The Tone Of The Chapter Is Contemplative And Somber, With An Undertone Of Sardonic Humor As Ishmael Faces His Surroundings And Predicament.

Ishmael arrives in New Bedford on a cold December night to find a ship for his upcoming whaling voyage but discovers he must wait until Monday for passage to Nantucket. He searches for affordable lodgings and stumbles upon the Spouter-Inn.

Ishmael begins his journey with only his carpet-bag, heading to New Bedford from Manhattan in December, aiming for a Nantucket whaling ship. Arriving too late to catch the packet to Nantucket, he needs to find accommodations for two nights. He roams the cold, desolate streets of New Bedford, contemplating his meager funds and seeking cheap lodging. After passing several inns that appear too costly and jolly for his budget, Ishmael encounters a black church and then a more foreboding inn, the Spouter-Inn. The name seems ominous with its graveyard associations, but he decides to stay there, enticed by the cheapness and the dilapidated charm of the place. The chapter closes with his reflections on the cold and the plight of the poor.