THE " ESSEX" ATTACKED BY A WHALE. 159 



thus engaged, a sperm whale, thought to be about eighty- 

 five feet long, broke water about twenty yards from the ship 

 on the weather-bow. He was going at the rate of about 

 three knots an hour, and the ship at nearly the same rate, 

 when he struck the bows of the vessel just forward of her 

 chains. At the shock produced by the collision of two such 

 mighty masses of matter in motion, the ship shook like a leaf. 

 The whale passed under the ship, grazing her keel, and then 

 appeared at about the distance of a ship's length, lashing the 

 sea with fins and tail, as if suffering intense agony. He was 

 evidently hurt by the collision, and greatly enraged. In a 

 few minutes he seemed to recover himself, and started with 

 great speed directly across the vessel's course to windward. 

 Meanwhile the hands on board discovered the ship to be 

 gradually settling down at the bows, and the pumps were in- 

 stantly rigged. While working at them, one of the men 

 cried out *' God have mercy! he comes again!'' 



The whale had turned about one hundred yards from the 

 ship, and was making for her with double his former speed, 

 his pathway white with foam. Rushing head on, he struck 

 her again at the bow, and the tremendous blow stove her in. 

 The whale dived under again and disappeared, and the ship 

 went down in ten minutes from the first collision. 



The crew took to their boats as the vessel was sinking, 

 and after fearful hardships and sufferings, the survivors of 

 this catastrophe reached the low island called Ducies. It was 

 a mere sandbank, nearly barren, and they could only obtain 

 water and some wild-fowl. On this uninhabited island, 

 dreary as it was, three of the men chose to remain, rather 

 than experience again the uncertainties of the sea. The 

 poor fellows were never afterwards heard of. The three 

 boats, with the remainder of the crew, put off for the island 

 of Juan Fernandez, two thousand miles distant. The mate's 

 boat was taken up by the Indian, of London, ninety-three 

 days from the time of the catastrophe, with only three sur- 



