Surely we may pause awhile to contemplate29 the overmastering courage of the earliest seafarers, who, in spite of all these terrors, unappalled by the comparison between their tiny shallops and the mighty30 waves that towered above them, set boldly out from shore into the unknown, obeying that deeply rooted instinct of migration31 which has peopled every habitable part of the earth’s surface. Those who remember their childhood’s dread32 of the dark, with its possible population of bogeys33, who have ever been lost in early youth in some lonely place, can have some dim conception, though only a dim one, after all, of the inward battle these ancients fought and won, until it became possible for the epigram to be written in utmost truth—
“The seas but join the nations they divide.”
But, after all, we are not now concerned with the warlike doings of men. It is with the actualities of submarine struggle we wish to deal—those wars without an armistice34, where to be defeated is to be devoured35, and from the sea-shouldering whale down to the smallest sea-insect every living thing is carnivorous, dependent directly upon the flesh of its neighbours for its own life, and incapable37 of altruism38 in any form whatever, except among certain of the mammalia and the sharks. In dealing39 with the more heroic phases of this unending warfare, then, it must be said, once for all, that the ancient writers had a great deal of reason on their side. They distorted and exaggerated, of course, as all children do, but they did not disbelieve. But moderns, rushing to the opposite extreme, have neglected the marvels40 of the sea by the simple process of disbelieving in them, except in the case of the sea-serpent, that myth which seems bound to persist for ever and ever. Only of late years have the savants of the world allowed themselves to be convinced214 of the existence of a far more wondrous41 monster than the sea-serpent (if that “loathly worm” were a reality), the original Kraken of old-world legends. Hugest of all the mollusca, whose prevailing42 characteristics are ugliness, ferocity, and unappeasable hunger, he has lately asserted himself so firmly that current imaginative literature bristles43 with allusions44 to him, albeit45 oftentimes in situations where he could by no possibility be found. No matter, he has supplied a long-felt want; but the curious fact remains46 that he is not a discovery, but a re-appearance. The gigantic cuttle-fish of actual, indisputable fact is, in all respects except size, the Kraken; and any faithful representation of him will justify47 the assertion that no imagination could add anything to the terror-breeding potentialities of his aspect. That is so, even when he is viewed by the light of day in the helplessness of death or disabling sickness, or in the invincible48 grip of his only conqueror49. In his proper realm, crouching50 far below the surface of the sea in some coral cave or labyrinth51 of rocks, he must present a sight so awful that the imagination recoils52 before it. For consider him but a little. He possesses a cylindrical54 body reaching in the largest specimens55 yet recorded as having been seen, a length of between sixty and seventy feet, with an average girth of half that amount. That is to say, considerably56 larger than a Pullman railway-car. Now, this immense mass is of boneless gelatinous matter capable of much greater distension57 than a snake; so that in the improbable event of his obtaining an extra-abundant supply of food, it is competent to swell215 to the occasion and still give the flood of digestive juices that it secretes58 full opportunity to dispose of the burden with almost incredible rapidity. Now, the apex59 of this mighty cylinder60—I had almost said “tail,” but remembered that it would give a wrong impression, since it is the part of the monster that always comes first when he is moving from place to place, is conical, that is to say, it tapers61 off to a blunt point something like a whitehead torpedo63. Near this apex there is a broad fin-like arrangement looking much like the body of a skate without its tail, which, however, is used strictly64 for steering65 purposes only. So far there is nothing particularly striking about the appearance of this mighty cylinder except in colour. This characteristic varies in different individuals, but is always reminiscent of the hues67 of a very light-coloured leopard69; that is to say, the ground is of a livid greenish white, while the detail is in splashes and spots of lurid70 red and yellow, with an occasional nimbus of pale blue around these deeper markings. But it is the head of the monster that appals71. Nature would seem in the construction of this greatest of all molluscs to have combined every weapon of offence possessed72 by the rest of the animal kingdom in one amazing arsenal73, disposing them in such a manner that not only are they capable of terrific destruction, but their appearance defies adequate description.
The trunk at the head end is sheath-like, its terminating edges forming a sort of collar around the vast cable of muscles without a fragment of bone which connects it with the head. Through a large216 opening within this collar is pumped a jet of water, the pressure of which upon the surrounding sea is sufficiently74 great to drive the whole bulk of the creature, weighing perhaps sixty or seventy tons, backwards75 through the water, at the rate of sixteen to twenty miles per hour, not in steady progression, of course, but by successive leaps. At will, this propelling jet is deeply stained with sepia, a dark-brown inky fluid, which, mingling76 with the encompassing77 sea, fills all the neighbourhood of the monster with a gloom so deep that nothing, save one of its own species, can see either to fight or whither to fly. The head itself is of proportionate size. It is rounded underneath78, and of much lighter79 hue68 than the trunk. On either side of it is set an eye, of such dimensions that the mere80 statement of them sounds like the efforts of one of those grand old mediæval romancers, whose sole object was to make their reader’s flesh creep. It is perfectly81 safe to say that even in proportion to size, no other known creature has such organs of vision as the cuttle-fish, for the pupils of such an one as I am now describing are fully82 two feet in diameter. They are perfectly black, with a dead white rim10, and cannot be closed. No doubt their enormous size is for the purpose of enabling their possessor to discern what is going on amidst the thick darkness that he himself has raised, so that while all other organisms are groping blindly in the gloom, he may work his will among them. Then come the weapons which give the cuttle-fish its power of destruction, the arms or tentacles84. These are not eight in number, as in the octopus85, an217 ugly beast enough and spiteful withal, but a babe of innocence86 compared with our present subject. Every schoolboy should know that octopus signifies an eight-armed or eight-footed creature, and yet in nine cases out of ten where writers of fiction and would-be teachers of fact are describing the deadly doings of the gigantic cuttle-fish they call him an octopus; whereas he is nothing of the kind, for, in addition to the eight arms which the octopus possesses, the cuttle-fish flaunts87 two, each of which is double the length of the eight, making him a decapod. This confusion is the more unpardonable, because even the most ancient of scribes always spoke88 of this mollusc as the “ten-armed one,” while a reference to any standard work on Natural History will show even the humbler cuttle-fish with their full complement89 of arms—that is, ten. But this is digression.
