'V'-
S«fa*Si* W -'.
THE LIBRARY
OF
THE UNIVERSITY
OF CALIFORNIA
IRVINE
GIFT OF
MR. WARREN STURTEVANT
^f<-
HUNTING UNDERSEAS
And now, how can I retrace the impression left upon nie by that
walk under the waters? Words are impotent to relate such wonders!
Captain Nemo walked in front, his companion followed Rome steps
behind. Conseil and I remained near each other, as if an exchanfje of
words had been possible through our metallic cases. I no longer felt
the weight of mj clothing, or of my shoes, of my reservoir of air, or my
thick helmet, in the midst of which my head rattled like an almond in
its shell.
The light, which lit the soil thirty feet below the surface of the
ocean, astonished me by its power. The solar rays shone through the
waterv mass easily, and dissipated all shadow, so that I clearly distin-
guished objects at a distance of a hundred and fifty yards. Beyond that
the tints darkened into fine gradations of ultramarine, and faded into
vague obscurity. — Page 80.
Vol. 6.
i))nr habfil bfn. .vniiKiiim': uf;bKng "jnil o)ni tvjn; tlj
VJ
VL>ii
EDITED BY
CHARLES F. HORNE, Ph.D.
Professor of English, College of the City of New York;
Author of "The Technique of the Novel," etc.
Vincent Parke and Company
NEW YORK :: :: London
Copyright, 1911,
BY Vincent Parke and Company.
CONTENTS
Volume Five
PAGK
Introduction 1
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea . 3
The Mysterious Island
Dropped from the Clouds . . . • 281
II.I.USTRATIONS
Volume Five
PAOB
Undersea Hunting .... Frontispiece
The Secrets of the Sea 96
A Mysterious Visitor 208
Knowledge Mastering Difficulties . . . 336
vii
INTRODUCTION TO VOLUME FIVE
FTER the publication of "In Search of the
Castaways/' Jules Verne may be said to have
entered on the second period of his fame. The
tale was made the basis of a successful spectac-
ular play, one of the first of those huge scenic
panoramas built for the eye rather than for the ear.
While this could add nothing to the literary standing of
its author, it placed his name in everybody's mouth. His
next book, " Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea,"
and indeed whatever folloiving books lent themselves to the
purpose, were staged zvith similar splendor. The name of
Verne became a household word throughout the world, im-
plying wonder and magnificence.
"Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea" was pub-
lished in iSyo. It is the most widely known of all our
author's works, perhaps deservedly so. To the mystery of
its back-ground, the tremendously impressive appeal of the
weird scenery of the ocean's deeps, it added a story, somber,
terrifying, stern as some ancient tragedy of Euripides.
Of Verne's works in general it has been said, with some
justice, that his stories overshadow his characters, that the
latter are but automatons of little interest for themselves,
unrealized as human beings, mere pegs existing only to hang
adventures on. But surely from this criticism ive must ex-
cept, along with some feiv others, Captain Nemo. This
tragic central figure of " Twenty Thousand Leagues under
the Sea " is known to every boy among Verne's readers as a
distinct personality, ingenious, inventive, strong and tender,
dreaming softly over his organ, praying as a father over the
graves of his men in their solemn cemetery under seas, yet
grimly unrelenting in his oath of vengeance.
"' The construction of Captain Nemo's submarine, as has
2 INTRODUCTION
been often pointed out, folloivs strict mechanical facts. In
iSyo, when the book was published, such a structure was al-
most inconceivable except to a man of Verne's genius for
imaginative construction. The building of a " Nautilus,'*'
still, after more than forty years, lies among the things un-
achieved, but it is no longer regarded as among things un-
achievable. Every year of experimentation with our own
imperfect submarines brings us nearer to Verne's splendid
ideal.
And the under-seas zvorld through which Captain Nemo
guides his astounded guests! What a wealth of knowledge
our author pours out upon it! How fully, how widely did
he know this terrestrial globe! Verne's own voluminous
reading of books of travel became more manifest with each
new book he published. Each work of his contained the
assimilated and enlivened treasure of a mass of others. His
favorite reading during these years, as he himself tells us,
was the justly celebrated geographical magazine of France,
" Le Tour du Monde."" He familiarized himself with its
every volume from cover to cover. He distilled its heart
into his work.
Twenty Thousand
Leagues Under the Sea.
PART I.
>.
CHAPTER I
A SHIFTING REEF
HE year 1866 was signalized by a remarkable
incident, a mysterious and inexplicable phe-
nomenon, which doubtless no one has yet for-
gotten. Not to mention rumors which agi-
tated the maritime population, and excited the
public mind, even in the interior of continents,
seafaring men were particularly excited. Merchants, com-
mon sailors, captains of vessels, skippers, both of Europe
and America, naval officers of all countries, and the govern-
ments of several states on the two continents, were deeply
interested in the matter.
For some time past, vessels had been met by " an enor-
mous thing," a long object spindle-shaped, occasionally
phosphorescent, and infinitely larger and more rapid in its
movements than a w^hale.
The facts relating to this apparition (entered in various
log-books) agreed in most respects as to the shape of the
object or creature in question, the untiring rapidity of
its movements, a surprising power of locomotion, and the
peculiar life with which it seemed endowed. If it was a
cetacean, it surpassed in size all those hitherto classified in
science. Taking into consideration the mean of observa-
tions made at divers times — rejecting the timid estimate
of those who assigned to this object a length of two hundred
feet, equally with the exaggerated opinions which set it
down as a mile in width and three in length — we might
fairly conclude that this mysterious being surpassed greatly
all dimensions admitted by the ichthyologists of the day, if
it existed at all. And that it did exist was an undeniable
fact; and. with that tendency which disposes the human
mind in favor of the marvelous, we can understand the
3
4 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
excitement produced in the entire world by this supernat-
ural apparition. As to classing it in the list of fables, the
idea was out of the question.
On the 20th of July, 1866, the steamer Governor Hig-
ginson, of the Calcutta and Burnach Steam Navigation
Company, had met this moving mass five miles off the east
coast of Australia. Captain Baker thought at first that he
was in the presence of an unknown sand-bank; he even
prepared to determine its exact position, when two columns
of water, projected by the inexplicable object, shot with a
hissing noise a hundred and fifty feet up into the air. Now,
unless the sand-bank had been submitted to the intermit-
tent eruption of a geyser, the Governor Higginson had to
do neither more nor less than with an aquatic mammal, un-
known till then, which threw up from its blow-holes
columns of water mixed with air and vapor.
Similar facts were observed on the 23d of July in the
same year, in the Pacific Ocean, by the Colnmhiis, of the
West India and Pacific Steam Navigation Company. But
this extraordinary cetaceous creature could transport itself
from one place to another with surprising velocity; as, in
an interval of three days, the Governor Higginson and the
Columbus had observed it at two different points of the
chart, separated by a distance of more than seven hundred
nautical leagues.
Fifteen days later, two thousand miles further off, the
Helvetia, of the Compagnie-Nationale, and the Shannon, of
the Royal Mail Steamship Company, sailing to windward
in that portion of the Atlantic lying between the United
States and Europe, respectively signaled the monster to
each other in 42° 15' N. lat. and 60 ° 35' W. long. In
these simultaneous observations, they thought themselves
justified in estimating the minimum length of the mammal
at more than three hundred and fifty feet, as the Shannon
and Helvetia were of smaller dimensions than it, though
they measured three hundred feet over all.
Now the largest whales, those which frequent those parts
of the sea round the Aleutian, Kulammak, and Umgullich
Islands, have never exceeded the length of sixty yards, if
they attain that.
These reports arriving one after the other, with fresh
observations made on board the transatlantic ship Pereira,
A SHIFTING REEF 5
a collision which occurred between the Etna of the Inman
line and the monster, a proces verbal directed by the offi-
cers of the French frigate Normandie, a. very accurate sur-
vey made by the staff of Commodore Fitz- James on board
the Lord Clyde greatly influenced public opinion. Light-
thinking people jested upon the phenomenon, but grave,
practical countries, such as England, America, and Ger-
many, treated the matter more seriously.
In every place of great resort the monster was the fash-
ion. They sang of it in the cafes, ridiculed it in the papers,
and represented it on the stage. All kinds of stories were
circulated regarding it. There appeared in the papers
caricatures of every gigantic and imaginary creature, from
the white whale, the terrible " Moby Dick " of hyperborean
regions, to the immense kraken whose tentacles could en-
tangle a ship of five hundred tons, and hurry it into the
abyss of the ocean. The legends of ancient times were
even resuscitated, and the opinions of Aristotle and Pliny
revived, who admitted the existence of these monsters, as
well as the Norwegian tales of Bishop Pontoppidan, the
accounts of Paul Heggede, and, last of all, the reports of
Mr. Harrington (whose good faith no one could suspect),
who affirmed that, being on board the Castillan, in 1857,
he had seen this enormous serpent which had never until
that time frequented any other seas than those of the im-
agination.
Then burst forth the interminable controversy between
the credulous and the incredulous in the societies of sa-
vants and scientific journals. " The question of the mon-
ster " inflamed all minds. Editors of scientific journals,
quarreling with believers in the supernatural, spilled seas
of ink during this memorable campaign, some even draw-
ing blood; for, from sea-serpent, they came to direct per-
sonalities.
For six months war was waged with various fortune in
the leading articles of the Geographical Institution of
Brazil, the Royal Academy of Science of Berlin, the Brit-
ish Association, the Smithsonian Institution of Washing-
ton, in the discussions of the " Indian Archipelago," of the
Cosmos of the Abbe Moigno, in the Mittheilungen of Peter-
mann, in the scientific chronicles of the great journals of
France and other countries. The cheaper journals replied
6 tWenty thousand leagues
keenly and with inexhaustible zest. These satirical writers
parodied a remark of Linnaeus, quoted by the adversaries
of the monster, maintaining that " nature did not make
fools," and adjured their contemporaries not to give the
lie to nature, by admitting the existence of krakens, sea-
serpents, " Moby Dicks," and other lucubrations of de-
lirious sailors. At length an article in a well-known satir-
ical journal by a favorite contributor, the chief of the staff,
settled the monster, like Hippolytus, giving it the death-
blow amid a universal burst of laughter. Wit had con-
quered science.
During the first months of the year 1867, ^^^^ question
seemed buried never to revive, when new facts were brought
before the public. It was then no longer a scientific prob-
lem to be solved, but a real danger seriously to be avoided.
The question took quite another shape. The monster be-
came a small island, a rock, a reef, but a reef of indefinite
and shifting proportions.
On the 5th of March, 1867, the Moravian, of the Mon-
treal Ocean Company, finding herself during the night in
27° 30' lat. and 72° 15' long., struck on her starboard quar-
ter a rock, marked in no chart for that part of the sea.
Under the combined efforts of the wind and its four hun-
dred horse-power, it was going at the rate of thirteen knots.
Had it not been for the strength of the hull of the Mo-
ravian, she would have been broken by the shock, and gone
down with the 237 passengers she was bringing home from
Canada.
The accident happened about five o'clock in the morn-
ing, as the day was breaking. The officers of the quarter-
deck hurried to the after-part of the vessel. They exam-
ined the sea with the most scrupulous attention. They
saw nothing but a strong eddy about three cables' length
distant, as if the surface had been violently agitated. The
bearings of the place were taken exactly, and the Moravian
continued its route without apparent damage. Had it
struck on a submerged rock, or on an enormous wreck?
They could not tell ; but on examination of the ship's bot-
tom when undergoing repairs, it was found that part of
her keel was broken.
This fact, so grave in itself, might perhaps have been
forgotten like many others, if, three weeks after, it had
A SHIFTING REEF 7
not been re-enacted under similar circumstances. But,
thanks to the nationality of the victim of the shock, thanks
to the reputation of the company to which the vessel be-
longed, the circumstance became extensively circulated.
The 13th of April, 1867, the sea being beautiful, the
breeze favorable, the Scotia, of the Cunard Company's
line, found herself in 15" 12' long, and 45° 37' lat. She
was going at the speed of thirteen knots and a half.
At seventeen minutes past four in the afternoon, while
the passengers were assembled at lunch in the great salon,
a slight shock was felt on the hull of the Scotia, on her
quarter, a little aft of the port paddle.
The Scotia had not struck, but she had been struck, and
seemingly by something rather sharp and penetrating than
blunt. The shock had been so light that no one had been
alarmed, had it not been for the shouts of the carpenter's
watch, who rushed onto the bridge, exclaiming, " We are
sinking! we are sinking!" At first the passengers were
much frightened, but Captain Anderson hastened to reas-
sure tliem. The danger could not be imminent. The
Scotia, divided into seven compartments by strong parti-
tions, could brave with impunity any leak. Captain
Anderson went down immediately into the hold. He found
that the sea was pouring into the fifth compartment; and
the rapidity of the influx proved that the force of the
water was considerable. Fortunately this compartment did
not hold the boilers, or the fires would have been immedi-
ately extinguished. Captain Anderson ordered the engines
to be stopped at once, and one of the men went down to
ascertain the extent of the injury. Some minutes after-
ward they discovered the existence of a large hole, of two
yards in diameter, in the ship's bottom. Such a leak
could not be stopped; and the Scotia, her paddles half sub-
merged, was obliged to continue her course. She was then
three hundred miles from Cape Clear, and after three days*
delay, which caused great uneasiness in Liverpool, she en-
tered the basin of the company.
