At last his spout grew thick, and with a frightful roll and vomit,
he turned upon his back a corpse.
While the two headsmen were engaged in making fast cords to his flukes,
and in other ways getting the mass in readiness for towing,
some conversation ensued between them.
"I wonder what the old man wants with this lump of foul lard,"
said Stubb, not without some disgust at the thought of having
to do with so ignoble a leviathan.
"Wants with it?" said Flask, coiling some spare line in the boat's bow,
"did you never hear that the ship which but once has a Sperm Whale's
head hoisted on her starboard side, and at the same time a Right Whale's
on the larboard; did you never hear, Stubb, that that ship can
never afterwards capsize?"
"Why not?
"I don't know, but I heard that gamboge ghost of a Fedallah
saying so, and he seems to know all about ships' charms. But I
sometimes think he'll charm the ship to no good at last.
I don't half like that chap, Stubb. Did you ever notice how that
tusk of his is a sort of carved into a snake's head, Stubb?"
"Sink him! I never look at him at all; but if ever I get a chance
of a dark night, and he standing hard by the bulwarks, and no one by;
look down there, Flask"--pointing into the sea with a peculiar motion
of both hands--"Aye, will I! Flask, I take that Fedallah to be
the devil in disguise.
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