under the chin and all but knocked him
overboard. The splash and the shout distracted Hank's attention for a
second, and when he looked round a swirl of water was all that remained
to show where the whales had been.

"I told you what it would be!" said Gloomy, picking himself up and
speaking in an injured tone, as though he blamed everybody else for his
own carelessness.

His protests, however, were silenced by a steady stream of descriptive
epithet from Hank. The old gunner, without even raising his voice,
withered any possible reply on the part of the clumsy sailor, whose
inexpertness had caused their failure to get the whale.

"They were only humpbacks, however," added Hank, after Gloomy had been
reduced to silence. Indeed, so shamefaced was the luckless sailor, that
when he saw a spout a minute or two later he only pointed with his
finger, without saying a word.

Noticing the gesture, Colin turned and saw with amazement a tall jet of
vapor that had spouted from a whale close by. He looked at Hank
expectantly, hoping to hear him spur the crew to a new venture, but the
old whaler looked grave.

"Finback?" the boy queried.

"Gray whale, I reckon," answered the gunner.

"Devil-whale? Oh, Hank!" the boy cried, his eyes shining with
excitement. "I hope it is!"

"That shows how little you know," the other replied.

"Are you going to harpoon him?"

Hank looked at the boy, smiling slightly at his utter fearlessness.

"I wish you were aboard the ship," he said, "an' I would. But I reckon
it's wiser to keep out of trouble."

"But I don't want to be on the _Gull_," Colin protested; "at least not
when there's anything going on out here. And," he added craftily, "I
didn't think you were really afraid!"

"Wa'al," the old whaler said, his jaw setting firmly, "I don't want
anybody to think I'm backin' down, just because I'm in a boat again. But
I tell you straight, I don't like it. Gloomy," he continued, "an' the
rest of you, stand by your oars. That's a gray whale an' I'm goin' after
him."

"How do you know it's a California whale, Hank?" asked the boy, as they
waited for the creature to reappear.

"By the spout," was the prompt reply. "It's not as high an' thin as a
finback's, it's not large enough for the low, bushy spout of a humpback,
an' it goes straight up instead of at a forward angle so it can't be a
sperm. Must be a gray whale, can't be anythin' else."

For a few minutes the men rested on their oars,