The engineers visited the Scotia, which was put in dry-
dock. They could scarcely believe it possible : at two yards
and a half below water-mark was a regular rent, in the
form of an isosceles triangle. The broken place in the
iron plates was so perfectly defined that it could not have
8 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
been more neatly done by a punch. It was clear, then,
that the instrument producing the perforation was not of a
common stamp; and after having been driven with prodig-
ious strength, and piercing an iron plate one and three-
eighth inciies thick, had withdrawn itself by a retrograde
motion truly inexplicable.
Such was the last fact, which resulted in exciting once
more the torrent of public opinion. P>om this moment all
unlucky casualties which could not be otherwise accounted
for were put down to the monster.
Upon this imaginary creature rested the responsibility
of all these shipwrecks, which unfortunately were consider-
able; for of three thousand ships whose loss was annually
recorded at Lloyds', the number of sailing and steam ships
supposed to be totally lost, from the absence of all news,
amounted to not less than tw^o hundred.
Now% it was the " monster " who, justly or unjustly, was
accused of their disappearance, and, thanks to it, communi-
cation between the different continents became more and
more dangerous. The public demanded peremptorily that
the seas should at any price be relieved from this formid-
able cetacean.
CHAPTER II
PRO AND CON
At the period when these events took place, I had just
returned from a scientific research in the territory of Ne-
braska, in the United States. In virtue of my office as
Assistant Professor in the Museum of Natural History in
Paris, the French government had attached me to that ex-
pedition. After six months in Nebraska, I arrived in New
York toward the end of March, laden wath a precious col-
lection. My departure for France was fixed for the first
days in May. Meanwhile, I was occupying myself in
classifying my mineralogical, botanical, and zoological
riches, when the accident happened to the Scotia.
I was perfectly up in the subject which was the question
of the day. How could I be otherwise? I had read and
reread all the American and European pa])crs without be-
ing any nearer a conclusion. This mystery puzzled me.
PRO AND CON 9
Under the impossibility of forming an opinion, I jumped
from one extreme to the other. That there really was
something could not be doubted, and the incredulous were
invited to put their finger on the wound of the Scotia.
On my arrival at New York, the question was at its
height. The hypothesis of the floating island, and the un-
approachable sand-bank, supported by minds little compe-
tent to form a judgment, was abandoned. And, indeed,
unless this shoal had a machine in its stomach, how could
it change its position with such astonishing rapidity?
From the same cause, the idea of a floating hull of an
enormous wreck was given up.
There remained then only two possible solutions of the
question, which created two distinct parties; on one side,
those who were for a monster of colossal strength ; on the
other, those who were for a submarine vessel of enormous
motive power.
But this last hypothesis, plausible as it was, could not
stand against inquiries made in both worlds. That a pri-
vate gentleman should have such a machine at his com-
mand was not likely. Where, when, and how was it
built ? and how could its construction have been kept secret ?
Certainly a government might possess such a destructive
machine. And in these disastrous times, when the ingenu-
ity of man has multiplied the power of weapons of war, it
was possible that, without the knowledge of others, a state
might try to work such a formidable engine. After the
chassepots came the torpedoes, after the torpedoes the sub-
marine rams, then — the reaction. At least, I hope so.
But the hypothesis of a war-machine fell before the dec-
laration of governments. As public interest was in ques-
tion, and transatlantic communications suffered, their ve-
racity could not be doubted. But, how admit that the con-
struction of this submarine boat had escaped the public eye?
For a private gentleman to keep the secret under such cir-
cumstances would be very difficult, and for a state whose
every act is persistently watched by powerful rivals, cer-
tainly impossible. After inquiries made in England,
France, Russia, Prussia, Spain, Italy, and America, even
in Turkey, the hypothesis of a submarine monitor was
definitely rejected.
Upon my arrival in New York several persons did me
lo TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
the honor of consuUing me on the phenomenon in question.
I had pubhshed in France a work in quarto, in two volumes,
entitled " Mysteries of the Great Submarine Grounds."
This book, highly approved of in the learned world,
gained for me a special reputation in this rather obscure
branch of Natural History. My advice was asked. As
long as I could deny the reality of the fact, I confined my-
self to a decided negative. But soon finding myself driven
into a corner, I was obliged to explain myself categorically.
" The Honorable Pierre Aronnax, Professor in the Mu-
seum of Paris," was called upon by the New York Herald
to express a definite opinion of some sort. I did some-
thing. I spoke for want of power to hold my tongue. I
discussed the question in all its forms, politically and scien-
tifically; and I give here an extract from a carefully studied
article which I published in the number of the 30th of April.
" After examining one by one the different hypotheses,
rejecting all other suggestions, it becomes necessary to ad-
mit the existence of a marine animal of enormous power.
" The great depths of the ocean are entirely unknown
to us. Soundings cannot reach them. ,What passes in
those remote depths — what beings live, or can live, twelve
or fifteen miles beneath the surface of the waters — what
is the organization of these animals — we can scarcely con-
jecture. However, the solution of the problem submitted
to me may modify the form of the dilemma. Either we
do know all the varieties of beings which people our planet,
or we do not. If we do not know them all, if Nature has
still secrets in ichthyology for us, nothing is more conform-
able to reason than to admit the existence of fishes, or
cetaceans of other kinds, or even of new species, of an
organization formed to inhabit the strata inaccessible to
soundings, and which an accident of some sort, either fan-
tastical or capricious, has brought at long intervals to the
upper level of the ocean.
" If, on the contrary, we do know all living kinds, we
must necessarily seek for the animal in question among
those marine beings already classed; and, in that case, I
should be disposed to admit the existence of a gigantic
narwlial.
" The common narwhal, or unicorn of the sea, often at-
tains a length of sixty feet. Increase its size fivefold or
PRO AND CON II
tenfold, give it strength proportionate to its size, lengthen
its destructive weapons, and you ohtain the animal re-
quired. It will have the proportions detemiined by the
officers of the Shannon, the instrument required by the
perforation of the Scotia, and the power necessary to
pierce the hull of the steamer.
" Indeed, the narwhal is armed with a sort of ivory
sword, a halberd, according to the expression of certain
naturalists. The principal tusk has the hardness of steel.
Some of these tusks have been found buried in the bodies
of whales, which the unicorn always attacks with success.
Others have been drawn out, not without trouble, from the
bottoms of ships, which they had pierced through and
through, as a gimlet pierces a barrel. The Museum of
the Faculty of Medicine of Paris possesses one of these de-
fensive weapons, two yards and a quarter in length, and
fifteen inches in diameter at the base.
" Very well ! suppose this weapon to be six times stronger,
and the animal ten times more powerful; launch it at
the rate of twenty miles an hour, and you obtain a shock
capable of producing the catastrophe required. Until fur-
ther information, therefore, I shall maintain it to be a sea-
unicorn of colossal dimensions, armed, not with a halberd.
but with a real spur, as the armored frigates, or the * rams '
of war, whose massiveness and motive power it would pos-
sess at the same time. Thus may this inexplicable phe-
nomenon be explained, unless there be something over and
above all that one has ever conjectured, seen, perceived, or
experienced; which is not entirely beyond the bounds of
possibility."
These last words were cowardly on my part; but, up to
a certain point, I wished to shelter my dignity as professor,
and not give too much cause for laughter to the Americans,
who laugh well when they do laugh. I reserved for my-
self a way of escape. In effect, however, I admitted the
existence of the " monster." My article was warmly dis-
cussed, which procured it a high reputation. It rallied
round it a certain number of partisans. The solution it
proposed gave, at least, full liberty to the imagination.
The human mind delights in grand conceptions of super-
natural beings. And the sea is precisely their best vehicle,
the only medium through which these giants (against
12 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
which terrestrial animals, such as elephants or rhinoceroses,
are as nothing) can be produced or developed.
The industrial and commercial papers treated the ques-
tion chiefly from this point of view. The Shipping and
Mercantile Gazette, the Lloyds List, the Packet-Boat and
the Maritime and Colonial Review, all papers devoted to
insurance companies w'hich threatened to raise their rates
of premium, were unanimous on this point. Public opin-
ion had been pronounced. The United States was the
first in the field ; and in New York they made preparations
for an expedition destined to pursue this narwhal. A frig-
ate of great speed, the Abraham Lincoln, was put in com-
mission, as soon as possible. The arsenals were opened to
Commander Farragut, who hastened the arming of his
frigate; but, as it always happens, the moment it was de-
cided to pursue the monster, the monster did not appear.
For two months no one heard it spoken of. No ship met
with it. It seemed as if this unicorn knew of the plots
weaving around it. It had been so much talked of, even
through the Atlantic cable, that jesters pretended that this
slender fly had stopped a telegram on its passage, and was
making the most of it.
So when the frigate had been armed for a long cam-
paign, and provided with formidable fishing apparatus, no
one could tell what course to pursue. Impatience grew
apace, when, on the 2d of June, they learned that a steamer
of the line of San Francisco, from California to Shanghai,
had seen the animal three weeks before in the North Pacific
Ocean. The excitement caused by this news was extreme.
The ship was revictualed and well stocked with coal.
Three hours before the Abraham Lincoln left Brooklyn
pier, I received a letter worded as follows:
" To M. Aronnax, Professor in the Museum of Paris,
" Fifth Avenue Hotel, New York.
Sir: If you will consent to join the Abraham Lincoln
in this expedition, the government of the United States
will with pleasure see France represented in the enterpris*^.
Commander Farragut has a cabin at your disposal.
" Very cordially yours,
"J. B. HOBSON,
" Secretary of Marine."
CHAPTER III
I FORM MY RESOLUTION
Three seconds before the arrival of J. B. Hobson's let-
ter, I no more thought of pursuing the unicorn than of
attempting the passage of the North Sea. Three seconds
after reading the letter of the Honorable Secretary of Ma-
rine, I felt that my true vocation, the sole end of my life,
was to chase this disturbing monster, and purge it from
the world.
But I had just returned from a fatiguing journey, weary,
and longing for repose. I aspired to nothing more than
again seeing my country, my friends, my little lodging by
the Jardin des Plantes, my dear and precious collections.
But nothing could keep me back! I forgot all — fatigue,
friends, and collections — and accepted without hesitation
the offer of the American government.
"Besides," thought I, "all roads lead back to Europe;
and the unicorn may be amiable enough to hurry me to-
ward the coast of France. This worthy animal may allow
itself to be caught in the seas of Europe (for my particular
benefit), and I will not bring back less than half a yard of
his ivory halberd to the Museum of Natural History."
But in the meanwhile I must seek this narwhal in the
North Pacific Ocean, which, to return to France, was tak-
ing the road to the antipodes.
" Conseil," I called in an impatient voice.
Conseil was my servant, a true, devoted Flemish boy,
who had accompanied me in all my travels. I liked him,
and he returned the liking well. He was phlegmatic by
nature, regular from principle, zealous from habit, evinc-
ing little disturbance at the different surprises of life, very
quick with his hands, and apt at any service required of
him ; and, despite his name, never giving advice — even when
asked for it.
Conseil had followed me for the last ten years wherever
science led. Never once did he complain of the length or
fatigue of a journey, never made an objection to pack his
portmanteau for whatever country it might be, or how^ever
far away, whether China or Congo. Besides all this, he
had good health, which defied all sickness, and solid mus-
cles, but no nerves; good morals are understood. This
13
14 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
boy was thirty years old, and his age to that of his master
as fifteen to twenty. I was forty years old.
But Conseil had one fault — he was ceremonious to a de-
gree, and would never speak to me but in the third person,
which was sometimes provoking.
" Conseil," said I again, beginning with feverish hands
to make preparations for my departure. Certainly I was
sure of this devoted boy. As a rule, I never asked him if
it were convenient for him or not to follow me in my trav-
els; but this time the expedition in question might be pro-
longed, and the enterprise might be hazardous in pursuit
of an animal capable of sinking a frigate as easily as a
nutshell. Here there was matter for reflection even to the
most impassive man in the world. What would Conseil
say?
" Conseil," I called a third time.
Conseil appeared. "Did you call, sir?" said he en-
tering.
"Yes, my boy; make preparations for me and yourself
too. We leave in two hours."
As you please, sir," replied Conseil quietly.
Not an instant to lose; lock in my trunk all traveling
utensils, coats, shirts, and stockings — without counting —
as many as you can, and make haste."
"And your collections, sir?" observed 'Conseil.
We will think of them by and by."
What! the archiotherium, the hyracotherium, the
oreodons, the cheropotamus, and the other skins?"
" They will keep them at the hotel."
"And your live Babiroussa, sir?"
"They will feed it during our absence; besides, I will
give orders to forward our menagerie to France."
"We are not returning to Paris, then?" said Conseil.
" Oh, certainly," I answered evasively, " by making a
it
curve."
" Will the curve please you, sir?"
" Oh ! it will be nothing ; not quite so direct a road,
that is all. We take our passage in the Abraham Lincoln."
" As you think proper, sir," coolly replied Conseil.
" You see, my friend, it has to do with the monster —
the famous narwhal. We are going to purge it from the
seas. The author of a work in quarto, in two volumes, on
I FORM MY RESOLUTION 15
the * Mysteries of the Great Submarine Grounds ' cannot
forbear embarking with Commodore Farragut. A glori-
ous mission, but a dangerous one! We cannot tell where
we may go; these animals can be very capricious. But w^e
will go whether or no ; we have got a captain who is pretty
wide awake."
