I was so affected at the intelligence of Cerise having destroyed
herself, that I found it impossible to remain on shore. Having met with
the captain of a whaler, who expatiated on the fortune which might be
realised by embarking in the speculation, I purchased a large ship, and
fitted it out for a voyage to Baffin's Bay. This consumed all the money
I had left, but as I expected to return with ten times the sum, I made
no scruple of parting with it.
My crew consisted of about thirty men, all strong fellows: ten of them
Englishmen, and the remainder from my own country. We stood to the
northward, until we reached the ice, which floated high as mountains,
and steering in between it, we at last came to a fine open water, where
a large quantity of whales were blowing in every direction. Our boats
were soon hoisted out, and we were extremely fortunate, having
twenty-three fish on board, and boiled down before the season was over.
I now considered my fortune made; and the ship being full up to the
beams, we made all sail to return home. But a heavy gale came on from
the southward, which drove all the ice together, and our ship with it,
and we were in great danger of being squeezed to atoms. Fortunately, we
made fast in a bight, on the lee side of a great iceberg, which
preserved us, and we anxiously awaited for the termination of the gale,
to enable us to proceed. But when the gale subsided, a hard frost came
on, and we were completely frozen up, where we lay--the ice formed round
to the depth of several feet, and lifted the ship, laden as she was, out
of the water.
The English, who were experienced fishermen, told us, that we had no
chance of being released until next spring. I ascended to the
mast-head, and perceived that for miles, as far as the eye could scan
the horizon, there was nothing but one continued succession of icebergs
and floes inseparably united. Despairing, therefore, of any release,
until the cold weather should break up, I made all arrangements for
remaining during the winter. Our provisions were very short, and we
were obliged to make use of the whale oil, but it soon produced such
dysenteries, that it was no longer resorted to.
After two months, the cold became intense, and our fuel ran short. At
the end of three months the crew complained of scurvy, and could not
move about the decks. At the end of the fourth month, they had all died
except the chief harpooner, a fat porpoise of an Englishman, and myself.
The bodies remained on the deck, for the cold was so intense that they
would not have been tainted for centuries; and, as at the end of five
months, the provisions were all expended, we were again obliged to
resort to the whale oil.
The whale oil produced a return of our complaints, and having no other
resource, we were forced by imperious hunger to make our repasts from
one of the bodies of our dead shipmates. They were so hard, that it was
with difficulty that we could separate a portion with an axe, and the
flesh broke off in fragments, as if we had been splitting a piece of
granite; but it thawed before the fire, which we had contrived to keep
alight, by supplying it from the bulwarks of the quarter-deck, which we
cut away as we required them. The old harpooner and I lived together on
the best terms for a month, during which we seldom quitted the cabin of
the vessel, having now drawn down the third dead body, which we cut up
as we required it with less difficulty than before, from the change in
the weather.
The ice continued breaking up, and all day and night we were startled at
the loud crashing which took place, as the icebergs separated from each
other. But my disgust at feeding upon human flesh produced a sort of
insanity. I had always been partial to good eating, and was by no means
an indifferent cook; and I determined to try whether something more
palatable could not be provided for our meals; the idea haunted me day
and night, and at last I imagined myself a French restaurateur; I tied a
cloth before me as an apron, put on a cotton nightcap instead of my fur
cap, and was about to make a trial of my skill, when I discovered that I
had no lard, no fat of any kind except train oil, which I rejected as
not being suitable to the "_cuisine Francaise_." My messmates who lay
dead, were examined one by one, but they had fallen away so much
previous to their decease, that not a symptom of fat was to be
perceived. Without fat I could do nothing; and as I thought of it in
despair, my eye was caught by the rotundity of paunch which still
appertained to the English harpooner, the only living being besides
myself out of so many. "I must have fat," cried I, fiercely, as I
surveyed his unwieldy carcase. He started when he observed the rolling
of my eyes; and perceiving that I was advancing towards him, sharpening
my knife, he did not think it prudent to trust himself longer in my
