128 THE WHALEMAN'S ADVENTURES. 



we shot after her, like an arrow from the bow. 

 The mate by this time had his lance ready. 

 " Haul me on to that whale !" he shouted ; and 

 all hands turned to hauling line., while I coiled 

 it away in' the stern sheets. We had got 

 nearly up to the whale when she took to sound- 

 ing, taking the line right up and down from the 

 head of the boat. I had two turns of the line 

 round the loggerhead, and was holding on as 

 much as the boat would bear, when, all at once, 

 another large whale, that we knew nothing 

 about, shot up out of the water nearly her whole 

 length, in a slanting position, hanging directly 

 over the boat. I threw off the turns from the 

 loggerhead, and shouted to the men to " stern." 

 But it was of no use ; she fell the whole length 

 of her body on the boat. 



I heard a crash ! and, as I went down, I felt 

 a pressure of water directly over my head, 

 caused, as I thought, by the whale's flukes as 

 she struck. How long I was under water I 

 know not ; but I remember that all looked dark 

 above me, and that I tried very hard to shove 

 my head through in order to breathe. At last 



