CHAPTER XVII.
KINGSMILL's GROUP.—SINGULAR WHALING INCIDENT.—HARD AND FAST.—A PERILOUS POSITION.
We now made our cruising-ground for a time among the islands of Kingsmill's group, setting the starboard and larboard watches again, as it was necessary to keep sail on the ship day and night, to avoid drifting off the ground altogether. This necessity is owing not only to the prevalence of the trade wind which blows in the same general direction at all times, except when replaced for very short periods by the "westerly monsoons," so called; but also to a current, varying more or less in force, which sets to the westward all through this chain of islands. These circumstances, in connection with the low and dangerous character of some of the islets, as well as their uncertain position on the charts, demanded great vigilance in the night watches, and the strictest orders were given to the officers in this particular.
The scenes at Byron's Island were repeated at others with little variation in general outline; for, almost as soon as land was seen, the triangular sails would also make their appearance; and but few days passed without communication and traffic with some of them. I soon learned to judge of the age of a cocoanut before buying it, for, as there is but one step from the sublime to the ridiculous, so it requires but a short stage in the growth of the nut to change the milk from Olympian nectar into the most insipid slops; while I was careful not to rush blindly into tikee moee-moee speculations without investigating the matter to the very bottom. My little stock of rarities in conchology was much augmented by small additions made at various times; and I had rather more hats, as well as bigger ones, hung up in my bunk, than the Arethusa had in her slopchest; for some of my first purchases in this line would have set loosely on Daniel Lambert.
These little episodes, interspersed with the excitement of whaling adventures, served effectually to break the monotony of a long cruise at sea, and to make the time pass quickly and pleasantly. Sperm whales are frequently seen, and we were successful, as a general thing, in taking them. The whales here ran small in size; the cows seldom yielding above twenty barrels, oftener fifteen or sixteen. Now and then a school would be met with, accompanied by one old eighty-barrel patriarch, or schoolmaster, as he might be not inaptly termed. Of course, our principal efforts were directed to capturing this fellow, if possible. In one instance, we succeeded quite unexpectedly, and in a very singular manner.
We lowered in pursuit of a school of small whales, no large one having been seen among them before we left the ship. The whales in some way took the alarm before we got up to them, and when the mate called me up, they had all gone down but one cow with a small calf. I drew back my iron for a dart, but the cow had already pitched, and was too far from me to make a safe thing of it. "Strike the calf!" said Mr. Grafton; and, with a twinge of conscience at the cruelty of the deed, I threw an iron at the infant whale, who seemed hardly able to carry it off in his back. However, down he went, and we gave him line freely, as we were fearful of drawing the iron. We felt pretty sure that when he rose again, we should have a chance at the mother; and that chance was good of the rest of the school "bringing to." In such a case, we might get a good "cut" of oil, by striking a whale which, alone, was of little or no value. He had "sounded out" forty or fifty fathoms of line, when the strain suddenly relaxed, and the line hung slack. "We are loose!" cried the mate, "haul in line!" then shouted to the other two boats, who were hovering near us, to "Pull ahead!" They sprang to their oars to take the next chance at the school when they should rise, while we gathered in our stray line quite leisurely. Presently our line seemed to be foul of something, which offered a strange kind of resistance to our efforts; it did not bring up firmly, but seemed to be grating or chafing against something, so that we still gained on it, though making slow progress.
"What can be the matter?" I asked.
"I don't know," said Father Grafton. "I can't account for the line acting this way." Just then there was another heavy surge upon it, then that peculiar grating and slipping, and we got in two or three more fathoms of it. "Something is under us," said he. "Slack line and stand by your oars!"