ABSTRACT
‘IT was on this coast, that my father met with the most extraordinary adventure of his life. The boat was out, one day, in quest of whales, when a very large one appeared, sleeping on the sea. They approached cautiously, and the harpoon was thrown dexterously into his back. He sprung away like lightning, from the pain, and the rope rushed with the utmost velocity over the gunwale; but unfortunately getting entangled with a grappling-iron aboard, the boat, before they had presence of mind to cut the rope with an axe, was drawn impetuously under the waves. All the crew, except my father, were swept away by this sudden plunge, and the boat rose in a few moments, then was drawn down again, by another exertion, and so continued / to float and immerge, until the whale, fatigued with the resistance of the boat, and the length of rope, could draw her along only on the surface of the sea. This enabled the prince to recover himself a little from his alarm, and to throw out some of the water from the boat. The axe having unfortunately been swept away with one of the seamen, he was preparing to cut the rope with his dagger; but the whale recovering fresh strength, and feeling, perhaps, great pain from the weapon, which, by this time, had sunk into the most irritable flesh, through the fat, began to dash the boat through the waves with such velocity, that my father, almost drowned, was glad to hold himself fast by the after benches, and to resign himself to his fate. As the whale made rapidly towards land, he was doubtful whether it was not most prudent to suffer the boat to be thus towed to shore, rather than to be exposed / to the mercy of the open sea, without compass or provisions.
