like.a.lanyard.for.your.bag.but.its.an.odd.one.seems.to.me.Yes.rather.oddish.said.the.Lakeman.holding.it.at.arms.length.before.him.but.I.think.it.will.answer.Shipmate.I.havent.enough.twine.have.you.any.But.there.was.none.in.the.forecastle.Then.I.must.get.some.from.old.Rad.and.he.rose.to.go.aft.You.dont.mean.to.go.a.begging.to.him.said.a.sailor.Why.not.Do.you.think.he.wont.do.me.a.turn.when.its.to.help.himself.in.the.end.shipmate.and.going.to.the.mate.he.looked.at.him.quietly.and.asked.him.for.some.twine.to.mend.his.hammock.It.was.given.him.neither.twine.nor.lanyard.were.seen.again.but.the.next.night.an.iron.ball.closely.netted.partly.rolled.from.the.pocket.of.the.Lakemans.monkey.jacket.as.he.was.tucking.the.coat.into.his.hammock.for.a.pillow.Twentyfour.hours.after.his.trick.at.the.silent.helm.nigh.to.the.man.who.was.apt.to.doze.over.the.grave.always.ready.dug.to.the.seamans.hand.that.fatal.hour.was.then.to.come.and.in.the.foreordaining.soul.of.Steelkilt.the.mate.was.already.stark.and.stretched.as.a.corpse.with.his.forehead.crushed.in.But.gentlemen.a.fool.saved.the.wouldbe.murderer.from.the.bloody.deed.he.had.planned.Yet.complete.revenge.he.had.and.without.being.the.avenger.For.by.a.mysterious.fatality.Heaven.itself.seemed.to.step.in.to.take.out.of.his.hands.into.its.own.the.damning.thing.he.would.have.done.It.was.just.between.daybreak.and.sunrise.of.the.morning.of.the.second.day.when.they.were.washing.down.the.decks.that.a.stupid.Teneriffe.man.drawing.water.in.the.mainchains.all.at.once.shouted.out.There.she.rolls.there.she.rolls.Jesu.what.a.whale.It.was.Moby.Dick.Moby.Dick.cried.Don.Sebastian.St.Dominic.Sir.sailor.but.do.whales.have.christenings.Whom.call.you.Moby.Dick.A.very.white.and.famous.and.most.deadly.immortal.monster.Don.but.that.would.be.too.long.a.story.How.how.cried.all.the.young.Spaniards.crowding.Nay.Dons.Dons.nay.nay.I.cannot.rehearse.that.now.Let.me.get.more.into.the.air.Sirs.The.chicha.the.chicha.cried.Don.Pedro.our.vigorous.friend.looks.faint.fill.up.his.empty.glass.No.need.gentlemen.one.moment.and.I.proceed.Now.gentlemen.so.suddenly.perceiving.the.snowy.whale.within.fifty.yards.of.the.ship.forgetful.of.the.compact.among.the.crew.in.the.excitement.of.the.moment.the.Teneriffe.man.had.instinctively.and.involuntarily.lifted.his.voice.for.the.monster.though.for.some.little.time.past.it.had.been.plainly.beheld.from.the.three.sullen.mastheads.All.was.now.a.phrensy.The.White.Whale.the.White.Whale.was.the.cry.from.captain.mates.and.harpooneers.who.undeterred.by.fearful.rumours.were.all.anxious.to.capture.so.famous.and.precious.a.fish.while.the.dogged.crew.eyed.askance.and.with.curses.the.appalling.beauty.of.the.vast.milky.mass.that.lit.up.by.a.horizontal.spangling.sun.shifted.and.glistened.like.a.living.opal.in.the.blue.morning.sea.Gentlemen.a.strange.fatality.pervades.the.whole.career.of.these.events.as.if.verily.mapped.out.before.the.world.itself.was.charted.The.mutineer.was.the.bowsman.of.the.mate.and.when.fast.to.a.fish.it.was.his.duty.to.sit.next.him.while.Radney.stood.up.with.his.lance.in.the.prow.and.haul.in.or.slacken.the.line.at.the.word.of.command.Moreover.when.the.four.boats.were.lowered.the.mates.got.the.start.and.none.howled.more.fiercely.with.delight.than.did.Steelkilt.as.he.strained.at.his.oar.After.a.stiff.pull.their.harpooneer.got.fast.and.spear.in.hand.Radney.sprang.to.the.bow.He.was.always.a.furious.man.it.seems.in.a.boat.And.now.his.bandaged.cry.was.to.beach.him.on.the.whales.topmost.back.Nothing.loath.his.bowsman.hauled.him.up.and.up.through.a.blinding.foam.that.blent.two.whitenesses.together.till.of.a.sudden.the.boat.struck.as.against.a.sunken.ledge.and.keeling.over.spilled.out.the.standing.mate.That.instant.as.he.fell.on.the.whales.slippery.back.the.boat.righted.and.was.dashed.aside.by.the.swell.while.Radney.was.tossed.over.into.the.sea.on.the.other.flank.of.the.whale.He.struck.out.through.the.spray.and.for.an.instant.was.dimly.seen.through.that.veil.wildly.seeking.to.remove.himself.from.the.eye.of.Moby.Dick.But.the.whale.rushed.round.in.a.sudden.maelstrom.seized.the.swimmer.between.his.jaws.and.rearing.high.up.with.him.plunged.headlong.again.and.went.down.Meantime.at.the.first.tap.of.the.boats.bottom.the.Lakeman.had.slackened.the.line.so.as.to.drop.astern.from.the.whirlpool.calmly.looking.on.he.thought.his.own.thoughts.But.a.sudden.terrific.downward.jerking.of.the.boat.quickly.brought.his.knife.to.the.line.He.cut.it.and.the.whale.was.free.But.at.some.distance.Moby.Dick.rose.again.with.some.tatters.of.Radneys.red.woollen.shirt.caught.in.the.teeth.that.had.destroyed.him.All.four.boats.gave.chase.again.but.the.whale.eluded.them.and.finally.wholly.disappeared.In.good.time.the.TownHo.reached.her.port.a.savage.solitary.place.where.no.civilized.creature.resided.There.headed.by.the.Lakeman.all.but.five.or.six.of.the.foremastmen.deliberately.deserted.among.the.palms.eventually.as.it.turned.out.seizing.a.large.double.warcanoe.of.the.savages.and.setting.sail.for.some.other.harbor.The.ships.company.being.reduced.to.but.a.handful.the.captain.called.upon.the.Islanders.to.assist.him.in.the.laborious.business.of.heaving.down.the.ship.to.stop.the.leak.But.to.such.unresting.vigilance.over.their.dangerous.allies.was.this.small.band.of.whites.necessitated.both.by.night.and.by.day.and.so.extreme.was.the.hard.work.they.underwent.that.upon.the.vessel.being.ready.again.for.sea.they.were.in.such.a.weakened.condition.that.the.captain.durst.not.put.off.with.them.in.so.heavy.a.vessel.After.taking.counsel.with.his.officers.he.anchored.the.ship.as.far.off.shore.as.possible.loaded.and.ran.out.his.two.cannon.from.the.bows.stacked.his.muskets.on.the.poop.and.warning.the.Islanders.not.to.approach.the.ship.at.their.peril.took.one.man.with.him.and.setting.the.sail.of.his.best.whaleboat.steered.straight.before.the.wind.for.Tahiti.five.hundred.miles.distant.to.procure.a.reinforcement.to.his.crew.On.the.fourth.day.of.the.sail.a.large.canoe.was.descried.which.seemed.to.have.touched.at.a.low.isle.of.corals.He.steered.away.from.it.but.the.savage.craft.bore.down.on.him.and.soon.the.voice.of.Steelkilt.hailed.him.to.heave.to.or.he.would.run.him.under.water.The.captain.presented.a.pistol.With.one.foot.on.each.prow.of.the.yoked.warcanoes.the.Lakeman.laughed.him.to.scorn.assuring.him.that.if.the.pistol.so.much.as.clicked.in.the.lock.he.would.bury.him.in.bubbles.and.foam.What.do.you.want.of.me.cried.the.captain.Where.are.you.bound.and.for.what.are.you.bound.demanded.Steelkilt.no.lies.I.am.bound.to.Tahiti.for.more.men.Very.good.Let.me.board.you.a.moment.I.come.in.peace.With.that.he.leaped.from.the.canoe.swam.to.the.boat.and.climbing.the.gunwale.stood.face.to.face.with.the.captain.Cross.your.arms.sir.throw.back.your.head.Now.repeat.after.me.As.soon.as.Steelkilt.leaves.me.I.swear.to.beach.this.boat.on.yonder.island.and.remain.there.six.days.If.I.do.not.may.lightnings.strike.me.A.pretty.scholar.laughed.the.Lakeman.Adios.Senor.and.leaping.into.the.sea.he.swam.back.to.his.comrades.Watching.the.boat.till.it.was.fairly.beached.and.drawn.up.to.the.roots.of.the.cocoanut.trees.Steelkilt.made.sail.again.and.in.due.time.arrived.at.Tahiti.his.own.place.of.destination.There.luck.befriended.him.two.ships.were.about.to.sail.for.France.and.were.providentially.in.want.of.precisely.that.number.of.men.which.the.sailor.headed.They.embarked.and.so.for.ever.got.the.start.of.their.former.captain.had.he.been.at.all.minded.to.work.them.legal.retribution.Some.ten.days.after.the.French.ships.sailed.the.whaleboat.arrived.and.the.captain.was.forced.to.enlist.some.of.the.more.civilized.Tahitians.who.had.been.somewhat.used.to.the.sea.Chartering.a.small.native.schooner.he.returned.with.them.to.his.vessel.and.finding.all.right.there.again.resumed.his.cruisings.Where.Steelkilt.now.is.gentlemen.none.know.but.upon.the.island.of.Nantucket.the.widow.of.Radney.still.turns.to.the.sea.which.refuses.to.give.up.its.dead.still.in.dreams.sees.the.awful.white.whale.that.destroyed.him.Are.you.through.said.Don.Sebastian.quietly.I.am.Don.Then.I.entreat.you.tell.me.if.to.the.best.of.your.own.convictions.this.your.story.is.in.substance.really.true.It.is.so.passing.wonderful.Did.you.get.it.from.an.unquestionable.source.Bear.with.me.if.I.seem.to.press.Also.bear.with.all.of.us.sir.sailor.for.we.all.join.in.Don.Sebastians.suit.cried.the.company.with.exceeding.interest.Is.there.a.copy.of.the.Holy.Evangelists.in.the.Golden.Inn.gentlemen.Nay.said.Don.Sebastian.but.I.know.a.worthy.priest.near.by.who.will.quickly.procure.one.for.me.I.go.for.it.but.are.you.well.advised.this.may.grow.too.serious.Will.you.be.so.good.as.to.bring.the.priest.also.Don.Though.there.are.no.AutodaFs.in.Lima.now.said.one.of.the.company.to.another.I.fear.our.sailor.friend.runs.risk.of.the.archiepiscopacy.Let.us.withdraw.more.out.of.the.moonlight.I.see.no.need.of.this.Excuse.me.for.running.after.you.Don.Sebastian.but.may.I.also.beg.that.you.will.be.particular.in.procuring.the.largest.sized.Evangelists.you.can.This.is.the.priest.he.brings.you.the.Evangelists.said.Don.Sebastian.gravely.returning.with.a.tall.and.solemn.figure.Let.me.remove.my.hat.Now.venerable.priest.further.into.the.light.and.hold.the.Holy.Book.before.me.that.I.may.touch.it.So.help.me.Heaven.and.on.my.honor.the.story.I.have.told.ye.gentlemen.is.in.substance.and.its.great.items.true.I.know.it.to.be.true.it.happened.on.this.ball.I.trod.the.ship.I.knew.the.crew.I.have.seen.and.talked.with.Steelkilt.since.the.death.of.Radney.CHAPTER.55.Of.the.Monstrous.Pictures.of.Whales.I.shall.ere.long.paint.to.you.as.well.as.one.can.without.canvas.something.like.the.true.form.of.the.whale.as.he.actually.appears.to.the.eye.of.the.whaleman.when.in.his.own.absolute.body.the.whale.is.moored.alongside.the.whaleship.so.that.he.can.be.fairly.stepped.upon.there.It.may.be.worth.while.therefore.previously.to.advert.to.those.curious.imaginary.portraits.of.him.which.even.down.to.the.present.day.confidently.challenge.the.faith.of.the.landsman.It.is.time.to.set.the.world.right.in.this.matter.by.proving.such.pictures.of.the.whale.all.wrong.It.may.be.that.the.primal.source.of.all.those.pictorial.delusions.will.be.found.among.the.oldest.Hindoo.Egyptian.and.Grecian.sculptures.For.ever.since.those.inventive.but.unscrupulous.times.when.on.the.marble.panellings.of.temples.the.pedestals.of.statues.and.on.shields.medallions.cups.and.coins.the.dolphin.was.drawn.in.scales.of.chainarmor.like.Saladins.and.a.helmeted.head.like.St.Georges.ever.since.then.has.something.of.the.same.sort.of.license.prevailed.not.only.in.most.popular.pictures.of.the.whale.but.in.many.scientific.presentations.of.him.Now.by.all.odds.the.most.ancient.extant.portrait.anyways.purporting.to.be.the.whales.is.to.be.found.in.the.famous.cavernpagoda.of.Elephanta.in.India.The.Brahmins.maintain.that.in.the.almost.endless.sculptures.of.that.immemorial.pagoda.all.the.trades.and.pursuits.every.conceivable.avocation.of.man.were.prefigured.ages.before.any.of.them.actually.came.into.being.No.wonder.then.that.in.some.sort.our.noble.profession.of.whaling.should.have.been.there.shadowed.forth.The.Hindoo.whale.referred.to.occurs.in.a.separate.department.of.the.wall.depicting.the.incarnation.of.Vishnu.in.the.form.of.leviathan.learnedly.known.as.the.Matse.Avatar.But.though.this.sculpture.is.half.man.and.half.whale.so.as.only.to.give.the.tail.of.the.latter.yet.that.small.section.of.him.is.all.wrong.It.looks.more.like.the.tapering.tail.of.an.anaconda.than.the.broad.palms.of.the.true.whales.majestic.flukes.But.go.to.the.old.Galleries.and.look.now.at.a.great.Christian.painters.portrait.of.this.fish.for.he.succeeds.no.better.than.the.antediluvian.Hindoo.It.is.Guidos.picture.of.Perseus.rescuing.Andromeda.from.the.seamonster.or.whale.Where.did.Guido.get.the.model.of.such.a.strange.creature.as.that.Nor.does.Hogarth.in.painting.the.same.scene.in.his.own.Perseus.Descending.make.out.one.whit.better.The.huge.corpulence.of.that.Hogarthian.monster.undulates.on.the.surface.scarcely.drawing.one.inch.of.water.It.has.a.sort.of.howdah.on.its.back.and.its.distended.tusked.mouth.into.which.the.billows.are.rolling.might.be.taken.for.the.Traitors.Gate.leading.from.the.Thames.by.water.into.the.Tower.Then.there.are.the.Prodromus.whales.of.old.Scotch.Sibbald.and.Jonahs.whale.as.depicted.in.the.prints.of.old.Bibles.and.the.cuts.of.old.primers.What.shall.be.said.of.these.As.for.the.bookbinders.whale.winding.like.a.vinestalk.round.the.stock.of.a.descending.anchor.as.stamped.and.gilded.on.the.backs.and.titlepages.of.many.books.both.old.and.new.that.is.a.very.picturesque.but.purely.fabulous.creature.imitated.I.take.it.from.the.like.figures.on.antique.vases.Though.universally.denominated.a.dolphin.I.nevertheless.call.this.bookbinders.fish.an.attempt.at.a.whale.because.it.was.so.intended.when.the.device.was.first.introduced.It.was.introduced.by.an.old.Italian.publisher.somewhere.about.the.15th.century.during.the.Revival.of.Learning.and.in.those.days.and.even.down.to.a.comparatively.late.period.dolphins.were.popularly.supposed.to.be.a.species.of.the.Leviathan.In.the.vignettes.and.other.embellishments.of.some.ancient.books.you.will.at.times.meet.with.very.curious.touches.at.the.whale.where.all.manner.of.spouts.jets.deau.hot.springs.and.cold.Saratoga.and.BadenBaden.come.bubbling.up.from.his.unexhausted.brain.In.the.titlepage.of.the.original.edition.of.the.Advancement.of.Learning.you.will.find.some.curious.whales.But.quitting.all.these.unprofessional.attempts.let.us.glance.at.those.pictures.of.leviathan.purporting.to.be.sober.scientific.delineations.by.those.who.know.In.old.Harriss.collection.of.voyages.there.are.some.plates.of.whales.extracted.from.a.Dutch.book.of.voyages.AD.1671.entitled.A.Whaling.Voyage.to.Spitzbergen.in.the.ship.Jonas.in.the.Whale.Peter.Peterson.of.Friesland.master.In.one.of.those.plates.the.whales.like.great.rafts.of.logs.are.represented.lying.among.iceisles.with.white.bears.running.over.their.living.backs.In.another.plate.the.prodigious.blunder.is.made.of.representing.the.whale.with.perpendicular.flukes.Then.again.there.is.an.imposing.quarto.written.by.one.Captain.Colnett.a.Post.Captain.in.the.English.navy.entitled.A.Voyage.round.Cape.Horn.into.the.South.Seas.for.the.purpose.of.extending.the.Spermaceti.Whale.Fisheries.In.this.book.is.an.outline.purporting.to.be.a.Picture.of.a.Physeter.or.Spermaceti.whale.drawn.by.scale.from.one.killed.on.the.coast.of.Mexico.August.1793.and.hoisted.on.deck.I.doubt.not.the.captain.had.this.veracious.picture.taken.for.the.benefit.of.his.marines.To.mention.but.one.thing.about.it.let.me.say.that.it.has.an.eye.which.applied.according.to.the.accompanying.scale.to.a.full.grown.sperm.whale.would.make.the.eye.of.that.whale.a.bowwindow.some.five.feet.long.Ah.my.gallant.captain.why.did.ye.not.give.us.Jonah.looking.out.of.that.eye.Nor.are.the.most.conscientious.compilations.of.Natural.History.for.the.benefit.of.the.young.and.tender.free.from.the.same.heinousness.of.mistake.Look.at.that.popular.work.Goldsmiths.Animated.Nature.In.the.abridged.London.edition.of.1807.there.are.plates.of.an.alleged.whale.and.a.narwhale.I.do.not.wish.to.seem.inelegant.but.this.unsightly.whale.looks.much.like.an.amputated.sow.and.as.for.the.narwhale.one.glimpse.at.it.is.enough.to.amaze.one.that.in.this.nineteenth.century.such.a.hippogriff.could.be.palmed.for.genuine.upon.any.intelligent.public.of.schoolboys.Then.again.in.1825.Bernard.Germain.Count.de.Lacpde.a.great.naturalist.published.a.scientific.systemized.whale.book.wherein.are.several.pictures.of.the.different.species.of.the.Leviathan.All.these.are.not.only.incorrect.but.the.picture.of.the.Mysticetus.or.Greenland.whale.that.is.to.say.the.Right.whale.even.Scoresby.a.long.experienced.man.as.touching.that.species.declares.not.to.have.its.counterpart.in.nature.But.the.placing.of.the.capsheaf.to.all.this.blundering.business.was.reserved.for.the.scientific.Frederick.Cuvier.brother.to.the.famous.Baron.In.1836.he.published.a.Natural.History.of.Whales.in.which.he.gives.what.he.calls.a.picture.of.the.Sperm.Whale.Before.showing.that.picture.to.any.Nantucketer.you.had.best.provide.for.your.summary.retreat.from.Nantucket.In.a.word.Frederick.Cuviers.Sperm.Whale.is.not.a.Sperm.Whale.but.a.squash.Of.course.he.never.had.the.benefit.of.a.whaling.voyage.such.men.seldom.have.but.whence.he.derived.that.picture.who.can.tell.Perhaps.he.got.it.as.his.scientific.predecessor.in.the.same.field.Desmarest.got.one.of.his.authentic.abortions.that.is.from.a.Chinese.drawing.And.what.sort.of.lively.lads.with.the.pencil.those.Chinese.are.many.queer.cups.and.saucers.inform.us.As.for.the.signpainters.whales.seen.in.the.streets.hanging.over.the.shops.of.oildealers.what.shall.be.said.of.them.They.are.generally.Richard.III.whales.with.dromedary.humps.and.very.savage.breakfasting.on.three.or.four.sailor.tarts.that.is.whaleboats.full.of.mariners.their.deformities.floundering.in.seas.of.blood.and.blue.paint.But.these.manifold.mistakes.in.depicting.the.whale.are.not.so.very.surprising.after.all.Consider.Most.of.the.scientific.drawings.have.been.taken.from.the.stranded.fish.and.these.are.about.as.correct.as.a.drawing.of.a.wrecked.ship.with.broken.back.would.correctly.represent.the.noble.animal.itself.in.all.its.undashed.pride.of.hull.and.spars.Though.elephants.have.stood.for.their.fulllengths.the.living.Leviathan.has.never.yet.fairly.floated.himself.for.his.portrait.The.living.whale.in.his.full.majesty.and.significance.is.only.to.be.seen.at.sea.in.unfathomable.waters.and.afloat.the.vast.bulk.of.him.is.out.of.sight.like.a.launched.lineofbattle.ship.and.out.of.that.element.it.is.a.thing.eternally.impossible.for.mortal.man.to.hoist.him.bodily.into.the.air.so.as.to.preserve.all.his.mighty.swells.and.undulations.And.not.to.speak.of.the.highly.presumable.difference.of.contour.between.a.young.sucking.whale.and.a.fullgrown.Platonian.Leviathan.yet.even.in.the.case.of.one.of.those.young.sucking.whales.hoisted.to.a.ships.deck.such.is.then.the.outlandish.eellike.limbered.varying.shape.of.him.that.his.precise.expression.the.devil.himself.could.not.catch.But.it.may.be.fancied.that.from.the.naked.skeleton.of.the.stranded.whale.accurate.hints.may.be.derived.touching.his.true.form.Not.at.all.For.it.is.one.of.the.more.curious.things.about.this.Leviathan.that.his.skeleton.gives.very.little.idea.of.his.general.shape.Though.Jeremy.Benthams.skeleton.which.hangs.for.candelabra.in.the.library.of.one.of.his.executors.correctly.conveys.the.idea.of.a.burlybrowed.utilitarian.old.gentleman.with.all.Jeremys.other.leading.personal.characteristics.yet.nothing.of.this.kind.could.be.inferred.from.any.leviathans.articulated.bones.In.fact.as.the.great.Hunter.says.the.mere.skeleton.of.the.whale.bears.the.same.relation.to.the.fully.invested.and.padded.animal.as.the.insect.does.to.the.chrysalis.that.so.roundingly.envelopes.it.This.peculiarity.is.strikingly.evinced.in.the.head.as.in.some.part.of.this.book.will.be.incidentally.shown.It.is.also.very.curiously.displayed.in.the.side.fin.the.bones.of.which.almost.exactly.answer.to.the.bones.of.the.human.hand.minus.only.the.thumb.This.fin.has.four.regular.bonefingers.the.index.middle.ring.and.little.finger.But.all.these.are.permanently.lodged.in.their.fleshy.covering.as.the.human.fingers.in.an.artificial.covering.However.recklessly.the.whale.may.sometimes.serve.us.said.humorous.Stubb.one.day.he.can.never.be.truly.said.to.handle.us.without.mittens.For.all.these.reasons.then.any.way.you.may.look.at.it.you.must.needs.conclude.that.the.great.Leviathan.is.that.one.creature.in.the.world.which.must.remain.unpainted.to.the.last.True.one.portrait.may.hit.the.mark.much.nearer.than.another.but.none.can.hit.it.with.any.very.considerable.degree.of.exactness.So.there.is.no.earthly.way.of.finding.out.precisely.what.the.whale.really.looks.like.And.the.only.mode.in.which.you.can.derive.even.a.tolerable.idea.of.his.living.contour.is.by.going.a.whaling.yourself.but.by.so.doing.you.run.no.small.risk.of.being.eternally.stove.and.sunk.by.him.Wherefore.it.seems.to.me.you.had.best.not.be.too.fastidious.in.your.curiosity.touching.this.Leviathan.CHAPTER.56.Of.the.Less.Erroneous.Pictures.of.Whales.and.the.True.Pictures.of.Whaling.Scenes.In.connexion.with.the.monstrous.pictures.of.whales.I.am.strongly.tempted.here.to.enter.upon.those.still.more.monstrous.stories.of.them.which.are.to.be.found.in.certain.books.both.ancient.and.modern.especially.in.Pliny.Purchas.Hackluyt.Harris.Cuvier.etc.But.I.pass.that.matter.by.I.know.of.only.four.published.outlines.of.the.great.Sperm.Whale.Colnetts.Hugginss.Frederick.Cuviers.and.Beales.In.the.previous.chapter.Colnett.and.Cuvier.have.been.referred.to.Hugginss.is.far.better.than.theirs.but.by.great.odds.Beales.is.the.best.All.Beales.drawings.of.this.whale.are.good.excepting.the.middle.figure.in.the.picture.of.three.whales.in.various.attitudes.capping.his.second.chapter.His.frontispiece.boats.attacking.Sperm.Whales.though.no.doubt.calculated.to.excite.the.civil.scepticism.of.some.parlor.men.is.admirably.correct.and.lifelike.in.its.general.effect.Some.of.the.Sperm.Whale.drawings.in.J.Ross.Browne.are.pretty.correct.in.contour.but.they.are.wretchedly.engraved.That.is.not.his.fault.though.Of.the.Right.Whale.the.best.outline.pictures.are.in.Scoresby.but.they.are.drawn.on.too.small.a.scale.to.convey.a.desirable.impression.He.has.but.one.picture.of.whaling.scenes.and.this.is.a.sad.deficiency.because.it.is.by.such.pictures.only.when.at.all.well.done.that.you.can.derive.anything.like.a.truthful.idea.of.the.living.whale.as.seen.by.his.living.hunters.But.taken.for.all.in.all.by.far.the.finest.though.in.some.details.not.the.most.correct.presentations.of.whales.and.whaling.scenes.to.be.anywhere.found.are.two.large.French.engravings.well.executed.and.taken.from.paintings.by.one.Garnery.Respectively.they.represent.attacks.on.the.Sperm.and.Right.Whale.In.the.first.engraving.a.noble.Sperm.Whale.is.depicted.in.full.majesty.of.might.just.risen.beneath.the.boat.from.the.profundities.of.the.ocean.and.bearing.high.in.the.air.upon.his.back.the.terrific.wreck.of.the.stoven.planks.The.prow.of.the.boat.is.partially.unbroken.and.is.drawn.just.balancing.upon.the.monsters.spine.and.standing.in.that.prow.for.that.one.single.incomputable.flash.of.time.you.behold.an.oarsman.half.shrouded.by.the.incensed.boiling.spout.of.the.whale.and.in.the.act.of.leaping.as.if.from.a.precipice.The.action.of.the.whole.thing.is.wonderfully.good.and.true.The.halfemptied.linetub.floats.on.the.whitened.sea.the.wooden.poles.of.the.spilled.harpoons.obliquely.bob.in.it.the.heads.of.the.swimming.crew.are.scattered.about.the.whale.in.contrasting.expressions.of.affright.while.in.the.black.stormy.distance.the.ship.is.bearing.down.upon.the.scene.Serious.fault.might.be.found.with.the.anatomical.details.of.this.whale.but.let.that.pass.since.for.the.life.of.me.I.could.not.draw.so.good.a.one.In.the.second.engraving.the.boat.is.in.the.act.of.drawing.alongside.the.barnacled.flank.of.a.large.running.Right.Whale.that.rolls.his.black.weedy.bulk.in.the.sea.like.some.mossy.rockslide.from.the.Patagonian.cliffs.His.jets.are.erect.full.and.black.like.soot.so.that.from.so.abounding.a.smoke.in.the.chimney.you.would.think.there.must.be.a.brave.supper.cooking.in.the.great.bowels.below.Sea.fowls.are.pecking.at.the.small.crabs.shellfish.and.other.sea.candies.and.maccaroni.which.the.Right.Whale.sometimes.carries.on.his.pestilent.back.And.all.the.while.the.thicklipped.leviathan.is.rushing.through.the.deep.leaving.tons.of.tumultuous.white.curds.in.his.wake.and.causing.the.slight.boat.to.rock.in.the.swells.like.a.skiff.caught.nigh.the.paddlewheels.of.an.ocean.steamer.Thus.the.foreground.is.all.raging.commotion.but.behind.in.admirable.artistic.contrast.is.the.glassy.level.of.a.sea.becalmed.the.drooping.unstarched.sails.of.the.powerless.ship.and.the.inert.mass.of.a.dead.whale.a.conquered.fortress.with.the.flag.of.capture.lazily.hanging.from.the.whalepole.inserted.into.his.spouthole.Who.Garnery.the.painter.is.or.was.I.know.not.But.my.life.for.it.he.was.either.practically.conversant.with.his.subject.or.else.marvellously.tutored.by.some.experienced.whaleman.The.French.are.the.lads.for.painting.action.Go.and.gaze.upon.all.the.paintings.of.Europe.and.where.will.you.find.such.a.gallery.of.living.and.breathing.commotion.on.canvas.as.in.that.triumphal.hall.at.Versailles.where.the.beholder.fights.his.way.pellmell.through.the.consecutive.great.battles.of.France.where.every.sword.seems.a.flash.of.the.Northern.Lights.and.the.successive.armed.kings.and.Emperors.dash.by.like.a.charge.of.crowned.centaurs.Not.wholly.unworthy.of.a.place.in.that.gallery.are.these.sea.battlepieces.of.Garnery.The.natural.aptitude.of.the.French.for.seizing.the.picturesqueness.of.things.seems.to.be.peculiarly.evinced.in.what.paintings.and.engravings.they.have.of.their.whaling.scenes.With.not.one.tenth.of.Englands.experience.in.the.fishery.and.not.the.thousandth.part.of.that.of.the.Americans.they.have.nevertheless.furnished.both.nations.with.the.only.finished.sketches.at.all.capable.of.conveying.the.real.spirit.of.the.whale.hunt.For.the.most.part.the.English.and.American.whale.draughtsmen.seem.entirely.content.with.presenting.the.mechanical.outline.of.things.such.as.the.vacant.profile.of.the.whale.which.so.far.as.picturesqueness.of.effect.is.concerned.is.about.tantamount.to.sketching.the.profile.of.a.pyramid.Even.Scoresby.the.justly.renowned.Right.whaleman.after.giving.us.a.stiff.full.length.of.the.Greenland.whale.and.three.or.four.delicate.miniatures.of.narwhales.and.porpoises.treats.us.to.a.series.of.classical.engravings.of.boat.hooks.chopping.knives.and.grapnels.and.with.the.microscopic.diligence.of.a.Leuwenhoeck.submits.to.the.inspection.of.a.shivering.world.ninetysix.facsimiles.of.magnified.Arctic.snow.crystals.I.mean.no.disparagement.to.the.excellent.voyager.I.honor.him.for.a.veteran.but.in.so.important.a.matter.it.was.certainly.an.oversight.not.to.have.procured.for.every.crystal.a.sworn.affidavit.taken.before.a.Greenland.Justice.of.the.Peace.In.addition.to.those.fine.engravings.from.Garnery.there.are.two.other.French.engravings.worthy.of.note.by.some.one.who.subscribes.himself.H.Durand.One.of.them.though.not.precisely.adapted.to.our.present.purpose.nevertheless.deserves.mention.on.other.accounts.It.is.a.quiet.noonscene.among.the.isles.of.the.Pacific.a.French.whaler.anchored.inshore.in.a.calm.and.lazily.taking.water.on.board.the.loosened.sails.of.the.ship.and.the.long.leaves.of.the.palms.in.the.background.both.drooping.together.in.the.breezeless.air.The.effect.is.very.fine.when.considered.with.reference.to.its.presenting.the.hardy.fishermen.under.one.of.their.few.aspects.of.oriental.repose.The.other.engraving.is.quite.a.different.affair.the.ship.hoveto.upon.the.open.sea.and.in.the.very.heart.of.the.Leviathanic.life.with.a.Right.Whale.alongside.the.vessel.in.the.act.of.cuttingin.hove.over.to.the.monster.as.if.to.a.quay.and.a.boat.hurriedly.pushing.off.from.this.scene.of.activity.is.about.giving.chase.to.whales.in.the.distance.The.harpoons.and.lances.lie.levelled.for.use.three.oarsmen.are.just.setting.the.mast.in.its.hole.while.from.a.sudden.roll.of.the.sea.the.little.craft.stands.halferect.out.of.the.water.like.a.rearing.horse.From.the.ship.the.smoke.of.the.torments.of.the.boiling.whale.is.going.up.like.the.smoke.over.a.village.of.smithies.and.to.windward.a.black.cloud.rising.up.with.earnest.of.squalls.and.rains.seems.to.quicken.the.activity.of.the.excited.seamen.CHAPTER.57.Of.Whales.in.Paint.in.Teeth.in.Wood.in.SheetIron.in.Stone.in.Mountains.in.Stars.On.Towerhill.as.you.go.down.to.the.London.docks.you.may.have.seen.a.crippled.beggar.or.kedger.as.the.sailors.say.holding.a.painted.board.before.him.representing.the.tragic.scene.in.which.he.lost.his.leg.There.are.three.whales.and.three.boats.and.one.of.the.boats.presumed.to.contain.the.missing.leg.in.all.its.original.integrity.is.being.crunched.by.the.jaws.of.the.foremost.whale.Any.time.these.ten.years.they.tell.me.has.that.man.held.up.that.picture.and.exhibited.that.stump.to.an.incredulous.world.But.the.time.of.his.justification.has.now.come.His.three.whales.are.as.good.whales.as.were.ever.published.in.Wapping.at.any.rate.and.his.stump.as.unquestionable.a.stump.as.any.you.will.find.in.the.western.clearings.But.though.for.ever.mounted.on.that.stump.never.a.stumpspeech.does.the.poor.whaleman.make.but.with.downcast.eyes.stands.ruefully.contemplating.his.own.amputation.Throughout.the.Pacific.and.also.in.Nantucket.and.New.Bedford.and.Sag.Harbor.you.will.come.across.lively.sketches.of.whales.and.whalingscenes.graven.by.the.fishermen.themselves.on.Sperm.Whaleteeth.or.ladies.busks.wrought.out.of.the.Right.Whalebone.and.other.like.skrimshander.articles.as.the.whalemen.call.the.numerous.little.ingenious.contrivances.they.elaborately.carve.out.of.the.rough.material.in.their.hours.of.ocean.leisure.Some.of.them.have.little.boxes.of.dentisticallooking.implements.specially.intended.for.the.skrimshandering.business.But.in.general.they.toil.with.their.jackknives.alone.and.with.that.almost.omnipotent.tool.of.the.sailor.they.will.turn.you.out.anything.you.please.in.the.way.of.a.mariners.fancy.Long.exile.from.Christendom.and.civilization.inevitably.restores.a.man.to.that.condition.in.which.God.placed.him.ie.what.is.called.savagery.Your.true.whalehunter.is.as.much.a.savage.as.an.Iroquois.I.myself.am.a.savage.owning.no.allegiance.but.to.the.King.of.the.Cannibals.and.ready.at.any.moment.to.rebel.against.him.Now.one.of.the.peculiar.characteristics.of.the.savage.in.his.domestic.hours.is.his.wonderful.patience.of.industry.An.ancient.Hawaiian.warclub.or.spearpaddle.in.its.full.multiplicity.and.elaboration.of.carving.is.as.great.a.trophy.of.human.perseverance.as.a.Latin.lexicon.For.with.but.a.bit.of.broken.seashell.or.a.sharks.tooth.that.miraculous.intricacy.of.wooden.network.has.been.achieved.and.it.has.cost.steady.years.of.steady.application.As.with.the.Hawaiian.savage.so.with.the.white.sailorsavage.With.the.same.marvellous.patience.and.with.the.same.single.sharks.tooth.of.his.one.poor.jackknife.he.will.carve.you.a.bit.of.bone.sculpture.not.quite.as.workmanlike.but.as.close.packed.in.its.maziness.of.design.as.the.Greek.savage.Achilless.shield.and.full.of.barbaric.spirit.and.suggestiveness.as.the.prints.of.that.fine.old.Dutch.savage.Albert.Durer.Wooden.whales.or.whales.cut.in.profile.out.of.the.small.dark.slabs.of.the.noble.South.Sea.warwood.are.frequently.met.with.in.the.forecastles.of.American.whalers.Some.of.them.are.done.with.much.accuracy.At.some.old.gableroofed.country.houses.you.will.see.brass.whales.hung.by.the.tail.for.knockers.to.the.roadside.door.When.the.porter.is.sleepy.the.anvilheaded.whale.would.be.best.But.these.knocking.whales.are.seldom.remarkable.as.faithful.essays.On.the.spires.of.some.oldfashioned.churches.you.will.see.sheetiron.whales.placed.there.for.weathercocks.but.they.are.so.elevated.and.besides.that.are.to.all.intents.and.purposes.so.labelled.with.Hands.off.you.cannot.examine.them.closely.enough.to.decide.upon.their.merit.In.bony.ribby.regions.of.the.earth.where.at.the.base.of.high.broken.cliffs.masses.of.rock.lie.strewn.in.fantastic.groupings.upon.the.plain.you.will.often.discover.images.as.of.the.petrified.forms.of.the.Leviathan.partly.merged.in.grass.which.of.a.windy.day.breaks.against.them.in.a.surf.of.green.surges.Then.again.in.mountainous.countries.where.the.traveller.is.continually.girdled.by.amphitheatrical.heights.here.and.there.from.some.lucky.point.of.view.you.will.catch.passing.glimpses.of.the.profiles.of.whales.defined.along.the.undulating.ridges.But.you.must.be.a.thorough.whaleman.to.see.these.sights.and.not.only.that.but.if.you.wish.to.return.to.such.a.sight.again.you.must.be.sure.and.take.the.exact.intersecting.latitude.and.longitude.of.your.first.standpoint.else.so.chancelike.are.such.observations.of.the.hills.that.your.precise.previous.standpoint.would.require.a.laborious.rediscovery.like.the.Soloma.Islands.which.still.remain.incognita.though.once.highruffed.Mendanna.trod.them.and.old.Figuera.chronicled.them.Nor.when.expandingly.lifted.by.your.subject.can.you.fail.to.trace.out.great.whales.in.the.starry.heavens.and.boats.in.pursuit.of.them.as.when.long.filled.with.thoughts.of.war.the.Eastern.nations.saw.armies.locked.in.battle.among.the.clouds.Thus.at.the.North.have.I.chased.Leviathan.round.and.round.the.Pole.with.the.revolutions.of.the.bright.points.that.first.defined.him.to.me.And.beneath.the.effulgent.Antarctic.skies.I.have.boarded.the.ArgoNavis.and.joined.the.chase.against.the.starry.Cetus.far.beyond.the.utmost.stretch.of.Hydrus.and.the.Flying.Fish.With.a.frigates.anchors.for.my.bridlebitts.and.fasces.of.harpoons.for.spurs.would.I.could.mount.that.whale.and.leap.the.topmost.skies.to.see.whether.the.fabled.heavens.with.all.their.countless.tents.really.lie.encamped.beyond.my.mortal.sight.CHAPTER.58.Brit.Steering.northeastward.from.the.Crozetts.we.fell.in.with.vast.meadows.of.brit.the.minute.yellow.substance.upon.which.the.Right.Whale.largely.feeds.For.leagues.and.leagues.it.undulated.round.us.so.that.we.seemed.to.be.sailing.through.boundless.fields.of.ripe.and.golden.wheat.On.the.second.day.numbers.of.Right.Whales.were.seen.who.secure.from.the.attack.of.a.Sperm.Whaler.like.the.Pequod.with.open.jaws.sluggishly.swam.through.the.brit.which.adhering.to.the.fringing.fibres.of.that.wondrous.Venetian.blind.in.their.mouths.was.in.that.manner.separated.from.the.water.that.escaped.at.the.lip.As.morning.mowers.who.side.by.side.slowly.and.seethingly.advance.their.scythes.through.the.long.wet.grass.of.marshy.meads.even.so.these.monsters.swam.making.a.strange.grassy.cutting.sound.and.leaving.behind.them.endless.swaths.of.blue.upon.the.yellow.sea.That.part.of.the.sea.known.among.whalemen.as.the.Brazil.Banks.does.not.bear.that.name.as.the.Banks.of.Newfoundland.do.because.of.there.being.shallows.and.soundings.there.but.because.of.this.remarkable.meadowlike.appearance.caused.by.the.vast.drifts.of.brit.continually.floating.in.those.latitudes.where.the.Right.Whale.is.often.chased.But.it.was.only.the.sound.they.made.as.they.parted.the.brit.which.at.all.reminded.one.of.mowers.Seen.from.the.mastheads.especially.when.they.paused.and.were.stationary.for.a.while.their.vast.black.forms.looked.more.like.lifeless.masses.of.rock.than.anything.else.And.as.in.the.great.hunting.countries.of.India.the.stranger.at.a.distance.will.sometimes.pass.on.the.plains.recumbent.elephants.without.knowing.them.to.be.such.taking.them.for.bare.blackened.elevations.of.the.soil.even.so.often.with.him.who.for.the.first.time.beholds.this.species.of.the.leviathans.of.the.sea.And.even.when.recognised.at.last.their.immense.magnitude.renders.it.very.hard.really.to.believe.that.such.bulky.masses.of.overgrowth.can.possibly.be.instinct.in.all.parts.with.the.same.sort.of.life.that.lives.in.a.dog.or.a.horse.Indeed.in.other.respects.you.can.hardly.regard.any.creatures.of.the.deep.with.the.same.feelings.that.you.do.those.of.the.shore.For.though.some.old.naturalists.have.maintained.that.all.creatures.of.the.land.are.of.their.kind.in.the.sea.and.though.taking.a.broad.general.view.of.the.thing.this.may.very.well.be.yet.coming.to.specialties.where.for.example.does.the.ocean.furnish.any.fish.that.in.disposition.answers.to.the.sagacious.kindness.of.the.dog.The.accursed.shark.alone.can.in.any.generic.respect.be.said.to.bear.comparative.analogy.to.him.But.though.to.landsmen.in.general.the.native.inhabitants.of.the.seas.have.ever.been.regarded.with.emotions.unspeakably.unsocial.and.repelling.though.we.know.the.sea.to.be.an.everlasting.terra.incognita.so.that.Columbus.sailed.over.numberless.unknown.worlds.to.discover.his.one.superficial.western.one.though.by.vast.odds.the.most.terrific.of.all.mortal.disasters.have.immemorially.and.indiscriminately.befallen.tens.and.hundreds.of.thousands.of.those.who.have.gone.upon.the.waters.though.but.a.moments.consideration.will.teach.that.however.baby.man.may.brag.of.his.science.and.skill.and.however.much.in.a.flattering.future.that.science.and.skill.may.augment.yet.for.ever.and.for.ever.to.the.crack.of.doom.the.sea.will.insult.and.murder.him.and.pulverize.the.stateliest.stiffest.frigate.he.can.make.nevertheless.by.the.continual.repetition.of.these.very.impressions.man.has.lost.that.sense.of.the.full.awfulness.of.the.sea.which.aboriginally.belongs.to.it.The.first.boat.we.read.of.floated.on.an.ocean.that.with.Portuguese.vengeance.had.whelmed.a.whole.world.without.leaving.so.much.as.a.widow.That.same.ocean.rolls.now.that.same.ocean.destroyed.the.wrecked.ships.of.last.year.Yea.foolish.mortals.Noahs.flood.is.not.yet.subsided.two.thirds.of.the.fair.world.it.yet.covers.Wherein.differ.the.sea.and.the.land.that.a.miracle.upon.one.is.not.a.miracle.upon.the.other.Preternatural.terrors.rested.upon.the.Hebrews.when.under.the.feet.of.Korah.and.his.company.the.live.ground.opened.and.swallowed.them.up.for.ever.yet.not.a.modern.sun.ever.sets.but.in.precisely.the.same.manner.the.live.sea.swallows.up.ships.and.crews.But.not.only.is.the.sea.such.a.foe.to.man.who.is.an.alien.to.it.but.it.is.also.a.fiend.to.its.own.offspring.worse.than.the.Persian.host.who.murdered.his.own.guests.sparing.not.the.creatures.which.itself.hath.spawned.Like.a.savage.tigress.that.tossing.in.the.jungle.overlays.her.own.cubs.so.the.sea.dashes.even.the.mightiest.whales.against.the.rocks.and.leaves.them.there.side.by.side.with.the.split.wrecks.of.ships.No.mercy.no.power.but.its.own.controls.it.Panting.and.snorting.like.a.mad.battle.steed.that.has.lost.its.rider.the.masterless.ocean.overruns.the.globe.Consider.the.subtleness.of.the.sea.how.its.most.dreaded.creatures.glide.under.water.unapparent.for.the.most.part.and.treacherously.hidden.beneath.the.loveliest.tints.of.azure.Consider.also.the.devilish.brilliance.and.beauty.of.many.of.its.most.remorseless.tribes.as.the.dainty.embellished.shape.of.many.species.of.sharks.Consider.once.more.the.universal.cannibalism.of.the.sea.all.whose.creatures.prey.upon.each.other.carrying.on.eternal.war.since.the.world.began.Consider.all.this.and.then.turn.to.this.green.gentle.and.most.docile.earth.consider.them.both.the.sea.and.the.land.and.do.you.not.find.a.strange.analogy.to.something.in.yourself.For.as.this.appalling.ocean.surrounds.the.verdant.land.so.in.the.soul.of.man.there.lies.one.insular.Tahiti.full.of.peace.and.joy.but.encompassed.by.all.the.horrors.of.the.half.known.life.God.keep.thee.Push.not.off.from.that.isle.thou.canst.never.return.CHAPTER.59.Squid.Slowly.wading.through.the.meadows.of.brit.the.Pequod.still.held.on.her.way.northeastward.towards.the.island.of.Java.a.gentle.air.impelling.her.keel.so.that.in.the.surrounding.serenity.her.three.tall.tapering.masts.mildly.waved.to.that.languid.breeze.as.three.mild.palms.on.a.plain.And.still.at.wide.intervals.in.the.silvery.night.the.lonely.alluring.jet.would.be.seen.But.one.transparent.blue.morning.when.a.stillness.almost.preternatural.spread.over.the.sea.however.unattended.with.any.stagnant.calm.when.the.long.burnished.sunglade.on.the.waters.seemed.a.golden.finger.laid.across.them.enjoining.some.secrecy.when.the.slippered.waves.whispered.together.as.they.softly.ran.on.in.this.profound.hush.of.the.visible.sphere.a.strange.spectre.was.seen.by.Daggoo.from.the.mainmasthead.In.the.distance.a.great.white.mass.lazily.rose.and.rising.higher.and.higher.and.disentangling.itself.from.the.azure.at.last.gleamed.before.our.prow.like.a.snowslide.new.slid.from.the.hills.Thus.glistening.for.a.moment.as.slowly.it.subsided.and.sank.Then.once.more.arose.and.silently.gleamed.It.seemed.not.a.whale.and.yet.is.this.Moby.Dick.thought.Daggoo.Again.the.phantom.went.down.but.on.reappearing.once.more.with.a.stilettolike.cry.that.startled.every.man.from.his.nod.the.negro.yelled.out.There.there.again.there.she.breaches.right.ahead.The.White.Whale.the.White.Whale.Upon.this.the.seamen.rushed.to.the.yardarms.as.in.swarmingtime.the.bees.rush.to.the.boughs.Bareheaded.in.the.sultry.sun.Ahab.stood.on.the.bowsprit.and.with.one.hand.pushed.far.behind.in.readiness.to.wave.his.orders.to.the.helmsman.cast.his.eager.glance.in.the.direction.indicated.aloft.by.the.outstretched.motionless.arm.of.Daggoo.Whether.the.flitting.attendance.of.the.one.still.and.solitary.jet.had.gradually.worked.upon.Ahab.so.that.he.was.now.prepared.to.connect.the.ideas.of.mildness.and.repose.with.the.first.sight.of.the.particular.whale.he.pursued.however.this.was.or.whether.his.eagerness.betrayed.him.whichever.way.it.might.have.been.no.sooner.did.he.distinctly.perceive.the.white.mass.than.with.a.quick.intensity.he.instantly.gave.orders.for.lowering.The.four.boats.were.soon.on.the.water.Ahabs.in.advance.and.all.swiftly.pulling.towards.their.prey.Soon.it.went.down.and.while.with.oars.suspended.we.were.awaiting.its.reappearance.lo.in.the.same.spot.where.it.sank.once.more.it.slowly.rose.Almost.forgetting.for.the.moment.all.thoughts.of.Moby.Dick.we.now.gazed.at.the.most.wondrous.phenomenon.which.the.secret.seas.have.hitherto.revealed.to.mankind.A.vast.pulpy.mass.furlongs.in.length.and.breadth.of.a.glancing.creamcolour.lay.floating.on.the.water.innumerable.long.arms.radiating.from.its.centre.and.curling.and.twisting.like.a.nest.of.anacondas.as.if.blindly.to.clutch.at.any.hapless.object.within.reach.No.perceptible.face.or.front.did.it.have.no.conceivable.token.of.either.sensation.or.instinct.but.undulated.there.on.the.billows.an.unearthly.formless.chancelike.apparition.of.life.As.with.a.low.sucking.sound.it.slowly.disappeared.again.Starbuck.still.gazing.at.the.agitated.waters.where.it.had.sunk.with.a.wild.voice.exclaimed.Almost.rather.had.I.seen.Moby.Dick.and.fought.him.than.to.have.seen.thee.thou.white.ghost.What.was.it.Sir.said.Flask.The.great.live.squid.which.they.say.few.whaleships.ever.beheld.and.returned.to.their.ports.to.tell.of.it.But.Ahab.said.nothing.turning.his.boat.he.sailed.back.to.the.vessel.the.rest.as.silently.following.Whatever.superstitions.the.sperm.whalemen.in.general.have.connected.with.the.sight.of.this.object.certain.it.is.that.a.glimpse.of.it.being.so.very.unusual.that.circumstance.has.gone.far.to.invest.it.with.portentousness.So.rarely.is.it.beheld.that.though.one.and.all.of.them.declare.it.to.be.the.largest.animated.thing.in.the.ocean.yet.very.few.of.them.have.any.but.the.most.vague.ideas.concerning.its.true.nature.and.form.notwithstanding.they.believe.it.to.furnish.to.the.sperm.whale.his.only.food.For.though.other.species.of.whales.find.their.food.above.water.and.may.be.seen.by.man.in.the.act.of.feeding.the.spermaceti.whale.obtains.his.whole.food.in.unknown.zones.below.the.surface.and.only.by.inference.is.it.that.any.one.can.tell.of.what.precisely.that.food.consists.At.times.when.closely.pursued.he.will.disgorge.what.are.supposed.to.be.the.detached.arms.of.the.squid.some.of.them.thus.exhibited.exceeding.twenty.and.thirty.feet.in.length.They.fancy.that.the.monster.to.which.these.arms.belonged.ordinarily.clings.by.them.to.the.bed.of.the.ocean.and.that.the.sperm.whale.unlike.other.species.is.supplied.with.teeth.in.order.to.attack.and.tear.it.There.seems.some.ground.to.imagine.that.the.great.Kraken.of.Bishop.Pontoppodan.may.ultimately.resolve.itself.into.Squid.The.manner.in.which.the.Bishop.describes.it.as.alternately.rising.and.sinking.with.some.other.particulars.he.narrates.in.all.this.the.two.correspond.But.much.abatement.is.necessary.with.respect.to.the.incredible.bulk.he.assigns.it.By.some.naturalists.who.have.vaguely.heard.rumors.of.the.mysterious.creature.here.spoken.of.it.is.included.among.the.class.of.cuttlefish.to.which.indeed.in.certain.external.respects.it.would.seem.to.belong.but.only.as.the.Anak.of.the.tribe.CHAPTER.60.The.Line.With.reference.to.the.whaling.scene.shortly.to.be.described.as.well.as.for.the.better.understanding.of.all.similar.scenes.elsewhere.presented.I.have.here.to.speak.of.the.magical.sometimes.horrible.whaleline.The.line.originally.used.in.the.fishery.was.of.the.best.hemp.slightly.vapored.with.tar.not.impregnated.with.it.as.in.the.case.of.ordinary.ropes.for.while.tar.as.ordinarily.used.makes.the.hemp.more.pliable.to.the.ropemaker.and.also.renders.the.rope.itself.more.convenient.to.the.sailor.for.common.ship.use.yet.not.only.would.the.ordinary.quantity.too.much.stiffen.the.whaleline.for.the.close.coiling.to.which.it.must.be.subjected.but.as.most.seamen.are.beginning.to.learn.tar.in.general.by.no.means.adds.to.the.ropes.durability.or.strength.however.much.it.may.give.it.compactness.and.gloss.Of.late.years.the.Manilla.rope.has.in.the.American.fishery.almost.entirely.superseded.hemp.as.a.material.for.whalelines.for.though.not.so.durable.as.hemp.it.is.stronger.and.far.more.soft.and.elastic.and.I.will.add.since.there.is.an.sthetics.in.all.things.is.much.more.handsome.and.becoming.to.the.boat.than.hemp.Hemp.is.a.dusky.dark.fellow.a.sort.of.Indian.but.Manilla.is.as.a.goldenhaired.Circassian.to.behold.The.whaleline.is.only.twothirds.of.an.inch.in.thickness.At.first.sight.you.would.not.think.it.so.strong.as.it.really.is.By.experiment.its.one.and.fifty.yarns.will.each.suspend.a.weight.of.one.hundred.and.twenty.pounds.so.that.the.whole.rope.will.bear.a.strain.nearly.equal.to.three.tons.In.length.the.common.sperm.whaleline.measures.something.over.two.hundred.fathoms.Towards.the.stern.of.the.boat.it.is.spirally.coiled.away.in.the.tub.not.like.the.wormpipe.of.a.still.though.but.so.as.to.form.one.round.cheeseshaped.mass.of.densely.bedded.sheaves.or.layers.of.concentric.spiralizations.without.any.hollow.but.the.heart.or.minute.vertical.tube.formed.at.the.axis.of.the.cheese.As.the.least.tangle.or.kink.in.the.coiling.would.in.running.out.infallibly.take.somebodys.arm.leg.or.entire.body.off.the.utmost.precaution.is.used.in.stowing.the.line.in.its.tub.Some.harpooneers.will.consume.almost.an.entire.morning.in.this.business.carrying.the.line.high.aloft.and.then.reeving.it.downwards.through.a.block.towards.the.tub.so.as.in.the.act.of.coiling.to.free.it.from.all.possible.wrinkles.and.twists.In.the.English.boats.two.tubs.are.used.instead.of.one.the.same.line.being.continuously.coiled.in.both.tubs.There.is.some.advantage.in.this.because.these.twintubs.being.so.small.they.fit.more.readily.into.the.boat.and.do.not.strain.it.so.much.whereas.the.American.tub.nearly.three.feet.in.diameter.and.of.proportionate.depth.makes.a.rather.bulky.freight.for.a.craft.whose.planks.are.but.one.halfinch.in.thickness.for.the.bottom.of.the.whaleboat.is.like.critical.ice.which.will.bear.up.a.considerable.distributed.weight.but.not.very.much.of.a.concentrated.one.When.the.painted.canvas.cover.is.clapped.on.the.American.linetub.the.boat.looks.as.if.it.were.pulling.off.with.a.prodigious.great.weddingcake.to.present.to.the.whales.Both.ends.of.the.line.are.exposed.the.lower.end.terminating.in.an.eyesplice.or.loop.coming.up.from.the.bottom.against.the.side.of.the.tub.and.hanging.over.its.edge.completely.disengaged.from.everything.This.arrangement.of.the.lower.end.is.necessary.on.two.accounts.First.In.order.to.facilitate.the.fastening.to.it.of.an.additional.line.from.a.neighboring.boat.in.case.the.stricken.whale.should.sound.so.deep.as.to.threaten.to.carry.off.the.entire.line.originally.attached.to.the.harpoon.In.these.instances.the.whale.of.course.is.shifted.like.a.mug.of.ale.as.it.were.from.the.one.boat.to.the.other.though.the.first.boat.always.hovers.at.hand.to.assist.its.consort.Second.This.arrangement.is.indispensable.for.common.safetys.sake.for.were.the.lower.end.of.the.line.in.any.way.attached.to.the.boat.and.were.the.whale.then.to.run.the.line.out.to.the.end.almost.in.a.single.smoking.minute.as.he.sometimes.does.he.would.not.stop.there.for.the.doomed.boat.would.infallibly.be.dragged.down.after.him.into.the.profundity.of.the.sea.and.in.that.case.no.towncrier.would.ever.find.her.again.Before.lowering.the.boat.for.the.chase.the.upper.end.of.the.line.is.taken.aft.from.the.tub.and.passing.round.the.loggerhead.there.is.again.carried.forward.the.entire.length.of.the.boat.resting.crosswise.upon.the.loom.or.handle.of.every.mans.oar.so.that.it.jogs.against.his.wrist.in.rowing.and.also.passing.between.the.men.as.they.alternately.sit.at.the.opposite.gunwales.to.the.leaded.chocks.or.grooves.in.the.extreme.pointed.prow.of.the.boat.where.a.wooden.pin.or.skewer.the.size.of.a.common.quill.prevents.it.from.slipping.out.From.the.chocks.it.hangs.in.a.slight.festoon.over.the.bows.and.is.then.passed.inside.the.boat.again.and.some.ten.or.twenty.fathoms.called.boxline.being.coiled.upon.the.box.in.the.bows.it.continues.its.way.to.the.gunwale.still.a.little.further.aft.and.is.then.attached.to.the.shortwarp.the.rope.which.is.immediately.connected.with.the.harpoon.but.previous.to.that.connexion.the.shortwarp.goes.through.sundry.mystifications.too.tedious.to.detail.Thus.the.whaleline.folds.the.whole.boat.in.its.complicated.coils.twisting.and.writhing.around.it.in.almost.every.direction.All.the.oarsmen.are.involved.in.its.perilous.contortions.so.that.to.the.timid.eye.of.the.landsman.they.seem.as.Indian.jugglers.with.the.deadliest.snakes.sportively.festooning.their.limbs.Nor.can.any.son.of.mortal.woman.for.the.first.time.seat.himself.amid.those.hempen.intricacies.and.while.straining.his.utmost.at.the.oar.bethink.him.that.at.any.unknown.instant.the.harpoon.may.be.darted.and.all.these.horrible.contortions.be.put.in.play.like.ringed.lightnings.he.cannot.be.thus.circumstanced.without.a.shudder.that.makes.the.very.marrow.in.his.bones.to.quiver.in.him.like.a.shaken.jelly.Yet.habit.strange.thing.what.cannot.habit.accomplish.Gayer.sallies.more.merry.mirth.better.jokes.and.brighter.repartees.you.never.heard.over.your.mahogany.than.you.will.hear.over.the.halfinch.white.cedar.of.the.whaleboat.when.thus.hung.in.hangmans.nooses.and.like.the.six.burghers.of.Calais.before.King.Edward.the.six.men.composing.the.crew.pull.into.the.jaws.of.death.with.a.halter.around.every.neck.as.you.may.say.Perhaps.a.very.little.thought.will.now.enable.you.to.account.for.those.repeated.whaling.disasters.some.few.of.which.are.casually.chronicled.of.this.man.or.that.man.being.taken.out.of.the.boat.by.the.line.and.lost.For.when.the.line.is.darting.out.to.be.seated.then.in.the.boat.is.like.being.seated.in.the.midst.of.the.manifold.whizzings.of.a.steamengine.in.full.play.when.every.flying.beam.and.shaft.and.wheel.is.grazing.you.It.is.worse.for.you.cannot.sit.motionless.in.the.heart.of.these.perils.because.the.boat.is.rocking.like.a.cradle.and.you.are.pitched.one.way.and.the.other.without.the.slightest.warning.and.only.by.a.certain.selfadjusting.buoyancy.and.simultaneousness.of.volition.and.action.can.you.escape.being.made.a.Mazeppa.of.and.run.away.with.where.the.allseeing.sun.himself.could.never.pierce.you.out.Again.as.the.profound.calm.which.only.apparently.precedes.and.prophesies.of.the.storm.is.perhaps.more.awful.than.the.storm.itself.for.indeed.the.calm.is.but.the.wrapper.and.envelope.of.the.storm.and.contains.it.in.itself.as.the.seemingly.harmless.rifle.holds.the.fatal.powder.and.the.ball.and.the.explosion.so.the.graceful.repose.of.the.line.as.it.silently.serpentines.about.the.oarsmen.before.being.brought.into.actual.play.this.is.a.thing.which.carries.more.of.true.terror.than.any.other.aspect.of.this.dangerous.affair.But.why.say.more.All.men.live.enveloped.in.whalelines.All.are.born.with.halters.round.their.necks.but.it.is.only.when.caught.in.the.swift.sudden.turn.of.death.that.mortals.realize.the.silent.subtle.everpresent.perils.of.life.And.if.you.be.a.philosopher.though.seated.in.the.whaleboat.you.would.not.at.heart.feel.one.whit.more.of.terror.than.though.seated.before.your.evening.fire.with.a.poker.and.not.a.harpoon.by.your.side.CHAPTER.61.Stubb.Kills.a.Whale.If.to.Starbuck.the.apparition.of.the.Squid.was.a.thing.of.portents.to.Queequeg.it.was.quite.a.different.object.When.you.see.him.quid.said.the.savage.honing.his.harpoon.in.the.bow.of.his.hoisted.boat.then.you.quick.see.him.parm.whale.The.next.day.was.exceedingly.still.and.sultry.and.with.nothing.special.to.engage.them.the.Pequods.crew.could.hardly.resist.the.spell.of.sleep.induced.by.such.a.vacant.sea.For.this.part.of.the.Indian.Ocean.through.which.we.then.were.voyaging.is.not.what.whalemen.call.a.lively.ground.that.is.it.affords.fewer.glimpses.of.porpoises.dolphins.flyingfish.and.other.vivacious.denizens.of.more.stirring.waters.than.those.off.the.Rio.de.la.Plata.or.the.inshore.ground.off.Peru.It.was.my.turn.to.stand.at.the.foremasthead.and.with.my.shoulders.leaning.against.the.slackened.royal.shrouds.to.and.fro.I.idly.swayed.in.what.seemed.an.enchanted.air.No.resolution.could.withstand.it.in.that.dreamy.mood.losing.all.consciousness.at.last.my.soul.went.out.of.my.body.though.my.body.still.continued.to.sway.as.a.pendulum.will.long.after.the.power.which.first.moved.it.is.withdrawn.Ere.forgetfulness.altogether.came.over.me.I.had.noticed.that.the.seamen.at.the.main.and.mizzenmastheads.were.already.drowsy.So.that.at.last.all.three.of.us.lifelessly.swung.from.the.spars.and.for.every.swing.that.we.made.there.was.a.nod.from.below.from.the.slumbering.helmsman.The.waves.too.nodded.their.indolent.crests.and.across.the.wide.trance.of.the.sea.east.nodded.to.west.and.the.sun.over.all.Suddenly.bubbles.seemed.bursting.beneath.my.closed.eyes.like.vices.my.hands.grasped.the.shrouds.some.invisible.gracious.agency.preserved.me.with.a.shock.I.came.back.to.life.And.lo.close.under.our.lee.not.forty.fathoms.off.a.gigantic.Sperm.Whale.lay.rolling.in.the.water.like.the.capsized.hull.of.a.frigate.his.broad.glossy.back.of.an.Ethiopian.hue.glistening.in.the.suns.rays.like.a.mirror.But.lazily.undulating.in.the.trough.of.the.sea.and.ever.and.anon.tranquilly.spouting.his.vapory.jet.the.whale.looked.like.a.portly.burgher.smoking.his.pipe.of.a.warm.afternoon.But.that.pipe.poor.whale.was.thy.last.As.if.struck.by.some.enchanters.wand.the.sleepy.ship.and.every.sleeper.in.it.all.at.once.started.into.wakefulness.and.more.than.a.score.of.voices.from.all.parts.of.the.vessel.simultaneously.with.the.three.notes.from.aloft.shouted.forth.the.accustomed.cry.as.the.great.fish.slowly.and.regularly.spouted.the.sparkling.brine.into.the.air.Clear.away.the.boats.Luff.cried.Ahab.And.obeying.his.own.order.he.dashed.the.helm.down.before.the.helmsman.could.handle.the.spokes.The.sudden.exclamations.of.the.crew.must.have.alarmed.the.whale.and.ere.the.boats.were.down.majestically.turning.he.swam.away.to.the.leeward.but.with.such.a.steady.tranquillity.and.making.so.few.ripples.as.he.swam.that.thinking.after.all.he.might.not.as.yet.be.alarmed.Ahab.gave.orders.that.not.an.oar.should.be.used.and.no.man.must.speak.but.in.whispers.So.seated.like.Ontario.Indians.on.the.gunwales.of.the.boats.we.swiftly.but.silently.paddled.along.the.calm.not.admitting.of.the.noiseless.sails.being.set.Presently.as.we.thus.glided.in.chase.the.monster.perpendicularly.flitted.his.tail.forty.feet.into.the.air.and.then.sank.out.of.sight.like.a.tower.swallowed.up.There.go.flukes.was.the.cry.an.announcement.immediately.followed.by.Stubbs.producing.his.match.and.igniting.his.pipe.for.now.a.respite.was.granted.After.the.full.interval.of.his.sounding.had.elapsed.the.whale.rose.again.and.being.now.in.advance.of.the.smokers.boat.and.much.nearer.to.it.than.to.any.of.the.others.Stubb.counted.upon.the.honor.of.the.capture.It.was.obvious.now.that.the.whale.had.at.length.become.aware.of.his.pursuers.All.silence.of.cautiousness.was.therefore.no.longer.of.use.Paddles.were.dropped.and.oars.came.loudly.into.play.And.still.puffing.at.his.pipe.Stubb.cheered.on.his.crew.to.the.assault.Yes.a.mighty.change.had.come.over.the.fish.All.alive.to.his.jeopardy.he.was.going.head.out.that.part.obliquely.projecting.from.the.mad.yeast.which.he.brewed.It.will.be.seen.in.some.other.place.of.what.a.very.light.substance.the.entire.interior.of.the.sperm.whales.enormous.head.consists.Though.apparently.the.most.massive.it.is.by.far.the.most.buoyant.part.about.him.So.that.with.ease.he.elevates.it.in.the.air.and.invariably.does.so.when.going.at.his.utmost.speed.Besides.such.is.the.breadth.of.the.upper.part.of.the.front.of.his.head.and.such.the.tapering.cutwater.formation.of.the.lower.part.that.by.obliquely.elevating.his.head.he.thereby.may.be.said.to.transform.himself.from.a.bluffbowed.sluggish.galliot.into.a.sharppointed.New.York.pilotboat.Start.her.start.her.my.men.Dont.hurry.yourselves.take.plenty.of.time.but.start.her.start.her.like.thunderclaps.thats.all.cried.Stubb.spluttering.out.the.smoke.as.he.spoke.Start.her.now.give.em.the.long.and.strong.stroke.Tashtego.Start.her.Tash.my.boy.start.her.all.but.keep.cool.keep.cool.cucumbers.is.the.word.easy.easy.only.start.her.like.grim.death.and.grinning.devils.and.raise.the.buried.dead.perpendicular.out.of.their.graves.boys.thats.all.Start.her.Woohoo.Wahee.screamed.the.GayHeader.in.reply.raising.some.old.warwhoop.to.the.skies.as.every.oarsman.in.the.strained.boat.involuntarily.bounced.forward.with.the.one.tremendous.leading.stroke.which.the.eager.Indian.gave.But.his.wild.screams.were.answered.by.others.quite.as.wild.Keehee.Keehee.yelled.Daggoo.straining.forwards.and.backwards.on.his.seat.like.a.pacing.tiger.in.his.cage.Kala.Kooloo.howled.Queequeg.as.if.smacking.his.lips.over.a.mouthful.of.Grenadiers.steak.And.thus.with.oars.and.yells.the.keels.cut.the.sea.Meanwhile.Stubb.retaining.his.place.in.the.van.still.encouraged.his.men.to.the.onset.all.the.while.puffing.the.smoke.from.his.mouth.Like.desperadoes.they.tugged.and.they.strained.till.the.welcome.cry.was.heard.Stand.up.Tashtego.give.it.to.him.The.harpoon.was.hurled.Stern.all.The.oarsmen.backed.water.the.same.moment.something.went.hot.and.hissing.along.every.one.of.their.wrists.It.was.the.magical.line.An.instant.before.Stubb.had.swiftly.caught.two.additional.turns.with.it.round.the.loggerhead.whence.by.reason.of.its.increased.rapid.circlings.a.hempen.blue.smoke.now.jetted.up.and.mingled.with.the.steady.fumes.from.his.pipe.As.the.line.passed.round.and.round.the.loggerhead.so.also.just.before.reaching.that.point.it.blisteringly.passed.through.and.through.both.of.Stubbs.hands.from.which.the.handcloths.or.squares.of.quilted.canvas.sometimes.worn.at.these.times.had.accidentally.dropped.It.was.like.holding.an.enemys.sharp.twoedged.sword.by.the.blade.and.that.enemy.all.the.time.striving.to.wrest.it.out.of.your.clutch.Wet.the.line.wet.the.line.cried.Stubb.to.the.tub.oarsman.him.seated.by.the.tub.who.snatching.off.his.hat.dashed.seawater.into.it.More.turns.were.taken.so.that.the.line.began.holding.its.place.The.boat.now.flew.through.the.boiling.water.like.a.shark.all.fins.Stubb.and.Tashtego.here.changed.places.stem.for.stern.a.staggering.business.truly.in.that.rocking.commotion.Partly.to.show.the.indispensableness.of.this.act.it.may.here.be.stated.that.in.the.old.Dutch.fishery.a.mop.was.used.to.dash.the.running.line.with.water.in.many.other.ships.a.wooden.piggin.or.bailer.is.set.apart.for.that.purpose.Your.hat.however.is.the.most.convenient.From.the.vibrating.line.extending.the.entire.length.of.the.upper.part.of.the.boat.and.from.its.now.being.more.tight.than.a.harpstring.you.would.have.thought.the.craft.had.two.keels.one.cleaving.the.water.the.other.the.air.as.the.boat.churned.on.through.both.opposing.elements.at.once.A.continual.cascade.played.at.the.bows.a.ceaseless.whirling.eddy.in.her.wake.and.at.the.slightest.motion.from.within.even.but.of.a.little.finger.the.vibrating.cracking.craft.canted.over.her.spasmodic.gunwale.into.the.sea.Thus.they.rushed.each.man.with.might.and.main.clinging.to.his.seat.to.prevent.being.tossed.to.the.foam.and.the.tall.form.of.Tashtego.at.the.steering.oar.crouching.almost.double.in.order.to.bring.down.his.centre.of.gravity.Whole.Atlantics.and.Pacifics.seemed.passed.as.they.shot.on.their.way.till.at.length.the.whale.somewhat.slackened.his.flight.Haul.in.haul.in.cried.Stubb.to.the.bowsman.and.facing.round.towards.the.whale.all.hands.began.pulling.the.boat.up.to.him.while.yet.the.boat.was.being.towed.on.Soon.ranging.up.by.his.flank.Stubb.firmly.planting.his.knee.in.the.clumsy.cleat.darted.dart.after.dart.into.the.flying.fish.at.the.word.of.command.the.boat.alternately.sterning.out.of.the.way.of.the.whales.horrible.wallow.and.then.ranging.up.for.another.fling.The.red.tide.now.poured.from.all.sides.of.the.monster.like.brooks.down.a.hill.His.tormented.body.rolled.not.in.brine.but.in.blood.which.bubbled.and.seethed.for.furlongs.behind.in.their.wake.The.slanting.sun.playing.upon.this.crimson.pond.in.the.sea.sent.back.its.reflection.into.every.face.so.that.they.all.glowed.to.each.other.like.red.men.And.all.the.while.jet.after.jet.of.white.smoke.was.agonizingly.shot.from.the.spiracle.of.the.whale.and.vehement.puff.after.puff.from.the.mouth.of.the.excited.headsman.as.at.every.dart.hauling.in.upon.his.crooked.lance.by.the.line.attached.to.it.Stubb.straightened.it.again.and.again.by.a.few.rapid.blows.against.the.gunwale.then.again.and.again.sent.it.into.the.whale.Pull.up.pull.up.he.now.cried.to.the.bowsman.as.the.waning.whale.relaxed.in.his.wrath.Pull.up.close.to.and.the.boat.ranged.along.the.fishs.flank.When.reaching.far.over.the.bow.Stubb.slowly.churned.his.long.sharp.lance.into.the.fish.and.kept.it.there.carefully.churning.and.churning.as.if.cautiously.seeking.to.feel.after.some.gold.watch.that.the.whale.might.have.swallowed.and.which.he.was.fearful.of.breaking.ere.he.could.hook.it.out.But.that.gold.watch.he.sought.was.the.innermost.life.of.the.fish.And.now.it.is.struck.for.starting.from.his.trance.into.that.unspeakable.thing.called.his.flurry.the.monster.horribly.wallowed.in.his.blood.overwrapped.himself.in.impenetrable.mad.boiling.spray.so.that.the.imperilled.craft.instantly.dropping.astern.had.much.ado.blindly.to.struggle.out.from.that.phrensied.twilight.into.the.clear.air.of.the.day.And.now.abating.in.his.flurry.the.whale.once.more.rolled.out.into.view.surging.from.side.to.side.spasmodically.dilating.and.contracting.his.spouthole.with.sharp.cracking.agonized.respirations.At.last.gush.after.gush.of.clotted.red.gore.as.if.it.had.been.the.purple.lees.of.red.wine.shot.into.the.frighted.air.and.falling.back.again.ran.dripping.down.his.motionless.flanks.into.the.sea.His.heart.had.burst.Hes.dead.Mr.Stubb.said.Daggoo.Yes.both.pipes.smoked.out.and.withdrawing.his.own.from.his.mouth.Stubb.scattered.the.dead.ashes.over.the.water.and.for.a.moment.stood.thoughtfully.eyeing.the.vast.corpse.he.had.made.CHAPTER.62.The.Dart.A.word.concerning.an.incident.in.the.last.chapter.According.to.the.invariable.usage.of.the.fishery.the.whaleboat.pushes.off.from.the.ship.with.the.headsman.or.whalekiller.as.temporary.steersman.and.the.harpooneer.or.whalefastener.pulling.the.foremost.oar.the.one.known.as.the.harpooneeroar.Now.it.needs.a.strong.nervous.arm.to.strike.the.first.iron.into.the.fish.for.often.in.what.is.called.a.long.dart.the.heavy.implement.has.to.be.flung.to.the.distance.of.twenty.or.thirty.feet.But.however.prolonged.and.exhausting.the.chase.the.harpooneer.is.expected.to.pull.his.oar.meanwhile.to.the.uttermost.indeed.he.is.expected.to.set.an.example.of.superhuman.activity.to.the.rest.not.only.by.incredible.rowing.but.by.repeated.loud.and.intrepid.exclamations.and.what.it.is.to.keep.shouting.at.the.top.of.ones.compass.while.all.the.other.muscles.are.strained.and.half.started.what.that.is.none.know.but.those.who.have.tried.it.For.one.I.cannot.bawl.very.heartily.and.work.very.recklessly.at.one.and.the.same.time.In.this.straining.bawling.state.then.with.his.back.to.the.fish.all.at.once.the.exhausted.harpooneer.hears.the.exciting.cry.Stand.up.and.give.it.to.him.He.now.has.to.drop.and.secure.his.oar.turn.round.on.his.centre.half.way.seize.his.harpoon.from.the.crotch.and.with.what.little.strength.may.remain.he.essays.to.pitch.it.somehow.into.the.whale.No.wonder.taking.the.whole.fleet.of.whalemen.in.a.body.that.out.of.fifty.fair.chances.for.a.dart.not.five.are.successful.no.wonder.that.so.many.hapless.harpooneers.are.madly.cursed.and.disrated.no.wonder.that.some.of.them.actually.burst.their.bloodvessels.in.the.boat.no.wonder.that.some.sperm.whalemen.are.absent.four.years.with.four.barrels.no.wonder.that.to.many.ship.owners.whaling.is.but.a.losing.concern.for.it.is.the.harpooneer.that.makes.the.voyage.and.if.you.take.the.breath.out.of.his.body.how.can.you.expect.to.find.it.there.when.most.wanted.Again.if.the.dart.be.successful.then.at.the.second.critical.instant.that.is.when.the.whale.starts.to.run.the.boatheader.and.harpooneer.likewise.start.to.running.fore.and.aft.to.the.imminent.jeopardy.of.themselves.and.every.one.else.It.is.then.they.change.places.and.the.headsman.the.chief.officer.of.the.little.craft.takes.his.proper.station.in.the.bows.of.the.boat.Now.I.care.not.who.maintains.the.contrary.but.all.this.is.both.foolish.and.unnecessary.The.headsman.should.stay.in.the.bows.from.first.to.last.he.should.both.dart.the.harpoon.and.the.lance.and.no.rowing.whatever.should.be.expected.of.him.except.under.circumstances.obvious.to.any.fisherman.I.know.that.this.would.sometimes.involve.a.slight.loss.of.speed.in.the.chase.but.long.experience.in.various.whalemen.of.more.than.one.nation.has.convinced.me.that.in.the.vast.majority.of.failures.in.the.fishery.it.has.not.by.any.means.been.so.much.the.speed.of.the.whale.as.the.before.described.exhaustion.of.the.harpooneer.that.has.caused.them.To.insure.the.greatest.efficiency.in.the.dart.the.harpooneers.of.this.world.must.start.to.their.feet.from.out.of.idleness.and.not.from.out.of.toil.CHAPTER.63.The.Crotch.Out.of.the.trunk.the.branches.grow.out.of.them.the.twigs.So.in.productive.subjects.grow.the.chapters.The.crotch.alluded.to.on.a.previous.page.deserves.independent.mention.It.is.a.notched.stick.of.a.peculiar.form.some.two.feet.in.length.which.is.perpendicularly.inserted.into.the.starboard.gunwale.near.the.bow.for.the.purpose.of.furnishing.a.rest.for.the.wooden.extremity.of.the.harpoon.whose.other.naked.barbed.end.slopingly.projects.from.the.prow.Thereby.the.weapon.is.instantly.at.hand.to.its.hurler.who.snatches.it.up.as.readily.from.its.rest.as.a.backwoodsman.swings.his.rifle.from.the.wall.It.is.customary.to.have.two.harpoons.reposing.in.the.crotch.respectively.called.the.first.and.second.irons.But.these.two.harpoons.each.by.its.own.cord.are.both.connected.with.the.line.the.object.being.this.to.dart.them.both.if.possible.one.instantly.after.the.other.into.the.same.whale.so.that.if.in.the.coming.drag.one.should.draw.out.the.other.may.still.retain.a.hold.It.is.a.doubling.of.the.chances.But.it.very.often.happens.that.owing.to.the.instantaneous.violent.convulsive.running.of.the.whale.upon.receiving.the.first.iron.it.becomes.impossible.for.the.harpooneer.however.lightninglike.in.his.movements.to.pitch.the.second.iron.into.him.Nevertheless.as.the.second.iron.is.already.connected.with.the.line.and.the.line.is.running.hence.that.weapon.must.at.all.events.be.anticipatingly.tossed.out.of.the.boat.somehow.and.somewhere.else.the.most.terrible.jeopardy.would.involve.all.hands.Tumbled.into.the.water.it.accordingly.is.in.such.cases.the.spare.coils.of.box.line.mentioned.in.a.preceding.chapter.making.this.feat.in.most.instances.prudently.practicable.But.this.critical.act.is.not.always.unattended.with.the.saddest.and.most.fatal.casualties.Furthermore.you.must.know.that.when.the.second.iron.is.thrown.overboard.it.thenceforth.becomes.a.dangling.sharpedged.terror.skittishly.curvetting.about.both.boat.and.whale.entangling.the.lines.or.cutting.them.and.making.a.prodigious.sensation.in.all.directions.Nor.in.general.is.it.possible.to.secure.it.again.until.the.whale.is.fairly.captured.and.a.corpse.Consider.now.how.it.must.be.in.the.case.of.four.boats.all.engaging.one.unusually.strong.active.and.knowing.whale.when.owing.to.these.qualities.in.him.as.well.as.to.the.thousand.concurring.accidents.of.such.an.audacious.enterprise.eight.or.ten.loose.second.irons.may.be.simultaneously.dangling.about.him.For.of.course.each.boat.is.supplied.with.several.harpoons.to.bend.on.to.the.line.should.the.first.one.be.ineffectually.darted.without.recovery.All.these.particulars.are.faithfully.narrated.here.as.they.will.not.fail.to.elucidate.several.most.important.however.intricate.passages.in.scenes.hereafter.to.be.painted.CHAPTER.64.Stubbs.Supper.Stubbs.whale.had.been.killed.some.distance.from.the.ship.It.was.a.calm.so.forming.a.tandem.of.three.boats.we.commenced.the.slow.business.of.towing.the.trophy.to.the.Pequod.And.now.as.we.eighteen.men.with.our.thirtysix.arms.and.one.hundred.and.eighty.thumbs.and.fingers.slowly.toiled.hour.after.hour.upon.that.inert.sluggish.corpse.in.the.sea.and.it.seemed.hardly.to.budge.at.all.except.at.long.intervals.good.evidence.was.hereby.furnished.of.the.enormousness.of.the.mass.we.moved.For.upon.the.great.canal.of.HangHo.or.whatever.they.call.it.in.China.four.or.five.laborers.on.the.footpath.will.draw.a.bulky.freighted.junk.at.the.rate.of.a.mile.an.hour.but.this.grand.argosy.we.towed.heavily.forged.along.as.if.laden.with.piglead.in.bulk.Darkness.came.on.but.three.lights.up.and.down.in.the.Pequods.mainrigging.dimly.guided.our.way.till.drawing.nearer.we.saw.Ahab.dropping.one.of.several.more.lanterns.over.the.bulwarks.Vacantly.eyeing.the.heaving.whale.for.a.moment.he.issued.the.usual.orders.for.securing.it.for.the.night.and.then.handing.his.lantern.to.a.seaman.went.his.way.into.the.cabin.and.did.not.come.forward.again.until.morning.Though.in.overseeing.the.pursuit.of.this.whale.Captain.Ahab.had.evinced.his.customary.activity.to.call.it.so.yet.now.that.the.creature.was.dead.some.vague.dissatisfaction.or.impatience.or.despair.seemed.working.in.him.as.if.the.sight.of.that.dead.body.reminded.him.that.Moby.Dick.was.yet.to.be.slain.and.though.a.thousand.other.whales.were.brought.to.his.ship.all.that.would.not.one.jot.advance.his.grand.monomaniac.object.Very.soon.you.would.have.thought.from.the.sound.on.the.Pequods.decks.that.all.hands.were.preparing.to.cast.anchor.in.the.deep.for.heavy.chains.are.being.dragged.along.the.deck.and.thrust.rattling.out.of.the.portholes.But.by.those.clanking.links.the.vast.corpse.itself.not.the.ship.is.to.be.moored.Tied.by.the.head.to.the.stern.and.by.the.tail.to.the.bows.the.whale.now.lies.with.its.black.hull.close.to.the.vessels.and.seen.through.the.darkness.of.the.night.which.obscured.the.spars.and.rigging.aloft.the.two.ship.and.whale.seemed.yoked.together.like.colossal.bullocks.whereof.one.reclines.while.the.other.remains.standing.A.little.item.may.as.well.be.related.here.The.strongest.and.most.reliable.hold.which.the.ship.has.upon.the.whale.when.moored.alongside.is.by.the.flukes.or.tail.and.as.from.its.greater.density.that.part.is.relatively.heavier.than.any.other.excepting.the.sidefins.its.flexibility.even.in.death.causes.it.to.sink.low.beneath.the.surface.so.that.with.the.hand.you.cannot.get.at.it.from.the.boat.in.order.to.put.the.chain.round.it.But.this.difficulty.is.ingeniously.overcome.a.small.strong.line.is.prepared.with.a.wooden.float.at.its.outer.end.and.a.weight.in.its.middle.while.the.other.end.is.secured.to.the.ship.By.adroit.management.the.wooden.float.is.made.to.rise.on.the.other.side.of.the.mass.so.that.now.having.girdled.the.whale.the.chain.is.readily.made.to.follow.suit.and.being.slipped.along.the.body.is.at.last.locked.fast.round.the.smallest.part.of.the.tail.at.the.point.of.junction.with.its.broad.flukes.or.lobes.If.moody.Ahab.was.now.all.quiescence.at.least.so.far.as.could.be.known.on.deck.Stubb.his.second.mate.flushed.with.conquest.betrayed.an.unusual.but.still.goodnatured.excitement.Such.an.unwonted.bustle.was.he.in.that.the.staid.Starbuck.his.official.superior.quietly.resigned.to.him.for.the.time.the.sole.management.of.affairs.One.small.helping.cause.of.all.this.liveliness.in.Stubb.was.soon.made.strangely.manifest.Stubb.was.a.high.liver.he.was.somewhat.intemperately.fond.of.the.whale.as.a.flavorish.thing.to.his.palate.A.steak.a.steak.ere.I.sleep.You.Daggoo.overboard.you.go.and.cut.me.one.from.his.small.Here.be.it.known.that.though.these.wild.fishermen.do.not.as.a.general.thing.and.according.to.the.great.military.maxim.make.the.enemy.defray.the.current.expenses.of.the.war.at.least.before.realizing.the.proceeds.of.the.voyage.yet.now.and.then.you.find.some.of.these.Nantucketers.who.have.a.genuine.relish.for.that.particular.part.of.the.Sperm.Whale.designated.by.Stubb.comprising.the.tapering.extremity.of.the.body.About.midnight.that.steak.was.cut.and.cooked.and.lighted.by.two.lanterns.of.sperm.oil.Stubb.stoutly.stood.up.to.his.spermaceti.supper.at.the.capstanhead.as.if.that.capstan.were.a.sideboard.Nor.was.Stubb.the.only.banqueter.on.whales.flesh.that.night.Mingling.their.mumblings.with.his.own.mastications.thousands.on.thousands.of.sharks.swarming.round.the.dead.leviathan.smackingly.feasted.on.its.fatness.The.few.sleepers.below.in.their.bunks.were.often.startled.by.the.sharp.slapping.of.their.tails.against.the.hull.within.a.few.inches.of.the.sleepers.hearts.Peering.over.the.side.you.could.just.see.them.as.before.you.heard.them.wallowing.in.the.sullen.black.waters.and.turning.over.on.their.backs.as.they.scooped.out.huge.globular.pieces.of.the.whale.of.the.bigness.of.a.human.head.This.particular.feat.of.the.shark.seems.all.but.miraculous.How.at.such.an.apparently.unassailable.surface.they.contrive.to.gouge.out.such.symmetrical.mouthfuls.remains.a.part.of.the.universal.problem.of.all.things.The.mark.they.thus.leave.on.the.whale.may.best.be.likened.to.the.hollow.made.by.a.carpenter.in.countersinking.for.a.screw.Though.amid.all.the.smoking.horror.and.diabolism.of.a.seafight.sharks.will.be.seen.longingly.gazing.up.to.the.ships.decks.like.hungry.dogs.round.a.table.where.red.meat.is.being.carved.ready.to.bolt.down.every.killed.man.that.is.tossed.to.them.and.though.while.the.valiant.butchers.over.the.decktable.are.thus.cannibally.carving.each.others.live.meat.with.carvingknives.all.gilded.and.tasselled.the.sharks.also.with.their.jewelhilted.mouths.are.quarrelsomely.carving.away.under.the.table.at.the.dead.meat.and.though.were.you.to.turn.the.whole.affair.upside.down.it.would.still.be.pretty.much.the.same.thing.that.is.to.say.a.shocking.sharkish.business.enough.for.all.parties.and.though.sharks.also.are.the.invariable.outriders.of.all.slave.ships.crossing.the.Atlantic.systematically.trotting.alongside.to.be.handy.in.case.a.parcel.is.to.be.carried.anywhere.or.a.dead.slave.to.be.decently.buried.and.though.one.or.two.other.like.instances.might.be.set.down.touching.the.set.terms.places.and.occasions.when.sharks.do.most.socially.congregate.and.most.hilariously.feast.yet.is.there.no.conceivable.time.or.occasion.when.you.will.find.them.in.such.countless.numbers.and.in.gayer.or.more.jovial.spirits.than.around.a.dead.sperm.whale.moored.by.night.to.a.whaleship.at.sea.If.you.have.never.seen.that.sight.then.suspend.your.decision.about.the.propriety.of.devilworship.and.the.expediency.of.conciliating.the.devil.But.as.yet.Stubb.heeded.not.the.mumblings.of.the.banquet.that.was.going.on.so.nigh.him.no.more.than.the.sharks.heeded.the.smacking.of.his.own.epicurean.lips.Cook.cook.wheres.that.old.Fleece.he.cried.at.length.widening.his.legs.still.further.as.if.to.form.a.more.secure.base.for.his.supper.and.at.the.same.time.darting.his.fork.into.the.dish.as.if.stabbing.with.his.lance.cook.you.cook.sail.this.way.cook.The.old.black.not.in.any.very.high.glee.at.having.been.previously.roused.from.his.warm.hammock.at.a.most.unseasonable.hour.came.shambling.along.from.his.galley.for.like.many.old.blacks.there.was.something.the.matter.with.his.kneepans.which.he.did.not.keep.well.scoured.like.his.other.pans.this.old.Fleece.as.they.called.him.came.shuffling.and.limping.along.assisting.his.step.with.his.tongs.which.after.a.clumsy.fashion.were.made.of.straightened.iron.hoops.this.old.Ebony.floundered.along.and.in.obedience.to.the.word.of.command.came.to.a.dead.stop.on.the.opposite.side.of.Stubbs.sideboard.when.with.both.hands.folded.before.him.and.resting.on.his.twolegged.cane.he.bowed.his.arched.back.still.further.over.at.the.same.time.sideways.inclining.his.head.so.as.to.bring.his.best.ear.into.play.Cook.said.Stubb.rapidly.lifting.a.rather.reddish.morsel.to.his.mouth.dont.you.think.this.steak.is.rather.overdone.Youve.been.beating.this.steak.too.much.cook.its.too.tender.Dont.I.always.say.that.to.be.good.a.whalesteak.must.be.tough.There.are.those.sharks.now.over.the.side.dont.you.see.they.prefer.it.tough.and.rare.What.a.shindy.they.are.kicking.up.Cook.go.and.talk.to.em.tell.em.they.are.welcome.to.help.themselves.civilly.and.in.moderation.but.they.must.keep.quiet.Blast.me.if.I.can.hear.my.own.voice.Away.cook.and.deliver.my.message.Here.take.this.lantern.snatching.one.from.his.sideboard.now.then.go.and.preach.to.em.Sullenly.taking.the.offered.lantern.old.Fleece.limped.across.the.deck.to.the.bulwarks.and.then.with.one.hand.dropping.his.light.low.over.the.sea.so.as.to.get.a.good.view.of.his.congregation.with.the.other.hand.he.solemnly.flourished.his.tongs.and.leaning.far.over.the.side.in.a.mumbling.voice.began.addressing.the.sharks.while.Stubb.softly.crawling.behind.overheard.all.that.was.said.Fellowcritters.Ise.ordered.here.to.say.dat.you.must.stop.dat.dam.noise.dare.You.hear.Stop.dat.dam.smackin.ob.de.lip.Massa.Stubb.say.dat.you.can.fill.your.dam.bellies.up.to.de.hatchings.but.by.Gor.you.must.stop.dat.dam.racket.Cook.here.interposed.Stubb.accompanying.the.word.with.a.sudden.slap.on.the.shoulder.Cook.why.damn.your.eyes.you.mustnt.swear.that.way.when.youre.preaching.Thats.no.way.to.convert.sinners.cook.Who.dat.Den.preach.to.him.yourself.sullenly.turning.to.go.No.cook.go.on.go.on.Well.den.Belubed.fellowcritters.Right.exclaimed.Stubb.approvingly.coax.em.to.it.try.that.and.Fleece.continued.Do.you.is.all.sharks.and.by.natur.wery.woracious.yet.I.zay.to.you.fellowcritters.dat.dat.woraciousness.top.dat.dam.slappin.ob.de.tail.How.you.tink.to.hear.spose.you.keep.up.such.a.dam.slappin.and.bitin.dare.Cook.cried.Stubb.collaring.him.I.wont.have.that.swearing.Talk.to.em.gentlemanly.Once.more.the.sermon.proceeded.Your.woraciousness.fellowcritters.I.dont.blame.ye.so.much.for.dat.is.natur.and.cant.be.helped.but.to.gobern.dat.wicked.natur.dat.is.de.pint.You.is.sharks.sartin.but.if.you.gobern.de.shark.in.you.why.den.you.be.angel.for.all.angel.is.noting.more.dan.de.shark.well.goberned.Now.look.here.bredren.just.try.wonst.to.be.cibil.a.helping.yourselbs.from.dat.whale.Dont.be.tearin.de.blubber.out.your.neighbours.mout.I.say.Is.not.one.shark.dood.right.as.toder.to.dat.whale.And.by.Gor.none.on.you.has.de.right.to.dat.whale.dat.whale.belong.to.some.one.else.I.know.some.o.you.has.berry.brig.mout.brigger.dan.oders.but.den.de.brig.mouts.sometimes.has.de.small.bellies.so.dat.de.brigness.of.de.mout.is.not.to.swaller.wid.but.to.bit.off.de.blubber.for.de.small.fry.ob.sharks.dat.cant.get.into.de.scrouge.to.help.demselves.Well.done.old.Fleece.cried.Stubb.thats.Christianity.go.on.No.use.goin.on.de.dam.willains.will.keep.a.scougin.and.slappin.each.oder.Massa.Stubb.dey.dont.hear.one.word.no.use.apreachin.to.such.dam.guttons.as.you.call.em.till.dare.bellies.is.full.and.dare.bellies.is.bottomless.and.when.dey.do.get.em.full.dey.wont.hear.you.den.for.den.dey.sink.in.de.sea.go.fast.to.sleep.on.de.coral.and.cant.hear.noting.at.all.no.more.for.eber.and.eber.Upon.my.soul.I.am.about.of.the.same.opinion.so.give.the.benediction.Fleece.and.Ill.away.to.my.supper.Upon.this.Fleece.holding.both.hands.over.the.fishy.mob.raised.his.shrill.voice.and.cried.Cussed.fellowcritters.Kick.up.de.damndest.row.as.ever.you.can.fill.your.dam.bellies.till.dey.bust.and.den.die.Now.cook.said.Stubb.resuming.his.supper.at.the.capstan.stand.just.where.you.stood.before.there.over.against.me.and.pay.particular.attention.All.dention.said.Fleece.again.stooping.over.upon.his.tongs.in.the.desired.position.Well.said.Stubb.helping.himself.freely.meanwhile.I.shall.now.go.back.to.the.subject.of.this.steak.In.the.first.place.how.old.are.you.cook.What.dat.do.wid.de.teak.said.the.old.black.testily.Silence.How.old.are.you.cook.Bout.ninety.dey.say.he.gloomily.muttered.And.you.have.lived.in.this.world.hard.upon.one.hundred.years.cook.and.dont.know.yet.how.to.cook.a.whalesteak.rapidly.bolting.another.mouthful.at.the.last.word.so.that.morsel.seemed.a.continuation.of.the.question.Where.were.you.born.cook.Hind.de.hatchway.in.ferryboat.goin.ober.de.Roanoke.Born.in.a.ferryboat.Thats.queer.too.But.I.want.to.know.what.country.you.were.born.in.cook.Didnt.I.say.de.Roanoke.country.he.cried.sharply.No.you.didnt.cook.but.Ill.tell.you.what.Im.coming.to.cook.You.must.go.home.and.be.born.over.again.you.dont.know.how.to.cook.a.whalesteak.yet.Bress.my.soul.if.I.cook.noder.one.he.growled.angrily.turning.round.to.depart.Come.back.cook.here.hand.me.those.tongs.now.take.that.bit.of.steak.there.and.tell.me.if.you.think.that.steak.cooked.as.it.should.be.Take.it.I.say.holding.the.tongs.towards.him.take.it.and.taste.it.Faintly.smacking.his.withered.lips.over.it.for.a.moment.the.old.negro.muttered.Best.cooked.teak.I.eber.taste.joosy.berry.joosy.Cook.said.Stubb.squaring.himself.once.more.do.you.belong.to.the.church.Passed.one.once.in.CapeDown.said.the.old.man.sullenly.And.you.have.once.in.your.life.passed.a.holy.church.in.CapeTown.where.you.doubtless.overheard.a.holy.parson.addressing.his.hearers.as.his.beloved.fellowcreatures.have.you.cook.And.yet.you.come.here.and.tell.me.such.a.dreadful.lie.as.you.did.just.now.eh.said.Stubb.Where.do.you.expect.to.go.to.cook.Go.to.bed.berry.soon.he.mumbled.halfturning.as.he.spoke.Avast.heave.to.I.mean.when.you.die.cook.Its.an.awful.question.Now.whats.your.answer.When.dis.old.brack.man.dies.said.the.negro.slowly.changing.his.whole.air.and.demeanor.he.hisself.wont.go.nowhere.but.some.bressed.angel.will.come.and.fetch.him.Fetch.him.How.In.a.coach.and.four.as.they.fetched.Elijah.And.fetch.him.where.Up.dere.said.Fleece.holding.his.tongs.straight.over.his.head.and.keeping.it.there.very.solemnly.So.then.you.expect.to.go.up.into.our.maintop.do.you.cook.when.you.are.dead.But.dont.you.know.the.higher.you.climb.the.colder.it.gets.Maintop.eh.Didnt.say.dat.tall.said.Fleece.again.in.the.sulks.You.said.up.there.didnt.you.and.now.look.yourself.and.see.where.your.tongs.are.pointing.But.perhaps.you.expect.to.get.into.heaven.by.crawling.through.the.lubbers.hole.cook.but.no.no.cook.you.dont.get.there.except.you.go.the.regular.way.round.by.the.rigging.Its.a.ticklish.business.but.must.be.done.or.else.its.no.go.But.none.of.us.are.in.heaven.yet.Drop.your.tongs.cook.and.hear.my.orders.Do.ye.hear.Hold.your.hat.in.one.hand.and.clap.tother.atop.of.your.heart.when.Im.giving.my.orders.cook.What.that.your.heart.there.thats.your.gizzard.Aloft.aloft.thats.it.now.you.have.it.Hold.it.there.now.and.pay.attention.All.dention.said.the.old.black.with.both.hands.placed.as.desired.vainly.wriggling.his.grizzled.head.as.if.to.get.both.ears.in.front.at.one.and.the.same.time.Well.then.cook.you.see.this.whalesteak.of.yours.was.so.very.bad.that.I.have.put.it.out.of.sight.as.soon.as.possible.you.see.that.dont.you.Well.for.the.future.when.you.cook.another.whalesteak.for.my.private.table.here.the.capstan.Ill.tell.you.what.to.do.so.as.not.to.spoil.it.by.overdoing.Hold.the.steak.in.one.hand.and.show.a.live.coal.to.it.with.the.other.that.done.dish.it.dye.hear.And.now.tomorrow.cook.when.we.are.cutting.in.the.fish.be.sure.you.stand.by.to.get.the.tips.of.his.fins.have.them.put.in.pickle.As.for.the.ends.of.the.flukes.have.them.soused.cook.There.now.ye.may.go.But.Fleece.had.hardly.got.three.paces.off.when.he.was.recalled.Cook.give.me.cutlets.for.supper.tomorrow.night.in.the.midwatch.Dye.hear.away.you.sail.then.Halloa.stop.make.a.bow.before.you.go.Avast.heaving.again.Whaleballs.for.breakfast.dont.forget.Wish.by.gor.whale.eat.him.stead.of.him.eat.whale.Im.bressed.if.he.aint.more.of.shark.dan.Massa.Shark.hisself.muttered.the.old.man.limping.away.with.which.sage.ejaculation.he.went.to.his.hammock.CHAPTER.65.The.Whale.as.a.Dish.That.mortal.man.should.feed.upon.the.creature.that.feeds.his.lamp.and.like.Stubb.eat.him.by.his.own.light.as.you.may.say.this.seems.so.outlandish.a.thing.that.one.must.needs.go.a.little.into.the.history.and.philosophy.of.it.It.is.upon.record.that.three.centuries.ago.the.tongue.of.the.Right.Whale.was.esteemed.a.great.delicacy.in.France.and.commanded.large.prices.there.Also.that.in.Henry.VIIIths.time.a.certain.cook.of.the.court.obtained.a.handsome.reward.for.inventing.an.admirable.sauce.to.be.eaten.with.barbacued.porpoises.which.you.remember.are.a.species.of.whale.Porpoises.indeed.are.to.this.day.considered.fine.eating.The.meat.is.made.into.balls.about.the.size.of.billiard.balls.and.being.well.seasoned.and.spiced.might.be.taken.for.turtleballs.or.veal.balls.The.old.monks.of.Dunfermline.were.very.fond.of.them.They.had.a.great.porpoise.grant.from.the.crown.The.fact.is.that.among.his.hunters.at.least.the.whale.would.by.all.hands.be.considered.a.noble.dish.were.there.not.so.much.of.him.but.when.you.come.to.sit.down.before.a.meatpie.nearly.one.hundred.feet.long.it.takes.away.your.appetite.Only.the.most.unprejudiced.of.men.like.Stubb.nowadays.partake.of.cooked.whales.but.the.Esquimaux.are.not.so.fastidious.We.all.know.how.they.live.upon.whales.and.have.rare.old.vintages.of.prime.old.train.oil.Zogranda.one.of.their.most.famous.doctors.recommends.strips.of.blubber.for.infants.as.being.exceedingly.juicy.and.nourishing.And.this.reminds.me.that.certain.Englishmen.who.long.ago.were.accidentally.left.in.Greenland.by.a.whaling.vessel.that.these.men.actually.lived.for.several.months.on.the.mouldy.scraps.of.whales.which.had.been.left.ashore.after.trying.out.the.blubber.Among.the.Dutch.whalemen.these.scraps.are.called.fritters.which.indeed.they.greatly.resemble.being.brown.and.crisp.and.smelling.something.like.old.Amsterdam.housewives.doughnuts.or.olycooks.when.fresh.They.have.such.an.eatable.look.that.the.most.selfdenying.stranger.can.hardly.keep.his.hands.off.But.what.further.depreciates.the.whale.as.a.civilized.dish.is.his.exceeding.richness.He.is.the.great.prize.ox.of.the.sea.too.fat.to.be.delicately.good.Look.at.his.hump.which.would.be.as.fine.eating.as.the.buffalos.which.is.esteemed.a.rare.dish.were.it.not.such.a.solid.pyramid.of.fat.But.the.spermaceti.itself.how.bland.and.creamy.that.is.like.the.transparent.halfjellied.white.meat.of.a.cocoanut.in.the.third.month.of.its.growth.yet.far.too.rich.to.supply.a.substitute.for.butter.Nevertheless.many.whalemen.have.a.method.of.absorbing.it.into.some.other.substance.and.then.partaking.of.it.In.the.long.try.watches.of.the.night.it.is.a.common.thing.for.the.seamen.to.dip.their.shipbiscuit.into.the.huge.oilpots.and.let.them.fry.there.awhile.Many.a.good.supper.have.I.thus.made.In.the.case.of.a.small.Sperm.Whale.the.brains.are.accounted.a.fine.dish.The.casket.of.the.skull.is.broken.into.with.an.axe.and.the.two.plump.whitish.lobes.being.withdrawn.precisely.resembling.two.large.puddings.they.are.then.mixed.with.flour.and.cooked.into.a.most.delectable.mess.in.flavor.somewhat.resembling.calves.head.which.is.quite.a.dish.among.some.epicures.and.every.one.knows.that.some.young.bucks.among.the.epicures.by.continually.dining.upon.calves.brains.by.and.by.get.to.have.a.little.brains.of.their.own.so.as.to.be.able.to.tell.a.calfs.head.from.their.own.heads.which.indeed.requires.uncommon.discrimination.And.that.is.the.reason.why.a.young.buck.with.an.intelligent.looking.calfs.head.before.him.is.somehow.one.of.the.saddest.sights.you.can.see.The.head.looks.a.sort.of.reproachfully.at.him.with.an.Et.tu.Brute.expression.It.is.not.perhaps.entirely.because.the.whale.is.so.excessively.unctuous.that.landsmen.seem.to.regard.the.eating.of.him.with.abhorrence.that.appears.to.result.in.some.way.from.the.consideration.before.mentioned.ie.that.a.man.should.eat.a.newly.murdered.thing.of.the.sea.and.eat.it.too.by.its.own.light.But.no.doubt.the.first.man.that.ever.murdered.an.ox.was.regarded.as.a.murderer.perhaps.he.was.hung.and.if.he.had.been.put.on.his.trial.by.oxen.he.certainly.would.have.been.and.he.certainly.deserved.it.if.any.murderer.does.Go.to.the.meatmarket.of.a.Saturday.night.and.see.the.crowds.of.live.bipeds.staring.up.at.the.long.rows.of.dead.quadrupeds.Does.not.that.sight.take.a.tooth.out.of.the.cannibals.jaw.Cannibals.who.is.not.a.cannibal.I.tell.you.it.will.be.more.tolerable.for.the.Fejee.that.salted.down.a.lean.missionary.in.his.cellar.against.a.coming.famine.it.will.be.more.tolerable.for.that.provident.Fejee.I.say.in.the.day.of.judgment.than.for.thee.civilized.and.enlightened.gourmand.who.nailest.geese.to.the.ground.and.feastest.on.their.bloated.livers.in.thy.patdefoiegras.But.Stubb.he.eats.the.whale.by.its.own.light.does.he.and.that.is.adding.insult.to.injury.is.it.Look.at.your.knifehandle.there.my.civilized.and.enlightened.gourmand.dining.off.that.roast.beef.what.is.that.handle.made.of.what.but.the.bones.of.the.brother.of.the.very.ox.you.are.eating.And.what.do.you.pick.your.teeth.with.after.devouring.that.fat.goose.With.a.feather.of.the.same.fowl.And.with.what.quill.did.the.Secretary.of.the.Society.for.the.Suppression.of.Cruelty.to.Ganders.formally.indite.his.circulars.It.is.only.within.the.last.month.or.two.that.that.society.passed.a.resolution.to.patronize.nothing.but.steel.pens.CHAPTER.66.The.Shark.Massacre.When.in.the.Southern.Fishery.a.captured.Sperm.Whale.after.long.and.weary.toil.is.brought.alongside.late.at.night.it.is.not.as.a.general.thing.at.least.customary.to.proceed.at.once.to.the.business.of.cutting.him.in.For.that.business.is.an.exceedingly.laborious.one.is.not.very.soon.completed.and.requires.all.hands.to.set.about.it.Therefore.the.common.usage.is.to.take.in.all.sail.lash.the.helm.alee.and.then.send.every.one.below.to.his.hammock.till.daylight.with.the.reservation.that.until.that.time.anchorwatches.shall.be.kept.that.is.two.and.two.for.an.hour.each.couple.the.crew.in.rotation.shall.mount.the.deck.to.see.that.all.goes.well.But.sometimes.especially.upon.the.Line.in.the.Pacific.this.plan.will.not.answer.at.all.because.such.incalculable.hosts.of.sharks.gather.round.the.moored.carcase.that.were.he.left.so.for.six.hours.say.on.a.stretch.little.more.than.the.skeleton.would.be.visible.by.morning.In.most.other.parts.of.the.ocean.however.where.these.fish.do.not.so.largely.abound.their.wondrous.voracity.can.be.at.times.considerably.diminished.by.vigorously.stirring.them.up.with.sharp.whalingspades.a.procedure.notwithstanding.which.in.some.instances.only.seems.to.tickle.them.into.still.greater.activity.But.it.was.not.thus.in.the.present.case.with.the.Pequods.sharks.though.to.be.sure.any.man.unaccustomed.to.such.sights.to.have.looked.over.her.side.that.night.would.have.almost.thought.the.whole.round.sea.was.one.huge.cheese.and.those.sharks.the.maggots.in.it.Nevertheless.upon.Stubb.setting.the.anchorwatch.after.his.supper.was.concluded.and.when.accordingly.Queequeg.and.a.forecastle.seaman.came.on.deck.no.small.excitement.was.created.among.the.sharks.for.immediately.suspending.the.cutting.stages.over.the.side.and.lowering.three.lanterns.so.that.they.cast.long.gleams.of.light.over.the.turbid.sea.these.two.mariners.darting.their.long.whalingspades.kept.up.an.incessant.murdering.of.the.sharks.by.striking.the.keen.steel.deep.into.their.skulls.seemingly.their.only.vital.part.But.in.the.foamy.confusion.of.their.mixed.and.struggling.hosts.the.marksmen.could.not.always.hit.their.mark.and.this.brought.about.new.revelations.of.the.incredible.ferocity.of.the.foe.They.viciously.snapped.not.only.at.each.others.disembowelments.but.like.flexible.bows.bent.round.and.bit.their.own.till.those.entrails.seemed.swallowed.over.and.over.again.by.the.same.mouth.to.be.oppositely.voided.by.the.gaping.wound.Nor.was.this.all.It.was.unsafe.to.meddle.with.the.corpses.and.ghosts.of.these.creatures.A.sort.of.generic.or.Pantheistic.vitality.seemed.to.lurk.in.their.very.joints.and.bones.after.what.might.be.called.the.individual.life.had.departed.Killed.and.hoisted.on.deck.for.the.sake.of.his.skin.one.of.these.sharks.almost.took.poor.Queequegs.hand.off.when.he.tried.to.shut.down.the.dead.lid.of.his.murderous.jaw.The.whalingspade.used.for.cuttingin.is.made.of.the.very.best.steel.is.about.the.bigness.of.a.mans.spread.hand.and.in.general.shape.corresponds.to.the.garden.implement.after.which.it.is.named.only.its.sides.are.perfectly.flat.and.its.upper.end.considerably.narrower.than.the.lower.This.weapon.is.always.kept.as.sharp.as.possible.and.when.being.used.is.occasionally.honed.just.like.a.razor.In.its.socket.a.stiff.pole.from.twenty.to.thirty.feet.long.is.inserted.for.a.handle.Queequeg.no.care.what.god.made.him.shark.said.the.savage.agonizingly.lifting.his.hand.up.and.down.wedder.Fejee.god.or.Nantucket.god.but.de.god.wat.made.shark.must.be.one.dam.Ingin.CHAPTER.67.Cutting.In.It.was.a.Saturday.night.and.such.a.Sabbath.as.followed.Ex.officio.professors.of.Sabbath.breaking.are.all.whalemen.The.ivory.Pequod.was.turned.into.what.seemed.a.shamble.every.sailor.a.butcher.You.would.have.thought.we.were.offering.up.ten.thousand.red.oxen.to.the.sea.gods.In.the.first.place.the.enormous.cutting.tackles.among.other.ponderous.things.comprising.a.cluster.of.blocks.generally.painted.green.and.which.no.single.man.can.possibly.lift.this.vast.bunch.of.grapes.was.swayed.up.to.the.maintop.and.firmly.lashed.to.the.lower.masthead.the.strongest.point.anywhere.above.a.ships.deck.The.end.of.the.hawserlike.rope.winding.through.these.intricacies.was.then.conducted.to.the.windlass.and.the.huge.lower.block.of.the.tackles.was.swung.over.the.whale.to.this.block.the.great.blubber.hook.weighing.some.one.hundred.pounds.was.attached.And.now.suspended.in.stages.over.the.side.Starbuck.and.Stubb.the.mates.armed.with.their.long.spades.began.cutting.a.hole.in.the.body.for.the.insertion.of.the.hook.just.above.the.nearest.of.the.two.sidefins.This.done.a.broad.semicircular.line.is.cut.round.the.hole.the.hook.is.inserted.and.the.main.body.of.the.crew.striking.up.a.wild.chorus.now.commence.heaving.in.one.dense.crowd.at.the.windlass.When.instantly.the.entire.ship.careens.over.on.her.side.every.bolt.in.her.starts.like.the.nailheads.of.an.old.house.in.frosty.weather.she.trembles.quivers.and.nods.her.frighted.mastheads.to.the.sky.More.and.more.she.leans.over.to.the.whale.while.every.gasping.heave.of.the.windlass.is.answered.by.a.helping.heave.from.the.billows.till.at.last.a.swift.startling.snap.is.heard.with.a.great.swash.the.ship.rolls.upwards.and.backwards.from.the.whale.and.the.triumphant.tackle.rises.into.sight.dragging.after.it.the.disengaged.semicircular.end.of.the.first.strip.of.blubber.Now.as.the.blubber.envelopes.the.whale.precisely.as.the.rind.does.an.orange.so.is.it.stripped.off.from.the.body.precisely.as.an.orange.is.sometimes.stripped.by.spiralizing.it.For.the.strain.constantly.kept.up.by.the.windlass.continually.keeps.the.whale.rolling.over.and.over.in.the.water.and.as.the.blubber.in.one.strip.uniformly.peels.off.along.the.line.called.the.scarf.simultaneously.cut.by.the.spades.of.Starbuck.and.Stubb.the.mates.and.just.as.fast.as.it.is.thus.peeled.off.and.indeed.by.that.very.act.itself.it.is.all.the.time.being.hoisted.higher.and.higher.aloft.till.its.upper.end.grazes.the.maintop.the.men.at.the.windlass.then.cease.heaving.and.for.a.moment.or.two.the.prodigious.blooddripping.mass.sways.to.and.fro.as.if.let.down.from.the.sky.and.every.one.present.must.take.good.heed.to.dodge.it.when.it.swings.else.it.may.box.his.ears.and.pitch.him.headlong.overboard.One.of.the.attending.harpooneers.now.advances.with.a.long.keen.weapon.called.a.boardingsword.and.watching.his.chance.he.dexterously.slices.out.a.considerable.hole.in.the.lower.part.of.the.swaying.mass.Into.this.hole.the.end.of.the.second.alternating.great.tackle.is.then.hooked.so.as.to.retain.a.hold.upon.the.blubber.in.order.to.prepare.for.what.follows.Whereupon.this.accomplished.swordsman.warning.all.hands.to.stand.off.once.more.makes.a.scientific.dash.at.the.mass.and.with.a.few.sidelong.desperate.lunging.slicings.severs.it.completely.in.twain.so.that.while.the.short.lower.part.is.still.fast.the.long.upper.strip.called.a.blanketpiece.swings.clear.and.is.all.ready.for.lowering.The.heavers.forward.now.resume.their.song.and.while.the.one.tackle.is.peeling.and.hoisting.a.second.strip.from.the.whale.the.other.is.slowly.slackened.away.and.down.goes.the.first.strip.through.the.main.hatchway.right.beneath.into.an.unfurnished.parlor.called.the.blubberroom.Into.this.twilight.apartment.sundry.nimble.hands.keep.coiling.away.the.long.blanketpiece.as.if.it.were.a.great.live.mass.of.plaited.serpents.And.thus.the.work.proceeds.the.two.tackles.hoisting.and.lowering.simultaneously.both.whale.and.windlass.heaving.the.heavers.singing.the.blubberroom.gentlemen.coiling.the.mates.scarfing.the.ship.straining.and.all.hands.swearing.occasionally.by.way.of.assuaging.the.general.friction.CHAPTER.68.The.Blanket.I.have.given.no.small.attention.to.that.not.unvexed.subject.the.skin.of.the.whale.I.have.had.controversies.about.it.with.experienced.whalemen.afloat.and.learned.naturalists.ashore.My.original.opinion.remains.unchanged.but.it.is.only.an.opinion.The.question.is.what.and.where.is.the.skin.of.the.whale.Already.you.know.what.his.blubber.is.That.blubber.is.something.of.the.consistence.of.firm.closegrained.beef.but.tougher.more.elastic.and.compact.and.ranges.from.eight.or.ten.to.twelve.and.fifteen.inches.in.thickness.Now.however.preposterous.it.may.at.first.seem.to.talk.of.any.creatures.skin.as.being.of.that.sort.of.consistence.and.thickness.yet.in.point.of.fact.these.are.no.arguments.against.such.a.presumption.because.you.cannot.raise.any.other.dense.enveloping.layer.from.the.whales.body.but.that.same.blubber.and.the.outermost.enveloping.layer.of.any.animal.if.reasonably.dense.what.can.that.be.but.the.skin.True.from.the.unmarred.dead.body.of.the.whale.you.may.scrape.off.with.your.hand.an.infinitely.thin.transparent.substance.somewhat.resembling.the.thinnest.shreds.of.isinglass.only.it.is.almost.as.flexible.and.soft.as.satin.that.is.previous.to.being.dried.when.it.not.only.contracts.and.thickens.but.becomes.rather.hard.and.brittle.I.have.several.such.dried.bits.which.I.use.for.marks.in.my.whalebooks.It.is.transparent.as.I.said.before.and.being.laid.upon.the.printed.page.I.have.sometimes.pleased.myself.with.fancying.it.exerted.a.magnifying.influence.At.any.rate.it.is.pleasant.to.read.about.whales.through.their.own.spectacles.as.you.may.say.But.what.I.am.driving.at.here.is.this.That.same.infinitely.thin.isinglass.substance.which.I.admit.invests.the.entire.body.of.the.whale.is.not.so.much.to.be.regarded.as.the.skin.of.the.creature.as.the.skin.of.the.skin.so.to.speak.for.it.were.simply.ridiculous.to.say.that.the.proper.skin.of.the.tremendous.whale.is.thinner.and.more.tender.than.the.skin.of.a.newborn.child.But.no.more.of.this.Assuming.the.blubber.to.be.the.skin.of.the.whale.then.when.this.skin.as.in.the.case.of.a.very.large.Sperm.Whale.will.yield.the.bulk.of.one.hundred.barrels.of.oil.and.when.it.is.considered.that.in.quantity.or.rather.weight.that.oil.in.its.expressed.state.is.only.three.fourths.and.not.the.entire.substance.of.the.coat.some.idea.may.hence.be.had.of.the.enormousness.of.that.animated.mass.a.mere.part.of.whose.mere.integument.yields.such.a.lake.of.liquid.as.that.Reckoning.ten.barrels.to.the.ton.you.have.ten.tons.for.the.net.weight.of.only.three.quarters.of.the.stuff.of.the.whales.skin.In.life.the.visible.surface.of.the.Sperm.Whale.is.not.the.least.among.the.many.marvels.he.presents.Almost.invariably.it.is.all.over.obliquely.crossed.and.recrossed.with.numberless.straight.marks.in.thick.array.something.like.those.in.the.finest.Italian.line.engravings.But.these.marks.do.not.seem.to.be.impressed.upon.the.isinglass.substance.above.mentioned.but.seem.to.be.seen.through.it.as.if.they.were.engraved.upon.the.body.itself.Nor.is.this.all.In.some.instances.to.the.quick.observant.eye.those.linear.marks.as.in.a.veritable.engraving.but.afford.the.ground.for.far.other.delineations.These.are.hieroglyphical.that.is.if.you.call.those.mysterious.cyphers.on.the.walls.of.pyramids.hieroglyphics.then.that.is.the.proper.word.to.use.in.the.present.connexion.By.my.retentive.memory.of.the.hieroglyphics.upon.one.Sperm.Whale.in.particular.I.was.much.struck.with.a.plate.representing.the.old.Indian.characters.chiselled.on.the.famous.hieroglyphic.palisades.on.the.banks.of.the.Upper.Mississippi.Like.those.mystic.rocks.