Our friend has, then, ten arms springing from the crown of his head, of which eight are forty feet in length, and two are seventy to eighty. The eight each taper62 outward from the head, from the thickness of a stout12 man’s body at the base to the slenderness of a whip-lash at the end. On their inner sides they are studded with saucer-like hollows, each of which has a fringe of curving claws set just within its rim. So that in addition to their power of holding on to anything they touch by a suction so severe that it would strip flesh from bone, these cruel claws, large as those of a full-grown tiger’s, get to work upon the subject being held, lacerating and tearing until the quivering body yields up its innermost secrets. Each of these218 destroying, serpent-like arms is also gifted with an almost independent power of volition90. Whatever it touches it holds with an unreleasable grip, but with wonderful celerity it brings its prey inwards to where, in the centre of all those infernal purveyors lies a black chasm91, whose edges are shaped like the upper and lower mandibles of a parrot, and these complete the work so well begun. The outliers, those two far-reaching tentacles, unlike the busy eight, are comparatively slender from their bases to near (within two feet or so of) their ends. There they expand into broad paddle-like masses, thickly studded with acetabulæ, those holding sucking-discs that garnish92 the inner arms for their entire length. So, thus armed, this nightmare monstrosity crouches93 in the darkling depths of ocean, like some unimaginable web, whereof every line is alive to hold and tear. Its digestion94 is like a furnace of dissolution, needing a continual inflow of flesh, and nothing living that inhabits the sea comes amiss to its never-satisfied cravings. It is very near the apex of the pyramid of interdependence into which sea-life is built, but not quite. For at the summit is the sperm95 whale, the monarch96 of all seas, whom man alone is capable of meeting in fair fight and overcoming.
The head of the sperm whale is of heroic size, being in bulk quite one-third of the entire body, but in addition to its size it has characteristics that fit it peculiarly to compete with such a dangerous monster as the gigantic decapod. Imagine a solid block of crude indiarubber, between twenty and thirty feet in length,219 and eight feet through, in shape not at all unlike a railway-carriage, but perfectly smooth in surface. Fit this mass beneath with a movable shaft97 of solid bone, twenty feet in length, studded with teeth, each protruding98 nine inches, and resembling the points of an elephant’s tusks99. You will then have a fairly complete notion of the equipment with which the ocean monarch goes into battle against the Kraken. And behind it lies the warm blood of the mammal, the massive framework of bone belonging to the highly developed vertebrate animal, governed by a brain impelled101 by irresistible instinct to seek its sustenance102 where alone it can be found in sufficiently satisfying bulk. And there for you are the outlines of the highest form of animal warfare existing within our ken4, a conflict of Titans, to which a combat between elephants and rhinoceri in the jungle is but as the play of schoolboys compared with the gladiatorial combats of Ancient Rome.
This somewhat lengthy103 preamble104 is necessary in order to clear the way for an account of the proceedings105 leading up to the final subjugation106 of the huge molluscs of the elder slime to the needs of the great vertebrates like the whales, who were gradually emerging into a higher development, and, finding new wants oppressing them, had to obey the universal law, and fight for the satisfaction of their urgent needs. Fortunately, the period with which we have to deal was before chronology, so that we are not hampered107 by dates; and, as the disposition108 of sea and land, except in its main features, was altogether different to what220 we have long been accustomed to regard as the always-existing geographical109 order of things, we need not be greatly troubled by place considerations either. What must be considered as the first beginning of the long struggle occurred when some predecessors110 of the present sperm whales, wandering through the vast morasses111 and among the sombre forests of that earlier world, were compelled to recognize that the conditions of shore life were rapidly becoming too onerous112 for them. Their immensely weighty bodies, lumbering113 slowly as a seal over the rugged114 land surface, handicapped them more and more in the universal business of life, the procuring115 of food. Not only so, but as by reason of their slowness they were confined for hunting-grounds to a very limited area, the slower organism upon which their vast appetites were fed grew scarcer and scarcer, in spite of the fecundity116 of that prolific117 time. And in proportion as they found it more and more difficult to get a living, so did their enemies grow more numerous and bolder. Vast dragon-like shapes, clad in complete armour that clanged as the wide-spreading bat-wings bore them swiftly through the air, descended118 upon the sluggish119 whales, and with horrid120 rending121 by awful shear-shaped jaws122, plentifully125 furnished with foot-long teeth, speedily stripped from their gigantic bodies the masses of succulent flesh. Other enemies, weird126 of shape and swift of motion although confined to the earth, fastened also upon the easily attainable128 prey that provided flesh in such bountiful abundance, and was unable to fight or flee.
Well was it, then, for the whales that, living always near the sea, they had formed aquatic129 habits, finding in the limpid130 element a medium wherein their huge bulk was rather a help than a hindrance131 to them. Gradually they grew to use the land less and less as they became more and more accustomed to the food provided in plenty by the inexhaustible ocean. Continual practice enabled them to husband the supplies of air which they took in on the surface for use beneath the waves; and, better still, they found that whereas they had been victims to many a monster on land whose proportions and potentialities seemed far inferior to their own, here in their new element they were supreme132, nothing living but fled from before them. But presently a strange thing befell them. As they grew less and less inclined to use the dry land, they found that their powers of locomotion133 thereon gradually became less and less also, until at last their hind100 legs dwindled134 away and disappeared. Their vast and far-reaching tails lost their length, and their bones spread out laterally135 into flexible fans of toughest gristle, with which they could propel themselves through the waves at speeds to which their swiftest progress upon land had been but a snail’s crawl. Also their fore53 legs grew shorter and wider, and the separation of the toes disappeared, until all that was left of these once ponderous136 supports were elegant fan-like flippers of gristle, of not the slightest use for propulsion, but merely acting137 as steadying-vanes to keep the whole great structure in its proper position according to the will of the owner. All these radical138 physical changes,222 however, had not affected139 the real classification of the whales. They were still mammals, still retained in the element which was now entirely140 their habitat the high organization belonging to the great carnivora of the land. Therefore it took them no long period of time to realize that in the ocean they would be paramount141, that with the tremendous facilities for rapid movement afforded them by their new habitat they were able to maintain that supremacy142 against all comers, unless their formidable armed jaws should also become modified by degeneration into some such harmless cavities for absorbing food as are possessed by their distant relatives, the mysticetæ, or toothless whales.
