Portuguese Sailor Warns of Squall Winds
The Portuguese sailor recognizes the danger as the sea rolls and swashes against the ship. He calls “stand by for reefing” and explains that the winds are “crossing swords” and will soon go “pell-mell” lunging—accurately predicting the storm’s violence.
Danish Sailor Praises Ship’s Storm Sturdiness
The Danish sailor celebrates the ship’s endurance with his refrain “crack, crack, old ship! so long as thou crackest, thou holdest!” He praises the mate for keeping the ship stiff and tough, comparing the vessel to a fort at Cattegat fighting the Baltic with storm-lashed guns where sea-salt cakes.
4th Nantucket Sailor Recounts Ahab’s Squall Order
The fourth Nantucket sailor reveals what he heard from old Ahab: the mate was ordered to “always kill a squall, something as they burst a waterspout with a pistol—fire your ship right into it!” This exemplifies Ahab’s aggressive approach to the sea’s challenges.
English Sailor Praises Captain Ahab
The English sailor gives a hearty endorsement of Captain Ahab, declaring “that old man’s a grand old cove!” He proclaims the crew is “the lads to hunt him up his whale!” The entire crew echoes this sentiment with a unified “Aye! aye!”
Old Manx Sailor Notes Storm and Captain’s Birthmark
The old Manx sailor observes the three pines shaking in the storm and notes the crew’s “cursed clay” can’t match the hardness of pine trees. He warns the helmsman to “steady, steady” and observes that this weather makes “brave hearts snap ashore, and keeled hulls split at sea.” He cryptically observes that their captain has his birthmark and sees another in the sky—“lurid-like, ye see, all else pitch black.”
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