I opened a credit account for Babiroussa, and, Conseil
following, I jumped into a cab. Our luggage was trans-
ported to the deck of the frigate immediately. I hastened
on board and asked for Commodore Farragut. One of the
sailors conducted me to the poop, w^here I found myself in
the presence of a good-looking officer, who held out his
hand to me.
" Monsieur Pierre A'ronnax? " said he.
"Himself," replied I; "Commodore Farragut?"
"You are welcome, professor; your cabin is ready."
I bowed, and desired to be conducted to the cabin des-
tined for me. The 'Abraham Lincoln had been well chosen
and equipped for her new destination. She was a frigate
of great speed, fitted with high-pressure engines which ad-
mitted a pressure of seven atmospheres. Under this the
Abraham Lincoln attained the mean speed of nearly eigh-
teen knots and a third an hour — a considerable speed, but,
nevertheless, insufficient to grapple with this gigantic
cetacean.
The interior arrangements of the frigate corresponded
to its nautical qualities. I was well satisfied with my
cabin, which was in the after-part, opening upon the gun-
room.
" We shall be wtII off here," said I to Conseil.
" As well, by your honor's leave, as a hermit crab in the
shell of a whelk," said Conseil.
I left Conseil to stow our trunks conveniently away, and
remounted the poop in order to survey the preparations for
departure.
At that moment Commander Farragut was ordering the
last moorings to be cast loose which held the Abraham
Lincoln to the pier of Brooklyn. So in a quarter of an
hour, perhaps less, the frigate would have sailed without
me. I should have missed this extraordinary, supernatural,
and incredible expedition, the recital of which may well
meet with some skepticism.
i6 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
But Commander Farragut would not lose a day nor an
hour in scouring the seas in which the animal had been
sighted. He sent for the engineer.
" Is the steam full on? " asked he.
" Yes, sir," replied the engineer.
*' Go ahead," cried Commander Farragut.
The quay of Brooklyn, and all that part of New York
bordering on the East River, was crowded with spectators.
Three cheers burst successively from five hundred thousand
throats; thousands of handkerchiefs were waved above the
heads of the compact mass, saluting the Abraham Lincoln,
until she reached the waters of the Hudson, at the point
of that elongated peninsula which forms the town of New
York. Then the frigate, following the coast of New
Jersey along the right bank of the beautiful river, covered
with villas, passed between the forts, which saluted her
with their heaviest guns. The Abraham Lincoln answered
by hoisting the American colors three times, the thirty-
nine stars shone resplendent from the mizzen-peak; then
modifying its speed to take the narrow channel marked by
buoys placed in the inner bay formed by Sandy Hook
Point, it coasted the long sandy beach, where some thou-
sands of spectators gave it one final cheer. The escort of
boats and tenders still followed the frigate, and did not
leave her until they came abreast of the light-ship whose
two lights distinctly marked the entrance of New York
Channel.
Six bells struck, the pilot got into his boat, and rejoined
the little schooner which was waiting under our lee, the
fires were made up, the screw beat the waves more rapidly,
the frigate skirted the low yellow coast of Long Island ; and
at eight bells, after having lost sight in the northwest of
the lights of Fire Island, she ran at full steam into the
dark waters of the Atlantic.
CHAPTER IV
NED LAND
Captain Farragut was a good seaman, worthy of the
frigate he commanded. His vessel and he were one. He
was the soul of it. On the question of the cetacean there
V. V Veme
NED LAND 17
was no doubt in his mind; and he would not allow the
existence of the animal to be disputed on board. He
believed in it as certain good women believe in the leviathan
— by faith, not by reason. The monster did exist, and he
had sworn to rid the seas of it. He was a kind of Knight
of Rhodes, a second Dieudonne de Gozon, going to meet
the serpent which desolated the island. Either Captain
Farragut would kill the narwhal, or the narwhal would kill
the captain. There was no third course.
The officers on board shared the opinion of their chief.
They were ever chatting, discussing, and calculating the
various chances of a meeting, watching narrowly the vast
surface of the ocean. More than one took up his quarters
voluntarily in the cross-trees, who would have cursed such
a berth under any other circumstances. As to the ship's
company, they desired nothing better than to meet the uni-
corn, to harpoon it, hoist it on board, and dispatch it.
They watched the sea with eager attention.
Besides, Captain Farragut had spoken of a certain sum
of two thousand dollars, set apart for whoever should first
sight the monster, were he cabin-boy, common seaman, or
officer. I leave you to judge how eyes were used on board
the Abraham Lincoln.
For my own part, I was not behind the others, and left
to no one my share of daily observations. The frigate
might have been called the Argus, for a hundred reasons.
Only one among us, Conseil, seemed to protest by his
indifference against the question which so interested us all,
and seemed to be out of keeping with the general enthusi-
asm on board.
I have said that Captain Farragut had carefully pro-
vided his ship with every apparatus for catching the gigan-
tic cetacean. No whaler had ever been better armed. We
possessed every known engine, from the harpoon thrown
by the hand to tlie barbed arrows of the blunderbuss, and
the explosive balls of the duck-gun. On the forecastle
lay the perfection of a breech-loading gun, very thick at
the breech, and very narrow in the bore, the model of which
had been in the Exhibition of 1867. This precious weapon
of American origin could throw with ease a conical pro-
jectile of nine pounds to a mean distance of ten miles.
Thus the 'Abraham Lincoln wanted for no means of de-
1 8 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
striiction; and, what was better still, she had on board Ned
Land, the prince of harpooners.
Ned Land was a Canadian, with an uncommon quick-
ness of hand, who knew no equal in his dangerous occupa-
tion. Skill, coolness, audacity, and cunning he possessed
in a superior degree, and it must be a wary whale or a sin-
gularly " cute " cachalot to escape the stroke of his harpoon.
Land was about forty years of age; he was a tall man, more
than six feet high, strongly built, grave and taciturn, occa-
sionally violent, and very passionate when contradicted.
His person attracted attention, but above all the boldness
of his look, which gave a singular expression to his face.
Who calls himself Canadian calls himself French; and
little communicative as Ned Land was, I must admit that
he took a certain liking for me. My nationality drew him
to me, no doubt. It was an opportunity for him to talk,
and for me to hear, that old language of Rabelais, which
is still in use in some Canadian provinces. The harpooner's
family was originally from Quebec, and was already a tribe
of hardy fishermen when this town belonged to France.
Little by little, Ned Land acquired a taste for chatting,
and I loved to hear the recital of his adventures in the
polar seas. He related his fishing, and his combats, with
natural poetry of expression; his recital took the form of
an epic poem, and I seemed to be listening to a Canadian
Homer singing the Iliad of the regions of the North. I
am portraying this hardy companion as I really knew him.
We are old friends now, united in that unchangeable friend-
ship which is born and cemented amid extreme dangers.
Ah, brave Ned ! I ask no more than to live a hundred years
longer, that I may have more time to dwell the longer on
your memory.
Now, what was Ned Land's opinion upon the question
of the marine monster? I must admit that he did not
believe in the unicorn, and was the only one on board who
did not share that universal conviction. He even avoided
the subject, which I one day thought it my duty to press
upon him. One magnificent evening, the 25th of June —
that is to say, three weeks after our departure — the frigate
was abreast of Cape Blanc, thirty miles to leeward of the
coast of Patagonia. We had crossed the tropic of Capri-
corn and the Straits of Magellan opened less than seven
NED LAND 19
hundred miles to the south. Before eight days were over,
the Abraham Lincoln would be plowing the waters of the
Pacific.
Seated on the poop, Ned Land and I were chatting of
one thing and another as we looked at this mysterious sea,
whose great depths had up to this time been inaccessible
to the eye of man. I naturally led up the conversation to
the giant unicorn, and examined the various chances of
success or failure of the expedition. But seeing that Ned
Land let me speak without saying too much himself, I
pressed him more closely. " Well, Ned," said I, " is it
possible that you are not convinced of the existence of this
cetacean that we are following? Have you any particualr
reason for being so incredulous?"
The harpooner looked at me fixedly for some moments
before answering, struck his broad forehead with his hand
(a habit of his), as if to collect himself, and said at last,
** Perhaps I have, M. Aronnax."
*' But, Ned, you, a whaler by profession, familiarized
with all the great marine mammalia — you, whose imagina-
tion might easily accept the hypothesis of enormous ceta-
ceans — you ought to be the last to doubt under such cir-
cumstances ! "
" That is just what deceives you, professor," replied
Ned. " That the vulgar should believe in extraordinary
comets traversing space, and in the existence of antedi-
luvian monsters in the heart of the globe, may well be;
but neither astronomers nor geologists believe in such
chimeras. As a whaler, I have followed many a cetacean,
harpooned a great number, and killed several; but, how
ever strong or well-armed they may have been, neither
their tails nor their weapons would have been able even to
scratch the iron plates of a steamer."
" But, Ned, they tell of ships which the teeth of the
narwhal have pierced through and through."
" Wooden ships— that is possible," replied the Canadian ;
"but I have never seen it done; and, until further proof,
I deny that whales, cetaceans, or sea-unicorns could ever
produce the effect you describe."
" Well, Ned, I repeat it with a conviction resting on the
logic of facts. I believe in the existence of a mammal
powerfully organized, belonging to the branch of verte-
20 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
brata, like the whales, the cachalots, or the dolphins, and
furnished with a horn of defense of great penetrating
power."
" Hum ! " said the harpooner, shaking his head with the
air of a man who would not be convinced.
" Notice one thing, my worthy Canadian," I resumed.
"If such an animal is in existence, if it inhabits the depths
of the ocean, if it frequents the strata lying miles below
the surface of the water, it must necessarily possess an or-
ganization the strength of which would defy comparison."
" And why this powerful organization ? " demanded Ned.
" Because it requires incalculable strength to keep one's
self in these strata and resist their pressure. Listen to me.
Let us admit that the pressure of the atmosphere is repre-
sented by the weight of a column of water thirty-two feet
high. In reality the column of water would be shorter, as
we are speaking of sea-water, the density of which is
greater than that of fresh water. Very well, when you
dive, Ned, as many times thirty-two feet of water as there
are above you, so many times does your body bear a pres-
sure equal to that of the atmosphere, that is to say, 15 lbs.
for each square inch of its surface. It follows, then, that
at 320 feet this pressure equals that of 10 atmospheres, of
100 atmospheres at 3,200 feet, and of 1,000 atmospheres
at 32,000 feet, that is, about 6 miles; which is equivalent to
saying that, if you attain this depth in the ocean, each
square 3-8 of an inch of the surface of your body would
bear a pressure of 5,600 lbs. Ah! my brave Ned, do you
know how many square inches you carry on the surface of
your body ? "
I have no idea, M. Aronnax."
About 6,500; and, as in reality the atmospheric pres-
sure is about 15 lbs to the square inch, your 6.500 square
inches bear at this moment a pressure of 97,500 lbs."
" Without my perceiving it? "
" Without your perceiving it. And if you are not
crushed by such a pressure, it is because the air penetrates
the interior of your body with equal pressure. Hence
perfect equilibrium between the interior and exterior pres-
sure, which thus neutralize each other, and which allows
you to bear it without inconvenience. But in the water it
is another thing."
«
NED LAND 21
" Yes, I understand," replied Ned, becoming more at-
tentive ; " because the water surrounds me, but does not
penetrate."
** Precisely, Ned ; so that at 32 feet beneath the surface
of the sea you would undergo a pressure of 97,500 lbs. ; at
320 feet, ten times that pressure; at 3,200 feet, a hundred
times that pressure; lastly, at 32,000 feet, a thousand times
that pressure would be 97,500,000 lbs. — that is to say, that
you would be flattened as if you had been drawn from the
plates of an hydraulic machine! "
"The devil!" exclaimed Ned.
" Very well, my worthy harpooner, if some vertebrate,
several hundred yards long, and large in proportion, can
maintain itself in such depths — of those whose surface is
represented by millions of square inches, that is by tens of
millions of pounds, we must estimate the pressure they
undergo. Consider, then, what must be the resistance of
their bony structure, and the strength of their organization
to withstand such pressure."
" Why ! " exclaimed Ned Land, " they must be made of
iron plates eight inches thick, like the armored frigates."
" As you say, Ned. And think what destruction such a
mass would cause, if hurled with the speed of an express
train against the hull of a vessel."
" Yes — certainly — perhaps," replied the Canadian, shaken
by these figures, but not yet willing to give in.
" Well, have I convinced you ? "
" You have convinced me of one thing, sir, which is,
that if such animals do exist at the bottom of the seas, the}^
must necessarily be as strong as you say."
" But if they do not exist, mine obstinate harpooner, how
explain the accident to the Scotia f "
CHAPTER V
AT A VENTURE
The voyage of the Abraham Lincoln was for a long time
marked by no special incident. But one circumstance hap-
pened which showed the wonderful dexterity of Ned Land,
and proved what confidence we might place in him.
Tlie 30th of June, the frigate spoke some American
22 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
whalers, from whom we learned that they knew nothing
about the narwhal. But one of them, the captain of the
Monroe, knowing that Ned Land had shipped on board the
Abraham Lincoln, begged for his help in chasing a whale
they had in sight. Commander Farragut, desirous of see-
ing Ned Land at work, gave him permission to go on board
the Monroe. And fate served our Canadian so well that,
instead of one whale, he harpooned two with a double blow,
striking one straight to the heart and catching the other
after some minutes' pursuit. Decidedly, if the monster
ever had to do with Ned Land's harpoon, I would not bet
in its favor.