With a view to avoiding any such disaster, they made good use of their jaws, having been taught by experience that the simple but effectual penalty for the neglect of any function, whether physical or mental, was the disappearance143 of the organs where such functions had been performed. But their energetic use of teeth and jaws had a result entirely unforeseen by them. Gradually the prey they sought, the larger fish and smaller sea-mammals, disappeared from the shallow seas adjacent to the land, from whence the whales had been driven; and in order to satisfy the demands of their huge stomachs, they were fain to follow their prey into deeper and deeper waters, meeting as they went with other and stranger denizens144 of those mysterious depths, until at last the sperm whale met the Kraken. There in his native gloom, vast, formless, and insatiable, brooded the awful Thing. Spread like a living net whereof every mesh145 was223 armed, sensitive and lethal146, this fantastic complication of horrors took toll147 of all the sea-folk, needing not to pursue its prey, needing only to lie still, devour19, and grow. Sometimes, moved by mysterious impulses, one of these chimæras would rise to the sea-surface and bask148 in the beams of the offended sun, poisoning the surrounding air with its charnel-house odours, and occasionally finding within the never-resting nervous clutching of its tentacles some specimens of the highest, latest product of creation, man himself. Ages of such experiences as these had left the Kraken defenceless as to his body. The absence of any necessity for exertion149 had arrested the development of a backbone150; the inability of any of the sea-people to retaliate151 upon their sateless152 foe153 had made him neglect any of those precautions that weaker organisms had provided themselves with, and even the cloud of sepia with which all the race were provided, and which often assisted the innocent and weaker members of the same great family to escape, was only used by these masters of the sea to hide their monstrous154 lures155 from their prey.
Thus on a momentous156 day a ravenous157 sperm whale, hunting eagerly for wherewithal to satisfy his craving, suddenly found himself encircled by many long, cable-like arms. They clung, they tore, they sucked. But whenever a stray end of them flung itself across the bristling158 parapet of the whale’s lower jaw123 it was promptly159 bitten off, and a portion having found its way down into the craving stomach of the big mammal, it was welcomed as good beyond all other food yet encountered.224 Once this had been realized, what had originally been an accidental entrapping160 changed itself into a vigorous onslaught and banquet. True, the darkness fought for the mollusc, but that advantage was small compared with the feeling of incompetence161, of inability to make any impression upon this mighty impervious162 mass that was moving as freely amid the clinging embarrassments163 of those hitherto invincible arms as if they were only fronds164 of seaweed. And then the foul165 mass of the Kraken found itself, contrary to all previous experience, rising involuntarily, being compelled to leave its infernal shades, and, without any previous preparation for such a change of pressure, to visit the upper air. The fact was that the whale, finding its stock of air exhausted166, had put forth a supreme effort to rise, and found that, although unable to free himself from those enormous cables, he was actually competent to raise the whole mass. What an upheaval! Even the birds that, allured167 by the strong carrion168 scent66, were assembling in their thousands, fled away from that appalling169 vision, their wild screams of affright filling the air with lamentation170. The tormented171 sea foamed172 and boiled in wide-spreading whirls, its deep sweet blue changed into an unhealthy nondescript tint173 of muddy yellow as the wide expanse of the Kraken’s body yielded up its corrupt174 fluids, and the healthful breeze did its best to disperse175 the bad smells that rose from the ugly mass. Then the whale, having renewed his store of air, settled down seriously to the demolition176 of his prize. Length after length of tentacle83 was torn away from the central225 crown and swallowed, gliding177 down the abysmal178 throat of the gratified mammal in snaky convolutions until even that great store-room would contain no more. The vanquished179 Kraken lay helplessly rolling upon the wave while its conqueror in satisfied ease lolled near, watching with good-humoured complacency the puny180 assault made upon that island of gelatinous flesh by the multitude of smaller hungry things. The birds returned, reassured181, and added by their clamour to the strangeness of the scene, where the tribes of air and sea, self-bidden to the enormous banquet, were making full use of their exceptional privilege. So the great feast continued while the red sun went down and the white moon rose in placid183 beauty. Yet for all the combined assaults of those hungry multitudes the tenacious184 life of that largest of living things lay so deeply seated that when the rested whale resumed his attentions he found the body of his late antagonist185 still quivering under the attack of his tremendous jaws. But its proportions were so immense that his utmost efforts left store sufficient for at least a dozen of his companions, had they been there, to have satisfied their hunger upon. And, satisfied at last, he turned away, allowing the smaller fry, who had waited his pleasure most respectfully, to close in again and finish the work he had so well begun.
Now, this was a momentous discovery indeed, for the sperm whales had experienced, even when fish and seals were plentiful124, great difficulty in procuring sufficient food at one time for a full meal, and the problem of how to provide for themselves as they grew226 and multiplied had become increasingly hard to solve. Therefore this discovery filled the fortunate pioneer with triumph, for his high instincts told him that he had struck a new source of supply that promised to be inexhaustible. So, in the manner common to his people, he wasted no time in convening186 a gathering187 of them as large as could be collected. Far over the placid surface of that quiet sea lay gently rocking a multitude of vast black bodies, all expectant, all awaiting the momentous declaration presently to be made. The epoch-making news circulated among them in perfect silence, for to them has from the earliest times been known the secret that is only just beginning to glimmer188 upon the verge189 of human intelligence, the ability to communicate with one another without the aid of speech, sight, or touch—a kind of thought transference, if such an idea as animal thought may be held allowable. And having thus learned of the treasures held in trust for them by the deep waters, they separated and went, some alone and some in compact parties of a dozen or so, upon their rejoicing way.
