  EXTRACTS. (Supplied by a Sub-Sub-Librarian).



  It will be seen that this mere painstaking burrower and grub-worm of
  a poor devil of a Sub-Sub appears to have gone through the long
  Vaticans and street-stalls of the earth, picking up whatever random
  allusions to whales he could anyways find in any book whatsoever,
  sacred or profane. Therefore you must not, in every case at least,
  take the higgledy-piggledy whale statements, however authentic, in
  these extracts, for veritable gospel cetology. Far from it. As
  touching the ancient authors generally, as well as the poets here
  appearing, these extracts are solely valuable or entertaining, as
  affording a glancing bird’s eye view of what has been promiscuously
  said, thought, fancied, and sung of Leviathan, by many nations and
  generations, including our own.

  So fare thee well, poor devil of a Sub-Sub, whose commentator I am.
  Thou belongest to that hopeless, sallow tribe which no wine of this
  world will ever warm; and for whom even Pale Sherry would be too
  rosy-strong; but with whom one sometimes loves to sit, and feel
  poor-devilish, too; and grow convivial upon tears; and say to them
  bluntly, with full eyes and empty glasses, and in not altogether
  unpleasant sadness—Give it up, Sub-Subs! For by how much the more
  pains ye take to please the world, by so much the more shall ye for
  ever go thankless! Would that I could clear out Hampton Court and the
  Tuileries for ye! But gulp down your tears and hie aloft to the
  royal-mast with your hearts; for your friends who have gone before
  are clearing out the seven-storied heavens, and making refugees of
  long-pampered Gabriel, Michael, and Raphael, against your coming.
  Here ye strike but splintered hearts together—there, ye shall strike
  unsplinterable glasses!