Moby Dick; Or, The Whale

The Town-Ho Seeks Harbor

Eventually alarmed by the increasing leak, the captain set full sail for the nearest island harbor to have the hull hove out and repaired. The ship’s powerful pumps and able crew meant that foundering was not feared, especially with favorable breezes aiding progress.

Radney and Steelkilt

Had it not been for two men aboard—the brutal mate Radney, a Vineyarder and part-owner, and the bitterly provoked Steelkilt, a Lakeman and desperado from Buffalo—the Town-Ho would have reached port in perfect safety.

The Lakeman of Buffalo

When Don Sebastian hears “Lakeman” and “Buffalo,” he rises from his mat of grass to ask for an explanation of these unfamiliar terms, prompting the narrator to elaborate.

The Great Fresh-Water Seas

The narrator describes the Great Lakes—Erie, Ontario, Huron, Superior, and Michigan—as grand fresh-water seas with ocean-like expansiveness, contrasting nations, remote forests, and shipwrecks as terrible as any at sea. This inland maritime environment nurtured seafaring men like Steelkilt despite their never having seen saltwater.

Steelkilt’s Character and Origin

Steelkilt is portrayed as a tall, noble, golden-bearded figure of great intelligence and heart, who by his character could have been a Charlemagne. Radney, by contrast, is ugly as a mule yet hardy, stubborn, and malicious—a Nantucketer as vengeful as a backwoods Bowie-knife frontiersman. Despite his fierce exterior, Steelkilt had long been docile and harmless aboard ship.

At the Pumps

After two days at her island haven, the Town-Ho’s leak worsened again, requiring an hour or more at the pumps daily. The narrator explains that pumping across a calm ocean is considered trivial, but in isolated waters without safe refuge, an undetected leak becomes a serious concern.

The Mate’s Solicitude

When the leak was found gaining again, the mate Radney showed unusual solicitude about the ship’s safety. Some seamen, however, suspected his concern stemmed from his being a part-owner of the vessel rather than from cowardice, noting that he was otherwise fearless.

Steelkilt’s Banter

While working at the pump, Steelkilt noticed Radney approaching and pretended not to see him, continuing with gay banter about the leak, joking that a swordfish had returned with ship-carpenters to finish the job and that Rad’s investment was at stake.

Radney’s Insulting Command

Radney, pretending not to hear, barked at Steelkilt to keep pumping. Later, in a fury after the pumping, the mate ordered Steelkilt to fetch a broom and shovel and sweep the deck—menial work that was the customary province of boys and beneath a gang captain like Steelkilt, making the insult unmistakable.

The Confrontation at the Windlass

Steelkilt at first restrained himself, noting Radney’s seething rage and the powder-casks nearby, sensing the dangerous provocation. He quietly refused the order and pointed to three younger lads as the proper sweepers, but Radney repeated the command in an outrageous manner, advancing on him with an uplifted cooper’s club hammer snatched from a nearby cask.

The Hammer and the Blow

Though heated, Steelkilt remained seated and silent, but when Radney shook the hammer within inches of his face, he slowly retreated around the windlass, warning Radney with a twisted hand gesture to back off. When Radney persisted, Steelkilt declared he would not obey and threatened to murder him if the hammer so much as grazed his cheek. The hammer then struck his cheek, and Steelkilt instantly stove in the mate’s lower jaw, sending him crashing to the hatch spouting blood.

Steelkilt Calls His Comrades

Before the alarm cry could spread aft, Steelkilt ran aft to the backstays where two of his comrades were stationed at the mastheads—both Canallers whom he called to his aid.

The Canallers

The Canallers are explained to Don Pedro as boatmen from the grand Erie Canal, and the narrator offers to elaborate further on them, as their identity may shed more light on the events of the tale.

CAPÍTULO 54. The Town-Ho’s Story.

The Town-Ho’s Story, told through a nested narrative by the Lakeman, recounts a mutiny aboard the whaling ship Town-Ho, where Steelkilt, a Canaller boatswain, leads a rebellion against the captain’s cruelty. After his allies betray him, Steelkilt is locked in the hold, but ultimately engineers a patient, vengeful plot against Chief Mate Radney, who had earlier violently struck him. The chapter weaves together commentary on the corrupt, picturesque life of the Canallers, a sharp satirical exchange with Lima gentlemen about corruption, and a slow-building tragedy of betrayal, punishment, and retribution at sea.