“Hurrah!” shouted Tom. “I know what ’tis—we’ve killed the schooner’s namesake. It’s a narwhal!”
“Golly, you’re right!” cried Jim. “Won’t Cap’n Pem and the others be surprised! But say—I’d never have dared touch him if I’d known. Remember how Mr. Kemp told us about these fellows driving their tusks right through a whaleboat and sinking it?”
“I’ll say I do,” replied Tom. “I know what they’ll say—‘fools rush in,’ you know.”
“Well, fools or not, we won,” declared Jim, “and this old fellow’s horn’ll make some trophy up in our room.”
Elated at their unexpected capture, the boys forgot all about their hunt and, fastening a line about the narwhal’s tail, they started to tow him to the schooner. It was slow, backbreaking work, but when at last they reached their vessel and showed their catch to those on board, they felt amply rewarded for their labors.
“By the love av hivvin!” cried Mike, who was the first to see the dead creature. “Shure and ’tis a unicorn yez do be afther killin’!”
“I’ll be swizzled!” exclaimed Cap’n Pem. “Ye everlastin’ young scallawags, what ye mean by a-goin’ in on one o’ them critters? Ye’re lucky he didn’t sink ye. Jes like ye though—fools allers——”
“I know it!” laughed Tom. “I told Jimmy you’d say that. But we got him and didn’t get hurt, even if the cat did come back!”
“Jes dumb luck,” declared the old whaleman. Then, as Captain Edwards appeared, he shouted, “Look a-here, didn’t I tell ye these here boys wuz born to be whalers? Jes take a squint ’longside an’ see what the young scallawags been a-doin’.”