too.the.mysticmarked.whale.remains.undecipherable.This.allusion.to.the.Indian.rocks.reminds.me.of.another.thing.Besides.all.the.other.phenomena.which.the.exterior.of.the.Sperm.Whale.presents.he.not.seldom.displays.the.back.and.more.especially.his.flanks.effaced.in.great.part.of.the.regular.linear.appearance.by.reason.of.numerous.rude.scratches.altogether.of.an.irregular.random.aspect.I.should.say.that.those.New.England.rocks.on.the.seacoast.which.Agassiz.imagines.to.bear.the.marks.of.violent.scraping.contact.with.vast.floating.icebergs.I.should.say.that.those.rocks.must.not.a.little.resemble.the.Sperm.Whale.in.this.particular.It.also.seems.to.me.that.such.scratches.in.the.whale.are.probably.made.by.hostile.contact.with.other.whales.for.I.have.most.remarked.them.in.the.large.fullgrown.bulls.of.the.species.A.word.or.two.more.concerning.this.matter.of.the.skin.or.blubber.of.the.whale.It.has.already.been.said.that.it.is.stript.from.him.in.long.pieces.called.blanketpieces.Like.most.seaterms.this.one.is.very.happy.and.significant.For.the.whale.is.indeed.wrapt.up.in.his.blubber.as.in.a.real.blanket.or.counterpane.or.still.better.an.Indian.poncho.slipt.over.his.head.and.skirting.his.extremity.It.is.by.reason.of.this.cosy.blanketing.of.his.body.that.the.whale.is.enabled.to.keep.himself.comfortable.in.all.weathers.in.all.seas.times.and.tides.What.would.become.of.a.Greenland.whale.say.in.those.shuddering.icy.seas.of.the.North.if.unsupplied.with.his.cosy.surtout.True.other.fish.are.found.exceedingly.brisk.in.those.Hyperborean.waters.but.these.be.it.observed.are.your.coldblooded.lungless.fish.whose.very.bellies.are.refrigerators.creatures.that.warm.themselves.under.the.lee.of.an.iceberg.as.a.traveller.in.winter.would.bask.before.an.inn.fire.whereas.like.man.the.whale.has.lungs.and.warm.blood.Freeze.his.blood.and.he.dies.How.wonderful.is.it.then.except.after.explanation.that.this.great.monster.to.whom.corporeal.warmth.is.as.indispensable.as.it.is.to.man.how.wonderful.that.he.should.be.found.at.home.immersed.to.his.lips.for.life.in.those.Arctic.waters.where.when.seamen.fall.overboard.they.are.sometimes.found.months.afterwards.perpendicularly.frozen.into.the.hearts.of.fields.of.ice.as.a.fly.is.found.glued.in.amber.But.more.surprising.is.it.to.know.as.has.been.proved.by.experiment.that.the.blood.of.a.Polar.whale.is.warmer.than.that.of.a.Borneo.negro.in.summer.It.does.seem.to.me.that.herein.we.see.the.rare.virtue.of.a.strong.individual.vitality.and.the.rare.virtue.of.thick.walls.and.the.rare.virtue.of.interior.spaciousness.Oh.man.admire.and.model.thyself.after.the.whale.Do.thou.too.remain.warm.among.ice.Do.thou.too.live.in.this.world.without.being.of.it.Be.cool.at.the.equator.keep.thy.blood.fluid.at.the.Pole.Like.the.great.dome.of.St.Peters.and.like.the.great.whale.retain.O.man.in.all.seasons.a.temperature.of.thine.own.But.how.easy.and.how.hopeless.to.teach.these.fine.things.Of.erections.how.few.are.domed.like.St.Peters.of.creatures.how.few.vast.as.the.whale.CHAPTER.69.The.Funeral.Haul.in.the.chains.Let.the.carcase.go.astern.The.vast.tackles.have.now.done.their.duty.The.peeled.white.body.of.the.beheaded.whale.flashes.like.a.marble.sepulchre.though.changed.in.hue.it.has.not.perceptibly.lost.anything.in.bulk.It.is.still.colossal.Slowly.it.floats.more.and.more.away.the.water.round.it.torn.and.splashed.by.the.insatiate.sharks.and.the.air.above.vexed.with.rapacious.flights.of.screaming.fowls.whose.beaks.are.like.so.many.insulting.poniards.in.the.whale.The.vast.white.headless.phantom.floats.further.and.further.from.the.ship.and.every.rod.that.it.so.floats.what.seem.square.roods.of.sharks.and.cubic.roods.of.fowls.augment.the.murderous.din.For.hours.and.hours.from.the.almost.stationary.ship.that.hideous.sight.is.seen.Beneath.the.unclouded.and.mild.azure.sky.upon.the.fair.face.of.the.pleasant.sea.wafted.by.the.joyous.breezes.that.great.mass.of.death.floats.on.and.on.till.lost.in.infinite.perspectives.Theres.a.most.doleful.and.most.mocking.funeral.The.seavultures.all.in.pious.mourning.the.airsharks.all.punctiliously.in.black.or.speckled.In.life.but.few.of.them.would.have.helped.the.whale.I.ween.if.peradventure.he.had.needed.it.but.upon.the.banquet.of.his.funeral.they.most.piously.do.pounce.Oh.horrible.vultureism.of.earth.from.which.not.the.mightiest.whale.is.free.Nor.is.this.the.end.Desecrated.as.the.body.is.a.vengeful.ghost.survives.and.hovers.over.it.to.scare.Espied.by.some.timid.manofwar.or.blundering.discoveryvessel.from.afar.when.the.distance.obscuring.the.swarming.fowls.nevertheless.still.shows.the.white.mass.floating.in.the.sun.and.the.white.spray.heaving.high.against.it.straightway.the.whales.unharming.corpse.with.trembling.fingers.is.set.down.in.the.log.shoals.rocks.and.breakers.hereabouts.beware.And.for.years.afterwards.perhaps.ships.shun.the.place.leaping.over.it.as.silly.sheep.leap.over.a.vacuum.because.their.leader.originally.leaped.there.when.a.stick.was.held.Theres.your.law.of.precedents.theres.your.utility.of.traditions.theres.the.story.of.your.obstinate.survival.of.old.beliefs.never.bottomed.on.the.earth.and.now.not.even.hovering.in.the.air.Theres.orthodoxy.Thus.while.in.life.the.great.whales.body.may.have.been.a.real.terror.to.his.foes.in.his.death.his.ghost.becomes.a.powerless.panic.to.a.world.Are.you.a.believer.in.ghosts.my.friend.There.are.other.ghosts.than.the.CockLane.one.and.far.deeper.men.than.Doctor.Johnson.who.believe.in.them.CHAPTER.70.The.Sphynx.It.should.not.have.been.omitted.that.previous.to.completely.stripping.the.body.of.the.leviathan.he.was.beheaded.Now.the.beheading.of.the.Sperm.Whale.is.a.scientific.anatomical.feat.upon.which.experienced.whale.surgeons.very.much.pride.themselves.and.not.without.reason.Consider.that.the.whale.has.nothing.that.can.properly.be.called.a.neck.on.the.contrary.where.his.head.and.body.seem.to.join.there.in.that.very.place.is.the.thickest.part.of.him.Remember.also.that.the.surgeon.must.operate.from.above.some.eight.or.ten.feet.intervening.between.him.and.his.subject.and.that.subject.almost.hidden.in.a.discoloured.rolling.and.oftentimes.tumultuous.and.bursting.sea.Bear.in.mind.too.that.under.these.untoward.circumstances.he.has.to.cut.many.feet.deep.in.the.flesh.and.in.that.subterraneous.manner.without.so.much.as.getting.one.single.peep.into.the.evercontracting.gash.thus.made.he.must.skilfully.steer.clear.of.all.adjacent.interdicted.parts.and.exactly.divide.the.spine.at.a.critical.point.hard.by.its.insertion.into.the.skull.Do.you.not.marvel.then.at.Stubbs.boast.that.he.demanded.but.ten.minutes.to.behead.a.sperm.whale.When.first.severed.the.head.is.dropped.astern.and.held.there.by.a.cable.till.the.body.is.stripped.That.done.if.it.belong.to.a.small.whale.it.is.hoisted.on.deck.to.be.deliberately.disposed.of.But.with.a.full.grown.leviathan.this.is.impossible.for.the.sperm.whales.head.embraces.nearly.one.third.of.his.entire.bulk.and.completely.to.suspend.such.a.burden.as.that.even.by.the.immense.tackles.of.a.whaler.this.were.as.vain.a.thing.as.to.attempt.weighing.a.Dutch.barn.in.jewellers.scales.The.Pequods.whale.being.decapitated.and.the.body.stripped.the.head.was.hoisted.against.the.ships.side.about.half.way.out.of.the.sea.so.that.it.might.yet.in.great.part.be.buoyed.up.by.its.native.element.And.there.with.the.strained.craft.steeply.leaning.over.to.it.by.reason.of.the.enormous.downward.drag.from.the.lower.masthead.and.every.yardarm.on.that.side.projecting.like.a.crane.over.the.waves.there.that.blooddripping.head.hung.to.the.Pequods.waist.like.the.giant.Holoferness.from.the.girdle.of.Judith.When.this.last.task.was.accomplished.it.was.noon.and.the.seamen.went.below.to.their.dinner.Silence.reigned.over.the.before.tumultuous.but.now.deserted.deck.An.intense.copper.calm.like.a.universal.yellow.lotus.was.more.and.more.unfolding.its.noiseless.measureless.leaves.upon.the.sea.A.short.space.elapsed.and.up.into.this.noiselessness.came.Ahab.alone.from.his.cabin.Taking.a.few.turns.on.the.quarterdeck.he.paused.to.gaze.over.the.side.then.slowly.getting.into.the.mainchains.he.took.Stubbs.long.spade.still.remaining.there.after.the.whales.decapitation.and.striking.it.into.the.lower.part.of.the.halfsuspended.mass.placed.its.other.end.crutchwise.under.one.arm.and.so.stood.leaning.over.with.eyes.attentively.fixed.on.this.head.It.was.a.black.and.hooded.head.and.hanging.there.in.the.midst.of.so.intense.a.calm.it.seemed.the.Sphynxs.in.the.desert.Speak.thou.vast.and.venerable.head.muttered.Ahab.which.though.ungarnished.with.a.beard.yet.here.and.there.lookest.hoary.with.mosses.speak.mighty.head.and.tell.us.the.secret.thing.that.is.in.thee.Of.all.divers.thou.hast.dived.the.deepest.That.head.upon.which.the.upper.sun.now.gleams.has.moved.amid.this.worlds.foundations.Where.unrecorded.names.and.navies.rust.and.untold.hopes.and.anchors.rot.where.in.her.murderous.hold.this.frigate.earth.is.ballasted.with.bones.of.millions.of.the.drowned.there.in.that.awful.waterland.there.was.thy.most.familiar.home.Thou.hast.been.where.bell.or.diver.never.went.hast.slept.by.many.a.sailors.side.where.sleepless.mothers.would.give.their.lives.to.lay.them.down.Thou.sawst.the.locked.lovers.when.leaping.from.their.flaming.ship.heart.to.heart.they.sank.beneath.the.exulting.wave.true.to.each.other.when.heaven.seemed.false.to.them.Thou.sawst.the.murdered.mate.when.tossed.by.pirates.from.the.midnight.deck.for.hours.he.fell.into.the.deeper.midnight.of.the.insatiate.maw.and.his.murderers.still.sailed.on.unharmed.while.swift.lightnings.shivered.the.neighboring.ship.that.would.have.borne.a.righteous.husband.to.outstretched.longing.arms.O.head.thou.hast.seen.enough.to.split.the.planets.and.make.an.infidel.of.Abraham.and.not.one.syllable.is.thine.Sail.ho.cried.a.triumphant.voice.from.the.mainmasthead.Aye.Well.now.thats.cheering.cried.Ahab.suddenly.erecting.himself.while.whole.thunderclouds.swept.aside.from.his.brow.That.lively.cry.upon.this.deadly.calm.might.almost.convert.a.better.man.Where.away.Three.points.on.the.starboard.bow.sir.and.bringing.down.her.breeze.to.us.Better.and.better.man.Would.now.St.Paul.would.come.along.that.way.and.to.my.breezelessness.bring.his.breeze.O.Nature.and.O.soul.of.man.how.far.beyond.all.utterance.are.your.linked.analogies.not.the.smallest.atom.stirs.or.lives.on.matter.but.has.its.cunning.duplicate.in.mind.CHAPTER.71.The.Jeroboams.Story.Hand.in.hand.ship.and.breeze.blew.on.but.the.breeze.came.faster.than.the.ship.and.soon.the.Pequod.began.to.rock.By.and.by.through.the.glass.the.strangers.boats.and.manned.mastheads.proved.her.a.whaleship.But.as.she.was.so.far.to.windward.and.shooting.by.apparently.making.a.passage.to.some.other.ground.the.Pequod.could.not.hope.to.reach.her.So.the.signal.was.set.to.see.what.response.would.be.made.Here.be.it.said.that.like.the.vessels.of.military.marines.the.ships.of.the.American.Whale.Fleet.have.each.a.private.signal.all.which.signals.being.collected.in.a.book.with.the.names.of.the.respective.vessels.attached.every.captain.is.provided.with.it.Thereby.the.whale.commanders.are.enabled.to.recognise.each.other.upon.the.ocean.even.at.considerable.distances.and.with.no.small.facility.The.Pequods.signal.was.at.last.responded.to.by.the.strangers.setting.her.own.which.proved.the.ship.to.be.the.Jeroboam.of.Nantucket.Squaring.her.yards.she.bore.down.ranged.abeam.under.the.Pequods.lee.and.lowered.a.boat.it.soon.drew.nigh.but.as.the.sideladder.was.being.rigged.by.Starbucks.order.to.accommodate.the.visiting.captain.the.stranger.in.question.waved.his.hand.from.his.boats.stern.in.token.of.that.proceeding.being.entirely.unnecessary.It.turned.out.that.the.Jeroboam.had.a.malignant.epidemic.on.board.and.that.Mayhew.her.captain.was.fearful.of.infecting.the.Pequods.company.For.though.himself.and.boats.crew.remained.untainted.and.though.his.ship.was.half.a.rifleshot.off.and.an.incorruptible.sea.and.air.rolling.and.flowing.between.yet.conscientiously.adhering.to.the.timid.quarantine.of.the.land.he.peremptorily.refused.to.come.into.direct.contact.with.the.Pequod.But.this.did.by.no.means.prevent.all.communications.Preserving.an.interval.of.some.few.yards.between.itself.and.the.ship.the.Jeroboams.boat.by.the.occasional.use.of.its.oars.contrived.to.keep.parallel.to.the.Pequod.as.she.heavily.forged.through.the.sea.for.by.this.time.it.blew.very.fresh.with.her.maintopsail.aback.though.indeed.at.times.by.the.sudden.onset.of.a.large.rolling.wave.the.boat.would.be.pushed.some.way.ahead.but.would.be.soon.skilfully.brought.to.her.proper.bearings.again.Subject.to.this.and.other.the.like.interruptions.now.and.then.a.conversation.was.sustained.between.the.two.parties.but.at.intervals.not.without.still.another.interruption.of.a.very.different.sort.Pulling.an.oar.in.the.Jeroboams.boat.was.a.man.of.a.singular.appearance.even.in.that.wild.whaling.life.where.individual.notabilities.make.up.all.totalities.He.was.a.small.short.youngish.man.sprinkled.all.over.his.face.with.freckles.and.wearing.redundant.yellow.hair.A.longskirted.cabalisticallycut.coat.of.a.faded.walnut.tinge.enveloped.him.the.overlapping.sleeves.of.which.were.rolled.up.on.his.wrists.A.deep.settled.fanatic.delirium.was.in.his.eyes.So.soon.as.this.figure.had.been.first.descried.Stubb.had.exclaimed.Thats.he.thats.he.the.longtogged.scaramouch.the.TownHos.company.told.us.of.Stubb.here.alluded.to.a.strange.story.told.of.the.Jeroboam.and.a.certain.man.among.her.crew.some.time.previous.when.the.Pequod.spoke.the.TownHo.According.to.this.account.and.what.was.subsequently.learned.it.seemed.that.the.scaramouch.in.question.had.gained.a.wonderful.ascendency.over.almost.everybody.in.the.Jeroboam.His.story.was.this.He.had.been.originally.nurtured.among.the.crazy.society.of.Neskyeuna.Shakers.where.he.had.been.a.great.prophet.in.their.cracked.secret.meetings.having.several.times.descended.from.heaven.by.the.way.of.a.trapdoor.announcing.the.speedy.opening.of.the.seventh.vial.which.he.carried.in.his.vestpocket.but.which.instead.of.containing.gunpowder.was.supposed.to.be.charged.with.laudanum.A.strange.apostolic.whim.having.seized.him.he.had.left.Neskyeuna.for.Nantucket.where.with.that.cunning.peculiar.to.craziness.he.assumed.a.steady.commonsense.exterior.and.offered.himself.as.a.greenhand.candidate.for.the.Jeroboams.whaling.voyage.They.engaged.him.but.straightway.upon.the.ships.getting.out.of.sight.of.land.his.insanity.broke.out.in.a.freshet.He.announced.himself.as.the.archangel.Gabriel.and.commanded.the.captain.to.jump.overboard.He.published.his.manifesto.whereby.he.set.himself.forth.as.the.deliverer.of.the.isles.of.the.sea.and.vicargeneral.of.all.Oceanica.The.unflinching.earnestness.with.which.he.declared.these.things.the.dark.daring.play.of.his.sleepless.excited.imagination.and.all.the.preternatural.terrors.of.real.delirium.united.to.invest.this.Gabriel.in.the.minds.of.the.majority.of.the.ignorant.crew.with.an.atmosphere.of.sacredness.Moreover.they.were.afraid.of.him.As.such.a.man.however.was.not.of.much.practical.use.in.the.ship.especially.as.he.refused.to.work.except.when.he.pleased.the.incredulous.captain.would.fain.have.been.rid.of.him.but.apprised.that.that.individuals.intention.was.to.land.him.in.the.first.convenient.port.the.archangel.forthwith.opened.all.his.seals.and.vials.devoting.the.ship.and.all.hands.to.unconditional.perdition.in.case.this.intention.was.carried.out.So.strongly.did.he.work.upon.his.disciples.among.the.crew.that.at.last.in.a.body.they.went.to.the.captain.and.told.him.if.Gabriel.was.sent.from.the.ship.not.a.man.of.them.would.remain.He.was.therefore.forced.to.relinquish.his.plan.Nor.would.they.permit.Gabriel.to.be.any.way.maltreated.say.or.do.what.he.would.so.that.it.came.to.pass.that.Gabriel.had.the.complete.freedom.of.the.ship.The.consequence.of.all.this.was.that.the.archangel.cared.little.or.nothing.for.the.captain.and.mates.and.since.the.epidemic.had.broken.out.he.carried.a.higher.hand.than.ever.declaring.that.the.plague.as.he.called.it.was.at.his.sole.command.nor.should.it.be.stayed.but.according.to.his.good.pleasure.The.sailors.mostly.poor.devils.cringed.and.some.of.them.fawned.before.him.in.obedience.to.his.instructions.sometimes.rendering.him.personal.homage.as.to.a.god.Such.things.may.seem.incredible.but.however.wondrous.they.are.true.Nor.is.the.history.of.fanatics.half.so.striking.in.respect.to.the.measureless.selfdeception.of.the.fanatic.himself.as.his.measureless.power.of.deceiving.and.bedevilling.so.many.others.But.it.is.time.to.return.to.the.Pequod.I.fear.not.thy.epidemic.man.said.Ahab.from.the.bulwarks.to.Captain.Mayhew.who.stood.in.the.boats.stern.come.on.board.But.now.Gabriel.started.to.his.feet.Think.think.of.the.fevers.yellow.and.bilious.Beware.of.the.horrible.plague.Gabriel.Gabriel.cried.Captain.Mayhew.thou.must.either.But.that.instant.a.headlong.wave.shot.the.boat.far.ahead.and.its.seethings.drowned.all.speech.Hast.thou.seen.the.White.Whale.demanded.Ahab.when.the.boat.drifted.back.Think.think.of.thy.whaleboat.stoven.and.sunk.Beware.of.the.horrible.tail.I.tell.thee.again.Gabriel.that.But.again.the.boat.tore.ahead.as.if.dragged.by.fiends.Nothing.was.said.for.some.moments.while.a.succession.of.riotous.waves.rolled.by.which.by.one.of.those.occasional.caprices.of.the.seas.were.tumbling.not.heaving.it.Meantime.the.hoisted.sperm.whales.head.jogged.about.very.violently.and.Gabriel.was.seen.eyeing.it.with.rather.more.apprehensiveness.than.his.archangel.nature.seemed.to.warrant.When.this.interlude.was.over.Captain.Mayhew.began.a.dark.story.concerning.Moby.Dick.not.however.without.frequent.interruptions.from.Gabriel.whenever.his.name.was.mentioned.and.the.crazy.sea.that.seemed.leagued.with.him.It.seemed.that.the.Jeroboam.had.not.long.left.home.when.upon.speaking.a.whaleship.her.people.were.reliably.apprised.of.the.existence.of.Moby.Dick.and.the.havoc.he.had.made.Greedily.sucking.in.this.intelligence.Gabriel.solemnly.warned.the.captain.against.attacking.the.White.Whale.in.case.the.monster.should.be.seen.in.his.gibbering.insanity.pronouncing.the.White.Whale.to.be.no.less.a.being.than.the.Shaker.God.incarnated.the.Shakers.receiving.the.Bible.But.when.some.year.or.two.afterwards.Moby.Dick.was.fairly.sighted.from.the.mastheads.Macey.the.chief.mate.burned.with.ardour.to.encounter.him.and.the.captain.himself.being.not.unwilling.to.let.him.have.the.opportunity.despite.all.the.archangels.denunciations.and.forewarnings.Macey.succeeded.in.persuading.five.men.to.man.his.boat.With.them.he.pushed.off.and.after.much.weary.pulling.and.many.perilous.unsuccessful.onsets.he.at.last.succeeded.in.getting.one.iron.fast.Meantime.Gabriel.ascending.to.the.mainroyal.masthead.was.tossing.one.arm.in.frantic.gestures.and.hurling.forth.prophecies.of.speedy.doom.to.the.sacrilegious.assailants.of.his.divinity.Now.while.Macey.the.mate.was.standing.up.in.his.boats.bow.and.with.all.the.reckless.energy.of.his.tribe.was.venting.his.wild.exclamations.upon.the.whale.and.essaying.to.get.a.fair.chance.for.his.poised.lance.lo.a.broad.white.shadow.rose.from.the.sea.by.its.quick.fanning.motion.temporarily.taking.the.breath.out.of.the.bodies.of.the.oarsmen.Next.instant.the.luckless.mate.so.full.of.furious.life.was.smitten.bodily.into.the.air.and.making.a.long.arc.in.his.descent.fell.into.the.sea.at.the.distance.of.about.fifty.yards.Not.a.chip.of.the.boat.was.harmed.nor.a.hair.of.any.oarsmans.head.but.the.mate.for.ever.sank.It.is.well.to.parenthesize.here.that.of.the.fatal.accidents.in.the.SpermWhale.Fishery.this.kind.is.perhaps.almost.as.frequent.as.any.Sometimes.nothing.is.injured.but.the.man.who.is.thus.annihilated.oftener.the.boats.bow.is.knocked.off.or.the.thighboard.in.which.the.headsman.stands.is.torn.from.its.place.and.accompanies.the.body.But.strangest.of.all.is.the.circumstance.that.in.more.instances.than.one.when.the.body.has.been.recovered.not.a.single.mark.of.violence.is.discernible.the.man.being.stark.dead.The.whole.calamity.with.the.falling.form.of.Macey.was.plainly.descried.from.the.ship.Raising.a.piercing.shriek.The.vial.the.vial.Gabriel.called.off.the.terrorstricken.crew.from.the.further.hunting.of.the.whale.This.terrible.event.clothed.the.archangel.with.added.influence.because.his.credulous.disciples.believed.that.he.had.specifically.foreannounced.it.instead.of.only.making.a.general.prophecy.which.any.one.might.have.done.and.so.have.chanced.to.hit.one.of.many.marks.in.the.wide.margin.allowed.He.became.a.nameless.terror.to.the.ship.Mayhew.having.concluded.his.narration.Ahab.put.such.questions.to.him.that.the.stranger.captain.could.not.forbear.inquiring.whether.he.intended.to.hunt.the.White.Whale.if.opportunity.should.offer.To.which.Ahab.answered.Aye.Straightway.then.Gabriel.once.more.started.to.his.feet.glaring.upon.the.old.man.and.vehemently.exclaimed.with.downward.pointed.finger.Think.think.of.the.blasphemer.dead.and.down.there.beware.of.the.blasphemers.end.Ahab.stolidly.turned.aside.then.said.to.Mayhew.Captain.I.have.just.bethought.me.of.my.letterbag.there.is.a.letter.for.one.of.thy.officers.if.I.mistake.not.Starbuck.look.over.the.bag.Every.whaleship.takes.out.a.goodly.number.of.letters.for.various.ships.whose.delivery.to.the.persons.to.whom.they.may.be.addressed.depends.upon.the.mere.chance.of.encountering.them.in.the.four.oceans.Thus.most.letters.never.reach.their.mark.and.many.are.only.received.after.attaining.an.age.of.two.or.three.years.or.more.Soon.Starbuck.returned.with.a.letter.in.his.hand.It.was.sorely.tumbled.damp.and.covered.with.a.dull.spotted.green.mould.in.consequence.of.being.kept.in.a.dark.locker.of.the.cabin.Of.such.a.letter.Death.himself.might.well.have.been.the.postboy.Canst.not.read.it.cried.Ahab.Give.it.me.man.Aye.aye.its.but.a.dim.scrawl.whats.this.As.he.was.studying.it.out.Starbuck.took.a.long.cuttingspade.pole.and.with.his.knife.slightly.split.the.end.to.insert.the.letter.there.and.in.that.way.hand.it.to.the.boat.without.its.coming.any.closer.to.the.ship.Meantime.Ahab.holding.the.letter.muttered.Mr.Har.yes.Mr.Harry.a.womans.pinny.hand.the.mans.wife.Ill.wager.Aye.Mr.Harry.Macey.Ship.Jeroboam.why.its.Macey.and.hes.dead.Poor.fellow.poor.fellow.and.from.his.wife.sighed.Mayhew.but.let.me.have.it.Nay.keep.it.thyself.cried.Gabriel.to.Ahab.thou.art.soon.going.that.way.Curses.throttle.thee.yelled.Ahab.Captain.Mayhew.stand.by.now.to.receive.it.and.taking.the.fatal.missive.from.Starbucks.hands.he.caught.it.in.the.slit.of.the.pole.and.reached.it.over.towards.the.boat.But.as.he.did.so.the.oarsmen.expectantly.desisted.from.rowing.the.boat.drifted.a.little.towards.the.ships.stern.so.that.as.if.by.magic.the.letter.suddenly.ranged.along.with.Gabriels.eager.hand.He.clutched.it.in.an.instant.seized.the.boatknife.and.impaling.the.letter.on.it.sent.it.thus.loaded.back.into.the.ship.It.fell.at.Ahabs.feet.Then.Gabriel.shrieked.out.to.his.comrades.to.give.way.with.their.oars.and.in.that.manner.the.mutinous.boat.rapidly.shot.away.from.the.Pequod.As.after.this.interlude.the.seamen.resumed.their.work.upon.the.jacket.of.the.whale.many.strange.things.were.hinted.in.reference.to.this.wild.affair.CHAPTER.72.The.MonkeyRope.In.the.tumultuous.business.of.cuttingin.and.attending.to.a.whale.there.is.much.running.backwards.and.forwards.among.the.crew.Now.hands.are.wanted.here.and.then.again.hands.are.wanted.there.There.is.no.staying.in.any.one.place.for.at.one.and.the.same.time.everything.has.to.be.done.everywhere.It.is.much.the.same.with.him.who.endeavors.the.description.of.the.scene.We.must.now.retrace.our.way.a.little.It.was.mentioned.that.upon.first.breaking.ground.in.the.whales.back.the.blubberhook.was.inserted.into.the.original.hole.there.cut.by.the.spades.of.the.mates.But.how.did.so.clumsy.and.weighty.a.mass.as.that.same.hook.get.fixed.in.that.hole.It.was.inserted.there.by.my.particular.friend.Queequeg.whose.duty.it.was.as.harpooneer.to.descend.upon.the.monsters.back.for.the.special.purpose.referred.to.But.in.very.many.cases.circumstances.require.that.the.harpooneer.shall.remain.on.the.whale.till.the.whole.flensing.or.stripping.operation.is.concluded.The.whale.be.it.observed.lies.almost.entirely.submerged.excepting.the.immediate.parts.operated.upon.So.down.there.some.ten.feet.below.the.level.of.the.deck.the.poor.harpooneer.flounders.about.half.on.the.whale.and.half.in.the.water.as.the.vast.mass.revolves.like.a.treadmill.beneath.him.On.the.occasion.in.question.Queequeg.figured.in.the.Highland.costume.a.shirt.and.socks.in.which.to.my.eyes.at.least.he.appeared.to.uncommon.advantage.and.no.one.had.a.better.chance.to.observe.him.as.will.presently.be.seen.Being.the.savages.bowsman.that.is.the.person.who.pulled.the.bowoar.in.his.boat.the.second.one.from.forward.it.was.my.cheerful.duty.to.attend.upon.him.while.taking.that.hardscrabble.scramble.upon.the.dead.whales.back.You.have.seen.Italian.organboys.holding.a.dancingape.by.a.long.cord.Just.so.from.the.ships.steep.side.did.I.hold.Queequeg.down.there.in.the.sea.by.what.is.technically.called.in.the.fishery.a.monkeyrope.attached.to.a.strong.strip.of.canvas.belted.round.his.waist.It.was.a.humorously.perilous.business.for.both.of.us.For.before.we.proceed.further.it.must.be.said.that.the.monkeyrope.was.fast.at.both.ends.fast.to.Queequegs.broad.canvas.belt.and.fast.to.my.narrow.leather.one.So.that.for.better.or.for.worse.we.two.for.the.time.were.wedded.and.should.poor.Queequeg.sink.to.rise.no.more.then.both.usage.and.honor.demanded.that.instead.of.cutting.the.cord.it.should.drag.me.down.in.his.wake.So.then.an.elongated.Siamese.ligature.united.us.Queequeg.was.my.own.inseparable.twin.brother.nor.could.I.any.way.get.rid.of.the.dangerous.liabilities.which.the.hempen.bond.entailed.So.strongly.and.metaphysically.did.I.conceive.of.my.situation.then.that.while.earnestly.watching.his.motions.I.seemed.distinctly.to.perceive.that.my.own.individuality.was.now.merged.in.a.joint.stock.company.of.two.that.my.free.will.had.received.a.mortal.wound.and.that.anothers.mistake.or.misfortune.might.plunge.innocent.me.into.unmerited.disaster.and.death.Therefore.I.saw.that.here.was.a.sort.of.interregnum.in.Providence.for.its.evenhanded.equity.never.could.have.so.gross.an.injustice.And.yet.still.further.pondering.while.I.jerked.him.now.and.then.from.between.the.whale.and.ship.which.would.threaten.to.jam.him.still.further.pondering.I.say.I.saw.that.this.situation.of.mine.was.the.precise.situation.of.every.mortal.that.breathes.only.in.most.cases.he.one.way.or.other.has.this.Siamese.connexion.with.a.plurality.of.other.mortals.If.your.banker.breaks.you.snap.if.your.apothecary.by.mistake.sends.you.poison.in.your.pills.you.die.True.you.may.say.that.by.exceeding.caution.you.may.possibly.escape.these.and.the.multitudinous.other.evil.chances.of.life.But.handle.Queequegs.monkeyrope.heedfully.as.I.would.sometimes.he.jerked.it.so.that.I.came.very.near.sliding.overboard.Nor.could.I.possibly.forget.that.do.what.I.would.I.only.had.the.management.of.one.end.of.it.The.monkeyrope.is.found.in.all.whalers.but.it.was.only.in.the.Pequod.that.the.monkey.and.his.holder.were.ever.tied.together.This.improvement.upon.the.original.usage.was.introduced.by.no.less.a.man.than.Stubb.in.order.to.afford.the.imperilled.harpooneer.the.strongest.possible.guarantee.for.the.faithfulness.and.vigilance.of.his.monkeyrope.holder.I.have.hinted.that.I.would.often.jerk.poor.Queequeg.from.between.the.whale.and.the.ship.where.he.would.occasionally.fall.from.the.incessant.rolling.and.swaying.of.both.But.this.was.not.the.only.jamming.jeopardy.he.was.exposed.to.Unappalled.by.the.massacre.made.upon.them.during.the.night.the.sharks.now.freshly.and.more.keenly.allured.by.the.before.pent.blood.which.began.to.flow.from.the.carcass.the.rabid.creatures.swarmed.round.it.like.bees.in.a.beehive.And.right.in.among.those.sharks.was.Queequeg.who.often.pushed.them.aside.with.his.floundering.feet.A.thing.altogether.incredible.were.it.not.that.attracted.by.such.prey.as.a.dead.whale.the.otherwise.miscellaneously.carnivorous.shark.will.seldom.touch.a.man.Nevertheless.it.may.well.be.believed.that.since.they.have.such.a.ravenous.finger.in.the.pie.it.is.deemed.but.wise.to.look.sharp.to.them.Accordingly.besides.the.monkeyrope.with.which.I.now.and.then.jerked.the.poor.fellow.from.too.close.a.vicinity.to.the.maw.of.what.seemed.a.peculiarly.ferocious.shark.he.was.provided.with.still.another.protection.Suspended.over.the.side.in.one.of.the.stages.Tashtego.and.Daggoo.continually.flourished.over.his.head.a.couple.of.keen.whalespades.wherewith.they.slaughtered.as.many.sharks.as.they.could.reach.This.procedure.of.theirs.to.be.sure.was.very.disinterested.and.benevolent.of.them.They.meant.Queequegs.best.happiness.I.admit.but.in.their.hasty.zeal.to.befriend.him.and.from.the.circumstance.that.both.he.and.the.sharks.were.at.times.half.hidden.by.the.bloodmuddled.water.those.indiscreet.spades.of.theirs.would.come.nearer.amputating.a.leg.than.a.tail.But.poor.Queequeg.I.suppose.straining.and.gasping.there.with.that.great.iron.hook.poor.Queequeg.I.suppose.only.prayed.to.his.Yojo.and.gave.up.his.life.into.the.hands.of.his.gods.Well.well.my.dear.comrade.and.twinbrother.thought.I.as.I.drew.in.and.then.slacked.off.the.rope.to.every.swell.of.the.sea.what.matters.it.after.all.Are.you.not.the.precious.image.of.each.and.all.of.us.men.in.this.whaling.world.That.unsounded.ocean.you.gasp.in.is.Life.those.sharks.your.foes.those.spades.your.friends.and.what.between.sharks.and.spades.you.are.in.a.sad.pickle.and.peril.poor.lad.But.courage.there.is.good.cheer.in.store.for.you.Queequeg.For.now.as.with.blue.lips.and.bloodshot.eyes.the.exhausted.savage.at.last.climbs.up.the.chains.and.stands.all.dripping.and.involuntarily.trembling.over.the.side.the.steward.advances.and.with.a.benevolent.consolatory.glance.hands.him.what.Some.hot.Cognac.No.hands.him.ye.gods.hands.him.a.cup.of.tepid.ginger.and.water.Ginger.Do.I.smell.ginger.suspiciously.asked.Stubb.coming.near.Yes.this.must.be.ginger.peering.into.the.as.yet.untasted.cup.Then.standing.as.if.incredulous.for.a.while.he.calmly.walked.towards.the.astonished.steward.slowly.saying.Ginger.ginger.and.will.you.have.the.goodness.to.tell.me.Mr.DoughBoy.where.lies.the.virtue.of.ginger.Ginger.is.ginger.the.sort.of.fuel.you.use.Doughboy.to.kindle.a.fire.in.this.shivering.cannibal.Ginger.what.the.devil.is.ginger.Seacoal.firewood.lucifer.matches.tinder.gunpowder.what.the.devil.is.ginger.I.say.that.you.offer.this.cup.to.our.poor.Queequeg.here.There.is.some.sneaking.Temperance.Society.movement.about.this.business.he.suddenly.added.now.approaching.Starbuck.who.had.just.come.from.forward.Will.you.look.at.that.kannakin.sir.smell.of.it.if.you.please.Then.watching.the.mates.countenance.he.added.The.steward.Mr.Starbuck.had.the.face.to.offer.that.calomel.and.jalap.to.Queequeg.there.this.instant.off.the.whale.Is.the.steward.an.apothecary.sir.and.may.I.ask.whether.this.is.the.sort.of.bitters.by.which.he.blows.back.the.life.into.a.halfdrowned.man.I.trust.not.said.Starbuck.it.is.poor.stuff.enough.Aye.aye.steward.cried.Stubb.well.teach.you.to.drug.a.harpooneer.none.of.your.apothecarys.medicine.here.you.want.to.poison.us.do.ye.You.have.got.out.insurances.on.our.lives.and.want.to.murder.us.all.and.pocket.the.proceeds.do.ye.It.was.not.me.cried.DoughBoy.it.was.Aunt.Charity.that.brought.the.ginger.on.board.and.bade.me.never.give.the.harpooneers.any.spirits.but.only.this.gingerjub.so.she.called.it.Gingerjub.you.gingerly.rascal.take.that.and.run.along.with.ye.to.the.lockers.and.get.something.better.I.hope.I.do.no.wrong.Mr.Starbuck.It.is.the.captains.orders.grog.for.the.harpooneer.on.a.whale.Enough.replied.Starbuck.only.dont.hit.him.again.but.Oh.I.never.hurt.when.I.hit.except.when.I.hit.a.whale.or.something.of.that.sort.and.this.fellows.a.weazel.What.were.you.about.saying.sir.Only.this.go.down.with.him.and.get.what.thou.wantest.thyself.When.Stubb.reappeared.he.came.with.a.dark.flask.in.one.hand.and.a.sort.of.teacaddy.in.the.other.The.first.contained.strong.spirits.and.was.handed.to.Queequeg.the.second.was.Aunt.Charitys.gift.and.that.was.freely.given.to.the.waves.CHAPTER.73.Stubb.and.Flask.kill.a.Right.Whale.and.Then.Have.a.Talk.over.Him.It.must.be.borne.in.mind.that.all.this.time.we.have.a.Sperm.Whales.prodigious.head.hanging.to.the.Pequods.side.But.we.must.let.it.continue.hanging.there.a.while.till.we.can.get.a.chance.to.attend.to.it.For.the.present.other.matters.press.and.the.best.we.can.do.now.for.the.head.is.to.pray.heaven.the.tackles.may.hold.Now.during.the.past.night.and.forenoon.the.Pequod.had.gradually.drifted.into.a.sea.which.by.its.occasional.patches.of.yellow.brit.gave.unusual.tokens.of.the.vicinity.of.Right.Whales.a.species.of.the.Leviathan.that.but.few.supposed.to.be.at.this.particular.time.lurking.anywhere.near.And.though.all.hands.commonly.disdained.the.capture.of.those.inferior.creatures.and.though.the.Pequod.was.not.commissioned.to.cruise.for.them.at.all.and.though.she.had.passed.numbers.of.them.near.the.Crozetts.without.lowering.a.boat.yet.now.that.a.Sperm.Whale.had.been.brought.alongside.and.beheaded.to.the.surprise.of.all.the.announcement.was.made.that.a.Right.Whale.should.be.captured.that.day.if.opportunity.offered.Nor.was.this.long.wanting.Tall.spouts.were.seen.to.leeward.and.two.boats.Stubbs.and.Flasks.were.detached.in.pursuit.Pulling.further.and.further.away.they.at.last.became.almost.invisible.to.the.men.at.the.masthead.But.suddenly.in.the.distance.they.saw.a.great.heap.of.tumultuous.white.water.and.soon.after.news.came.from.aloft.that.one.or.both.the.boats.must.be.fast.An.interval.passed.and.the.boats.were.in.plain.sight.in.the.act.of.being.dragged.right.towards.the.ship.by.the.towing.whale.So.close.did.the.monster.come.to.the.hull.that.at.first.it.seemed.as.if.he.meant.it.malice.but.suddenly.going.down.in.a.maelstrom.within.three.rods.of.the.planks.he.wholly.disappeared.from.view.as.if.diving.under.the.keel.Cut.cut.was.the.cry.from.the.ship.to.the.boats.which.for.one.instant.seemed.on.the.point.of.being.brought.with.a.deadly.dash.against.the.vessels.side.But.having.plenty.of.line.yet.in.the.tubs.and.the.whale.not.sounding.very.rapidly.they.paid.out.abundance.of.rope.and.at.the.same.time.pulled.with.all.their.might.so.as.to.get.ahead.of.the.ship.For.a.few.minutes.the.struggle.was.intensely.critical.for.while.they.still.slacked.out.the.tightened.line.in.one.direction.and.still.plied.their.oars.in.another.the.contending.strain.threatened.to.take.them.under.But.it.was.only.a.few.feet.advance.they.sought.to.gain.And.they.stuck.to.it.till.they.did.gain.it.when.instantly.a.swift.tremor.was.felt.running.like.lightning.along.the.keel.as.the.strained.line.scraping.beneath.the.ship.suddenly.rose.to.view.under.her.bows.snapping.and.quivering.and.so.flinging.off.its.drippings.that.the.drops.fell.like.bits.of.broken.glass.on.the.water.while.the.whale.beyond.also.rose.to.sight.and.once.more.the.boats.were.free.to.fly.But.the.fagged.whale.abated.his.speed.and.blindly.altering.his.course.went.round.the.stern.of.the.ship.towing.the.two.boats.after.him.so.that.they.performed.a.complete.circuit.Meantime.they.hauled.more.and.more.upon.their.lines.till.close.flanking.him.on.both.sides.Stubb.answered.Flask.with.lance.for.lance.and.thus.round.and.round.the.Pequod.the.battle.went.while.the.multitudes.of.sharks.that.had.before.swum.round.the.Sperm.Whales.body.rushed.to.the.fresh.blood.that.was.spilled.thirstily.drinking.at.every.new.gash.as.the.eager.Israelites.did.at.the.new.bursting.fountains.that.poured.from.the.smitten.rock.At.last.his.spout.grew.thick.and.with.a.frightful.roll.and.vomit.he.turned.upon.his.back.a.corpse.While.the.two.headsmen.were.engaged.in.making.fast.cords.to.his.flukes.and.in.other.ways.getting.the.mass.in.readiness.for.towing.some.conversation.ensued.between.them.I.wonder.what.the.old.man.wants.with.this.lump.of.foul.lard.said.Stubb.not.without.some.disgust.at.the.thought.of.having.to.do.with.so.ignoble.a.leviathan.Wants.with.it.said.Flask.coiling.some.spare.line.in.the.boats.bow.did.you.never.hear.that.the.ship.which.but.once.has.a.Sperm.Whales.head.hoisted.on.her.starboard.side.and.at.the.same.time.a.Right.Whales.on.the.larboard.did.you.never.hear.Stubb.that.that.ship.can.never.afterwards.capsize.Why.not.I.dont.know.but.I.heard.that.gamboge.ghost.of.a.Fedallah.saying.so.and.he.seems.to.know.all.about.ships.charms.But.I.sometimes.think.hell.charm.the.ship.to.no.good.at.last.I.dont.half.like.that.chap.Stubb.Did.you.ever.notice.how.that.tusk.of.his.is.a.sort.of.carved.into.a.snakes.head.Stubb.Sink.him.I.never.look.at.him.at.all.but.if.ever.I.get.a.chance.of.a.dark.night.and.he.standing.hard.by.the.bulwarks.and.no.one.by.look.down.there.Flask.pointing.into.the.sea.with.a.peculiar.motion.of.both.hands.Aye.will.I.Flask.I.take.that.Fedallah.to.be.the.devil.in.disguise.Do.you.believe.that.cock.and.bull.story.about.his.having.been.stowed.away.on.board.ship.Hes.the.devil.I.say.The.reason.why.you.dont.see.his.tail.is.because.he.tucks.it.up.out.of.sight.he.carries.it.coiled.away.in.his.pocket.I.guess.Blast.him.now.that.I.think.of.it.hes.always.wanting.oakum.to.stuff.into.the.toes.of.his.boots.He.sleeps.in.his.boots.dont.he.He.hasnt.got.any.hammock.but.Ive.seen.him.lay.of.nights.in.a.coil.of.rigging.No.doubt.and.its.because.of.his.cursed.tail.he.coils.it.down.do.ye.see.in.the.eye.of.the.rigging.Whats.the.old.man.have.so.much.to.do.with.him.for.Striking.up.a.swap.or.a.bargain.I.suppose.Bargain.about.what.Why.do.ye.see.the.old.man.is.hard.bent.after.that.White.Whale.and.the.devil.there.is.trying.to.come.round.him.and.get.him.to.swap.away.his.silver.watch.or.his.soul.or.something.of.that.sort.and.then.hell.surrender.Moby.Dick.Pooh.Stubb.you.are.skylarking.how.can.Fedallah.do.that.I.dont.know.Flask.but.the.devil.is.a.curious.chap.and.a.wicked.one.I.tell.ye.Why.they.say.as.how.he.went.a.sauntering.into.the.old.flagship.once.switching.his.tail.about.devilish.easy.and.gentlemanlike.and.inquiring.if.the.old.governor.was.at.home.Well.he.was.at.home.and.asked.the.devil.what.he.wanted.The.devil.switching.his.hoofs.up.and.says.I.want.John.What.for.says.the.old.governor.What.business.is.that.of.yours.says.the.devil.getting.mad.I.want.to.use.him.Take.him.says.the.governor.and.by.the.Lord.Flask.if.the.devil.didnt.give.John.the.Asiatic.cholera.before.he.got.through.with.him.Ill.eat.this.whale.in.one.mouthful.But.look.sharp.aint.you.all.ready.there.Well.then.pull.ahead.and.lets.get.the.whale.alongside.I.think.I.remember.some.such.story.as.you.were.telling.said.Flask.when.at.last.the.two.boats.were.slowly.advancing.with.their.burden.towards.the.ship.but.I.cant.remember.where.Three.Spaniards.Adventures.of.those.three.bloodyminded.soldadoes.Did.ye.read.it.there.Flask.I.guess.ye.did.No.never.saw.such.a.book.heard.of.it.though.But.now.tell.me.Stubb.do.you.suppose.that.that.devil.you.was.speaking.of.just.now.was.the.same.you.say.is.now.on.board.the.Pequod.Am.I.the.same.man.that.helped.kill.this.whale.Doesnt.the.devil.live.for.ever.who.ever.heard.that.the.devil.was.dead.Did.you.ever.see.any.parson.a.wearing.mourning.for.the.devil.And.if.the.devil.has.a.latchkey.to.get.into.the.admirals.cabin.dont.you.suppose.he.can.crawl.into.a.porthole.Tell.me.that.Mr.Flask.How.old.do.you.suppose.Fedallah.is.Stubb.Do.you.see.that.mainmast.there.pointing.to.the.ship.well.thats.the.figure.one.now.take.all.the.hoops.in.the.Pequods.hold.and.string.along.in.a.row.with.that.mast.for.oughts.do.you.see.well.that.wouldnt.begin.to.be.Fedallahs.age.Nor.all.the.coopers.in.creation.couldnt.show.hoops.enough.to.make.oughts.enough.But.see.here.Stubb.I.thought.you.a.little.boasted.just.now.that.you.meant.to.give.Fedallah.a.seatoss.if.you.got.a.good.chance.Now.if.hes.so.old.as.all.those.hoops.of.yours.come.to.and.if.he.is.going.to.live.for.ever.what.good.will.it.do.to.pitch.him.overboard.tell.me.that.Give.him.a.good.ducking.anyhow.But.hed.crawl.back.Duck.him.again.and.keep.ducking.him.Suppose.he.should.take.it.into.his.head.to.duck.you.though.yes.and.drown.you.what.then.I.should.like.to.see.him.try.it.Id.give.him.such.a.pair.of.black.eyes.that.he.wouldnt.dare.to.show.his.face.in.the.admirals.cabin.again.for.a.long.while.let.alone.down.in.the.orlop.there.where.he.lives.and.hereabouts.on.the.upper.decks.where.he.sneaks.so.much.Damn.the.devil.Flask.so.you.suppose.Im.afraid.of.the.devil.Whos.afraid.of.him.except.the.old.governor.who.daresnt.catch.him.and.put.him.in.doubledarbies.as.he.deserves.but.lets.him.go.about.kidnapping.people.aye.and.signed.a.bond.with.him.that.all.the.people.the.devil.kidnapped.hed.roast.for.him.Theres.a.governor.Do.you.suppose.Fedallah.wants.to.kidnap.Captain.Ahab.Do.I.suppose.it.Youll.know.it.before.long.Flask.But.I.am.going.now.to.keep.a.sharp.lookout.on.him.and.if.I.see.anything.very.suspicious.going.on.Ill.just.take.him.by.the.nape.of.his.neck.and.say.Look.here.Beelzebub.you.dont.do.it.and.if.he.makes.any.fuss.by.the.Lord.Ill.make.a.grab.into.his.pocket.for.his.tail.take.it.to.the.capstan.and.give.him.such.a.wrenching.and.heaving.that.his.tail.will.come.short.off.at.the.stump.do.you.see.and.then.I.rather.guess.when.he.finds.himself.docked.in.that.queer.fashion.hell.sneak.off.without.the.poor.satisfaction.of.feeling.his.tail.between.his.legs.And.what.will.you.do.with.the.tail.Stubb.Do.with.it.Sell.it.for.an.ox.whip.when.we.get.home.what.else.Now.do.you.mean.what.you.say.and.have.been.saying.all.along.Stubb.Mean.or.not.mean.here.we.are.at.the.ship.The.boats.were.here.hailed.to.tow.the.whale.on.the.larboard.side.where.fluke.chains.and.other.necessaries.were.already.prepared.for.securing.him.Didnt.I.tell.you.so.said.Flask.yes.youll.soon.see.this.right.whales.head.hoisted.up.opposite.that.parmacettis.In.good.time.Flasks.saying.proved.true.As.before.the.Pequod.steeply.leaned.over.towards.the.sperm.whales.head.now.by.the.counterpoise.of.both.heads.she.regained.her.even.keel.though.sorely.strained.you.may.well.believe.So.when.on.one.side.you.hoist.in.Lockes.head.you.go.over.that.way.but.now.on.the.other.side.hoist.in.Kants.and.you.come.back.again.but.in.very.poor.plight.Thus.some.minds.for.ever.keep.trimming.boat.Oh.ye.foolish.throw.all.these.thunderheads.overboard.and.then.you.will.float.light.and.right.In.disposing.of.the.body.of.a.right.whale.when.brought.alongside.the.ship.the.same.preliminary.proceedings.commonly.take.place.as.in.the.case.of.a.sperm.whale.only.in.the.latter.instance.the.head.is.cut.off.whole.but.in.the.former.the.lips.and.tongue.are.separately.removed.and.hoisted.on.deck.with.all.the.well.known.black.bone.attached.to.what.is.called.the.crownpiece.But.nothing.like.this.in.the.present.case.had.been.done.The.carcases.of.both.whales.had.dropped.astern.and.the.headladen.ship.not.a.little.resembled.a.mule.carrying.a.pair.of.overburdening.panniers.Meantime.Fedallah.was.calmly.eyeing.the.right.whales.head.and.ever.and.anon.glancing.from.the.deep.wrinkles.there.to.the.lines.in.his.own.hand.And.Ahab.chanced.so.to.stand.that.the.Parsee.occupied.his.shadow.while.if.the.Parsees.shadow.was.there.at.all.it.seemed.only.to.blend.with.and.lengthen.Ahabs.As.the.crew.toiled.on.Laplandish.speculations.were.bandied.among.them.concerning.all.these.passing.things.CHAPTER.74.The.Sperm.Whales.Head.Contrasted.View.Here.now.are.two.great.whales.laying.their.heads.together.let.us.join.them.and.lay.together.our.own.Of.the.grand.order.of.folio.leviathans.the.Sperm.Whale.and.the.Right.Whale.are.by.far.the.most.noteworthy.They.are.the.only.whales.regularly.hunted.by.man.To.the.Nantucketer.they.present.the.two.extremes.of.all.the.known.varieties.of.the.whale.As.the.external.difference.between.them.is.mainly.observable.in.their.heads.and.as.a.head.of.each.is.this.moment.hanging.from.the.Pequods.side.and.as.we.may.freely.go.from.one.to.the.other.by.merely.stepping.across.the.deck.where.I.should.like.to.know.will.you.obtain.a.better.chance.to.study.practical.cetology.than.here.In.the.first.place.you.are.struck.by.the.general.contrast.between.these.heads.Both.are.massive.enough.in.all.conscience.but.there.is.a.certain.mathematical.symmetry.in.the.Sperm.Whales.which.the.Right.Whales.sadly.lacks.There.is.more.character.in.the.Sperm.Whales.head.As.you.behold.it.you.involuntarily.yield.the.immense.superiority.to.him.in.point.of.pervading.dignity.In.the.present.instance.too.this.dignity.is.heightened.by.the.pepper.and.salt.colour.of.his.head.at.the.summit.giving.token.of.advanced.age.and.large.experience.In.short.he.is.what.the.fishermen.technically.call.a.greyheaded.whale.Let.us.now.note.what.is.least.dissimilar.in.these.heads.namely.the.two.most.important.organs.the.eye.and.the.ear.Far.back.on.the.side.of.the.head.and.low.down.near.the.angle.of.either.whales.jaw.if.you.narrowly.search.you.will.at.last.see.a.lashless.eye.which.you.would.fancy.to.be.a.young.colts.eye.so.out.of.all.proportion.is.it.to.the.magnitude.of.the.head.Now.from.this.peculiar.sideway.position.of.the.whales.eyes.it.is.plain.that.he.can.never.see.an.object.which.is.exactly.ahead.no.more.than.he.can.one.exactly.astern.In.a.word.the.position.of.the.whales.eyes.corresponds.to.that.of.a.mans.ears.and.you.may.fancy.for.yourself.how.it.would.fare.with.you.did.you.sideways.survey.objects.through.your.ears.You.would.find.that.you.could.only.command.some.thirty.degrees.of.vision.in.advance.of.the.straight.sideline.of.sight.and.about.thirty.more.behind.it.If.your.bitterest.foe.were.walking.straight.towards.you.with.dagger.uplifted.in.broad.day.you.would.not.be.able.to.see.him.any.more.than.if.he.were.stealing.upon.you.from.behind.In.a.word.you.would.have.two.backs.so.to.speak.but.at.the.same.time.also.two.fronts.side.fronts.for.what.is.it.that.makes.the.front.of.a.man.what.indeed.but.his.eyes.Moreover.while.in.most.other.animals.that.I.can.now.think.of.the.eyes.are.so.planted.as.imperceptibly.to.blend.their.visual.power.so.as.to.produce.one.picture.and.not.two.to.the.brain.the.peculiar.position.of.the.whales.eyes.effectually.divided.as.they.are.by.many.cubic.feet.of.solid.head.which.towers.between.them.like.a.great.mountain.separating.two.lakes.in.valleys.this.of.course.must.wholly.separate.the.impressions.which.each.independent.organ.imparts.The.whale.therefore.must.see.one.distinct.picture.on.this.side.and.another.distinct.picture.on.that.side.while.all.between.must.be.profound.darkness.and.nothingness.to.him.Man.may.in.effect.be.said.to.look.out.on.the.world.from.a.sentrybox.with.two.joined.sashes.for.his.window.But.with.the.whale.these.two.sashes.are.separately.inserted.making.two.distinct.windows.but.sadly.impairing.the.view.This.peculiarity.of.the.whales.eyes.is.a.thing.always.to.be.borne.in.mind.in.the.fishery.and.to.be.remembered.by.the.reader.in.some.subsequent.scenes.A.curious.and.most.puzzling.question.might.be.started.concerning.this.visual.matter.as.touching.the.Leviathan.But.I.must.be.content.with.a.hint.So.long.as.a.mans.eyes.are.open.in.the.light.the.act.of.seeing.is.involuntary.that.is.he.cannot.then.help.mechanically.seeing.whatever.objects.are.before.him.Nevertheless.any.ones.experience.will.teach.him.that.though.he.can.take.in.an.undiscriminating.sweep.of.things.at.one.glance.it.is.quite.impossible.for.him.attentively.and.completely.to.examine.any.two.things.however.large.or.however.small.at.one.and.the.same.instant.of.time.never.mind.if.they.lie.side.by.side.and.touch.each.other.But.if.you.now.come.to.separate.these.two.objects.and.surround.each.by.a.circle.of.profound.darkness.then.in.order.to.see.one.of.them.in.such.a.manner.as.to.bring.your.mind.to.bear.on.it.the.other.will.be.utterly.excluded.from.your.contemporary.consciousness.How.is.it.then.with.the.whale.True.both.his.eyes.in.themselves.must.simultaneously.act.but.is.his.brain.so.much.more.comprehensive.combining.and.subtle.than.mans.that.he.can.at.the.same.moment.of.time.attentively.examine.two.distinct.prospects.one.on.one.side.of.him.and.the.other.in.an.exactly.opposite.direction.If.he.can.then.is.it.as.marvellous.a.thing.in.him.as.if.a.man.were.able.simultaneously.to.go.through.the.demonstrations.of.two.distinct.problems.in.Euclid.Nor.strictly.investigated.is.there.any.incongruity.in.this.comparison.It.may.be.but.an.idle.whim.but.it.has.always.seemed.to.me.that.the.extraordinary.vacillations.of.movement.displayed.by.some.whales.when.beset.by.three.or.four.boats.the.timidity.and.liability.to.queer.frights.so.common.to.such.whales.I.think.that.all.this.indirectly.proceeds.from.the.helpless.perplexity.of.volition.in.which.their.divided.and.diametrically.opposite.powers.of.vision.must.involve.them.But.the.ear.of.the.whale.is.full.as.curious.as.the.eye.If.you.are.an.entire.stranger.to.their.race.you.might.hunt.over.these.two.heads.for.hours.and.never.discover.that.organ.The.ear.has.no.external.leaf.whatever.and.into.the.hole.itself.you.can.hardly.insert.a.quill.so.wondrously.minute.is.it.It.is.lodged.a.little.behind.the.eye.With.respect.to.their.ears.this.important.difference.is.to.be.observed.between.the.sperm.whale.and.the.right.While.the.ear.of.the.former.has.an.external.opening.that.of.the.latter.is.entirely.and.evenly.covered.over.with.a.membrane.so.as.to.be.quite.imperceptible.from.without.Is.it.not.curious.that.so.vast.a.being.as.the.whale.should.see.the.world.through.so.small.an.eye.and.hear.the.thunder.through.an.ear.which.is.smaller.than.a.hares.But.if.his.eyes.were.broad.as.the.lens.of.Herschels.great.telescope.and.his.ears.capacious.as.the.porches.of.cathedrals.would.that.make.him.any.longer.of.sight.or.sharper.of.hearing.Not.at.all.Why.then.do.you.try.to.enlarge.your.mind.Subtilize.it.Let.us.now.with.whatever.levers.and.steamengines.we.have.at.hand.cant.over.the.sperm.whales.head.that.it.may.lie.bottom.up.then.ascending.by.a.ladder.to.the.summit.have.a.peep.down.the.mouth.and.were.it.not.that.the.body.is.now.completely.separated.from.it.with.a.lantern.we.might.descend.into.the.great.Kentucky.Mammoth.Cave.of.his.stomach.But.let.us.hold.on.here.by.this.tooth.and.look.about.us.where.we.are.What.a.really.beautiful.and.chastelooking.mouth.from.floor.to.ceiling.lined.or.rather.papered.with.a.glistening.white.membrane.glossy.as.bridal.satins.But.come.out.now.and.look.at.this.portentous.lower.jaw.which.seems.like.the.long.narrow.lid.of.an.immense.snuffbox.with.the.hinge.at.one.end.instead.of.one.side.If.you.pry.it.up.so.as.to.get.it.