The First Lowering
The phantoms, for so they then seemed, were flitting on the otherside of the deck, and, with a noiseless celerity, were casting loosethe tackles and bands of the boat which swung there. This boat hadalways been deemed one of the spare boats, though technically calledthe captain's, on account of its hanging from the starboard quarter.
The figure that now stood by its bows was tall and swart, with onewhite tooth evilly protruding from its steel-like lips. A rumpledChinese jacket of black cotton funereally invested him, with wideblack trowsers of the same dark stuff. But strangely crowning thisebonness was a glistening white plaited turban, the living hairbraided and coiled round and round upon his head. Less swart inaspect, the companions of this figure were of that vivid, tiger-yellowcomplexion peculiar to some of the aboriginal natives of theManillas;- a race notorious for a certain diaboli** of subtilty, andby some honest white mariners supposed to be the paid spies and secretconfidential agents on the water of the devil, their lord, whosecounting-room they suppose to be elsewhere.
While yet the wondering ship's company were gazing upon thesestrangers, Ahab cried out to the white-turbaned old man at their head,"All ready there, Fedallah?"
"Ready," was the half-hissed reply.
"Lower away then; d'ye hear?" shouting across the deck. "Loweraway there, I say."
Such was the thunder of his voice, that spite of their amazement themen sprang over the rail; the sheaves whirled round in the blocks;with a wallow, the three boats dropped into the sea; while, with adexterous, off-handed daring, unknown in any other vocation, thesailors, goat-like, leaped down the rolling ship's side into thetossed boats below.
Hardly had they pulled out from under the ship's lee, when afourth keel, coming from the windward side, pulled round under thestern, and showed the five strangers rowing Ahab, who, standingerect in the stern, loudly hailed Starbuck, Stubb, and Flask, tospread themselves widely, so as to cover a large expanse of water. Butwith all their eyes again riveted upon the swart Fedallah and hiscrew, the inmates of the other boats obeyed not the command.
"Captain Ahab?-" said Starbuck.
"Spread yourselves," cried Ahab; "give way, all four boats. Thou,Flask, pull out more to leeward!"
"Aye, aye, sir," cheerily cried little King-Post, sweeping round hisgreat steering oar. "Lay back!" addressing his crew. "There!-there!- there again! There she blows right ahead, boys!- lay back!
"Never heed yonder yellow boys, Archy."
"Oh, I don't mind'em, sir," said Archy; "I knew it all before now.
Didn't I hear 'em in the hold? And didn't I tell Cabaco here of it?
What say we, Cabaco? They are stowaways, Mr. Flask.""Pull, pull, my fine hearts-alive; pull, my children; pull, mylittle ones," drawlingly and soothingly sighed Stubb to his crew, someof whom still showed signs of uneasiness. "Why don't you break yourbackbones, my boys? What is it you stare at? Those chaps in yonderboat? Tut! They are only five more hands come to help us never mindfrom where the more the merrier. Pull, then, do pull; never mind thebrimstone devils are good fellows enough. So, so; there you are now;that's the stroke for a thousand pounds; that's the stroke to sweepthe stakes! Hurrah for the gold cup of sperm oil, my heroes! Threecheers, men- all hearts alive! Easy, easy; don't be in a hurry-don't be in a hurry. Why don't you snap your oars, you rascals? Bitesomething, you dogs! So, so, so, then:- softly, softly! That's it-that's it! long and strong. Give way there, give way! The devilfetch ye, ye ragamuffin rapscallions; ye are all asleep. Stop snoring,ye sleepers, and pull. Pull, will ye? pull, can't ye? pull, won'tye? Why in the name of gudgeons and ginger-cakes don't ye pull?-pull and break something! pull, and start your eyes out! Here,"whipping out the sharp knife from his girdle; "every mother's son ofye draw his knife, and pull with the blade between his teeth. That'sit- that's it. Now ye do something; that looks like it, my steel-bits.
Start her- start her, my silverspoons! Start her, marling-spikes!"Stubb's exordium to his crew is given here at large, because hehad rather a peculiar way of talking to them in general, andespecially in inculcating the religion of rowing. But you must notsuppose from this specimen of his sermonizings that he ever flewinto downright passions with his congregation. Not at all; and thereinconsisted his chief peculiarity. He would say the most terrific thingsto his crew, in a tone so strangely compounded of fun most terri andfury, and the fury seemed so calculated merely as a spice to thefun, that no oarsmen could hear such queer invocations without pullingfor dear life, and yet pulling for the mere joke of the thing. Besideshe all the time looked so easy and indolent himself, so lounginglymanaged his steering-oar, and so broadly gaped- open-mouthed at times-that the mere sight of such a yawning commander, by sheer force ofcontrast, acted like a charm upon the crew. Then again, Stubb wasone of those odd sort of humorists, whose jollity is sometimes socuriously ambiguous, as to put all inferiors on their guard in thematter of obeying them.
In obedience to a sign from Ahab, Starbuck was now pulling obliquelyacross Stubb's bow; and when for a minute or so the two boats werepretty near to each other, Stubb hailed the mate.
"Mr. Starbuck! larboard boat there, ahoy! a word with ye, sir, if yeplease!"
"Halloa!" returned Starbuck, turning round not a single inch as hespoke; still earnestly but whisperingly urging his crew; his faceset like a flint from Stubb's.
"What think ye of those yellow boys, sir!