The frigate skirted the southeast coast of America with
great rapidity. The 3d of July we were at the opening of
the Straits of Magellan, level with Cape Vierges. But
Commander Farragut would not take the tortuous pas-
sage, but doubled Cape Horn. The ship's crew agreed
with him. And certainly it was hardly possible that they
might meet the narwhal in this narrow pass. Many of the
sailors affirmed that the monster could not pass there, " that
he was too big for that ! "
The 6th of July, about three o'clock in the afternoon, the
Abraham Lincoln, at fifteen miles to the south, doubled
the solitary island, this last rock at the extremity of the
American continent to which some Dutch sailors gave the
name of their native town, Cape Horn. The course was
taken toward the northwest, and the next day the screw
of the frigate was at last beating the broad expanse of the
Pacific.
" Keep your eyes open ! " called out the sailors.
And they were opened widely. Both eyes and glasses, a
little dazzled, it is true, by the prospect of two thousand
dollars, had not an instant's repose. Day and night they
watclicd the surface of the ocean, and even nyctalopes,
whose faculty of seeing in the darkness multiplied their
chances a hundredfold, would have had enough to do to
gain the prize.
I myself, for whom money had no charms, was not the
least attentive on board. Giving but few minutes to my
meals, but a few hours to sleep, indifferent to either rain
or sunshine, I did not leave the poop of the vessel. Now
leaning on the netting of the forecastle, now on the taffrail,
AT A VENTURE 23
I devoured with eagerness the soft foam which whitened
the sea as far as the eye could reach ; and how often did I
share the emotion of the majority of the crew when some
capricious whale raised its black back above the waves!
The poop of the vessel was crowded in a moment. The
cabins poured forth a torrent of sailors and officers, each
with heaving breast and troubled eye watching the course
of the cetacean. I looked, and looked, till I was nearly
blind, while Conseil, always phlegmatic, kept repeating in
a calm voice: " If, sir, you would not squint so much, you
would see better ! "
But vain excitement! the Abraham Lincoln checked its
speed and made for the animal signaled, a simple whale, or
common cachalot, which soon disappeared amid a storm of
execration.
The weather was good. The voyage was being accom-
plished under the most favorable auspices. It was then the
bad season in Australia, the July of that zone correspond-
ing to our January in Europe; but the sea was beautiful
and easily scanned round a vast circumference. The 20th
of July, the tropic of Capricorn was cut, and the 27th of
the same month we crossed the equator on the iioth merid-
ian. This passed, the frigate took a more decided westerly
direction, and scoured the central waters of the Pacific.
Commander Farragut thought, and with reason, that it
was better to remain in deep water, and keep clear of con-
tinents or islands, which the beast itself seemed to shun
Xperhaps because there was not enough water for him!
suggested the greater part of the crew). The frigate
passed at some distance from the Marquesas and the Sand-
wich Islands, crossed the tropic of Cancer, and made for
the China Seas. We were on the theater of the last di-
versions of the monster; and to say truth, we no longer
lived on board. Hearts palpitated, fearfully preparing
themselves for future incurable aneurism. The entire
ship's crew were undergoing a nervous excitement, of
which I can give no idea ; they could not eat, they could not
sleep; twenty times a day, a misconception or an optical
illusion of some sailor seated on the taffrail would cause
dreadful perspirations, and these emotions, twenty times
repeated, kept us in a state of excitement so violent that a
reaction was unavoidable.
24 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
And truly, reaction soon showed itself. For three
months, during which a day seemed an age, the Abraham
Lincoln furrowed all the waters of the Northern Pacific,
running at whales, making sharp deviations from her
course, veering suddenly from one tack to another, stop-
ping suddenly, putting on steam, and backing ever and
anon at the risk of deranging her machinery; and not one
point of the Japanese or American coast was left unex-
plored.
The warmest partisans of the enterprise now became its
most ardent detractors. Reaction mounted from the crew
to the captain himself, and certainly, had it not been for
resolute determination on the part of Captain Farragut, the
frigate would have headed due southward. This useless
search could not last much longer. The Abraham Lincoln
had nothing to reproach herself with, she had done her
best to succeed. Never had an American ship's crew shown
more zeal or patience; its failure could not be placed to
their charge — there remained nothing but to return.
This was represented to the commander. The sailors
could not hide their discontent, and the service suffered.
I will not say there was a mutiny on board, but after a
reasonable period of obstinacy, Captain Farragut (as Co-
lumbus did) asked for three days' patience. If in three
days the monster did not appear, the man at the helm
should give three turns of the wheel, and the Abraham
Lincoln would make for the European seas.
This promise was made on the 2d of November. It had
the effect of rallying the ship's crew\ The ocean was
watched with renewed attention. Each one wished for a
last glance in which to sum up his remembrance. Glasses
were used with feverish activity. It was a grand defiance
given to the giant narwhal, and he could scarcely fail to
answer the summons and " appear."
Two days passed, the steam was at half-pressure; a
thousand schemes were tried to attract the attention and
stimulate the apathy of the animal in case it should be met
in those parts. Large quantities of bacon were trailed in
the wake of the ship, to the great satisfaction (I must say)
of the sharks. Small craft radiated in all directions round
the Abraham Lincoln as she lay to, and did not leave a
spot of the sea unexplored. But the night of the 4th of
AT A VENTURE 25
November arrived without the unveihng of this submarine
mystery.
The next day, the 5th of November, at twelve, the delay
would (morally speaking) expire; after that time, Com-
mander P'arragut, faithful to his promise, was to turn the
course to the southeast and abandon forever the northern
regions of the Pacific.
The frigate was then in 31° 15' latitude and 136° 42' east
longitude. The coast of Japan still remained less than two
hundred miles to leeward. Night was approaching. They
had just struck eight bells; large clouds veiled the face of
the moon, then in its first quarter. The sea undulated
peaceably under the stern of the vessel. At that moment
I was leaning forward on the starboard netting. Conseil,
standing near me, was looking straight before him. The
crew, perched in the ratlines, examined the horizon, which
contracted and darkened by degrees. Officers with their
night-glasses scoured the growing darkness; sometimes
the ocean sparkled under the rays of the moon, which
darted between two clouds, then all trace of light was lost
in the darkness.
In looking at Conseil, I could see he was undergoing a
little of the general influence. At least I thought so. Per-
haps for the first time his nerves vibrated to a sentiment of
curiosity.
" Come, Conseil," said I, " this is the last chance of
pocketing the two thousand dollars."
" May I be permitted to say, sir," replied Conseil, " that
I never reckoned on getting the prize ; and, had the govern-
ment of the Union offered a hundred thousand dollars, it
would have been none the poorer."
" You are right, Conseil. It is a foolish affair after all,
and one upon which we entered too lightly. What time
lost, what useless emotions ! We should have been back in
France six months ago."
" In your little room, sir," replied Conseil, " and In
your museum, sir; and I should have already classed all
your fossils, sir. And the Babiroussa would have been In-
stalled in its cage in the Jardin des Plantes, and have drawn
all the curious people of the capital ! "
" As you say, Conseil. I fancy we shall run a fair chance
of being laughed at for our pains."
26 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
"That's tolerably certain," replied Conseil quietly; "I
think they will make fun of you, sir. And — must I say
it? "
" Go on, my good friend."
" Well, sir, you will only get your deserts."
"Indeed!"
" When one has the honor of being a savant as you are,
sir, one should not expose one's self to "
Conseil had not time to finish his compliment. In the
midst of general silence a voice had just been heard. It
was the voice of Ned Land shouting:
" Look out there ! the very thing we are looking for — on
our weather beam! "
CHAPTER VI
AT FULL STEAM
At this cry the whole ship's crew hurried toward the
harpooner — commander, officers, masters, sailors, cabin-
boys; even the engineers left their engines, and the stokers
their furnaces.
The order to stop her had been given, and the frigate
now simply went on by her own momentum. The dark-
ness was then profound ; and however good the Canadian's
eyes were, I asked myself how he had managed to see, and
what he had been able to see. My heart beat as if it would
break. But Ned Land was not mistaken, and we all per-
ceived the object he pointed to. At two cables' lengths
from the Abraham Lincoln, on the starboard quarter, the
sea seemed to be illuminated all over. It was not a mere
phosphoric phenomenon. The monster emerged some
fathoms from the water, and then threw out that very in-
tense but inexplicable light mentioned in the report of sev-
eral captains. This magnificent irradiation must have been
produced by an agent of great shining power. The lumi-
nous part traced on the sea an immense oval, much elonga-
ted, the center of which condensed a burning heat, whose
overpowering brilliancy died out by successive gradations.
" It is only an agglomeration of phosphoric particles,"
cried one of the officers.
"No, sir, certainly not," I replied. "Never did pho-
AT FULL STEAM 27
lawes or salpae produce such a powerful light. That bright-
ness is of an essentially electrical nature. Besides, see,
see! it moves; it is moving forward, backward, it is dart-
ing toward us ! "
A general cry arose from the frigate.
" Silence ! " said the captain ; " up with the helm, reverse
the engines."
The steam was shut off, and the Abraham Lincoln, beat-
ing to port, described a semicircle. " Right the helm, go
ahead," cried the captain. These orders were executed,
and the frigate moved rapidly from the burning light.
She tried to sheer off, but the supernatural animal ap-
proached with a velocity double her own.
We gasped for breath. Stupefaction more than fear
made us dumb and motionless. The animal gained on us,
sporting with the waves. It made the round of the frigate,
which was then making fourteen knots, and enveloped it
with its electric rings like luminous dust. Then it moved
away two or three miles, leaving a phosphorescent track,
like those volumes of steam that the express trains leave
behind. All at once from the dark line of the horizon
whither it retired to gain its momentum, the monster
rushed suddenly toward the 'Abraham Lincoln with alarm-
ing rapidity, stopped suddenly about twenty feet from the
hull, and died out — not diving under the water, for its
brilliancy did not abate — but suddenly, and as if the source
of this brilliant emanation was exhausted. Then it reap-
peared on the other side of the vessel, as if it had turned
and slid under the hull. Any moment a colHsion might
have occurred which would have been fatal to us. I was
astonished at the maneuvers of the frigate. She fled and
did not attack.
On the captain's face, generally so impassive, was an
expression of unaccountable astonishment.
" M. Aronnax," he said, " I do not know with what
formidable being I have to deal, and I will not impru-
dently risk my frigate in the midst of this darkness. Be-
sides, how attack this unknown thing, how defend one's self
from it? We must wait for daylight, and the scene will
change."
" You have no further doubt, captain, of the nature of
the animal ? "
2S TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" No, sir ; it is evidently a gigantic narwhal, and an
electric one."
" Perhaps," added I, " one can only approach it with a
gymnotus or a torpedo."
" Undoubtedly," replied the captain, " if it possesses such
dreadful power, it is the most terrible animal that ever was
created. That is why, sir, I must be on my guard."
The crew were on their feet all night. No one thought
of sleep. The Abraham Lincoln, not being able to strug-
gle with such velocity, had moderated its pace, and sailed
at half speed. For its part, the narwhal, imitating the
frigate, let the waves rock it at will, and seemed decided
not to leave the scene of the struggle. Toward midnight,
however, it disappeared, or, to use a more appropriate term,
it " died out " like a large glow-worm. Had it fled? One
could only fear, not hope it. But at seven minutes to
one o'clock In the morning a deafening whistling was heard,
like that produced by a body of water rushing with great
violence.
The captain, Ned Land, and I were then on the poop,
eagerly peering through the profound darkness.
" Ned Land," asked the commander, " you have often
heard the roaring of whales?"
*' Often sir; but never such whales the sight of which
brought me in two thousand dollars. If I can only ap-
proach within four harpoon lengths of it!"
" But to approach it," said the commander, " I ought to
put a whaler at your disposal? "
" Certainly, sir."
" That will be trifling with the lives of my men."
" And mine too," simply said the harpooner.
Toward two o'clock in the morning, the burning light
reappeared, not less intense, about five miles to windward
of the Abraham Lincobi. Notwithstanding the distance,
and the noise of the wind and sea, one heard distinctly the
loud strokes of the animal's tail, and even its panting
breath. It seemed that, at the moment that the enormous
narwhal had come to take breath at the surface of the
water, the air was ingulfed in its lungs, like the steam in the
vast cylinders of a machine of two-thousand horsepower.
"Hum!" thought I, "a whale with the strength of a
cavalry ref?iment would be a pretty whale ! "
AT FULL STEAM 29
We were on the qui vive till daylight, and prepared for
the combat. The fishing implements were laid along the
hammock nettings. The second lieutenant loaded the
blunderbusses, which could throw harpoons to the distance
of a mile, and long duck-guns, with explosive bullets,
which inflicted mortal wounds even to the most terrible
animals. Ned Land contented himself with sharpening
his harpoon — a terrible weapon in his hands.
At six o'clock, day began to break; and with the first
glimmer of light, the electric light of the narwhal disap-
peared. At seven o'clock the day was sufficiently ad-
vanced, but a very thick sea- fog obscured our view, and the
best spy-glasses could not pierce it. That caused disap-
pointment and anger.
