I20 THE WHALE HUNTERS 



from broaching to, the brave old ship's passage across the 

 wide Indian Ocean became an endless succession of wild 

 toboggan slides as the twenty-foot seas lifted her stern and 

 sent her racing down their long slopes to the troughs where 

 she wallowed and waited for the next one to uplift her. 



Then one day the single lookout swaying in his pre- 

 carious perch on the main topmast bellowed the call 

 which in better weather would have brought joy to the 

 hearts of everyone. 



'Th-e-e-re she bl-o-o-o-ws!' 



Thomas, standing his watch on the poop-deck, saw 

 three large sperm whales on the weather quarter. As if 

 mimicking the antics of the hard-pressed ship they slid 

 playfully down the long grey-green slopes and their 

 bushy white spouts rising obliquely from their box-like 

 heads were caught by the following wind and flung ahead 

 of them before dispersing their vapour into the spray- 

 filled atmosphere. 



Thomas went to the after hatch. 'She blows. Captain !' 

 he called. 



Hodge the first mate was superintending some men 

 overhauling the rigging and heard Thomas's words. 

 'Goddam you, man, d'you think he'd let you lower in this 

 weather,' he bawled derisively. 



Tld be willing to try for one,' retorted Thomas. 



The captain coming on deck at that moment heard the 

 brief altercation. 



'Mr. Hodge is right, Oakley,' he said, 'a boat would 

 never live in this sea and anyway you could never bring a 

 dead whale to the ship's side till it eased — and you might 

 have to wait weeks for that,' but the captain's tone was 

 not one of chastisement and there was something in the 

 look that he shot at Hodge which made Thomas believe 

 he would later say something to the first mate about 

 criticising an officer for making what amounted to a 

 normal and proper report. 