company. Snatching up two or three blankets, he ran on deck, and
contrived to ascend to the main-top before I could follow him. There he
held me at bay, and I continued watching him from below with my large
carving knife in my hand, which I occasionally whetted. He remained
aloft all night, and so did I on deck, to get possession of him when he
should descend. I was so eager in my frenzy to obtain him, that I felt
neither cold nor hunger; the weather during the day was now warm enough
to be pleasant, but the nights were piercing. My fat shipmate remained
in the top for three days and nights, during which period I never
removed from my post. At the close of the third day he looked over the
top brim, and implored my mercy. When he showed himself I hardly knew
him, so much had he wasted away, and it then struck me, that if he
remained aloft much longer he would have no more fat than the others,
and would not serve my purpose. I therefore pledged him my honour, that
I would not attempt his life for ten days; and as he was perishing with
the cold, he agreed to the armistice, and once more descended to the
deck. But I was saved the crime of murder, for he was so ravenous when
he came down, that he ate nearly the whole of a man's leg, and died from
repletion during the night. I cannot express to your highness the
satisfaction that I felt at finding that the carcase of the harpooner
was in my possession. I surveyed my treasure over and over again with
delight. I could now cook my French dishes. He was soon dissected, and
all his unctuous parts carefully melted down, and I found that I had a
stock which would last me as long as the bodies which I had remaining to
exercise my skill upon. The first day I succeeded admirably--I cooked
my dishes; and when they were ready I took off my night-cap and apron,
passed my fingers through my hair, and fancied myself a garcon at a
restaurateurs. I laid the cloth, put the dishes on the table, and when
it was complete, went on deck and then returned as the _bon vivant_ who
had ordered the dinner.
Never was any meal so delicious to my insane fancy. I devoured every
thing which I cooked, and drank water for champagne. I meditated upon
what I should have for dinner on the ensuing day, and then retired to my
bed. In the meantime the ice had separated, and the ship was again
afloat; but I cared not: all my ideas were concentrated in the pleasures
of the table--and the next morning I went on deck to obtain a piece of
meat, when I was astonished at a terrific growl. I turned my head and
perceived an enormous white bear, who was making sad depredations in my
larder, having nearly finished the whole body of one of my dead
shipmates. He was as large as an ox, so large that when he made a rush
at me, and I slipped down the ladder, he could not follow me. I again
looked up, and perceived that he had finished his meal. After walking
round the decks two or three times, smelling at every thing, he plunged
overboard and disappeared.
Glad to be rid of so unpleasant a visitor, I came up, and cutting off
the meat I required, again exerted my cookery, was again satisfied, and
went to sleep. I never felt so happy as I then did in my insane
condition. All I thought of, all I wished, I could command--my
happiness was concentrated in eating my fellow-creatures, cooked in a
proper manner, instead of the usual method of bolting them down to
satisfy the cravings of imperious hunger. I woke the next morning as
usual, and when I crawled on deck, was again saluted with the angry
growl of the bear, who was busy making a repast upon another body--when
he had finished he plunged into the sea as before.
I now thought it high time to put an end to these depredations on my
larder, which in a few days would have left me destitute. My invention
was called into action, and I hit upon a plan, which I thought would
succeed. I dragged all the bodies to the after part of the quarterdeck,
and blocked it up before the cabin-hatch with swabs and small sails, so
as to form a sort of dam about eight inches high. I then went below and
brought up forty or fifty buckets of train oil, which I poured upon the
deck abaft, so that it was covered with oil to the height of several
inches. On the ensuing morning the bear came as I expected, and
commenced his repast: I had stationed myself aloft, in the mizen-top,
with several buckets of oil, which I poured upon him. His fur was
otherwise well saturated with what he had collected when he lay down on
the deck to devour one of the bodies more at his ease. When I had
poured all my buckets of oil over him but one, I threw the empty buckets
down upon him. This enraged him, and he mounted the rigging to be
revenged. I waited until he had arrived at the futtock shrouds, when I
poured my last bucket upon him, which quite blinded him, and then gained
the deck by sliding down the back stays on the opposite side.
