第五十四章 The Town-Ho’s Story.
The chapter is framed as a story told at Lima’s Golden Inn to Spanish friends, recounting the Town-Ho’s encounter with Moby Dick and the resulting tragedy between the mate Radney and the Lakeman Steelkilt.
The Golden Inn
The chapter opens with a reference to the Golden Inn, establishing the storytelling setting on a saint’s eve, with young Dons Pedro and Sebastian as the interlocutors who ask clarifying questions throughout the tale.
Encountering the Town-Ho
Shortly after speaking the Goney, a homeward-bound whaleman called the Town-Ho, manned almost entirely by Polynesians, is encountered. During a brief gam, she brings strong news of the White Whale.
The Secret Part of the Story
The narrator explains that the story contains a secret portion involving a mysterious judgment of God connected to the whale. This secret was known only to three white seamen of the Town-Ho, eventually leaked through Tashtego’s sleep-talking, but was kept hidden from Captain Ahab and the rest of the Pequod’s crew.
A Leak in the Hold
About two years before, the Town-Ho was cruising in the Pacific north of the Line when the crew discovered she was making more water than usual in her hold. They suspected a swordfish stab, but the captain, believing good luck awaited him in those latitudes, chose to continue cruising while the crew pumped at regular intervals. The leak, however, steadily worsened.
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.
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