Chapter 52 Fifty Two Encounters the Albatross

At last we rounded the dreaded Cape of Good Hope. Further to the southeast is a large fishing ground for catching right whales, and we are gradually approaching. Just then, we encountered a whaling ship with a very interesting name, the Albatross. The Albatross drew nearer, and standing on the masthead I beheld a sight I will never forget. The Albatross was washed white by the sea, like a floating giant elephant, with a long circle of rusty red painted around it, and all its masts looked like orange tree trunks that had been frosted in winter. It pulls its low sails, and looking at its masthead, the three watchmen are even more amazingly dressed:

They have long beards, are wearing animal skins, and are worn out, full of patches. It can be seen that they have been drifting at sea for nearly four years. We got so close that we could even jump from the side masts. The three mast watchmen looked at us sadly, and said nothing. Captain Ahab spoke from the quarterdeck: Hey, that boat, have you seen the white whale? The captain was leaning against the bulwark, and was about to take up his horn to answer, but somehow the wind blew the horn overboard. The wind was very strong, and although he was shouting loudly, he couldn't hear what he was saying at all.

In such a short while, the two boats had already staggered. Captain Ahab saw that it was also a Nantucket ship, and was about to turn back, so he shouted to the Albatross through the horn: We are the Pequod, and we are going to the Pacific Ocean, and we have a message to take there, if we don't go back for three years Captain Ahab yelled for a long time, and we felt that if the wind had not been so strong, Captain Ahab would have lowered the skiff, sailed over, and boarded the strange ship. At this time, a strange phenomenon happened. For several days, there has been a large group of small fish following our boat, like a group of loyal servants, huddled together.

Just as our boat and the Albatross were staggered and separated, the school of fish rushed out of our boat's track and followed the Albatross instead. What, you don't follow us anymore? Captain Ahab stared at the water behind the ship and said, his voice seemed full of sadness and helplessness. Take what you want, we're still going to do what we're supposed to do, well guys, get on with our round-the-world voyage! Sailing around the world, the name sounds very imposing, but after it has gone through a catastrophe, doesn't it still have to return to its starting point?

We've been heading east, and we don't know if we'll be able to circumnavigate the world.