A bear can climb fast, but is very slow in his descent--the consequence
was that I had plenty of time for my arrangements. I ran below, and
lighting a torch of oakum, which I had prepared in readiness, placed it
to his hinder quarters as he descended. The effect was exactly what I
had anticipated; his thick fur, covered in every part with oil, was
immediately in a blaze, and burnt with such rapidity, that before he
could recover his feet on deck, he was like an immense ball of fire. I
retreated to the companion-hatch to watch his motions. His first act
was to return to the quarter-deck and roll himself in the oil, with an
idea of quenching the flames, but this added fuel to them, and the
animal roaring in his agony at last jumped into the sea and disappeared.
Having thus rid myself of my intruder I returned to my cooking. The
ship was now clear of ice, the weather was warm, the bodies of my
shipmates emitted a fetid smell, but I saw and smelt nothing; all that I
observed was that the barley which had been scattered on the deck by the
fowls, had sprung up about the decks, and I congratulated myself upon
the variety it would give to my culinary pursuits. I continued to cook,
to eat, and to sleep as before, when a circumstance occurred, which put
an end to all my culinary madness. One night I found the water washing
by the side of my standing bed-place in the cabin, and jumping out in
alarm to ascertain the cause, I plunged over head and ears. The fact
was, that the ship, when lifted by the ice, had sprung a-leak which had
gradually filled her without my perceiving it. My fear of drowning was
so great, that I ran into the very danger which I would have avoided. I
darted out of the cabin windows into the sea, whereas had I gone upon
deck I should have been safe: for a little reflection might have told me
that a vessel laden with oil could not have sunk--but reflection came
too late, and benumbed with the coldness of the waters, I could have
struggled but a few seconds more, when I suddenly came in contact with a
spar somewhat bigger than a boat's mast. I seized it to support myself,
and was surprised at finding it jerked from me occasionally, as if there
was somebody else who had hold of it, and who wished to force me to let
it go; but it was quite dark, and I could distinguish nothing. I clung
to it until daylight appeared, when what was my horror to perceive an
enormous shark close to me. I nearly let go my hold and sunk, so
paralysed was I with fear, I anticipated every moment to feel his teeth
crushing me in half, and I shut my eyes that I might not add to the
horrors of my death by being a witness to the means. Some minutes had
elapsed, which appeared to me as so many hours, when surprised at being
still alive, I ventured to open my eyes. The shark was still at the
same distance from me, and on examination I perceived that the boat's
mast or spar, to which I was clinging, had been passed through his nose
in a transverse direction, being exactly balanced on either side. The
shark was of the description found in the North Seas, which is called by
the sailors the blind shark. I now perfectly understood that he had
been caught and _spritsail yarded_, as the seamen term it, and then
turned adrift for their diversion. The buoyancy of the spar prevents
the animal from sinking down under the water, and this punishment of
their dreaded enemy is a very favourite amusement of sailors.
I summoned up all my courage, and being tired of holding on by the spar,
resolved to mount upon his back, which I accomplished without
difficulty, and I found the seat on his shoulders before the dorsal fin,
not only secure but very comfortable. The animal, unaccustomed to carry
weight, made several attempts to get rid of me, but not being able to
sink I retained my seat. He then increased his velocity, and we went on
over a smooth sea, at the rate of about three knots an hour. For two
days I continued my course to the southward, upon my novel conveyances
during which I had nothing to eat except a few small barnacles, and some
parasitical vermin, peculiar to the animal, which I discovered under his
fins. I also found a small _remora_, or sucking fish, near his tail,
but when I put it to my mouth, it fixed itself so firmly on both my lips
that I thought they were sealed for ever. No force could detach it, and
there it hung like a padlock for many hours, to my great mortification
and annoyance, but at last it died from being so long out of water, and
when it dropped off I devoured it.
On the third day I observed land at a distance; it appeared to be an
island, but I had no idea what it could be. My steed continued his
course straight towards it, and being blind ran his nose right upon the
shore; before he found out his mistake I slipped off his back, and
climbing the steep side of the island, was once more, as I thought, on
terra firma. Tired with long watching. I lay down and fell fast
asleep.
I was awakened by something touching me on the shoulder, and opening my
eyes, I perceived that I was surrounded by several people, whom I
naturally inferred to be the natives of the island. They were clad in
dresses, which appeared to me to be made of black leather, consisting of
a pair of trousers, and a long pea-jacket, very similar to those worn by
the Esquimaux Indians, which we occasionally fell in with in the
Northern Ocean. They each held a long harpoon, formed entirely of bone,
in their right hands.
