the top of a foaming sea, while
the next instant another rolling on threatened to overwhelm us.

Daylight came, but it brought no cessation of the hurricane. The hours
went by; not one of us thought of breakfast. Indeed, it was impossible
to cook anything. We watched the masts quivering as the ship plunged
into the seas, and we expected every moment to see them go by the board.
The carpenter and the first mate had got their axes ready to cut them
away, should such occur. At length a tremendous sea came roaring
towards our weather bow. The ship struggled as if to avoid it, but she
pitched headlong into the deep hollow just before her, and a monstrous
sea, lifting its head half way up to the foretop, came right down on our
deck, sweeping up to the main hatchway. Horner and several of the men
shrieked out with terror, believing that their last moments were come.
I scarcely supposed that the ship would recover herself, but suddenly
she came up with a jerk, the bowsprit carried away, and the next moment
it came right across our forecastle.

"Rouse up, lads, and secure the foremast," shouted the captain.

Led by the mates, with Brown, Ringold, Soper, Jim, and me, the crew
rushed forward to secure the fore-topmast stay. We then got the
bowsprit inboard. After this the ship began to ride more easily, though
the hurricane continued until near sunset, when it began to abate. The
watch below turned in, eager to get some rest. I never slept more
soundly in my life. Next morning the sun rose from a cloudless sky. A
gentle breeze was blowing. The sea had already gone down, and in a few
hours sparkling wavelets alone played over the surface of the deep.

Two days afterwards we brought up under the lee of South Island to
repair damages. After this we again sailed to resume our search for
whales.

I was forward, when I saw a dark object floating some distance on the
weather bow. On my reporting it to the captain, he ordered a boat to be
lowered to ascertain what it was. Mr Griffiths went in her with the
doctor, Jim and I forming part of the crew. As we got near we saw that
it was a creature of some sort, but it made no effort to avoid us, and
seemed to be fast asleep. With his harpoon Mr Griffiths went forward.
As we got closer it seemed to be an enormous turtle; the doctor said of
the "trunk" species.

We paddled as noiselessly as we could for fear of waking it, and on
getting close Mr Griffiths plunged his harp