Chapter 71 Summary

The crew of the Pequod hails the approaching ship, which appears to be a whaling vessel, as it goes by. Sending their own unique signals, the ships acknowledge each other. Starbuck orders a ladder to be lowered to allow the captain of the other ship to come aboard, however, a man on board the ship signals that he does not wish to come on board the Pequod. He explains that his boat's crew is infected with an epidemic and he does not want to infect the crew of the Pequod.

As the man communicates with the crew of the Pequod, the Pequod crew recognizes him as a crewmember they heard of in another tale. Supposedly, this man had been a prophet of the Neskyeuna Shakers, a group of people commonly considered crazy. He left the community and hired on as a green-hand on...