overhead.and.expose.its.rows.of.teeth.it.seems.a.terrific.portcullis.and.such.alas.it.proves.to.many.a.poor.wight.in.the.fishery.upon.whom.these.spikes.fall.with.impaling.force.But.far.more.terrible.is.it.to.behold.when.fathoms.down.in.the.sea.you.see.some.sulky.whale.floating.there.suspended.with.his.prodigious.jaw.some.fifteen.feet.long.hanging.straight.down.at.rightangles.with.his.body.for.all.the.world.like.a.ships.jibboom.This.whale.is.not.dead.he.is.only.dispirited.out.of.sorts.perhaps.hypochondriac.and.so.supine.that.the.hinges.of.his.jaw.have.relaxed.leaving.him.there.in.that.ungainly.sort.of.plight.a.reproach.to.all.his.tribe.who.must.no.doubt.imprecate.lockjaws.upon.him.In.most.cases.this.lower.jaw.being.easily.unhinged.by.a.practised.artist.is.disengaged.and.hoisted.on.deck.for.the.purpose.of.extracting.the.ivory.teeth.and.furnishing.a.supply.of.that.hard.white.whalebone.with.which.the.fishermen.fashion.all.sorts.of.curious.articles.including.canes.umbrellastocks.and.handles.to.ridingwhips.With.a.long.weary.hoist.the.jaw.is.dragged.on.board.as.if.it.were.an.anchor.and.when.the.proper.time.comes.some.few.days.after.the.other.work.Queequeg.Daggoo.and.Tashtego.being.all.accomplished.dentists.are.set.to.drawing.teeth.With.a.keen.cuttingspade.Queequeg.lances.the.gums.then.the.jaw.is.lashed.down.to.ringbolts.and.a.tackle.being.rigged.from.aloft.they.drag.out.these.teeth.as.Michigan.oxen.drag.stumps.of.old.oaks.out.of.wild.wood.lands.There.are.generally.fortytwo.teeth.in.all.in.old.whales.much.worn.down.but.undecayed.nor.filled.after.our.artificial.fashion.The.jaw.is.afterwards.sawn.into.slabs.and.piled.away.like.joists.for.building.houses.CHAPTER.75.The.Right.Whales.Head.Contrasted.View.Crossing.the.deck.let.us.now.have.a.good.long.look.at.the.Right.Whales.head.As.in.general.shape.the.noble.Sperm.Whales.head.may.be.compared.to.a.Roman.warchariot.especially.in.front.where.it.is.so.broadly.rounded.so.at.a.broad.view.the.Right.Whales.head.bears.a.rather.inelegant.resemblance.to.a.gigantic.galliottoed.shoe.Two.hundred.years.ago.an.old.Dutch.voyager.likened.its.shape.to.that.of.a.shoemakers.last.And.in.this.same.last.or.shoe.that.old.woman.of.the.nursery.tale.with.the.swarming.brood.might.very.comfortably.be.lodged.she.and.all.her.progeny.But.as.you.come.nearer.to.this.great.head.it.begins.to.assume.different.aspects.according.to.your.point.of.view.If.you.stand.on.its.summit.and.look.at.these.two.Fshaped.spoutholes.you.would.take.the.whole.head.for.an.enormous.bassviol.and.these.spiracles.the.apertures.in.its.soundingboard.Then.again.if.you.fix.your.eye.upon.this.strange.crested.comblike.incrustation.on.the.top.of.the.mass.this.green.barnacled.thing.which.the.Greenlanders.call.the.crown.and.the.Southern.fishers.the.bonnet.of.the.Right.Whale.fixing.your.eyes.solely.on.this.you.would.take.the.head.for.the.trunk.of.some.huge.oak.with.a.birds.nest.in.its.crotch.At.any.rate.when.you.watch.those.live.crabs.that.nestle.here.on.this.bonnet.such.an.idea.will.be.almost.sure.to.occur.to.you.unless.indeed.your.fancy.has.been.fixed.by.the.technical.term.crown.also.bestowed.upon.it.in.which.case.you.will.take.great.interest.in.thinking.how.this.mighty.monster.is.actually.a.diademed.king.of.the.sea.whose.green.crown.has.been.put.together.for.him.in.this.marvellous.manner.But.if.this.whale.be.a.king.he.is.a.very.sulky.looking.fellow.to.grace.a.diadem.Look.at.that.hanging.lower.lip.what.a.huge.sulk.and.pout.is.there.a.sulk.and.pout.by.carpenters.measurement.about.twenty.feet.long.and.five.feet.deep.a.sulk.and.pout.that.will.yield.you.some.500.gallons.of.oil.and.more.A.great.pity.now.that.this.unfortunate.whale.should.be.harelipped.The.fissure.is.about.a.foot.across.Probably.the.mother.during.an.important.interval.was.sailing.down.the.Peruvian.coast.when.earthquakes.caused.the.beach.to.gape.Over.this.lip.as.over.a.slippery.threshold.we.now.slide.into.the.mouth.Upon.my.word.were.I.at.Mackinaw.I.should.take.this.to.be.the.inside.of.an.Indian.wigwam.Good.Lord.is.this.the.road.that.Jonah.went.The.roof.is.about.twelve.feet.high.and.runs.to.a.pretty.sharp.angle.as.if.there.were.a.regular.ridgepole.there.while.these.ribbed.arched.hairy.sides.present.us.with.those.wondrous.half.vertical.scimetarshaped.slats.of.whalebone.say.three.hundred.on.a.side.which.depending.from.the.upper.part.of.the.head.or.crown.bone.form.those.Venetian.blinds.which.have.elsewhere.been.cursorily.mentioned.The.edges.of.these.bones.are.fringed.with.hairy.fibres.through.which.the.Right.Whale.strains.the.water.and.in.whose.intricacies.he.retains.the.small.fish.when.openmouthed.he.goes.through.the.seas.of.brit.in.feeding.time.In.the.central.blinds.of.bone.as.they.stand.in.their.natural.order.there.are.certain.curious.marks.curves.hollows.and.ridges.whereby.some.whalemen.calculate.the.creatures.age.as.the.age.of.an.oak.by.its.circular.rings.Though.the.certainty.of.this.criterion.is.far.from.demonstrable.yet.it.has.the.savor.of.analogical.probability.At.any.rate.if.we.yield.to.it.we.must.grant.a.far.greater.age.to.the.Right.Whale.than.at.first.glance.will.seem.reasonable.In.old.times.there.seem.to.have.prevailed.the.most.curious.fancies.concerning.these.blinds.One.voyager.in.Purchas.calls.them.the.wondrous.whiskers.inside.of.the.whales.mouth.another.hogs.bristles.a.third.old.gentleman.in.Hackluyt.uses.the.following.elegant.language.There.are.about.two.hundred.and.fifty.fins.growing.on.each.side.of.his.upper.chop.which.arch.over.his.tongue.on.each.side.of.his.mouth.This.reminds.us.that.the.Right.Whale.really.has.a.sort.of.whisker.or.rather.a.moustache.consisting.of.a.few.scattered.white.hairs.on.the.upper.part.of.the.outer.end.of.the.lower.jaw.Sometimes.these.tufts.impart.a.rather.brigandish.expression.to.his.otherwise.solemn.countenance.As.every.one.knows.these.same.hogs.bristles.fins.whiskers.blinds.or.whatever.you.please.furnish.to.the.ladies.their.busks.and.other.stiffening.contrivances.But.in.this.particular.the.demand.has.long.been.on.the.decline.It.was.in.Queen.Annes.time.that.the.bone.was.in.its.glory.the.farthingale.being.then.all.the.fashion.And.as.those.ancient.dames.moved.about.gaily.though.in.the.jaws.of.the.whale.as.you.may.say.even.so.in.a.shower.with.the.like.thoughtlessness.do.we.nowadays.fly.under.the.same.jaws.for.protection.the.umbrella.being.a.tent.spread.over.the.same.bone.But.now.forget.all.about.blinds.and.whiskers.for.a.moment.and.standing.in.the.Right.Whales.mouth.look.around.you.afresh.Seeing.all.these.colonnades.of.bone.so.methodically.ranged.about.would.you.not.think.you.were.inside.of.the.great.Haarlem.organ.and.gazing.upon.its.thousand.pipes.For.a.carpet.to.the.organ.we.have.a.rug.of.the.softest.Turkey.the.tongue.which.is.glued.as.it.were.to.the.floor.of.the.mouth.It.is.very.fat.and.tender.and.apt.to.tear.in.pieces.in.hoisting.it.on.deck.This.particular.tongue.now.before.us.at.a.passing.glance.I.should.say.it.was.a.sixbarreler.that.is.it.will.yield.you.about.that.amount.of.oil.Ere.this.you.must.have.plainly.seen.the.truth.of.what.I.started.with.that.the.Sperm.Whale.and.the.Right.Whale.have.almost.entirely.different.heads.To.sum.up.then.in.the.Right.Whales.there.is.no.great.well.of.sperm.no.ivory.teeth.at.all.no.long.slender.mandible.of.a.lower.jaw.like.the.Sperm.Whales.Nor.in.the.Sperm.Whale.are.there.any.of.those.blinds.of.bone.no.huge.lower.lip.and.scarcely.anything.of.a.tongue.Again.the.Right.Whale.has.two.external.spoutholes.the.Sperm.Whale.only.one.Look.your.last.now.on.these.venerable.hooded.heads.while.they.yet.lie.together.for.one.will.soon.sink.unrecorded.in.the.sea.the.other.will.not.be.very.long.in.following.Can.you.catch.the.expression.of.the.Sperm.Whales.there.It.is.the.same.he.died.with.only.some.of.the.longer.wrinkles.in.the.forehead.seem.now.faded.away.I.think.his.broad.brow.to.be.full.of.a.prairielike.placidity.born.of.a.speculative.indifference.as.to.death.But.mark.the.other.heads.expression.See.that.amazing.lower.lip.pressed.by.accident.against.the.vessels.side.so.as.firmly.to.embrace.the.jaw.Does.not.this.whole.head.seem.to.speak.of.an.enormous.practical.resolution.in.facing.death.This.Right.Whale.I.take.to.have.been.a.Stoic.the.Sperm.Whale.a.Platonian.who.might.have.taken.up.Spinoza.in.his.latter.years.CHAPTER.76.The.BatteringRam.Ere.quitting.for.the.nonce.the.Sperm.Whales.head.I.would.have.you.as.a.sensible.physiologist.simply.particularly.remark.its.front.aspect.in.all.its.compacted.collectedness.I.would.have.you.investigate.it.now.with.the.sole.view.of.forming.to.yourself.some.unexaggerated.intelligent.estimate.of.whatever.batteringram.power.may.be.lodged.there.Here.is.a.vital.point.for.you.must.either.satisfactorily.settle.this.matter.with.yourself.or.for.ever.remain.an.infidel.as.to.one.of.the.most.appalling.but.not.the.less.true.events.perhaps.anywhere.to.be.found.in.all.recorded.history.You.observe.that.in.the.ordinary.swimming.position.of.the.Sperm.Whale.the.front.of.his.head.presents.an.almost.wholly.vertical.plane.to.the.water.you.observe.that.the.lower.part.of.that.front.slopes.considerably.backwards.so.as.to.furnish.more.of.a.retreat.for.the.long.socket.which.receives.the.boomlike.lower.jaw.you.observe.that.the.mouth.is.entirely.under.the.head.much.in.the.same.way.indeed.as.though.your.own.mouth.were.entirely.under.your.chin.Moreover.you.observe.that.the.whale.has.no.external.nose.and.that.what.nose.he.has.his.spout.hole.is.on.the.top.of.his.head.you.observe.that.his.eyes.and.ears.are.at.the.sides.of.his.head.nearly.one.third.of.his.entire.length.from.the.front.Wherefore.you.must.now.have.perceived.that.the.front.of.the.Sperm.Whales.head.is.a.dead.blind.wall.without.a.single.organ.or.tender.prominence.of.any.sort.whatsoever.Furthermore.you.are.now.to.consider.that.only.in.the.extreme.lower.backward.sloping.part.of.the.front.of.the.head.is.there.the.slightest.vestige.of.bone.and.not.till.you.get.near.twenty.feet.from.the.forehead.do.you.come.to.the.full.cranial.development.So.that.this.whole.enormous.boneless.mass.is.as.one.wad.Finally.though.as.will.soon.be.revealed.its.contents.partly.comprise.the.most.delicate.oil.yet.you.are.now.to.be.apprised.of.the.nature.of.the.substance.which.so.impregnably.invests.all.that.apparent.effeminacy.In.some.previous.place.I.have.described.to.you.how.the.blubber.wraps.the.body.of.the.whale.as.the.rind.wraps.an.orange.Just.so.with.the.head.but.with.this.difference.about.the.head.this.envelope.though.not.so.thick.is.of.a.boneless.toughness.inestimable.by.any.man.who.has.not.handled.it.The.severest.pointed.harpoon.the.sharpest.lance.darted.by.the.strongest.human.arm.impotently.rebounds.from.it.It.is.as.though.the.forehead.of.the.Sperm.Whale.were.paved.with.horses.hoofs.I.do.not.think.that.any.sensation.lurks.in.it.Bethink.yourself.also.of.another.thing.When.two.large.loaded.Indiamen.chance.to.crowd.and.crush.towards.each.other.in.the.docks.what.do.the.sailors.do.They.do.not.suspend.between.them.at.the.point.of.coming.contact.any.merely.hard.substance.like.iron.or.wood.No.they.hold.there.a.large.round.wad.of.tow.and.cork.enveloped.in.the.thickest.and.toughest.of.oxhide.That.bravely.and.uninjured.takes.the.jam.which.would.have.snapped.all.their.oaken.handspikes.and.iron.crowbars.By.itself.this.sufficiently.illustrates.the.obvious.fact.I.drive.at.But.supplementary.to.this.it.has.hypothetically.occurred.to.me.that.as.ordinary.fish.possess.what.is.called.a.swimming.bladder.in.them.capable.at.will.of.distension.or.contraction.and.as.the.Sperm.Whale.as.far.as.I.know.has.no.such.provision.in.him.considering.too.the.otherwise.inexplicable.manner.in.which.he.now.depresses.his.head.altogether.beneath.the.surface.and.anon.swims.with.it.high.elevated.out.of.the.water.considering.the.unobstructed.elasticity.of.its.envelope.considering.the.unique.interior.of.his.head.it.has.hypothetically.occurred.to.me.I.say.that.those.mystical.lungcelled.honeycombs.there.may.possibly.have.some.hitherto.unknown.and.unsuspected.connexion.with.the.outer.air.so.as.to.be.susceptible.to.atmospheric.distension.and.contraction.If.this.be.so.fancy.the.irresistibleness.of.that.might.to.which.the.most.impalpable.and.destructive.of.all.elements.contributes.Now.mark.Unerringly.impelling.this.dead.impregnable.uninjurable.wall.and.this.most.buoyant.thing.within.there.swims.behind.it.all.a.mass.of.tremendous.life.only.to.be.adequately.estimated.as.piled.wood.is.by.the.cord.and.all.obedient.to.one.volition.as.the.smallest.insect.So.that.when.I.shall.hereafter.detail.to.you.all.the.specialities.and.concentrations.of.potency.everywhere.lurking.in.this.expansive.monster.when.I.shall.show.you.some.of.his.more.inconsiderable.braining.feats.I.trust.you.will.have.renounced.all.ignorant.incredulity.and.be.ready.to.abide.by.this.that.though.the.Sperm.Whale.stove.a.passage.through.the.Isthmus.of.Darien.and.mixed.the.Atlantic.with.the.Pacific.you.would.not.elevate.one.hair.of.your.eyebrow.For.unless.you.own.the.whale.you.are.but.a.provincial.and.sentimentalist.in.Truth.But.clear.Truth.is.a.thing.for.salamander.giants.only.to.encounter.how.small.the.chances.for.the.provincials.then.What.befell.the.weakling.youth.lifting.the.dread.goddesss.veil.at.Lais.CHAPTER.77.The.Great.Heidelburgh.Tun.Now.comes.the.Baling.of.the.Case.But.to.comprehend.it.aright.you.must.know.something.of.the.curious.internal.structure.of.the.thing.operated.upon.Regarding.the.Sperm.Whales.head.as.a.solid.oblong.you.may.on.an.inclined.plane.sideways.divide.it.into.two.quoins.whereof.the.lower.is.the.bony.structure.forming.the.cranium.and.jaws.and.the.upper.an.unctuous.mass.wholly.free.from.bones.its.broad.forward.end.forming.the.expanded.vertical.apparent.forehead.of.the.whale.At.the.middle.of.the.forehead.horizontally.subdivide.this.upper.quoin.and.then.you.have.two.almost.equal.parts.which.before.were.naturally.divided.by.an.internal.wall.of.a.thick.tendinous.substance.Quoin.is.not.a.Euclidean.term.It.belongs.to.the.pure.nautical.mathematics.I.know.not.that.it.has.been.defined.before.A.quoin.is.a.solid.which.differs.from.a.wedge.in.having.its.sharp.end.formed.by.the.steep.inclination.of.one.side.instead.of.the.mutual.tapering.of.both.sides.The.lower.subdivided.part.called.the.junk.is.one.immense.honeycomb.of.oil.formed.by.the.crossing.and.recrossing.into.ten.thousand.infiltrated.cells.of.tough.elastic.white.fibres.throughout.its.whole.extent.The.upper.part.known.as.the.Case.may.be.regarded.as.the.great.Heidelburgh.Tun.of.the.Sperm.Whale.And.as.that.famous.great.tierce.is.mystically.carved.in.front.so.the.whales.vast.plaited.forehead.forms.innumerable.strange.devices.for.the.emblematical.adornment.of.his.wondrous.tun.Moreover.as.that.of.Heidelburgh.was.always.replenished.with.the.most.excellent.of.the.wines.of.the.Rhenish.valleys.so.the.tun.of.the.whale.contains.by.far.the.most.precious.of.all.his.oily.vintages.namely.the.highlyprized.spermaceti.in.its.absolutely.pure.limpid.and.odoriferous.state.Nor.is.this.precious.substance.found.unalloyed.in.any.other.part.of.the.creature.Though.in.life.it.remains.perfectly.fluid.yet.upon.exposure.to.the.air.after.death.it.soon.begins.to.concrete.sending.forth.beautiful.crystalline.shoots.as.when.the.first.thin.delicate.ice.is.just.forming.in.water.A.large.whales.case.generally.yields.about.five.hundred.gallons.of.sperm.though.from.unavoidable.circumstances.considerable.of.it.is.spilled.leaks.and.dribbles.away.or.is.otherwise.irrevocably.lost.in.the.ticklish.business.of.securing.what.you.can.I.know.not.with.what.fine.and.costly.material.the.Heidelburgh.Tun.was.coated.within.but.in.superlative.richness.that.coating.could.not.possibly.have.compared.with.the.silken.pearlcoloured.membrane.like.the.lining.of.a.fine.pelisse.forming.the.inner.surface.of.the.Sperm.Whales.case.It.will.have.been.seen.that.the.Heidelburgh.Tun.of.the.Sperm.Whale.embraces.the.entire.length.of.the.entire.top.of.the.head.and.since.as.has.been.elsewhere.set.forth.the.head.embraces.one.third.of.the.whole.length.of.the.creature.then.setting.that.length.down.at.eighty.feet.for.a.good.sized.whale.you.have.more.than.twentysix.feet.for.the.depth.of.the.tun.when.it.is.lengthwise.hoisted.up.and.down.against.a.ships.side.As.in.decapitating.the.whale.the.operators.instrument.is.brought.close.to.the.spot.where.an.entrance.is.subsequently.forced.into.the.spermaceti.magazine.he.has.therefore.to.be.uncommonly.heedful.lest.a.careless.untimely.stroke.should.invade.the.sanctuary.and.wastingly.let.out.its.invaluable.contents.It.is.this.decapitated.end.of.the.head.also.which.is.at.last.elevated.out.of.the.water.and.retained.in.that.position.by.the.enormous.cutting.tackles.whose.hempen.combinations.on.one.side.make.quite.a.wilderness.of.ropes.in.that.quarter.Thus.much.being.said.attend.now.I.pray.you.to.that.marvellous.and.in.this.particular.instance.almost.fatal.operation.whereby.the.Sperm.Whales.great.Heidelburgh.Tun.is.tapped.CHAPTER.78.Cistern.and.Buckets.Nimble.as.a.cat.Tashtego.mounts.aloft.and.without.altering.his.erect.posture.runs.straight.out.upon.the.overhanging.mainyardarm.to.the.part.where.it.exactly.projects.over.the.hoisted.Tun.He.has.carried.with.him.a.light.tackle.called.a.whip.consisting.of.only.two.parts.travelling.through.a.singlesheaved.block.Securing.this.block.so.that.it.hangs.down.from.the.yardarm.he.swings.one.end.of.the.rope.till.it.is.caught.and.firmly.held.by.a.hand.on.deck.Then.handoverhand.down.the.other.part.the.Indian.drops.through.the.air.till.dexterously.he.lands.on.the.summit.of.the.head.There.still.high.elevated.above.the.rest.of.the.company.to.whom.he.vivaciously.cries.he.seems.some.Turkish.Muezzin.calling.the.good.people.to.prayers.from.the.top.of.a.tower.A.shorthandled.sharp.spade.being.sent.up.to.him.he.diligently.searches.for.the.proper.place.to.begin.breaking.into.the.Tun.In.this.business.he.proceeds.very.heedfully.like.a.treasurehunter.in.some.old.house.sounding.the.walls.to.find.where.the.gold.is.masoned.in.By.the.time.this.cautious.search.is.over.a.stout.ironbound.bucket.precisely.like.a.wellbucket.has.been.attached.to.one.end.of.the.whip.while.the.other.end.being.stretched.across.the.deck.is.there.held.by.two.or.three.alert.hands.These.last.now.hoist.the.bucket.within.grasp.of.the.Indian.to.whom.another.person.has.reached.up.a.very.long.pole.Inserting.this.pole.into.the.bucket.Tashtego.downward.guides.the.bucket.into.the.Tun.till.it.entirely.disappears.then.giving.the.word.to.the.seamen.at.the.whip.up.comes.the.bucket.again.all.bubbling.like.a.dairymaids.pail.of.new.milk.Carefully.lowered.from.its.height.the.fullfreighted.vessel.is.caught.by.an.appointed.hand.and.quickly.emptied.into.a.large.tub.Then.remounting.aloft.it.again.goes.through.the.same.round.until.the.deep.cistern.will.yield.no.more.Towards.the.end.Tashtego.has.to.ram.his.long.pole.harder.and.harder.and.deeper.and.deeper.into.the.Tun.until.some.twenty.feet.of.the.pole.have.gone.down.Now.the.people.of.the.Pequod.had.been.baling.some.time.in.this.way.several.tubs.had.been.filled.with.the.fragrant.sperm.when.all.at.once.a.queer.accident.happened.Whether.it.was.that.Tashtego.that.wild.Indian.was.so.heedless.and.reckless.as.to.let.go.for.a.moment.his.onehanded.hold.on.the.great.cabled.tackles.suspending.the.head.or.whether.the.place.where.he.stood.was.so.treacherous.and.oozy.or.whether.the.Evil.One.himself.would.have.it.to.fall.out.so.without.stating.his.particular.reasons.how.it.was.exactly.there.is.no.telling.now.but.on.a.sudden.as.the.eightieth.or.ninetieth.bucket.came.suckingly.up.my.God.poor.Tashtego.like.the.twin.reciprocating.bucket.in.a.veritable.well.dropped.headforemost.down.into.this.great.Tun.of.Heidelburgh.and.with.a.horrible.oily.gurgling.went.clean.out.of.sight.Man.overboard.cried.Daggoo.who.amid.the.general.consternation.first.came.to.his.senses.Swing.the.bucket.this.way.and.putting.one.foot.into.it.so.as.the.better.to.secure.his.slippery.handhold.on.the.whip.itself.the.hoisters.ran.him.high.up.to.the.top.of.the.head.almost.before.Tashtego.could.have.reached.its.interior.bottom.Meantime.there.was.a.terrible.tumult.Looking.over.the.side.they.saw.the.before.lifeless.head.throbbing.and.heaving.just.below.the.surface.of.the.sea.as.if.that.moment.seized.with.some.momentous.idea.whereas.it.was.only.the.poor.Indian.unconsciously.revealing.by.those.struggles.the.perilous.depth.to.which.he.had.sunk.At.this.instant.while.Daggoo.on.the.summit.of.the.head.was.clearing.the.whip.which.had.somehow.got.foul.of.the.great.cutting.tackles.a.sharp.cracking.noise.was.heard.and.to.the.unspeakable.horror.of.all.one.of.the.two.enormous.hooks.suspending.the.head.tore.out.and.with.a.vast.vibration.the.enormous.mass.sideways.swung.till.the.drunk.ship.reeled.and.shook.as.if.smitten.by.an.iceberg.The.one.remaining.hook.upon.which.the.entire.strain.now.depended.seemed.every.instant.to.be.on.the.point.of.giving.way.an.event.still.more.likely.from.the.violent.motions.of.the.head.Come.down.come.down.yelled.the.seamen.to.Daggoo.but.with.one.hand.holding.on.to.the.heavy.tackles.so.that.if.the.head.should.drop.he.would.still.remain.suspended.the.negro.having.cleared.the.foul.line.rammed.down.the.bucket.into.the.now.collapsed.well.meaning.that.the.buried.harpooneer.should.grasp.it.and.so.be.hoisted.out.In.heavens.name.man.cried.Stubb.are.you.ramming.home.a.cartridge.there.Avast.How.will.that.help.him.jamming.that.ironbound.bucket.on.top.of.his.head.Avast.will.ye.Stand.clear.of.the.tackle.cried.a.voice.like.the.bursting.of.a.rocket.Almost.in.the.same.instant.with.a.thunderboom.the.enormous.mass.dropped.into.the.sea.like.Niagaras.TableRock.into.the.whirlpool.the.suddenly.relieved.hull.rolled.away.from.it.to.far.down.her.glittering.copper.and.all.caught.their.breath.as.half.swinging.now.over.the.sailors.heads.and.now.over.the.water.Daggoo.through.a.thick.mist.of.spray.was.dimly.beheld.clinging.to.the.pendulous.tackles.while.poor.buriedalive.Tashtego.was.sinking.utterly.down.to.the.bottom.of.the.sea.But.hardly.had.the.blinding.vapor.cleared.away.when.a.naked.figure.with.a.boardingsword.in.his.hand.was.for.one.swift.moment.seen.hovering.over.the.bulwarks.The.next.a.loud.splash.announced.that.my.brave.Queequeg.had.dived.to.the.rescue.One.packed.rush.was.made.to.the.side.and.every.eye.counted.every.ripple.as.moment.followed.moment.and.no.sign.of.either.the.sinker.or.the.diver.could.be.seen.Some.hands.now.jumped.into.a.boat.alongside.and.pushed.a.little.off.from.the.ship.Ha.ha.cried.Daggoo.all.at.once.from.his.now.quiet.swinging.perch.overhead.and.looking.further.off.from.the.side.we.saw.an.arm.thrust.upright.from.the.blue.waves.a.sight.strange.to.see.as.an.arm.thrust.forth.from.the.grass.over.a.grave.Both.both.it.is.both.cried.Daggoo.again.with.a.joyful.shout.and.soon.after.Queequeg.was.seen.boldly.striking.out.with.one.hand.and.with.the.other.clutching.the.long.hair.of.the.Indian.Drawn.into.the.waiting.boat.they.were.quickly.brought.to.the.deck.but.Tashtego.was.long.in.coming.to.and.Queequeg.did.not.look.very.brisk.Now.how.had.this.noble.rescue.been.accomplished.Why.diving.after.the.slowly.descending.head.Queequeg.with.his.keen.sword.had.made.side.lunges.near.its.bottom.so.as.to.scuttle.a.large.hole.there.then.dropping.his.sword.had.thrust.his.long.arm.far.inwards.and.upwards.and.so.hauled.out.poor.Tash.by.the.head.He.averred.that.upon.first.thrusting.in.for.him.a.leg.was.presented.but.well.knowing.that.that.was.not.as.it.ought.to.be.and.might.occasion.great.trouble.he.had.thrust.back.the.leg.and.by.a.dexterous.heave.and.toss.had.wrought.a.somerset.upon.the.Indian.so.that.with.the.next.trial.he.came.forth.in.the.good.old.way.head.foremost.As.for.the.great.head.itself.that.was.doing.as.well.as.could.be.expected.And.thus.through.the.courage.and.great.skill.in.obstetrics.of.Queequeg.the.deliverance.or.rather.delivery.of.Tashtego.was.successfully.accomplished.in.the.teeth.too.of.the.most.untoward.and.apparently.hopeless.impediments.which.is.a.lesson.by.no.means.to.be.forgotten.Midwifery.should.be.taught.in.the.same.course.with.fencing.and.boxing.riding.and.rowing.I.know.that.this.queer.adventure.of.the.GayHeaders.will.be.sure.to.seem.incredible.to.some.landsmen.though.they.themselves.may.have.either.seen.or.heard.of.some.ones.falling.into.a.cistern.ashore.an.accident.which.not.seldom.happens.and.with.much.less.reason.too.than.the.Indians.considering.the.exceeding.slipperiness.of.the.curb.of.the.Sperm.Whales.well.But.peradventure.it.may.be.sagaciously.urged.how.is.this.We.thought.the.tissued.infiltrated.head.of.the.Sperm.Whale.was.the.lightest.and.most.corky.part.about.him.and.yet.thou.makest.it.sink.in.an.element.of.a.far.greater.specific.gravity.than.itself.We.have.thee.there.Not.at.all.but.I.have.ye.for.at.the.time.poor.Tash.fell.in.the.case.had.been.nearly.emptied.of.its.lighter.contents.leaving.little.but.the.dense.tendinous.wall.of.the.well.a.double.welded.hammered.substance.as.I.have.before.said.much.heavier.than.the.sea.water.and.a.lump.of.which.sinks.in.it.like.lead.almost.But.the.tendency.to.rapid.sinking.in.this.substance.was.in.the.present.instance.materially.counteracted.by.the.other.parts.of.the.head.remaining.undetached.from.it.so.that.it.sank.very.slowly.and.deliberately.indeed.affording.Queequeg.a.fair.chance.for.performing.his.agile.obstetrics.on.the.run.as.you.may.say.Yes.it.was.a.running.delivery.so.it.was.Now.had.Tashtego.perished.in.that.head.it.had.been.a.very.precious.perishing.smothered.in.the.very.whitest.and.daintiest.of.fragrant.spermaceti.coffined.hearsed.and.tombed.in.the.secret.inner.chamber.and.sanctum.sanctorum.of.the.whale.Only.one.sweeter.end.can.readily.be.recalled.the.delicious.death.of.an.Ohio.honeyhunter.who.seeking.honey.in.the.crotch.of.a.hollow.tree.found.such.exceeding.store.of.it.that.leaning.too.far.over.it.sucked.him.in.so.that.he.died.embalmed.How.many.think.ye.have.likewise.fallen.into.Platos.honey.head.and.sweetly.perished.there.CHAPTER.79.The.Prairie.To.scan.the.lines.of.his.face.or.feel.the.bumps.on.the.head.of.this.Leviathan.this.is.a.thing.which.no.Physiognomist.or.Phrenologist.has.as.yet.undertaken.Such.an.enterprise.would.seem.almost.as.hopeful.as.for.Lavater.to.have.scrutinized.the.wrinkles.on.the.Rock.of.Gibraltar.or.for.Gall.to.have.mounted.a.ladder.and.manipulated.the.Dome.of.the.Pantheon.Still.in.that.famous.work.of.his.Lavater.not.only.treats.of.the.various.faces.of.men.but.also.attentively.studies.the.faces.of.horses.birds.serpents.and.fish.and.dwells.in.detail.upon.the.modifications.of.expression.discernible.therein.Nor.have.Gall.and.his.disciple.Spurzheim.failed.to.throw.out.some.hints.touching.the.phrenological.characteristics.of.other.beings.than.man.Therefore.though.I.am.but.ill.qualified.for.a.pioneer.in.the.application.of.these.two.semisciences.to.the.whale.I.will.do.my.endeavor.I.try.all.things.I.achieve.what.I.can.Physiognomically.regarded.the.Sperm.Whale.is.an.anomalous.creature.He.has.no.proper.nose.And.since.the.nose.is.the.central.and.most.conspicuous.of.the.features.and.since.it.perhaps.most.modifies.and.finally.controls.their.combined.expression.hence.it.would.seem.that.its.entire.absence.as.an.external.appendage.must.very.largely.affect.the.countenance.of.the.whale.For.as.in.landscape.gardening.a.spire.cupola.monument.or.tower.of.some.sort.is.deemed.almost.indispensable.to.the.completion.of.the.scene.so.no.face.can.be.physiognomically.in.keeping.without.the.elevated.openwork.belfry.of.the.nose.Dash.the.nose.from.Phidiass.marble.Jove.and.what.a.sorry.remainder.Nevertheless.Leviathan.is.of.so.mighty.a.magnitude.all.his.proportions.are.so.stately.that.the.same.deficiency.which.in.the.sculptured.Jove.were.hideous.in.him.is.no.blemish.at.all.Nay.it.is.an.added.grandeur.A.nose.to.the.whale.would.have.been.impertinent.As.on.your.physiognomical.voyage.you.sail.round.his.vast.head.in.your.jollyboat.your.noble.conceptions.of.him.are.never.insulted.by.the.reflection.that.he.has.a.nose.to.be.pulled.A.pestilent.conceit.which.so.often.will.insist.upon.obtruding.even.when.beholding.the.mightiest.royal.beadle.on.his.throne.In.some.particulars.perhaps.the.most.imposing.physiognomical.view.to.be.had.of.the.Sperm.Whale.is.that.of.the.full.front.of.his.head.This.aspect.is.sublime.In.thought.a.fine.human.brow.is.like.the.East.when.troubled.with.the.morning.In.the.repose.of.the.pasture.the.curled.brow.of.the.bull.has.a.touch.of.the.grand.in.it.Pushing.heavy.cannon.up.mountain.defiles.the.elephants.brow.is.majestic.Human.or.animal.the.mystical.brow.is.as.that.great.golden.seal.affixed.by.the.German.emperors.to.their.decrees.It.signifies.God.done.this.day.by.my.hand.But.in.most.creatures.nay.in.man.himself.very.often.the.brow.is.but.a.mere.strip.of.alpine.land.lying.along.the.snow.line.Few.are.the.foreheads.which.like.Shakespeares.or.Melancthons.rise.so.high.and.descend.so.low.that.the.eyes.themselves.seem.clear.eternal.tideless.mountain.lakes.and.all.above.them.in.the.foreheads.wrinkles.you.seem.to.track.the.antlered.thoughts.descending.there.to.drink.as.the.Highland.hunters.track.the.snow.prints.of.the.deer.But.in.the.great.Sperm.Whale.this.high.and.mighty.godlike.dignity.inherent.in.the.brow.is.so.immensely.amplified.that.gazing.on.it.in.that.full.front.view.you.feel.the.Deity.and.the.dread.powers.more.forcibly.than.in.beholding.any.other.object.in.living.nature.For.you.see.no.one.point.precisely.not.one.distinct.feature.is.revealed.no.nose.eyes.ears.or.mouth.no.face.he.has.none.proper.nothing.but.that.one.broad.firmament.of.a.forehead.pleated.with.riddles.dumbly.lowering.with.the.doom.of.boats.and.ships.and.men.Nor.in.profile.does.this.wondrous.brow.diminish.though.that.way.viewed.its.grandeur.does.not.domineer.upon.you.so.In.profile.you.plainly.perceive.that.horizontal.semicrescentic.depression.in.the.foreheads.middle.which.in.man.is.Lavaters.mark.of.genius.But.how.Genius.in.the.Sperm.Whale.Has.the.Sperm.Whale.ever.written.a.book.spoken.a.speech.No.his.great.genius.is.declared.in.his.doing.nothing.particular.to.prove.it.It.is.moreover.declared.in.his.pyramidical.silence.And.this.reminds.me.that.had.the.great.Sperm.Whale.been.known.to.the.young.Orient.World.he.would.have.been.deified.by.their.childmagian.thoughts.They.deified.the.crocodile.of.the.Nile.because.the.crocodile.is.tongueless.and.the.Sperm.Whale.has.no.tongue.or.at.least.it.is.so.exceedingly.small.as.to.be.incapable.of.protrusion.If.hereafter.any.highly.cultured.poetical.nation.shall.lure.back.to.their.birthright.the.merry.Mayday.gods.of.old.and.livingly.enthrone.them.again.in.the.now.egotistical.sky.in.the.now.unhaunted.hill.then.be.sure.exalted.to.Joves.high.seat.the.great.Sperm.Whale.shall.lord.it.Champollion.deciphered.the.wrinkled.granite.hieroglyphics.But.there.is.no.Champollion.to.decipher.the.Egypt.of.every.mans.and.every.beings.face.Physiognomy.like.every.other.human.science.is.but.a.passing.fable.If.then.Sir.William.Jones.who.read.in.thirty.languages.could.not.read.the.simplest.peasants.face.in.its.profounder.and.more.subtle.meanings.how.may.unlettered.Ishmael.hope.to.read.the.awful.Chaldee.of.the.Sperm.Whales.brow.I.but.put.that.brow.before.you.Read.it.if.you.can.CHAPTER.80.The.Nut.If.the.Sperm.Whale.be.physiognomically.a.Sphinx.to.the.phrenologist.his.brain.seems.that.geometrical.circle.which.it.is.impossible.to.square.In.the.fullgrown.creature.the.skull.will.measure.at.least.twenty.feet.in.length.Unhinge.the.lower.jaw.and.the.side.view.of.this.skull.is.as.the.side.of.a.moderately.inclined.plane.resting.throughout.on.a.level.base.But.in.life.as.we.have.elsewhere.seen.this.inclined.plane.is.angularly.filled.up.and.almost.squared.by.the.enormous.superincumbent.mass.of.the.junk.and.sperm.At.the.high.end.the.skull.forms.a.crater.to.bed.that.part.of.the.mass.while.under.the.long.floor.of.this.crater.in.another.cavity.seldom.exceeding.ten.inches.in.length.and.as.many.in.depth.reposes.the.mere.handful.of.this.monsters.brain.The.brain.is.at.least.twenty.feet.from.his.apparent.forehead.in.life.it.is.hidden.away.behind.its.vast.outworks.like.the.innermost.citadel.within.the.amplified.fortifications.of.Quebec.So.like.a.choice.casket.is.it.secreted.in.him.that.I.have.known.some.whalemen.who.peremptorily.deny.that.the.Sperm.Whale.has.any.other.brain.than.that.palpable.semblance.of.one.formed.by.the.cubicyards.of.his.sperm.magazine.Lying.in.strange.folds.courses.and.convolutions.to.their.apprehensions.it.seems.more.in.keeping.with.the.idea.of.his.general.might.to.regard.that.mystic.part.of.him.as.the.seat.of.his.intelligence.It.is.plain.then.that.phrenologically.the.head.of.this.Leviathan.in.the.creatures.living.intact.state.is.an.entire.delusion.As.for.his.true.brain.you.can.then.see.no.indications.of.it.nor.feel.any.The.whale.like.all.things.that.are.mighty.wears.a.false.brow.to.the.common.world.If.you.unload.his.skull.of.its.spermy.heaps.and.then.take.a.rear.view.of.its.rear.end.which.is.the.high.end.you.will.be.struck.by.its.resemblance.to.the.human.skull.beheld.in.the.same.situation.and.from.the.same.point.of.view.Indeed.place.this.reversed.skull.scaled.down.to.the.human.magnitude.among.a.plate.of.mens.skulls.and.you.would.involuntarily.confound.it.with.them.and.remarking.the.depressions.on.one.part.of.its.summit.in.phrenological.phrase.you.would.say.This.man.had.no.selfesteem.and.no.veneration.And.by.those.negations.considered.along.with.the.affirmative.fact.of.his.prodigious.bulk.and.power.you.can.best.form.to.yourself.the.truest.though.not.the.most.exhilarating.conception.of.what.the.most.exalted.potency.is.But.if.from.the.comparative.dimensions.of.the.whales.proper.brain.you.deem.it.incapable.of.being.adequately.charted.then.I.have.another.idea.for.you.If.you.attentively.regard.almost.any.quadrupeds.spine.you.will.be.struck.with.the.resemblance.of.its.vertebr.to.a.strung.necklace.of.dwarfed.skulls.all.bearing.rudimental.resemblance.to.the.skull.proper.It.is.a.German.conceit.that.the.vertebr.are.absolutely.undeveloped.skulls.But.the.curious.external.resemblance.I.take.it.the.Germans.were.not.the.first.men.to.perceive.A.foreign.friend.once.pointed.it.out.to.me.in.the.skeleton.of.a.foe.he.had.slain.and.with.the.vertebr.of.which.he.was.inlaying.in.a.sort.of.bassorelievo.the.beaked.prow.of.his.canoe.Now.I.consider.that.the.phrenologists.have.omitted.an.important.thing.in.not.pushing.their.investigations.from.the.cerebellum.through.the.spinal.canal.For.I.believe.that.much.of.a.mans.character.will.be.found.betokened.in.his.backbone.I.would.rather.feel.your.spine.than.your.skull.whoever.you.are.A.thin.joist.of.a.spine.never.yet.upheld.a.full.and.noble.soul.I.rejoice.in.my.spine.as.in.the.firm.audacious.staff.of.that.flag.which.I.fling.half.out.to.the.world.Apply.this.spinal.branch.of.phrenology.to.the.Sperm.Whale.His.cranial.cavity.is.continuous.with.the.first.neckvertebra.and.in.that.vertebra.the.bottom.of.the.spinal.canal.will.measure.ten.inches.across.being.eight.in.height.and.of.a.triangular.figure.with.the.base.downwards.As.it.passes.through.the.remaining.vertebr.the.canal.tapers.in.size.but.for.a.considerable.distance.remains.of.large.capacity.Now.of.course.this.canal.is.filled.with.much.the.same.strangely.fibrous.substance.the.spinal.cord.as.the.brain.and.directly.communicates.with.the.brain.And.what.is.still.more.for.many.feet.after.emerging.from.the.brains.cavity.the.spinal.cord.remains.of.an.undecreasing.girth.almost.equal.to.that.of.the.brain.Under.all.these.circumstances.would.it.be.unreasonable.to.survey.and.map.out.the.whales.spine.phrenologically.For.viewed.in.this.light.the.wonderful.comparative.smallness.of.his.brain.proper.is.more.than.compensated.by.the.wonderful.comparative.magnitude.of.his.spinal.cord.But.leaving.this.hint.to.operate.as.it.may.with.the.phrenologists.I.would.merely.assume.the.spinal.theory.for.a.moment.in.reference.to.the.Sperm.Whales.hump.This.august.hump.if.I.mistake.not.rises.over.one.of.the.larger.vertebr.and.is.therefore.in.some.sort.the.outer.convex.mould.of.it.From.its.relative.situation.then.I.should.call.this.high.hump.the.organ.of.firmness.or.indomitableness.in.the.Sperm.Whale.And.that.the.great.monster.is.indomitable.you.will.yet.have.reason.to.know.CHAPTER.81.The.Pequod.Meets.The.Virgin.The.predestinated.day.arrived.and.we.duly.met.the.ship.Jungfrau.Derick.De.Deer.master.of.Bremen.At.one.time.the.greatest.whaling.people.in.the.world.the.Dutch.and.Germans.are.now.among.the.least.but.here.and.there.at.very.wide.intervals.of.latitude.and.longitude.you.still.occasionally.meet.with.their.flag.in.the.Pacific.For.some.reason.the.Jungfrau.seemed.quite.eager.to.pay.her.respects.While.yet.some.distance.from.the.Pequod.she.rounded.to.and.dropping.a.boat.her.captain.was.impelled.towards.us.impatiently.standing.in.the.bows.instead.of.the.stern.What.has.he.in.his.hand.there.cried.Starbuck.pointing.to.something.wavingly.held.by.the.German.Impossible.a.lampfeeder.Not.that.said.Stubb.no.no.its.a.coffeepot.Mr.Starbuck.hes.coming.off.to.make.us.our.coffee.is.the.Yarman.dont.you.see.that.big.tin.can.there.alongside.of.him.thats.his.boiling.water.Oh.hes.all.right.is.the.Yarman.Go.along.with.you.cried.Flask.its.a.lampfeeder.and.an.oilcan.Hes.out.of.oil.and.has.come.abegging.However.curious.it.may.seem.for.an.oilship.to.be.borrowing.oil.on.the.whaleground.and.however.much.it.may.invertedly.contradict.the.old.proverb.about.carrying.coals.to.Newcastle.yet.sometimes.such.a.thing.really.happens.and.in.the.present.case.Captain.Derick.De.Deer.did.indubitably.conduct.a.lampfeeder.as.Flask.did.declare.As.he.mounted.the.deck.Ahab.abruptly.accosted.him.without.at.all.heeding.what.he.had.in.his.hand.but.in.his.broken.lingo.the.German.soon.evinced.his.complete.ignorance.of.the.White.Whale.immediately.turning.the.conversation.to.his.lampfeeder.and.oil.can.with.some.remarks.touching.his.having.to.turn.into.his.hammock.at.night.in.profound.darkness.his.last.drop.of.Bremen.oil.being.gone.and.not.a.single.flyingfish.yet.captured.to.supply.the.deficiency.concluding.by.hinting.that.his.ship.was.indeed.what.in.the.Fishery.is.technically.called.a.clean.one.that.is.an.empty.one.well.deserving.the.name.of.Jungfrau.or.the.Virgin.His.necessities.supplied.Derick.departed.but.he.had.not.gained.his.ships.side.when.whales.were.almost.simultaneously.raised.from.the.mastheads.of.both.vessels.and.so.eager.for.the.chase.was.Derick.that.without.pausing.to.put.his.oilcan.and.lampfeeder.aboard.he.slewed.round.his.boat.and.made.after.the.leviathan.lampfeeders.Now.the.game.having.risen.to.leeward.he.and.the.other.three.German.boats.that.soon.followed.him.had.considerably.the.start.of.the.Pequods.keels.There.were.eight.whales.an.average.pod.Aware.of.their.danger.they.were.going.all.abreast.with.great.speed.straight.before.the.wind.rubbing.their.flanks.as.closely.as.so.many.spans.of.horses.in.harness.They.left.a.great.wide.wake.as.though.continually.unrolling.a.great.wide.parchment.upon.the.sea.Full.in.this.rapid.wake.and.many.fathoms.in.the.rear.swam.a.huge.humped.old.bull.which.by.his.comparatively.slow.progress.as.well.as.by.the.unusual.yellowish.incrustations.overgrowing.him.seemed.afflicted.with.the.jaundice.or.some.other.infirmity.Whether.this.whale.belonged.to.the.pod.in.advance.seemed.questionable.for.it.is.not.customary.for.such.venerable.leviathans.to.be.at.all.social.Nevertheless.he.stuck.to.their.wake.though.indeed.their.back.water.must.have.retarded.him.because.the.whitebone.or.swell.at.his.broad.muzzle.was.a.dashed.one.like.the.swell.formed.when.two.hostile.currents.meet.His.spout.was.short.slow.and.laborious.coming.forth.with.a.choking.sort.of.gush.and.spending.itself.in.torn.shreds.followed.by.strange.subterranean.commotions.in.him.which.seemed.to.have.egress.at.his.other.buried.extremity.causing.the.waters.behind.him.to.upbubble.Whos.got.some.paregoric.said.Stubb.he.has.the.stomachache.Im.afraid.Lord.think.of.having.half.an.acre.of.stomachache.Adverse.winds.are.holding.mad.Christmas.in.him.boys.Its.the.first.foul.wind.I.ever.knew.to.blow.from.astern.but.look.did.ever.whale.yaw.so.before.it.must.be.hes.lost.his.tiller.As.an.overladen.Indiaman.bearing.down.the.Hindostan.coast.with.a.deck.load.of.frightened.horses.careens.buries.rolls.and.wallows.on.her.way.so.did.this.old.whale.heave.his.aged.bulk.and.now.and.then.partly.turning.over.on.his.cumbrous.ribends.expose.the.cause.of.his.devious.wake.in.the.unnatural.stump.of.his.starboard.fin.Whether.he.had.lost.that.fin.in.battle.or.had.been.born.without.it.it.were.hard.to.say.Only.wait.a.bit.old.chap.and.Ill.give.ye.a.sling.for.that.wounded.arm.cried.cruel.Flask.pointing.to.the.whaleline.near.him.Mind.he.dont.sling.thee.with.it.cried.Starbuck.Give.way.or.the.German.will.have.him.With.one.intent.all.the.combined.rival.boats.were.pointed.for.this.one.fish.because.not.only.was.he.the.largest.and.therefore.the.most.valuable.whale.but.he.was.nearest.to.them.and.the.other.whales.were.going.with.such.great.velocity.moreover.as.almost.to.defy.pursuit.for.the.time.At.this.juncture.the.Pequods.keels.had.shot.by.the.three.German.boats.last.lowered.but.from.the.great.start.he.had.had.Dericks.boat.still.led.the.chase.though.every.moment.neared.by.his.foreign.rivals.The.only.thing.they.feared.was.that.from.being.already.so.nigh.to.his.mark.he.would.be.enabled.to.dart.his.iron.before.they.could.completely.overtake.and.pass.him.As.for.Derick.he.seemed.quite.confident.that.this.would.be.the.case.and.occasionally.with.a.deriding.gesture.shook.his.lampfeeder.at.the.other.boats.The.ungracious.and.ungrateful.dog.cried.Starbuck.he.mocks.and.dares.me.with.the.very.poorbox.I.filled.for.him.not.five.minutes.ago.then.in.his.old.intense.whisper.Give.way.greyhounds.Dog.to.it.I.tell.ye.what.it.is.men.cried.Stubb.to.his.crew.its.against.my.religion.to.get.mad.but.Id.like.to.eat.that.villainous.Yarman.Pull.wont.ye.Are.ye.going.to.let.that.rascal.beat.ye.Do.ye.love.brandy.A.hogshead.of.brandy.then.to.the.best.man.Come.why.dont.some.of.ye.burst.a.bloodvessel.Whos.that.been.dropping.an.anchor.overboard.we.dont.budge.an.inch.were.becalmed.Halloo.heres.grass.growing.in.the.boats.bottom.and.by.the.Lord.the.mast.theres.budding.This.wont.do.boys.Look.at.that.Yarman.The.short.and.long.of.it.is.men.will.ye.spit.fire.or.not.Oh.see.the.suds.he.makes.cried.Flask.dancing.up.and.down.What.a.hump.Oh.do.pile.on.the.beef.lays.like.a.log.Oh.my.lads.do.spring.slapjacks.and.quahogs.for.supper.you.know.my.lads.baked.clams.and.muffins.oh.do.do.spring.hes.a.hundred.barreller.dont.lose.him.now.dont.oh.dont.see.that.Yarman.Oh.wont.ye.pull.for.your.duff.my.lads.such.a.sog.such.a.sogger.Dont.ye.love.sperm.There.goes.three.thousand.dollars.men.a.bank.a.whole.bank.The.bank.of.England.Oh.do.do.do.Whats.that.Yarman.about.now.At.this.moment.Derick.was.in.the.act.of.pitching.his.lampfeeder.at.the.advancing.boats.and.also.his.oilcan.perhaps.with.the.double.view.of.retarding.his.rivals.way.and.at.the.same.time.economically.accelerating.his.own.by.the.momentary.impetus.of.the.backward.toss.The.unmannerly.Dutch.dogger.cried.Stubb.Pull.now.men.like.fifty.thousand.lineofbattleship.loads.of.redhaired.devils.What.dye.say.Tashtego.are.you.the.man.to.snap.your.spine.in.twoandtwenty.pieces.for.the.honor.of.old.Gayhead.What.dye.say.I.say.pull.like.goddam.cried.the.Indian.Fiercely.but.evenly.incited.by.the.taunts.of.the.German.the.Pequods.three.boats.now.began.ranging.almost.abreast.and.so.disposed.momentarily.neared.him.In.that.fine.loose.chivalrous.attitude.of.the.headsman.when.drawing.near.to.his.prey.the.three.mates.stood.up.proudly.occasionally.backing.the.after.oarsman.with.an.exhilarating.cry.of.There.she.slides.now.Hurrah.for.the.whiteash.breeze.Down.with.the.Yarman.Sail.over.him.But.so.decided.an.original.start.had.Derick.had.that.spite.of.all.their.gallantry.he.would.have.proved.the.victor.in.this.race.had.not.a.righteous.judgment.descended.upon.him.in.a.crab.which.caught.the.blade.of.his.midship.oarsman.While.this.clumsy.lubber.was.striving.to.free.his.whiteash.and.while.in.consequence.Dericks.boat.was.nigh.to.capsizing.and.he.thundering.away.at.his.men.in.a.mighty.rage.that.was.a.good.time.for.Starbuck.Stubb.and.Flask.With.a.shout.they.took.a.mortal.start.forwards.and.slantingly.ranged.up.on.the.Germans.quarter.An.instant.more.and.all.four.boats.were.diagonically.in.the.whales.immediate.wake.while.stretching.from.them.on.both.sides.was.the.foaming.swell.that.he.made.It.was.a.terrific.most.pitiable.and.maddening.sight.The.whale.was.now.going.head.out.and.sending.his.spout.before.him.in.a.continual.tormented.jet.while.his.one.poor.fin.beat.his.side.in.an.agony.of.fright.Now.to.this.hand.now.to.that.he.yawed.in.his.faltering.flight.and.still.at.every.billow.that.he.broke.he.spasmodically.sank.in.the.sea.or.sideways.rolled.towards.the.sky.his.one.beating.fin.So.have.I.seen.a.bird.with.clipped.wing.making.affrighted.broken.circles.in.the.air.vainly.striving.to.escape.the.piratical.hawks.But.the.bird.has.a.voice.and.with.plaintive.cries.will.make.known.her.fear.but.the.fear.of.this.vast.dumb.brute.of.the.sea.was.chained.up.and.enchanted.in.him.he.had.no.voice.save.that.choking.respiration.through.his.spiracle.and.this.made.the.sight.of.him.unspeakably.pitiable.while.still.in.his.amazing.bulk.portcullis.jaw.and.omnipotent.tail.there.was.enough.to.appal.the.stoutest.man.who.so.pitied.Seeing.now.that.but.a.very.few.moments.more.would.give.the.Pequods.boats.the.advantage.and.rather.than.be.thus.foiled.of.his.game.Derick.chose.to.hazard.what.to.him.must.have.seemed.a.most.unusually.long.dart.ere.the.last.chance.would.for.ever.escape.But.no.sooner.did.his.harpooneer.stand.up.for.the.stroke.than.all.three.tigers.Queequeg.Tashtego.Daggoo.instinctively.sprang.to.their.feet.and.standing.in.a.diagonal.row.simultaneously.pointed.their.barbs.and.darted.over.the.head.of.the.German.harpooneer.their.three.Nantucket.irons.entered.the.whale.Blinding.vapors.of.foam.and.whitefire.The.three.boats.in.the.first.fury.of.the.whales.headlong.rush.bumped.the.Germans.aside.with.such.force.that.both.Derick.and.his.baffled.harpooneer.were.spilled.out.and.sailed.over.by.the.three.flying.keels.Dont.be.afraid.my.butterboxes.cried.Stubb.casting.a.passing.glance.upon.them.as.he.shot.by.yell.be.picked.up.presently.all.right.I.saw.some.sharks.astern.St.Bernards.dogs.you.know.relieve.distressed.travellers.Hurrah.this.is.the.way.to.sail.now.Every.keel.a.sunbeam.Hurrah.Here.we.go.like.three.tin.kettles.at.the.tail.of.a.mad.cougar.This.puts.me.in.mind.of.fastening.to.an.elephant.in.a.tilbury.on.a.plain.makes.the.wheelspokes.fly.boys.when.you.fasten.to.him.that.way.and.theres.danger.of.being.pitched.out.too.when.you.strike.a.hill.Hurrah.this.is.the.way.a.fellow.feels.when.hes.going.to.Davy.Jones.all.a.rush.down.an.endless.inclined.plane.Hurrah.this.whale.carries.the.everlasting.mail.But.the.monsters.run.was.a.brief.one.Giving.a.sudden.gasp.he.tumultuously.sounded.With.a.grating.rush.the.three.lines.flew.round.the.loggerheads.with.such.a.force.as.to.gouge.deep.grooves.in.them.while.so.fearful.were.the.harpooneers.that.this.rapid.sounding.would.soon.exhaust.the.lines.that.using.all.their.dexterous.might.they.caught.repeated.smoking.turns.with.the.rope.to.hold.on.till.at.last.owing.to.the.perpendicular.strain.from.the.leadlined.chocks.of.the.boats.whence.the.three.ropes.went.straight.down.into.the.blue.the.gunwales.of.the.bows.were.almost.even.with.the.water.while.the.three.sterns.tilted.high.in.the.air.And.the.whale.soon.ceasing.to.sound.for.some.time.they.remained.in.that.attitude.fearful.of.expending.more.line.though.the.position.was.a.little.ticklish.But.though.boats.have.been.taken.down.and.lost.in.this.way.yet.it.is.this.holding.on.as.it.is.called.this.hooking.up.by.the.sharp.barbs.of.his.live.flesh.from.the.back.this.it.is.that.often.torments.the.Leviathan.into.soon.rising.again.to.meet.the.sharp.lance.of.his.foes.Yet.not.to.speak.of.the.peril.of.the.thing.it.is.to.be.doubted.whether.this.course.is.always.the.best.for.it.is.but.reasonable.to.presume.that.the.longer.the.stricken.whale.stays.under.water.the.more.he.is.exhausted.Because.owing.to.the.enormous.surface.of.him.in.a.full.grown.sperm.whale.something.less.than.2000.square.feet.the.pressure.of.the.water.is.immense.We.all.know.what.an.astonishing.atmospheric.weight.we.ourselves.stand.up.under.even.here.aboveground.in.the.air.how.vast.then.the.burden.of.a.whale.bearing.on.his.back.a.column.of.two.hundred.fathoms.of.ocean.It.must.at.least.equal.the.weight.of.fifty.atmospheres.One.whaleman.has.estimated.it.at.the.weight.of.twenty.lineofbattle.ships.with.all.their.guns.and.stores.and.men.on.board.As.the.three.boats.lay.there.on.that.gently.rolling.sea.gazing.down.into.its.eternal.blue.noon.and.as.not.a.single.groan.or.cry.of.any.sort.nay.not.so.much.as.a.ripple.or.a.bubble.came.up.from.its.depths.what.landsman.would.have.thought.that.beneath.all.that.silence.and.placidity.the.utmost.monster.of.the.seas.was.writhing.and.wrenching.in.agony.Not.eight.inches.of.perpendicular.rope.were.visible.at.the.bows.Seems.it.credible.that.by.three.such.thin.threads.the.great.Leviathan.was.suspended.like.the.big.weight.to.an.eight.day.clock.Suspended.and.to.what.To.three.bits.of.board.Is.this.the.creature.of.whom.it.was.once.so.triumphantly.said.Canst.thou.fill.his.skin.with.barbed.irons.or.his.head.with.fishspears.The.sword.of.him.that.layeth.at.him.cannot.hold.the.spear.the.dart.nor.the.habergeon.he.esteemeth.iron.as.straw.the.arrow.cannot.make.him.flee.darts.are.counted.as.stubble.he.laugheth.at.the.shaking.of.a.spear.This.the.creature.this.he.Oh.that.unfulfilments.should.follow.the.prophets.For.with.the.strength.of.a.thousand.thighs.in.his.tail.Leviathan.had.run.his.head.under.the.mountains.of.the.sea.to.hide.him.from.the.Pequods.fishspears.In.that.sloping.afternoon.sunlight.the.shadows.that.the.three.boats.sent.down.beneath.the.surface.must.have.been.long.enough.and.broad.enough.to.shade.half.Xerxes.army.Who.can.tell.how.appalling.to.the.wounded.whale.must.have.been.such.huge.phantoms.flitting.over.his.head.Stand.by.men.he.stirs.cried.Starbuck.as.the.three.lines.suddenly.vibrated.in.the.water.distinctly.conducting.upwards.to.them.as.by.magnetic.wires.the.life.and.death.throbs.of.the.whale.so.that.every.oarsman.felt.them.in.his.seat.The.next.moment.relieved.in.great.part.from.the.downward.strain.at.the.bows.the.boats.gave.a.sudden.bounce.upwards.as.a.small.icefield.will.when.a.dense.herd.of.white.bears.are.scared.from.it.into.the.sea.Haul.in.Haul.in.cried.Starbuck.again.hes.rising.The.lines.of.which.hardly.an.instant.before.not.one.hands.breadth.could.have.been.gained.were.now.in.long.quick.coils.flung.back.all.dripping.into.the.boats.and.soon.the.whale.broke.water.within.two.ships.lengths.of.the.hunters.His.motions.plainly.denoted.his.extreme.exhaustion.In.most.land.animals.there.are.certain.valves.or.floodgates.in.many.of.their.veins.whereby.when.wounded.the.blood.is.in.some.degree.at.least.instantly.shut.off.in.certain.directions.Not.so.with.the.whale.one.of.whose.peculiarities.it.is.to.have.an.entire.nonvalvular.structure.of.the.bloodvessels.so.that.when.pierced.even.by.so.small.a.point.as.a.harpoon.a.deadly.drain.is.at.once.begun.upon.his.whole.arterial.system.and.when.this.is.heightened.by.the.extraordinary.pressure.of.water.at.a.great.distance.below.the.surface.his.life.may.be.said.to.pour.from.him.in.incessant.streams.Yet.so.vast.is.the.quantity.of.blood.in.him.and.so.distant.and.numerous.its.interior.fountains.that.he.will.keep.thus.bleeding.and.bleeding.for.a.considerable.period.even.as.in.a.drought.a.river.will.flow.whose.source.is.in.the.wellsprings.of.faroff.and.undiscernible.hills.Even.now.when.the.boats.pulled.upon.this.whale.and.perilously.drew.over.his.swaying.flukes.and.the.lances.were.darted.into.him.they.were.followed.by.steady.jets.from.the.new.made.wound.which.kept.continually.playing.while.the.natural.spouthole.in.his.head.was.only.at.intervals.however.rapid.sending.its.affrighted.moisture.into.the.air.From.this.last.vent.no.blood.yet.came.because.no.vital.part.of.him.had.thus.far.been.struck.His.life.as.they.significantly.call.it.was.untouched.As.the.boats.now.more.closely.surrounded.him.the.whole.upper.part.of.his.form.with.much.of.it.that.is.ordinarily.submerged.was.plainly.revealed.His.eyes.or.rather.the.places.where.his.eyes.had.been.were.beheld.As.strange.misgrown.masses.gather.in.the.knotholes.of.the.noblest.oaks.when.prostrate.so.from.the.points.which.the.whales.eyes.had.once.occupied.now.protruded.blind.bulbs.horribly.pitiable.to.see.But.pity.there.was.none.For.all.his.old.age.and.his.one.arm.and.his.blind.eyes.he.must.die.the.death.and.be.murdered.in.order.to.light.the.gay.bridals.and.other.merrymakings.of.men.and.also.to.illuminate.the.solemn.churches.that.preach.unconditional.inoffensiveness.by.all.to.all.Still.rolling.in.his.blood.at.last.he.partially.disclosed.a.strangely.discoloured.bunch.or.protuberance.the.size.of.a.bushel.low.down.on.the.flank.A.nice.spot.cried.Flask.just.let.me.prick.him.there.once.Avast.cried.Starbuck.theres.no.need.of.that.But.humane.Starbuck.was.too.late.At.the.instant.of.the.dart.an.ulcerous.jet.shot.from.this.cruel.wound.and.goaded.by.it.into.more.than.sufferable.anguish.the.whale.now.spouting.thick.blood.with.swift.fury.blindly.darted.at.the.craft.bespattering.them.and.their.glorying.crews.all.over.with.showers.of.gore.capsizing.Flasks.boat.and.marring.the.bows.It.was.his.death.stroke.For.by.this.time.so.spent.was.he.by.loss.of.blood.that.he.helplessly.rolled.away.from.the.wreck.he.had.made.lay.panting.on.his.side.impotently.flapped.with.his.stumped.fin.then.over.and.over.slowly.revolved.like.a.waning.world.turned.up.the.white.secrets.of.his.belly.lay.like.a.log.and.died.It.was.most.piteous.that.last.expiring.spout.As.when.by.unseen.hands.the.water.is.gradually.drawn.off.from.some.mighty.fountain.and.with.halfstifled.melancholy.gurglings.the.spraycolumn.lowers.and.lowers.to.the.ground.so.the.last.long.dying.spout.of.the.whale.Soon.while.the.crews.were.awaiting.the.arrival.of.the.ship.the.body.showed.symptoms.of.sinking.with.all.its.treasures.unrifled.Immediately.by.Starbucks.orders.lines.were.secured.to.it.at.different.points.so.that.ere.long.every.boat.was.a.buoy.the.sunken.whale.being.suspended.a.few.inches.beneath.them.by.the.cords.By.very.heedful.management.when.the.ship.drew.nigh.the.whale.was.transferred.to.her.side.and.was.strongly.secured.there.by.the.stiffest.flukechains.for.it.was.plain.that.unless.artificially.upheld.the.body.would.at.once.sink.to.the.bottom.It.so.chanced.that.almost.upon.first.cutting.into.him.with.the.spade.the.entire.length.of.a.corroded.harpoon.was.found.imbedded.in.his.flesh.on.the.lower.part.of.the.bunch.before.described.But.as.the.stumps.of.harpoons.are.frequently.found.in.the.dead.bodies.of.captured.whales.with.the.flesh.perfectly.healed.around.them.and.no.prominence.of.any.kind.to.denote.their.place.therefore.there.must.needs.have.been.some.other.unknown.reason.in.the.present.case.fully.to.account.for.the.ulceration.alluded.to.But.still.more.curious.was.the.fact.of.a.lancehead.of.stone.being.found.in.him.not.far.from.the.buried.iron.the.flesh.perfectly.firm.about.it.Who.had.darted.that.stone.lance.And.when.It.might.have.been.darted.by.some.Nor.West.Indian.long.before.America.was.discovered.What.other.marvels.might.have.been.rummaged.out.of.this.monstrous.cabinet.there.is.no.telling.But.a.sudden.stop.was.put.to.further.discoveries.by.the.ships.being.unprecedentedly.dragged.over.sideways.to.the.sea.owing.to.the.bodys.immensely.increasing.tendency.to.sink.However.Starbuck.who.had.the.ordering.of.affairs.hung.on.to.it.to.the.last.hung.on.to.it.so.resolutely.indeed.that.when.at.length.the.ship.would.have.been.capsized.if.still.persisting.in.locking.arms.with.the.body.then.when.the.command.was.given.to.break.clear.from.it.such.was.the.immovable.strain.upon.the.timberheads.to.which.the.flukechains.and.cables.were.fastened.that.it.was.impossible.to.cast.them.off.Meantime.everything.in.the.Pequod.was.aslant.To.cross.to.the.other.side.of.the.deck.was.like.walking.up.the.steep.gabled.roof.of.a.house.The.ship.groaned.and.gasped.Many.of.the.ivory.inlayings.of.her.bulwarks.and.cabins.were.started.from.their.places.by.the.unnatural.dislocation.In.vain.handspikes.and.crows.were.brought.to.bear.upon.the.immovable.flukechains.to.pry.them.adrift.from.the.timberheads.and.so.low.had.the.whale.now.settled.that.the.submerged.ends.could.not.be.at.all.approached.while.every.moment.whole.tons.of.ponderosity.seemed.added.to.the.sinking.bulk.and.the.ship.seemed.on.the.point.of.going.over.Hold.on.hold.on.wont.ye.cried.Stubb.to.the.body.dont.be.in.such.a.devil.of.a.hurry.to.sink.By.thunder.men.we.must.do.something.or.go.for.it.No.use.prying.there.avast.I.say.with.your.handspikes.and.run.one.of.ye.for.a.prayer.book.and.a.penknife.and.cut.the.big.chains.Knife.Aye.aye.cried.Queequeg.and.seizing.the.carpenters.heavy.hatchet.he.leaned.out.of.a.porthole.and.steel.to.iron.began.slashing.at.the.largest.flukechains.But.a.few.strokes.full.of.sparks.were.given.when.the.exceeding.strain.effected.the.rest.With.a.terrific.snap.every.fastening.went.adrift.the.ship.righted.the.carcase.sank.Now.this.occasional.inevitable.sinking.of.the.recently.killed.Sperm.Whale.is.a.very.curious.thing.nor.has.any.fisherman.yet.adequately.accounted.for.it.Usually.the.dead.Sperm.Whale.floats.with.great.buoyancy.with.its.side.or.belly.considerably.elevated.above.the.surface.If.the.only.whales.that.thus.sank.were.old.meagre.and.brokenhearted.creatures.their.pads.of.lard.diminished.and.all.their.bones.heavy.and.rheumatic.then.you.might.with.some.reason.assert.that.this.sinking.is.caused.by.an.uncommon.specific.gravity.in.the.fish.so.sinking.consequent.upon.this.absence.of.buoyant.matter.in.him.But.it.is.not.so.For.young.whales.in.the.highest.health.and.swelling.with.noble.aspirations.prematurely.cut.off.in.the.warm.flush.and.May.of.life.with.all.their.panting.lard.about.them.even.these.brawny.buoyant.heroes.do.sometimes.sink.Be.it.said.however.that.the.Sperm.Whale.is.far.less.liable.to.this.accident.than.any.other.species.Where.one.of.that.sort.go.down.twenty.Right.Whales.do.This.difference.in.the.species.is.no.doubt.imputable.in.no.small.degree.to.the.greater.quantity.of.bone.in.the.Right.Whale.his.Venetian.blinds.alone.sometimes.weighing.more.than.a.ton.from.this.incumbrance.the.Sperm.Whale.is.wholly.free.But.there.are.instances.where.after.the.lapse.of.many.hours.or.several.days.the.sunken.whale.again.rises.more.buoyant.than.in.life.But.the.reason.of.this.is.obvious.Gases.are.generated.in.him.he.swells.to.a.prodigious.magnitude.becomes.a.sort.of.animal.balloon.A.lineofbattle.ship.could.hardly.keep.him.under.then.In.the.Shore.Whaling.on.soundings.among.the.Bays.of.New.Zealand.when.a.Right.Whale.gives.token.of.sinking.they.fasten.buoys.to.him.with.plenty.of.rope.so.that.when.the.body.has.gone.down.they.know.where.to.look.for.it.when.it.shall.have.ascended.again.It.was.not.long.after.the.sinking.of.the.body.that.a.cry.was.heard.from.the.Pequods.mastheads.announcing.that.the.Jungfrau.was.again.lowering.her.boats.though.the.only.spout.in.sight.was.that.of.a.FinBack.belonging.to.the.species.of.uncapturable.whales.because.of.its.incredible.power.of.swimming.Nevertheless.the.FinBacks.spout.is.so.similar.to.the.Sperm.Whales.that.by.unskilful.fishermen.it.is.often.mistaken.for.it.And.consequently.Derick.and.all.his.host.were.now.in.valiant.chase.of.this.unnearable.brute.The.Virgin.crowding.all.sail.made.after.her.four.young.keels.and.thus.they.all.disappeared.far.to.leeward.still.in.bold.hopeful.chase.Oh.many.are.the.FinBacks.and.many.are.the.Dericks.my.friend.CHAPTER.82.The.Honor.and.Glory.of.Whaling.There.are.some.enterprises.in.which.a.careful.disorderliness.is.the.true.method.The.more.I.dive.into.this.matter.of.whaling.and.push.my.researches.up.to.the.very.springhead.of.it.so.much.the.more.am.I.impressed.with.its.great.honorableness.and.antiquity.and.especially.when.I.find.so.many.great.demigods.and.heroes.prophets.of.all.sorts.who.one.way.or.other.have.shed.distinction.upon.it.I.am.transported.with.the.reflection.that.I.myself.belong.though.but.subordinately.to.so.emblazoned.a.fraternity.The.gallant.Perseus.a.son.of.Jupiter.was.the.first.whaleman.and.to.the.eternal.honor.of.our.calling.be.it.said.that.the.first.whale.attacked.by.our.brotherhood.was.not.killed.with.any.sordid.intent.Those.were.the.knightly.days.of.our.profession.when.we.only.bore.arms.to.succor.the.distressed.and.not.to.fill.mens.lampfeeders.Every.one.knows.the.fine.story.of.Perseus.and.Andromeda.how.the.lovely.Andromeda.the.daughter.of.a.king.was.tied.to.a.rock.on.the.seacoast.and.as.Leviathan.was.in.the.very.act.of.carrying.her.off.Perseus.the.prince.of.whalemen.intrepidly.advancing.harpooned.the.monster.and.delivered.and.married.the.maid.It.was.an.admirable.artistic.exploit.rarely.achieved.by.the.best.harpooneers.of.the.present.day.inasmuch.as.this.Leviathan.was.slain.at.the.very.first.dart.And.let.no.man.doubt.this.Arkite.story.for.in.the.ancient.Joppa.now.Jaffa.on.the.Syrian.coast.in.one.of.the.Pagan.temples.there.stood.for.many.ages.the.vast.skeleton.of.a.whale.which.the.citys.legends.and.all.the.inhabitants.asserted.to.be.the.identical.bones.of.the.monster.that.Perseus.slew.When.the.Romans.took.Joppa.the.same.skeleton.was.carried.to.Italy.in.triumph.What.seems.most.singular.and.suggestively.important.in.this.story.is.this.it.was.from.Joppa.that.Jonah.set.sail.Akin.to.the.adventure.of.Perseus.and.Andromeda.indeed.by.some.supposed.to.be.indirectly.derived.from.it.is.that.famous.story.of.St.George.and.the.Dragon.which.dragon.I.maintain.to.have.been.a.whale.for.in.many.old.chronicles.whales.and.dragons.are.strangely.jumbled.together.and.often.stand.for.each.other.Thou.art.as.a.lion.of.the.waters.and.as.a.dragon.of.the.sea.saith.Ezekiel.hereby.plainly.meaning.a.whale.in.truth.some.versions.of.the.Bible.use.that.word.itself.Besides.it.would.much.subtract.from.the.glory.of.the.exploit.had.St.George.but.encountered.a.crawling.reptile.of.the.land.instead.of.doing.battle.with.the.great.monster.of.the.deep.Any.man.may.kill.a.snake.but.only.a.Perseus.a.St.George.a.Coffin.have.the.heart.in.them.to.march.boldly.up.to.a.whale.Let.not.the.modern.paintings.of.this.scene.mislead.us.for.though.the.creature.encountered.by.that.valiant.whaleman.of.old.is.vaguely.represented.of.a.griffinlike.shape.and.though.the.battle.is.depicted.on.land.and.the.saint.on.horseback.yet.considering.the.great.ignorance.of.those.times.when.the.true.form.of.the.whale.was.unknown.to.artists.and.considering.that.as.in.Perseus.case.St.Georges.whale.might.have.crawled.up.out.of.the.sea.on.the.beach.and.considering.that.the.animal.ridden.by.St.George.might.have.been.only.a.large.seal.or.seahorse.bearing.all.this.in.mind.it.will.not.appear.altogether.incompatible.with.the.sacred.legend.and.the.ancientest.draughts.of.the.scene.to.hold.this.socalled.dragon.no.other.than.the.great.Leviathan.himself.In.fact.placed.before.the.strict.and.piercing.truth.this.whole.story.will.fare.like.that.fish.flesh.and.fowl.idol.of.the.Philistines.Dagon.by.name.who.being.planted.before.the.ark.of.Israel.his.horses.head.and.both.the.palms.of.his.hands.fell.off.from.him.and.only.the.stump.or.fishy.part.of.him.remained.Thus.then.one.of.our.own.noble.stamp.even.a.whaleman.is.the.tutelary.guardian.of.England.and.by.good.rights.we.harpooneers.of.Nantucket.should.be.enrolled.in.the.most.noble.order.of.St.George.And.therefore.let.not.the.knights.of.that.honorable.company.none.of.whom.I.venture.to.say.have.ever.had.to.do.with.a.whale.like.their.great.patron.let.them.never.eye.a.Nantucketer.with.disdain.since.even.in.our.woollen.frocks.and.tarred.trowsers.we.are.much.better.entitled.to.St.Georges.decoration.than.they.Whether.to.admit.Hercules.among.us.or.not.concerning.this.I.long.remained.dubious.for.though.according.to.the.Greek.mythologies.that.antique.Crockett.and.Kit.Carson.that.brawny.doer.of.rejoicing.good.deeds.was.swallowed.down.and.thrown.up.by.a.whale.still.whether.that.strictly.makes.a.whaleman.of.him.that.might.be.mooted.It.nowhere.appears.that.he.ever.actually.harpooned.his.fish.unless.indeed.from.the.inside.Nevertheless.he.may.be.deemed.a.sort.of.involuntary.whaleman.at.any.rate.the.whale.caught.him.if.he.did.not.the.whale.I.claim.him.for.one.of.our.clan.But.by.the.best.contradictory.authorities.this.Grecian.story.of.Hercules.and.the.whale.is.considered.to.be.derived.from.the.still.more.ancient.Hebrew.story.of.Jonah.and.the.whale.and.vice.vers.certainly.they.are.very.similar.If.I.claim.the.demigod.then.why.not.the.prophet.Nor.do.heroes.saints.demigods.and.prophets.alone.comprise.the.whole.roll.of.our.order.Our.grand.master.is.still.to.be.named.for.like.royal.kings.of.old.times.we.find.the.head.waters.of.our.fraternity.in.nothing.short.of.the.great.gods.themselves.That.wondrous.oriental.story.is.now.to.be.rehearsed.from.the.Shaster.which.gives.us.the.dread.Vishnoo.one.of.the.three.persons.in.the.godhead.of.the.Hindoos.gives.us.this.divine.Vishnoo.himself.for.our.Lord.Vishnoo.who.by.the.first.of.his.ten.earthly.incarnations.has.for.ever.set.apart.and.sanctified.the.whale.When.Brahma.or.the.God.of.Gods.saith.the.Shaster.resolved.to.recreate.the.world.after.one.of.its.periodical.dissolutions.he.gave.birth.to.Vishnoo.to.preside.over.the.work.but.the.Vedas.or.mystical.books.whose.perusal.would.seem.to.have.been.indispensable.to.Vishnoo.before.beginning.the.creation.and.which.therefore.must.have.contained.something.in.the.shape.of.practical.hints.to.young.architects.these.Vedas.were.lying.at.the.bottom.of.the.waters.so.Vishnoo.became.incarnate.in.a.whale.and.sounding.down.in.him.to.the.uttermost.depths.rescued.the.sacred.volumes.Was.not.this.Vishnoo.a.whaleman.then.even.as.a.man.who.rides.a.horse.is.called.a.horseman.Perseus.St.George.Hercules.Jonah.and.Vishnoo.theres.a.memberroll.for.you.What.club.but.the.whalemans.can.head.off.like.that.CHAPTER.83.Jonah.Historically.Regarded.Reference.was.made.to.the.historical.story.of.Jonah.and.the.whale.in.the.preceding.chapter.Now.some.Nantucketers.rather.distrust.this.historical.story.of.Jonah.and.the.whale.But.then.there.were.some.sceptical.Greeks.and.Romans.who.standing.out.from.the.orthodox.pagans.of.their.times.equally.doubted.the.story.of.Hercules.and.the.whale.and.Arion.and.the.dolphin.and.yet.their.doubting.those.traditions.did.not.make.those.traditions.one.whit.the.less.facts.for.all.that.One.old.SagHarbor.whalemans.chief.reason.for.questioning.the.Hebrew.story.was.this.He.had.one.of.those.quaint.oldfashioned.Bibles.embellished.with.curious.unscientific.plates.one.of.which.represented.Jonahs.whale.with.two.spouts.in.his.head.a.peculiarity.only.true.with.respect.to.a.species.of.the.Leviathan.the.Right.Whale.and.the.varieties.of.that.order.concerning.which.the.fishermen.have.this.saying.A.penny.roll.would.choke.him.his.swallow.is.so.very.small.But.to.this.Bishop.Jebbs.anticipative.answer.is.ready.It.is.not.necessary.hints.the.Bishop.that.we.consider.Jonah.as.tombed.in.the.whales.belly.but.as.temporarily.lodged.in.some.part.of.his.mouth.And.this.seems.reasonable.enough.in.the.good.Bishop.For.truly.the.Right.Whales.mouth.would.accommodate.a.couple.of.whisttables.and.comfortably.seat.all.the.players.Possibly.too.Jonah.might.have.ensconced.himself.in.a.hollow.tooth.but.on.second.thoughts.the.Right.Whale.is.toothless.Another.reason.which.SagHarbor.he.went.by.that.name.urged.for.his.want.of.faith.in.this.matter.of.the.prophet.was.something.obscurely.in.reference.to.his.incarcerated.body.and.the.whales.gastric.juices.But.this.objection.likewise.falls.to.the.ground.because.a.German.exegetist.supposes.that.Jonah.must.have.taken.refuge.in.the.floating.body.of.a.dead.whale.even.as.the.French.soldiers.in.the.Russian.campaign.turned.their.dead.horses.into.tents.and.crawled.into.them.Besides.it.has.been.divined.by.other.continental.commentators.that.when.Jonah.was.thrown.overboard.from.the.Joppa.ship.he.straightway.effected.his.escape.to.another.vessel.near.by.some.vessel.with.a.whale.for.a.figurehead.and.I.would.add.possibly.called.The.Whale.as.some.craft.are.nowadays.christened.the.Shark.the.Gull.the.Eagle.Nor.have.there.been.wanting.learned.exegetists.who.have.opined.that.the.whale.mentioned.in.the.book.of.Jonah.merely.meant.a.lifepreserver.an.inflated.bag.of.wind.which.the.endangered.prophet.swam.to.and.so.was.saved.from.a.watery.doom.Poor.SagHarbor.therefore.seems.worsted.all.round.But.he.had.still.another.reason.for.his.want.of.faith.It.was.this.if.I.remember.right.Jonah.was.swallowed.by.the.whale.in.the.Mediterranean.Sea.and.after.three.days.he.was.vomited.up.somewhere.within.three.days.journey.of.Nineveh.a.city.on.the.Tigris.very.much.more.than.three.days.journey.across.from.the.nearest.point.of.the.Mediterranean.coast.How.is.that.But.was.there.no.other.way.for.the.whale.to.land.the.prophet.within.that.short.distance.of.Nineveh.Yes.He.might.have.carried.him.round.by.the.way.of.the.Cape.of.Good.Hope.But.not.to.speak.of.the.passage.through.the.whole.length.of.the.Mediterranean.and.another.passage.up.the.Persian.Gulf.and.Red.Sea.such.a.supposition.would.involve.the.complete.circumnavigation.of.all.Africa.in.three.days.not.to.speak.of.the.Tigris.waters.near.the.site.of.Nineveh.being.too.shallow.for.any.whale.to.swim.in.Besides.this.idea.of.Jonahs.weathering.the.Cape.of.Good.Hope.at.so.early.a.day.would.wrest.the.honor.of.the.discovery.of.that.great.headland.from.Bartholomew.Diaz.its.reputed.discoverer.and.so.make.modern.history.a.liar.But.all.these.foolish.arguments.of.old.SagHarbor.only.evinced.his.foolish.pride.of.reason.a.thing.still.more.reprehensible.in.him.seeing.that.he.had.but.little.learning.except.what.he.had.picked.up.from.the.sun.and.the.sea.I.say.it.only.shows.his.foolish.impious.pride.and.abominable.devilish.rebellion.against.the.reverend.clergy.For.by.a.Portuguese.Catholic.priest.this.very.idea.of.Jonahs.going.to.Nineveh.via.the.Cape.of.Good.Hope.was.advanced.as.a.signal.magnification.of.the.general.miracle.And.so.it.was.Besides.to.this.day.the.highly.enlightened.Turks.devoutly.believe.in.the.historical.story.of.Jonah.And.some.three.centuries.ago.an.English.traveller.in.old.Harriss.Voyages.speaks.of.a.Turkish.Mosque.built.in.honor.of.Jonah.in.which.Mosque.was.a.miraculous.lamp.that.burnt.without.any.oil.CHAPTER.84.Pitchpoling.To.make.them.run.easily.and.swiftly.the.axles.of.carriages.are.anointed.and.for.much.the.same.purpose.some.whalers.perform.an.analogous.operation.upon.their.boat.they.grease.the.bottom.Nor.is.it.to.be.doubted.that.as.such.a.procedure.can.do.no.harm.it.may.possibly.be.of.no.contemptible.advantage.considering.that.oil.and.water.are.hostile.that.oil.is.a.sliding.thing.and.that.the.object.in.view.is.to.make.the.boat.slide.bravely.Queequeg.believed.strongly.in.anointing.his.boat.and.one.morning.not.long.after.the.German.ship.Jungfrau.disappeared.took.more.than.customary.pains.in.that.occupation.crawling.under.its.bottom.where.it.hung.over.the.side.and.rubbing.in.the.unctuousness.as.though.diligently.seeking.to.insure.a.crop.of.hair.from.the.crafts.bald.keel.He.seemed.to.be.working.in.obedience.to.some.particular.presentiment.Nor.did.it.remain.unwarranted.by.the.event.Towards.noon.whales.were.raised.but.so.soon.as.the.ship.sailed.down.to.them.they.turned.and.fled.with.swift.precipitancy.a.disordered.flight.as.of.Cleopatras.barges.from.Actium.Nevertheless.the.boats.pursued.and.Stubbs.was.foremost.By.great.exertion.Tashtego.at.last.succeeded.in.planting.one.iron.but.the.stricken.whale.without.at.all.sounding.still.continued.his.horizontal.flight.with.added.fleetness.Such.unintermitted.strainings.upon.the.planted.iron.must.sooner.or.later.inevitably.extract.it.It.became.imperative.to.lance.the.flying.whale.or.be.content.to.lose.him.But.to.haul.the.boat.up.to.his.flank.was.impossible.he.swam.so.fast.and.furious.What.then.remained.Of.all.the.wondrous.devices.and.dexterities.the.sleights.of.hand.and.countless.subtleties.to.which.the.veteran.whaleman.is.so.often.forced.none.exceed.that.fine.manuvre.with.the.lance.called.pitchpoling.Small.sword.or.broad.sword.in.all.its.exercises.boasts.nothing.like.it.It.is.only.indispensable.with.an.inveterate.running.whale.its.grand.fact.and.feature.is.the.wonderful.distance.to.which.the.long.lance.is.accurately.darted.from.a.violently.rocking.jerking.boat.under.extreme.headway.Steel.and.wood.included.the.entire.spear.is.some.ten.or.twelve.feet.in.length.the.staff.is.much.slighter.than.that.of.the.harpoon.and.also.of.a.lighter.material.pine.It.is.furnished.with.a.small.rope.called.a.warp.of.considerable.length.by.which.it.can.be.hauled.back.to.the.hand.after.darting.But.before.going.further.it.is.important.to.mention.here.that.though.the.harpoon.may.be.pitchpoled.in.the.same.way.with.the.lance.yet.it.is.seldom.done.and.when.done.is.still.less.frequently.successful.on.account.of.the.greater.weight.and.inferior.length.of.the.harpoon.as.compared.with.the.lance.which.in.effect.become.serious.drawbacks.As.a.general.thing.therefore.you.must.first.get.fast.to.a.whale.before.any.pitchpoling.comes.into.play.Look.now.at.Stubb.a.man.who.from.his.humorous.deliberate.coolness.and.equanimity.in.the.direst.emergencies.was.specially.qualified.to.excel.in.pitchpoling.Look.at.him.he.stands.upright.in.the.tossed.bow.of.the.flying.boat.wrapt.in.fleecy.foam.the.towing.whale.is.forty.feet.ahead.Handling.the.long.lance.lightly.glancing.twice.or.thrice.along.its.length.to.see.if.it.be.exactly.straight.Stubb.whistlingly.gathers.up.the.coil.of.the.warp.in.one.hand.so.as.to.secure.its.free.end.in.his.grasp.leaving.the.rest.unobstructed.Then.holding.the.lance.full.before.his.waistbands.middle.he.levels.it.at.the.whale.when.covering.him.with.it.he.steadily.depresses.the.buttend.in.his.hand.thereby.elevating.the.point.till.the.weapon.stands.fairly.balanced.upon.his.palm.fifteen.feet.in.the.air.He.minds.you.somewhat.of.a.juggler.balancing.a.long.staff.on.his.chin.Next.moment.with.a.rapid.nameless.impulse.in.a.superb.lofty.arch.the.bright.steel.spans.the.foaming.distance.and.quivers.in.the.life.spot.of.the.whale.Instead.of.sparkling.water.he.now.spouts.red.blood.That.drove.the.spigot.out.of.him.cried.Stubb.Tis.Julys.immortal.Fourth.all.fountains.must.run.wine.today.Would.now.it.were.old.Orleans.whiskey.or.old.Ohio.or.unspeakable.old.Monongahela.Then.Tashtego.lad.Id.have.ye.hold.a.canakin.to.the.jet.and.wed.drink.round.it.Yea.verily.hearts.alive.wed.brew.choice.punch.in.the.spread.of.his.spouthole.there.and.from.that.live.punchbowl.quaff.the.living.stuff.Again.and.again.to.such.gamesome.talk.the.dexterous.dart.is.repeated.the.spear.returning.to.its.master.like.a.greyhound.held.in.skilful.leash.The.agonized.whale.goes.into.his.flurry.the.towline.is.slackened.and.the.pitchpoler.dropping.astern.folds.his.hands.and.mutely.watches.the.monster.die.CHAPTER.85.The.Fountain.That.for.six.thousand.years.and.no.one.knows.how.many.millions.of.ages.before.the.great.whales.should.have.been.spouting.all.over.the.sea.and.sprinkling.and.mistifying.the.gardens.of.the.deep.as.with.so.many.sprinkling.or.mistifying.pots.and.that.for.some.centuries.back.thousands.of.hunters.should.have.been.close.by.the.fountain.of.the.whale.watching.these.sprinklings.and.spoutings.that.all.this.should.be.and.yet.that.down.to.this.blessed.minute.fifteen.and.a.quarter.minutes.past.one.oclock.PM.of.this.sixteenth.day.of.December.AD.1851.it.should.still.remain.a.problem.whether.these.spoutings.are.after.all.really.water.or.nothing.but.vapor.this.is.surely.a.noteworthy.thing.Let.us.then.look.at.this.matter.along.with.some.interesting.items.contingent.Every.one.knows.that.by.the.peculiar.cunning.of.their.gills.the.finny.tribes.in.general.breathe.the.air.which.at.all.times.is.combined.with.the.element.in.which.they.swim.hence.a.herring.or.a.cod.might.live.a.century.and.never.once.raise.its.head.above.the.surface.But.owing.to.his.marked.internal.structure.which.gives.him.regular.lungs.like.a.human.beings.the.whale.can.only.live.by.inhaling.the.disengaged.air.in.the.open.atmosphere.Wherefore.the.necessity.for.his.periodical.visits.to.the.upper.world.But.he.cannot.in.any.degree.breathe.through.his.mouth.for.in.his.ordinary.attitude.the.Sperm.Whales.mouth.is.buried.at.least.eight.feet.beneath.the.surface.and.what.is.still.more.his.windpipe.has.no.connexion.with.his.mouth.No.he.breathes.through.his.spiracle.alone.and.this.is.on.the.top.of.his.head.If.I.say.that.in.any.creature.breathing.is.only.a.function.indispensable.to.vitality.inasmuch.as.it.withdraws.from.the.air.a.certain.element.which.being.subsequently.brought.into.contact.with.the.blood.imparts.to.the.blood.its.vivifying.principle.I.do.not.think.I.shall.err.though.I.may.possibly.use.some.superfluous.scientific.words.Assume.it.and.it.follows.that.if.all.the.blood.in.a.man.could.be.aerated.with.one.breath.he.might.then.seal.up.his.nostrils.and.not.fetch.another.for.a.considerable.time.That.is.to.say.he.would.then.live.without.breathing.Anomalous.as.it.may.seem.this.is.precisely.the.case.with.the.whale.who.systematically.lives.by.intervals.his.full.hour.and.more.when.at.the.bottom.without.drawing.a.single.breath.or.so.much.as.in.any.way.inhaling.a.particle.of.air.for.remember.he.has.no.gills.How.is.this.Between.his.ribs.and.on.each.side.of.his.spine.he.is.supplied.with.a.remarkable.involved.Cretan.labyrinth.of.vermicellilike.vessels.which.vessels.when.he.quits.the.surface.are.completely.distended.with.oxygenated.blood.So.that.for.an.hour.or.more.a.thousand.fathoms.in.the.sea.he.carries.a.surplus.stock.of.vitality.in.him.just.as.the.camel.crossing.the.waterless.desert.carries.a.surplus.supply.of.drink.for.future.use.in.its.four.supplementary.stomachs.The.anatomical.fact.of.this.labyrinth.is.indisputable.and.that.the.supposition.founded.upon.it.is.reasonable.and.true.seems.the.more.cogent.to.me.when.I.consider.the.otherwise.inexplicable.obstinacy.of.that.leviathan.in.having.his.spoutings.out.as.the.fishermen.phrase.it.This.is.what.I.mean.If.unmolested.upon.rising.to.the.surface.the.Sperm.Whale.will.continue.there.for.a.period.of.time.exactly.uniform.with.all.his.other.unmolested.risings.Say.he.stays.eleven.minutes.and.jets.seventy.times.that.is.respires.seventy.breaths.then.whenever.he.rises.again.he.will.be.sure.to.have.his.seventy.breaths.over.again.to.a.minute.Now.if.after.he.fetches.a.few.breaths.you.alarm.him.so.that.he.sounds.he.will.be.always.dodging.up.again.to.make.good.his.regular.allowance.of.air.And.not.till.those.seventy.breaths.are.told.will.he.finally.go.down.to.stay.out.his.full.term.below.Remark.however.that.in.different.individuals.these.rates.are.different.but.in.any.one.they.are.alike.Now.why.should.the.whale.thus.insist.upon.having.his.spoutings.out.unless.it.be.to.replenish.his.reservoir.of.air.ere.descending.for.good.How.obvious.is.it.too.that.this.necessity.for.the.whales.rising.exposes.him.to.all.the.fatal.hazards.of.the.chase.For.not.by.hook.or.by.net.could.this.vast.leviathan.be.caught.when.sailing.a.thousand.fathoms.beneath.the.sunlight.Not.so.much.thy.skill.then.O.hunter.as.the.great.necessities.that.strike.the.victory.to.thee.In.man.breathing.is.incessantly.going.on.one.breath.only.serving.for.two.or.three.pulsations.so.that.whatever.other.business.he.has.to.attend.to.waking.or.sleeping.breathe.he.must.or.die.he.will.But.the.Sperm.Whale.only.breathes.about.one.seventh.or.Sunday.of.his.time.It.has.been.said.that.the.whale.only.breathes.through.his.spouthole.if.it.could.truthfully.be.added.that.his.spouts.are.mixed.with.water.then.I.opine.we.should.be.furnished.with.the.reason.why.his.sense.of.smell.seems.obliterated.in.him.for.the.only.thing.about.him.that.at.all.answers.to.his.nose.is.that.identical.spouthole.and.being.so.clogged.with.two.elements.it.could.not.be.expected.to.have.the.power.of.smelling.But.owing.to.the.mystery.of.the.spout.whether.it.be.water.or.whether.it.be.vapor.no.absolute.certainty.can.as.yet.be.arrived.at.on.this.head.Sure.it.is.nevertheless.that.the.Sperm.Whale.has.no.proper.olfactories.But.what.does.he.want.of.them.No.roses.no.violets.no.Colognewater.in.the.sea.Furthermore.as.his.windpipe.solely.opens.into.the.tube.of.his.spouting.canal.and.as.that.long.canal.like.the.grand.Erie.Canal.is.furnished.with.a.sort.of.locks.that.open.and.shut.for.the.downward.retention.of.air.or.the.upward.exclusion.of.water.therefore.the.whale.has.no.voice.unless.you.insult.him.by.saying.that.when.he.so.strangely.rumbles.he.talks.through.his.nose.But.then.again.what.has.the.whale.to.say.Seldom.have.I.known.any.profound.being.that.had.anything.to.say.to.this.world.unless.forced.to.stammer.out.something.by.way.of.getting.a.living.Oh.happy.that.the.world.is.such.an.excellent.listener.Now.the.spouting.canal.of.the.Sperm.Whale.chiefly.intended.as.it.is.for.the.conveyance.of.air.and.for.several.feet.laid.along.horizontally.just.beneath.the.upper.surface.of.his.head.and.a.little.to.one.side.this.curious.canal.is.very.much.like.a.gaspipe.laid.down.in.a.city.on.one.side.of.a.street.But.the.question.returns.whether.this.gaspipe.is.also.a.waterpipe.in.other.words.whether.the.spout.of.the.Sperm.Whale.is.the.mere.vapor.of.the.exhaled.breath.or.whether.that.exhaled.breath.is.mixed.with.water.taken.in.at.the.mouth.and.discharged.through.the.spiracle.It.is.certain.that.the.mouth.indirectly.communicates.with.the.spouting.canal.but.it.cannot.be.proved.that.this.is.for.the.purpose.of.discharging.water.through.the.spiracle.Because.the.greatest.necessity.for.so.doing.would.seem.to.be.when.in.feeding.he.accidentally.takes.in.water.But.the.Sperm.Whales.food.is.far.beneath.the.surface.and.there.he.cannot.spout.even.if.he.would.Besides.if.you.regard.him.very.closely.and.time.him.with.your.watch.you.will.find.that.when.unmolested.there.is.an.undeviating.rhyme.between.the.periods.of.his.jets.and.the.ordinary.periods.of.respiration.But.why.pester.one.with.all.this.reasoning.on.the.subject.Speak.out.You.have.seen.him.spout.then.declare.what.the.spout.is.can.you.not.tell.water.from.air.My.dear.sir.in.this.world.it.is.not.so.easy.to.settle.these.plain.things.I.have.ever.found.your.plain.things.the.knottiest.of.all.And.as.for.this.whale.spout.you.might.almost.stand.in.it.and.yet.be.undecided.as.to.what.it.is.precisely.The.central.body.of.it.is.hidden.in.the.snowy.sparkling.mist.enveloping.it.and.how.can.you.certainly.tell.whether.any.water.falls.from.it.when.always.when.you.are.close.enough.to.a.whale.to.get.a.close.view.of.his.spout.he.is.in.a.prodigious.commotion.the.water.cascading.all.around.him.And.if.at.such.times.you.should.think.that.you.really.perceived.drops.of.moisture.in.the.spout.how.do.you.know.that.they.are.not.merely.condensed.from.its.vapor.or.how.do.you.know.that.they.are.not.those.identical.drops.superficially.lodged.in.the.spouthole.fissure.which.is.countersunk.into.the.summit.of.the.whales.head.For.even.when.tranquilly.swimming.through.the.midday.sea.in.a.calm.with.his.elevated.hump.sundried.as.a.dromedarys.in.the.desert.even.then.the.whale.always.carries.a.small.basin.of.water.on.his.head.as.under.a.blazing.sun.you.will.sometimes.see.a.cavity.in.a.rock.filled.up.with.rain.Nor.is.it.at.all.prudent.for.the.hunter.to.be.over.curious.touching.the.precise.nature.of.the.whale.spout.It.will.not.do.for.him.to.be.peering.into.it.and.putting.his.face.in.it.You.cannot.go.with.your.pitcher.to.this.fountain.and.fill.it.and.bring.it.away.For.even.when.coming.into.slight.contact.with.the.outer.vapory.shreds.of.the.jet.which.will.often.happen.your.skin.will.feverishly.smart.from.the.acridness.of.the.thing.so.touching.it.And.I.know.one.who.coming.into.still.closer.contact.with.the.spout.whether.with.some.scientific.object.in.view.or.otherwise.I.cannot.say.the.skin.peeled.off.from.his.cheek.and.arm.Wherefore.among.whalemen.the.spout.is.deemed.poisonous.they.try.to.evade.it.Another.thing.I.have.heard.it.said.and.I.do.not.much.doubt.it.that.if.the.jet.is.fairly.spouted.into.your.eyes.it.will.blind.you.The.wisest.thing.the.investigator.can.do.then.it.seems.to.me.is.to.let.this.deadly.spout.alone.Still.we.can.hypothesize.even.if.we.cannot.prove.and.establish.My.hypothesis.is.this.that.the.spout.is.nothing.but.mist.And.besides.other.reasons.to.this.conclusion.I.am.impelled.by.considerations.touching.the.great.inherent.dignity.and.sublimity.of.the.Sperm.Whale.I.account.him.no.common.shallow.being.inasmuch.as.it.is.an.undisputed.fact.that.he.is.never.found.on.soundings.or.near.shores.all.other.whales.sometimes.are.He.is.both.ponderous.and.profound.And.I.am.convinced.that.from.the.heads.of.all.ponderous.profound.beings.such.as.Plato.Pyrrho.the.Devil.Jupiter.Dante.and.so.on.there.always.goes.up.a.certain.semivisible.steam.while.in.the.act.of.thinking.deep.thoughts.While.composing.a.little.treatise.on.Eternity.I.had.the.curiosity.to.place.a.mirror.before.me.and.ere.long.saw.reflected.there.a.curious.involved.worming.and.undulation.in.the.atmosphere.over.my.head.The.invariable.moisture.of.my.hair.while.plunged.in.deep.thought.after.six.cups.of.hot.tea.in.my.thin.shingled.attic.of.an.August.noon.this.seems.an.additional.argument.for.the.above.supposition.And.how.nobly.it.raises.our.conceit.of.the.mighty.misty.monster.to.behold.him.solemnly.sailing.through.a.calm.tropical.sea.his.vast.mild.head.overhung.by.a.canopy.of.vapor.engendered.by.his.incommunicable.contemplations.and.that.vapor.as.you.will.sometimes.see.it.glorified.by.a.rainbow.as.if.Heaven.itself.had.put.its.seal.upon.his.thoughts.For.dye.see.rainbows.do.not.visit.the.clear.air.they.only.irradiate.vapor.And.so.through.all.the.thick.mists.of.the.dim.doubts.in.my.mind.divine.intuitions.now.and.then.shoot.enkindling.my.fog.with.a.heavenly.ray.And.for.this.I.thank.God.for.all.have.doubts.many.deny.but.doubts.or.denials.few.along.with.them.have.intuitions.Doubts.of.all.things.earthly.and.intuitions.of.some.things.heavenly.this.combination.makes.neither.believer.nor.infidel.but.makes.a.man.who.regards.them.both.with.equal.eye.CHAPTER.86.The.Tail.Other.poets.have.warbled.the.praises.of.the.soft.eye.of.the.antelope.and.the.lovely.plumage.of.the.bird.that.never.alights.less.celestial.I.celebrate.a.tail.Reckoning.the.largest.sized.Sperm.Whales.tail.to.begin.at.that.point.of.the.trunk.where.it.tapers.to.about.the.girth.of.a.man.it.comprises.upon.its.upper.surface.alone.an.area.of.at.least.fifty.square.feet.The.compact.round.body.of.its.root.expands.into.two.broad.firm.flat.palms.or.flukes.gradually.shoaling.away.to.less.than.an.inch.in.thickness.At.the.crotch.or.junction.these.flukes.slightly.overlap.then.sideways.recede.from.each.other.like.wings.leaving.a.wide.vacancy.between.In.no.living.thing.are.the.lines.of.beauty.more.exquisitely.defined.than.in.the.crescentic.borders.of.these.flukes.At.its.utmost.expansion.in.the.full.grown.whale.the.tail.will.considerably.exceed.twenty.feet.across.The.entire.member.seems.a.dense.webbed.bed.of.welded.sinews.but.cut.into.it.and.you.find.that.three.distinct.strata.compose.it.upper.middle.and.lower.The.fibres.in.the.upper.and.lower.layers.are.long.and.horizontal.those.of.the.middle.one.very.short.and.running.crosswise.between.the.outside.layers.This.triune.structure.as.much.as.anything.else.imparts.power.to.the.tail.To.the.student.of.old.Roman.walls.the.middle.layer.will.furnish.a.curious.parallel.to.the.thin.course.of.tiles.always.alternating.with.the.stone.in.those.wonderful.relics.of.the.antique.and.which.undoubtedly.contribute.so.much.to.the.great.strength.of.the.masonry.But.as.if.this.vast.local.power.in.the.tendinous.tail.were.not.enough.the.whole.bulk.of.the.leviathan.is.knit.over.with.a.warp.and.woof.of.muscular.fibres.and.filaments.which.passing.on.either.side.the.loins.and.running.down.into.the.flukes.insensibly.blend.with.them.and.largely.contribute.to.their.might.so.that.in.the.tail.the.confluent.measureless.force.of.the.whole.whale.seems.concentrated.to.a.point.Could.annihilation.occur.to.matter.this.were.the.thing.to.do.it.Nor.does.this.its.amazing.strength.at.all.tend.to.cripple.the.graceful.flexion.of.its.motions.where.infantileness.of.ease.undulates.through.a.Titanism.of.power.On.the.contrary.those.motions.derive.their.most.appalling.beauty.from.it.Real.strength.never.impairs.beauty.or.harmony.but.it.often.bestows.it.and.in.everything.imposingly.beautiful.strength.has.much.to.do.with.the.magic.Take.away.the.tied.tendons.that.all.over.seem.bursting.from.the.marble.in.the.carved.Hercules.and.its.charm.would.be.gone.As.devout.Eckerman.lifted.the.linen.sheet.from.the.naked.corpse.of.Goethe.he.was.overwhelmed.with.the.massive.chest.of.the.man.that.seemed.as.a.Roman.triumphal.arch.When.Angelo.paints.even.God.the.Father.in.human.form.mark.what.robustness.is.there.And.whatever.they.may.reveal.of.the.divine.love.in.the.Son.the.soft.curled.hermaphroditical.Italian.pictures.in.which.his.idea.has.been.most.successfully.embodied.these.pictures.so.destitute.as.they.are.of.all.brawniness.hint.nothing.of.any.power.but.the.mere.negative.feminine.one.of.submission.and.endurance.which.on.all.hands.it.is.conceded.form.the.peculiar.practical.virtues.of.his.teachings.Such.is.the.subtle.elasticity.of.the.organ.I.treat.of.that.whether.wielded.in.sport.or.in.earnest.or.in.anger.whatever.be.the.mood.it.be.in.its.flexions.are.invariably.marked.by.exceeding.grace.Therein.no.fairys.arm.can.transcend.it.Five.great.motions.are.peculiar.to.it.First.when.used.as.a.fin.for.progression.Second.when.used.as.a.mace.in.battle.Third.in.sweeping.Fourth.in.lobtailing.Fifth.in.peaking.flukes.First.Being.horizontal.in.its.position.the.Leviathans.tail.acts.in.a.different.manner.from.the.tails.of.all.other.sea.creatures.It.never.wriggles.In.man.or.fish.wriggling.is.a.sign.of.inferiority.To.the.whale.his.tail.is.the.sole.means.of.propulsion.Scrollwise.coiled.forwards.beneath.the.body.and.then.rapidly.sprung.backwards.it.is.this.which.gives.that.singular.darting.leaping.motion.to.the.monster.when.furiously.swimming.His.sidefins.only.serve.to.steer.by.Second.It.is.a.little.significant.that.while.one.sperm.whale.only.fights.another.sperm.whale.with.his.head.and.jaw.nevertheless.in.his.conflicts.with.man.he.chiefly.and.contemptuously.uses.his.tail.In.striking.at.a.boat.he.swiftly.curves.away.his.flukes.from.it.and.the.blow.is.only.inflicted.by.the.recoil.If.it.be.made.in.the.unobstructed.air.especially.if.it.descend.to.its.mark.the.stroke.is.then.simply.irresistible.No.ribs.of.man.or.boat.can.withstand.it.Your.only.salvation.lies.in.eluding.it.but.if.it.comes.sideways.through.the.opposing.water.then.partly.owing.to.the.light.buoyancy.of.the.whaleboat.and.the.elasticity.of.its.materials.a.cracked.rib.or.a.dashed.plank.or.two.a.sort.of.stitch.in.the.side.is.generally.the.most.serious.result.These.submerged.side.blows.are.so.often.received.in.the.fishery.that.they.are.accounted.mere.childs.play.Some.one.strips.off.a.frock.and.the.hole.is.stopped.Third.I.cannot.demonstrate.it.but.it.seems.to.me.that.in.the.whale.the.sense.of.touch.is.concentrated.in.the.tail.for.in.this.respect.there.is.a.delicacy.in.it.only.equalled.by.the.daintiness.of.the.elephants.trunk.This.delicacy.is.chiefly.evinced.in.the.action.of.sweeping.when.in.maidenly.gentleness.the.whale.with.a.certain.soft.slowness.moves.his.immense.flukes.from.side.to.side.upon.the.surface.of.the.sea.and.if.he.feel.but.a.sailors.whisker.woe.to.that.sailor.whiskers.and.all.What.tenderness.there.is.in.that.preliminary.touch.Had.this.tail.any.prehensile.power.I.should.straightway.bethink.me.of.Darmonodes.elephant.that.so.frequented.the.flowermarket.and.with.low.salutations.presented.nosegays.to.damsels.and.then.caressed.their.zones.On.more.accounts.than.one.a.pity.it.is.that.the.whale.does.not.possess.this.prehensile.virtue.in.his.tail.for.I.have.heard.of.yet.another.elephant.that.when.wounded.in.the.fight.curved.round.his.trunk.and.extracted.the.dart.Fourth.Stealing.unawares.upon.the.whale.in.the.fancied.security.of.the.middle.of.solitary.seas.you.find.him.unbent.from.the.vast.corpulence.of.his.dignity.and.kittenlike.he.plays.on.the.ocean.as.if.it.were.a.hearth.But.still.you.see.his.power.in.his.play.The.broad.palms.of.his.tail.are.flirted.high.into.the.air.then.smiting.the.surface.the.thunderous.concussion.resounds.for.miles.You.would.almost.think.a.great.gun.had.been.discharged.and.if.you.noticed.the.light.wreath.of.vapor.from.the.spiracle.at.his.other.extremity.you.would.think.that.that.was.the.smoke.from.the.touchhole.Fifth.As.in.the.ordinary.floating.posture.of.the.leviathan.the.flukes.lie.considerably.below.the.level.of.his.back.they.are.then.completely.out.of.sight.beneath.the.surface.but.when.he.is.about.to.plunge.into.the.deeps.his.entire.flukes.with.at.least.thirty.feet.of.his.body.are.tossed.erect.in.the.air.and.so.remain.vibrating.a.moment.till.they.downwards.shoot.out.of.view.Excepting.the.sublime.breach.somewhere.else.to.be.described.this.peaking.of.the.whales.flukes.is.perhaps.the.grandest.sight.to.be.seen.in.all.animated.nature.Out.of.the.bottomless.profundities.the.gigantic.tail.seems.spasmodically.snatching.at.the.highest.heaven.So.in.dreams.have.I.seen.majestic.Satan.thrusting.forth.his.tormented.colossal.claw.from.the.flame.Baltic.of.Hell.But.in.gazing.at.such.scenes.it.is.all.in.all.what.mood.you.are.in.if.in.the.Dantean.the.devils.will.occur.to.you.if.in.that.of.Isaiah.the.archangels.Standing.at.the.masthead.of.my.ship.during.a.sunrise.that.crimsoned.sky.and.sea.I.once.saw.a.large.herd.of.whales.in.the.east.all.heading.towards.the.sun.and.for.a.moment.vibrating.in.concert.with.peaked.flukes.As.it.seemed.to.me.at.the.time.such.a.grand.embodiment.of.adoration.of.the.gods.was.never.beheld.even.in.Persia.the.home.of.the.fire.worshippers.As.Ptolemy.Philopater.testified.of.the.African.elephant.I.then.testified.of.the.whale.pronouncing.him.the.most.devout.of.all.beings.For.according.to.King.Juba.the.military.elephants.of.antiquity.often.hailed.the.morning.with.their.trunks.uplifted.in.the.profoundest.silence.The.chance.comparison.in.this.chapter.between.the.whale.and.the.elephant.so.far.as.some.aspects.of.the.tail.of.the.one.and.the.trunk.of.the.other.are.concerned.should.not.tend.to.place.those.two.opposite.organs.on.an.equality.much.less.the.creatures.to.which.they.respectively.belong.For.as.the.mightiest.elephant.is.but.a.terrier.to.Leviathan.so.compared.with.Leviathans.tail.his.trunk.is.but.the.stalk.of.a.lily.The.most.direful.blow.from.the.elephants.trunk.were.as.the.playful.tap.of.a.fan.compared.with.the.measureless.crush.and.crash.of.the.sperm.whales.ponderous.flukes.which.in.repeated.instances.have.one.after.the.other.hurled.entire.boats.with.all.their.oars.and.crews.into.the.air.very.much.as.an.Indian.juggler.tosses.his.balls.Though.all.comparison.in.the.way.of.general.bulk.between.the.whale.and.the.elephant.is.preposterous.inasmuch.as.in.that.particular.the.elephant.stands.in.much.the.same.respect.to.the.whale.that.a.dog.does.to.the.elephant.nevertheless.there.are.not.wanting.some.points.of.curious.similitude.among.these.is.the.spout.It.is.well.known.that.the.elephant.will.often.draw.up.water.or.dust.in.his.trunk.and.then.elevating.it.jet.it.forth.in.a.stream.The.more.I.consider.this.mighty.tail.the.more.do.I.deplore.my.inability.to.express.it.At.times.there.are.gestures.in.it.which.though.they.would.well.grace.the.hand.of.man.remain.wholly.inexplicable.In.an.extensive.herd.so.remarkable.occasionally.are.these.mystic.gestures.that.I.have.heard.hunters.who.have.declared.them.akin.to.FreeMason.signs.and.symbols.that.the.whale.indeed.by.these.methods.intelligently.conversed.with.the.world.Nor.are.there.wanting.other.motions.of.the.whale.in.his.general.body.full.of.strangeness.and.unaccountable.to.his.most.experienced.assailant.Dissect.him.how.I.may.then.I.but.go.skin.deep.I.know.him.not.and.never.will.But.if.I.know.not.even.the.tail.of.this.whale.how.understand.his.head.much.more.how.comprehend.his.face.when.face.he.has.none.Thou.shalt.see.my.back.parts.my.tail.he.seems.to.say.but.my.face.shall.not.be.seen.But.I.cannot.completely.make.out.his.back.parts.and.hint.what.he.will.about.his.face.I.say.again.he.has.no.face.CHAPTER.87.The.Grand.Armada.The.long.and.narrow.peninsula.of.Malacca.extending.southeastward.from.the.territories.of.Birmah.forms.the.most.southerly.point.of.all.Asia.In.a.continuous.line.from.that.peninsula.stretch.the.long.islands.of.Sumatra.Java.Bally.and.Timor.which.with.many.others.form.a.vast.mole.or.rampart.lengthwise.connecting.Asia.with.Australia.and.dividing.the.long.unbroken.Indian.ocean.from.the.thickly.studded.oriental.archipelagoes.This.rampart.is.pierced.by.several.sallyports.for.the.convenience.of.ships.and.whales.conspicuous.among.which.are.the.straits.of.Sunda.and.Malacca.By.the.straits.of.Sunda.chiefly.vessels.bound.to.China.from.the.west.emerge.into.the.China.seas.Those.narrow.straits.of.Sunda.divide.Sumatra.from.Java.and.standing.midway.in.that.vast.rampart.of.islands.buttressed.by.that.bold.green.promontory.known.to.seamen.as.Java.Head.they.not.a.little.correspond.to.the.central.gateway.opening.into.some.vast.walled.empire.and.considering.the.inexhaustible.wealth.of.spices.and.silks.and.jewels.and.gold.and.ivory.with.which.the.thousand.islands.of.that.oriental.sea.are.enriched.it.seems.a.significant.provision.of.nature.that.such.treasures.by.the.very.formation.of.the.land.should.at.least.bear.the.appearance.however.ineffectual.of.being.guarded.from.the.allgrasping.western.world.The.shores.of.the.Straits.of.Sunda.are.unsupplied.with.those.domineering.fortresses.which.guard.the.entrances.to.the.Mediterranean.the.Baltic.and.the.Propontis.Unlike.the.Danes.these.Orientals.do.not.demand.the.obsequious.homage.of.lowered.topsails.from.the.endless.procession.of.ships.before.the.wind.which.for.centuries.past.by.night.and.by.day.have.passed.between.the.islands.of.Sumatra.and.Java.freighted.with.the.costliest.cargoes.of.the.east.But.while.they.freely.waive.a.ceremonial.like.this.they.do.by.no.means.renounce.their.claim.to.more.solid.tribute.Time.out.of.mind.the.piratical.proas.of.the.Malays.lurking.among.the.low.shaded.coves.and.islets.of.Sumatra.have.sallied.out.upon.the.vessels.sailing.through.the.straits.fiercely.demanding.tribute.at.the.point.of.their.spears.Though.by.the.repeated.bloody.chastisements.they.have.received.at.the.hands.of.European.cruisers.the.audacity.of.these.corsairs.has.of.late.been.somewhat.repressed.yet.even.at.the.present.day.we.occasionally.hear.of.English.and.American.vessels.which.in.those.waters.have.been.remorselessly.boarded.and.pillaged.With.a.fair.fresh.wind.the.Pequod.was.now.drawing.nigh.to.these.straits.Ahab.purposing.to.pass.through.them.into.the.Javan.sea.and.thence.cruising.northwards.over.waters.known.to.be.frequented.here.and.there.by.the.Sperm.Whale.sweep.inshore.by.the.Philippine.Islands.and.gain.the.far.coast.of.Japan.in.time.for.the.great.whaling.season.there.By.these.means.the.circumnavigating.Pequod.would.sweep.almost.all.the.known.Sperm.Whale.cruising.grounds.of.the.world.previous.to.descending.upon.the.Line.in.the.Pacific.where.Ahab.though.everywhere.else.foiled.in.his.pursuit.firmly.counted.upon.giving.battle.to.Moby.Dick.in.the.sea.he.was.most.known.to.frequent.and.at.a.season.when.he.might.most.reasonably.be.presumed.to.be.haunting.it.But.how.now.in.this.zoned.quest.does.Ahab.touch.no.land.does.his.crew.drink.air.Surely.he.will.stop.for.water.Nay.For.a.long.time.now.the.circusrunning.sun.has.raced.within.his.fiery.ring.and.needs.no.sustenance.but.whats.in.himself.So.Ahab.Mark.this.too.in.the.whaler.While.other.hulls.are.loaded.down.with.alien.stuff.to.be.transferred.to.foreign.wharves.the.worldwandering.whaleship.carries.no.cargo.but.herself.and.crew.their.weapons.and.their.wants.She.has.a.whole.lakes.contents.bottled.in.her.ample.hold.She.is.ballasted.with.utilities.not.altogether.with.unusable.piglead.and.kentledge.She.carries.years.water.in.her.Clear.old.prime.Nantucket.water.which.when.three.years.afloat.the.Nantucketer.in.the.Pacific.prefers.to.drink.before.the.brackish.fluid.but.yesterday.rafted.off.in.casks.from.the.Peruvian.or.Indian.streams.Hence.it.is.that.while.other.ships.may.have.gone.to.China.from.New.York.and.back.again.touching.at.a.score.of.ports.the.whaleship.in.