A Devil On The Ship ปีศาจบนเรือ
Next we met a group of Right Whales. The oil of these whales is not as good as that of Sperm Whales, so I thought that we would not hunt them. Stubb and Flask began chasing the group of whales.
The two boats were pulled further and further away, till they were almost invisible. But after a while one of the boats was dragged back toward the ship by the whale. The two boats pulled up close to his body and Stubb with Flask used the lances in plunging until the whale was dead and ready for towing
“I wonder what the old man wants with this lump of dirty oil,” said Stubb.
“Didn’t you ever hear about the charm?” asked Flask. “Once a ship has a Sperm Whale’s head lifted on her starboard bow, and at the same time has a Right Whale on her larboard bow, she can never afterwards sink.”
“Where did you hear such words?” asked Stubb.
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“Fedallah told me,” Flask replied “That ghostly man will curse this ship. Have you noticed that the one tooth in his mouth is carved in the shape of a snake’s head, Stubb?”
“Well, I think Fedallah is the devil in disguise. But we never see his devil’s tail, for he has it rolled up and tucked in his pocket.”
“Yes, and he sleeps in his boots, doesn’t he?” added Stubb. “That devil Fedallah wants no man to see his goat-like hoofs. And I’ll bet that he has even made a bargain with the old man too. It would be that Fedallah washed his soul clean if he promised to hunt Moby Dick for the old man.”
“You are joking now, Stubb. How can Fedallah do that?”
“I don’t know, Flask, but the devil is a strange chap and a bad one, I tell you. But here we are at the ship. Pull ahead and let’s get this whale alongside.”
In a few minutes, the two boats arrived back at the Pequod.
“Can you guess the age of Fedallah, Stubb?”
To answer this question, Stubb pointed to the tallest pole on the Pequod. “Do you see that mainmast there? Well, count that as the figure one. Now take all the hoops on all the tubs on the ship. String all the hoops (122-123) in a row beside that mast and they’re zeroes following the one. That number doesn’t mean the beginning of Fedallah’s age. You could not expect all the zeroes in the world to tell his age.”
“But, Stubb, before you said you would like to throw him overboard. If he has no day to die, what good would it do?”
“Give him a good ducking.”
“How did you think if he chose to duck you back and drown you?”
“I’d like to see him try. Damn the devil, Flask! Do you believe I’m afraid of him? If he’s angry, I’ll just grab his tail and pull it off. Then, he’ll go away in shame.”
“And what will you do with the tail, Stubb?”
“Do with the tail? I plan to sell it as a whip when we get home. What else?”
Flask looked at Stubb with a you’ve been saying all this time?” he asked.
“Mean or not mean, here we are at the ship,” replied Stubb.
On the side of the ship away from the Sperm Whale, the crew put the chains ready for dealing with the Right Whale.
“Didn’t I tell you that?” said Flask. He pointed up at the Sperm Whale’s head hanging on the Pequod’s
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Starboard side. “I told you Fedallah would do that. You’ll soon see the head of the Right Whale hanging on the other side of the ship.”
In good time, the words of Flask came true. When the Right Whale’s head was hanging in that place’ I saw Fedallah studying it. He was comparing its wrinkles with the lines on the palm of his own hand as if he were looking at some situation in the future.
Captain Ahab stood in a direct line so that Fedallah was in his shadow. If Fedallah had any shadow at all, it seemed to blend with and long than Ahab’s shadow.