I climbed the mizzen-mast. Some officers were already
perched on the mast-heads. At eight o'clock the fog lay
heavily on the waves, and its thick scrolls rose little by
little. The horizon grew wider and clearer at the same
time. Suddenly, just as on the day before, Ned Land's
voice was heard. " The thing itself on the port quarter! "
cried the harpooner.
Every eye was turned toward the point indicated. There,
a mile and a half from the frigate, a long blackish body
emerged a yard above the waves. Its tail, violently agi-
tated, produced a considerable eddy. Never did a caudal
appendage beat the sea with such violence. An immense
track, of a dazzling whiteness, marked the passage of the
animal, and described a long curve.
The frigate approached the cetacean. I examined it
thoroughly. The reports of the Shannon and of the Hel-
vetia had rather exaggerated its size, and I estimated its
length at only two hundred and fifty feet. As to its dimen-
sions, I could only conjecture them to be admirably propor-
tioned. While I watched this phenomenon, two jets of
steam and water were ejected from its vents, and rose to
the height of 120 feet; thus I ascertained its way of breath-
ing. I concluded definitely that it belonged to the verte-
brate branch, class mammalia.
The crew waited impatiently for their chief's orders.
The latter, after having observed the animal attentively,
called the engineer. The engineer ran to him.
" Sir," said the commander, " you have steam up? "
30 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" Yes, sir," answered the engineer.
" Well, make up your fires and put on all steam."
Three hurrahs greeted this order. The time for the
struggle had arrived. Some moments after, the two fun-
nels of the frigate vomited torrents of black smoke, and the
bridge quaked under the trembling of the boilers.
The Abraham Lincoln, propelled by her powerful screw,
went straight at the animal. The latter allowed it to come
within half a cable's length; then, as if disdaining to dive,
it took a little turn, and stopped a short distance off.
This pursuit lasted nearly three-quarters of an hour, with-
out the frigate gaining two yards on the cetacean. It was
quite evident that at that rate we should never come up
with it.
" Well, Mr. Land," asked the captain, " do you advise
me to put the boats out to sea?"
"No, sir," replied Ned Land; "because we shall not
take that beast easily."
"What shall we do then?"
" Put on more steam if you can, sir. With your leave,
I mean to post myself under the bowsprit, and if we get
within harpooning distance, I shall make an effort to throw
my harpoon."
" Go, Ned," said the captain. " Engineer, put on more
pressure."
Ned Land went to his post. The fires were increased,
the screw revolved forty-three times a minute, and the
steam poured out of the valves. We heaved the log, and
calculated that the 'Abraham Lincoln was going at the rate
of i8^ miles an hour.
But the accursed animal swam too at the rate of 183^2
miles.
For a whole hour, the frigate kept up this pace, without
gaining six feet. It was humiliating for one of the swift-
est sailers in the American navy. A stubborn anger seized
the crew; the sailors abused the monster, who, as before,
disdained to answer them; the captain no longer contented
himself with twisting his beard — he gnawed it.
The engineer was again called.
"You have turned full steam on?"
" Yes, sir," replied the engineer.
The speed of the Abraham Lincoln increased. Its masts
AT FULL STEAM 31
trembled down to their stepping-holes, and the clouds of
smoke could hardly lind way out of the narrow funnels.
They heaved the log a second time.
"Well?" asked the captain of the man at the wheel.
" Nineteen miles and three tenths, sir."
" Clap on more steam."
The engineer obeyed. The manometer showed ten de-
grees. But the cetacean grew warm itself, no doubt; for,
without straining itself, it made 19 3-10 miles.
What a pursuit! No, I cannot describe the emotion
that vibrated through me. Ned Land kept his post, har-
poon in hand. Several times the animal let us gain upon
it. " We shall catch it ! we shall catch it ! " cried the
Canadian. But just as he was going to strike, the cetacean
stole away wnth a rapidity that could not be estimated at
less than thirty miles an hour, and even during our maxi-
mum speed it bullied the frigate, going round and round it.
A cry of fury broke from everyone.
At noon we were no further advanced than at eight
o'clock in the morning.
The captain then decided to take more direct means.
"Ah!" said he, "that animal goes quicker than the
Abraham Lincoln. Very well! w^e will see whether it will
escape these conical bullets. Send your men to the fore-
castle, sir."
The forecastle gun was immediately loaded and slewed
round. But the shot passed some feet above the cetacean,
which was half a mile off.
"Another more to the right." cried the commander,
"and five dollars to whoever will hit that infernal beast."
An old gunner wnth a gray beard — that I can see now —
with steady eye and grave face, went up to the gun and
took a long aim. A loud report was heard, with which
were mingled the cheers of the crew.
The bullet did its work ; it hit the animal, but not fatally,
and, sliding off the rounded surface was lost in two miles'
depth of sea.
The chase began again, and the captain, leaning toward
me, said :
" I will pursue that beast till my frigate bursts up."
" Yes," answered I ; " and you will be quite right to
do it." I hoped the beast would exhaust itself, and not
32 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
be insensible to fatigue, like a steam-engine ! But it was of
no use. Hours passed, without its showing any signs of
exhaustion.
However, it must be said in praise of the Abraham Lin-
coln, that she struggled on indefatigably. I cannot reckon
the distance she made under three hundred miles during
this unlucky day, November the 6th. But night came on,
and overshadowed the rough ocean.
Now I thought our expedition was at an end, and that
we should never again see the extraordinary animal. I was
mistaken. At ten minutes to eleven in the evening, the
electric light reappeared three miles to windward of the
frigate, as pure, as intense as during the preceding night.
The narwhal seemed motionless; perhaps, tired with its
day's work, it slept, letting itself float with the undulation
of the waves. Now was a chance of which the captain
resolved to take advantage.
He gave his orders. The Abraham Lincoln kept up
half -steam, and advanced cautiously so as not to awake its
adversary. It is no rare thing to meet in the middle of
the ocean whales so sound asleep that they can be success-
fully attacked, and Ned Land had harpooned more than
one during its sleep. The Canadian went to take his place
again under the bowsprit.
The frigate approached noiselessly, stopped at two cables'
length from the animal, and following its track. No one
breathed; a deep silence reigned on the bridge. We were
not a hundred feet from the burning focus, the light of
which increased and dazzled our eyes.
At this moment, leaning on the forecastle bulwark, I
saw below me Ned Land grappling the martingale in one
hand, brandishing his terrible harpoon in the other, scarcely
twenty feet from the motionless animal. Suddenly his arm
straightened, and the harpoon was thrown ; I heard the
sonorous stroke of the weapon, which seemed to have
struck a hard body. The electric light went out suddenly,
and two enormous waterspouts broke over the bridge of
the frigate, rushing like a torrent from stem to stern, over-
throwing men, and breaking the lashing of the spars. A
fearful shock followed, and, thrown over the rail without
having time to stop myself, I fell into the sea.
V. V Verne
CHAPTER VII
AN UNKNOWN SPECIES OF WHALE
This unexpected fall so stunned me that I have no clear
recollection of my sensations at the time. I was at first
drawn down to a depth of about twenty feet. I am a good
swimmer (though without pretending to rival Byron or
Edgar Pde, who were masters of the art), and in that
plunge I did not lose my presence of mind. Two vigorous
strokes brought me to the surface of the water. My first
care was to look for the frigate. Had the crew seen me
disappear? Had the ■Abrahajii Lincoln veered round?
Would the captain put out a boat? Might I hope to be
saved ?
The darkness was intense. I caught a glimpse of a black
mass disappearing in the east, its beacon-lights dying out
in the distance. It was the frigate ! I was lost.
"Help! help!" I shouted, swimming toward the Abra-
ham Lincoln in desperation. My clothes encumbered me;
they seemed glued to my body, and paralyzed my move-
ments. I was sinking! I was suffocating! "Help!"
This was my last cry. My mouth filled with water; I
struggled against being drawn down the abyss. Suddenly
my clothes were seized by a strong hand, and I felt myself
quickly drawn up to the surface of the sea; and I heard,
yes, I heard these words pronounced in my ear : " If mas-
ter would be so good as to lean on my shoulder, master
would swim with much greater ease."
I seized with one hand my faithful Conseil's arm.
"Is it you? "said I, "you?"
"Myself," answered Conseil; "and waiting master's
orders."
" That shock threw you as well as me into the sea? "
" No; but being in my master's service, I followed him."
The worthy fellow thought that was but natural.
" And the frigate? " I asked.
" The frigate ? " replied Conseil, turning on his back ;
" I think that master had better not count too much on
her."
"You think so?"
" I say that, at the time I threw myself into the sea, I
heard the men at the wheel say, * The screw and the rudder
are broken.' "
33
34 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
"Broken?"
" Yes, broken by the monster's teeth. It is the only-
injury the 'Abraham Lincoln has sustained. But it is a bad
lookout for us — she no longer answers her helm."
" Then we are lost ! "
*' Perhaps so," calmly answered Conseil. " However,
we have still several hours before us, and one can do a
good deal in some hours."
Conseil's imperturbable coolness set me up again. I
swam more vigorously ; but, cramped by my clothes, which
stuck to me like a leaden weight, I felt great difficulty in
bearing up. Conseil saw this.
" Will master let me make a slit ? " said he ; and slipping
an open knife under my clothes, he ripped them up from
top to bottom very rapidly. Then he cleverly slipped them
off me, while I swam for both of us. Then I did the
same for Conseil, and we continued to swim near to each
other.
Nevertheless, our situation was no less terrible. Perhaps
our disappearance had not been noticed; and if it had been,
the frigate could not tack, being without its helm. Con-
seil argued on this supposition, and laid his plans accord-
ingly. This phlegmatic boy was perfectly self-possessed.
We then decided that, as our only chance of safety was
being picked up by the Abraham Lincoln's boats, we ought
to manage so as to wait for them as long as possible. I
resolved then to husband our strength, so that both should
not be exhausted at the same time; and this is how we
managed: while one of us lay on his back, quite still, with
arms crossed, and legs stretched out, the other would swim
and push the other on in front. This towing business did
not last more than ten minutes each; and relieving each
other thus, we could swim on for some hours, perhaps till
dayl)reak. Poor chance ! but hope is so firmly rooted in
the heart of man! Moreover, there were two of us.
The collision of the frigate with the cetacean had oc-
curred about eleven o'clock the evening before. I reckoned
then we should have eight hours to swim before sunrise — •
an operation quite practicable if we relieved each other.
The sea, very calm, was in our favor. Sometimes T tried
to pierce the intense darkness that was only dispelled by
the phosphorescence caused by our movements. I watched
AN UNKNOWN SPECIES OF WHALE 35
the luminous waves that broke over my hand, whose mir-
ror-Hke surface was spotted with silvery rings. One
might have said that we were in a bath of quicksilver.
Near one o'clock in the morning, I was seized with dread-
ful fatigue. My limbs stiffened under the strain of violent
cramp. Conseil was obliged to keep me up, and our pres-
ervation devolved on him alone. I heard the poor boy
pant; his breathing became short and hurried. I found
that he could not keep up much longer.
" Leave me ! leave me ! " I said to him.
"Leave my master? never!" replied he. "I would
drown first."
Just then the moon appeared through the fringes of a
thick cloud that the wind was driving to the east. The sur-
face of the sea glittered with its rays. This kindly light
reanimated us. My head got better again. I looked at all
the points of the horizon. I saw the frigate! She was
five miles from us, and looked like a dark mass, hardly dis-
cernible. But no boats!
I would have cried out. But what good would it have
been at such a distance? My swollen lips could utter no
sounds. Conseil could articulate some words, and I heard
him repeat at intervals, " Help ! help ! "
Our movements were suspended for an instant; we
listened. It might be only a singing in the ear, but it seemed
to me as if a cry answered the cry from Conseil.
" Did you hear? " I murmured.
"Yes! yes!"
And Conseil gave one more despairing call.
This time there was no mistake! A human voice re-
sponded to ours! Was it the voice of another unfortunate
creature, abandoned in the middle of the ocean, some other
victim of the shock sustained by the vessel? Or rather was
It a boat from the frigate, that was hailing us in the dark-
ness? Conseil made a last effort, and leaning on my
shoulder, while I struck out in a despairing effort, he raised
himself half out of the water, then fell back exhausted.
"What did you see?"
*"I saw," murmured he — "I saw — but do not talk — re-
serve all your strength ! "
What had he seen? Then, I know not why, the thought
of the monster came into my head for the first time ! But
36 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
that voice? The time is past for Jonahs to take refuge in
whales' belhes ! However, Conseil was towing me again.
He raised his head sometimes, looked before us, and uttered
a cry of rcognition, which was responded to by a voice that
came nearer and nearer. I scarcely heard it. My strength
was exhausted; my fingers stiffened; my hand afforded me
support no longer; my mouth, convulsively opening, filled
with salt water. Cold crept over me. I raised my head
for the last time, then I sank.
At this moment a hard body struck me. I clung to it;
then I felt that I was being drawn up, that I was brought
to the surface of the water, that my chest collapsed: I
fainted.
It is certain that I soon came to, thanks to the vigorous
rubbings that I received. I half opened my eyes. " Con-
seil ! " I murmured.
" Does master call me? " asked Conseil.
Just then, by the waning light of the moon, which was
sinking down to the horizon, I saw a face which was not
Conseil's, and which I immediately recognized. *' Ned ! "
I cried.
"The same, sir, who is seeking his prize!" replied the
Canadian.
