DuringthenightofMarch13–14,theNautilusresumeditssouthwardheading. OnceitwasabreastofCapeHorn,Ithoughtitwouldstrikewestofthecape,makeforPacificseas,andcompleteitstouroftheworld. Itdidnothingofthesortandkeptmovingtowardthesouthernmostregions.Sowherewasitbound?Thepole?Thatwasinsanity. Iwasbeginningtothinkthatthecaptain'srecklessnessmorethanjustifiedNedLand'sworstfears. ForagoodwhiletheCanadianhadsaidnothingmoretomeabouthisescapeplans. Hehadbecomelesssociable,almostsullen. Icouldseehowheavilythisprotractedimprisonmentwasweighingonhim.Icouldfeeltheangerbuildinginhim. Wheneverheencounteredthecaptain,hiseyeswouldflickerwithdarkfire,andIwasinconstantdreadthathisnaturalvehemencewouldcausehimtodosomethingrash. Thatday,March14,heandConseilmanagedtofindmeinmystateroom.Iaskedthemthepurposeoftheirvisit. "Toputasimplequestiontoyou,sir,"theCanadianansweredme. "HowmanymendoyouthinkareonboardtheNautilus?" "I'munabletosay,myfriend." "Itseemstome,"NedLandwenton,"thatitwouldn'ttakemuchofacrewtorunashiplikethisone." "Correct,"Ireplied."Underexistingconditionssometenmenatthemostshouldbeenoughtooperateit." "Allright,"theCanadiansaid,"thenwhyshouldtherebeanymorethanthat?" IstaredatNedLand,whosemotiveswereeasytoguess. "Because,"Isaid,"ifIcantrustmyhunches,ifItrulyunderstandthecaptain'swayoflife,hisNautilusisn'tsimplyaship. It'smeanttobearefugeforpeoplelikeitscommander,peoplewhohaveseveredalltieswiththeshore." "Perhaps,"Conseilsaid,"butinanutshell,theNautiluscanholdonlyacertainnumberofmen,socouldn'tMasterestimatetheirmaximum?" "Bycalculatingit.Masterisfamiliarwiththeship'scapacity,hencetheamountofairitcontains;ontheotherhand,Masterknowshowmuchaireachmanconsumesintheactofbreathing,andhecancomparethisdatawiththefactthattheNautilusmustrisetothesurfaceeverytwenty–fourhours..." Conseildidn'tfinishhissentence,butIcouldeasilyseewhathewasdrivingat. "Ifollowyou,"Isaid."Butwhilethey'resimpletodo,suchcalculationscangiveonlyaveryuncertainfigure." "Noproblem,"theCanadianwentoninsistently. "Thenhere'showtocalculateit,"Ireplied. "Inonehoureachmanconsumestheoxygencontainedin100litersofair,henceduringtwenty–fourhourstheoxygencontainedin2,400liters. Therefore,wemustlookforthemultipleof2,400litersofairthatgivesustheamountfoundintheNautilus." "Nowthen,"Iwenton,"theNautilus'scapacityis1,500metrictons,andthatofatonis1,000liters,sotheNautilusholds1,500,000litersofair,which,dividedby2,400..." Ididaquickpencilcalculation. "...givesusthequotientof625.WhichistantamounttosayingthattheaircontainedintheNautiluswouldbeexactlyenoughfor625menovertwenty–fourhours." "Butrestassured,"Iadded,"thatbetweenpassengers,seamen,orofficers,wedon'ttotalone–tenthofthatfigure." "Whichisstilltoomanyforthreemen!"Conseilmuttered. "So,mypoorNed,Icanonlycounselpatience." "And,"Conseilreplied,"evenmorethanpatience,resignation." Conseilhadsaidthetrueword. "Evenso,"hewenton,"CaptainNemocan'tgosouthforever! He'llsurelyhavetostop,ifonlyattheIceBank,andhe'llreturntotheseasofcivilization! ThenitwillbetimetoresumeNedLand'splans." TheCanadianshookhishead,passedhishandoverhisbrow,madenoreply,andleftus. "WithMaster'spermission,I'llmakeanobservationtohim,"Conseilthentoldme. "OurpoorNedbroodsaboutallthethingshecan'thave.He'shauntedbyhisformerlife. Heseemstomisseverythingthat'sdeniedus. He'sobsessedbyhisoldmemoriesandit'sbreakinghisheart.Wemustunderstandhim.Whatdoeshehavetooccupyhimhere?Nothing. Heisn'tascientistlikeMaster,andhedoesn'tshareourenthusiasmforthesea'swonders. Hewouldriskanythingjusttoenterataverninhisowncountry!" Tobesure,themonotonyoflifeonboardmusthaveseemedunbearabletotheCanadian,whowasaccustomedtofreedomandactivity. Itwasarareeventthatcouldexcitehim. Thatday,however,adevelopmentoccurredthatremindedhimofhishappyyearsasaharpooner. Neareleveno'clockinthemorning,whileonthesurfaceoftheocean,theNautilusfellinwithaherdofbaleenwhales. Thisencounterdidn'tsurpriseme,becauseIknewtheseanimalswerebeinghuntedsorelentlesslythattheytookrefugeintheoceanbasinsofthehighlatitudes. Inthemaritimeworldandintherealmofgeographicexploration,whaleshaveplayedamajorrole. ThisistheanimalthatfirstdraggedtheBasquesinitswake,thenAsturianSpaniards,Englishmen,andDutchmen,emboldeningthemagainsttheocean'sperils,andleadingthemtotheendsoftheearth. Baleenwhalesliketofrequentthesouthernmostandnorthernmostseas. OldlegendsevenclaimthatthesecetaceansledfishermentowithinameresevenleaguesoftheNorthPole. Althoughthisfeatisfictitious,itwillsomedaycometrue,becauseit'slikelythatbyhuntingwhalesintheArcticorAntarcticregions,manwillfinallyreachthisunknownspotontheglobe. Wewereseatedontheplatformnexttoatranquilsea. ThemonthofMarch,sinceit'stheequivalentofOctoberintheselatitudes,wasgivingussomefineautumndays. ItwastheCanadian—onthistopichewasnevermistaken—whosightedabaleenwhaleontheeasternhorizon. Ifyoulookedcarefully,youcouldseeitsblackishbackalternatelyriseandfallabovethewaves,fivemilesfromtheNautilus. "IfIwereonboardawhaler,there'sanencounterthatwouldbegreatfun!That'sonebiganimal! Lookhowhighitsblowholesarespoutingallthatairandsteam!Damnation! WhyamIchainedtothishunkofsheetiron!" "Why,Ned!"Ireplied."Youstillaren'toveryouroldfishingurges?" "Howcouldawhalefishermanforgethisoldtrade,sir?Whocouldevergettiredofsuchexcitinghunting?" "You'veneverfishedtheseseas,Ned?" "Never,sir.Justthenorthernmostseas,equallyintheBeringStraitandtheDavisStrait." "Sothesouthernrightwhaleisstillunknowntoyou.Untilnowit'sthebowheadwhaleyou'vehunted,anditwon'triskgoingpastthewarmwatersoftheequator." "Oh,professor,whatareyoufeedingme?"theCanadianansweredinatolerablyskepticaltone. "Bythunder!In'65,justtwoandahalfyearsago,Itowhomyouspeak,ImyselfsteppedontothecarcassofawhalenearGreenland,anditsflankstillcarriedthemarkedharpoonofawhalingshipfromtheBeringSea. NowIaskyou,afterithadbeenwoundedwestofAmerica,howcouldthisanimalbekilledintheeast,unlessithadclearedtheequatoranddoubledCapeHornortheCapeofGoodHope?" "IagreewithourfriendNed,"Conseilsaid,"andI'mwaitingtohearhowMasterwillreplytohim." "Masterwillreply,myfriends,thatbaleenwhalesarelocalized,accordingtospecies,withincertainseasthattheyneverleave. AndifoneoftheseanimalswentfromtheBeringStraittotheDavisStrait,it'squitesimplybecausethere'ssomepassagewayfromtheoneseatotheother,eitheralongthecoastsofCanadaorSiberia." "Youexpectustofallforthat?"theCanadianasked,tippingmeawink. "IfMastersaysso,"Conseilreplied. "Whichmeans,"theCanadianwenton,"sinceI'veneverfishedthesewaterways,Idon'tknowthewhalesthatfrequentthem?" "That'swhatI'vebeentellingyou,Ned." "Allthemorereasontogettoknowthem,"Conseilanswered. "Look!Look!"theCanadianexclaimed,hisvoicefullofexcitement."It'sapproaching!It'scomingtowardus!It'sthumbingitsnoseatme!ItknowsIcan'tdoablessedthingtoit!" Nedstampedhisfoot.Brandishinganimaginaryharpoon,hishandspositivelytrembled. "Thesecetaceans,"heasked,"aretheyasbigastheonesinthenorthernmostseas?" "BecauseI'veseenbigbaleenwhales,sir,whalesmeasuringupto100feetlong!I'veevenheardthatthoserorqualwhalesofftheAleutianIslandssometimesgetover150feet." "Thatstrikesmeasexaggerated,"Ireplied. "ThoseanimalsareonlymembersofthegenusBalaenopterafurnishedwithdorsalfins,andlikespermwhales,they'regenerallysmallerthanthebowheadwhale." "Oh!"exclaimedtheCanadian,whoseeyeshadn'tlefttheocean."It'sgettingcloser,it'scomingintotheNautilus'swaters!" Then,goingonwithhisconversation: "Youtalkaboutspermwhales,"hesaid,"asiftheywerelittlebeasts! Buttherearestoriesofgiganticspermwhales.They'reshrewdcetaceans. Ihearthatsomewillcoverthemselveswithalgaeandfucusplants.Peoplemistakethemforislets. Theypitchcampontop,makethemselvesathome,lightafire—" "Buildhouses,"Conseilsaid. "Yes,funnyman,"NedLandreplied."Thenonefinedaytheanimaldivesanddragsallitsoccupantsdownintothedepths." "LikeinthevoyagesofSinbadtheSailor,"Ianswered,laughing."Oh,Mr.Land,you'readdictedtotalltales!Whatspermwhalesyou'rehandingus!Ihopeyoudon'treallybelieveinthem!" "Mr.Naturalist,"theCanadianrepliedinallseriousness,"whenitcomestowhales,youcanbelieveanything!(Lookatthatonemove!Lookatitstealingaway!) Peopleclaimtheseanimalscancirclearoundtheworldinjustfifteendays." "Butwhatyouundoubtedlydon'tknow,ProfessorAronnax,isthatatthebeginningoftheworld,whalestraveledevenquicker." "Becauseinthosedaystheirtailsmovedsidetoside,likethoseonfish,inotherwords,theirtailswerestraightup,thrashingthewaterfromlefttoright,righttoleft. Butspottingthattheyswamtoofast,ourCreatortwistedtheirtails,andeversincethey'vebeenthrashingthewavesupanddown,attheexpenseoftheirspeed." "Fine,Ned,"Isaid,thenresurrectedoneoftheCanadian'sexpressions."Youexpectustofallforthat?" "Nottooterribly,"NedLandreplied,"andnomorethanifItoldyoutherearewhalesthatare300feetlongandweigh1,000,000pounds." "That'sindeedconsiderable,"Isaid."Butyoumustadmitthatcertaincetaceansdogrowtosignificantsize,sincethey'resaidtosupplyasmuchas120metrictonsofoil." "ThatI'veseen,"theCanadiansaid. "Icaneasilybelieveit,Ned,justasIcanbelievethatcertainbaleenwhalesequal100elephantsinbulk.Imaginetheimpactofsuchamassifitwerelaunchedatfullspeed!" "Isittrue,"Conseilasked,"thattheycansinkships?" "Ships?Idoubtit,"Ireplied. "However,theysaythatin1820,rightinthesesouthernseas,abaleenwhalerushedattheEssexandpusheditbackwardataspeedoffourmeterspersecond. Itssternwasflooded,andtheEssexwentdownfast." Nedlookedatmewithabanteringexpression. "Speakingformyself,"hesaid,"Ioncegotwallopedbyawhale'stail—inmylongboat,needlesstosay. MycompanionsandIwerelaunchedtoanaltitudeofsixmeters. ButnexttotheProfessor'swhale,minewasjustababy." "Dotheseanimalslivealongtime?"Conseilasked. "Athousandyears,"theCanadianrepliedwithouthesitation. "Andhow,Ned,"Iasked,"doyouknowthat'sso?" "No,Ned!Peopledon'tknowso,theysupposeso,andhere'sthelogicwithwhichtheybackuptheirbeliefs. Whenfishermenfirsthuntedwhales400yearsago,theseanimalsgrewtobiggersizesthantheydotoday. Reasonablyenough,it'sassumedthattoday'swhalesaresmallerbecausetheyhaven'thadtimetoreachtheirfullgrowth. That'swhytheCountdeBuffon'sencyclopediasaysthatcetaceanscanlive,andevenmustlive,forathousandyears.Youunderstand?" NedLanddidn'tunderstand.Henolongerevenheardme.Thatbaleenwhalekeptcomingcloser.Hiseyesdevouredit. "Oh!"heexclaimed."It'snotjustonewhale,it'sten,twenty,awholegam!AndIcan'tdoathing!I'mtiedhandandfoot!" "ButNedmyfriend,"Conseilsaid,"whynotaskCaptainNemoforpermissiontohunt—" BeforeConseilcouldfinishhissentence,NedLandscooteddownthehatchandrantolookforthecaptain.Afewmomentslater,thetwoofthemreappearedontheplatform. CaptainNemoobservedtheherdofcetaceanscavortingonthewatersamilefromtheNautilus. "They'resouthernrightwhales,"hesaid."Theregoesthefortuneofawholewhalingfleet." "Well,sir,"theCanadianasked,"couldn'tIhuntthem,justsoIdon'tforgetmyoldharpooningtrade?" "Huntthem?Whatfor?"CaptainNemoreplied."Simplytodestroythem?Wehavenouseforwhaleoilonthisship." "But,sir,"theCanadianwenton,"intheRedSeayouauthorizedustochaseadugong!" "Thereitwasanissueofobtainingfreshmeatformycrew. Hereitwouldbekillingforthesakeofkilling. I'mwellawarethat'saprivilegereservedformankind,butIdon'tallowsuchmurderouspastimes. Whenyourpeers,Mr.Land,destroydecent,harmlesscreatureslikethesouthernrightwhaleorthebowheadwhale,theycommitareprehensibleoffense. Thusthey'vealreadydepopulatedallofBaffinBay,andthey'llwipeoutawholeclassofusefulanimals.Soleavethesepoorcetaceansalone. Theyhavequiteenoughnaturalenemies,suchasspermwhales,swordfish,andsawfish,withoutyoumeddlingwiththem." I'llletthereaderdecidewhatfacestheCanadianmadeduringthislectureonhuntingethics. Furnishingsuchargumentstoaprofessionalharpoonerwasawasteofwords. NedLandstaredatCaptainNemoandobviouslymissedhismeaning.Butthecaptainwasright. Thankstothemindless,barbaricbloodthirstinessoffishermen,thelastbaleenwhalewillsomedaydisappearfromtheocean. NedLandwhistled"YankeeDoodle"betweenhisteeth,stuffedhishandsinhispockets,andturnedhisbackonus. MeanwhileCaptainNemostudiedtheherdofcetaceans,thenaddressedme: "Iwasrighttoclaimthatbaleenwhaleshaveenoughnaturalenemieswithoutcountingman. Thesespecimenswillsoonhavetodealwithmightyopponents. Eightmilestoleeward,ProfessorAronnax,canyouseethoseblackishspecksmovingabout?" "Thosearespermwhales,dreadfulanimalsthatI'vesometimesencounteredinherdsof200or300!Asforthem,they'recruel,destructivebeasts,andtheydeservetobeexterminated." TheCanadianturnedswiftlyattheselastwords. "Well,Captain,"Isaid,"onbehalfofthebaleenwhales,there'sstilltime—" "It'spointlesstorunanyrisks,professor.TheNautiluswillsufficetodispersethesespermwhales.It'sarmedwithasteelspurquiteequaltoMr.Land'sharpoon,Iimagine." TheCanadiandidn'tevenbothershrugginghisshoulders.Attackingcetaceanswiththrustsfromaspur!Whoeverheardofsuchmalarkey! "Waitandsee,ProfessorAronnax,"CaptainNemosaid. "We'llshowyouastyleofhuntingwithwhichyouaren'tyetfamiliar. We'lltakenopityontheseferociouscetaceans.They'remerelymouthandteeth!" Mouthandteeth!There'snobetterwaytodescribethelong–skulledspermwhale,whoselengthsometimesexceedstwenty–fivemeters. Theenormousheadofthiscetaceanoccupiesaboutathirdofitsbody. Betterarmedthanabaleenwhale,whoseupperjawisadornedsolelywithwhalebone,thespermwhaleisequippedwithtwenty–fivehugeteeththataretwentycentimetershigh,havecylindrical,conicalsummits,andweightwopoundseach. Inthetoppartofthisenormoushead,insidebigcavitiesseparatedbycartilage,you'llfind300to400kilogramsofthatvaluableoilcalled"spermaceti." Thespermwhaleisanawkwardanimal,moretadpolethanfish,asProfessorFrédolhasnoted. It'spoorlyconstructed,being"defective,"sotospeak,overthewholeleftsideofitsframe,withgoodeyesightonlyinitsrighteye. Meanwhilethatmonstrousherdkeptcomingcloser. Ithadseenthebaleenwhalesandwaspreparingtoattack. Youcouldtellinadvancethatthespermwhaleswouldbevictorious,notonlybecausetheywerebetterbuiltforfightingthantheirharmlessadversaries,butalsobecausetheycouldstaylongerunderwaterbeforereturningtobreatheatthesurface. Therewasjusttimetoruntotherescueofthebaleenwhales.TheNautilusproceededtomidwater. Conseil,Ned,andIsatinfrontoftheloungewindows. CaptainNemomadehiswaytothehelmsman'ssidetooperatehissubmersibleasanengineofdestruction. SoonIfeltthebeatsofourpropellergettingfaster,andwepickedupspeed. ThebattlebetweenspermwhalesandbaleenwhaleshadalreadybegunwhentheNautilusarrived. Itmaneuveredtocutintotheherdoflong–skulledpredators. Atfirstthelattershowedlittleconcernatthesightofthisnewmonstermeddlinginthebattle. Buttheysoonhadtosidestepitsthrusts. Whatastruggle!NedLandquicklygrewenthusiasticandevenendedupapplauding. Brandishedinitscaptain'shands,theNautiluswassimplyafearsomeharpoon. Hehurleditatthosefleshymassesandranthemcleanthrough,leavingbehindtwosquirminganimalhalves. Asforthosedauntingstrokesofthetailhittingoursides,theshipneverfeltthem.Nomorethanthecollisionsitcaused. Onespermwhaleexterminated,itranatanother,tackedonthespotsoasnottomissitsprey,wentaheadorastern,obeyeditsrudder,divedwhenthecetaceansanktodeeperstrata,rosewithitwhenitreturnedtothesurface,struckithead–onorslantwise,hackedatitortoreit,andfromeverydirectionandatanyspeed,skewereditwithitsdreadfulspur. Whatbloodshed!Whatahubbubonthesurfaceofthewaves!Whatsharphissesandsnortsuniquetothesefrightenedanimals!Theirtailschurnedthenormallypeacefulstrataintoactualbillows. ThisHomericslaughterdraggedonforanhour,andthelong–skulledpredatorscouldn'tgetaway. Severaltimestenortwelveofthemteamedup,tryingtocrushtheNautiluswiththeirsheermass. Throughthewindowsyoucouldseetheirenormousmouthspavedwithteeth,theirfearsomeeyes. Losingallself–control,NedLandhurledthreatsandinsultsatthem. Youcouldfeelthemclingingtothesubmersiblelikehoundsatopawildboarintheunderbrush. Butbyforcingthepaceofitspropeller,theNautiluscarriedthemoff,draggedthemunder,orbroughtthembacktotheupperlevelofthewaters,untroubledbytheirenormousweightortheirpowerfulgrip. Finallythismassofspermwhalesthinnedout.Thewavesgrewtranquilagain.Ifeltusrisingtothesurfaceoftheocean.Thehatchopenedandwerushedontotheplatform. Theseawascoveredwithmutilatedcorpses. Afearsomeexplosioncouldn'thaveslashed,torn,orshreddedthesefleshymasseswithgreaterviolence. Wewerefloatinginthemidstofgiganticbodies,bluishontheback,whitishonthebelly,andalldeformedbyenormousprotuberances. Afewfrightenedspermwhaleswerefleeingtowardthehorizon. Thewavesweredyedredoveranareaofseveralmiles,andtheNautiluswasfloatinginthemiddleofaseaofblood. "Well,sir,"repliedtheCanadian,whoseenthusiasmhadsubsided,"it'sadreadfulsightforsure.ButI'mahunternotabutcher,andthisisplainbutchery." "Itwasaslaughterofdestructiveanimals,"thecaptainreplied,"andtheNautilusisnobutcherknife." "Iprefermyharpoon,"theCanadiananswered. "Toeachhisown,"thecaptainreplied,staringintentlyatNedLand. Iwasindreadthelatterwouldgivewaytosomeviolentoutburstthatmighthavehaddeplorableconsequences. ButhisangerwasdivertedbythesightofabaleenwhalethattheNautilushadpulledalongsideofjustthen. Thisanimalhadbeenunabletoescapetheteethofthosespermwhales. Irecognizedthesouthernrightwhale,itsheadsquat,itsbodydarkallover. Anatomically,it'sdistinguishedfromthewhitewhaleandtheblackrightwhalebythefusionofitssevencervicalvertebrae,anditnumberstwomoreribsthanitsrelatives. Floatingonitsside,itsbellyriddledwithbites,thepoorcetaceanwasdead. Stillhangingfromthetipofitsmutilatedfinwasalittlebabywhalethatithadbeenunabletorescuefromtheslaughter. Itsopenmouthletwaterflowthroughitswhalebonelikeamurmuringsurf. CaptainNemoguidedtheNautilusnexttotheanimal'scorpse. Twoofhismenclimbedontothewhale'sflank,andtomyastonishment,Isawthemdrawfromitsuddersallthemilktheyheld,inotherwords,enoughtofilltwoorthreecasks. Thecaptainofferedmeacupofthisstill–warmmilk.Icouldn'thelpshowingmydistasteforsuchabeverage.Heassuredmethatthismilkwasexcellent,nodifferentfromcow'smilk. Isampleditandagreed.Sothismilkwasaworthwhilereserverationforus,becauseintheformofsaltbutterorcheese,itwouldprovideapleasantchangeofpacefromourstandardfare. Fromthatdayon,InotedwithsomeuneasinessthatNedLand'sattitudestowardCaptainNemogrewworseandworse,andIdecidedtokeepaclosewatchontheCanadian'smovementsandactivities. 