I was not a little surprised at being addressed in the Patois dialect of
the Basques in my own country, which is spoken about Bayonne and other
parts adjacent to the Pyrenees. To their questions I answered, that I
was the only survivor of the crew of a whaler, which had been frozen up
in the ice, during the winter; that she had filled with water, and that
I had saved myself upon the back of a shark.
They expressed no surprise at my unheard-of conveyance to the island; on
the contrary, they merely observed, that sharks were too vicious to
ride; and asked me to accompany them to their town, an invitation which
I gladly accepted. As I walked along I observed that the island was
composed of white porous pumice-stone, without the least symptoms of
vegetation; not even a piece of moss could I discover--nothing but the
bare pumice-stone, with thousands of beautiful green lizards, about ten
inches long, playing about in every part. The road was steep, and in
several parts the rock was cut into steps to enable you to ascend.
After an hour's fatiguing walk, which I never should have accomplished
in my weak state, without the assistance of the islanders, we arrived at
the summit. The view which met my eye was striking. I was on the peak
of a chain of hills, forming an immense amphitheatre, encircling a
valley which appeared about fifteen miles in diameter, and the major
part of which was occupied by a lake of water.
I could discern what appeared to be the habitations of men on different
parts of the lake; but there was not a tree or a shrub to be seen.
"What," demanded I of the man who appeared to take the lead of the rest
of the party, "have you no trees here?"
"None whatever; and yet we can do very well without them. Do you not
observe that there is no mould; that the island is composed entirely of
pumice-stone?"
"I do," replied I. "Pray what is the name of your barren spot--and in
what part of the world are we?"
"As for its name, we call it Whale Island," replied the man; "but as for
where we are, we cannot exactly tell ourselves, for we are a floating
island, being composed entirely of pumice-stone, whose specific gravity,
as you must know, is much lighter than that of water."
"How strange," observed I; "I cannot believe that you are in earnest."
"And yet not quite so strange as you imagine," replied my conductor.
"If you examine the structure of this island, from where you now stand,
you will perceive at once, that it has been the crater of some large
volcano. It is easy to imagine, that after having reared its head above
the surface of the sea, by some of those sudden caprices of ever-working
nature, the base has again sunk down, leaving the summit of the crater
floating on the ocean. Such is our opinion of the formation of this
island; and I doubt whether your geologists on the continent would
produce a more satisfactory theory."
"What? you have communicated with Europe, then?" cried I, delighted at
the hopes of return.
"We have had communication, but we do not communicate again. In the
winter time, this island, which, strange as it may appear to you, does
not change its position many hundred miles in the course of centuries,
is enclosed with the icebergs in the north: when the spring appears, we
are disengaged, and then drift a degree or two to the southward, seldom
more."
"Are you not then affected by the winds and tides?"
"Of course we are: but there is a universal balance throughout nature,
and every thing finds its level. There is order, when there appears
disorder--and no stream runs in one direction, without a counter stream,
to restore the equilibrium. Upon the whole, what with the under
currents, and the changes which continually take place, I should say
that we are very little, if at all, affected by the tides--which may be
considered as a sort of exercise, prescribed by nature to keep the ocean
in good health. The same may be affirmed with respect to the winds.
Wind is a substance, as well as water, capable of great expansion, but
still a substance. A certain portion has been allotted to the world for
its convenience, and there is a regularity in its apparent variability.
It must be self-evident, when all the wind has been collected to the
eastward, by the north-west gales which prevail in winter, that it must
be crowded and penned up in that quarter, and, from its known expansive
powers, must return and restore the equilibrium. That is the reason
that we have such a long continuance of easterly winds, in the months of
February and March."
"You said that you had communication with Europe?"
"We have occasionally visits perforce, from those who are cast away in
ships or boats; but the people who come here, have never returned. The
difficulty of leaving the island is very great: and we flatter
ourselves, that few who have remained any time with us, have ever felt
the desire."
"What--not to leave a barren rock, without even a blade of grass upon
it."
"Happiness," replied my conductor, "does not consist in the variety of
your possessions, but in being contented with what you have;"--and he
commenced the descent of the hill.