But among the slimy hosts of the gigantic Mollusca there was raging a sensation unknown before—a feeling of terror, of insecurity born of the knowledge that at last there had appeared among them a being proof against the utmost pressure of their awful arms, who was too great to be devoured, who, on the other hand, had evinced a greedy partiality for devouring them. How this information became common property among them it is impossible to say, since they dwelt alone, each in his own particular lair190, rigidly191 respected227 by one another, because any intrusion upon another’s domains192 was invariably followed by the absorption of either the intruder or the intruded193 upon by the stronger of the two. This, although not intended by them, had the effect of vastly heightening the fear with which they were regarded by the smaller sea-folk, for they took to a restless prowling along the sea-bed, enwreathing themselves about the mighty bases of the islands, and invading cool coral caverns194 where their baleful presence had been till then unknown. Never before had there been such a panic among the multitudinous sea-populations. What could this new portent195 signify? Were the foundations of the great deep again about to be broken up, and the sea-bed heaved upward to replace the tops of the towering mountains on dry land? There was no reply, for there were none that could answer questions like these.
Still the fear-smitten decapods wandered, seeking seclusion196 from the coming enemy, and finding none to their mind. Still the crowds of their victims rushed blindly from shoal to shoal, plunging197 into depths unfitted for them, or rising into shallows where their natural food was not. And the whole sea was troubled, until at last there appeared, grim and vast, the advance-guard of the sperm whales, and hurled198 itself with joyful200 anticipation201 upon the shrinking convolutions of those hideous202 monsters that had so long dominated the dark places of the sea. For the whales it was a time of feasting hitherto without parallel. Without any fear, uncaring to take even the most elementary precautions against a defeat which they felt228 to be an impossible contingency203, they sought out and devoured one after another of these vast uglinesses, already looked upon by them as their natural provision, their store of food accumulated of purpose against their coming. Occasionally, it is true, some rash youngster, full of pride, and rejoicing in his pre-eminence over all life in the depths, would hurl199 himself into a smoky network of far-spreading tentacles which would wrap him round so completely that his jaws were fast bound together, his flukes would vainly essay to propel him any whither, and he would presently perish miserably204, his cable-like sinews falling slackly and his lungs suffused205 with crimson206 brine. Even then, the advantage gained by the triumphant207 Kraken was a barren one, for in every case the bulk of the victim was too great, his body too firm in its build, for the victor, despite his utmost efforts, to succeed in devouring his prize. So that the disappointed Kraken had perforce to witness the gradual disappearance of his lawful208 prize beneath the united efforts of myriads of tiny sea-scavengers, secure in their insignificance209 against any attack from him, and await with tremor210 extending to the remotest extremity211 of every tentacle, the retribution that he felt sure would speedily follow.
This desultory212 warfare was waged for long, until, driven by despair to a community of interest unknown before, the Krakens gradually sought one another out with but a single idea—that of combining against the new enemy; for, knowing to what an immense size their kind could attain127 in the remoter fastnesses of229 ocean, they could not yet bring themselves to believe that they were to become the helpless prey of these new-comers, visitors of yesterday, coming from the cramped213 acreage of the land into the limitless fields of ocean, and invading the immemorial freeholds of its hitherto unassailable sovereigns. From the remotest recesses214 of the ocean they came, that grisly gathering—came in ever-increasing hosts, their silent progress spreading unprecedented215 dismay among the fairer inhabitants of the sea. Figure to yourselves, if you can, the advance of this terrible host. But the effort is vain. Not even Martin, that frenzied216 delineator of the frightful217 halls of hell, the scenes of the Apocalypse, and the agonies of the Deluge218, could have done justice to the terrors of such a scene. Only dimly can we imagine what must have been the appearance of those vast masses of writhing219 flesh, as through the palely gleaming phosphorescence of the depths they sped backwards in leaps of a hundred fathoms220 each, their terrible arms, close-clustered together, streaming behind like Medusa’s hair magnified ten thousand times in size, and with each snaky tress bearing a thousand mouths instead of one.
So they converged221 upon the place of meeting, an area of the sea-bed nowhere more than 500 fathoms in depth, from whose rugged floor rose irregularly stupendous columnar masses of lava222 hurled upwards223 by the cosmic forces below in a state of incandescence224 and solidified225 as they rose, assuming many fantastic shapes, and affording perfect harbourage to such dire36 scourges226 of the sea as were now making the place their230 rendezvous227. For, strangely enough, this marvellous portion of the submarine world was more densely229 peopled with an infinite variety of sea-folk than any other; its tepid230 waters seemed to bring forth abundantly of all kinds of fish, crustacea, and creeping things. Sharks in all their fearsome varieties prowled greasily231 about, scenting232 for dead things whereon to gorge233, shell-fish from the infinitesimal globigerina up to the gigantic clam182 whose shells were a yard each in diameter; crabs234, lobsters235, and other freakish varieties of crustacea of a size and ugliness unknown to day lurked236 in every crevice237, while about and among all these scavengers flitted the happy, lovely fish in myriads of glorious hues matching the tender shades of the coral groves238 that sprang from the summits of those sombre lava columns beneath. Hitherto this happy hunting-ground had not been invaded by the sea-mammals. None of the air-breathing inhabitants of the ocean had ventured into its gloomy depths, or sought their prey among the blazing shallows of the surface-reefs, although no more favourable239 place for their exertions240 could possibly have been selected over all the wide sea. It had long been a favourite haunt of the Kraken, for whom it was, as aforesaid, an ideal spot, but now it was to witness a sight unparalleled in ocean history. Heralded241 by an amazing series of under-waves, the gathering of monsters drew near. They numbered many thousands, and no one in all their hosts was of lesser magnitude than sixty feet long by thirty in girth of body alone. From that size they increased until some—the acknowledged leaders—discovered themselves like islands, their cylindrical carcases huge as that of an ocean liner, and their tentacles capable of overspreading an entire village.