" Were you also thrown into the sea by the shock? "
"Yes, professor; but, more fortunate than you, I was
able to find footing almost directly on a floating island."
"An island?"
" Or, more correctly speaking, on our gigantic narwhal."
"Explain yourself, Ned!"
" Only I soon found out why my harpoon had not entered
its skin and was blunted."
"Why, Ned, why?"
" Because, professor, that beast is made of sheet-iron."
The Canadian's last words produced a sudden revolution
in my brain. I wriggled myself quickly to the top of the
being, or object, half out of the water, which served us for
a refuge. I kicked it. It was evidently a hard, impene-
trable body, and not the soft substance that forms the bodies
of the great marine mammalia. But this hard body might
be a bony carapace, like that of the antediluvian animals;
and I should be free to class this monster among amphibious
reptiles, such as tortoises or alligators.
AN UNKNOWN SPECIES OF WHALE 2>7
Well, no ! the blackish back that supported me was smooth,
polished, without scales. The blow produced a metallic
sound; and incredible though it may be, it seemed, I might
say, as if it was made of riveted plates.
There was no doubt about it! this monster, this natural
phenomenon that had puzzled the learned world, and over-
thrown and misled the imagination of seamen of both
hemispheres, was, it must be owned, a still more astonishing
phenomenon, inasmuch as it was a human construction.
We had however, no time to lose. We were lying upon
the back of a sort of submarine boat, which appeared like
a huge fish of steel. Ned Land's mind was made up on
this point. Conseil and I could only agree with him.
Just then a bubbling began at the back of this strange
thing (which was evidently propelled by a screw), and it
began to move. We had only just time to seize hold of the
upper part, which rose about seven feet out of the water,
and happily its speed was not great.
" As long as it sails horizontally," muttered Ned Land,
" I do not mind; but if it takes a fancy to dive, I would not
give two straws for my life."
The Canadian might have said still less. It became really
necessary to communicate with the beings, whatever they
were, shut up inside the machine. I searched all over the
outside for an aperture, a panel, or a man-hole, to use a
teclmical expression; but the lines of the iron rivets, solidly
driven into the joints of the iron plates, were clear and uni-
form. Besides, the moon disappeared then, and left us in
total darkness.
At last this long night passed. My indistinct remem-
brance prevents my describing all the impressions it made.
I can only recall one circumstance. During some lulls of
the wind and sea, I fancied I heard several times vague
sounds, a sort of fugitive harmony produced by distant
words of command. What was then the mystery of this
submarine craft of v/hlch the whole world vainl}^ sought an
explanation? What kind of beings existed in this strange
boat? W^hat mechanical agent caused its prodigious speed?
Daybreak appeared. The morning mists surrounded us,
but they soon cleared off. I was about to examine the hull,
which formed on deck a kind of horizontal platform, when
I felt it gradually sinking.
38 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
"Oh, confound it!" cried Ned Land, kicking the re-
sounding plate; " open, you inhospitable rascals! "
Happily the sinking movement ceased. Suddenly a
noise, like iron works violently pushed aside, came from the
interior of the boat. One iron plate was moved, a man
appeared, uttered an odd cry, and disappeared immediately.
Some moments after, eight strong men with masked faces
appeared noiselessly, and drew us down into their formid-
able machine.
CHAPTER Vni
MOBILIS IN MOBILI
This forcible abduction, so rougly carried out, was ac-
complished with the rapidity of lightning. I shivered all
over. Whom had we to deal with? No doubt some new
sort of pirates, who explored the sea in their own way.
Hardly had the narrow panel closed upon me, when I
was enveloped in darkness. My eyes, dazzled with the
outer light, could distinguish nothing. I felt .my naked
feet cling to the rings of an iron ladder. Ned Land and
Conseil, firmly seized, followed me. At the bottom of the
ladder, a door opened, and shut after us immediately with
a bang.
We were alone. Where, I could not say, hardly imagine.
All was black, and such a dense black that, after some min-
utes, my eyes had not been able to discern even the faintest
glimmer.
Meanwhile, Ned Land, furious at these proceedings, gave
free vent to his indignation.
"Confound it!" cried he, "here are people who come
up to the Scotch for hospitality. They only just miss being
cannibals. I should not be surprised at it, but I declare
that they shall not eat me without my protesting."
" Calm yourself, friend Ned, calm yourself," replied
Conseil quietly. " Do not cry out before you are hurt.
We are not quite done for yet."
" Not quite," sharply replied tlie Canadian, " but pretty
near, at all events. Things look black. Happily my bowie-
knife I have still, and I can always see well enough to use
it. The first of these pirates who lays a hand on me "
MOBILIS IN MOBILI 39
" Do not excite yourself, Ned," I said to the harpooner,
" and do not compromise us by useless violence. Who
knows that they will not listen to us?. Let us rather try
to find out where we are."
I groped about. In five steps I came to an iron wall,
made of plates bolted together. Then turning back I struck
against a wooden table, near which were ranged several
stools. The boards of this prison were concealed under a
thick mat of flax, which deadened the noise of the feet.
The bare walls revealed no trace of window or door. Con-
seil, going round the reverse way, met me, and we went
back to the middle of the cabin, which measured about,
twenty feet by ten. As to its height, Ned Land, in spite of
his own great height, could not measure it.
Half an hour had already passed wathout our situation
being bettered, when the dense darkness suddenly gave
way to extreme light. Our prison was suddenly lighted —
that is to say, it became filled with a luminous matter, so
strong that I could not bear it at first. In its whiteness
and intensity I recognized that electric light which played
round the submarine boat like a magnificent phenomenon
of phosphorescence. After shutting my eyes involuntarily,
I opened them and saw that this luminous agent came from
a half-globe, unpolished, placed In the roof of the cabin.
" At last one can see," cried Ned Land, who, knife in
hand, stood on the defensive.
"Yes," said I; "but we are still in the dark about our-
selves."
" Let master have patience," said the imperturbable Con-
sell.
The sudden lighting of the cabin enabled me to examine
it minutely. It only contained a table and five stools. The
invisible door might be hermetically sealed. No noise was
heard. All seemed dead In the interior of this boat. Did
it move, did it float on the surface of the ocean, or did it
dive into its depths ? I could not guess.
A noise of bolts was now heard, the door opened and two
men appeared.
One was short, very muscular, broad-shouldered, with
robust limbs, strong head, an abundance of black hair, thick
mustache, a quick, penetrating look, and the vivacity which
characterizes the population of Southern France.
40 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
The second stranger merits a more detailed description.
A disciple of Gratiolet or Engel would have read his face
like an open book. I made out his prevailing qualities
directly: self-confidence — because his head was well set on
his shoulders, and his black eyes looked around with cold
assurance; calmness — for his skin, rather pale, showed his
coolness of blood; energy — evinced by the rapid contrac-
tion of his lofty brows; and courage — because his deep
breathing denoted great power of lungs.
Whether this person was thirty-five or fifty years of age,
I could not say. He was tall, had a large forehead,
straight nose, a clearly cut mouth, beautiful teeth, with fine
taper hands, indicative of a highly nervous temperament.
This man was certainly the most admirable specimen I had
ever met. One particular feature was his eyes, rather far
from each other, so that they could take in nearly a quarter
of the horizon at once.
This faculty — I verified it later — gave him a range of
vision far superior to Ned Land's. When this stranger
fixed upon an object, his eyebrows met, his large eyelids
closed around so as to contract the range of his vision, and
he looked as if he magnified the objects lessened by dis-
tance, as if he pierced those sheets of water so opaque to
our eyes, and as if he read the very depths of the seas.
The two strangers, with caps made from the fur of the
sea otter and shod with sea boots of seals' skin, were dressed
in clothes of a particular texture, which allowed free move-
ment of the limbs. The taller of the two, evidently the
chief on board, examined us with great attention, without
saying a word; then turning to his companion, talked with
him in an unknown tongue. It was a sonorous, har-
monious, and flexible dialect, the vowels seeming to admit
of very varied accentuation.
The other replied by a shake of the head, and added two
or three perfectly incomprehensible words. Then he
seemed to question me by a look.
I replied in good French that I did not know his lan-
guage; but he seemed not to understand mc, and my situa-
tion became more embarrassing.
"If master were to tell our story," said Conseil, "per-
haps these gentlemen may understand some words."
I began to tell our adventures, articulating each syllable
MOBILIS IN MOBILI 41
clearly, and without omitting one single detail. I an-
nounced our names and rank, introducing in person Pro-
fessor Aronnax, his servant Conseil, and Master Ned Land,
the harpooner.
The man with the soft calm eyes listened to me quietly,
even politely, and with extreme attention; but nothing in
his countenance indicated that he had understood my story.
When I finished he said not a word.
There remained one resource, to speak English. Perhaps
they would know this almost universal language. I knew
it, as well as the German language — well enough to read it
fluently, but not to speak it correctly. But anyhow we
must make ourselves understood.
" Go on in your turn," I said to the harpooner; " speak
your best Anglo-Saxon, and try to do better than I."
Ned did not beg off, and recommenced our story.
To his great disgust, the harpooner did not seem to have
made himself more intelligible than I had. Our visitors
did not stir. They evidently understood neither the lan-
guage of Arago nor of Faraday.
Very much embarrassed, after having vainly exhausted
our philological resources, I knew not what part to take,
when Conseil said :
"If master will permit me, I will relate it in German."
But in spite of the elegant turns and good accent of the
narrator, the German language had no success. At last,
nonplussed, I tried to remember my first lessons, and to
narrate our adventures in Latin, but with no better suc-
cess. This last attempt being of no avail, the two strangers
exchanged some words in their unknown language and re-
tired. The door shut.
" It is an infamous shame," cried Ned Land, who broke
out for the twentieth time; "we speak to those rogues in
French, English, German, and Latin, and not one of them
has the politeness to answer! "
"Calm yourself," I said to the impetuous Ned, "anger
will do no good."
" But do you see, professor," replied our irascible com-
panion, " that we shall absolutely die of hunger in this iron
cage? "
"Bah," said Conseil philosophically; "we can hold out
some time yet."
42 TWENTY, THOUSAND LEAGUES
" My friends," I said, *' we must not despair. We have
been worse off than this. Do me the favor to wait a little
before forming an opinion upon the commander and crew
of this boat."
" My opinion is formed," replied Ned Land sharply.
" They are rascals."
"Good! and from what country?"
" From the land of rogues ! "
" My brave Ned, that country is not clearly indicated on
the map of the world; but I admit that the nationality of
the two strangers is hard to determine. Neither English,
French, nor German, that is quite certain. However, I am
inclined to think that the commander and his companion
■were born in low latitudes. There is southern blood
in them; but I cannot decide by their appearance
■whether they are Spaniards, Turks, Arabians, or Indians.
As to their language, it is quite incomprehensible."
"There is the disadvantage of not knowing all lan-
guages," said Conseil, " or the disadvantage of not having
one universal language."
As he said these words, the door opened. A steward en-
tered. He brought us clothes, coats and trousers, made
of a stuff I did not know. I hastened to dress myself, and
my companions followed my example. During that time,
the steward — dumb, perhaps deaf — had arranged the table,
and laid three plates.
" This is something like," said Conseil.
" Bah," said the rancorous harpooner, " what do you
suppose they eat here? Tortoise liver, filleted shark, and
beefsteaks from sea dogs."
" We shall see," said Conseil.
The dishes, of bell metal, were placed on the table, and
•we took our places. Undoubtedly we had to do with civi-
lized people, and had it not been for the electric light which
flooded us, I could have fancied I was in the dining room
of the Adelphi Hotel at Liverpool, or at the Grand Hotel
in Paris. I must say, however, that there was neither bread
nor wine. The water was fresh and clear, but it v/as water,
and did not suit Ned Land's taste. Among the dishes
which were brought to us, I recognized several fish delicately
dressed; but of some, although excellent, I could give no
opinion, neither could I tell to what kingdom they belonged.
MOBILIS IN MOBILI 43
whether animal or vegetable. As to the dinner service, it
was elegant, and in perfect taste. Each utensil, spoon, fork,
knife, plate, had a letter engraved on it, with a motto above
it.
MOBILIS IN MOBILI,
N.
The letter N was no doubt the initial of the name of the
enigmatical person who commanded at the bottom of the
seas.
Ned and Conseil did not reflect much. They devoured
the food, and I did likewise. I was, besides, reassured as
to our fate; and it seemed evident that our hosts would
not let us die of want.
However, everything has an end, everything passes away,
even the hunger of people who have not eaten for fifteen
hours. Our appetites satisfied, we felt overcome w'ith
sleep.
" Faith ! I shall sleep well," said Conseil.
" So shall I," replied Ned Land.
My two companions stretched themselves on the cabin
carpet, and were soon sound asleep. For my own part,
too many thoughts crowded my brain, too many insoluble
questions pressed upon me, too many fancies kept my eyes
half open. Where were we? What strange power carried
us on ? I felt — or rather fancied I felt — the machine sink-
ing down to the lowest beds of the sea. Dreadful night-
mares beset me ; I saw in these mysterious asylums a world
of unknown animals, among which this submarine boat
seemed to be of the same kind, living, moving, and formid-
able as they. Then my brain grew calmer, my imagina-
tion wandered into vague unconsciousness, and I soon fell
into a deep sleep.
