479 
THE WHITE WHALE 
of the rotten line — all dripping too. Mend it, eh? I think we had 
best have a new line altogether. I’ll see Mr. Stubb about it.” 
CHAPTEE CXXV 
THE LIFEBUOY 
Steering now south-eastward by Ahab’s levelled steel, and her progress 
solely determined by Ahab’s level log and line ; the Pequod held on her 
path towards the equator. Making so long a passage through such 
unfrequented waters, descrying no ships, and ere long, sideways im- 
pelled by unvarying trade winds, over waves monotonously mild; all 
these seemed the strange calm things preluding some riotous and des- 
perate scene. 
At last, when the ship drew near to the outskirts, as it were, of the 
equatorial fishing-ground, and in the deep darkness that goes before the 
dawn, was sailing by a cluster of rocky islets ; the watch — then headed 
by Flask— was startled by a cry so plaintively wild and unearthly — 
like half articulated wailings of the ghosts of all Herod’s murdered 
Innocents — that one and all, they started from their reveries, and for 
the space of some moments stood, or sat, or leaned all transfixedly listen- 
ing, like the carved Eoman slave, while that wild cry remained within 
hearing. The Christian or civilised part of the crew said it was mer- 
maids, and shuddered ; but the pagan harpooneers remained unap- 
palled. Yet the grey Manxman — the oldest mariner of all — declared 
that the wild thrilling sounds that were heard, were the voices of 
newly drowned men in the sea. 
Below in his hammock, Ahab did not hear of this till grey dawn, 
when he came to the deck; it was then recounted to him by Flask 
not unaccompanied with hinted dark meanings. He hollowly laughed, 
and thus explained the wonder. 
Those rocky islands the ship had passed were the resort of great 
numbers of seals, and some young seals that had lost their dams, or 
some dams that had lost their cubs, must have risen nigh the ship and 
kept company with her, crying and sobbing with their human sort 
of wail. But this only the more affected some of them, because most 