I followed him in a melancholy mood, for I could imagine little comfort
in such a sterile spot.
"I am not a native of this island," observed he, as we walked along; "it
is more than four hundred years since it was first inhabited, by the
crew of a French vessel, which was lost in the Northern ocean. But I do
not wish to leave it. I was cast on it in a whale-boat, when separated
from the ship in a snow-storm, about twenty-five years ago. I am now a
married man, with a family, and am considered one of the wealthiest
inhabitants of the island, for I possess between forty and fifty
whales."
"Whales!" exclaimed I, with astonishment.
"Yes," replied my conductor, "whales, which are the staple of this
island, and without them we should not be so prosperous and so happy as
we are. But you have much to see and learn; you will by-and-bye
acknowledge that there is nothing existing in the world, which, from
necessity and by perseverance, man cannot subject to his use. Yon lake
which covers the bottom of our valley, is our source of wealth and
comfort, and yields us an increase as plentiful as the most fertile
plains of Italy or France."
As we arrived close to the foot of the hills, I perceived several black
substances on the shores of the lake. "Are those whales?" inquired I.
"They were whales, but they are now houses. That one by itself is mine,
which I hope you will consider as yours, until you have made up your
mind as to what you will do."
We descended to the beach, and his companions, wishing me good morning,
left me with my conductor, who led the way to his house. It was
composed of the skin of one entire whale, much larger than ever I had
seen in the Northern ocean. The back-bone and ribs of the animal served
as rafters to extend the skin, which wore the resemblance of a long
tent; it was further secured by ropes, formed of the twisted sinews
which passed over the top, and were made fast to stakes of bone firmly
fixed in the ground on each side. When I entered, I found to my
surprise that there was plenty of light, which was supplied from
windows, composed of small panes of whalebone ground down very thin, and
at the further end the head and skull of the animal formed a kitchen,
the smoke from the fire escaping through the spiracles or
breathing-holes above.
On each side of the room into which I was ushered were raised seats,
covered with seal skins, and the other end of the house was divided off
with a species of black skin, into sleeping apartments for the master of
the house and his family. There was not the least smell, as I
anticipated before I entered this strange dwelling-place.
I was introduced to his wife, who welcomed me with cordiality. She was
dressed in the same dark skin as her husband, but of a much finer
texture, and had a scarlet cap on her head, as well as scarlet trimmings
to the front and bottom of her dress, which on the whole was not only
comfortable but becoming in its appearance.
A bowl of milk was presented to me, to refresh me after my walk and long
abstinence.
"How!" observed I, "have you milk here without pasture?"
"Yes," replied my host, "drink it, and tell me if you think it
palatable."
I did so, and found it very little different from the asses' milk of my
own country--perhaps with a little more acidity of taste. In the mean
time several varieties of shellfish, and a large cheese, were placed
upon the table, which, as well as the stools, was composed entirely of
bone.
"And cheese, too?" said I.
"Yes, and you will find it not bad. It is the milk of the whale which
you have drank--and the cheese is prepared from the same."
------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Friend Huckaback," observed the pacha, "I think you are telling me
lies. Who ever heard of whale's milk?"
"Allah forbid that I should attempt to deceive a person of your
highness's judgment; it could only end in mortification and defeat to
myself."
"That's very true," observed the pacha.
"Your highness has not called to mind, that the whale is what
naturalists call a `hot-blood animal,' with arteries and circulation of
blood similar to the human species; and that it brings forth its young
alive, and nurses it at the breast."
"Very true," observed the pacha. "I had forgot that."
------------------------------------------------------------------------
My conductor resumed as follows: "As I told you before, the whale is the
staple of this island. You observe that his skin serves us as a house;
from his bones we form all our implements--from his sinews, our thickest
ropes down to our finest thread. The dress we wear is composed of the
belly-part of the skin, dressed with a sort of soap, composed of the
alkali obtained from the sea-weed which abounds in the lake, and the oil
of the whale. His blubber serves us for fuel and candle; his flesh for
meat, and the milk is invaluable to us. It is true, we have other
resources; we have our lizards, and a variety of fish and shell fish;
and when we are shut up in the winter among the icebergs, we procure the
flesh and skins of the seals and the polar bear. But we have no
vegetable of any kind; and although the want of bread may at first he
unpleasant, a few weeks will reconcile you to the privation. But it is
time to repose after your fatigues--I will report your arrival to the
great harpooner, after I have shown you to your chamber." He then
conducted me to an inner room, where I found a couch, composed of the
skins of the polar bears, on which I threw myself, and in a few minutes
was fast asleep.
