Chapter 4.
The Voyage to Nantucket The next day, Queequeg and I checked out of the Spouter Inn.
We carried all of our belongings in a wheelbarrow down to the dock and booked a passage on a boat to Nantucket.
I very soon saw the troubles that Queequeg faced being so different.
Many of the other passengers on board were very rude to him.
They called him a lot of hurtful names.
Some of them even called me names.
They seemed bothered that we were friends.
Queequeg was angry that they spoke to me in this way, but he did his best to ignore them.
However, when one young man tried to prove himself by pushing Queequeg, my friend took action.
Queequeg picked the man up in both his arms.
He lifted him high above his head.
The man thought Queequeg was going to throw him in the water.
He started to scream, Put me down!
Queequeg carried him to the side of the crowd and set him on top of a stack of boxes.
Until that moment, I had not noticed that Queequeg was quite tall.
The young man was stuck high above the deck.
His friends had to come over and help him down.
The man then caused a great deal of fuss.
He called to the captain, claiming that he was in danger.
He claimed that everyone was in danger because my friend was a threat.
The captain, seeing Queequeg's tattooed face, believed the young man.
He started to yell.
Queequeg, who simply stood quietly at the rail of the boat, looked out over the water.
He remained calm and refused to look at any of them.
I was proud to know such a patient man.
While the captain and his crew were occupied by calling Queequeg names, they did not notice the mast of the boat.
It was under a great deal of strain.
The ropes holding this heavy pole in place were tied too tight.
When one of them snapped, the pole began to swing wildly across the deck.
No one seemed to know what to do.
The crew stood and watched the mast swing out of control.
It moved back and forth across the deck.
The ropes that had held it in place dragged along with it, whipping wildly through the air.
Crewmates were afraid they would be knocked overboard if they got too close.
And that was exactly what happened.
A man moved in to get a closer look.
He realized too late that this was a mistake.
The beam swung back around and he was sent flying overboard.
Quickweg sprang into action.
He found another rope and quickly tied it around the beam.
He stopped it from swinging by bracing himself on the deck and holding tight.
Then he ducked under the beam and tied the rope to the other side of the deck.
It was now held securely in place.
Then Kwikwik took off his jacket and shirt and dove into the water.
He swam around the boat for some time looking for that man.
He had no luck, though.
The man was gone.
When he returned to the deck, everyone was very grateful, especially the captain.
They all tried to apologize for calling him names, but he brushed them aside.
Quickweg walked back to his place at the rail and continued to look out at the sea.
He did not want to talk to anyone.
He only wanted to be left alone.
