it in admonishing the helmsman. While appearing to be whole, the leg is badly damaged and cannot be trusted; it now serves as metaphor for its wearer. Derick de Deer Derick de Deer is a German captain in command of the whaling ship Jungfrau (Virgin). Melville disparages the whaling prowess of both de Deer and Germans generally. De Deer's ship has succeeded in capturing no whales, so he begs the Pequods crew for oil for the ship's lamps. During this transaction, whales are sighted and the crews of both boats pursue, de Deer trying (unsuccessfully) to hinder the rival crews. De Deer is last seen pursuing a fin whale, according to Melville too swift a swimmer to be captured by 19th-century whalers. Other whaling captains The Pequod encounters a number of other whaling ships in the course of her voyage. The captains are not named, but some play significant minor roles: Bachelor: his ship fully laden after a successful cruise, the captain angers Ahab by refusing to believe in Moby Dick's existence, reinforcing the ambiguity between the whale's real and mythical characteristics. Bouton de Rose (Rosebud): the captain of this French ship is also disparaged, being described as a "cologne manufacturer". He has captured two already-dead whales whose blubber and oil will be of little value. However, Stubb suspects that they may contain valuable ambergris, and tricks the captain and his crew into releasing the whales. He is proven correct, but recovers only a portion of the material from one carcass before Ahab summons him back to the Pequod. Rachel: Captain Gardiner wishes Ahab to help him seek a missing whaleboat in which his son was a crew member (described, Biblically, as "seeking her children"). Ahab refuses. After Moby Dick sinks the Pequod, the Rachel rescues Ishmael, the only survivor. Delight: the captain has attempted to capture Moby Dick, resulting in the destruction of one of its whaleboats and the deaths of five crewmen. This misfortune serves as a harbinger of the doom that is about to befall the Pequod. References Moby-Dick Lists of literary characters Fictional sailors