The next morning I was awakened by my host. "If you wish to see the
whales milked, this is the hour that they are called in; a short walk
will explain more to you than many hours' conversation."
I arose perfectly refreshed from my long nap, and followed my conductor.
We passed a large tank. "This is our water; we are obliged not to
waste it, although we have a sufficiency; the tank is coated by a
cement, formed of lime, obtained by the burning of the shells of fish.
We make all our vessels, that are submitted to the fire, of the same
substance, mixed with pounded lava; it is burnt in the fire, and glazed
with sea-salt."
We arrived at the edge of the lake, where we came to a large shallow
dock, cut out of the lava in the side, in which were about two dozen
young whales, who followed my host as he walked round the edge.
"These are my calves; we do not admit the mothers until we have first
drawn off what milk we require."
Several men now came down to the beach: one of them blew a horn, formed
out of a part of the horn of a sea unicorn, and immediately a herd of
whales collected at the sound, and swam towards the beach. They all
answered to their names; and when the men waded in the water up to their
knees, quietly grounded on their sides, so as to present one of their
udders to them, clear of the water. This was squeezed by four men, and
the contents received into a large pail, composed of the bones of a
whale, neatly hooped together by the same substance.
As soon as the breast of the animal was empty, with a lash of its tail
it recovered the deep water, and swam round and round in small circles,
near to the spot.
"We always leave one breast for the calf," observed my host; "when they
are all milked, I shall open the pen and let the mothers in."
"What are those enormous whales which are playing at a distance?"
"They are our whale oxen," answered my host; "we find that they grow to
an enormous size. Our houses are built of their skins."
"Is that a dead whale on the beach?"
"It is one of our whale boats," replied he, "but formed, as you
supposed, from the skin of a whale, hardened by frequent applications of
oil and lime. We use them to catch the whales when we want them."
"You do not use the harpoon, then?"
"Only when we kill; in general we noose the tail, and fasten the rope to
one of these boats, which are so buoyant, that the whale cannot take it
down, and soon tires with his own exertions. I am now speaking of the
males reserved for breeding, or strange whales, who sometimes find their
way into our lake during the winter: our own are so domesticated from
their infancy, that we have little trouble with them; but it is time
that we return."
"Here," observed any host, as we passed a whale-house, "is one of our
manufactories; we will step in. This is the common stuff of the
country, which is used for partitions in houses, etcetera. This is a
finer sort, such as I wear at present. Here we have the skin of the
whale calf, which is usually worn by the women. This is the most
expensive article of our manufactures; it is the belly-part of the
calf's skin, which being white, admits of a dye from the murex--a shell
fish, very common on our shores."
"Have you money?" inquired I.
"None--we exchange; but the chief article of exchange, and which serves
as money, is the whale cheese, which keeps for years, and improves in
quality. That fine cloth is worth eight new cheeses a square yard,
which is very dear."
We arrived at the house, where we found our repast ready; an excellent
stew received my commendation.
"It is one of our favourite dishes," replied my host; "it is made of
lizards' tails."
"Lizards' tails!"
"Yes; I am about to procure some for dinner, and you shall see my
preserve."
In the course of the day I walked with my host a short distance up the
hill, when we stopped at a large pit, covered with a net-work, made of
whales' sinews. The man who accompanied us, descended, and soon
returned with a pail full of lizards, confined by a similar net over
them. He then took them out one by one, and pulled their tails, which
were immediately left in his hand. He then notched the stump, and threw
the animal into the pit.
"Of what use is it to return the animals?" observed I.
"Because their tails will grow again, by next year."
"But why, then, were the stumps notched in the middle?"
"That they might have two tails instead of one, which is invariably the
case," replied my host.
