Soon the boat was very near the whale. Simpson made a sign, the men stopped rowing, and, brandishing his harpoon, he hurled it skilfully; this, with sharp barbs, sank into the thick layers of fat. The wounded whale dived rapidly. At once the four oars were unshipped; the rope which was attached to the harpoon ran out rapidly, and the boat was dragged along while Johnson steered it skilfully.
The whale swam away from the brig and hastened towards the moving icebergs; for half an hour it went on in this way; the cord had to be kept wet to prevent its taking fire from friction. When the animal seemed to go more slowly, the rope was dragged back and carefully coiled; the whale rose again to the surface, lashing violently with its tail; huge spouts of water were dashed up by it and fell in torrents on the boat, which now approached rapidly; Simpson had taken a long lance and was prepared to meet the whale face to face.
| "The whale swam away from the brig and hastened towards the moving icebergs." |
But it plunged rapidly into a pass between two icebergs. Further pursuit seemed dangerous.
"The devil!" said Johnson.
"Forward, forward, my friends," shouted Simpson, eager for the chase; "the whale is ours."
"But we can't follow it among the icebergs," answered Johnson, turning the boat away.
"Yes, yes!" cried Simpson.
"No, no!" said some of the sailors.