Soon, the sea all round us spouted in fountains of fire; and vast forms, emitting a glare from their flanks, and ever and anon raising their heads above water, and shaking off the sparkles, showed where an immense shoal of Cachalots had risen from below to sport in these phosphorescent billows.
The vapor jetted forth was far more radiant than any portion of the sea; ascribable perhaps to the originally luminous fluid contracting still more brilliancy from its passage through the spouting canal of the whales.
We were in great fear, lest without any vicious intention the Leviathans might destroy us, by coming into close contact with our boat.

We would have shunned them; but they were all round and round us.

Nevertheless we were safe; for as we parted the pallid brine, the peculiar irradiation which shot from about our keel seemed to deter them.

Apparently discovering us of a sudden, many of them plunged headlong down into the water, tossing their fiery tails high into the air, and leaving the sea still more sparkling from the violent surging of their descent.
Their general course seemed the same as our own; to the westward.

To remove from them, we at last out oars, and pulled toward the north.
So doing, we were steadily pursued by a solitary whale, that must have taken our Chamois for a kindred fish.