In concentric rings they assembled, all heads pointing outward, the mightiest242 within, and four clear avenues through the circles left for coming and going. Contrary to custom, but by mutual243 consent, all the tentacles lay closely arranged in parallel lines, not outspread to every quarter of the compass, and all a-work. They looked, indeed, in their inertia244 and silence, like nothing so much as an incalculable number of dead squid of enormous size neatly245 laid out at the whim246 of some giant’s fancy. Yet communication between them was active; a subtle interchange of experiences and plans went briskly on through the medium of the mobile element around them. The elder and mightier247 were full of disdain248 at the reports they were furnished with, utterly249 incredulous as to the ability of any created thing to injure them, and, as the time wore on, an occasional tremor was distinctly noticeable through the whole length of their tentacles, which boded250 no good to their smaller brethren. Doubtless but little longer was needed for the development of a great absorption of the weaker by the stronger, only that, darting251 into their midst like a lightning streak252, came a messenger squid, bearing the news that a school of sperm whales, numbering at least ten thousand, were coming at top-speed direct for their place of meeting. Instantly to the farthest confines of that mighty gathering the message radiated, and as if by one movement there uprose from the sea-bed so dense228 a cloud of sepia that for many miles around the clear blue of the ocean became turbid253, stagnant254, and foul. Even the birds that hovered255 over those dark-brown waves took fright at this terrible phenomenon, to them utterly incomprehensible, and with discordant256 shrieks257 they fled in search of sweeter air and cleaner sea. But below the surface under cover of this thickest darkness there was the silence of death.
Twenty miles away, under the bright sunshine, an advance-guard of about a hundred sperm whales came rushing on. Line abreast258, their bushy breath rising like the regular steam-jets from a row of engines, they dashed aside the welcoming wavelets, every sense alert, and full of eagerness for the consummation of their desires. Such had been their despatch259 that throughout the long journey of 500 leagues they had not once stayed for food, so that they were ravenous with hunger as well as full of fight. They passed, and before the foaming260 of their swift passage had ceased, the main body, spread over a space of thirty miles, came following on, the roar of their multitudinous march sounding like the voice of many waters. Suddenly the advance-guard, with stately elevation261 of the broad fans of their flukes, disappeared, and by one impulse the main body followed them. Down into the depths they bore, noting with dignified262 wonder the absence of all the usual inhabitants of the deep, until, with a thrill of joyful anticipation which set all their masses of muscle a-quiver, they recognized the scent of the prey. No thought of organized resistance presented itself; without a halt, or even the faintest slackening of their great rush, they plunged263 forward into the abysmal gloom; down, down withal into that wilderness264 of waiting devils. And so, in darkness and silence like that of the beginning of things, this great battle was joined. Whale after whale succumbed265, anchored to the bottom by such bewildering entanglements266, such enlacement of tentacles, that their vast strength was helpless to free them; their jaws were bound hard together, and even the wide sweep of their flukes gat no hold upon the slimy water. But the Decapods were in evil case. Assailed267 from above while their groping arms writhed268 about below, they found themselves more often locked in unreleasable hold of their fellows than they did of their enemies. And the quick-shearing jaws of those enemies shredded269 them into fragments, made nought270 of their bulk, revelled271 and frolicked among them, slaying272, devouring, exulting273. Again and again the triumphant mammals drew off for air and from satiety274, went and lolled upon the sleek275 oily surface, in water now so thick that the fiercest hurricane that ever blew would have failed to raise a wave thereon.
So through a day and a night the slaying ceased not, except for these brief interludes, until those of the Decapods left alive had disentangled themselves from the débris of their late associates and returned with what speed they might to depths and crannies, where they fondly hoped their ravenous enemies could never come. They bore with them the certain knowledge that from henceforth they were no longer lords of the sea, that instead of being, as hitherto, devourers of all things living that crossed the radius276 of their outspread toils277, they were now and for all time to be the prey of a nobler race of creatures, a higher order of being, and that at last they had taken their rightful position as creatures of usefulness in the vast economy of Creation.
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craving
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| n.渴望,热望 | |
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warfare
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| n.战争(状态)；斗争；冲突 | |
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embellishing
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| v.美化( embellish的现在分词 )；装饰；修饰；润色 | |
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ken
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| n.视野，知识领域 | |
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lesser
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| adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地 | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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conjured
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| 用魔术变出( conjure的过去式和过去分词 )； 祈求，恳求； 变戏法； （变魔术般地） 使…出现 | |
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irresistible
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| adj.非常诱人的，无法拒绝的，无法抗拒的 | |
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9
primitive
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| adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物 | |
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10
rim
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| n.(圆物的)边，轮缘；边界 | |
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11
appal
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| vt.使胆寒，使惊骇 | |
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13
stoutest
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| 粗壮的( stout的最高级 )； 结实的； 坚固的； 坚定的 | |
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artistic
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| adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的 | |
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15
armour
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| （=armor）n.盔甲；装甲部队 | |
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16
prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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17
dwellers
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| n.居民，居住者( dweller的名词复数 ) | |
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18
margin
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| n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘 | |
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19
devour
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| v.吞没；贪婪地注视或谛听，贪读；使着迷 | |
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20
devouring
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| 吞没( devour的现在分词 )； 耗尽； 津津有味地看； 狼吞虎咽地吃光 | |
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21
enjoyment
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| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
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22
crunches
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| n.（突发的）不足( crunch的名词复数 )；需要做出重要决策的困难时刻；紧要关头；嘎吱的响声v.嘎吱嘎吱地咬嚼( crunch的第三人称单数 )；嘎吱作响；（快速大量地）处理信息；数字捣弄 | |
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23
counterfeit
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| vt.伪造，仿造；adj.伪造的，假冒的 | |
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24
phenomena
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| n.现象 | |
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25
upheaval
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| n.胀起，(地壳)的隆起；剧变，动乱 | |
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26
solitude
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| n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方 | |
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27
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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28
myriads
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| n.无数，极大数量( myriad的名词复数 ) | |
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29
contemplate
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| vt.盘算，计议；周密考虑；注视，凝视 | |
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30
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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31
migration
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| n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙 | |
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32
dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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33
bogeys
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| n.妖怪，可怕的人（物）( bogey的名词复数 )v.妖怪，可怕的人（物）( bogey的第三人称单数 ) | |
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34
armistice
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| n.休战，停战协定 | |
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35
devoured
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| 吞没( devour的过去式和过去分词 )； 耗尽； 津津有味地看； 狼吞虎咽地吃光 | |
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36
dire
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| adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的 | |
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37
incapable
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| adj.无能力的，不能做某事的 | |
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38
altruism
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| n.利他主义，不自私 | |
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39
dealing
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| n.经商方法，待人态度 | |
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40
marvels
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| n.奇迹( marvel的名词复数 )；令人惊奇的事物（或事例）；不平凡的成果；成就v.惊奇，对…感到惊奇( marvel的第三人称单数 ) | |
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41
wondrous
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| adj.令人惊奇的，奇妙的；adv.惊人地；异乎寻常地；令人惊叹地 | |
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42
prevailing
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| adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的 | |
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43
bristles
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| 短而硬的毛发，刷子毛( bristle的名词复数 ) | |
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44
allusions
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| 暗指，间接提到( allusion的名词复数 ) | |