CHAPTER IX
NED land's tempers
How long we slept I do not know; but our sleep must
have lasted long, for it rested us completely from our
fatigues. I woke first. My companions had not moved,
and were still stretched in their corner.
Hardly roused from my somewhat hard couch, I felt my
44 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
brain freed, my mind clear. I then began an attentive ex-
amination of our cell. Nothing was changed inside. The
prison was still a prison; the prisoners, prisoners. How-
ever, the steward, during our sleep, had cleared the table.
I breathed with difficulty. The heavy air seemed to op-
press my lungs. Although the cell was large, we had evi-
dently consumed a great part of the oxygen that it con-
tained. Indeed, each man consumes, in one hour, the
oxygen contained in more than 176 pints of air, and this air,
charged (as then) with a nearly equal quantity of carbonic
acid, becomes unbreathable.
It became necessary to renew the atmosphere of our
prison, and no doubt the whole in the submarine boat.
That gave rise to a question in my mind. How would the
commander of this floating dwelling-place proceed? Would
he obtain air by chemical means, in getting by heat the
oxygen contained in chlorate of potash, and in absorbing
carbonic acid by caustic potash? Or, a more convenient,
economical, and consequently more probable alternative,
would he be satisfied to rise and take breath at the surface
of the water, like a cetacean, and so renew for twenty-four
hours the atmospheric provision?
In fact, I was already obliged to increase my respirations
to eke out of this cell the little oxygen it contained, when
suddenly I was refreshed by a current of pure air, and per-
fumed with saline emanations. It was an invigorating sea-
breeze, charged with iodine. I opened my mouth wide,
and my lungs thoroughly saturated themselves with fresh
particles.
At the same time I felt the boat rolling. The iron-plated
monster had evidently just risen to the surface of the ocean
to breathe, after the fashion of whales. I found out from
that the mode of ventilating the boat.
When I had inhaled this air freely, I sought the conduit-
pipe which conveyed to us the beneficial whiff, and I was
not long in finding it. Above the door was a ventilator,
through which volumes of fresh air renewed the impover-
ished atmosphere of the cell.
I was making my observations, when Ned and Conseil
awoke almost at the same time, under the inllucnce of this
reviving air. They rubbed their eyes, stretched themselves,
and were on their feet in an instant.
a
NED LAND'S TEMPER 45
" Did master sleep well ? " asked Conseil, with his usual
politeness.
" Very well, my brave boy. 'And you, j\Ir. Land? "
" Soundly, professor. But I don't know if I am right or
not; there seems to be a sea-breeze! "
A seaman could not be mistaken, and I told the Canadian
all that had passed during his sleep.
"Good!" said he; "that accounts for those roarings
we heard when the supposed narwhal sighted the Abraiiam
Lincoln."
" Quite so. Master Land ; it was taking breath."
" Only, M. Aronnax, I have no idea what o'clock it is,
unless it is dinner-time."
"Dinner-time! my good fellow? Say rather breakfast-
time, for we certainly have begun another day."
So," said Conseil, " we have slept twenty-four hours? "
That is my opinion."
" I will not contradict you," replied Ned Land. " But
dinner or breakfast, the steward will be welcome, whichever
he brings."
" Master Land, we must conform to the rules on board,
and I suppose our appetites are in advance of the dinner-
hour."
" That is just like you, friend Conseil," said Ned im-
patiently. "You are never out of temper, always calm;
you would return thanks before grace, and die of hunger
rather than complain ! "
Time was getting on, and we were fearfully hungry;
and this time the steward did not appear. It was rather
too long to leave us, if they really had good intentions to-
ward us. Ned Land, tormented by the cravings of hunger,
got still more angry; and notwithstanding his promise, I
dreaded an explosion when he found himself with one of
the crew.
For two hours more, Ned Land's temper increased; he
cried, he shouted, but in vain. The walls were deaf.
There was no sound to be heard in the boat ; all was still as
death. It did not move, for I should have felt the trem-
bling motion of the hull under the influence of the screw.
Plunged in the depths of the waters, it belonged no longer
to earth — this silence was dreadful.
I felt terrified, Conseil was calm, Ned Land roared.
46 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
Just then a noise was heard outside. Steps sounded on
the metal flags. The locks were turned, the door opened,
and the steward appeared.
Before I could rush forward to stop him, the Canadian
had thrown him down, and held him by the throat. The
steward was choking under his powerful hand.
Conseil was already trying to unclasp the harpooner's
hand from his half-suffocated victim, and I was going to
fly to the rescue, when suddenly I was nailed to the spot by
hearing these words in French :
"Be quiet. Master Land; and you, professor, will you
be so good as to listen to me?"
CHAPTER X
THE MAN OF THE SEAS
Lr was the commander of the vessel who thus spoke.
At these words, Ned Land rose suddenly. The steward,
nearly strangled, tottered out on a sign from his master;
but such was the power of the commander on board, that
not a gesture betrayed the resentment which this man
must have felt toward the Canadian. Conseil interested
in spite of himself, I stupefied, awaited in silence the result
of this scene.
The commander, leaning against a corner of the table
with his arms folded, scanned us with profound attention.
Did he hesitate to speak? Did he regret the words which
he had just spoken in French? One might almost think so.
After some moments of silence, which not one of us
dreamed of breaking, " Gentlemen," said he, in a calm and
penetrating voice, *' I speak French, English, German, and
Latin equally well. I could, therefore, have answered you
at our first interview, but I wished to know you first, then
to reflect. The story told by each one, entirely agreeing in
the main points, convinced me of your identity. I know
now tliat chance has brought before me M, Pierre Aronnax,
Professor of Natural History at the Museum of Paris, in-
trusted with a scientific mission abroad; Conseil, his ser-
vant; and Ned Land, of Canadian origin, harpooner on
board the frigate Abraham Lincoln of the navy of the
United States of America."
THE LIAN OF THE SEAS 47
I bowed assent. It was not a question that the com-
mander put to me. Therefore there was no answer to be
made. This man expressed himself with perfect ease,
without an}'- accent. His sentences were well turned, his
words clear, and his fluency of speech remarkable. Yet
I did not recognize in him a fellow-countryman.
" You have doubtless thought, sir, that I have delayed
long in paying you this second visit. The reason is that,
your identity recognized, I wished to weigh maturely what
part to act toward you. I have hesitated much. Most an-
noying circumstances have brought you into the presence
of a man who has broken all the ties of humanity. You
have come to trouble my existence."
" Unintentionally ! " said I.
"Unintentionally?" replied the stranger, raising his
voice a Httle; "was it unintentionally that the Abraham
Lincoln pursued me all over the seas? Was it unintention-
ally that you took passage in this frigate? Was it unin-
tentionally that your cannon-balls rebounded off the plating
of my vessel? Was it unintentionally that Mr. Ned Land
struck me with his harpoon?"
I detected a restrained irritation in these words. But to
these recriminations I had a very natural answer to make,
and I made it.
" Sir," said I, " no doubt you are ignorant of the dis-
cussions which have taken place concerning you in Amer-
ica and Europe. You do not know that divers accidents,
caused by collisions with your submarine machine, have
excited public feeling in the two continents. I omit the
hypotheses without number by which it was sought to ex-
plain the inexplicable phenomenon of which you alone
possess the secret. But you must understand that, in pur-
suing you over the high seas of the Pacific, the Abraham
Lincoln believed itself to be chasing some powerful sea-
monster, of which it was necessary to rid the ocean at any
price."
A half-smile curled the lips of the commander: then, in
a calmer tone, " M. Aronnax," he replied, " dare you affirm
that your frigate would not as soon have pursued and can-
nonaded a submarine boat as a monster? "
This question embarrassed me, for certainly Captain
Farragut might not have hesitated. He might have
48 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
thought it his duty to destroy a contrivance of this kind,
as he would a gigantic narwhal.
" You understand then, sir," continued the stranger,
" that I have the right to treat you as enemies? "
I answered nothing, purposely. For what good would
it be to discuss such a proposition, when force could destroy
the best arguments?
" I have hesitated for some time," continued the com-
mander; '' nothing obliged me to show you hospitality. If
I chose to separate myself from you, I should have no
interest in seeing you again; I could place you upon the
deck of this vessel which has served you as a refuge, I could
sink beneath the waters, and forget that you had ever ex-
isted. Would not that be my right? "
" It might be the right of a savage," I answered, " but
not that of a civilized man."
" Professor," replied the commander quickly, " I am not
what you call a civilized man ! I have done with society
entirely, for reasons which I alone have the right of ap-
preciating. I do not therefore obey its laws, and I desire
you never to allude to them before me again! "
This was said plainly. A flash of anger and disdain
kindled in the eyes of the Unknown, and I had a glimpse
of a terrible past in the life of this man. Not only had
he put himself beyond the pale of human laws, but he had
made himself independent of them, free in the strictest
acceptation of the word, quite beyond their reach! Who
then would dare to pursue him at the bottom of the sea,
when, on its surface, he defied all attempts made against
him? What vessel could resist the shock of his submarine
monitor? What cuirass, however thick, could withstand
the blows of his spur? No man could demand from him
an account of his actions; God, if he believed in one — his
conscience, if he had one — were the sole judges to whom
he was answerable.
These reflections crossed my mind rapidly, while the
strange personage was silent, absorbed, and as if wrapped
up in himself. I regarded him with fear mingled with in-
terest, as, doubtless, OCdipus regarded the Sphinx.
After a silence, the commander resumed the conversation.
" I have hesitated," said he, " but I have thought that my
interest might be reconciled with that pity to which every
V. V Verne
THE MAN OF THE SEAS 49
human baing has a right. You will remain on board my
vessel, since fate has cast you there. You will be free ; and
in exchange for this liberty, I shall only impose one single
condition. Your word of honor to submit to it will
sufiice."
"Speak, sir," I answered. "I suppose this condition is
one which a man of honor may accept? "
"Yes, sir; it is this. It is possible that certain events,
unforeseen, may oblige me to consign you to your cabins for
some hours or some days, as the case may be. As I desire
never to use violence, I expect from you, more than all the
others, a passive obedience. In thus acting, I take all the
responsibility: I acquit you entirely, for I make it an im-
possibility for you to see what ought not to be seen. Do
you accept this condition? "
Then things took place on board which, to say the least,
were singular, and which ought not to be seen by people
who were not placed beyond the pale of social lavv'S.
Among the surprises which the future was preparing for
me, this might not be the least.
" We accept," I answered; " only I will ask your permis-
sion, sir, to address one question to you — one only."
" Speak, sir,"
*' You said that we should be free on board."
" Entirely."
" I ask you, then, what you mean by this liberty? "
" Just the liberty to go, to come, to see, to observe even
all that passes here — save under rare circumstances — the
liberty, in short, which we enjov ourselves, my companions
and I."
It was evident that we did not understand one another.
" Pardon me, sir," I resumed, " but this liberty is only
what every prisoner has of pacing his prison. It can not
suffice us."
" It must suffice you, however."
" What ! we must renounce forever seeing our country,
our friends, our relations again? "
" Yes, sir. But to renounce that unendurable worldly
yoke which men believe to be liberty is not perhaps so pain-
ful as you think."
" Well," exclaimed Ned Land, " never will I give my
word of honor not to try to escape."
50 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" I did not ask you for your word of honor, Master
Land," answered the commander coldly.
" Sir," I replied, beginning to get angry in spite of my-
self, "you abuse your situation toward us; it is cruelty to
demand this."
" No, sir, it is clemency. You are my prisoners of war.
I keep you, when I could, by a word, plunge you into the
depths of the ocean. You attacked me. You came to sur-
prise a secret which no man in the world must penetrate —
the secret of my whole existence. And you think that I
am going to send you back to that world w^hich must know
me no more? Never! In retaining you, it is not you
>\'hom I guard — it is myself."
These words indicated a resolution taken on the part of
the commander, against which no arguments would prevail.
" So, sir," I rejoined, " you give us simply the choice be-
tween life and death? "
" Simply."
" My friends," said I, " to a question thus put, there is
nothing to answer. But no word of honor binds us to the
master of this vessel."
" None, sir," answered the Unknown.
Then, in a gentler tone, he continued : " Now, permit me
to finish what I have to say to you. I know you, M.
Aronnax. You and your companions will not, perhaps,
have so much to complain of in the chance which has bound
you to my fate. You will find among the books which are
my favorite study the work which you have published on
* the depths of the sea.' I have often read it. You have
carried your work as far as terrestrial science permitted
you. But you do not know all — you have not seen all.
Let me tell you then, professor, that you will not regret the
time passed on board my vessel. You are going to visit the
land of marvels."
These words of the commander had a great effect upon
me. I cannot deny it. My weak point was touched ; and
I forgot, for a moment, that the contemplation of these
sublime subjects was not worth the loss of liberty. Besides.
I trusted to the future to decide this grave question. So I
contented myself with saying, " By what name ought I to
address you? "
" Sir," replied the commander, " I am nothing to you
THE MAN OF THE SEAS 51
but Captain Nemo ; and you and your companions are noth-
ing to me but the passengers of the Nautilus."
Captain Nemo called. A steward appeared. The
captain gave him his orders in that strange language which
I did not understand. Then, turning toward the Cana-
dian and Conseil, '' A repast awaits you in your cabin,"
said he. " Be so good as to follow this man. And now,
M. Aronnax, our breakfast is ready. Permit me to lead the
way."
" I am at your service, captain."
