190 THE WHALE AND 



Something in the Wind. A notable Discovery. 



Webquish, the Indian, who had been looking 

 steadily in one direction for some minutes, 

 called out that he saw some object afloat away 

 to windward. It was bobbing up and down, 

 and looked something like a boat, but he could 

 not tell what it was. 



This excited the curiosity of every man on 

 board ; and, as is usual in such cases, all made 

 a spring into the rigging, with a view to run 

 aloft, and get a squint at the mysterious object 

 reported by Webquish. But I ordered them to 

 remain on deck, and sent up my first mate a 

 man of good judgment and sharp eyes with a 

 spy-glass, to the fore-top-mast-head. He soon 

 got sight of the object, and immediately report- 

 ed that it was a large dead spermaceti whale. 



This was an event, the announcement of 

 which created quite a sensation on board the 

 Cremona ; and the question asked of each other 

 was, whether we could secure it for ourselves? 

 In order to do this, it was necessary not only to 

 see it first, but to get fast to it first ! From 

 the favorable position of the Orion, being to 

 windward, it was clear that the whale would 

 inevitably fall a prize to her, if it should be seen 

 by the look-out before it could be reached by 



