435 
THE WHITE WHALE 
“I thought, sir, that you spoke to carpenter.” 
“Carpenter? why that’s — but no; — a very tidy, and, I may say, 
an extremely gentlemanlike sort of business thou art in here, carpen- 
ter ; — or wouldst thou rather work in clay V 9 
“Sir ? — Clay ? clay, sir ? That’s mud ; we leave clay to ditchers, 
sir.” y 
“T^e fellow’s impious ! What art thou sneezing about ?” 
“Bone is rather dusty, sir.” 
“Take the hint, then; and when thou art dead, never bury thyself 
under living people’s noses.” 
“Sir? — Oh! ah! — I guess so; — yes — oh, dear!” 
“Look ye, carpenter, I dare say thou callest thyself a right good 
workmanlike workman, eh ? Well, then, will it speak thoroughly well 
for thy work, if, when I come to mount this leg thou makest, I shall 
nevertheless feel another leg in the same identical place with it; that 
is, carpenter, my old lost leg; the flesh and blood one, I mean. Canst 
thou not drive that old Adam away ?” 
“Truly, sir, I begin to understand somewhat now. Yes, I have 
heard something curious on that score, sir; how that a dismasted 
man never entirely loses the feeling of his old spar, but it will be 
still pricking him at times. May I humbly ask if it be really so, 
sir ?” 
“It is, man. Look, put thy live leg here in the place where mine 
once was ; so, now, here is only one distinct leg to the eye, yet two to 
the soul. Where thou feelest tingling life; there, exactly there to a 
hair, do I. Is’t a riddle ?” 
“I should humbly call it a poser, sir.” 
“Hist, then. How dost thou know that some entire, living, think- 
ing thing may not be invisibly and uninterpenetratingly standing pre- 
cisely where thou now standest ; aye, and standing there in thy spite ? 
In thy most solitary hours, then, dost thou not fear eavesdroppers? 
Hold, don’t speak! And if I still feel the smart of my crushed leg, 
though it be now so long dissolved; then, why mayest not thou, car- 
penter, feel the fiery pains of hell for ever, and without a body ? Hah !” 
“Good Lord ! Truly, sir, if it comes to that, I must calculate over 
again ; I think I didn’t carry a small figure, sir.” 