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45
albeit
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| conj.即使；纵使；虽然 | |
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46
remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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47
justify
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| vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护 | |
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48
invincible
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| adj.不可征服的，难以制服的 | |
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49
conqueror
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| n.征服者，胜利者 | |
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50
crouching
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的现在分词 ) | |
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51
labyrinth
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| n.迷宫；难解的事物；迷路 | |
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52
recoils
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| n.（尤指枪炮的）反冲，后坐力( recoil的名词复数 )v.畏缩( recoil的第三人称单数 )；退缩；报应；返回 | |
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53
fore
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| adv.在前面；adj.先前的；在前部的；n.前部 | |
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54
cylindrical
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| adj.圆筒形的 | |
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55
specimens
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| n.样品( specimen的名词复数 )；范例；（化验的）抽样；某种类型的人 | |
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56
considerably
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| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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57
distension
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| n.扩张，膨胀(distention) | |
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58
secretes
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| v.（尤指动物或植物器官）分泌( secrete的第三人称单数 )；隐匿，隐藏 | |
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59
apex
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| n.顶点，最高点 | |
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60
cylinder
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| n.圆筒，柱(面)，汽缸 | |
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61
tapers
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| （长形物体的）逐渐变窄( taper的名词复数 )； 微弱的光； 极细的蜡烛 | |
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62
taper
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| n.小蜡烛，尖细，渐弱；adj.尖细的；v.逐渐变小 | |
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63
torpedo
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| n.水雷，地雷；v.用鱼雷破坏 | |
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64
strictly
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| adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地 | |
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65
steering
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| n.操舵装置 | |
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66
scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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67
hues
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| 色彩( hue的名词复数 )； 色调； 信仰； 观点 | |
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68
hue
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| n.色度；色调；样子 | |
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69
leopard
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| n.豹 | |
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70
lurid
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| adj.可怕的；血红的；苍白的 | |
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71
appals
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| v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appal的第三人称单数 ) | |
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72
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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73
arsenal
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| n.兵工厂，军械库 | |
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74
sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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75
backwards
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| adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地 | |
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76
mingling
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| adj.混合的 | |
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77
encompassing
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| v.围绕( encompass的现在分词 )；包围；包含；包括 | |
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78
underneath
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|
| adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面 | |
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79
lighter
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| n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级 | |
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80
mere
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|
| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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81
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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82
fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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83
tentacle
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| n.触角，触须，触手 | |
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84
tentacles
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| n.触手( tentacle的名词复数 )；触角；触须；触毛 | |
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85
octopus
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| n.章鱼 | |
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86
innocence
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| n.无罪；天真；无害 | |
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87
flaunts
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| v.炫耀，夸耀( flaunt的第三人称单数 )；有什么能耐就施展出来 | |
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88
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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89
complement
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| n.补足物，船上的定员；补语；vt.补充，补足 | |
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90
volition
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| n.意志；决意 | |
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91
chasm
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| n.深坑，断层，裂口，大分岐，利害冲突 | |
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92
garnish
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| n.装饰，添饰，配菜 | |
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93
crouches
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| n.蹲着的姿势( crouch的名词复数 )v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的第三人称单数 ) | |
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94
digestion
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| n.消化，吸收 | |
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95
sperm
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| n.精子，精液 | |
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96
monarch
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| n.帝王，君主，最高统治者 | |
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97
shaft
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| n.(工具的)柄，杆状物 | |
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98
protruding
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| v.（使某物）伸出，（使某物）突出( protrude的现在分词 )；凸 | |
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99
tusks
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| n.（象等动物的）长牙( tusk的名词复数 )；獠牙；尖形物；尖头 | |
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100
hind
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| adj.后面的，后部的 | |
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101
impelled
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| v.推动、推进或敦促某人做某事( impel的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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102
sustenance
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| n.食物，粮食；生活资料；生计 | |
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103
lengthy
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| adj.漫长的，冗长的 | |
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104
preamble
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| n.前言；序文 | |
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105
proceedings
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| n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报 | |
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106
subjugation
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| n.镇压，平息，征服 | |
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107
hampered
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| 妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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108
disposition
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| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
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109
geographical
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| adj.地理的；地区(性)的 | |
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110
predecessors
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| n.前任( predecessor的名词复数 )；前辈；（被取代的）原有事物；前身 | |
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111
morasses
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| n.缠作一团( morass的名词复数 )；困境；沼泽；陷阱 | |
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112
onerous
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| adj.繁重的 | |
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113
lumbering
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| n.采伐林木 | |
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114
rugged
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| adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的 | |
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115
procuring
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| v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的现在分词 )；拉皮条 | |
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116
fecundity
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| n.生产力；丰富 | |
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117
prolific
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| adj.丰富的，大量的；多产的，富有创造力的 | |
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118
descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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119
sluggish
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| adj.懒惰的，迟钝的，无精打采的 | |
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120
horrid
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| adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的 | |
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121
rending
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| v.撕碎( rend的现在分词 )；分裂；（因愤怒、痛苦等而）揪扯（衣服或头发等）；（声音等）刺破 | |
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122
jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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123
