Section 9, East by Northeast, Chapters 1-15 Summary and Analysis

William crosses into Maine and is once again at the Atlantic Ocean. Driving along the coastline, William sees village life in towns such as Springvale, Sanford and Kennebunk. In Cape Porpoise, William meets Tom West, a commercial fisherman, who invites William to join the next day's fishing expedition. William is at the dock at three-thirty the next morning to join the three-man crew of the Allison E, West's boat. By five a.m. the ship is in deep waters and the lights of Cape Porpoise are lost on the horizon. By eight a.m. the crew has its first catch in the net and sorts the bad from the keepers to be sold to local and regional fishmongers.

By noon, weather reports indicate a coming storm so the day's fishing will...