次日，他们望见一艘大船——拉吉号，正笔直地朝裴廓德号驶来，桅杆上密密麻麻挤满了人。当时裴廓德号正顺水疾行；但等那艘张着阔翼的迎风船驶近时，它那些吹嘘的帆篷顿时像泄气的空膀胱耷拉下来，所有的生气都从那受创的船体上逃逸了。
"噩耗；她带来了噩耗，"老曼克斯人咕哝道。但不等那船长——他正站在小艇里，喇叭筒举到嘴边——不等他满怀希望地招呼，亚哈的声音已经响起来。
"你可曾看见白鲸？"
"看见的，昨天。你可曾看见一艘漂流的捕鲸小艇？"
亚哈强压住高兴，对这出人意料的问题作了否定回答；他正想登上那艘陌生船，却看见那陌生船长本人——他已经停住了船——正从船舷下来。几桨猛划，他的艇钩就钩住了裴廓德号的主链，他纵身跳上甲板。亚哈立刻认出他是自己认识的南塔基特人。但两人没有互致正式问候。
"他在哪里？——没被杀死！——没被杀死！"亚哈嚷道，逼近前去。"怎么回事？"
事情似乎是：前一天下午稍晚时候，那陌生船的三艘小艇正与一群鲸鱼缠斗，被引到离船四五英里远的地方；当他们还在迎风疾追时，莫比·迪克的白色脊背和脑袋突然从下风方向不远的水面冒出来；于是第四艘装备好的小艇——一艘备用艇——立刻被放下去追赶。顺风疾驶一阵后，这第四艘小艇——龙骨最轻捷的一艘——似乎已经成功叉住了鲸鱼——至少桅顶瞭望的人能辨认出这一点。他望见远处那个缩成小点的艇影；然后是一道飞掠的白色泡沫；此后什么也没有了；由此推断那受伤的鲸鱼必定带着追赶者没命地跑了，这是常有的事。当时只有些担忧，还没有真正的恐慌。召回信号升上了索具；夜色降临；因为不得不先找回那三艘远远地在上风方向的小艇——然后才能到完全相反的方向去寻找第四艘——这艘船不仅只得让那艘小艇听天由命直到将近午夜，而且暂时还拉大了与它的距离。但等到其余船员终于安全上船后，她张起所有帆——辅帆叠着辅帆——追赶那艘失踪的小艇；在熬油锅上生起一堆火作为信标；其余每个人都爬上桅杆瞭望。但是，虽然她驶出足够远，到达那失踪者最后被看见的假定位置；虽然她停下来放下备用小艇，在周围搜索；什么都没找到，又再次疾驰；再次停下，放下小艇；虽然她这样一直忙到天亮；却始终没见到那失踪艇的一丝踪影。
故事讲完，那陌生船长立刻说明他登上裴廓德号的目的。他请求这艘船与他的船联合搜索；两船相距四五英里平行航行，像扫过双倍的地平线那样。
"我现在敢打赌，"斯达布低声对弗拉斯克说，"那失踪艇上有人穿着那船长的最好外套，也许还戴着他的表——他才这么急着要回来。捕鲸旺季里，谁听说过两艘虔诚的捕鲸船去找一艘失踪的小艇？看，弗拉斯克，你瞧他脸色多苍白——连眼珠子都白得像纽扣——看——那不是外套——一定是——"
"我的孩子，我亲生的孩子就在他们中间。看在上帝份上——我求你，我恳求你——"那陌生船长对亚哈喊道，而亚哈至今对他的请求只是冷冰冰地听着。"让我租用你的船四十八小时——我会乐意付钱，重金付钱——如果没有其他办法——只要四十八小时——就只要这么多——你必须，哦，你必须，而且你_一定_得答应这事。"
"他的儿子！"斯达布喊道，"哦，他丢的是他儿子！我收回外套和手表的话——亚哈怎么说？我们必须救那孩子。"
"他跟其他人一起淹死了，昨晚，"老曼克斯水手站在他们身后说，"我听见了；你们全都听见了他们的灵魂。"
不久就发现，让拉吉号这件事更加悲伤的是，不仅船长的儿子之一是那失踪艇上的船员之一；而且在其他艇的船员中，同时——但另一方面——在追逐过程中黑暗的变幻中与船分离的，还有另一个儿子；这样，那可怜的父亲一时陷入了最残酷的困惑深渊；直到他的大副本能地采取了捕鲸船在这种紧急情况下的惯常做法——即在面临危险却分散的小艇之间，总是先救起多数——才算给他解了围。但不知出于什么天生的理由，船长一直没提这一切，直到亚哈的冷淡逼迫之下，他才提到那个仍失踪的男孩；一个才十二岁的小家伙，他的父亲怀着南塔基特人父爱那种诚挚而无畏的刚毅，这么早就想引导他进入几乎是他家族自古以来命运的职业的艰险与奇迹。南塔基特的船长们常常把这样年幼的儿子送到别的船上，去进行长达三四年的远航，而不是留在自己船上；这样他们最初认识的捕鲸生涯就不会被父亲出于天性却不合时宜的偏爱，或过分的担忧与挂念所削弱。
这时，那陌生船长仍在向亚哈恳求他那可怜的恩惠；而亚哈仍像铁砧一般站着，接受每一次冲击，自己却纹丝不动。
"我不会走，"那陌生人说，"除非你答应我。你希望我在同样情况下怎么对你，你就怎么对我。因为_你_也有个儿子，亚哈船长——虽说还是个孩子，此刻正安然在家——也是你老来得子——对，对，你心软了；我看见了——跑，跑，伙计们，现在，准备调整帆桁。"
"住手，"亚哈喊道——"不准碰一根索线"；然后用一种把每个字都拉得长长的声音说——"加德纳船长，我不会做的。即使现在我也在浪费时间。再见，再见。愿上帝保佑你，老兄，愿我能原谅自己，但我必须走了。斯达巴克先生，看着罗经柜的表，从现在起三分钟内，警告所有陌生人离开；然后再次转帆向前，让船像以前那样航行。"
他匆忙转过身，脸别过去，走下舱房，留下那陌生船长被这无情而彻底的拒绝惊得呆立原地。但加德纳从魔障中惊醒，默默疾步走到船舷；与其说是跨进小艇，不如说是跌进去的，然后回到自己的船上。
很快两艘船分道扬镳；只要还能看见那艘陌生的船，就只见她朝着海面上每一个黑点——不管多小——东摇西晃地驶去。她的帆桁这样那样地转来转去；右舷抢风，左舷抢风，她不停地换舵行驶；一会儿顶着逆浪航行；一会儿又被浪头推着走；与此同时，她的桅杆和帆桁上密密麻麻挤满了人，就像三棵高高的樱桃树，孩子们正在树枝间摘樱桃。
但从她时停时行、蜿蜒悲惨的航迹上，你清楚地看到这艘被浪花如此哭诉的船，仍然没有得到安慰。她是拉吉号，为孩子们哭泣，因为他们不在了。
Next day, a large ship, the Rachel, was descried, bearing directly down
upon the Pequod, all her spars thickly clustering with men. At the time
the Pequod was making good speed through the water; but as the
broad-winged windward stranger shot nigh to her, the boastful sails all
fell together as blank bladders that are burst, and all life fled from