jaw
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| n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训 | |
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124
plentiful
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| adj.富裕的，丰富的 | |
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125
plentifully
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| adv. 许多地，丰饶地 | |
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126
weird
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| adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的 | |
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127
attain
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| vt.达到，获得，完成 | |
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128
attainable
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| a.可达到的，可获得的 | |
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129
aquatic
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| adj.水生的，水栖的 | |
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130
limpid
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| adj.清澈的，透明的 | |
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131
hindrance
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| n.妨碍，障碍 | |
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132
supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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133
locomotion
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| n.运动，移动 | |
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134
dwindled
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| v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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135
laterally
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| ad.横向地；侧面地；旁边地 | |
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136
ponderous
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| adj.沉重的，笨重的，(文章)冗长的 | |
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137
acting
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| n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的 | |
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138
radical
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| n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的 | |
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139
affected
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| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
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140
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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141
paramount
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| a.最重要的，最高权力的 | |
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142
supremacy
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| n.至上；至高权力 | |
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143
disappearance
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| n.消失，消散，失踪 | |
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144
denizens
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| n.居民，住户( denizen的名词复数 ) | |
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145
mesh
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| n.网孔，网丝，陷阱；vt.以网捕捉，啮合，匹配；vi.适合； [计算机]网络 | |
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146
lethal
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| adj.致死的；毁灭性的 | |
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147
toll
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| n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟) | |
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148
bask
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| vt.取暖，晒太阳，沐浴于 | |
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149
exertion
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| n.尽力，努力 | |
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150
backbone
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| n.脊骨，脊柱，骨干；刚毅，骨气 | |
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151
retaliate
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| v.报复，反击 | |
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152
sateless
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| adj.无厌的 | |
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153
foe
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| n.敌人，仇敌 | |
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154
monstrous
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| adj.巨大的；恐怖的；可耻的，丢脸的 | |
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155
lures
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| 吸引力，魅力（lure的复数形式） | |
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156
momentous
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| adj.重要的，重大的 | |
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157
ravenous
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| adj.极饿的，贪婪的 | |
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158
bristling
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| a.竖立的 | |
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159
promptly
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| adv.及时地，敏捷地 | |
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160
entrapping
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| v.使陷入圈套，使入陷阱( entrap的现在分词 ) | |
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161
incompetence
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| n.不胜任，不称职 | |
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162
impervious
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| adj.不能渗透的，不能穿过的，不易伤害的 | |
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163
embarrassments
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| n.尴尬( embarrassment的名词复数 )；难堪；局促不安；令人难堪或耻辱的事 | |
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164
fronds
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| n.蕨类或棕榈类植物的叶子( frond的名词复数 ) | |
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165
foul
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| adj.污秽的；邪恶的；v.弄脏；妨害；犯规；n.犯规 | |
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166
exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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167
allured
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| 诱引，吸引( allure的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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168
carrion
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| n.腐肉 | |
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169
appalling
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| adj.骇人听闻的，令人震惊的，可怕的 | |
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170
lamentation
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| n.悲叹，哀悼 | |
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171
tormented
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| 饱受折磨的 | |
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172
foamed
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| 泡沫的 | |
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173
tint
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| n.淡色，浅色；染发剂；vt.着以淡淡的颜色 | |
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174
corrupt
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| v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的 | |
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175
disperse
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| vi.使分散；使消失；vt.分散；驱散 | |
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176
demolition
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| n.破坏,毁坏,毁坏之遗迹 | |
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177
gliding
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| v. 滑翔 adj. 滑动的 | |
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178
abysmal
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| adj.无底的，深不可测的，极深的；糟透的，极坏的；完全的 | |
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179
vanquished
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| v.征服( vanquish的过去式和过去分词 )；战胜；克服；抑制 | |
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180
puny
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| adj.微不足道的，弱小的 | |
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181
reassured
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| adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词) | |
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182
clam
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| n.蛤，蛤肉 | |
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183
placid
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| adj.安静的，平和的 | |
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184
tenacious
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| adj.顽强的，固执的，记忆力强的，粘的 | |
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185
antagonist
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| n.敌人，对抗者，对手 | |
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186
convening
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| 召开( convene的现在分词 )； 召集； （为正式会议而）聚集； 集合 | |
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187
gathering
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| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
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188
glimmer
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| v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光 | |
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189
verge
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| n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临 | |
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190
lair
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| n.野兽的巢穴；躲藏处 | |
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191
rigidly
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| adv.刻板地，僵化地 | |
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192
domains
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| n.范围( domain的名词复数 )；领域；版图；地产 | |
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193
intruded
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| n.侵入的，推进的v.侵入，侵扰，打扰( intrude的过去式和过去分词 )；把…强加于 | |
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194
caverns
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| 大山洞，大洞穴( cavern的名词复数 ) | |
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195
portent
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| n.预兆；恶兆；怪事 | |
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196
seclusion
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| n.隐遁，隔离 | |
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197
plunging
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|
| adj.跳进的，突进的v.颠簸( plunge的现在分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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198
hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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199
hurl
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| vt.猛投，力掷，声叫骂 | |
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200
joyful
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| adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的 | |
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201
anticipation
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| n.预期，预料，期望 | |