all.that.interval.may.not.have.sighted.one.grain.of.soil.her.crew.having.seen.no.man.but.floating.seamen.like.themselves.So.that.did.you.carry.them.the.news.that.another.flood.had.come.they.would.only.answer.Well.boys.heres.the.ark.Now.as.many.Sperm.Whales.had.been.captured.off.the.western.coast.of.Java.in.the.near.vicinity.of.the.Straits.of.Sunda.indeed.as.most.of.the.ground.roundabout.was.generally.recognised.by.the.fishermen.as.an.excellent.spot.for.cruising.therefore.as.the.Pequod.gained.more.and.more.upon.Java.Head.the.lookouts.were.repeatedly.hailed.and.admonished.to.keep.wide.awake.But.though.the.green.palmy.cliffs.of.the.land.soon.loomed.on.the.starboard.bow.and.with.delighted.nostrils.the.fresh.cinnamon.was.snuffed.in.the.air.yet.not.a.single.jet.was.descried.Almost.renouncing.all.thought.of.falling.in.with.any.game.hereabouts.the.ship.had.well.nigh.entered.the.straits.when.the.customary.cheering.cry.was.heard.from.aloft.and.ere.long.a.spectacle.of.singular.magnificence.saluted.us.But.here.be.it.premised.that.owing.to.the.unwearied.activity.with.which.of.late.they.have.been.hunted.over.all.four.oceans.the.Sperm.Whales.instead.of.almost.invariably.sailing.in.small.detached.companies.as.in.former.times.are.now.frequently.met.with.in.extensive.herds.sometimes.embracing.so.great.a.multitude.that.it.would.almost.seem.as.if.numerous.nations.of.them.had.sworn.solemn.league.and.covenant.for.mutual.assistance.and.protection.To.this.aggregation.of.the.Sperm.Whale.into.such.immense.caravans.may.be.imputed.the.circumstance.that.even.in.the.best.cruising.grounds.you.may.now.sometimes.sail.for.weeks.and.months.together.without.being.greeted.by.a.single.spout.and.then.be.suddenly.saluted.by.what.sometimes.seems.thousands.on.thousands.Broad.on.both.bows.at.the.distance.of.some.two.or.three.miles.and.forming.a.great.semicircle.embracing.one.half.of.the.level.horizon.a.continuous.chain.of.whalejets.were.upplaying.and.sparkling.in.the.noonday.air.Unlike.the.straight.perpendicular.twinjets.of.the.Right.Whale.which.dividing.at.top.fall.over.in.two.branches.like.the.cleft.drooping.boughs.of.a.willow.the.single.forwardslanting.spout.of.the.Sperm.Whale.presents.a.thick.curled.bush.of.white.mist.continually.rising.and.falling.away.to.leeward.Seen.from.the.Pequods.deck.then.as.she.would.rise.on.a.high.hill.of.the.sea.this.host.of.vapory.spouts.individually.curling.up.into.the.air.and.beheld.through.a.blending.atmosphere.of.bluish.haze.showed.like.the.thousand.cheerful.chimneys.of.some.dense.metropolis.descried.of.a.balmy.autumnal.morning.by.some.horseman.on.a.height.As.marching.armies.approaching.an.unfriendly.defile.in.the.mountains.accelerate.their.march.all.eagerness.to.place.that.perilous.passage.in.their.rear.and.once.more.expand.in.comparative.security.upon.the.plain.even.so.did.this.vast.fleet.of.whales.now.seem.hurrying.forward.through.the.straits.gradually.contracting.the.wings.of.their.semicircle.and.swimming.on.in.one.solid.but.still.crescentic.centre.Crowding.all.sail.the.Pequod.pressed.after.them.the.harpooneers.handling.their.weapons.and.loudly.cheering.from.the.heads.of.their.yet.suspended.boats.If.the.wind.only.held.little.doubt.had.they.that.chased.through.these.Straits.of.Sunda.the.vast.host.would.only.deploy.into.the.Oriental.seas.to.witness.the.capture.of.not.a.few.of.their.number.And.who.could.tell.whether.in.that.congregated.caravan.Moby.Dick.himself.might.not.temporarily.be.swimming.like.the.worshipped.whiteelephant.in.the.coronation.procession.of.the.Siamese.So.with.stunsail.piled.on.stunsail.we.sailed.along.driving.these.leviathans.before.us.when.of.a.sudden.the.voice.of.Tashtego.was.heard.loudly.directing.attention.to.something.in.our.wake.Corresponding.to.the.crescent.in.our.van.we.beheld.another.in.our.rear.It.seemed.formed.of.detached.white.vapors.rising.and.falling.something.like.the.spouts.of.the.whales.only.they.did.not.so.completely.come.and.go.for.they.constantly.hovered.without.finally.disappearing.Levelling.his.glass.at.this.sight.Ahab.quickly.revolved.in.his.pivothole.crying.Aloft.there.and.rig.whips.and.buckets.to.wet.the.sails.Malays.sir.and.after.us.As.if.too.long.lurking.behind.the.headlands.till.the.Pequod.should.fairly.have.entered.the.straits.these.rascally.Asiatics.were.now.in.hot.pursuit.to.make.up.for.their.overcautious.delay.But.when.the.swift.Pequod.with.a.fresh.leading.wind.was.herself.in.hot.chase.how.very.kind.of.these.tawny.philanthropists.to.assist.in.speeding.her.on.to.her.own.chosen.pursuit.mere.ridingwhips.and.rowels.to.her.that.they.were.As.with.glass.under.arm.Ahab.toandfro.paced.the.deck.in.his.forward.turn.beholding.the.monsters.he.chased.and.in.the.after.one.the.bloodthirsty.pirates.chasing.him.some.such.fancy.as.the.above.seemed.his.And.when.he.glanced.upon.the.green.walls.of.the.watery.defile.in.which.the.ship.was.then.sailing.and.bethought.him.that.through.that.gate.lay.the.route.to.his.vengeance.and.beheld.how.that.through.that.same.gate.he.was.now.both.chasing.and.being.chased.to.his.deadly.end.and.not.only.that.but.a.herd.of.remorseless.wild.pirates.and.inhuman.atheistical.devils.were.infernally.cheering.him.on.with.their.curses.when.all.these.conceits.had.passed.through.his.brain.Ahabs.brow.was.left.gaunt.and.ribbed.like.the.black.sand.beach.after.some.stormy.tide.has.been.gnawing.it.without.being.able.to.drag.the.firm.thing.from.its.place.But.thoughts.like.these.troubled.very.few.of.the.reckless.crew.and.when.after.steadily.dropping.and.dropping.the.pirates.astern.the.Pequod.at.last.shot.by.the.vivid.green.Cockatoo.Point.on.the.Sumatra.side.emerging.at.last.upon.the.broad.waters.beyond.then.the.harpooneers.seemed.more.to.grieve.that.the.swift.whales.had.been.gaining.upon.the.ship.than.to.rejoice.that.the.ship.had.so.victoriously.gained.upon.the.Malays.But.still.driving.on.in.the.wake.of.the.whales.at.length.they.seemed.abating.their.speed.gradually.the.ship.neared.them.and.the.wind.now.dying.away.word.was.passed.to.spring.to.the.boats.But.no.sooner.did.the.herd.by.some.presumed.wonderful.instinct.of.the.Sperm.Whale.become.notified.of.the.three.keels.that.were.after.them.though.as.yet.a.mile.in.their.rear.than.they.rallied.again.and.forming.in.close.ranks.and.battalions.so.that.their.spouts.all.looked.like.flashing.lines.of.stacked.bayonets.moved.on.with.redoubled.velocity.Stripped.to.our.shirts.and.drawers.we.sprang.to.the.whiteash.and.after.several.hours.pulling.were.almost.disposed.to.renounce.the.chase.when.a.general.pausing.commotion.among.the.whales.gave.animating.token.that.they.were.now.at.last.under.the.influence.of.that.strange.perplexity.of.inert.irresolution.which.when.the.fishermen.perceive.it.in.the.whale.they.say.he.is.gallied.The.compact.martial.columns.in.which.they.had.been.hitherto.rapidly.and.steadily.swimming.were.now.broken.up.in.one.measureless.rout.and.like.King.Porus.elephants.in.the.Indian.battle.with.Alexander.they.seemed.going.mad.with.consternation.In.all.directions.expanding.in.vast.irregular.circles.and.aimlessly.swimming.hither.and.thither.by.their.short.thick.spoutings.they.plainly.betrayed.their.distraction.of.panic.This.was.still.more.strangely.evinced.by.those.of.their.number.who.completely.paralysed.as.it.were.helplessly.floated.like.waterlogged.dismantled.ships.on.the.sea.Had.these.Leviathans.been.but.a.flock.of.simple.sheep.pursued.over.the.pasture.by.three.fierce.wolves.they.could.not.possibly.have.evinced.such.excessive.dismay.But.this.occasional.timidity.is.characteristic.of.almost.all.herding.creatures.Though.banding.together.in.tens.of.thousands.the.lionmaned.buffaloes.of.the.West.have.fled.before.a.solitary.horseman.Witness.too.all.human.beings.how.when.herded.together.in.the.sheepfold.of.a.theatres.pit.they.will.at.the.slightest.alarm.of.fire.rush.helterskelter.for.the.outlets.crowding.trampling.jamming.and.remorselessly.dashing.each.other.to.death.Best.therefore.withhold.any.amazement.at.the.strangely.gallied.whales.before.us.for.there.is.no.folly.of.the.beasts.of.the.earth.which.is.not.infinitely.outdone.by.the.madness.of.men.Though.many.of.the.whales.as.has.been.said.were.in.violent.motion.yet.it.is.to.be.observed.that.as.a.whole.the.herd.neither.advanced.nor.retreated.but.collectively.remained.in.one.place.As.is.customary.in.those.cases.the.boats.at.once.separated.each.making.for.some.one.lone.whale.on.the.outskirts.of.the.shoal.In.about.three.minutes.time.Queequegs.harpoon.was.flung.the.stricken.fish.darted.blinding.spray.in.our.faces.and.then.running.away.with.us.like.light.steered.straight.for.the.heart.of.the.herd.Though.such.a.movement.on.the.part.of.the.whale.struck.under.such.circumstances.is.in.no.wise.unprecedented.and.indeed.is.almost.always.more.or.less.anticipated.yet.does.it.present.one.of.the.more.perilous.vicissitudes.of.the.fishery.For.as.the.swift.monster.drags.you.deeper.and.deeper.into.the.frantic.shoal.you.bid.adieu.to.circumspect.life.and.only.exist.in.a.delirious.throb.As.blind.and.deaf.the.whale.plunged.forward.as.if.by.sheer.power.of.speed.to.rid.himself.of.the.iron.leech.that.had.fastened.to.him.as.we.thus.tore.a.white.gash.in.the.sea.on.all.sides.menaced.as.we.flew.by.the.crazed.creatures.to.and.fro.rushing.about.us.our.beset.boat.was.like.a.ship.mobbed.by.iceisles.in.a.tempest.and.striving.to.steer.through.their.complicated.channels.and.straits.knowing.not.at.what.moment.it.may.be.locked.in.and.crushed.But.not.a.bit.daunted.Queequeg.steered.us.manfully.now.sheering.off.from.this.monster.directly.across.our.route.in.advance.now.edging.away.from.that.whose.colossal.flukes.were.suspended.overhead.while.all.the.time.Starbuck.stood.up.in.the.bows.lance.in.hand.pricking.out.of.our.way.whatever.whales.he.could.reach.by.short.darts.for.there.was.no.time.to.make.long.ones.Nor.were.the.oarsmen.quite.idle.though.their.wonted.duty.was.now.altogether.dispensed.with.They.chiefly.attended.to.the.shouting.part.of.the.business.Out.of.the.way.Commodore.cried.one.to.a.great.dromedary.that.of.a.sudden.rose.bodily.to.the.surface.and.for.an.instant.threatened.to.swamp.us.Hard.down.with.your.tail.there.cried.a.second.to.another.which.close.to.our.gunwale.seemed.calmly.cooling.himself.with.his.own.fanlike.extremity.All.whaleboats.carry.certain.curious.contrivances.originally.invented.by.the.Nantucket.Indians.called.druggs.Two.thick.squares.of.wood.of.equal.size.are.stoutly.clenched.together.so.that.they.cross.each.others.grain.at.right.angles.a.line.of.considerable.length.is.then.attached.to.the.middle.of.this.block.and.the.other.end.of.the.line.being.looped.it.can.in.a.moment.be.fastened.to.a.harpoon.It.is.chiefly.among.gallied.whales.that.this.drugg.is.used.For.then.more.whales.are.close.round.you.than.you.can.possibly.chase.at.one.time.But.sperm.whales.are.not.every.day.encountered.while.you.may.then.you.must.kill.all.you.can.And.if.you.cannot.kill.them.all.at.once.you.must.wing.them.so.that.they.can.be.afterwards.killed.at.your.leisure.Hence.it.is.that.at.times.like.these.the.drugg.comes.into.requisition.Our.boat.was.furnished.with.three.of.them.The.first.and.second.were.successfully.darted.and.we.saw.the.whales.staggeringly.running.off.fettered.by.the.enormous.sidelong.resistance.of.the.towing.drugg.They.were.cramped.like.malefactors.with.the.chain.and.ball.But.upon.flinging.the.third.in.the.act.of.tossing.overboard.the.clumsy.wooden.block.it.caught.under.one.of.the.seats.of.the.boat.and.in.an.instant.tore.it.out.and.carried.it.away.dropping.the.oarsman.in.the.boats.bottom.as.the.seat.slid.from.under.him.On.both.sides.the.sea.came.in.at.the.wounded.planks.but.we.stuffed.two.or.three.drawers.and.shirts.in.and.so.stopped.the.leaks.for.the.time.It.had.been.next.to.impossible.to.dart.these.druggedharpoons.were.it.not.that.as.we.advanced.into.the.herd.our.whales.way.greatly.diminished.moreover.that.as.we.went.still.further.and.further.from.the.circumference.of.commotion.the.direful.disorders.seemed.waning.So.that.when.at.last.the.jerking.harpoon.drew.out.and.the.towing.whale.sideways.vanished.then.with.the.tapering.force.of.his.parting.momentum.we.glided.between.two.whales.into.the.innermost.heart.of.the.shoal.as.if.from.some.mountain.torrent.we.had.slid.into.a.serene.valley.lake.Here.the.storms.in.the.roaring.glens.between.the.outermost.whales.were.heard.but.not.felt.In.this.central.expanse.the.sea.presented.that.smooth.satinlike.surface.called.a.sleek.produced.by.the.subtle.moisture.thrown.off.by.the.whale.in.his.more.quiet.moods.Yes.we.were.now.in.that.enchanted.calm.which.they.say.lurks.at.the.heart.of.every.commotion.And.still.in.the.distracted.distance.we.beheld.the.tumults.of.the.outer.concentric.circles.and.saw.successive.pods.of.whales.eight.or.ten.in.each.swiftly.going.round.and.round.like.multiplied.spans.of.horses.in.a.ring.and.so.closely.shoulder.to.shoulder.that.a.Titanic.circusrider.might.easily.have.overarched.the.middle.ones.and.so.have.gone.round.on.their.backs.Owing.to.the.density.of.the.crowd.of.reposing.whales.more.immediately.surrounding.the.embayed.axis.of.the.herd.no.possible.chance.of.escape.was.at.present.afforded.us.We.must.watch.for.a.breach.in.the.living.wall.that.hemmed.us.in.the.wall.that.had.only.admitted.us.in.order.to.shut.us.up.Keeping.at.the.centre.of.the.lake.we.were.occasionally.visited.by.small.tame.cows.and.calves.the.women.and.children.of.this.routed.host.Now.inclusive.of.the.occasional.wide.intervals.between.the.revolving.outer.circles.and.inclusive.of.the.spaces.between.the.various.pods.in.any.one.of.those.circles.the.entire.area.at.this.juncture.embraced.by.the.whole.multitude.must.have.contained.at.least.two.or.three.square.miles.At.any.rate.though.indeed.such.a.test.at.such.a.time.might.be.deceptive.spoutings.might.be.discovered.from.our.low.boat.that.seemed.playing.up.almost.from.the.rim.of.the.horizon.I.mention.this.circumstance.because.as.if.the.cows.and.calves.had.been.purposely.locked.up.in.this.innermost.fold.and.as.if.the.wide.extent.of.the.herd.had.hitherto.prevented.them.from.learning.the.precise.cause.of.its.stopping.or.possibly.being.so.young.unsophisticated.and.every.way.innocent.and.inexperienced.however.it.may.have.been.these.smaller.whales.now.and.then.visiting.our.becalmed.boat.from.the.margin.of.the.lake.evinced.a.wondrous.fearlessness.and.confidence.or.else.a.still.becharmed.panic.which.it.was.impossible.not.to.marvel.at.Like.household.dogs.they.came.snuffling.round.us.right.up.to.our.gunwales.and.touching.them.till.it.almost.seemed.that.some.spell.had.suddenly.domesticated.them.Queequeg.patted.their.foreheads.Starbuck.scratched.their.backs.with.his.lance.but.fearful.of.the.consequences.for.the.time.refrained.from.darting.it.But.far.beneath.this.wondrous.world.upon.the.surface.another.and.still.stranger.world.met.our.eyes.as.we.gazed.over.the.side.For.suspended.in.those.watery.vaults.floated.the.forms.of.the.nursing.mothers.of.the.whales.and.those.that.by.their.enormous.girth.seemed.shortly.to.become.mothers.The.lake.as.I.have.hinted.was.to.a.considerable.depth.exceedingly.transparent.and.as.human.infants.while.suckling.will.calmly.and.fixedly.gaze.away.from.the.breast.as.if.leading.two.different.lives.at.the.time.and.while.yet.drawing.mortal.nourishment.be.still.spiritually.feasting.upon.some.unearthly.reminiscence.even.so.did.the.young.of.these.whales.seem.looking.up.towards.us.but.not.at.us.as.if.we.were.but.a.bit.of.Gulfweed.in.their.newborn.sight.Floating.on.their.sides.the.mothers.also.seemed.quietly.eyeing.us.One.of.these.little.infants.that.from.certain.queer.tokens.seemed.hardly.a.day.old.might.have.measured.some.fourteen.feet.in.length.and.some.six.feet.in.girth.He.was.a.little.frisky.though.as.yet.his.body.seemed.scarce.yet.recovered.from.that.irksome.position.it.had.so.lately.occupied.in.the.maternal.reticule.where.tail.to.head.and.all.ready.for.the.final.spring.the.unborn.whale.lies.bent.like.a.Tartars.bow.The.delicate.sidefins.and.the.palms.of.his.flukes.still.freshly.retained.the.plaited.crumpled.appearance.of.a.babys.ears.newly.arrived.from.foreign.parts.Line.line.cried.Queequeg.looking.over.the.gunwale.him.fast.him.fast.Who.line.him.Who.struck.Two.whale.one.big.one.little.What.ails.ye.man.cried.Starbuck.Looke.here.said.Queequeg.pointing.down.As.when.the.stricken.whale.that.from.the.tub.has.reeled.out.hundreds.of.fathoms.of.rope.as.after.deep.sounding.he.floats.up.again.and.shows.the.slackened.curling.line.buoyantly.rising.and.spiralling.towards.the.air.so.now.Starbuck.saw.long.coils.of.the.umbilical.cord.of.Madame.Leviathan.by.which.the.young.cub.seemed.still.tethered.to.its.dam.Not.seldom.in.the.rapid.vicissitudes.of.the.chase.this.natural.line.with.the.maternal.end.loose.becomes.entangled.with.the.hempen.one.so.that.the.cub.is.thereby.trapped.Some.of.the.subtlest.secrets.of.the.seas.seemed.divulged.to.us.in.this.enchanted.pond.We.saw.young.Leviathan.amours.in.the.deep.The.sperm.whale.as.with.all.other.species.of.the.Leviathan.but.unlike.most.other.fish.breeds.indifferently.at.all.seasons.after.a.gestation.which.may.probably.be.set.down.at.nine.months.producing.but.one.at.a.time.though.in.some.few.known.instances.giving.birth.to.an.Esau.and.Jacob.a.contingency.provided.for.in.suckling.by.two.teats.curiously.situated.one.on.each.side.of.the.anus.but.the.breasts.themselves.extend.upwards.from.that.When.by.chance.these.precious.parts.in.a.nursing.whale.are.cut.by.the.hunters.lance.the.mothers.pouring.milk.and.blood.rivallingly.discolour.the.sea.for.rods.The.milk.is.very.sweet.and.rich.it.has.been.tasted.by.man.it.might.do.well.with.strawberries.When.overflowing.with.mutual.esteem.the.whales.salute.more.hominum.And.thus.though.surrounded.by.circle.upon.circle.of.consternations.and.affrights.did.these.inscrutable.creatures.at.the.centre.freely.and.fearlessly.indulge.in.all.peaceful.concernments.yea.serenely.revelled.in.dalliance.and.delight.But.even.so.amid.the.tornadoed.Atlantic.of.my.being.do.I.myself.still.for.ever.centrally.disport.in.mute.calm.and.while.ponderous.planets.of.unwaning.woe.revolve.round.me.deep.down.and.deep.inland.there.I.still.bathe.me.in.eternal.mildness.of.joy.Meanwhile.as.we.thus.lay.entranced.the.occasional.sudden.frantic.spectacles.in.the.distance.evinced.the.activity.of.the.other.boats.still.engaged.in.drugging.the.whales.on.the.frontier.of.the.host.or.possibly.carrying.on.the.war.within.the.first.circle.where.abundance.of.room.and.some.convenient.retreats.were.afforded.them.But.the.sight.of.the.enraged.drugged.whales.now.and.then.blindly.darting.to.and.fro.across.the.circles.was.nothing.to.what.at.last.met.our.eyes.It.is.sometimes.the.custom.when.fast.to.a.whale.more.than.commonly.powerful.and.alert.to.seek.to.hamstring.him.as.it.were.by.sundering.or.maiming.his.gigantic.tailtendon.It.is.done.by.darting.a.shorthandled.cuttingspade.to.which.is.attached.a.rope.for.hauling.it.back.again.A.whale.wounded.as.we.afterwards.learned.in.this.part.but.not.effectually.as.it.seemed.had.broken.away.from.the.boat.carrying.along.with.him.half.of.the.harpoon.line.and.in.the.extraordinary.agony.of.the.wound.he.was.now.dashing.among.the.revolving.circles.like.the.lone.mounted.desperado.Arnold.at.the.battle.of.Saratoga.carrying.dismay.wherever.he.went.But.agonizing.as.was.the.wound.of.this.whale.and.an.appalling.spectacle.enough.any.way.yet.the.peculiar.horror.with.which.he.seemed.to.inspire.the.rest.of.the.herd.was.owing.to.a.cause.which.at.first.the.intervening.distance.obscured.from.us.But.at.length.we.perceived.that.by.one.of.the.unimaginable.accidents.of.the.fishery.this.whale.had.become.entangled.in.the.harpoonline.that.he.towed.he.had.also.run.away.with.the.cuttingspade.in.him.and.while.the.free.end.of.the.rope.attached.to.that.weapon.had.permanently.caught.in.the.coils.of.the.harpoonline.round.his.tail.the.cuttingspade.itself.had.worked.loose.from.his.flesh.So.that.tormented.to.madness.he.was.now.churning.through.the.water.violently.flailing.with.his.flexible.tail.and.tossing.the.keen.spade.about.him.wounding.and.murdering.his.own.comrades.This.terrific.object.seemed.to.recall.the.whole.herd.from.their.stationary.fright.First.the.whales.forming.the.margin.of.our.lake.began.to.crowd.a.little.and.tumble.against.each.other.as.if.lifted.by.half.spent.billows.from.afar.then.the.lake.itself.began.faintly.to.heave.and.swell.the.submarine.bridalchambers.and.nurseries.vanished.in.more.and.more.contracting.orbits.the.whales.in.the.more.central.circles.began.to.swim.in.thickening.clusters.Yes.the.long.calm.was.departing.A.low.advancing.hum.was.soon.heard.and.then.like.to.the.tumultuous.masses.of.blockice.when.the.great.river.Hudson.breaks.up.in.Spring.the.entire.host.of.whales.came.tumbling.upon.their.inner.centre.as.if.to.pile.themselves.up.in.one.common.mountain.Instantly.Starbuck.and.Queequeg.changed.places.Starbuck.taking.the.stern.Oars.Oars.he.intensely.whispered.seizing.the.helm.gripe.your.oars.and.clutch.your.souls.now.My.God.men.stand.by.Shove.him.off.you.Queequeg.the.whale.there.prick.him.hit.him.Stand.up.stand.up.and.stay.so.Spring.men.pull.men.never.mind.their.backs.scrape.them.scrape.away.The.boat.was.now.all.but.jammed.between.two.vast.black.bulks.leaving.a.narrow.Dardanelles.between.their.long.lengths.But.by.desperate.endeavor.we.at.last.shot.into.a.temporary.opening.then.giving.way.rapidly.and.at.the.same.time.earnestly.watching.for.another.outlet.After.many.similar.hairbreadth.escapes.we.at.last.swiftly.glided.into.what.had.just.been.one.of.the.outer.circles.but.now.crossed.by.random.whales.all.violently.making.for.one.centre.This.lucky.salvation.was.cheaply.purchased.by.the.loss.of.Queequegs.hat.who.while.standing.in.the.bows.to.prick.the.fugitive.whales.had.his.hat.taken.clean.from.his.head.by.the.aireddy.made.by.the.sudden.tossing.of.a.pair.of.broad.flukes.close.by.Riotous.and.disordered.as.the.universal.commotion.now.was.it.soon.resolved.itself.into.what.seemed.a.systematic.movement.for.having.clumped.together.at.last.in.one.dense.body.they.then.renewed.their.onward.flight.with.augmented.fleetness.Further.pursuit.was.useless.but.the.boats.still.lingered.in.their.wake.to.pick.up.what.drugged.whales.might.be.dropped.astern.and.likewise.to.secure.one.which.Flask.had.killed.and.waifed.The.waif.is.a.pennoned.pole.two.or.three.of.which.are.carried.by.every.boat.and.which.when.additional.game.is.at.hand.are.inserted.upright.into.the.floating.body.of.a.dead.whale.both.to.mark.its.place.on.the.sea.and.also.as.token.of.prior.possession.should.the.boats.of.any.other.ship.draw.near.The.result.of.this.lowering.was.somewhat.illustrative.of.that.sagacious.saying.in.the.Fishery.the.more.whales.the.less.fish.Of.all.the.drugged.whales.only.one.was.captured.The.rest.contrived.to.escape.for.the.time.but.only.to.be.taken.as.will.hereafter.be.seen.by.some.other.craft.than.the.Pequod.CHAPTER.88.Schools.and.Schoolmasters.The.previous.chapter.gave.account.of.an.immense.body.or.herd.of.Sperm.Whales.and.there.was.also.then.given.the.probable.cause.inducing.those.vast.aggregations.Now.though.such.great.bodies.are.at.times.encountered.yet.as.must.have.been.seen.even.at.the.present.day.small.detached.bands.are.occasionally.observed.embracing.from.twenty.to.fifty.individuals.each.Such.bands.are.known.as.schools.They.generally.are.of.two.sorts.those.composed.almost.entirely.of.females.and.those.mustering.none.but.young.vigorous.males.or.bulls.as.they.are.familiarly.designated.In.cavalier.attendance.upon.the.school.of.females.you.invariably.see.a.male.of.full.grown.magnitude.but.not.old.who.upon.any.alarm.evinces.his.gallantry.by.falling.in.the.rear.and.covering.the.flight.of.his.ladies.In.truth.this.gentleman.is.a.luxurious.Ottoman.swimming.about.over.the.watery.world.surroundingly.accompanied.by.all.the.solaces.and.endearments.of.the.harem.The.contrast.between.this.Ottoman.and.his.concubines.is.striking.because.while.he.is.always.of.the.largest.leviathanic.proportions.the.ladies.even.at.full.growth.are.not.more.than.onethird.of.the.bulk.of.an.averagesized.male.They.are.comparatively.delicate.indeed.I.dare.say.not.to.exceed.half.a.dozen.yards.round.the.waist.Nevertheless.it.cannot.be.denied.that.upon.the.whole.they.are.hereditarily.entitled.to.en.bon.point.It.is.very.curious.to.watch.this.harem.and.its.lord.in.their.indolent.ramblings.Like.fashionables.they.are.for.ever.on.the.move.in.leisurely.search.of.variety.You.meet.them.on.the.Line.in.time.for.the.full.flower.of.the.Equatorial.feeding.season.having.just.returned.perhaps.from.spending.the.summer.in.the.Northern.seas.and.so.cheating.summer.of.all.unpleasant.weariness.and.warmth.By.the.time.they.have.lounged.up.and.down.the.promenade.of.the.Equator.awhile.they.start.for.the.Oriental.waters.in.anticipation.of.the.cool.season.there.and.so.evade.the.other.excessive.temperature.of.the.year.When.serenely.advancing.on.one.of.these.journeys.if.any.strange.suspicious.sights.are.seen.my.lord.whale.keeps.a.wary.eye.on.his.interesting.family.Should.any.unwarrantably.pert.young.Leviathan.coming.that.way.presume.to.draw.confidentially.close.to.one.of.the.ladies.with.what.prodigious.fury.the.Bashaw.assails.him.and.chases.him.away.High.times.indeed.if.unprincipled.young.rakes.like.him.are.to.be.permitted.to.invade.the.sanctity.of.domestic.bliss.though.do.what.the.Bashaw.will.he.cannot.keep.the.most.notorious.Lothario.out.of.his.bed.for.alas.all.fish.bed.in.common.As.ashore.the.ladies.often.cause.the.most.terrible.duels.among.their.rival.admirers.just.so.with.the.whales.who.sometimes.come.to.deadly.battle.and.all.for.love.They.fence.with.their.long.lower.jaws.sometimes.locking.them.together.and.so.striving.for.the.supremacy.like.elks.that.warringly.interweave.their.antlers.Not.a.few.are.captured.having.the.deep.scars.of.these.encounters.furrowed.heads.broken.teeth.scolloped.fins.and.in.some.instances.wrenched.and.dislocated.mouths.But.supposing.the.invader.of.domestic.bliss.to.betake.himself.away.at.the.first.rush.of.the.harems.lord.then.is.it.very.diverting.to.watch.that.lord.Gently.he.insinuates.his.vast.bulk.among.them.again.and.revels.there.awhile.still.in.tantalizing.vicinity.to.young.Lothario.like.pious.Solomon.devoutly.worshipping.among.his.thousand.concubines.Granting.other.whales.to.be.in.sight.the.fishermen.will.seldom.give.chase.to.one.of.these.Grand.Turks.for.these.Grand.Turks.are.too.lavish.of.their.strength.and.hence.their.unctuousness.is.small.As.for.the.sons.and.the.daughters.they.beget.why.those.sons.and.daughters.must.take.care.of.themselves.at.least.with.only.the.maternal.help.For.like.certain.other.omnivorous.roving.lovers.that.might.be.named.my.Lord.Whale.has.no.taste.for.the.nursery.however.much.for.the.bower.and.so.being.a.great.traveller.he.leaves.his.anonymous.babies.all.over.the.world.every.baby.an.exotic.In.good.time.nevertheless.as.the.ardour.of.youth.declines.as.years.and.dumps.increase.as.reflection.lends.her.solemn.pauses.in.short.as.a.general.lassitude.overtakes.the.sated.Turk.then.a.love.of.ease.and.virtue.supplants.the.love.for.maidens.our.Ottoman.enters.upon.the.impotent.repentant.admonitory.stage.of.life.forswears.disbands.the.harem.and.grown.to.an.exemplary.sulky.old.soul.goes.about.all.alone.among.the.meridians.and.parallels.saying.his.prayers.and.warning.each.young.Leviathan.from.his.amorous.errors.Now.as.the.harem.of.whales.is.called.by.the.fishermen.a.school.so.is.the.lord.and.master.of.that.school.technically.known.as.the.schoolmaster.It.is.therefore.not.in.strict.character.however.admirably.satirical.that.after.going.to.school.himself.he.should.then.go.abroad.inculcating.not.what.he.learned.there.but.the.folly.of.it.His.title.schoolmaster.would.very.naturally.seem.derived.from.the.name.bestowed.upon.the.harem.itself.but.some.have.surmised.that.the.man.who.first.thus.entitled.this.sort.of.Ottoman.whale.must.have.read.the.memoirs.of.Vidocq.and.informed.himself.what.sort.of.a.countryschoolmaster.that.famous.Frenchman.was.in.his.younger.days.and.what.was.the.nature.of.those.occult.lessons.he.inculcated.into.some.of.his.pupils.The.same.secludedness.and.isolation.to.which.the.schoolmaster.whale.betakes.himself.in.his.advancing.years.is.true.of.all.aged.Sperm.Whales.Almost.universally.a.lone.whale.as.a.solitary.Leviathan.is.called.proves.an.ancient.one.Like.venerable.mossbearded.Daniel.Boone.he.will.have.no.one.near.him.but.Nature.herself.and.her.he.takes.to.wife.in.the.wilderness.of.waters.and.the.best.of.wives.she.is.though.she.keeps.so.many.moody.secrets.The.schools.composing.none.but.young.and.vigorous.males.previously.mentioned.offer.a.strong.contrast.to.the.harem.schools.For.while.those.female.whales.are.characteristically.timid.the.young.males.or.fortybarrelbulls.as.they.call.them.are.by.far.the.most.pugnacious.of.all.Leviathans.and.proverbially.the.most.dangerous.to.encounter.excepting.those.wondrous.greyheaded.grizzled.whales.sometimes.met.and.these.will.fight.you.like.grim.fiends.exasperated.by.a.penal.gout.The.Fortybarrelbull.schools.are.larger.than.the.harem.schools.Like.a.mob.of.young.collegians.they.are.full.of.fight.fun.and.wickedness.tumbling.round.the.world.at.such.a.reckless.rollicking.rate.that.no.prudent.underwriter.would.insure.them.any.more.than.he.would.a.riotous.lad.at.Yale.or.Harvard.They.soon.relinquish.this.turbulence.though.and.when.about.threefourths.grown.break.up.and.separately.go.about.in.quest.of.settlements.that.is.harems.Another.point.of.difference.between.the.male.and.female.schools.is.still.more.characteristic.of.the.sexes.Say.you.strike.a.Fortybarrelbull.poor.devil.all.his.comrades.quit.him.But.strike.a.member.of.the.harem.school.and.her.companions.swim.around.her.with.every.token.of.concern.sometimes.lingering.so.near.her.and.so.long.as.themselves.to.fall.a.prey.CHAPTER.89.FastFish.and.LooseFish.The.allusion.to.the.waif.and.waifpoles.in.the.last.chapter.but.one.necessitates.some.account.of.the.laws.and.regulations.of.the.whale.fishery.of.which.the.waif.may.be.deemed.the.grand.symbol.and.badge.It.frequently.happens.that.when.several.ships.are.cruising.in.company.a.whale.may.be.struck.by.one.vessel.then.escape.and.be.finally.killed.and.captured.by.another.vessel.and.herein.are.indirectly.comprised.many.minor.contingencies.all.partaking.of.this.one.grand.feature.For.example.after.a.weary.and.perilous.chase.and.capture.of.a.whale.the.body.may.get.loose.from.the.ship.by.reason.of.a.violent.storm.and.drifting.far.away.to.leeward.be.retaken.by.a.second.whaler.who.in.a.calm.snugly.tows.it.alongside.without.risk.of.life.or.line.Thus.the.most.vexatious.and.violent.disputes.would.often.arise.between.the.fishermen.were.there.not.some.written.or.unwritten.universal.undisputed.law.applicable.to.all.cases.Perhaps.the.only.formal.whaling.code.authorized.by.legislative.enactment.was.that.of.Holland.It.was.decreed.by.the.StatesGeneral.in.AD.1695.But.though.no.other.nation.has.ever.had.any.written.whaling.law.yet.the.American.fishermen.have.been.their.own.legislators.and.lawyers.in.this.matter.They.have.provided.a.system.which.for.terse.comprehensiveness.surpasses.Justinians.Pandects.and.the.Bylaws.of.the.Chinese.Society.for.the.Suppression.of.Meddling.with.other.Peoples.Business.Yes.these.laws.might.be.engraven.on.a.Queen.Annes.farthing.or.the.barb.of.a.harpoon.and.worn.round.the.neck.so.small.are.they.I.A.FastFish.belongs.to.the.party.fast.to.it.II.A.LooseFish.is.fair.game.for.anybody.who.can.soonest.catch.it.But.what.plays.the.mischief.with.this.masterly.code.is.the.admirable.brevity.of.it.which.necessitates.a.vast.volume.of.commentaries.to.expound.it.First.What.is.a.FastFish.Alive.or.dead.a.fish.is.technically.fast.when.it.is.connected.with.an.occupied.ship.or.boat.by.any.medium.at.all.controllable.by.the.occupant.or.occupants.a.mast.an.oar.a.nineinch.cable.a.telegraph.wire.or.a.strand.of.cobweb.it.is.all.the.same.Likewise.a.fish.is.technically.fast.when.it.bears.a.waif.or.any.other.recognised.symbol.of.possession.so.long.as.the.party.waifing.it.plainly.evince.their.ability.at.any.time.to.take.it.alongside.as.well.as.their.intention.so.to.do.These.are.scientific.commentaries.but.the.commentaries.of.the.whalemen.themselves.sometimes.consist.in.hard.words.and.harder.knocks.the.CokeuponLittleton.of.the.fist.True.among.the.more.upright.and.honorable.whalemen.allowances.are.always.made.for.peculiar.cases.where.it.would.be.an.outrageous.moral.injustice.for.one.party.to.claim.possession.of.a.whale.previously.chased.or.killed.by.another.party.But.others.are.by.no.means.so.scrupulous.Some.fifty.years.ago.there.was.a.curious.case.of.whaletrover.litigated.in.England.wherein.the.plaintiffs.set.forth.that.after.a.hard.chase.of.a.whale.in.the.Northern.seas.and.when.indeed.they.the.plaintiffs.had.succeeded.in.harpooning.the.fish.they.were.at.last.through.peril.of.their.lives.obliged.to.forsake.not.only.their.lines.but.their.boat.itself.Ultimately.the.defendants.the.crew.of.another.ship.came.up.with.the.whale.struck.killed.seized.and.finally.appropriated.it.before.the.very.eyes.of.the.plaintiffs.And.when.those.defendants.were.remonstrated.with.their.captain.snapped.his.fingers.in.the.plaintiffs.teeth.and.assured.them.that.by.way.of.doxology.to.the.deed.he.had.done.he.would.now.retain.their.line.harpoons.and.boat.which.had.remained.attached.to.the.whale.at.the.time.of.the.seizure.Wherefore.the.plaintiffs.now.sued.for.the.recovery.of.the.value.of.their.whale.line.harpoons.and.boat.Mr.Erskine.was.counsel.for.the.defendants.Lord.Ellenborough.was.the.judge.In.the.course.of.the.defence.the.witty.Erskine.went.on.to.illustrate.his.position.by.alluding.to.a.recent.crim.con.case.wherein.a.gentleman.after.in.vain.trying.to.bridle.his.wifes.viciousness.had.at.last.abandoned.her.upon.the.seas.of.life.but.in.the.course.of.years.repenting.of.that.step.he.instituted.an.action.to.recover.possession.of.her.Erskine.was.on.the.other.side.and.he.then.supported.it.by.saying.that.though.the.gentleman.had.originally.harpooned.the.lady.and.had.once.had.her.fast.and.only.by.reason.of.the.great.stress.of.her.plunging.viciousness.had.at.last.abandoned.her.yet.abandon.her.he.did.so.that.she.became.a.loosefish.and.therefore.when.a.subsequent.gentleman.reharpooned.her.the.lady.then.became.that.subsequent.gentlemans.property.along.with.whatever.harpoon.might.have.been.found.sticking.in.her.Now.in.the.present.case.Erskine.contended.that.the.examples.of.the.whale.and.the.lady.were.reciprocally.illustrative.of.each.other.These.pleadings.and.the.counter.pleadings.being.duly.heard.the.very.learned.judge.in.set.terms.decided.to.wit.That.as.for.the.boat.he.awarded.it.to.the.plaintiffs.because.they.had.merely.abandoned.it.to.save.their.lives.but.that.with.regard.to.the.controverted.whale.harpoons.and.line.they.belonged.to.the.defendants.the.whale.because.it.was.a.LooseFish.at.the.time.of.the.final.capture.and.the.harpoons.and.line.because.when.the.fish.made.off.with.them.it.the.fish.acquired.a.property.in.those.articles.and.hence.anybody.who.afterwards.took.the.fish.had.a.right.to.them.Now.the.defendants.afterwards.took.the.fish.ergo.the.aforesaid.articles.were.theirs.A.common.man.looking.at.this.decision.of.the.very.learned.Judge.might.possibly.object.to.it.But.ploughed.up.to.the.primary.rock.of.the.matter.the.two.great.principles.laid.down.in.the.twin.whaling.laws.previously.quoted.and.applied.and.elucidated.by.Lord.Ellenborough.in.the.above.cited.case.these.two.laws.touching.FastFish.and.LooseFish.I.say.will.on.reflection.be.found.the.fundamentals.of.all.human.jurisprudence.for.notwithstanding.its.complicated.tracery.of.sculpture.the.Temple.of.the.Law.like.the.Temple.of.the.Philistines.has.but.two.props.to.stand.on.Is.it.not.a.saying.in.every.ones.mouth.Possession.is.half.of.the.law.that.is.regardless.of.how.the.thing.came.into.possession.But.often.possession.is.the.whole.of.the.law.What.are.the.sinews.and.souls.of.Russian.serfs.and.Republican.slaves.but.FastFish.whereof.possession.is.the.whole.of.the.law.What.to.the.rapacious.landlord.is.the.widows.last.mite.but.a.FastFish.What.is.yonder.undetected.villains.marble.mansion.with.a.doorplate.for.a.waif.what.is.that.but.a.FastFish.What.is.the.ruinous.discount.which.Mordecai.the.broker.gets.from.poor.Woebegone.the.bankrupt.on.a.loan.to.keep.Woebegones.family.from.starvation.what.is.that.ruinous.discount.but.a.FastFish.What.is.the.Archbishop.of.Savesouls.income.of.100000.seized.from.the.scant.bread.and.cheese.of.hundreds.of.thousands.of.brokenbacked.laborers.all.sure.of.heaven.without.any.of.Savesouls.help.what.is.that.globular.100000.but.a.FastFish.What.are.the.Duke.of.Dunders.hereditary.towns.and.hamlets.but.FastFish.What.to.that.redoubted.harpooneer.John.Bull.is.poor.Ireland.but.a.FastFish.What.to.that.apostolic.lancer.Brother.Jonathan.is.Texas.but.a.FastFish.And.concerning.all.these.is.not.Possession.the.whole.of.the.law.But.if.the.doctrine.of.FastFish.be.pretty.generally.applicable.the.kindred.doctrine.of.LooseFish.is.still.more.widely.so.That.is.internationally.and.universally.applicable.What.was.America.in.1492.but.a.LooseFish.in.which.Columbus.struck.the.Spanish.standard.by.way.of.waifing.it.for.his.royal.master.and.mistress.What.was.Poland.to.the.Czar.What.Greece.to.the.Turk.What.India.to.England.What.at.last.will.Mexico.be.to.the.United.States.All.LooseFish.What.are.the.Rights.of.Man.and.the.Liberties.of.the.World.but.LooseFish.What.all.mens.minds.and.opinions.but.LooseFish.What.is.the.principle.of.religious.belief.in.them.but.a.LooseFish.What.to.the.ostentatious.smuggling.verbalists.are.the.thoughts.of.thinkers.but.LooseFish.What.is.the.great.globe.itself.but.a.LooseFish.And.what.are.you.reader.but.a.LooseFish.and.a.FastFish.too.CHAPTER.90.Heads.or.Tails.De.balena.vero.sufficit.si.rex.habeat.caput.et.regina.caudam.Bracton.l.3.c.3.Latin.from.the.books.of.the.Laws.of.England.which.taken.along.with.the.context.means.that.of.all.whales.captured.by.anybody.on.the.coast.of.that.land.the.King.as.Honorary.Grand.Harpooneer.must.have.the.head.and.the.Queen.be.respectfully.presented.with.the.tail.A.division.which.in.the.whale.is.much.like.halving.an.apple.there.is.no.intermediate.remainder.Now.as.this.law.under.a.modified.form.is.to.this.day.in.force.in.England.and.as.it.offers.in.various.respects.a.strange.anomaly.touching.the.general.law.of.Fast.and.LooseFish.it.is.here.treated.of.in.a.separate.chapter.on.the.same.courteous.principle.that.prompts.the.English.railways.to.be.at.the.expense.of.a.separate.car.specially.reserved.for.the.accommodation.of.royalty.In.the.first.place.in.curious.proof.of.the.fact.that.the.abovementioned.law.is.still.in.force.I.proceed.to.lay.before.you.a.circumstance.that.happened.within.the.last.two.years.It.seems.that.some.honest.mariners.of.Dover.or.Sandwich.or.some.one.of.the.Cinque.Ports.had.after.a.hard.chase.succeeded.in.killing.and.beaching.a.fine.whale.which.they.had.originally.descried.afar.off.from.the.shore.Now.the.Cinque.Ports.are.partially.or.somehow.under.the.jurisdiction.of.a.sort.of.policeman.or.beadle.called.a.Lord.Warden.Holding.the.office.directly.from.the.crown.I.believe.all.the.royal.emoluments.incident.to.the.Cinque.Port.territories.become.by.assignment.his.By.some.writers.this.office.is.called.a.sinecure.But.not.so.Because.the.Lord.Warden.is.busily.employed.at.times.in.fobbing.his.perquisites.which.are.his.chiefly.by.virtue.of.that.same.fobbing.of.them.Now.when.these.poor.sunburnt.mariners.barefooted.and.with.their.trowsers.rolled.high.up.on.their.eely.legs.had.wearily.hauled.their.fat.fish.high.and.dry.promising.themselves.a.good.150.from.the.precious.oil.and.bone.and.in.fantasy.sipping.rare.tea.with.their.wives.and.good.ale.with.their.cronies.upon.the.strength.of.their.respective.shares.up.steps.a.very.learned.and.most.Christian.and.charitable.gentleman.with.a.copy.of.Blackstone.under.his.arm.and.laying.it.upon.the.whales.head.he.says.Hands.off.this.fish.my.masters.is.a.FastFish.I.seize.it.as.the.Lord.Wardens.Upon.this.the.poor.mariners.in.their.respectful.consternation.so.truly.English.knowing.not.what.to.say.fall.to.vigorously.scratching.their.heads.all.round.meanwhile.ruefully.glancing.from.the.whale.to.the.stranger.But.that.did.in.nowise.mend.the.matter.or.at.all.soften.the.hard.heart.of.the.learned.gentleman.with.the.copy.of.Blackstone.At.length.one.of.them.after.long.scratching.about.for.his.ideas.made.bold.to.speak.Please.sir.who.is.the.Lord.Warden.The.Duke.But.the.duke.had.nothing.to.do.with.taking.this.fish.It.is.his.We.have.been.at.great.trouble.and.peril.and.some.expense.and.is.all.that.to.go.to.the.Dukes.benefit.we.getting.nothing.at.all.for.our.pains.but.our.blisters.It.is.his.Is.the.Duke.so.very.poor.as.to.be.forced.to.this.desperate.mode.of.getting.a.livelihood.It.is.his.I.thought.to.relieve.my.old.bedridden.mother.by.part.of.my.share.of.this.whale.It.is.his.Wont.the.Duke.be.content.with.a.quarter.or.a.half.It.is.his.In.a.word.the.whale.was.seized.and.sold.and.his.Grace.the.Duke.of.Wellington.received.the.money.Thinking.that.viewed.in.some.particular.lights.the.case.might.by.a.bare.possibility.in.some.small.degree.be.deemed.under.the.circumstances.a.rather.hard.one.an.honest.clergyman.of.the.town.respectfully.addressed.a.note.to.his.Grace.begging.him.to.take.the.case.of.those.unfortunate.mariners.into.full.consideration.To.which.my.Lord.Duke.in.substance.replied.both.letters.were.published.that.he.had.already.done.so.and.received.the.money.and.would.be.obliged.to.the.reverend.gentleman.if.for.the.future.he.the.reverend.gentleman.would.decline.meddling.with.other.peoples.business.Is.this.the.still.militant.old.man.standing.at.the.corners.of.the.three.kingdoms.on.all.hands.coercing.alms.of.beggars.It.will.readily.be.seen.that.in.this.case.the.alleged.right.of.the.Duke.to.the.whale.was.a.delegated.one.from.the.Sovereign.We.must.needs.inquire.then.on.what.principle.the.Sovereign.is.originally.invested.with.that.right.The.law.itself.has.already.been.set.forth.But.Plowdon.gives.us.the.reason.for.it.Says.Plowdon.the.whale.so.caught.belongs.to.the.King.and.Queen.because.of.its.superior.excellence.And.by.the.soundest.commentators.this.has.ever.been.held.a.cogent.argument.in.such.matters.But.why.should.the.King.have.the.head.and.the.Queen.the.tail.A.reason.for.that.ye.lawyers.In.his.treatise.on.QueenGold.or.Queenpinmoney.an.old.Kings.Bench.author.one.William.Prynne.thus.discourseth.Ye.tail.is.ye.Queens.that.ye.Queens.wardrobe.may.be.supplied.with.ye.whalebone.Now.this.was.written.at.a.time.when.the.black.limber.bone.of.the.Greenland.or.Right.whale.was.largely.used.in.ladies.bodices.But.this.same.bone.is.not.in.the.tail.it.is.in.the.head.which.is.a.sad.mistake.for.a.sagacious.lawyer.like.Prynne.But.is.the.Queen.a.mermaid.to.be.presented.with.a.tail.An.allegorical.meaning.may.lurk.here.There.are.two.royal.fish.so.styled.by.the.English.law.writers.the.whale.and.the.sturgeon.both.royal.property.under.certain.limitations.and.nominally.supplying.the.tenth.branch.of.the.crowns.ordinary.revenue.I.know.not.that.any.other.author.has.hinted.of.the.matter.but.by.inference.it.seems.to.me.that.the.sturgeon.must.be.divided.in.the.same.way.as.the.whale.the.King.receiving.the.highly.dense.and.elastic.head.peculiar.to.that.fish.which.symbolically.regarded.may.possibly.be.humorously.grounded.upon.some.presumed.congeniality.And.thus.there.seems.a.reason.in.all.things.even.in.law.CHAPTER.91.The.Pequod.Meets.The.RoseBud.In.vain.it.was.to.rake.for.Ambergriese.in.the.paunch.of.this.Leviathan.insufferable.fetor.denying.not.inquiry.Sir.T.Browne.VE.It.was.a.week.or.two.after.the.last.whaling.scene.recounted.and.when.we.were.slowly.sailing.over.a.sleepy.vapory.midday.sea.that.the.many.noses.on.the.Pequods.deck.proved.more.vigilant.discoverers.than.the.three.pairs.of.eyes.aloft.A.peculiar.and.not.very.pleasant.smell.was.smelt.in.the.sea.I.will.bet.something.now.said.Stubb.that.somewhere.hereabouts.are.some.of.those.drugged.whales.we.tickled.the.other.day.I.thought.they.would.keel.up.before.long.Presently.the.vapors.in.advance.slid.aside.and.there.in.the.distance.lay.a.ship.whose.furled.sails.betokened.that.some.sort.of.whale.must.be.alongside.As.we.glided.nearer.the.stranger.showed.French.colours.from.his.peak.and.by.the.eddying.cloud.of.vulture.seafowl.that.circled.and.hovered.and.swooped.around.him.it.was.plain.that.the.whale.alongside.must.be.what.the.fishermen.call.a.blasted.whale.that.is.a.whale.that.has.died.unmolested.on.the.sea.and.so.floated.an.unappropriated.corpse.It.may.well.be.conceived.what.an.unsavory.odor.such.a.mass.must.exhale.worse.than.an.Assyrian.city.in.the.plague.when.the.living.are.incompetent.to.bury.the.departed.So.intolerable.indeed.is.it.regarded.by.some.that.no.cupidity.could.persuade.them.to.moor.alongside.of.it.Yet.are.there.those.who.will.still.do.it.notwithstanding.the.fact.that.the.oil.obtained.from.such.subjects.is.of.a.very.inferior.quality.and.by.no.means.of.the.nature.of.attarofrose.Coming.still.nearer.with.the.expiring.breeze.we.saw.that.the.Frenchman.had.a.second.whale.alongside.and.this.second.whale.seemed.even.more.of.a.nosegay.than.the.first.In.truth.it.turned.out.to.be.one.of.those.problematical.whales.that.seem.to.dry.up.and.die.with.a.sort.of.prodigious.dyspepsia.or.indigestion.leaving.their.defunct.bodies.almost.entirely.bankrupt.of.anything.like.oil.Nevertheless.in.the.proper.place.we.shall.see.that.no.knowing.fisherman.will.ever.turn.up.his.nose.at.such.a.whale.as.this.however.much.he.may.shun.blasted.whales.in.general.The.Pequod.had.now.swept.so.nigh.to.the.stranger.that.Stubb.vowed.he.recognised.his.cutting.spadepole.entangled.in.the.lines.that.were.knotted.round.the.tail.of.one.of.these.whales.Theres.a.pretty.fellow.now.he.banteringly.laughed.standing.in.the.ships.bows.theres.a.jackal.for.ye.I.well.know.that.these.Crappoes.of.Frenchmen.are.but.poor.devils.in.the.fishery.sometimes.lowering.their.boats.for.breakers.mistaking.them.for.Sperm.Whale.spouts.yes.and.sometimes.sailing.from.their.port.with.their.hold.full.of.boxes.of.tallow.candles.and.cases.of.snuffers.foreseeing.that.all.the.oil.they.will.get.wont.be.enough.to.dip.the.Captains.wick.into.aye.we.all.know.these.things.but.look.ye.heres.a.Crappo.that.is.content.with.our.leavings.the.drugged.whale.there.I.mean.aye.and.is.content.too.with.scraping.the.dry.bones.of.that.other.precious.fish.he.has.there.Poor.devil.I.say.pass.round.a.hat.some.one.and.lets.make.him.a.present.of.a.little.oil.for.dear.charitys.sake.For.what.oil.hell.get.from.that.drugged.whale.there.wouldnt.be.fit.to.burn.in.a.jail.no.not.in.a.condemned.cell.And.as.for.the.other.whale.why.Ill.agree.to.get.more.oil.by.chopping.up.and.trying.out.these.three.masts.of.ours.than.hell.get.from.that.bundle.of.bones.though.now.that.I.think.of.it.it.may.contain.something.worth.a.good.deal.more.than.oil.yes.ambergris.I.wonder.now.if.our.old.man.has.thought.of.that.Its.worth.trying.Yes.Im.for.it.and.so.saying.he.started.for.the.quarterdeck.By.this.time.the.faint.air.had.become.a.complete.calm.so.that.whether.or.no.the.Pequod.was.now.fairly.entrapped.in.the.smell.with.no.hope.of.escaping.except.by.its.breezing.up.again.Issuing.from.the.cabin.Stubb.now.called.his.boats.crew.and.pulled.off.for.the.stranger.Drawing.across.her.bow.he.perceived.that.in.accordance.with.the.fanciful.French.taste.the.upper.part.of.her.stempiece.was.carved.in.the.likeness.of.a.huge.drooping.stalk.was.painted.green.and.for.thorns.had.copper.spikes.projecting.from.it.here.and.there.the.whole.terminating.in.a.symmetrical.folded.bulb.of.a.bright.red.colour.Upon.her.head.boards.in.large.gilt.letters.he.read.Bouton.de.Rose.Rosebutton.or.Rosebud.and.this.was.the.romantic.name.of.this.aromatic.ship.Though.Stubb.did.not.understand.the.Bouton.part.of.the.inscription.yet.the.word.rose.and.the.bulbous.figurehead.put.together.sufficiently.explained.the.whole.to.him.A.wooden.rosebud.eh.he.cried.with.his.hand.to.his.nose.that.will.do.very.well.but.how.like.all.creation.it.smells.Now.in.order.to.hold.direct.communication.with.the.people.on.deck.he.had.to.pull.round.the.bows.to.the.starboard.side.and.thus.come.close.to.the.blasted.whale.and.so.talk.over.it.Arrived.then.at.this.spot.with.one.hand.still.to.his.nose.he.bawled.BoutondeRose.ahoy.are.there.any.of.you.BoutondeRoses.that.speak.English.Yes.rejoined.a.Guernseyman.from.the.bulwarks.who.turned.out.to.be.the.chiefmate.Well.then.my.BoutondeRosebud.have.you.seen.the.White.Whale.What.whale.The.White.Whale.a.Sperm.Whale.Moby.Dick.have.ye.seen.him.Never.heard.of.such.a.whale.Cachalot.Blanche.White.Whale.no.Very.good.then.good.bye.now.and.Ill.call.again.in.a.minute.Then.rapidly.pulling.back.towards.the.Pequod.and.seeing.Ahab.leaning.over.the.quarterdeck.rail.awaiting.his.report.he.moulded.his.two.hands.into.a.trumpet.and.shouted.No.Sir.No.Upon.which.Ahab.retired.and.Stubb.returned.to.the.Frenchman.He.now.perceived.that.the.Guernseyman.who.had.just.got.into.the.chains.and.was.using.a.cuttingspade.had.slung.his.nose.in.a.sort.of.bag.Whats.the.matter.with.your.nose.there.said.Stubb.Broke.it.I.wish.it.was.broken.or.that.I.didnt.have.any.nose.at.all.answered.the.Guernseyman.who.did.not.seem.to.relish.the.job.he.was.at.very.much.But.what.are.you.holding.yours.for.Oh.nothing.Its.a.wax.nose.I.have.to.hold.it.on.Fine.day.aint.it.Air.rather.gardenny.I.should.say.throw.us.a.bunch.of.posies.will.ye.BoutondeRose.What.in.the.devils.name.do.you.want.here.roared.the.Guernseyman.flying.into.a.sudden.passion.Oh.keep.cool.cool.yes.thats.the.word.why.dont.you.pack.those.whales.in.ice.while.youre.working.at.em.But.joking.aside.though.do.you.know.Rosebud.that.its.all.nonsense.trying.to.get.any.oil.out.of.such.whales.As.for.that.dried.up.one.there.he.hasnt.a.gill.in.his.whole.carcase.I.know.that.well.enough.but.dye.see.the.Captain.here.wont.believe.it.this.is.his.first.voyage.he.was.a.Cologne.manufacturer.before.But.come.aboard.and.mayhap.hell.believe.you.if.he.wont.me.and.so.Ill.get.out.of.this.dirty.scrape.Anything.to.oblige.ye.my.sweet.and.pleasant.fellow.rejoined.Stubb.and.with.that.he.soon.mounted.to.the.deck.There.a.queer.scene.presented.itself.The.sailors.in.tasselled.caps.of.red.worsted.were.getting.the.heavy.tackles.in.readiness.for.the.whales.But.