A day or two passed, and the Pequod became a very busy ship.
The crew repaired the old sails while new sails, canvas, ropes, and all kinds of equipment were brought aboard. Everyone could see that the ship was almost ready to leave.
Captain Peleg hardly went ashore. He stayed in his small cabin and kept a close eye on the workers.
Bildad handled the buying and stocking of supplies. Below deck and high up in the rigging, the men worked from morning until long after dark.
The day after Queequeg signed the ship’s papers, a message was sent to all the inns where the crew were staying.
“Get your chests aboard before tonight,” they were told. “The ship could sail at any time.”
So Queequeg and I gathered our belongings and took them aboard.
Still, we decided to spend our last nights on shore.
In the end, the warning had been much earlier than necessary. The Pequod remained in port for several more days.
That was hardly surprising. A whaling ship needed an enormous amount of equipment before it could begin a voyage that might last three years.
Think about everything needed just to run an ordinary household—beds, cooking pots, knives, forks, towels, tools, and countless other small things.
A whaling ship needed all of that and much more.
Once the Pequod sailed into the open ocean, there would be no nearby shops, doctors, bakers, or banks to help the crew. They had to carry almost everything they might possibly need with them.
Whaling ships also faced more dangers than ordinary merchant ships. Boats could be damaged, ropes could break, equipment could be lost, and accidents could destroy the very things the crew depended on to catch whales.
So they carried spare boats, spare wooden poles, extra ropes, extra harpoons, and backups for almost everything.
Almost everything, that is, except a spare captain and a second ship.
By the time Queequeg and I arrived on the island, the Pequod had already taken aboard most of her heaviest supplies—beef, bread, water, fuel, iron hoops, wooden staves, and other basic necessities.
But the loading never seemed to stop.
Every few minutes, someone was carrying another box, bundle, tool, or piece of equipment onto the ship.
One of the busiest people was Captain Bildad’s sister, an old woman named Charity.
She was thin and elderly, but she had incredible energy. She was also kindhearted and determined to make sure the Pequod lacked nothing once she reached the open sea.
One day she brought a jar of pickles for the steward.
The next time she arrived with a bundle of quills for the chief mate, who used them to keep the ship’s log.
Another time she carried a roll of flannel for a sailor who suffered from rheumatism.
Everyone called her Aunt Charity, and the name suited her perfectly.
She rushed around the ship like a woman on a mission, doing whatever she could to make the crew safer and more comfortable.
She cared especially about the Pequod because her beloved brother Bildad was involved with the ship.
She also owned a small share of it herself—perhaps a few dozen hard-earned dollars.
On the final day of preparation, however, I was amazed to see Aunt Charity come aboard carrying a long oil ladle in one hand and an enormous whaling lance in the other.
She seemed ready to do absolutely anything that might help the voyage.
Bildad was just as busy.
He carried a long checklist of everything the ship still needed. Whenever another item arrived, he checked it off his list.
Peleg was no less energetic.
Every so often, he came stomping out of his little cabin and began shouting orders.
“Get that work finished down there!”
Then he would turn toward the men high in the rigging.
“Move faster up there! We haven’t got all day!”
After that, he would disappear back into his cabin, still shouting.
During those busy days, Queequeg and I often went aboard the Pequod.
Whenever we did, I kept asking about Captain Ahab.
“How is Captain Ahab?”
“When is he coming aboard?”
“Will he be here before we sail?”
The answers were always reassuring.
“He’s getting better.”
“He should be aboard any day now.”
“Don’t worry. Captain Peleg and Captain Bildad can handle everything until he arrives.”
I tried to accept their answers.
But deep inside, I knew I wasn’t completely comfortable.
If I had been completely honest with myself, I would have admitted that I didn’t like the idea of spending three years at sea under the command of a man I had never even seen.
Once we left the harbor, Ahab would have absolute authority over the entire ship.
That thought troubled me.
But when a person becomes involved in something that worries him, he often tries to hide his own doubts from himself.
That was exactly what I did.
I said nothing.
I tried not to think about it.
Finally, word came that the Pequod would definitely sail the following day.
The next morning, Queequeg and I got up very early and set out for the ship.