The battle raged for the best part of an
hour, and sometimes when the monsters came near it seemed likely that
the ship would be swamped by the volume of water which they lashed into
the air. Suddenly the combat terminated by both monsters disappearing
into the depths without our being able to ascertain which had proved
the victor.
So that some record of this remarkable combat might be preserved, I set
down upon paper a description of it, intending to deposit it among the
public archives on my return home. I had read that such leviathans
existed, and had been seen by early Phoenician mariners, though I had
always regarded their existence more in the light of fable titan fact.
And now, a breeze springing up, we were once more enabled to continue
our voyage. Some of the crew were anxious to return home in order to
spend their share of the Spanish money found on Cortes' island, but
Hartog would not consent to such a proposal. He had set his heart upon
finding the Island of Gems, of the existence of which he was firmly
convinced, though our chances of finding it among the numerous islands
of the South Seas appeared remote. The captain, however, would have his
way, and a course was set accordingly.
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