dog obeyed. Negoro turned very pale, and made his way cautiously back to his own quarters.
“Hercules,” said Dick, “keep your eye[18] upon that man.”
“Yes, I will,” he answered.
The whale-boat became a speck upon the water.
Chapter VIII
A Catastrophe
Captain Hull knew the difficulty of the task. He wanted to approach to the whale from the leeward. He had perfect confidence in his boatswain.
“We mustn’t show ourselves too soon,” he said. “Now, my lads, as quietly as you can.”
The sailors were avoiding the least unnecessary noise.
The boat now glided stealthily on to the greasy surface of the reddened waters. The whale seemed utterly unconscious of the attack that was threatening it, and allowed the boat to come nearer.
Another half-hour elapsed, and the huge body of the whale was between the boat and the “Pilgrim.”
“Slowly, my men,” said the captain, in a low voice; “slowly and softly!”
The captain took the harpoon. He stood prepared to plunge his weapon into the mass that rose above the surface of the sea.
“Are you ready, my lads?” whispered he.
“Ay, ay, sir,” replied Howick, speaking as gently as his master.
“Then, alongside at once,” was the captain’s order.
In a few minutes the boat was only about ten feet from the body of the whale. The animal did not move. Was it asleep? In that case there was hope that the first stroke might be fatal. But it was no time for speculation; the moment for action arrived.
Captain Hull seized his weapon, and hurled it against the side of the finback.
“Backwater![19]” he shouted.
The sailors pushed back with all their might, and the boat in an instant was beyond the range of the creature’s tail.
“See; there’s a youngster!” exclaimed Howick.
Captain Hull knew that the whale would defend “her little one.”
The whale was diving downwards almost perpendicularly. Its calf followed it; very soon, it began to swim along under water with great rapidity.
Captain Hull and Howick had sufficient opportunity to see the whale. It was at least eighty feet from head to tail, its colour was yellowish-brown, with numerous spots of a darker shade.
The pursuit commenced. The whale-boat darted like an arrow along the surface of the waves.
But the boat could not keep pace with the whale. The whale did not moderate its speed.
“Confound it![20]” exclaimed the captain; “the animal is dragging us away from the ‘Pilgrim’. But sooner or later, however, it must come to the surface; the whale is not a fish, you know.”
He and his companions began to look serious. Then they observed a slight slackening in the tension.
“Thank Heaven!” cried the captain; “the beast is tired at last.”
He cast his eye towards the “Pilgrim”. It was a long distance, but when he hoisted the flag on the boat-hook, he saw that Dick Sand and the negroes at once began to get as near as possible to the wind.
Meantime, the whale rose to the surface of the water. It remained motionless, waiting for its calf. Captain Hull ordered his men to pull towards the whale as rapidly as they could.
“Now, my lads!” shouted the captain. “Look out! No false shots! Are you ready, Howick?”
“Quite ready, captain,” answered the boatswain.
“It looks suspicious,” said the captain; “but go on! straight ahead!”
Captain Hull was becoming more excited every moment.
The whale only turned round a little in the water. It was evidently still looking for its calf. All of a sudden it gave a jerk with its tail which carried it some few yards away.
The men were all excited. Was the beast going to escape again?
But no: the whale merely turned, and now was rapidly beating the water with its enormous fins.
“Look out, Howick, it’s coming!” shouted Captain Hull.
The boat swerved to avoid the blow. There was a sudden pause. The whale spouted up two gigantic columns of blood and water, lashed its tail, and renewed its angry attack upon the boat.
“Bale away, men!” cried the captain.
The sailors set to work, they were baling with all their might. Captain Hull cut the harpoon-line, because the whale made no further attempt to escape. It was going to fight desperately to the very end.
There was no alternative but to face the encounter. The whale caught the boat with a violent blow from its dorsal fin.
“Where’s Howick?” screamed the captain in alarm.
“Here I am, captain; all right!” replied the boatswain.
“The rudder’s smashed,” he said.
“Take another, Howick; quick!” cried the captain.
The young whale made its appearance on the surface of the sea. The mother made a fresh dash in its direction.
Captain Hull looked towards the “Pilgrim,” and waved his signal frantically above his head. But no human efforts could effectually hasten the arrival of the ship. The wind was filling the sails, but the progress was slow.
The whale demanded attention.
“Sheer off, Howick!” bellowed the captain.
But the order was useless. The sailors saw the failure, and uttered one long, despairing cry. From beneath there came a tremendous blow from the monster’s tail. It sent the boat into the air. In fragments it fell back again into a sea.
There was no hope. The whale returns once again to the attack; the waters around the struggling sailors seethe and foam.
In a quarter of an hour afterwards, Dick Sand, with the negroes, reaches the scene of the catastrophe. All is still and desolate. Nothing is visible except a few fragments of the whale-boat floating on the water.
Chapter IX
Captain Dick Sand
The first feeling after the terrible disaster was one of grief and horror at the fearful death of the victims. Captain Hull and his men were swept away, and they were powerless to help. Not one was saved; the schooner
keep your eye – следи
Backwater! – Назад!
Confound it! – Чёрт возьми!
