Chapter 4 — CHAPTER IV<br/>NED LAND

Captain Farragut was a good seaman, worthy of the frigate he commanded. His
vessel and he were one. He was the soul of it. On the question of the cetacean
there was no doubt in his mind, and he would not allow the existence of the
animal to be disputed on board. He believed in it, as certain good women
believe in the leviathan—by faith, not by reason. The monster did exist, and he
had sworn to rid the seas of it. He was a kind of Knight of Rhodes, a second
Dieudonné de Gozon, going to meet the serpent which desolated the island.
Either Captain Farragut would kill the narwhal, or the narwhal would kill the
captain. There was no third course.