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202
hideous
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| adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的 | |
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203
contingency
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| n.意外事件，可能性 | |
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204
miserably
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| adv.痛苦地；悲惨地；糟糕地；极度地 | |
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205
suffused
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| v.（指颜色、水气等）弥漫于，布满( suffuse的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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206
crimson
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| n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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207
triumphant
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| adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的 | |
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208
lawful
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| adj.法律许可的，守法的，合法的 | |
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209
insignificance
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| n.不重要；无价值；无意义 | |
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210
tremor
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| n.震动，颤动，战栗，兴奋，地震 | |
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211
extremity
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| n.末端，尽头；尽力；终极；极度 | |
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212
desultory
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| adj.散漫的，无方法的 | |
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213
cramped
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| a.狭窄的 | |
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214
recesses
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| n.壁凹( recess的名词复数 )；（工作或业务活动的）中止或暂停期间；学校的课间休息；某物内部的凹形空间v.把某物放在墙壁的凹处( recess的第三人称单数 )；将（墙）做成凹形，在（墙）上做壁龛；休息，休会，休庭 | |
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215
unprecedented
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| adj.无前例的，新奇的 | |
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216
frenzied
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| a.激怒的；疯狂的 | |
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217
frightful
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|
| adj.可怕的；讨厌的 | |
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218
deluge
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| n./vt.洪水，暴雨，使泛滥 | |
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219
writhing
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| （因极度痛苦而）扭动或翻滚( writhe的现在分词 ) | |
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220
fathoms
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| 英寻( fathom的名词复数 ) | |
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221
converged
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| v.（线条、运动的物体等）会于一点( converge的过去式 )；（趋于）相似或相同；人或车辆汇集；聚集 | |
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222
lava
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| n.熔岩，火山岩 | |
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223
upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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224
incandescence
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| n.白热，炽热；白炽 | |
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225
solidified
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| （使）成为固体，（使）变硬，（使）变得坚固( solidify的过去式和过去分词 )； 使团结一致； 充实，巩固； 具体化 | |
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226
scourges
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| 带来灾难的人或东西，祸害( scourge的名词复数 )； 鞭子 | |
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227
rendezvous
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| n.约会，约会地点，汇合点；vi.汇合，集合；vt.使汇合，使在汇合地点相遇 | |
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228
dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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229
densely
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| ad.密集地；浓厚地 | |
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230
tepid
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| adj.微温的，温热的，不太热心的 | |
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231
greasily
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| adv.多脂，油腻，滑溜地 | |
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232
scenting
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| vt.闻到（scent的现在分词形式） | |
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233
gorge
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| n.咽喉，胃，暴食，山峡；v.塞饱，狼吞虎咽地吃 | |
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234
crabs
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| n.蟹( crab的名词复数 )；阴虱寄生病；蟹肉v.捕蟹( crab的第三人称单数 ) | |
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235
lobsters
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| 龙虾( lobster的名词复数 )； 龙虾肉 | |
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236
lurked
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| vi.潜伏，埋伏（lurk的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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237
crevice
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| n.(岩石、墙等)裂缝；缺口 | |
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238
groves
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| 树丛，小树林( grove的名词复数 ) | |
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239
favourable
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| adj.赞成的，称赞的，有利的，良好的，顺利的 | |
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240
exertions
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| n.努力( exertion的名词复数 )；费力；（能力、权力等的）运用；行使 | |
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241
heralded
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| v.预示( herald的过去式和过去分词 )；宣布（好或重要） | |
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242
mightiest
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| adj.趾高气扬( mighty的最高级 )；巨大的；强有力的；浩瀚的 | |
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243
mutual
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| adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的 | |
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244
inertia
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| adj.惰性，惯性，懒惰，迟钝 | |
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245
neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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246
whim
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| n.一时的兴致，突然的念头；奇想，幻想 | |
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247
mightier
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| adj. 强有力的，强大的，巨大的 adv. 很，极其 | |
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248
disdain
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| n.鄙视，轻视；v.轻视，鄙视，不屑 | |
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249
utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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250
boded
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| v.预示，预告，预言( bode的过去式和过去分词 )；等待，停留( bide的过去分词 )；居住；（过去式用bided）等待 | |
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251
darting
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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252
streak
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| n.条理，斑纹，倾向，少许，痕迹；v.加条纹，变成条纹，奔驰，快速移动 | |
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253
turbid
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| adj.混浊的，泥水的，浓的 | |
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254
stagnant
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| adj.不流动的，停滞的，不景气的 | |
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255
hovered
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| 鸟( hover的过去式和过去分词 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫 | |
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256
discordant
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| adj.不调和的 | |
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257
shrieks
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| n.尖叫声( shriek的名词复数 )v.尖叫( shriek的第三人称单数 ) | |
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258
abreast
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| adv.并排地；跟上(时代)的步伐，与…并进地 | |
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259
despatch
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| n./v.(dispatch)派遣；发送；n.急件；新闻报道 | |
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260
foaming
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| adj.布满泡沫的；发泡 | |
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261
elevation
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| n.高度；海拔；高地；上升；提高 | |
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262
dignified
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| a.可敬的，高贵的 | |
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plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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264
wilderness
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| n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠 | |
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succumbed
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| 不再抵抗（诱惑、疾病、攻击等）( succumb的过去式和过去分词 )； 屈从； 被压垮； 死 | |
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266
entanglements
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| n.瓜葛( entanglement的名词复数 )；牵连；纠缠；缠住 | |
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267
assailed
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| v.攻击( assail的过去式和过去分词 )；困扰；质问；毅然应对 | |
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268
writhed
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| （因极度痛苦而）扭动或翻滚( writhe的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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269
shredded
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| shred的过去式和过去分词 | |
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270
nought
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| n.／adj.无，零 | |
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271
revelled
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| v.作乐( revel的过去式和过去分词 )；狂欢；着迷；陶醉 | |
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272
slaying
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| 杀戮。 | |
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273
exulting
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| vi. 欢欣鼓舞，狂喜 | |
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274
satiety
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| n.饱和；(市场的)充分供应 | |
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sleek
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| adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢 | |
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276
radius
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| n.半径，半径范围；有效航程，范围，界限 | |
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277
toils
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| 网 | |
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