the smitten hull.
“Bad news; she brings bad news,” muttered the old Manxman. But ere her
commander, who, with trumpet to mouth, stood up in his boat; ere he
could hopefully hail, Ahab’s voice was heard.
“Hast seen the White Whale?”
“Aye, yesterday. Have ye seen a whale-boat adrift?”
Throttling his joy, Ahab negatively answered this unexpected question;
and would then have fain boarded the stranger, when the stranger
captain himself, having stopped his vessel’s way, was seen descending
her side. A few keen pulls, and his boat-hook soon clinched the
Pequod’s main-chains, and he sprang to the deck. Immediately he was
recognised by Ahab for a Nantucketer he knew. But no formal salutation
was exchanged.
“Where was he?—not killed!—not killed!” cried Ahab, closely advancing.
“How was it?”
It seemed that somewhat late on the afternoon of the day previous,
while three of the stranger’s boats were engaged with a shoal of
whales, which had led them some four or five miles from the ship; and
while they were yet in swift chase to windward, the white hump and head
of Moby Dick had suddenly loomed up out of the water, not very far to
leeward; whereupon, the fourth rigged boat—a reserved one—had been
instantly lowered in chase. After a keen sail before the wind, this
fourth boat—the swiftest keeled of all—seemed to have succeeded in
fastening—at least, as well as the man at the mast-head could tell
anything about it. In the distance he saw the diminished dotted boat;
and then a swift gleam of bubbling white water; and after that nothing
more; whence it was concluded that the stricken whale must have
indefinitely run away with his pursuers, as often happens. There was
some apprehension, but no positive alarm, as yet. The recall signals
were placed in the rigging; darkness came on; and forced to pick up her
three far to windward boats—ere going in quest of the fourth one in the
precisely opposite direction—the ship had not only been necessitated to
leave that boat to its fate till near midnight, but, for the time, to
increase her distance from it. But the rest of her crew being at last
safe aboard, she crowded all sail—stunsail on stunsail—after the
missing boat; kindling a fire in her try-pots for a beacon; and every
other man aloft on the look-out. But though when she had thus sailed a
sufficient distance to gain the presumed place of the absent ones when
last seen; though she then paused to lower her spare boats to pull all
around her; and not finding anything, had again dashed on; again
paused, and lowered her boats; and though she had thus continued doing
till daylight; yet not the least glimpse of the missing keel had been
seen.