But I will not tire your highness with an account of all that I saw, and
which occurred during my stay on that island. If I were to enter into
the excellence of their government, which consisted of a great
harpooner, and two councils of first and second harpoons, or of the
manners and customs of the inhabitants, ceremonies at births, and
marriages, and deaths--of their amusements, and their ingenious supply
of all their wants, it would afford materials for at least two volumes
quarto, without margin. I shall therefore confine myself to stating,
that after a sojourn of six months, I became so impatient to quit the
island, that I determined to encounter any risk, rather than not
accomplish it.
My host, and all the principal inhabitants, finding that no persuasions
could induce me to stay, consented at last to furnish me with the means,
which I had hit upon to make my escape.
I omitted to mention to your highness, the whales had been rendered so
docile, that they not only were used for draught on the lake, but even
for carrying on their backs. I never could be persuaded to mount one, I
had such a horror of being seated on a fish's back, after my travelling
on the shark; but I had often crossed the lake in one of the great whale
boats towed by one or two of the animals fastened to it by loops over
their tails. This conveyance suggested to me the idea of my escape,
which I proposed to make by means of one of these large whale boats,
covered completely in, and to be towed out of the mouth of the lake by
one of the draught whales.
At my request, a boat was prepared, and covered in with whalebone
windows, to admit light; a stock of provisions were supplied me
sufficient for a long voyage; and the whale being _put to_, I departed
amidst the tears and lamentations of the friendly islanders, who looked
upon me as a man bent upon my own destruction. But I was aware that the
fishery would soon commence, and had great hopes of being picked up by
one of the vessels. I was soon clear of the lake; and the lad who was
on the back of the draught whale, having towed me out in pursuance of
his orders, until the island appeared like a cloud on the horizon, cast
me loose and hastened back, that he might return home before dark.
For three weeks I remained in the inside of this enormous boat, or
rather I may say fish tossed upon the waves, but without injury, from
its extreme buoyancy. One morning I was awakened from a sound sleep by
a sudden blow on the outside of my vessel. I imagined that I had come
in contact with an iceberg, but the sound of voices convinced me, that
at last I had fallen in with my fellow creatures. A harpoon was now
driven in, which I narrowly escaped, and a volley of execrations
followed, by which I knew immediately that the people were English.
After a few minutes, they commenced sawing a hole in the side of my
whale boat; and a piece being removed, a head was put in. Fearful of
another harpoon, I had raised up my large white bear's skin as a
defence, and the man perceiving it, immediately withdrew his head,
swearing that there was a white bear in the belly of the whale. The
boat shoved off and they commenced firing musket balls, which pierced my
boat through and through, and I was obliged to lie down at the bottom to
save my life. After about twenty shots, the boat again came along side,
and a man, putting his head in, and perceiving me at the bottom of the
boat, covered over with the bear's skin, imagined that the animal had
been killed, and reported to his companions. With some degree of
apprehension they climbed in at the hole which they had cut, when I
lifted up my bear's skin, and made my appearance, dressed in the black
skin worn by the inhabitants of Whales' Island. This frightened them
still more; one roared out that it was the devil, and they all ran to
make their escape at the hole by which they entered, but in their
eagerness they prevented each other.
It was with difficulty that I convinced them that I was harmless, which
I did at last; and having explained in a few words how I came there,
they permitted me to go with them on board of the ship. The captain was
very sulky when he heard the story; he had imagined it to be a dead
whale, and had ordered it to be towed alongside, to cut off the blubber.
Disappointed in his expectations, he swore that I was a Jonas, who had
come out of the whale's belly, and there would be no luck in the ship,
if I remained. The sailors, whose profits in the voyage were regulated
by the number of fish taken, thought this an excellent reason for
throwing me overboard; and had there not been two sail in sight,
standing towards them, I certainly should have had some more adventures
to narrate. At last they consented to put me on board of one which had
hoisted French colours. She was from Havre, and having twelve fish on
board, was returning home. The captain consented to give me a passage,
and in two months I was once more in my native country.
Such, your highness, were the adventures of my third voyage.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Well, the story of the island was rather too long," observed the Pacha,
"but, altogether, it was amusing. Mustapha, I think it is worth ten
pieces of gold."