they.worked.rather.slow.and.talked.very.fast.and.seemed.in.anything.but.a.good.humor.All.their.noses.upwardly.projected.from.their.faces.like.so.many.jibbooms.Now.and.then.pairs.of.them.would.drop.their.work.and.run.up.to.the.masthead.to.get.some.fresh.air.Some.thinking.they.would.catch.the.plague.dipped.oakum.in.coaltar.and.at.intervals.held.it.to.their.nostrils.Others.having.broken.the.stems.of.their.pipes.almost.short.off.at.the.bowl.were.vigorously.puffing.tobaccosmoke.so.that.it.constantly.filled.their.olfactories.Stubb.was.struck.by.a.shower.of.outcries.and.anathemas.proceeding.from.the.Captains.roundhouse.abaft.and.looking.in.that.direction.saw.a.fiery.face.thrust.from.behind.the.door.which.was.held.ajar.from.within.This.was.the.tormented.surgeon.who.after.in.vain.remonstrating.against.the.proceedings.of.the.day.had.betaken.himself.to.the.Captains.roundhouse.cabinet.he.called.it.to.avoid.the.pest.but.still.could.not.help.yelling.out.his.entreaties.and.indignations.at.times.Marking.all.this.Stubb.argued.well.for.his.scheme.and.turning.to.the.Guernseyman.had.a.little.chat.with.him.during.which.the.stranger.mate.expressed.his.detestation.of.his.Captain.as.a.conceited.ignoramus.who.had.brought.them.all.into.so.unsavory.and.unprofitable.a.pickle.Sounding.him.carefully.Stubb.further.perceived.that.the.Guernseyman.had.not.the.slightest.suspicion.concerning.the.ambergris.He.therefore.held.his.peace.on.that.head.but.otherwise.was.quite.frank.and.confidential.with.him.so.that.the.two.quickly.concocted.a.little.plan.for.both.circumventing.and.satirizing.the.Captain.without.his.at.all.dreaming.of.distrusting.their.sincerity.According.to.this.little.plan.of.theirs.the.Guernseyman.under.cover.of.an.interpreters.office.was.to.tell.the.Captain.what.he.pleased.but.as.coming.from.Stubb.and.as.for.Stubb.he.was.to.utter.any.nonsense.that.should.come.uppermost.in.him.during.the.interview.By.this.time.their.destined.victim.appeared.from.his.cabin.He.was.a.small.and.dark.but.rather.delicate.looking.man.for.a.seacaptain.with.large.whiskers.and.moustache.however.and.wore.a.red.cotton.velvet.vest.with.watchseals.at.his.side.To.this.gentleman.Stubb.was.now.politely.introduced.by.the.Guernseyman.who.at.once.ostentatiously.put.on.the.aspect.of.interpreting.between.them.What.shall.I.say.to.him.first.said.he.Why.said.Stubb.eyeing.the.velvet.vest.and.the.watch.and.seals.you.may.as.well.begin.by.telling.him.that.he.looks.a.sort.of.babyish.to.me.though.I.dont.pretend.to.be.a.judge.He.says.Monsieur.said.the.Guernseyman.in.French.turning.to.his.captain.that.only.yesterday.his.ship.spoke.a.vessel.whose.captain.and.chiefmate.with.six.sailors.had.all.died.of.a.fever.caught.from.a.blasted.whale.they.had.brought.alongside.Upon.this.the.captain.started.and.eagerly.desired.to.know.more.What.now.said.the.Guernseyman.to.Stubb.Why.since.he.takes.it.so.easy.tell.him.that.now.I.have.eyed.him.carefully.Im.quite.certain.that.hes.no.more.fit.to.command.a.whaleship.than.a.St.Jago.monkey.In.fact.tell.him.from.me.hes.a.baboon.He.vows.and.declares.Monsieur.that.the.other.whale.the.dried.one.is.far.more.deadly.than.the.blasted.one.in.fine.Monsieur.he.conjures.us.as.we.value.our.lives.to.cut.loose.from.these.fish.Instantly.the.captain.ran.forward.and.in.a.loud.voice.commanded.his.crew.to.desist.from.hoisting.the.cuttingtackles.and.at.once.cast.loose.the.cables.and.chains.confining.the.whales.to.the.ship.What.now.said.the.Guernseyman.when.the.Captain.had.returned.to.them.Why.let.me.see.yes.you.may.as.well.tell.him.now.that.that.in.fact.tell.him.Ive.diddled.him.and.aside.to.himself.perhaps.somebody.else.He.says.Monsieur.that.hes.very.happy.to.have.been.of.any.service.to.us.Hearing.this.the.captain.vowed.that.they.were.the.grateful.parties.meaning.himself.and.mate.and.concluded.by.inviting.Stubb.down.into.his.cabin.to.drink.a.bottle.of.Bordeaux.He.wants.you.to.take.a.glass.of.wine.with.him.said.the.interpreter.Thank.him.heartily.but.tell.him.its.against.my.principles.to.drink.with.the.man.Ive.diddled.In.fact.tell.him.I.must.go.He.says.Monsieur.that.his.principles.wont.admit.of.his.drinking.but.that.if.Monsieur.wants.to.live.another.day.to.drink.then.Monsieur.had.best.drop.all.four.boats.and.pull.the.ship.away.from.these.whales.for.its.so.calm.they.wont.drift.By.this.time.Stubb.was.over.the.side.and.getting.into.his.boat.hailed.the.Guernseyman.to.this.effect.that.having.a.long.towline.in.his.boat.he.would.do.what.he.could.to.help.them.by.pulling.out.the.lighter.whale.of.the.two.from.the.ships.side.While.the.Frenchmans.boats.then.were.engaged.in.towing.the.ship.one.way.Stubb.benevolently.towed.away.at.his.whale.the.other.way.ostentatiously.slacking.out.a.most.unusually.long.towline.Presently.a.breeze.sprang.up.Stubb.feigned.to.cast.off.from.the.whale.hoisting.his.boats.the.Frenchman.soon.increased.his.distance.while.the.Pequod.slid.in.between.him.and.Stubbs.whale.Whereupon.Stubb.quickly.pulled.to.the.floating.body.and.hailing.the.Pequod.to.give.notice.of.his.intentions.at.once.proceeded.to.reap.the.fruit.of.his.unrighteous.cunning.Seizing.his.sharp.boatspade.he.commenced.an.excavation.in.the.body.a.little.behind.the.side.fin.You.would.almost.have.thought.he.was.digging.a.cellar.there.in.the.sea.and.when.at.length.his.spade.struck.against.the.gaunt.ribs.it.was.like.turning.up.old.Roman.tiles.and.pottery.buried.in.fat.English.loam.His.boats.crew.were.all.in.high.excitement.eagerly.helping.their.chief.and.looking.as.anxious.as.goldhunters.And.all.the.time.numberless.fowls.were.diving.and.ducking.and.screaming.and.yelling.and.fighting.around.them.Stubb.was.beginning.to.look.disappointed.especially.as.the.horrible.nosegay.increased.when.suddenly.from.out.the.very.heart.of.this.plague.there.stole.a.faint.stream.of.perfume.which.flowed.through.the.tide.of.bad.smells.without.being.absorbed.by.it.as.one.river.will.flow.into.and.then.along.with.another.without.at.all.blending.with.it.for.a.time.I.have.it.I.have.it.cried.Stubb.with.delight.striking.something.in.the.subterranean.regions.a.purse.a.purse.Dropping.his.spade.he.thrust.both.hands.in.and.drew.out.handfuls.of.something.that.looked.like.ripe.Windsor.soap.or.rich.mottled.old.cheese.very.unctuous.and.savory.withal.You.might.easily.dent.it.with.your.thumb.it.is.of.a.hue.between.yellow.and.ash.colour.And.this.good.friends.is.ambergris.worth.a.gold.guinea.an.ounce.to.any.druggist.Some.six.handfuls.were.obtained.but.more.was.unavoidably.lost.in.the.sea.and.still.more.perhaps.might.have.been.secured.were.it.not.for.impatient.Ahabs.loud.command.to.Stubb.to.desist.and.come.on.board.else.the.ship.would.bid.them.good.bye.CHAPTER.92.Ambergris.Now.this.ambergris.is.a.very.curious.substance.and.so.important.as.an.article.of.commerce.that.in.1791.a.certain.Nantucketborn.Captain.Coffin.was.examined.at.the.bar.of.the.English.House.of.Commons.on.that.subject.For.at.that.time.and.indeed.until.a.comparatively.late.day.the.precise.origin.of.ambergris.remained.like.amber.itself.a.problem.to.the.learned.Though.the.word.ambergris.is.but.the.French.compound.for.grey.amber.yet.the.two.substances.are.quite.distinct.For.amber.though.at.times.found.on.the.seacoast.is.also.dug.up.in.some.far.inland.soils.whereas.ambergris.is.never.found.except.upon.the.sea.Besides.amber.is.a.hard.transparent.brittle.odorless.substance.used.for.mouthpieces.to.pipes.for.beads.and.ornaments.but.ambergris.is.soft.waxy.and.so.highly.fragrant.and.spicy.that.it.is.largely.used.in.perfumery.in.pastiles.precious.candles.hairpowders.and.pomatum.The.Turks.use.it.in.cooking.and.also.carry.it.to.Mecca.for.the.same.purpose.that.frankincense.is.carried.to.St.Peters.in.Rome.Some.wine.merchants.drop.a.few.grains.into.claret.to.flavor.it.Who.would.think.then.that.such.fine.ladies.and.gentlemen.should.regale.themselves.with.an.essence.found.in.the.inglorious.bowels.of.a.sick.whale.Yet.so.it.is.By.some.ambergris.is.supposed.to.be.the.cause.and.by.others.the.effect.of.the.dyspepsia.in.the.whale.How.to.cure.such.a.dyspepsia.it.were.hard.to.say.unless.by.administering.three.or.four.boat.loads.of.Brandreths.pills.and.then.running.out.of.harms.way.as.laborers.do.in.blasting.rocks.I.have.forgotten.to.say.that.there.were.found.in.this.ambergris.certain.hard.round.bony.plates.which.at.first.Stubb.thought.might.be.sailors.trowsers.buttons.but.it.afterwards.turned.out.that.they.were.nothing.more.than.pieces.of.small.squid.bones.embalmed.in.that.manner.Now.that.the.incorruption.of.this.most.fragrant.ambergris.should.be.found.in.the.heart.of.such.decay.is.this.nothing.Bethink.thee.of.that.saying.of.St.Paul.in.Corinthians.about.corruption.and.incorruption.how.that.we.are.sown.in.dishonor.but.raised.in.glory.And.likewise.call.to.mind.that.saying.of.Paracelsus.about.what.it.is.that.maketh.the.best.musk.Also.forget.not.the.strange.fact.that.of.all.things.of.illsavor.Colognewater.in.its.rudimental.manufacturing.stages.is.the.worst.I.should.like.to.conclude.the.chapter.with.the.above.appeal.but.cannot.owing.to.my.anxiety.to.repel.a.charge.often.made.against.whalemen.and.which.in.the.estimation.of.some.already.biased.minds.might.be.considered.as.indirectly.substantiated.by.what.has.been.said.of.the.Frenchmans.two.whales.Elsewhere.in.this.volume.the.slanderous.aspersion.has.been.disproved.that.the.vocation.of.whaling.is.throughout.a.slatternly.untidy.business.But.there.is.another.thing.to.rebut.They.hint.that.all.whales.always.smell.bad.Now.how.did.this.odious.stigma.originate.I.opine.that.it.is.plainly.traceable.to.the.first.arrival.of.the.Greenland.whaling.ships.in.London.more.than.two.centuries.ago.Because.those.whalemen.did.not.then.and.do.not.now.try.out.their.oil.at.sea.as.the.Southern.ships.have.always.done.but.cutting.up.the.fresh.blubber.in.small.bits.thrust.it.through.the.bung.holes.of.large.casks.and.carry.it.home.in.that.manner.the.shortness.of.the.season.in.those.Icy.Seas.and.the.sudden.and.violent.storms.to.which.they.are.exposed.forbidding.any.other.course.The.consequence.is.that.upon.breaking.into.the.hold.and.unloading.one.of.these.whale.cemeteries.in.the.Greenland.dock.a.savor.is.given.forth.somewhat.similar.to.that.arising.from.excavating.an.old.city.graveyard.for.the.foundations.of.a.Lyingin.Hospital.I.partly.surmise.also.that.this.wicked.charge.against.whalers.may.be.likewise.imputed.to.the.existence.on.the.coast.of.Greenland.in.former.times.of.a.Dutch.village.called.Schmerenburgh.or.Smeerenberg.which.latter.name.is.the.one.used.by.the.learned.Fogo.Von.Slack.in.his.great.work.on.Smells.a.textbook.on.that.subject.As.its.name.imports.smeer.fat.berg.to.put.up.this.village.was.founded.in.order.to.afford.a.place.for.the.blubber.of.the.Dutch.whale.fleet.to.be.tried.out.without.being.taken.home.to.Holland.for.that.purpose.It.was.a.collection.of.furnaces.fatkettles.and.oil.sheds.and.when.the.works.were.in.full.operation.certainly.gave.forth.no.very.pleasant.savor.But.all.this.is.quite.different.with.a.South.Sea.Sperm.Whaler.which.in.a.voyage.of.four.years.perhaps.after.completely.filling.her.hold.with.oil.does.not.perhaps.consume.fifty.days.in.the.business.of.boiling.out.and.in.the.state.that.it.is.casked.the.oil.is.nearly.scentless.The.truth.is.that.living.or.dead.if.but.decently.treated.whales.as.a.species.are.by.no.means.creatures.of.ill.odor.nor.can.whalemen.be.recognised.as.the.people.of.the.middle.ages.affected.to.detect.a.Jew.in.the.company.by.the.nose.Nor.indeed.can.the.whale.possibly.be.otherwise.than.fragrant.when.as.a.general.thing.he.enjoys.such.high.health.taking.abundance.of.exercise.always.out.of.doors.though.it.is.true.seldom.in.the.open.air.I.say.that.the.motion.of.a.Sperm.Whales.flukes.above.water.dispenses.a.perfume.as.when.a.muskscented.lady.rustles.her.dress.in.a.warm.parlor.What.then.shall.I.liken.the.Sperm.Whale.to.for.fragrance.considering.his.magnitude.Must.it.not.be.to.that.famous.elephant.with.jewelled.tusks.and.redolent.with.myrrh.which.was.led.out.of.an.Indian.town.to.do.honor.to.Alexander.the.Great.CHAPTER.93.The.Castaway.It.was.but.some.few.days.after.encountering.the.Frenchman.that.a.most.significant.event.befell.the.most.insignificant.of.the.Pequods.crew.an.event.most.lamentable.and.which.ended.in.providing.the.sometimes.madly.merry.and.predestinated.craft.with.a.living.and.ever.accompanying.prophecy.of.whatever.shattered.sequel.might.prove.her.own.Now.in.the.whale.ship.it.is.not.every.one.that.goes.in.the.boats.Some.few.hands.are.reserved.called.shipkeepers.whose.province.it.is.to.work.the.vessel.while.the.boats.are.pursuing.the.whale.As.a.general.thing.these.shipkeepers.are.as.hardy.fellows.as.the.men.comprising.the.boats.crews.But.if.there.happen.to.be.an.unduly.slender.clumsy.or.timorous.wight.in.the.ship.that.wight.is.certain.to.be.made.a.shipkeeper.It.was.so.in.the.Pequod.with.the.little.negro.Pippin.by.nickname.Pip.by.abbreviation.Poor.Pip.ye.have.heard.of.him.before.ye.must.remember.his.tambourine.on.that.dramatic.midnight.so.gloomyjolly.In.outer.aspect.Pip.and.DoughBoy.made.a.match.like.a.black.pony.and.a.white.one.of.equal.developments.though.of.dissimilar.colour.driven.in.one.eccentric.span.But.while.hapless.DoughBoy.was.by.nature.dull.and.torpid.in.his.intellects.Pip.though.over.tenderhearted.was.at.bottom.very.bright.with.that.pleasant.genial.jolly.brightness.peculiar.to.his.tribe.a.tribe.which.ever.enjoy.all.holidays.and.festivities.with.finer.freer.relish.than.any.other.race.For.blacks.the.years.calendar.should.show.naught.but.three.hundred.and.sixtyfive.Fourth.of.Julys.and.New.Years.Days.Nor.smile.so.while.I.write.that.this.little.black.was.brilliant.for.even.blackness.has.its.brilliancy.behold.yon.lustrous.ebony.panelled.in.kings.cabinets.But.Pip.loved.life.and.all.lifes.peaceable.securities.so.that.the.panicstriking.business.in.which.he.had.somehow.unaccountably.become.entrapped.had.most.sadly.blurred.his.brightness.though.as.ere.long.will.be.seen.what.was.thus.temporarily.subdued.in.him.in.the.end.was.destined.to.be.luridly.illumined.by.strange.wild.fires.that.fictitiously.showed.him.off.to.ten.times.the.natural.lustre.with.which.in.his.native.Tolland.County.in.Connecticut.he.had.once.enlivened.many.a.fiddlers.frolic.on.the.green.and.at.melodious.eventide.with.his.gay.haha.had.turned.the.round.horizon.into.one.starbelled.tambourine.So.though.in.the.clear.air.of.day.suspended.against.a.blueveined.neck.the.purewatered.diamond.drop.will.healthful.glow.yet.when.the.cunning.jeweller.would.show.you.the.diamond.in.its.most.impressive.lustre.he.lays.it.against.a.gloomy.ground.and.then.lights.it.up.not.by.the.sun.but.by.some.unnatural.gases.Then.come.out.those.fiery.effulgences.infernally.superb.then.the.evilblazing.diamond.once.the.divinest.symbol.of.the.crystal.skies.looks.like.some.crownjewel.stolen.from.the.King.of.Hell.But.let.us.to.the.story.It.came.to.pass.that.in.the.ambergris.affair.Stubbs.afteroarsman.chanced.so.to.sprain.his.hand.as.for.a.time.to.become.quite.maimed.and.temporarily.Pip.was.put.into.his.place.The.first.time.Stubb.lowered.with.him.Pip.evinced.much.nervousness.but.happily.for.that.time.escaped.close.contact.with.the.whale.and.therefore.came.off.not.altogether.discreditably.though.Stubb.observing.him.took.care.afterwards.to.exhort.him.to.cherish.his.courageousness.to.the.utmost.for.he.might.often.find.it.needful.Now.upon.the.second.lowering.the.boat.paddled.upon.the.whale.and.as.the.fish.received.the.darted.iron.it.gave.its.customary.rap.which.happened.in.this.instance.to.be.right.under.poor.Pips.seat.The.involuntary.consternation.of.the.moment.caused.him.to.leap.paddle.in.hand.out.of.the.boat.and.in.such.a.way.that.part.of.the.slack.whale.line.coming.against.his.chest.he.breasted.it.overboard.with.him.so.as.to.become.entangled.in.it.when.at.last.plumping.into.the.water.That.instant.the.stricken.whale.started.on.a.fierce.run.the.line.swiftly.straightened.and.presto.poor.Pip.came.all.foaming.up.to.the.chocks.of.the.boat.remorselessly.dragged.there.by.the.line.which.had.taken.several.turns.around.his.chest.and.neck.Tashtego.stood.in.the.bows.He.was.full.of.the.fire.of.the.hunt.He.hated.Pip.for.a.poltroon.Snatching.the.boatknife.from.its.sheath.he.suspended.its.sharp.edge.over.the.line.and.turning.towards.Stubb.exclaimed.interrogatively.Cut.Meantime.Pips.blue.choked.face.plainly.looked.Do.for.Gods.sake.All.passed.in.a.flash.In.less.than.half.a.minute.this.entire.thing.happened.Damn.him.cut.roared.Stubb.and.so.the.whale.was.lost.and.Pip.was.saved.So.soon.as.he.recovered.himself.the.poor.little.negro.was.assailed.by.yells.and.execrations.from.the.crew.Tranquilly.permitting.these.irregular.cursings.to.evaporate.Stubb.then.in.a.plain.businesslike.but.still.half.humorous.manner.cursed.Pip.officially.and.that.done.unofficially.gave.him.much.wholesome.advice.The.substance.was.Never.jump.from.a.boat.Pip.except.but.all.the.rest.was.indefinite.as.the.soundest.advice.ever.is.Now.in.general.Stick.to.the.boat.is.your.true.motto.in.whaling.but.cases.will.sometimes.happen.when.Leap.from.the.boat.is.still.better.Moreover.as.if.perceiving.at.last.that.if.he.should.give.undiluted.conscientious.advice.to.Pip.he.would.be.leaving.him.too.wide.a.margin.to.jump.in.for.the.future.Stubb.suddenly.dropped.all.advice.and.concluded.with.a.peremptory.command.Stick.to.the.boat.Pip.or.by.the.Lord.I.wont.pick.you.up.if.you.jump.mind.that.We.cant.afford.to.lose.whales.by.the.likes.of.you.a.whale.would.sell.for.thirty.times.what.you.would.Pip.in.Alabama.Bear.that.in.mind.and.dont.jump.any.more.Hereby.perhaps.Stubb.indirectly.hinted.that.though.man.loved.his.fellow.yet.man.is.a.moneymaking.animal.which.propensity.too.often.interferes.with.his.benevolence.But.we.are.all.in.the.hands.of.the.Gods.and.Pip.jumped.again.It.was.under.very.similar.circumstances.to.the.first.performance.but.this.time.he.did.not.breast.out.the.line.and.hence.when.the.whale.started.to.run.Pip.was.left.behind.on.the.sea.like.a.hurried.travellers.trunk.Alas.Stubb.was.but.too.true.to.his.word.It.was.a.beautiful.bounteous.blue.day.the.spangled.sea.calm.and.cool.and.flatly.stretching.away.all.round.to.the.horizon.like.goldbeaters.skin.hammered.out.to.the.extremest.Bobbing.up.and.down.in.that.sea.Pips.ebon.head.showed.like.a.head.of.cloves.No.boatknife.was.lifted.when.he.fell.so.rapidly.astern.Stubbs.inexorable.back.was.turned.upon.him.and.the.whale.was.winged.In.three.minutes.a.whole.mile.of.shoreless.ocean.was.between.Pip.and.Stubb.Out.from.the.centre.of.the.sea.poor.Pip.turned.his.crisp.curling.black.head.to.the.sun.another.lonely.castaway.though.the.loftiest.and.the.brightest.Now.in.calm.weather.to.swim.in.the.open.ocean.is.as.easy.to.the.practised.swimmer.as.to.ride.in.a.springcarriage.ashore.But.the.awful.lonesomeness.is.intolerable.The.intense.concentration.of.self.in.the.middle.of.such.a.heartless.immensity.my.God.who.can.tell.it.Mark.how.when.sailors.in.a.dead.calm.bathe.in.the.open.sea.mark.how.closely.they.hug.their.ship.and.only.coast.along.her.sides.But.had.Stubb.really.abandoned.the.poor.little.negro.to.his.fate.No.he.did.not.mean.to.at.least.Because.there.were.two.boats.in.his.wake.and.he.supposed.no.doubt.that.they.would.of.course.come.up.to.Pip.very.quickly.and.pick.him.up.though.indeed.such.considerations.towards.oarsmen.jeopardized.through.their.own.timidity.is.not.always.manifested.by.the.hunters.in.all.similar.instances.and.such.instances.not.unfrequently.occur.almost.invariably.in.the.fishery.a.coward.so.called.is.marked.with.the.same.ruthless.detestation.peculiar.to.military.navies.and.armies.But.it.so.happened.that.those.boats.without.seeing.Pip.suddenly.spying.whales.close.to.them.on.one.side.turned.and.gave.chase.and.Stubbs.boat.was.now.so.far.away.and.he.and.all.his.crew.so.intent.upon.his.fish.that.Pips.ringed.horizon.began.to.expand.around.him.miserably.By.the.merest.chance.the.ship.itself.at.last.rescued.him.but.from.that.hour.the.little.negro.went.about.the.deck.an.idiot.such.at.least.they.said.he.was.The.sea.had.jeeringly.kept.his.finite.body.up.but.drowned.the.infinite.of.his.soul.Not.drowned.entirely.though.Rather.carried.down.alive.to.wondrous.depths.where.strange.shapes.of.the.unwarped.primal.world.glided.to.and.fro.before.his.passive.eyes.and.the.misermerman.Wisdom.revealed.his.hoarded.heaps.and.among.the.joyous.heartless.everjuvenile.eternities.Pip.saw.the.multitudinous.Godomnipresent.coral.insects.that.out.of.the.firmament.of.waters.heaved.the.colossal.orbs.He.saw.Gods.foot.upon.the.treadle.of.the.loom.and.spoke.it.and.therefore.his.shipmates.called.him.mad.So.mans.insanity.is.heavens.sense.and.wandering.from.all.mortal.reason.man.comes.at.last.to.that.celestial.thought.which.to.reason.is.absurd.and.frantic.and.weal.or.woe.feels.then.uncompromised.indifferent.as.his.God.For.the.rest.blame.not.Stubb.too.hardly.The.thing.is.common.in.that.fishery.and.in.the.sequel.of.the.narrative.it.will.then.be.seen.what.like.abandonment.befell.myself.CHAPTER.94.A.Squeeze.of.the.Hand.That.whale.of.Stubbs.so.dearly.purchased.was.duly.brought.to.the.Pequods.side.where.all.those.cutting.and.hoisting.operations.previously.detailed.were.regularly.gone.through.even.to.the.baling.of.the.Heidelburgh.Tun.or.Case.While.some.were.occupied.with.this.latter.duty.others.were.employed.in.dragging.away.the.larger.tubs.so.soon.as.filled.with.the.sperm.and.when.the.proper.time.arrived.this.same.sperm.was.carefully.manipulated.ere.going.to.the.tryworks.of.which.anon.It.had.cooled.and.crystallized.to.such.a.degree.that.when.with.several.others.I.sat.down.before.a.large.Constantines.bath.of.it.I.found.it.strangely.concreted.into.lumps.here.and.there.rolling.about.in.the.liquid.part.It.was.our.business.to.squeeze.these.lumps.back.into.fluid.A.sweet.and.unctuous.duty.No.wonder.that.in.old.times.this.sperm.was.such.a.favourite.cosmetic.Such.a.clearer.such.a.sweetener.such.a.softener.such.a.delicious.molifier.After.having.my.hands.in.it.for.only.a.few.minutes.my.fingers.felt.like.eels.and.began.as.it.were.to.serpentine.and.spiralise.As.I.sat.there.at.my.ease.crosslegged.on.the.deck.after.the.bitter.exertion.at.the.windlass.under.a.blue.tranquil.sky.the.ship.under.indolent.sail.and.gliding.so.serenely.along.as.I.bathed.my.hands.among.those.soft.gentle.globules.of.infiltrated.tissues.woven.almost.within.the.hour.as.they.richly.broke.to.my.fingers.and.discharged.all.their.opulence.like.fully.ripe.grapes.their.wine.as.I.snuffed.up.that.uncontaminated.aroma.literally.and.truly.like.the.smell.of.spring.violets.I.declare.to.you.that.for.the.time.I.lived.as.in.a.musky.meadow.I.forgot.all.about.our.horrible.oath.in.that.inexpressible.sperm.I.washed.my.hands.and.my.heart.of.it.I.almost.began.to.credit.the.old.Paracelsan.superstition.that.sperm.is.of.rare.virtue.in.allaying.the.heat.of.anger.while.bathing.in.that.bath.I.felt.divinely.free.from.all.illwill.or.petulance.or.malice.of.any.sort.whatsoever.Squeeze.squeeze.squeeze.all.the.morning.long.I.squeezed.that.sperm.till.I.myself.almost.melted.into.it.I.squeezed.that.sperm.till.a.strange.sort.of.insanity.came.over.me.and.I.found.myself.unwittingly.squeezing.my.colaborers.hands.in.it.mistaking.their.hands.for.the.gentle.globules.Such.an.abounding.affectionate.friendly.loving.feeling.did.this.avocation.beget.that.at.last.I.was.continually.squeezing.their.hands.and.looking.up.into.their.eyes.sentimentally.as.much.as.to.say.Oh.my.dear.fellow.beings.why.should.we.longer.cherish.any.social.acerbities.or.know.the.slightest.illhumor.or.envy.Come.let.us.squeeze.hands.all.round.nay.let.us.all.squeeze.ourselves.into.each.other.let.us.squeeze.ourselves.universally.into.the.very.milk.and.sperm.of.kindness.Would.that.I.could.keep.squeezing.that.sperm.for.ever.For.now.since.by.many.prolonged.repeated.experiences.I.have.perceived.that.in.all.cases.man.must.eventually.lower.or.at.least.shift.his.conceit.of.attainable.felicity.not.placing.it.anywhere.in.the.intellect.or.the.fancy.but.in.the.wife.the.heart.the.bed.the.table.the.saddle.the.fireside.the.country.now.that.I.have.perceived.all.this.I.am.ready.to.squeeze.case.eternally.In.thoughts.of.the.visions.of.the.night.I.saw.long.rows.of.angels.in.paradise.each.with.his.hands.in.a.jar.of.spermaceti.Now.while.discoursing.of.sperm.it.behooves.to.speak.of.other.things.akin.to.it.in.the.business.of.preparing.the.sperm.whale.for.the.tryworks.First.comes.whitehorse.so.called.which.is.obtained.from.the.tapering.part.of.the.fish.and.also.from.the.thicker.portions.of.his.flukes.It.is.tough.with.congealed.tendons.a.wad.of.muscle.but.still.contains.some.oil.After.being.severed.from.the.whale.the.whitehorse.is.first.cut.into.portable.oblongs.ere.going.to.the.mincer.They.look.much.like.blocks.of.Berkshire.marble.Plumpudding.is.the.term.bestowed.upon.certain.fragmentary.parts.of.the.whales.flesh.here.and.there.adhering.to.the.blanket.of.blubber.and.often.participating.to.a.considerable.degree.in.its.unctuousness.It.is.a.most.refreshing.convivial.beautiful.object.to.behold.As.its.name.imports.it.is.of.an.exceedingly.rich.mottled.tint.with.a.bestreaked.snowy.and.golden.ground.dotted.with.spots.of.the.deepest.crimson.and.purple.It.is.plums.of.rubies.in.pictures.of.citron.Spite.of.reason.it.is.hard.to.keep.yourself.from.eating.it.I.confess.that.once.I.stole.behind.the.foremast.to.try.it.It.tasted.something.as.I.should.conceive.a.royal.cutlet.from.the.thigh.of.Louis.le.Gros.might.have.tasted.supposing.him.to.have.been.killed.the.first.day.after.the.venison.season.and.that.particular.venison.season.contemporary.with.an.unusually.fine.vintage.of.the.vineyards.of.Champagne.There.is.another.substance.and.a.very.singular.one.which.turns.up.in.the.course.of.this.business.but.which.I.feel.it.to.be.very.puzzling.adequately.to.describe.It.is.called.slobgollion.an.appellation.original.with.the.whalemen.and.even.so.is.the.nature.of.the.substance.It.is.an.ineffably.oozy.stringy.affair.most.frequently.found.in.the.tubs.of.sperm.after.a.prolonged.squeezing.and.subsequent.decanting.I.hold.it.to.be.the.wondrously.thin.ruptured.membranes.of.the.case.coalescing.Gurry.so.called.is.a.term.properly.belonging.to.right.whalemen.but.sometimes.incidentally.used.by.the.sperm.fishermen.It.designates.the.dark.glutinous.substance.which.is.scraped.off.the.back.of.the.Greenland.or.right.whale.and.much.of.which.covers.the.decks.of.those.inferior.souls.who.hunt.that.ignoble.Leviathan.Nippers.Strictly.this.word.is.not.indigenous.to.the.whales.vocabulary.But.as.applied.by.whalemen.it.becomes.so.A.whalemans.nipper.is.a.short.firm.strip.of.tendinous.stuff.cut.from.the.tapering.part.of.Leviathans.tail.it.averages.an.inch.in.thickness.and.for.the.rest.is.about.the.size.of.the.iron.part.of.a.hoe.Edgewise.moved.along.the.oily.deck.it.operates.like.a.leathern.squilgee.and.by.nameless.blandishments.as.of.magic.allures.along.with.it.all.impurities.But.to.learn.all.about.these.recondite.matters.your.best.way.is.at.once.to.descend.into.the.blubberroom.and.have.a.long.talk.with.its.inmates.This.place.has.previously.been.mentioned.as.the.receptacle.for.the.blanketpieces.when.stript.and.hoisted.from.the.whale.When.the.proper.time.arrives.for.cutting.up.its.contents.this.apartment.is.a.scene.of.terror.to.all.tyros.especially.by.night.On.one.side.lit.by.a.dull.lantern.a.space.has.been.left.clear.for.the.workmen.They.generally.go.in.pairs.a.pikeandgaffman.and.a.spademan.The.whalingpike.is.similar.to.a.frigates.boardingweapon.of.the.same.name.The.gaff.is.something.like.a.boathook.With.his.gaff.the.gaffman.hooks.on.to.a.sheet.of.blubber.and.strives.to.hold.it.from.slipping.as.the.ship.pitches.and.lurches.about.Meanwhile.the.spademan.stands.on.the.sheet.itself.perpendicularly.chopping.it.into.the.portable.horsepieces.This.spade.is.sharp.as.hone.can.make.it.the.spademans.feet.are.shoeless.the.thing.he.stands.on.will.sometimes.irresistibly.slide.away.from.him.like.a.sledge.If.he.cuts.off.one.of.his.own.toes.or.one.of.his.assistants.would.you.be.very.much.astonished.Toes.are.scarce.among.veteran.blubberroom.men.CHAPTER.95.The.Cassock.Had.you.stepped.on.board.the.Pequod.at.a.certain.juncture.of.this.postmortemizing.of.the.whale.and.had.you.strolled.forward.nigh.the.windlass.pretty.sure.am.I.that.you.would.have.scanned.with.no.small.curiosity.a.very.strange.enigmatical.object.which.you.would.have.seen.there.lying.along.lengthwise.in.the.lee.scuppers.Not.the.wondrous.cistern.in.the.whales.huge.head.not.the.prodigy.of.his.unhinged.lower.jaw.not.the.miracle.of.his.symmetrical.tail.none.of.these.would.so.surprise.you.as.half.a.glimpse.of.that.unaccountable.cone.longer.than.a.Kentuckian.is.tall.nigh.a.foot.in.diameter.at.the.base.and.jetblack.as.Yojo.the.ebony.idol.of.Queequeg.And.an.idol.indeed.it.is.or.rather.in.old.times.its.likeness.was.Such.an.idol.as.that.found.in.the.secret.groves.of.Queen.Maachah.in.Judea.and.for.worshipping.which.King.Asa.her.son.did.depose.her.and.destroyed.the.idol.and.burnt.it.for.an.abomination.at.the.brook.Kedron.as.darkly.set.forth.in.the.15th.chapter.of.the.First.Book.of.Kings.Look.at.the.sailor.called.the.mincer.who.now.comes.along.and.assisted.by.two.allies.heavily.backs.the.grandissimus.as.the.mariners.call.it.and.with.bowed.shoulders.staggers.off.with.it.as.if.he.were.a.grenadier.carrying.a.dead.comrade.from.the.field.Extending.it.upon.the.forecastle.deck.he.now.proceeds.cylindrically.to.remove.its.dark.pelt.as.an.African.hunter.the.pelt.of.a.boa.This.done.he.turns.the.pelt.inside.out.like.a.pantaloon.leg.gives.it.a.good.stretching.so.as.almost.to.double.its.diameter.and.at.last.hangs.it.well.spread.in.the.rigging.to.dry.Ere.long.it.is.taken.down.when.removing.some.three.feet.of.it.towards.the.pointed.extremity.and.then.cutting.two.slits.for.armholes.at.the.other.end.he.lengthwise.slips.himself.bodily.into.it.The.mincer.now.stands.before.you.invested.in.the.full.canonicals.of.his.calling.Immemorial.to.all.his.order.this.investiture.alone.will.adequately.protect.him.while.employed.in.the.peculiar.functions.of.his.office.That.office.consists.in.mincing.the.horsepieces.of.blubber.for.the.pots.an.operation.which.is.conducted.at.a.curious.wooden.horse.planted.endwise.against.the.bulwarks.and.with.a.capacious.tub.beneath.it.into.which.the.minced.pieces.drop.fast.as.the.sheets.from.a.rapt.orators.desk.Arrayed.in.decent.black.occupying.a.conspicuous.pulpit.intent.on.bible.leaves.what.a.candidate.for.an.archbishopric.what.a.lad.for.a.Pope.were.this.mincer.Bible.leaves.Bible.leaves.This.is.the.invariable.cry.from.the.mates.to.the.mincer.It.enjoins.him.to.be.careful.and.cut.his.work.into.as.thin.slices.as.possible.inasmuch.as.by.so.doing.the.business.of.boiling.out.the.oil.is.much.accelerated.and.its.quantity.considerably.increased.besides.perhaps.improving.it.in.quality.CHAPTER.96.The.TryWorks.Besides.her.hoisted.boats.an.American.whaler.is.outwardly.distinguished.by.her.tryworks.She.presents.the.curious.anomaly.of.the.most.solid.masonry.joining.with.oak.and.hemp.in.constituting.the.completed.ship.It.is.as.if.from.the.open.field.a.brickkiln.were.transported.to.her.planks.The.tryworks.are.planted.between.the.foremast.and.mainmast.the.most.roomy.part.of.the.deck.The.timbers.beneath.are.of.a.peculiar.strength.fitted.to.sustain.the.weight.of.an.almost.solid.mass.of.brick.and.mortar.some.ten.feet.by.eight.square.and.five.in.height.The.foundation.does.not.penetrate.the.deck.but.the.masonry.is.firmly.secured.to.the.surface.by.ponderous.knees.of.iron.bracing.it.on.all.sides.and.screwing.it.down.to.the.timbers.On.the.flanks.it.is.cased.with.wood.and.at.top.completely.covered.by.a.large.sloping.battened.hatchway.Removing.this.hatch.we.expose.the.great.trypots.two.in.number.and.each.of.several.barrels.capacity.When.not.in.use.they.are.kept.remarkably.clean.Sometimes.they.are.polished.with.soapstone.and.sand.till.they.shine.within.like.silver.punchbowls.During.the.nightwatches.some.cynical.old.sailors.will.crawl.into.them.and.coil.themselves.away.there.for.a.nap.While.employed.in.polishing.them.one.man.in.each.pot.side.by.side.many.confidential.communications.are.carried.on.over.the.iron.lips.It.is.a.place.also.for.profound.mathematical.meditation.It.was.in.the.left.hand.trypot.of.the.Pequod.with.the.soapstone.diligently.circling.round.me.that.I.was.first.indirectly.struck.by.the.remarkable.fact.that.in.geometry.all.bodies.gliding.along.the.cycloid.my.soapstone.for.example.will.descend.from.any.point.in.precisely.the.same.time.Removing.the.fireboard.from.the.front.of.the.tryworks.the.bare.masonry.of.that.side.is.exposed.penetrated.by.the.two.iron.mouths.of.the.furnaces.directly.underneath.the.pots.These.mouths.are.fitted.with.heavy.doors.of.iron.The.intense.heat.of.the.fire.is.prevented.from.communicating.itself.to.the.deck.by.means.of.a.shallow.reservoir.extending.under.the.entire.inclosed.surface.of.the.works.By.a.tunnel.inserted.at.the.rear.this.reservoir.is.kept.replenished.with.water.as.fast.as.it.evaporates.There.are.no.external.chimneys.they.open.direct.from.the.rear.wall.And.here.let.us.go.back.for.a.moment.It.was.about.nine.oclock.at.night.that.the.Pequods.tryworks.were.first.started.on.this.present.voyage.It.belonged.to.Stubb.to.oversee.the.business.All.ready.there.Off.hatch.then.and.start.her.You.cook.fire.the.works.This.was.an.easy.thing.for.the.carpenter.had.been.thrusting.his.shavings.into.the.furnace.throughout.the.passage.Here.be.it.said.that.in.a.whaling.voyage.the.first.fire.in.the.tryworks.has.to.be.fed.for.a.time.with.wood.After.that.no.wood.is.used.except.as.a.means.of.quick.ignition.to.the.staple.fuel.In.a.word.after.being.tried.out.the.crisp.shrivelled.blubber.now.called.scraps.or.fritters.still.contains.considerable.of.its.unctuous.properties.These.fritters.feed.the.flames.Like.a.plethoric.burning.martyr.or.a.selfconsuming.misanthrope.once.ignited.the.whale.supplies.his.own.fuel.and.burns.by.his.own.body.Would.that.he.consumed.his.own.smoke.for.his.smoke.is.horrible.to.inhale.and.inhale.it.you.must.and.not.only.that.but.you.must.live.in.it.for.the.time.It.has.an.unspeakable.wild.Hindoo.odor.about.it.such.as.may.lurk.in.the.vicinity.of.funereal.pyres.It.smells.like.the.left.wing.of.the.day.of.judgment.it.is.an.argument.for.the.pit.By.midnight.the.works.were.in.full.operation.We.were.clear.from.the.carcase.sail.had.been.made.the.wind.was.freshening.the.wild.ocean.darkness.was.intense.But.that.darkness.was.licked.up.by.the.fierce.flames.which.at.intervals.forked.forth.from.the.sooty.flues.and.illuminated.every.lofty.rope.in.the.rigging.as.with.the.famed.Greek.fire.The.burning.ship.drove.on.as.if.remorselessly.commissioned.to.some.vengeful.deed.So.the.pitch.and.sulphurfreighted.brigs.of.the.bold.Hydriote.Canaris.issuing.from.their.midnight.harbors.with.broad.sheets.of.flame.for.sails.bore.down.upon.the.Turkish.frigates.and.folded.them.in.conflagrations.The.hatch.removed.from.the.top.of.the.works.now.afforded.a.wide.hearth.in.front.of.them.Standing.on.this.were.the.Tartarean.shapes.of.the.pagan.harpooneers.always.the.whaleships.stokers.With.huge.pronged.poles.they.pitched.hissing.masses.of.blubber.into.the.scalding.pots.or.stirred.up.the.fires.beneath.till.the.snaky.flames.darted.curling.out.of.the.doors.to.catch.them.by.the.feet.The.smoke.rolled.away.in.sullen.heaps.To.every.pitch.of.the.ship.there.was.a.pitch.of.the.boiling.oil.which.seemed.all.eagerness.to.leap.into.their.faces.Opposite.the.mouth.of.the.works.on.the.further.side.of.the.wide.wooden.hearth.was.the.windlass.This.served.for.a.seasofa.Here.lounged.the.watch.when.not.otherwise.employed.looking.into.the.red.heat.of.the.fire.till.their.eyes.felt.scorched.in.their.heads.Their.tawny.features.now.all.begrimed.with.smoke.and.sweat.their.matted.beards.and.the.contrasting.barbaric.brilliancy.of.their.teeth.all.these.were.strangely.revealed.in.the.capricious.emblazonings.of.the.works.As.they.narrated.to.each.other.their.unholy.adventures.their.tales.of.terror.told.in.words.of.mirth.as.their.uncivilized.laughter.forked.upwards.out.of.them.like.the.flames.from.the.furnace.as.to.and.fro.in.their.front.the.harpooneers.wildly.gesticulated.with.their.huge.pronged.forks.and.dippers.as.the.wind.howled.on.and.the.sea.leaped.and.the.ship.groaned.and.dived.and.yet.steadfastly.shot.her.red.hell.further.and.further.into.the.blackness.of.the.sea.and.the.night.and.scornfully.champed.the.white.bone.in.her.mouth.and.viciously.spat.round.her.on.all.sides.then.the.rushing.Pequod.freighted.with.savages.and.laden.with.fire.and.burning.a.corpse.and.plunging.into.that.blackness.of.darkness.seemed.the.material.counterpart.of.her.monomaniac.commanders.soul.So.seemed.it.to.me.as.I.stood.at.her.helm.and.for.long.hours.silently.guided.the.way.of.this.fireship.on.the.sea.Wrapped.for.that.interval.in.darkness.myself.I.but.the.better.saw.the.redness.the.madness.the.ghastliness.of.others.The.continual.sight.of.the.fiend.shapes.before.me.capering.half.in.smoke.and.half.in.fire.these.at.last.begat.kindred.visions.in.my.soul.so.soon.as.I.began.to.yield.to.that.unaccountable.drowsiness.which.ever.would.come.over.me.at.a.midnight.helm.But.that.night.in.particular.a.strange.and.ever.since.inexplicable.thing.occurred.to.me.Starting.from.a.brief.standing.sleep.I.was.horribly.conscious.of.something.fatally.wrong.The.jawbone.tiller.smote.my.side.which.leaned.against.it.in.my.ears.was.the.low.hum.of.sails.just.beginning.to.shake.in.the.wind.I.thought.my.eyes.were.open.I.was.half.conscious.of.putting.my.fingers.to.the.lids.and.mechanically.stretching.them.still.further.apart.But.spite.of.all.this.I.could.see.no.compass.before.me.to.steer.by.though.it.seemed.but.a.minute.since.I.had.been.watching.the.card.by.the.steady.binnacle.lamp.illuminating.it.Nothing.seemed.before.me.but.a.jet.gloom.now.and.then.made.ghastly.by.flashes.of.redness.Uppermost.was.the.impression.that.whatever.swift.rushing.thing.I.stood.on.was.not.so.much.bound.to.any.haven.ahead.as.rushing.from.all.havens.astern.A.stark.bewildered.feeling.as.of.death.came.over.me.Convulsively.my.hands.grasped.the.tiller.but.with.the.crazy.conceit.that.the.tiller.was.somehow.in.some.enchanted.way.inverted.My.God.what.is.the.matter.with.me.thought.I.Lo.in.my.brief.sleep.I.had.turned.myself.about.and.was.fronting.the.ships.stern.with.my.back.to.her.prow.and.the.compass.In.an.instant.I.faced.back.just.in.time.to.prevent.the.vessel.from.flying.up.into.the.wind.and.very.probably.capsizing.her.How.glad.and.how.grateful.the.relief.from.this.unnatural.hallucination.of.the.night.and.the.fatal.contingency.of.being.brought.by.the.lee.Look.not.too.long.in.the.face.of.the.fire.O.man.Never.dream.with.thy.hand.on.the.helm.Turn.not.thy.back.to.the.compass.accept.the.first.hint.of.the.hitching.tiller.believe.not.the.artificial.fire.when.its.redness.makes.all.things.look.ghastly.Tomorrow.in.the.natural.sun.the.skies.will.be.bright.those.who.glared.like.devils.in.the.forking.flames.the.morn.will.show.in.far.other.at.least.gentler.relief.the.glorious.golden.glad.sun.the.only.true.lamp.all.others.but.liars.Nevertheless.the.sun.hides.not.Virginias.Dismal.Swamp.nor.Romes.accursed.Campagna.nor.wide.Sahara.nor.all.the.millions.of.miles.of.deserts.and.of.griefs.beneath.the.moon.The.sun.hides.not.the.ocean.which.is.the.dark.side.of.this.earth.and.which.is.two.thirds.of.this.earth.So.therefore.that.mortal.man.who.hath.more.of.joy.than.sorrow.in.him.that.mortal.man.cannot.be.true.not.true.or.undeveloped.With.books.the.same.The.truest.of.all.men.was.the.Man.of.Sorrows.and.the.truest.of.all.books.is.Solomons.and.Ecclesiastes.is.the.fine.hammered.steel.of.woe.All.is.vanity.ALL.This.wilful.world.hath.not.got.hold.of.unchristian.Solomons.wisdom.yet.But.he.who.dodges.hospitals.and.jails.and.walks.fast.crossing.graveyards.and.would.rather.talk.of.operas.than.hell.calls.Cowper.Young.Pascal.Rousseau.poor.devils.all.of.sick.men.and.throughout.a.carefree.lifetime.swears.by.Rabelais.as.passing.wise.and.therefore.jolly.not.that.man.is.fitted.to.sit.down.on.tombstones.and.break.the.green.damp.mould.with.unfathomably.wondrous.Solomon.But.even.Solomon.he.says.the.man.that.wandereth.out.of.the.way.of.understanding.shall.remain.ie.even.while.living.in.the.congregation.of.the.dead.Give.not.thyself.up.then.to.fire.lest.it.invert.thee.deaden.thee.as.for.the.time.it.did.me.There.is.a.wisdom.that.is.woe.but.there.is.a.woe.that.is.madness.And.there.is.a.Catskill.eagle.in.some.souls.that.can.alike.dive.down.into.the.blackest.gorges.and.soar.out.of.them.again.and.become.invisible.in.the.sunny.spaces.And.even.if.he.for.ever.flies.within.the.gorge.that.gorge.is.in.the.mountains.so.that.even.in.his.lowest.swoop.the.mountain.eagle.is.still.higher.than.other.birds.upon.the.plain.even.though.they.soar.CHAPTER.97.The.Lamp.Had.you.descended.from.the.Pequods.tryworks.to.the.Pequods.forecastle.where.the.off.duty.watch.were.sleeping.for.one.single.moment.you.would.have.almost.thought.you.were.standing.in.some.illuminated.shrine.of.canonized.kings.and.counsellors.There.they.lay.in.their.triangular.oaken.vaults.each.mariner.a.chiselled.muteness.a.score.of.lamps.flashing.upon.his.hooded.eyes.In.merchantmen.oil.for.the.sailor.is.more.scarce.than.the.milk.of.queens.To.dress.in.the.dark.and.eat.in.the.dark.and.stumble.in.darkness.to.his.pallet.this.is.his.usual.lot.But.the.whaleman.as.he.seeks.the.food.of.light.so.he.lives.in.light.He.makes.his.berth.an.Aladdins.lamp.and.lays.him.down.in.it.so.that.in.the.pitchiest.night.the.ships.black.hull.still.houses.an.illumination.See.with.what.entire.freedom.the.whaleman.takes.his.handful.of.lamps.often.but.old.bottles.and.vials.though.to.the.copper.cooler.at.the.tryworks.and.replenishes.them.there.as.mugs.of.ale.at.a.vat.He.burns.too.the.purest.of.oil.in.its.unmanufactured.and.therefore.unvitiated.state.a.fluid.unknown.to.solar.lunar.or.astral.contrivances.ashore.It.is.sweet.as.early.grass.butter.in.April.He.goes.and.hunts.for.his.oil.so.as.to.be.sure.of.its.freshness.and.genuineness.even.as.the.traveller.on.the.prairie.hunts.up.his.own.supper.of.game.CHAPTER.98.Stowing.Down.and.Clearing.Up.Already.has.it.been.related.how.the.great.leviathan.is.afar.off.descried.from.the.masthead.how.he.is.chased.over.the.watery.moors.and.slaughtered.in.the.valleys.of.the.deep.how.he.is.then.towed.alongside.and.beheaded.and.how.on.the.principle.which.entitled.the.headsman.of.old.to.the.garments.in.which.the.beheaded.was.killed.his.great.padded.surtout.becomes.the.property.of.his.executioner.how.in.due.time.he.is.condemned.to.the.pots.and.like.Shadrach.Meshach.and.Abednego.his.spermaceti.oil.and.bone.pass.unscathed.through.the.fire.but.now.it.remains.to.conclude.the.last.chapter.of.this.part.of.the.description.by.rehearsing.singing.if.I.may.the.romantic.proceeding.of.decanting.off.his.oil.into.the.casks.and.striking.them.down.into.the.hold.where.once.again.leviathan.returns.to.his.native.profundities.sliding.along.beneath.the.surface.as.before.but.alas.never.more.to.rise.and.blow.While.still.warm.the.oil.like.hot.punch.is.received.into.the.sixbarrel.casks.and.while.perhaps.the.ship.is.pitching.and.rolling.this.way.and.that.in.the.midnight.sea.the.enormous.casks.are.slewed.round.and.headed.over.end.for.end.and.sometimes.perilously.scoot.across.the.slippery.deck.like.so.many.land.slides.till.at.last.manhandled.and.stayed.in.their.course.and.all.round.the.hoops.rap.rap.go.as.many.hammers.as.can.play.upon.them.for.now.ex.officio.every.sailor.is.a.cooper.At.length.when.the.last.pint.is.casked.and.all.is.cool.then.the.great.hatchways.are.unsealed.the.bowels.of.the.ship.are.thrown.open.and.down.go.the.casks.to.their.final.rest.in.the.sea.This.done.the.hatches.are.replaced.and.hermetically.closed.like.a.closet.walled.up.In.the.sperm.fishery.this.is.perhaps.one.of.the.most.remarkable.incidents.in.all.the.business.of.whaling.One.day.the.planks.stream.with.freshets.of.blood.and.oil.on.the.sacred.quarterdeck.enormous.masses.of.the.whales.head.are.profanely.piled.great.rusty.casks.lie.about.as.in.a.brewery.yard.the.smoke.from.the.tryworks.has.besooted.all.the.bulwarks.the.mariners.go.about.suffused.with.unctuousness.the.entire.ship.seems.great.leviathan.himself.while.on.all.hands.the.din.is.deafening.But.a.day.or.two.after.you.look.about.you.and.prick.your.ears.in.this.selfsame.ship.and.were.it.not.for.the.telltale.boats.and.tryworks.you.would.all.but.swear.you.trod.some.silent.merchant.vessel.with.a.most.scrupulously.neat.commander.The.unmanufactured.sperm.oil.possesses.a.singularly.cleansing.virtue.This.is.the.reason.why.the.decks.never.look.so.white.as.just.after.what.they.call.an.affair.of.oil.Besides.from.the.ashes.of.the.burned.scraps.of.the.whale.a.potent.lye.is.readily.made.and.whenever.any.adhesiveness.from.the.back.of.the.whale.remains.clinging.to.the.side.that.lye.quickly.exterminates.it.Hands.go.diligently.along.the.bulwarks.and.with.buckets.of.water.and.rags.restore.them.to.their.full.tidiness.The.soot.is.brushed.from.the.lower.rigging.All.the.numerous.implements.which.have.been.in.use.are.likewise.faithfully.cleansed.and.put.away.The.great.hatch.is.scrubbed.and.placed.upon.the.tryworks.completely.hiding.the.pots.every.cask.is.out.of.sight.all.tackles.are.coiled.in.unseen.nooks.and.when.by.the.combined.and.simultaneous.industry.of.almost.the.entire.ships.company.the.whole.of.this.conscientious.duty.is.at.last.concluded.then.the.crew.themselves.proceed.to.their.own.ablutions.shift.themselves.from.top.to.toe.and.finally.issue.to.the.immaculate.deck.fresh.and.all.aglow.as.bridegrooms.newleaped.from.out.the.daintiest.Holland.Now.with.elated.step.they.pace.the.planks.in.twos.and.threes.and.humorously.discourse.of.parlors.sofas.carpets.and.fine.cambrics.propose.to.mat.the.deck.think.of.having.hanging.to.the.top.object.not.to.taking.tea.by.moonlight.on.the.piazza.of.the.forecastle.To.hint.to.such.musked.mariners.of.oil.and.bone.and.blubber.were.little.short.of.audacity.They.know.not.the.thing.you.distantly.allude.to.Away.and.bring.us.napkins.But.mark.aloft.there.at.the.three.mast.heads.stand.three.men.intent.on.spying.out.more.whales.which.if.caught.infallibly.will.again.soil.the.old.oaken.furniture.and.drop.at.least.one.small.greasespot.somewhere.Yes.and.many.is.the.time.when.after.the.severest.uninterrupted.labors.which.know.no.night.continuing.straight.through.for.ninetysix.hours.when.from.the.boat.where.they.have.swelled.their.wrists.with.all.day.rowing.on.the.Line.they.only.step.to.the.deck.to.carry.vast.chains.and.heave.the.heavy.windlass.and.cut.and.slash.yea.and.in.their.very.sweatings.to.be.smoked.and.burned.anew.by.the.combined.fires.of.the.equatorial.sun.and.the.equatorial.tryworks.when.on.the.heel.of.all.this.they.have.finally.bestirred.themselves.to.cleanse.the.ship.and.make.a.spotless.dairy.room.of.it.many.is.the.time.the.poor.fellows.just.buttoning.the.necks.of.their.clean.frocks.are.startled.by.the.cry.of.There.she.blows.and.away.they.fly.to.fight.another.whale.and.go.through.the.whole.weary.thing.again.Oh.my.friends.but.this.is.mankilling.Yet.this.is.life.For.hardly.have.we.mortals.by.long.toilings.extracted.from.this.worlds.vast.bulk.its.small.but.valuable.sperm.and.then.with.weary.patience.cleansed.ourselves.from.its.defilements.and.learned.to.live.here.in.clean.tabernacles.of.the.soul.hardly.is.this.done.when.There.she.blows.the.ghost.is.spouted.up.and.away.we.sail.to.fight.some.other.world.and.go.through.young.lifes.old.routine.again.Oh.the.metempsychosis.Oh.Pythagoras.that.in.bright.Greece.two.thousand.years.ago.did.die.so.good.so.wise.so.mild.I.sailed.with.thee.along.the.Peruvian.coast.last.voyage.and.foolish.as.I.am.taught.thee.a.green.simple.boy.how.to.splice.a.rope.CHAPTER.99.The.Doubloon.Ere.now.it.has.been.related.how.Ahab.was.wont.to.pace.his.quarterdeck.taking.regular.turns.at.either.limit.the.binnacle.and.mainmast.but.in.the.multiplicity.of.other.things.requiring.narration.it.has.not.been.added.how.that.sometimes.in.these.walks.when.most.plunged.in.his.mood.he.was.wont.to.pause.in.turn.at.each.spot.and.stand.there.strangely.eyeing.the.particular.object.before.him.When.he.halted.before.the.binnacle.with.his.glance.fastened.on.the.pointed.needle.in.the.compass.that.glance.shot.like.a.javelin.with.the.pointed.intensity.of.his.purpose.and.when.resuming.his.walk.he.again.paused.before.the.mainmast.then.as.the.same.riveted.glance.fastened.upon.the.riveted.gold.coin.there.he.still.wore.the.same.aspect.of.nailed.firmness.only.dashed.with.a.certain.wild.longing.if.not.hopefulness.But.one.morning.turning.to.pass.the.doubloon.he.seemed.to.be.newly.attracted.by.the.strange.figures.and.inscriptions.stamped.on.it.as.though.now.for.the.first.time.beginning.to.interpret.for.himself.in.some.monomaniac.way.whatever.significance.might.lurk.in.them.And.some.certain.significance.lurks.in.all.things.else.all.things.are.little.worth.and.the.round.world.itself.but.an.empty.cipher.except.to.sell.by.the.cartload.as.they.do.hills.about.Boston.to.fill.up.some.morass.in.the.Milky.Way.Now.this.doubloon.was.of.purest.virgin.gold.raked.somewhere.out.of.the.heart.of.gorgeous.hills.whence.east.and.west.over.golden.sands.the.headwaters.of.many.a.Pactolus.flows.And.though.now.nailed.amidst.all.the.rustiness.of.iron.bolts.and.the.verdigris.of.copper.spikes.yet.untouchable.and.immaculate.to.any.foulness.it.still.preserved.its.Quito.glow.Nor.though.placed.amongst.a.ruthless.crew.and.every.hour.passed.by.ruthless.hands.and.through.the.livelong.nights.shrouded.with.thick.darkness.which.might.cover.any.pilfering.approach.nevertheless.every.sunrise.found.the.doubloon.where.the.sunset.left.it.last.For.it.was.set.apart.and.sanctified.to.one.awestriking.end.and.however.wanton.in.their.sailor.ways.one.and.all.the.mariners.revered.it.as.the.white.whales.talisman.Sometimes.they.talked.it.over.in.the.weary.watch.by.night.wondering.whose.it.was.to.be.at.last.and.whether.he.would.ever.live.to.spend.it.Now.those.noble.golden.coins.of.South.America.are.as.medals.of.the.sun.and.tropic.tokenpieces.Here.palms.alpacas.and.volcanoes.suns.disks.and.stars.ecliptics.hornsofplenty.and.rich.banners.waving.are.in.luxuriant.profusion.stamped.so.that.the.precious.gold.seems.almost.to.derive.an.added.preciousness.and.enhancing.glories.by.passing.through.those.fancy.mints.so.Spanishly.poetic.It.so.chanced.that.the.doubloon.of.the.Pequod.was.a.most.wealthy.example.of.these.things.On.its.round.border.it.bore.the.letters.REPUBLICA.DEL.ECUADOR.QUITO.So.this.bright.coin.came.from.a.country.planted.in.the.middle.of.the.world.and.beneath.the.great.equator.and.named.after.it.and.it.had.been.cast.midway.up.the.Andes.in.the.unwaning.clime.that.knows.no.autumn.Zoned.by.those.letters.you.saw.the.likeness.of.three.Andes.summits.from.one.a.flame.a.tower.on.another.on.the.third.a.crowing.cock.while.arching.over.all.was.a.segment.of.the.partitioned.zodiac.the.signs.all.marked.with.their.usual.cabalistics.and.the.keystone.sun.entering.the.equinoctial.point.at.Libra.Before.this.equatorial.coin.Ahab.not.unobserved.by.others.was.now.pausing.Theres.something.ever.egotistical.in.mountaintops.and.towers.and.all.other.grand.and.lofty.things.look.here.three.peaks.as.proud.as.Lucifer.The.firm.tower.that.is.Ahab.the.volcano.that.is.Ahab.the.courageous.the.undaunted.and.victorious.fowl.that.too.is.Ahab.all.are.Ahab.and.this.round.gold.is.but.the.image.of.the.rounder.globe.which.like.a.magicians.glass.to.each.and.every.man.in.turn.but.mirrors.back.his.own.mysterious.self.Great.pains.small.gains.for.those.who.ask.the.world.to.solve.them.it.cannot.solve.itself.Methinks.now.this.coined.sun.wears.a.ruddy.face.but.see.aye.he.enters.the.sign.of.storms.the.equinox.and.but.six.months.before.he.wheeled.out.of.a.former.equinox.at.Aries.From.storm.to.storm.So.be.it.then.Born.in.throes.tis.fit.that.man.should.live.in.pains.and.die.in.pangs.So.be.it.then.Heres.stout.stuff.for.woe.to.work.on.So.be.it.then.No.fairy.fingers.can.have.pressed.the.gold.but.devils.claws.must.have.left.their.mouldings.there.since.yesterday.murmured.Starbuck.to.himself.leaning.against.the.bulwarks.The.old.man.seems.to.read.Belshazzars.awful.writing.I.have.never.marked.the.coin.inspectingly.He.goes.below.let.me.read.A.dark.valley.between.three.mighty.heavenabiding.peaks.that.almost.seem.the.Trinity.in.some.faint.earthly.symbol.So.in.this.vale.of.Death.God.girds.us.round.and.over.all.our.gloom.the.sun.of.Righteousness.still.shines.a.beacon.and.a.hope.If.we.bend.down.our.eyes.the.dark.vale.shows.her.mouldy.soil.but.if.we.lift.them.the.bright.sun.meets.our.glance.half.way.to.cheer.Yet.oh.the.great.sun.is.no.fixture.and.if.at.midnight.we.would.fain.snatch.some.sweet.solace.from.him.we.gaze.for.him.in.vain.This.coin.speaks.wisely.mildly.truly.but.still.sadly.to.me.I.will.quit.it.lest.Truth.shake.me.falsely.There.nows.the.old.Mogul.soliloquized.Stubb.by.the.tryworks.hes.been.twigging.it.and.there.goes.Starbuck.from.the.same.and.both.with.faces.which.I.should.say.might.be.somewhere.within.nine.fathoms.long.And.all.from.looking.at.a.piece.of.gold.which.did.I.have.it.now.on.Negro.Hill.or.in.Corlaers.Hook.Id.not.look.at.it.very.long.ere.spending.it.Humph.in.my.poor.insignificant.opinion.I.regard.this.as.queer.I.have.seen.doubloons.before.now.in.my.voyagings.your.doubloons.of.old.Spain.your.doubloons.of.Peru.your.doubloons.of.Chili.your.doubloons.of.Bolivia.your.doubloons.of.Popayan.with.plenty.of.gold.moidores.and.pistoles.and.joes.and.half.joes.and.quarter.joes.What.then.should.there.be.in.this.doubloon.of.the.Equator.that.is.so.killing.wonderful.By.Golconda.let.me.read.it.once.Halloa.heres.signs.and.wonders.truly.That.now.is.what.old.Bowditch.in.his.Epitome.calls.the.zodiac.and.what.my.almanac.below.calls.ditto.Ill.get.the.almanac.and.as.I.have.heard.devils.can.be.raised.with.Dabolls.arithmetic.Ill.try.my.hand.at.raising.a.meaning.out.of.these.queer.curvicues.here.with.the.Massachusetts.calendar.Heres.the.book.Lets.see.now.Signs.and.wonders.and.the.sun.hes.always.among.em.Hem.hem.hem.here.they.are.here.they.go.all.alive.Aries.or.the.Ram.Taurus.or.the.Bull.and.Jimimi.heres.Gemini.himself.or.the.Twins.Well.the.sun.he.wheels.among.em.Aye.here.on.the.coin.hes.just.crossing.the.threshold.between.two.of.twelve.sittingrooms.all.in.a.ring.Book.you.lie.there.the.fact.is.you.books.must.know.your.places.Youll.do.to.give.us.the.bare.words.and.facts.but.we.come.in.to.supply.the.thoughts.Thats.my.small.experience.so.far.as.the.Massachusetts.calendar.and.Bowditchs.navigator.and.Dabolls.arithmetic.go.Signs.and.wonders.eh.Pity.if.there.is.nothing.wonderful.in.signs.and.significant.in.wonders.Theres.a.clue.somewhere.wait.a.bit.hist.hark.By.Jove.I.have.it.Look.you.Doubloon.your.zodiac.here.is.the.life.of.man.in.one.round.chapter.and.now.Ill.read.it.off.straight.out.of.the.book.Come.Almanack.To.begin.theres.Aries.or.the.Ram.lecherous.dog.he.begets.us.then.Taurus.or.the.Bull.he.bumps.us.the.first.thing.then.Gemini.or.the.Twins.that.is.Virtue.and.Vice.we.try.to.reach.Virtue.when.lo.comes.Cancer.the.Crab.and.drags.us.back.and.here.going.from.Virtue.Leo.a.roaring.Lion.lies.in.the.path.he.gives.a.few.fierce.bites.and.surly.dabs.with.his.paw.we.escape.and.hail.Virgo.the.Virgin.thats.our.first.love.we.marry.and.think.to.be.happy.for.aye.when.pop.comes.Libra.or.the.Scales.happiness.weighed.and.found.wanting.and.while.we.are.very.sad.about.that.Lord.how.we.suddenly.jump.as.Scorpio.or.the.Scorpion.stings.us.in.the.rear.we.are.curing.the.wound.when.whang.come.the.arrows.all.round.Sagittarius.or.the.Archer.is.amusing.himself.As.we.pluck.out.the.shafts.stand.aside.heres.the.batteringram.Capricornus.or.the.Goat.full.tilt.he.comes.rushing.and.headlong.we.are.tossed.when.Aquarius.or.the.Waterbearer.pours.out.his.whole.deluge.and.drowns.us.and.to.wind.up.with.Pisces.or.the.Fishes.we.sleep.Theres.a.sermon.now.writ.in.high.heaven.and.the.sun.goes.through.it.every.year.and.yet.comes.out.of.it.all.alive.and.hearty.Jollily.he.aloft.there.wheels.through.toil.and.trouble.and.so.alow.here.does.jolly.Stubb.Oh.jollys.the.word.for.aye.Adieu.Doubloon.But.stop.here.comes.little.KingPost.dodge.round.the.tryworks.now.and.lets.hear.what.hell.have.to.say.There.hes.before.it.hell.out.with.something.presently.So.so.hes.beginning.I.see.nothing.here.but.a.round.thing.made.of.gold.and.whoever.raises.a.certain.whale.this.round.thing.belongs.to.him.So.whats.all.this.staring.been.about.It.is.worth.sixteen.dollars.thats.true.and.at.two.cents.the.cigar.thats.nine.hundred.and.sixty.cigars.I.wont.smoke.dirty.pipes.like.Stubb.but.I.like.cigars.and.heres.nine.hundred.and.sixty.of.them.so.here.goes.Flask.aloft.to.spy.em.out.Shall.I.call.that.wise.or.foolish.now.if.it.be.really.wise.it.has.a.foolish.look.to.it.yet.if.it.be.really.foolish.then.has.it.a.sort.of.wiseish.look.to.it.But.avast.here.comes.our.old.Manxman.the.old.hearsedriver.he.must.have.been.that.is.before.he.took.to.the.sea.He.luffs.up.before.the.doubloon.halloa.and.goes.round.on.the.other.side.of.the.mast.why.theres.a.horseshoe.nailed.on.that.side.and.now.hes.back.again.what.does.that.mean.Hark.hes.muttering.voice.like.an.old.wornout.coffeemill.Prick.ears.and.listen.If.the.White.Whale.be.raised.it.must.be.in.a.month.and.a.day.when.the.sun.stands.in.some.one.of.these.signs.Ive.studied.signs.and.know.their.marks.they.were.taught.me.two.score.years.ago.by.the.old.witch.in.Copenhagen.Now.in.what.sign.will.the.sun.then.be.The.horseshoe.sign.for.there.it.is.right.opposite.the.gold.And.whats.the.horseshoe.sign.The.lion.is.the.horseshoe.sign.the.roaring.and.devouring.lion.Ship.old.ship.my.old.head.shakes.to.think.of.thee.Theres.another.rendering.now.but.still.one.text.All.sorts.of.men.in.one.kind.of.world.you.see.Dodge.again.here.comes.Queequeg.all.tattooing.looks.like.the.signs.of.the.Zodiac.himself.What.says.the.Cannibal.As.I.live.hes.comparing.notes.looking.at.his.thigh.bone.thinks.the.sun.is.in.the.thigh.or.in.the.calf.or.in.the.bowels.I.suppose.as.the.old.women.talk.Surgeons.Astronomy.in.the.back.country.And.by.Jove.hes.found.something.there.in.the.vicinity.of.his.thigh.I.guess.its.Sagittarius.or.the.Archer.No.he.dont.know.what.to.make.of.the.doubloon.he.takes.it.for.an.old.button.off.some.kings.trowsers.But.aside.again.here.comes.that.ghostdevil.Fedallah.tail.coiled.out.of.sight.as.usual.oakum.in.the.toes.of.his.pumps.as.usual.What.does.he.say.with.that.look.of.his.Ah.only.makes.a.sign.to.the.sign.and.bows.himself.there.is.a.sun.on.the.coin.fire.worshipper.depend.upon.it.Ho.more.and.more.This.way.comes.Pip.poor.boy.would.he.had.died.or.I.hes.half.horrible.to.me.He.too.has.been.watching.all.of.these.interpreters.myself.included.and.look.now.he.comes.to.read.with.that.unearthly.idiot.face.Stand.away.again.and.hear.him.Hark.I.look.you.look.he.looks.we.look.ye.look.they.look.Upon.my.soul.hes.been.studying.Murrays.Grammar.Improving.his.mind.poor.fellow.But.whats.that.he.says.now.hist.I.look.you.look.he.looks.we.look.ye.look.they.look.Why.hes.getting.it.by.heart.hist.again.I.look.you.look.he.looks.we.look.ye.look.they.look.Well.thats.funny.And.I.you.and.he.and.we.ye.and.they.are.all.bats.and.Im.a.crow.especially.when.I.stand.atop.of.this.pine.tree.here.Caw.caw.caw.caw.caw.caw.Aint.I.a.crow.And.wheres.the.scarecrow.There.he.stands.two.bones.stuck.into.a.pair.of.old.trowsers.and.two.more.poked.into.the.sleeves.of.an.old.jacket.Wonder.if.he.means.me.complimentary.poor.lad.I.could.go.hang.myself.Any.way.for.the.present.Ill.quit.Pips.vicinity.I.can.stand.the.rest.for.they.have.plain.wits.but.hes.too.crazywitty.for.my.sanity.So.so.I.leave.him.muttering.Heres.the.ships.navel.this.doubloon.here.and.they.are.all.on.fire.to.unscrew.it.But.unscrew.your.navel.and.whats.the.consequence.Then.again.if.it.stays.here.that.is.ugly.too.for.when.aughts.nailed.to.the.mast.its.a.sign.that.things.grow.desperate.Ha.ha.old.Ahab.the.White.Whale.hell.nail.ye.This.is.a.pine.tree.My.father.in.old.Tolland.county.cut.down.a.pine.tree.once.and.found.a.silver.ring.grown.over.in.it.some.old.darkeys.wedding.ring.How.did.it.get.there.And.so.theyll.say.in.the.resurrection.when.they.come.to.fish.up.this.old.mast.and.find.a.doubloon.lodged.in.it.with.bedded.oysters.for.the.shaggy.bark.Oh.the.gold.the.precious.precious.gold.the.green.miserll.hoard.ye.soon.Hish.hish.God.goes.mong.the.worlds.blackberrying.Cook.ho.cook.and.cook.us.Jenny.hey.hey.hey.hey.hey.Jenny.Jenny.and.get.your.hoecake.done.CHAPTER.100.Leg.and.Arm.The.Pequod.of.Nantucket.Meets.the.Samuel.Enderby.of.London.Ship.ahoy.Hast.seen.the.White.Whale.So.cried.Ahab.once.more.hailing.a.ship.showing.English.colours.bearing.down.under.the.stern.Trumpet.to.mouth.the.old.man.was.standing.in.his.hoisted.quarterboat.his.ivory.leg.plainly.revealed.to.the.stranger.captain.who.was.carelessly.reclining.in.his.own.boats.bow.He.was.a.darklytanned.burly.goodnatured.finelooking.man.of.sixty.or.thereabouts.dressed.in.a.spacious.roundabout.that.hung.round.him.in.festoons.of.blue.pilotcloth.and.one.empty.arm.of.this.jacket.streamed.behind.him.like.the.broidered.arm.of.a.hussars.surcoat.Hast.seen.the.White.Whale.See.you.this.and.withdrawing.it.from.the.folds.that.had.hidden.it.he.held.up.a.white.arm.of.sperm.whale.bone.terminating.in.a.wooden.head.like.a.mallet.Man.my.boat.cried.Ahab.impetuously.and.tossing.about.the.oars.near.him.Stand.by.to.lower.In.less.than.a.minute.without.quitting.his.little.craft.he.and.his.crew.were.dropped.to.the.water.and.were.soon.alongside.of.the.stranger.But.here.a.curious.difficulty.presented.itself.In.the.excitement.of.the.moment.Ahab.had.forgotten.that.since.the.loss.of.his.leg.he.had.never.once.stepped.on.board.of.any.vessel.at.sea.but.his.own.and.then.it.was.always.by.an.ingenious.and.very.handy.mechanical.contrivance.peculiar.to.the.Pequod.and.a.thing.not.to.be.rigged.and.shipped.in.any.other.vessel.at.a.moments.warning.Now.it.is.no.very.easy.matter.for.anybody.except.those.who.are.almost.hourly.used.to.it.like.whalemen.to.clamber.up.a.ships.side.from.a.boat.on.the.open.sea.for.the.great.swells.now.lift.the.boat.high.up.towards.the.bulwarks.and.then.instantaneously.drop.it.half.way.down.to.the.kelson.So.deprived.of.one.leg.and.the.strange.ship.of.course.being.altogether.unsupplied.with.the.kindly.invention.Ahab.now.found.himself.abjectly.reduced.to.a.clumsy.landsman.again.hopelessly.eyeing.the.uncertain.changeful.height.he.could.hardly.hope.to.attain.It.has.before.been.hinted.perhaps.that.every.little.untoward.circumstance.that.befell.him.and.which.indirectly.sprang.from.his.luckless.mishap.almost.invariably.irritated.or.exasperated.Ahab.And.in.the.present.instance.all.this.was.heightened.by.the.sight.of.the.two.officers.of.the.strange.ship.leaning.over.the.side.by.the.perpendicular.ladder.of.nailed.cleets.there.and.swinging.towards.him.a.pair.of.tastefullyornamented.manropes.for.at.first.they.did.not.seem.to.bethink.them.that.a.onelegged.man.must.be.too.much.of.a.cripple.to.use.their.sea.bannisters.But.this.awkwardness.only.lasted.a.minute.because.the.strange.captain.observing.at.a.glance.how.affairs.stood.cried.out.I.see.I.see.avast.heaving.there.Jump.boys.and.swing.over.the.cuttingtackle.As.good.luck.would.have.it.they.had.had.a.whale.alongside.a.day.or.two.previous.and.the.great.tackles.were.still.aloft.and.the.massive.curved.blubberhook.now.clean.and.dry.was.still.attached.to.the.end.This.was.quickly.lowered.to.Ahab.who.at.once.comprehending.it.all.slid.his.solitary.thigh.into.the.curve.of.the.hook.it.was.like.sitting.in.the.fluke.of.an.anchor.or.the.crotch.of.an.apple.tree.and.then.giving.the.word.held.himself.fast.and.at.the.same.time.also.helped.to.hoist.his.own.weight.by.pulling.handoverhand.upon.one.of.the.running.parts.of.the.tackle.Soon.he.was.carefully.swung.inside.the.high.bulwarks.and.gently.landed.upon.the.capstan.head.With.his.ivory.arm.frankly.thrust.forth.in.welcome.the.other.captain.advanced.and.Ahab.putting.out.his.ivory.leg.and.crossing.the.ivory.arm.like.two.swordfish.blades.cried.out.in.his.walrus.way.Aye.aye.hearty.let.us.shake.bones.together.an.arm.and.a.leg.an.arm.that.never.can.shrink.dye.see.and.a.leg.that.never.can.run.Where.didst.thou.see.the.White.Whale.how.long.ago.The.White.Whale.said.the.Englishman.pointing.his.ivory.arm.towards.the.East.and.taking.a.rueful.sight.along.it.as.if.it.had.been.a.telescope.there.I.saw.him.on.the.Line.last.season.And.he.took.that.arm.off.did.he.asked.Ahab.now.sliding.down.from.the.capstan.and.resting.on.the.Englishmans.shoulder.as.he.did.so.Aye.he.was.the.cause.of.it.at.least.and.that.leg.too.Spin.me.the.yarn.said.Ahab.how.was.it.It.was.the.first.time.in.my.life.that.I.ever.cruised.on.the.Line.began.the.Englishman.I.was.ignorant.of.the.White.Whale.at.that.time.Well.one.day.we.lowered.for.a.pod.of.four.or.five.whales.and.my.boat.fastened.to.one.of.them.a.regular.circus.horse.he.was.too.that.went.milling.and.milling.round.so.that.my.boats.crew.could.only.trim.dish.by.sitting.all.their.sterns.on.the.outer.gunwale.Presently.up.breaches.from.the.bottom.of.the.sea.a.bouncing.great.whale.with.a.milkywhite.head.and.hump.all.crows.feet.and.wrinkles.It.was.he.it.was.he.cried.Ahab.suddenly.letting.out.his.suspended.breath.And.harpoons.sticking.in.near.his.starboard.fin.Aye.aye.they.were.mine.my.irons.cried.Ahab.exultingly.but.on.Give.me.a.chance.then.said.the.Englishman.goodhumoredly.Well.this.old.greatgrandfather.with.the.white.head.and.hump.runs.all.afoam.into.the.pod.and.goes.to.snapping.furiously.at.my.fastline.Aye.I.see.wanted.to.part.it.free.the.fastfish.an.old.trick.I.know.him.How.it.was.exactly.continued.the.onearmed.commander.I.do.not.know.but.in.biting.the.line.it.got.foul.of.his.teeth.caught.there.somehow.but.we.didnt.know.it.then.so.that.when.we.afterwards.pulled.on.the.line.bounce.we.came.plump.on.to.his.hump.instead.of.the.other.whales.that.went.off.to.windward.all.fluking.Seeing.how.matters.stood.and.what.a.noble.great.whale.it.was.the.noblest.and.biggest.I.ever.saw.sir.in.my.life.I.resolved.to.capture.him.spite.of.the.boiling.rage.he.seemed.to.be.in.And.thinking.the.haphazard.line.would.get.loose.or.the.tooth.it.was.tangled.to.might.draw.for.I.have.a.devil.of.a.boats.crew.for.a.pull.on.a.whaleline.seeing.all.this.I.say.I.jumped.into.my.first.mates.boat.Mr.Mounttops.here.by.the.way.Captain.Mounttop.Mounttop.the.captain.as.I.was.saying.I.jumped.into.Mounttops.boat.which.dye.see.was.gunwale.and.gunwale.with.mine.then.and.snatching.the.first.harpoon.let.this.old.greatgrandfather.have.it.But.Lord.look.you.sir.hearts.and.souls.alive.man.the.next.instant.in.a.jiff.I.was.blind.as.a.bat.both.eyes.out.all.befogged.and.bedeadened.with.black.foam.the.whales.tail.looming.straight.up.out.of.it.perpendicular.in.the.air.like.a.marble.steeple.No.use.sterning.all.then.but.as.I.was.groping.at.midday.with.a.blinding.sun.all.crownjewels.as.I.was.groping.I.say.after.the.second.iron.to.toss.it.overboard.down.comes.the.tail.like.a.Lima.tower.cutting.my.boat.in.two.leaving.each.half.in.splinters.and.flukes.first.the.white.hump.backed.through.the.wreck.as.though.it.was.all.chips.We.all.struck.out.To.escape.his.terrible.flailings.I.seized.hold.of.my.harpoonpole.sticking.in.him.and.for.a.moment.clung.to.that.like.a.sucking.fish.But.a.combing.sea.dashed.me.off.and.at.the.same.instant.the.fish.taking.one.good.dart.forwards.went.down.like.a.flash.and.the.barb.of.that.cursed.second.iron.towing.along.near.me.caught.me.here.clapping.his.hand.just.below.his.shoulder.yes.caught.me.just.here.I.say.and.bore.me.down.to.Hells.flames.I.was.thinking.when.when.all.of.a.sudden.thank.the.good.God.the.barb.ript.its.way.along.the.flesh.clear.along.the.whole.length.of.my.arm.came.out.nigh.my.wrist.and.up.I.floated.and.that.gentleman.there.will.tell.you.the.rest.by.the.way.captain.Dr.Bunger.ships.surgeon.Bunger.my.lad.the.captain.Now.Bunger.boy.spin.your.part.of.the.yarn.The.professional.gentleman.thus.familiarly.pointed.out.had.been.all.the.time.standing.near.them.with.nothing.specific.visible.to.denote.his.gentlemanly.rank.on.board.His.face.was.an.exceedingly.round.but.sober.one.he.was.dressed.in.a.faded.blue.woollen.frock.or.shirt.and.patched.trowsers.and.had.thus.far.been.dividing.his.attention.between.a.marlingspike.he.held.in.one.hand.and.a.pillbox.held.in.the.other.occasionally.casting.a.critical.glance.at.the.ivory.limbs.of.the.two.crippled.captains.But.at.his.superiors.introduction.of.him.to.Ahab.he.politely.bowed.and.straightway.went.on.to.do.his.captains.bidding.It.was.a.shocking.bad.wound.began.the.whalesurgeon.and.taking.my.advice.Captain.Boomer.here.stood.our.old.Sammy.Samuel.Enderby.is.the.name.of.my.ship.interrupted.the.onearmed.captain.addressing.Ahab.go.on.boy.Stood.our.old.Sammy.off.to.the.northward.to.get.out.of.the.blazing.hot.weather.there.on.the.Line.But.it.was.no.use.I.did.all.I.could.sat.up.with.him.nights.was.very.severe.with.him.in.the.matter.of.diet.Oh.very.severe.chimed.in.the.patient.himself.then.suddenly.altering.his.voice.Drinking.hot.rum.toddies.with.me.every.night.till.he.couldnt.see.to.put.on.the.bandages.and.sending.me.to.bed.half.seas.over.about.three.oclock.in.the.morning.Oh.ye.stars.he.sat.up.with.me.indeed.and.was.very.severe.in.my.diet.Oh.a.great.watcher.and.very.dietetically.severe.is.Dr.Bunger.Bunger.you.dog.laugh.out.why.dont.ye.You.know.youre.a.precious.jolly.rascal.But.heave.ahead.boy.Id.rather.be.killed.by.you.than.kept.alive.by.any.other.man.My.captain.you.must.have.ere.this.perceived.respected.sir.said.the.imperturbable.godlylooking.Bunger.slightly.bowing.to.Ahab.is.apt.to.be.facetious.at.times.he.spins.us.many.clever.things.of.that.sort.But.I.may.as.well.say.en.passant.as.the.French.remark.that.I.myself.that.is.to.say.Jack.Bunger.late.of.the.reverend.clergy.am.a.strict.total.abstinence.man.I.never.drink.Water.cried.the.captain.he.never.drinks.it.its.a.sort.of.fits.to.him.fresh.water.throws.him.into.the.hydrophobia.but.go.on.go.on.with.the.arm.story.Yes.I.may.as.well.said.the.surgeon.coolly.I.was.about.observing.sir.before.Captain.Boomers.facetious.interruption.that.spite.of.my.best.and.severest.endeavors.the.wound.kept.getting.worse.and.worse.the.truth.was.sir.it.was.as.ugly.gaping.wound.as.surgeon.ever.saw.more.than.two.feet.and.several.inches.long.I.measured.it.with.the.lead.line.In.short.it.grew.black.I.knew.what.was.threatened.and.off.it.came.But.I.had.no.hand.in.shipping.that.ivory.arm.there.that.thing.is.against.all.rule.pointing.at.it.with.the.marlingspike.that.is.the.captains.work.not.mine.he.ordered.the.carpenter.to.make.it.he.had.that.clubhammer.there.put.to.the.end.to.knock.some.ones.brains.out.with.I.suppose.as.he.tried.mine.once.He.flies.into.diabolical.passions.sometimes.Do.ye.see.this.dent.sir.removing.his.hat.and.brushing.aside.his.hair.and.exposing.a.bowllike.cavity.in.his.skull.but.which.bore.not.the.slightest.scarry.trace.or.any.token.of.ever.having.been.a.wound.Well.the.captain.there.will.tell.you.how.that.came.here.he.knows.No.I.dont.said.the.captain.but.his.mother.did.he.was.born.with.it.Oh.you.solemn.rogue.you.you.Bunger.was.there.ever.such.another.Bunger.in.the.watery.world.Bunger.when.you.die.you.ought.to.die.in.pickle.you.dog.you.should.be.preserved.to.future.ages.you.rascal.What.became.of.the.White.Whale.now.cried.Ahab.who.thus.far.had.been.impatiently.listening.to.this.byplay.between.the.two.Englishmen.Oh.cried.the.onearmed.captain.oh.yes.Well.after.he.sounded.we.didnt.see.him.again.for.some.time.in.fact.as.I.before.hinted.I.didnt.then.know.what.whale.it.was.that.had.served.me.such.a.trick.till.some.time.afterwards.when.coming.back.to.the.Line.we.heard.about.Moby.Dick.as.some.call.him.and.then.I.knew.it.was.he.Didst.thou.cross.his.wake.again.Twice.But.could.not.fasten.Didnt.want.to.try.to.aint.one.limb.enough.What.should.I.do.without.this.other.arm.And.Im.thinking.Moby.Dick.doesnt.bite.so.much.as.he.swallows.Well.then.interrupted.Bunger.give.him.your.left.arm.for.bait.to.get.the.right.Do.you.know.gentlemen.very.gravely.and.mathematically.bowing.to.each.Captain.in.succession.Do.you.know.gentlemen.that.the.digestive.organs.of.the.whale.are.so.inscrutably.constructed.by.Divine.Providence.that.it.is.quite.impossible.for.him.to.completely.digest.even.a.mans.arm.And.he.knows.it.too.So.that.what.you.take.for.the.White.Whales.malice.is.only.his.awkwardness.For.he.never.means.to.swallow.a.single.limb.he.only.thinks.to.terrify.by.feints.But.sometimes.he.is.like.the.old.juggling.fellow.formerly.a.patient.of.mine.in.Ceylon.that.making.believe.swallow.jackknives.once.upon.a.time.let.one.drop.into.him.in.good.earnest.and.there.it.stayed.for.a.twelvemonth.or.more.when.I.gave.him.an.emetic.and.he.heaved.it.up.in.small.tacks.dye.see.No.possible.way.for.him.to.digest.that.jackknife.and.fully.incorporate.it.into.his.general.bodily.system.Yes.Captain.Boomer.if.you.are.quick.enough.about.it.and.have.a.mind.to.pawn.one.arm.for.the.sake.of.the.privilege.of.giving.decent.burial.to.the.other.why.in.that.case.the.arm.is.yours.only.let.the.whale.have.another.chance.at.you.shortly.thats.all.No.thank.ye.Bunger.said.the.English.Captain.hes.welcome.to.the.arm.he.has.since.I.cant.help.it.and.didnt.know.him.then.but.not.to.another.one.No.more.White.Whales.for.me.Ive.lowered.for.him.once.and.that.has.satisfied.me.There.would.be.great.glory.in.killing.him.I.know.that.and.there.is.a.shipload.of.precious.sperm.in.him.but.hark.ye.hes.best.let.alone.dont.you.think.so.Captain.glancing.at.the.ivory.leg.He.is.But.he.will.still.be.hunted.for.all.that.What.is.best.let.alone.that.accursed.thing.is.not.always.what.least.allures.Hes.all.a.magnet.How.long.since.thou.sawst.him.last.Which.way.heading.Bless.my.soul.and.curse.the.foul.fiends.cried.Bunger.stoopingly.walking.round.Ahab.and.like.a.dog.strangely.snuffing.this.mans.blood.bring.the.thermometer.its.at.the.boiling.point.his.pulse.makes.these.planks.beat.sir.taking.a.lancet.from.his.pocket.and.drawing.near.to.Ahabs.arm.Avast.roared.Ahab.dashing.him.against.the.bulwarks.Man.the.boat.Which.way.heading.Good.God.cried.the.English.Captain.to.whom.the.question.was.put.Whats.the.matter.He.was.heading.east.I.think.Is.your.Captain.crazy.whispering.Fedallah.But.Fedallah.putting.a.finger.on.his.lip.slid.over.the.bulwarks.to.take.the.boats.steering.oar.and.Ahab.swinging.the.cuttingtackle.towards.him.commanded.the.ships.sailors.to.stand.by.to.lower.In.a.moment.he.was.standing.in.the.boats.stern.and.the.Manilla.men.were.springing.to.their.oars.In.vain.the.English.Captain.hailed.him.With.back.to.the.stranger.ship.and.face.set.like.a.flint.to.his.own.Ahab.stood.upright.till.alongside.of.the.Pequod.CHAPTER.101.The.Decanter.Ere.the.English.ship.fades.from.sight.be.it.set.down.here.that.she.hailed.from.London.and.was.named.after.the.late.Samuel.Enderby.merchant.of.that.city.the.original.of.the.famous.whaling.house.of.Enderby.Sons.a.house.which.in.my.poor.whalemans.opinion.comes.not.far.behind.the.united.royal.houses.of.the.Tudors.and.Bourbons.in.point.of.real.historical.interest.How.long.prior.to.the.year.of.our.Lord.1775.this.great.whaling.house.was.in.existence.my.numerous.fishdocuments.do.not.make.plain.but.in.that.year.1775.it.fitted.out.the.first.English.ships.that.ever.regularly.hunted.the.Sperm.Whale.though.for.some.score.of.years.previous.ever.since.1726.our.valiant.Coffins.and.Maceys.of.Nantucket.and.the.Vineyard.had.in.large.fleets.pursued.that.Leviathan.but.only.in.the.North.and.South.Atlantic.not.elsewhere.Be.it.distinctly.recorded.here.that.the.Nantucketers.were.the.first.among.mankind.to.harpoon.with.civilized.steel.the.great.Sperm.Whale.and.that.for.half.a.century.they.were.the.only.people.of.the.whole.globe.who.so.harpooned.him.In.1778.a.fine.ship.the.Amelia.fitted.out.for.the.express.purpose.and.at.the.sole.charge.of.the.vigorous.Enderbys.boldly.rounded.Cape.Horn.and.was.the.first.among.the.nations.to.lower.a.whaleboat.of.any.sort.in.the.great.South.Sea.The.voyage.was.a.skilful.and.lucky.one.and.returning.to.her.berth.with.her.hold.full.of.the.precious.sperm.the.Amelias.example.was.soon.followed.by.other.ships.English.and.American.and.thus.the.vast.Sperm.Whale.grounds.of.the.Pacific.were.thrown.open.But.not.content.with.this.good.deed.the.indefatigable.house.again.bestirred.itself.Samuel.and.all.his.Sons.how.many.their.mother.only.knows.and.under.their.immediate.auspices.and.partly.I.think.at.their.expense.the.British.government.was.induced.to.send.the.sloopofwar.Rattler.on.a.whaling.voyage.of.discovery.into.the.South.Sea.Commanded.by.a.naval.PostCaptain.the.Rattler.made.a.rattling.voyage.of.it.and.did.some.service.how.much.does.not.appear.But.this.is.not.all.In.1819.the.same.house.fitted.out.a.discovery.whale.ship.of.their.own.to.go.on.a.tasting.cruise.to.the.remote.waters.of.Japan.That.ship.well.called.the.Syren.made.a.noble.experimental.cruise.and.it.was.thus.that.the.great.Japanese.Whaling.Ground.first.became.generally.known.The.Syren.in.this.famous.voyage.was.commanded.by.a.Captain.Coffin.a.Nantucketer.All.honor.to.the.Enderbies.therefore.whose.house.I.think.exists.to.the.present.day.though.doubtless.the.original.Samuel.must.long.ago.have.slipped.his.cable.for.the.great.South.Sea.of.the.other.world.The.ship.named.after.him.was.worthy.of.the.honor.being.a.very.fast.sailer.and.a.noble.craft.every.way.I.boarded.her.once.at.midnight.somewhere.off.the.Patagonian.coast.and.drank.good.flip.down.in.the.forecastle.It.was.a.fine.gam.we.had.and.they.were.all.trumps.every.soul.on.board.A.short.life.to.them.and.a.jolly.death.And.that.fine.gam.I.had.long.very.long.after.old.Ahab.touched.her.planks.with.his.ivory.heel.it.minds.me.of.the.noble.solid.Saxon.hospitality.of.that.ship.and.may.my.parson.forget.me.and.the.devil.remember.me.if.I.ever.lose.sight.of.it.Flip.Did.I.say.we.had.flip.Yes.and.we.flipped.it.at.the.rate.of.ten.gallons.the.hour.and.when.the.squall.came.for.its.squally.off.there.by.Patagonia.and.all.hands.visitors.and.all.were.called.to.reef.topsails.we.were.so.topheavy.that.we.had.to.swing.each.other.aloft.in.bowlines.and.we.ignorantly.furled.the.skirts.of.our.jackets.into.the.sails.so.that.we.hung.there.reefed.fast.in.the.howling.gale.a.warning.example.to.all.drunken.tars.However.the.masts.did.not.go.overboard.and.by.and.by.we.scrambled.down.so.sober.that.we.had.to.pass.the.flip.again.though.the.savage.salt.spray.bursting.down.the.forecastle.scuttle.rather.too.much.diluted.and.pickled.it.to.my.taste.The.beef.was.fine.tough.but.with.body.in.it.They.said.it.was.bullbeef.others.that.it.was.dromedary.beef.but.I.do.not.know.for.certain.how.that.was.They.had.dumplings.too.small.but.substantial.symmetrically.globular.and.indestructible.dumplings.I.fancied.that.you.could.feel.them.and.roll.them.about.in.you.after.they.were.swallowed.If.you.stooped.over.too.far.forward.you.risked.their.pitching.out.of.you.like.billiardballs.The.bread.but.that.couldnt.be.helped.besides.it.was.an.antiscorbutic.in.short.the.bread.contained.the.only.fresh.fare.they.had.But.the.forecastle.was.not.very.light.and.it.was.very.easy.to.step.over.into.a.dark.corner.when.you.ate.it.But.all.in.all.taking.her.from.truck.to.helm.considering.the.dimensions.of.the.cooks.boilers.including.his.own.live.parchment.boilers.fore.and.aft.I.say.the.Samuel.Enderby.was.a.jolly.ship.of.good.fare.and.plenty.fine.flip.and.strong.crack.fellows.all.and.capital.from.boot.heels.to.hatband.But.why.was.it.think.ye.that.the.Samuel.Enderby.and.some.other.English.whalers.I.know.of.not.all.though.were.such.famous.hospitable.ships.that.passed.round.the.beef.and.the.bread.and.the.can.and.the.joke.and.were.not.soon.weary.of.eating.and.drinking.and.laughing.I.will.tell.you.The.abounding.good.cheer.of.these.English.whalers.is.matter.for.historical.research.Nor.have.I.been.at.all.sparing.of.historical.whale.research.when.it.has.seemed.needed.The.English.were.preceded.in.the.whale.fishery.by.the.Hollanders.Zealanders.and.Danes.from.whom.they.derived.many.terms.still.extant.in.the.fishery.and.what.is.yet.more.their.fat.old.fashions.touching.plenty.to.eat.and.drink.For.as.a.general.thing.the.English.merchantship.scrimps.her.crew.but.not.so.the.English.whaler.Hence.in.the.English.this.thing.of.whaling.good.cheer.is.not.normal.and.natural.but.incidental.and.particular.and.therefore.must.have.some.special.origin.which.is.here.pointed.out.and.will.be.still.further.elucidated.During.my.researches.in.the.Leviathanic.histories.I.stumbled.upon.an.ancient.Dutch.volume.which.by.the.musty.whaling.smell.of.it.I.knew.must.be.about.whalers.The.title.was.Dan.Coopman.wherefore.I.concluded.that.this.must.be.the.invaluable.memoirs.of.some.Amsterdam.cooper.in.the.fishery.as.every.whale.ship.must.carry.its.cooper.I.was.reinforced.in.this.opinion.by.seeing.that.it.was.the.production.of.one.Fitz.Swackhammer.But.my.friend.Dr.Snodhead.a.very.learned.man.professor.of.Low.Dutch.and.High.German.in.the.college.of.Santa.Claus.and.St.Potts.to.whom.I.handed.the.work.for.translation.giving.him.a.box.of.sperm.candles.for.his.trouble.this.same.Dr.Snodhead.so.soon.as.he.spied.the.book.assured.me.that.Dan.Coopman.did.not.mean.The.Cooper.but.The.Merchant.In.short.this.ancient.and.learned.Low.Dutch.book.treated.of.the.commerce.of.Holland.and.among.other.subjects.contained.a.very.interesting.account.of.its.whale.fishery.And.in.this.chapter.it.was.headed.Smeer.or.Fat.that.I.found.a.long.detailed.list.of.the.outfits.for.the.larders.and.cellars.of.180.sail.of.Dutch.whalemen.from.which.list.as.translated.by.Dr.Snodhead.I.transcribe.the.following.400000.lbs.of.beef.60000.lbs.Friesland.pork.150000.lbs.of.stock.fish.550000.lbs.of.biscuit.72000.lbs.of.soft.bread.2800.firkins.of.butter.20000.lbs.Texel.Leyden.cheese.144000.lbs.cheese.probably.an.inferior.article.550.ankers.of.Geneva.10800.barrels.of.beer.Most.statistical.tables.are.parchingly.dry.in.the.reading.not.so.in.the.present.case.however.where.the.reader.is.flooded.with.whole.pipes.barrels.quarts.and.gills.of.good.gin.and.good.cheer.At.the.time.I.devoted.three.days.to.the.studious.digesting.of.all.this.beer.beef.and.bread.during.which.many.profound.thoughts.were.incidentally.suggested.to.me.capable.of.a.transcendental.and.Platonic.application.and.furthermore.I.compiled.supplementary.tables.of.my.own.touching.the.probable.quantity.of.stockfish.etc.consumed.by.every.Low.Dutch.harpooneer.in.that.ancient.Greenland.and.Spitzbergen.whale.fishery.In.the.first.place.the.amount.of.butter.and.Texel.and.Leyden.cheese.consumed.seems.amazing.I.impute.it.though.to.their.naturally.unctuous.natures.being.rendered.still.more.unctuous.by.the.nature.of.their.vocation.and.especially.by.their.pursuing.their.game.in.those.frigid.Polar.Seas.on.the.very.coasts.of.that.Esquimaux.country.where.the.convivial.natives.pledge.each.other.in.bumpers.of.train.oil.The.quantity.of.beer.too.is.very.large.10800.barrels.Now.as.those.polar.fisheries.could.only.be.prosecuted.in.the.short.summer.of.that.climate.so.that.the.whole.cruise.of.one.of.these.Dutch.whalemen.including.the.short.voyage.to.and.from.the.Spitzbergen.sea.did.not.much.exceed.three.months.say.and.reckoning.30.men.to.each.of.their.fleet.of.180.sail.we.have.5400.Low.Dutch.seamen.in.all.therefore.I.say.we.have.precisely.two.barrels.of.beer.per.man.for.a.twelve.weeks.allowance.exclusive.of.his.fair.proportion.of.that.550.ankers.of.gin.Now.whether.these.gin.and.beer.harpooneers.so.fuddled.as.one.might.fancy.them.to.have.been.were.the.right.sort.of.men.to.stand.up.in.a.boats.head.and.take.good.aim.at.flying.whales.this.would.seem.somewhat.improbable.Yet.they.did.aim.at.them.and.hit.them.too.But.this.was.very.far.North.be.it.remembered.where.beer.agrees.well.with.the.constitution.upon.the.Equator.in.our.southern.fishery.beer.would.be.apt.to.make.the.harpooneer.sleepy.at.the.masthead.and.boozy.in.his.boat.and.grievous.loss.might.ensue.to.Nantucket.and.New.Bedford.But.no.more.enough.has.been.said.to.show.that.the.old.Dutch.whalers.of.two.or.three.centuries.ago.were.high.livers.and.that.the.English.whalers.have.not.neglected.so.excellent.an.example.For.say.they.when.cruising.in.an.empty.ship.if.you.can.get.nothing.better.out.of.the.world.get.a.good.dinner.out.of.it.at.least.And.this.empties.the.decanter.CHAPTER.102.A.Bower.in.the.Arsacides.Hitherto.in.descriptively.treating.of.the.Sperm.Whale.I.have.chiefly.dwelt.upon.the.marvels.of.his.outer.aspect.or.separately.and.in.detail.upon.some.few.interior.structural.features.But.to.a.large.and.thorough.sweeping.comprehension.of.him.it.behooves.me.now.to.unbutton.him.still.further.and.untagging.the.points.of.his.hose.unbuckling.his.garters.and.casting.loose.the.hooks.and.the.eyes.of.the.joints.of.his.innermost.bones.set.him.before.you.in.his.ultimatum.that.is.to.say.in.his.unconditional.skeleton.But.how.now.Ishmael.How.is.it.that.you.a.mere.oarsman.in.the.fishery.pretend.to.know.aught.about.the.subterranean.parts.of.the.whale.Did.erudite.Stubb.mounted.upon.your.capstan.deliver.lectures.on.the.anatomy.of.the.Cetacea.and.by.help.of.the.windlass.hold.up.a.specimen.rib.for.exhibition.Explain.thyself.Ishmael.Can.you.land.a.fullgrown.whale.on.your.deck.for.examination.as.a.cook.dishes.a.roastpig.Surely.not.A.veritable.witness.have.you.hitherto.been.Ishmael.but.have.a.care.how.you.seize.the.privilege.of.Jonah.alone.the.privilege.of.discoursing.upon.the.joists.and.beams.the.rafters.ridgepole.sleepers.and.underpinnings.making.up.the.framework.of.leviathan.and.belike.of.the.tallowvats.dairyrooms.butteries.and.cheeseries.in.his.bowels.I.confess.that.since.Jonah.few.whalemen.have.penetrated.very.far.beneath.the.skin.of.the.adult.whale.nevertheless.I.have.been.blessed.with.an.opportunity.to.dissect.him.in.miniature.In.a.ship.I.belonged.to.a.small.cub.Sperm.Whale.was.once.bodily.hoisted.to.the.deck.for.his.poke.or.bag.to.make.sheaths.for.the.barbs.of.the.harpoons.and.for.the.heads.of.the.lances.Think.you.I.let.that.chance.go.without.using.my.boathatchet.and.jackknife.and.breaking.the.seal.and.reading.all.the.contents.of.that.young.cub.And.as.for.my.exact.knowledge.of.the.bones.of.the.leviathan.in.their.gigantic.full.grown.development.for.that.rare.knowledge.I.am.indebted.to.my.late.royal.friend.Tranquo.king.of.Tranque.one.of.the.Arsacides.For.being.at.Tranque.years.ago.when.attached.to.the.tradingship.Dey.of.Algiers.I.was.invited.to.spend.part.of.the.Arsacidean.holidays.with.the.lord.of.Tranque.at.his.retired.palm.villa.at.Pupella.a.seaside.glen.not.very.far.distant.from.what.our.sailors.called.BambooTown.his.capital.Among.many.other.fine.qualities.my.royal.friend.Tranquo.being.gifted.with.a.devout.love.for.all.matters.of.barbaric.vert.had.brought.together.in.Pupella.whatever.rare.things.the.more.ingenious.of.his.people.could.invent.chiefly.carved.woods.of.wonderful.devices.chiselled.shells.inlaid.spears.costly.paddles.aromatic.canoes.and.all.these.distributed.among.whatever.natural.wonders.the.wonderfreighted.tributerendering.waves.had.cast.upon.his.shores.Chief.among.these.latter.was.a.great.Sperm.Whale.which.after.an.unusually.long.raging.gale.had.been.found.dead.and.stranded.with.his.head.against.a.cocoanut.tree.whose.plumagelike.tufted.droopings.seemed.his.verdant.jet.When.the.vast.body.had.at.last.been.stripped.of.its.fathomdeep.enfoldings.and.the.bones.become.dust.dry.in.the.sun.then.the.skeleton.was.carefully.transported.up.the.Pupella.glen.where.a.grand.temple.of.lordly.palms.now.sheltered.it.The.ribs.were.hung.with.trophies.the.vertebr.were.carved.with.Arsacidean.annals.in.strange.hieroglyphics.in.the.skull.the.priests.kept.up.an.unextinguished.aromatic.flame.so.that.the.mystic.head.again.sent.forth.its.vapory.spout.while.suspended.from.a.bough.the.terrific.lower.jaw.vibrated.over.all.the.devotees.like.the.hairhung.sword.that.so.affrighted.Damocles.It.was.a.wondrous.sight.The.wood.was.green.as.mosses.of.the.Icy.Glen.the.trees.stood.high.and.haughty.feeling.their.living.sap.the.industrious.earth.beneath.was.as.a.weavers.loom.with.a.gorgeous.carpet.on.it.whereof.the.groundvine.tendrils.formed.the.warp.and.woof.and.the.living.flowers.the.figures.All.the.trees.with.all.their.laden.branches.all.the.shrubs.and.ferns.and.grasses.the.messagecarrying.air.all.these.unceasingly.were.active.Through.the.lacings.of.the.leaves.the.great.sun.seemed.a.flying.shuttle.weaving.the.unwearied.verdure.Oh.busy.weaver.unseen.weaver.pause.one.word.whither.flows.the.fabric.what.palace.may.it.deck.wherefore.all.these.ceaseless.toilings.Speak.weaver.stay.thy.hand.but.one.single.word.with.thee.Nay.the.shuttle.flies.the.figures.float.from.forth.the.loom.the.freshetrushing.carpet.for.ever.slides.away.The.weavergod.he.weaves.and.by.that.weaving.is.he.deafened.that.he.hears.no.mortal.voice.and.by.that.humming.we.too.who.look.on.the.loom.are.deafened.and.only.when.we.escape.it.shall.we.hear.the.thousand.voices.that.speak.through.it.For.even.so.it.is.in.all.material.factories.The.spoken.words.that.are.inaudible.among.the.flying.spindles.those.same.words.are.plainly.heard.without.the.walls.bursting.from.the.opened.casements.Thereby.have.villainies.been.detected.Ah.mortal.then.be.heedful.for.so.in.all.this.din.of.the.great.worlds.loom.thy.subtlest.thinkings.may.be.overheard.afar.Now.amid.the.green.liferestless.loom.of.that.Arsacidean.wood.the.great.white.worshipped.skeleton.lay.lounging.a.gigantic.idler.Yet.as.the.everwoven.verdant.warp.and.woof.intermixed.and.hummed.around.him.the.mighty.idler.seemed.the.cunning.weaver.himself.all.woven.over.with.the.vines.every.month.assuming.greener.fresher.verdure.but.himself.a.skeleton.Life.folded.Death.Death.trellised.Life.the.grim.god.wived.with.youthful.Life.and.begat.him.curlyheaded.glories.Now.when.with.royal.Tranquo.I.visited.this.wondrous.whale.and.saw.the.skull.an.altar.and.the.artificial.smoke.ascending.from.where.the.real.jet.had.issued.I.marvelled.that.the.king.should.regard.a.chapel.as.an.object.of.vert.He.laughed.But.more.I.marvelled.that.the.priests.should.swear.that.smoky.jet.of.his.was.genuine.To.and.fro.I.paced.before.this.skeleton.brushed.the.vines.aside.broke.through.the.ribs.and.with.a.ball.of.Arsacidean.twine.wandered.eddied.long.amid.its.many.winding.shaded.colonnades.and.arbours.But.soon.my.line.was.out.and.following.it.back.I.emerged.from.the.opening.where.I.entered.I.saw.no.living.thing.within.naught.was.there.but.bones.Cutting.me.a.green.measuringrod.I.once.more.dived.within.the.skeleton.From.their.arrowslit.in.the.skull.the.priests.perceived.me.taking.the.altitude.of.the.final.rib.How.now.they.shouted.Darst.thou.measure.this.our.god.Thats.for.us.Aye.priests.well.how.long.do.ye.make.him.then.But.hereupon.a.fierce.contest.rose.among.them.concerning.feet.and.inches.they.cracked.each.others.sconces.with.their.yardsticks.the.great.skull.echoed.and.seizing.that.lucky.chance.I.quickly.concluded.my.own.admeasurements.These.admeasurements.I.now.propose.to.set.before.you.But.first.be.it.recorded.that.in.this.matter.I.am.not.free.to.utter.any.fancied.measurement.I.please.Because.there.are.skeleton.authorities.you.can.refer.to.to.test.my.accuracy.There.is.a.Leviathanic.Museum.they.tell.me.in.Hull.England.one.of.the.whaling.ports.of.that.country.where.they.have.some.fine.specimens.of.finbacks.and.other.whales.Likewise.I.have.heard.that.in.the.museum.of.Manchester.in.New.Hampshire.they.have.what.the.proprietors.call.the.only.perfect.specimen.of.a.Greenland.or.River.Whale.in.the.United.States.Moreover.at.a.place.in.Yorkshire.England.Burton.Constable.by.name.a.certain.Sir.Clifford.Constable.has.in.his.possession.the.skeleton.of.a.Sperm.Whale.but.of.moderate.size.by.no.means.of.the.fullgrown.magnitude.of.my.friend.King.Tranquos.In.both.cases.the.stranded.whales.to.which.these.two.skeletons.belonged.were.originally.claimed.by.their.proprietors.upon.similar.grounds.King.Tranquo.seizing.his.because.he.wanted.it.and.Sir.Clifford.because.he.was.lord.of.the.seignories.of.those.parts.Sir.Cliffords.whale.has.been.articulated.throughout.so.that.like.a.great.chest.of.drawers.you.can.open.and.shut.him.in.all.his.bony.cavities.spread.out.his.ribs.like.a.gigantic.fan.and.swing.all.day.upon.his.lower.jaw.Locks.are.to.be.put.upon.some.of.his.trapdoors.and.shutters.and.a.footman.will.show.round.future.visitors.with.a.bunch.of.keys.at.his.side.Sir.Clifford.thinks.of.charging.twopence.for.a.peep.at.the.whispering.gallery.in.the.spinal.column.threepence.to.hear.the.echo.in.the.hollow.of.his.cerebellum.and.sixpence.for.the.unrivalled.view.from.his.forehead.The.skeleton.dimensions.I.shall.now.proceed.to.set.down.are.copied.verbatim.from.my.right.arm.where.I.had.them.tattooed.as.in.my.wild.wanderings.at.that.period.there.was.no.other.secure.way.of.preserving.such.valuable.statistics.But.as.I.was.crowded.for.space.and.wished.the.other.parts.of.my.body.to.remain.a.blank.page.for.a.poem.I.was.then.composing.at.least.what.untattooed.parts.might.remain.I.did.not.trouble.myself.with.the.odd.inches.nor.indeed.should.inches.at.all.enter.into.a.congenial.admeasurement.of.the.whale.CHAPTER.103.Measurement.of.The.Whales.Skeleton.In.the.first.place.I.wish.to.lay.before.you.a.particular.plain.statement.touching.the.living.bulk.of.this.leviathan.whose.skeleton.we.are.briefly.to.exhibit.Such.a.statement.may.prove.useful.here.According.to.a.careful.calculation.I.have.made.and.which.I.partly.base.upon.Captain.Scoresbys.estimate.of.seventy.tons.for.the.largest.sized.Greenland.whale.of.sixty.feet.in.length.according.to.my.careful.calculation.I.say.a.Sperm.Whale.of.the.largest.magnitude.between.eightyfive.and.ninety.feet.in.length.and.something.less.than.forty.feet.in.its.fullest.circumference.such.a.whale.will.weigh.at.least.ninety.tons.so.that.reckoning.thirteen.men.to.a.ton.he.would.considerably.outweigh.the.combined.population.of.a.whole.village.of.one.thousand.one.hundred.inhabitants.Think.you.not.then.that.brains.like.yoked.cattle.should.be.put.to.this.leviathan.to.make.him.at.all.budge.to.any.landsmans.imagination.Having.already.in.various.ways.put.before.you.his.skull.spouthole.jaw.teeth.tail.forehead.fins.and.divers.other.parts.I.shall.now.simply.point.out.what.is.most.interesting.in.the.general.bulk.of.his.unobstructed.bones.But.as.the.colossal.skull.embraces.so.very.large.a.proportion.of.the.entire.extent.of.the.skeleton.as.it.is.by.far.the.most.complicated.part.and.as.nothing.is.to.be.repeated.concerning.it.in.this.chapter.you.must.not.fail.to.carry.it.in.your.mind.or.under.your.arm.as.we.proceed.otherwise.you.will.not.gain.a.complete.notion.of.the.general.structure.we.are.about.to.view.In.length.the.Sperm.Whales.skeleton.at.Tranque.measured.seventytwo.feet.so.that.when.fully.invested.and.extended.in.life.he.must.have.been.ninety.feet.long.for.in.the.whale.the.skeleton.loses.about.one.fifth.in.length.compared.with.the.living.body.Of.this.seventytwo.feet.his.skull.and.jaw.comprised.some.twenty.feet.leaving.some.fifty.feet.of.plain.backbone.Attached.to.this.backbone.for.something.less.than.a.third.of.its.length.was.the.mighty.circular.basket.of.ribs.which.once.enclosed.his.vitals.To.me.this.vast.ivoryribbed.chest.with.the.long.unrelieved.spine.extending.far.away.from.it.in.a.straight.line.not.a.little.resembled.the.hull.of.a.great.ship.newlaid.upon.the.stocks.when.only.some.twenty.of.her.naked.bowribs.are.inserted.and.the.keel.is.otherwise.for.the.time.but.a.long.disconnected.timber.The.ribs.were.ten.on.a.side.The.first.to.begin.from.the.neck.was.nearly.six.feet.long.the.second.third.and.fourth.were.each.successively.longer.till.you.came.to.the.climax.of.the.fifth.or.one.of.the.middle.ribs.which.measured.eight.feet.and.some.inches.From.that.part.the.remaining.ribs.diminished.till.the.tenth.and.last.only.spanned.five.feet.and.some.inches.In.general.thickness.they.all.bore.a.seemly.correspondence.to.their.length.The.middle.ribs.were.the.most.arched.In.some.of.the.Arsacides.they.are.used.for.beams.whereon.to.lay.footpath.bridges.over.small.streams.In.considering.these.ribs.I.could.not.but.be.struck.anew.with.the.circumstance.so.variously.repeated.in.this.book.that.the.skeleton.of.the.whale.is.by.no.means.the.mould.of.his.invested.form.The.largest.of.the.Tranque.ribs.one.of.the.middle.ones.occupied.that.part.of.the.fish.which.in.life.is.greatest.in.depth.Now.the.greatest.depth.of.the.invested.body.of.this.particular.whale.must.have.been.at.least.sixteen.feet.whereas.the.corresponding.rib.measured.but.little.more.than.eight.feet.So.that.this.rib.only.conveyed.half.of.the.true.notion.of.the.living.magnitude.of.that.part.Besides.for.some.way.where.I.now.saw.but.a.naked.spine.all.that.had.been.once.wrapped.round.with.tons.of.added.bulk.in.flesh.muscle.blood.and.bowels.Still.more.for.the.ample.fins.I.here.saw.but.a.few.disordered.joints.and.in.place.of.the.weighty.and.majestic.but.boneless.flukes.an.utter.blank.How.vain.and.foolish.then.thought.I.for.timid.untravelled.man.to.try.to.comprehend.aright.this.wondrous.whale.by.merely.poring.over.his.dead.attenuated.skeleton.stretched.in.this.peaceful.wood.No.Only.in.the.heart.of.quickest.perils.only.when.within.the.eddyings.of.his.angry.flukes.only.on.the.profound.unbounded.sea.can.the.fully.invested.whale.be.truly.and.livingly.found.out.But.the.spine.For.that.the.best.way.we.can.consider.it.is.with.a.crane.to.pile.its.bones.high.up.on.end.No.speedy.enterprise.But.now.its.done.it.looks.much.like.Pompeys.Pillar.There.are.forty.and.odd.vertebr.in.all.which.in.the.skeleton.are.not.locked.together.They.mostly.lie.like.the.great.knobbed.blocks.on.a.Gothic.spire.forming.solid.courses.of.heavy.masonry.The.largest.a.middle.one.is.in.width.something.less.than.three.feet.and.in.depth.more.than.four.The.smallest.where.the.spine.tapers.away.into.the.tail.is.only.two.inches.in.width.and.looks.something.like.a.white.billiardball.I.was.told.that.there.were.still.smaller.ones.but.they.had.been.lost.by.some.little.cannibal.urchins.the.priests.children.who.had.stolen.them.to.play.marbles.with.Thus.we.see.how.that.the.spine.of.even.the.hugest.of.living.things.tapers.off.at.last.into.simple.childs.play.CHAPTER.104.The.Fossil.Whale.From.his.mighty.bulk.the.whale.affords.a.most.congenial.theme.whereon.to.enlarge.amplify.and.generally.expatiate.Would.you.you.could.not.compress.him.By.good.rights.he.should.only.be.treated.of.in.imperial.folio.Not.to.tell.over.again.his.furlongs.from.spiracle.to.tail.and.the.yards.he.measures.about.the.waist.only.think.of.the.gigantic.involutions.of.his.intestines.where.they.lie.in.him.like.great.cables.and.hawsers.coiled.away.in.the.subterranean.orlopdeck.of.a.lineofbattleship.Since.I.have.undertaken.to.manhandle.this.Leviathan.it.behooves.me.to.approve.myself.omnisciently.exhaustive.in.the.enterprise.not.overlooking.the.minutest.seminal.germs.of.his.blood.and.spinning.him.out.to.the.uttermost.coil.of.his.bowels.Having.already.described.him.in.most.of.his.present.habitatory.and.anatomical.peculiarities.it.now.remains.to.magnify.him.in.an.archological.fossiliferous.and.antediluvian.point.of.view.Applied.to.any.other.creature.than.the.Leviathan.to.an.ant.or.a.flea.such.portly.terms.might.justly.be.deemed.unwarrantably.grandiloquent.But.when.Leviathan.is.the.text.the.case.is.altered.Fain.am.I.to.stagger.to.this.emprise.under.the.weightiest.words.of.the.dictionary.And.here.be.it.said.that.whenever.it.has.been.convenient.to.consult.one.in.the.course.of.these.dissertations.I.have.invariably.used.a.huge.quarto.edition.of.Johnson.expressly.purchased.for.that.purpose.because.that.famous.lexicographers.uncommon.personal.bulk.more.fitted.him.to.compile.a.lexicon.to.be.used.by.a.whale.author.like.me.One.often.hears.of.writers.that.rise.and.swell.with.their.subject.though.it.may.seem.but.an.ordinary.one.How.then.with.me.writing.of.this.Leviathan.Unconsciously.my.chirography.expands.into.placard.capitals.Give.me.a.condors.quill.Give.me.Vesuvius.crater.for.an.inkstand.Friends.hold.my.arms.For.in.the.mere.act.of.penning.my.thoughts.of.this.Leviathan.they.weary.me.and.make.me.faint.with.their.outreaching.comprehensiveness.of.sweep.as.if.to.include.the.whole.circle.of.the.sciences.and.all.the.generations.of.whales.and.men.and.mastodons.past.present.and.to.come.with.all.the.revolving.panoramas.of.empire.on.earth.and.throughout.the.whole.universe.not.excluding.its.suburbs.Such.and.so.magnifying.is.the.virtue.of.a.large.and.liberal.theme.We.expand.to.its.bulk.To.produce.a.mighty.book.you.must.choose.a.mighty.theme.No.great.and.enduring.volume.can.ever.be.written.on.the.flea.though.many.there.be.who.have.tried.it.Ere.entering.upon.the.subject.of.Fossil.Whales.I.present.my.credentials.as.a.geologist.by.stati