After a few moments of this tremendous exertion, our victim
settled down, leaving the water deeply stained with his gushing
blood. With him disappeared his constant companion, the faithful
cow, who had never left his side a minute since we first got
fast. Down, down they went, until my line began to look very low,
and I was compelled to make signals to the ship for more. We had
hardly elevated the oars, when down dropped the last boat with
four men in her, arriving by my side in a few minutes with two
fresh tubs of tow-line. We took them on board, and the boat
returned again. By the time the slack came we had about four
hundred and fifty fathoms out--a goodly heap to pile up loose in
our stern-sheets. I felt sure, however, that we should have but
little more trouble with our fish; in fact, I was half afraid
that he would die before getting to the surface, in which case he
might sink and be lost. We hauled steadily away, the line not
coming in very easily, until I judged there was only about
another hundred fathoms out. Our amazement may be imagined, when
suddenly we were compelled to sleek away again, the sudden weight
on the line suggesting that the fish was again sounding.
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