t or not, all other
considerations were driven clean out of my head by the unexpected
apparition of a colossal head, not a ship's length away, coming straight
for us, throwing up a swell in front of him like an ironclad. There was
barely time to sheer to one side, when the giant surged past us in a
roar of foaming sea, the flying flakes of which went right over us.
Samuela was "all there," though, and as the great beast passed he
plunged a harpoon into him with such force and vigour that the very
socket entered the blubber it needed all the strength I could muster,
even with such an aid as the nineteen-feet steer-oar, to swing the boat
right round in his wake, and prevent her being capsized by his headlong
rush.

For, contrary to the usual practice, he paused not an instant, but
rather quickened his pace, as if spurred. Heavens, how he went! The
mast and sail had to come down--and they did, but I hardly know how.
The spray was blinding, coming in sheets over the bows, so that I could
hardly see how to steer in the monster's wake. He headed straight for
the ship, which lay-to almost motionless, filling me with apprehension
lest he should in his blind flight dash that immense mass of solid
matter into her broadside, and so put an inglorious end to all our
hopes. What their feelings on board must have been, I can only imagine,
when they saw the undeviating rush of the gigantic creature straight for
them. On he went, until I held my breath for the crash, when at the
last moment, and within a few feet of the ship's side, he dived, passing
beneath the vessel. We let go line immediately, as may be supposed; but
although we had been towing with quite fifty fathoms drift, our speed
had been so great that we came up against the old ship with a crash
that very nearly finished us. He did not run any further just then, but
sounded for about two hundred and fifty fathoms, rising to the surface
in quite another mood. No more running away from him. I cannot say I
felt any of the fierce joy of battle at the prospect before me. I had a
profound respect for the fighting qualities of the sperm whale, and, to
tell the truth, would much rather have run twenty miles behind him than
have him turn to bay in his present parlous humour. It was, perhaps,
fortunate for me that there was a crowd of witnesses, the other ships
being now quite near enough to see all that was going on, since the
feeling that my doings were full in view of many experts a