I followed Captain Nemo; and as soon as I had passed
through the door, I found myself in a kind of passage
lighted by electricity, similar to the waist of a ship. After
we had proceeded a dozen yards, a second door opened be-
fore me.
I then entered a dining-room, decorated and furnished
in severe taste. High oaken sideboards, inlaid with ebony,
stood at the two extremities of the room, and upon their
shelves glittered china, porcelain, and glass of inestimable
value.
The plate on the table sparkled in the rays which the
luminous ceiling shed around, while the light was tempered
and softened by exquisite paintings.
In the center of the room was a table richly laid out.
Captain Nemo indicated the place I was to occupy.
The breakfast consisted of a certain number of dishes,
the contents of which were furnished by the sea alone; and
I w^as ignorant of the nature and mode of preparation of
some of them. I acknowledged that they were good though
they had a peculiar flavor, which I easily became accustomed
to. These different aliments appeared to me to be rich in
phosphorus, and I thought that they must have a marine
origin.
Captain Nemo looked at me. I asked him no questions,
but he guessed my thoughts, and answered of his own ac-
cord the questions w^hich I was burning to address to him.
" The greater part of these dishes are unknown to you,"
he said to me. " However, you may partake of them with-
out fear. They are wholesome and nourishing. For a
long time I have renounced the food of the earth, and I
am never ill now. My crew, who are healthy, are fed on
the same food."
52 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" So," said I, " all these eatables are the produce of the
sea ? "
" Yes, professor, the sea supplies all my wants. Some-
times I cast my nets in tow, and I draw them in ready to
break. Sometimes I hunt in the midst of this element,
which appears to be inaccessible to man, and quarry the
game which dwells in my submarine forests. My flocks,
like those of Neptune's old shepherds, graze fearlessly in
the immense prairies of the ocean. I have a vast property
there, which I cultivate myself, and which is always sown
by the hand of the Creator of all things."
" I can understand perfectly, sir, that your nets furnish
excellent fish for your table; I can understand also that
you hunt aquatic game in your submarine forests; but I
cannot understand at all how a particle of meat, no matter
how small, can figure in your bill of fare."
" This, which you believe to be meat, professor, is noth-
ing else than fillet of turtle. Here are also some dolphin's
livers, which you take to be ragout of pork. My cook is
a clever fellow, who excels in dressing these various pro-
ducts of the ocean. Taste all these dishes. Here is a pre-
serve of holothuria, which a Malay would declare to be
unrivaled in the world; here is a cream, of which the milk
has been furnished by the cetacea, and the sugar by the
great fucus of the North Sea; and lastly, permit me to offer
you some preserve of anemones, which is equal to that of
the most delicious fruits."
I tasted, more from curiosity than as a connoisseur, while
Captain Nemo enchanted me with his extraordinary stories.
" You like the sea, Captain? "
" Yes, I love it ! The sea is everything. It covers
seven-tenths of the terrestrial globe. Its breath is pure
and healthy. It is an immense desert, where man is never
lonely, for he feels life stirring on all sides. The sea is
only the embodiment of a supernatural and wonderful ex-
istence. It is nothing but love and emotion; it is the ' Liv-
ing Infinite,' as one of your poets has said. In fact, pro-
fessor, Nature manifests herself in it by her three king-
doms, mineral, vegetable, and animal. The sea is the vast
reservoir of Nature. The globe began with sea, so to
speak; and who knows if it will not end with it? In it is
supreme tranquillity. The sea does not belong to despots.
THE MAN OF THE SEAS 53
Upon its surface men can still exercise unjust laws, fight,
tear one another to pieces, and be carried away with terres-
trial horrors. But at thirty feet below its level, their reign
ceases, their influence is quenched, and their power disap-
pears. Ah! sir, live — live in the bosom of the waters!
There only is independence ! There I recognize no masters !
There I am free ! "
Captain Nemo suddenly became silent in the midst of
this enthusiasm, by which he was quite carried away. For
a few moments he paced up and down, much agitated.
Then he became more calm, regained his accustomed cold-
ness of expression, and turning toward me, " Now, pro-
fessor," said he, " if you wish to go over the Nautilus, I
am at your service."
Captain Nemo rose. I followed him. A double door,
contrived at the back of the dining-room, opened, and I en-
tered a room equal in dimensions to that which I had just
quitted.
It was a library. High pieces of furniture, of black
violet ebony inlaid with brass, supported upon their wide
shelves a great number of books uniformly bound. They
followed the shape of the room, terminating at the lower
part in huge divans, covered with brown leather, which were
curved, to afford the greatest comfort. Light movable
desks, made to slide in and out at will, allowed one to rest
one's book while reading. In the center stood an immense
table, covered with pamphlets, among which were some
newspapers, already of old date. The electric light flooded
everything; it was shed from four unpolished globes half
sunk in the volutes of the ceiling. I looked with real ad-
miration at this room, so ingeniously fitted up, and I could
scarcely believe my eyes.
" Captain Nemo," said I to my host, who had just thrown
himself on one of the divans, " this is a library v^-hich would
do honor to more than one of the continental palaces, and
I am absolutely astounded when I consider that it can fol-
low you to the bottom of the seas."
" Where could one find greater solitude or silence, pro-
fessor?" replied Captain Nemo. "Did your study in the
Museum afford you such perfect quiet?"
'* No, sir; and I must confess that it is a very poor one
after vours. You must have six or seven thousand volumes."
54 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" Twelve thousand, M. Aronnax. These are the only
ties which bind me to the earth. But I had done with the
world on the day when my Nautilus plunged for the first
time beneath the Avaters. That day I bought my last
volumes, my last pamphlets, my last papers, and from that
time I wish to think that men no longer think or write.
These books, professor, are at your service besides, and
you can make use of them freely."
I thanked Captain Nemo, and went up to the shelves of
the library. Works on science, morals, and literature
abounded in every language; but I did not see one single
work on political economy; that subject appeared to be
strictly proscribed. Strange to say, all these books were
irregularly arranged, in whatever language they were writ-
ten; and this medley proved that the captain of the Nautilus
must have read indiscriminately the books which he took up
by chance.
" Sir," said I to the captain, " I thank you for having
placed this library at my disposal. It contains treasures
of science, and I shall profit by them."
" This room is not only a library," said Captain Nemo,
" it is also a smoking-room."
" A smoking-room ! " I cried. " Then one may smoke
on board? "
" Certainly."
" Then sir, I am forced to believe that you have kept up
a communication with Havana."
" Not any," answered the captain. " Accept this cigar,
M. Aronnax; and though it does not come from Havana,
you will be pleased with it, if you are a connoisseur."
I took the cigar which was offered me; its shape recalled
the London ones, but it seemed to be made of leaves of
gold. I lighted it at a little brazier, which was sujiported
upon an elegant bronze stem, and drew the first whiffs with
the delight of a lover of smoking who has not smoked for
two days.
" It is excellent," said I, " but it is not tobacco."
"No!" answered the captain, "this tobacco comes
neither from Havana nor from the East. It is a kind of
seaweed, rich in nicotine, with which the sea provides me,
but somewhat sparingly."
At that moment Captain Nemo opened a door which
THE MAN OF THE SEAS 55
stood opposite to that by which I had entered the library,
and I passed into an immense drawing-room splendidly
lighted.
It was a vast four-sided room, thirty feet long, eighteen
wide, and fifteen high. A luminous ceiling, decorated with
light arabesques, shed a soft clear light over all the marvels
accumulated in this museum. For it was in fact a museum,
in which an intelligent and prodigal hand had gathered all
the treasures of nature and art, with the artistic confusion
which distinguishes a painter's studio. Thirty first-rate
pictures, uniformly framed, separated by bright drapery,
ornamented the walls, which were hung with tapestry of
severe design. I saw works of great value, the greater part
of which I had admired in the special collections of Europe,
and in the exhibitions of paintings. The several schools
of the old masters were represented by a Madonna of
Raphael, a Virgin of Leonardo da Vinci, a nymph of Cor-
reggio, a woman of Titian, an Adoration of V^eronese, an
Assumption of Murillo, a portrait of Holbein, a monk of
Velasquez, a martyr of Ribeira, a fair of Rubens, two
Flemish landscapes of Teniers, three little "'genre" pic-
tures of Gerard Dow, Metsu, and Paul Potter, two speci-
mens of Gericault and Prudhon, and some sea-pieces of
Backhuysen and Vernet. Among the works of modern
painters were pictures with the signatures of Delacroix,
Ingres, Decamp, Troyon, Meissonnier, Daubigny, etc. ; and
some admirable statues in marble and bronze, after the
finest antique models, stood upon pedestals in the corners of
this magnificent museum. Amazement, as the captain of
the Nautilus had predicted, had already begun to take pos-
session of me.
" Professor," said this strange man, " you must excuse
the unceremonious way in which I receive you, and the dis-
order of this room."
" Sir," I answered, " without seeking to know who you
are, I recognize in you an artist."
" An amateur, nothing more, sir. Formerly I loved to
collect these beautiful works created by the hand of men.
I sought them greedily and ferreted them out indefati-
gably, and I have been able to bring together some objects
of great value. These are my last souvenirs of that world
which is dead to me. In my eyes, your modern artists are
56 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
already old; they have two or three thousand years of ex-
istence; I confound them in my own mind. Masters have
no age."
" And these musicians? " said I, pointing out some works
of Weber, Rossini, Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn, Meyerbeer,
Herold, Wagner, Auber, Gounod, and a number of others
scattered over a large model piano organ which occupied
one of the panels of the drawing-room.
" These musicians," replied Captain Nemo, " are the
contemporaries of Orpheus; for in the memory of the dead
all chronological differences arc effaced; and I am dead,
professor; as much dead as those of your friends who are
sleeping six feet under the earth ! "
Captain Nemo was silent, and seemed lost in a profound
reverie. I contemplated him with deep interest, analyzing
in silence the strange expression of his countenance. Lean-
ing on his elbow against an angle of a costly mosaic table,
he no longer saw me — he had forgotten my presence.
I did not disturb this reverie, and continued my observa-
tion of the curiosities which enriched this drawing-room.
Under elegant glass cases, fixed by copper rivets, were
classed and labeled the most precious productions of the
sea which had ever been presented to the eye of a naturalist.
My delight as a professor may be conceived.
Apart, in separate compartments, were spread out chap-
lets of pearls of the greatest beauty, which reflected the elec-
tric light in little sparks of fire; pink pearls, torn from the
pinna-marina of the Red Sea; green pearls of the haliotyde
iris; yellow, blue, and black pearls, the curious productions
of the divers mollusks of every ocean, and certain mussels
of the watercourses of the North; lastly, several specimens
of inestimable value which had been gathered from the
rarest pintadines. Some of these pearls were larger than a
pigeon's tgg, and were worth as much, and more than that
which the traveler Tavernier sold to the Shah of Persia for
three millions, and surpassed the one in the possession of
the Imaum of Muscat, which I had believed to be unrivaled
in the world.
Therefore, to estimate the value of this collection was
simply impossible. Captain Nemo must have expended mil-
lions in the acquirement of these various specimens, and I
was thinking what source he could have drawn from, to
THE MAN OF THE SEAS 57
have been able thus to gratify his fancy for collecting, when
I was interrupted by these words :
" You are examining my shells, professor? Unquestion-
ably they must be interesting to a naturalist; but for me
they have a far greater charm, for I have collected them
all with my own hand, and there is not a sea on the face
of the globe which has escaped my researches."
" I can understand, captain, the delight of wandering
about in the midst of such riches. You are one of those
who have collected their treasures themselves. No museum
in Europe possesses such a collection of the produce of
the ocean. But if I exhaust all my admiration upon it, I
shall have none left for the vessel which carries it. I do
not wish to pry into your secrets; but I must confess that
this Nautilus, with the motive power which is confined in
it, the contrivances which enable it to be worked, the
powerful agent which propels it, all excite my curiosity to
the highest pitch. I see suspended on the walls of this
room instruments of whose use I am ignorant."
" You will find these same instruments in my own room,
professor, where I shall have much pleasure in explaining
their use to you. But first come and inspect the cabin
which is set apart for your own use. You must see how
you will be accommodated on board the N'autilus."
I followed Captain Nemo, who, by one of the doors
opening from each panel of tiie drawing-room, regained the
waist. He conducted me toward the bow, and there I found,
not a cabin, but an elegant room, with a bed, dressing-table,
and several other pieces of furniture.
I could only thank my host.
" Your room adjoins mine," said he, opening a door,
" and mine opens into the drawing-room that we have just
quitted."
I entered the captain's room; it had a severe, almost a
monkish, aspect. A small iron bedstead, a table, some
articles for the toilet; the whole lighted by a skylight. No
comforts, the strictest necessaries only.
Captain Nemo pointed to a seat. " Be so good as to sit
down," he said. I seated myself, and he began thus :
CHAPTER XI
ALL BY ELECTRICITY.
" Sir," said Captain Nemo, showing me the instruments
hanging on the walls of his room, " here are the contrivances
required for the navigation of the Nautilus. Here, as in
the drawing-room, I have them always under my eyes, and
they indicate my position and exact direction in the middle
of the ocean. Some are known to you, such as the ther-
mometer, which gives the internal temperature of the
Nautilus; the baromter, which indicates the weight of the
air and foretells the changes of the weather; the hygrome-
ter, w"hich marks the dryness of the atmosphere; the storm-
glass, the contents of which, by decomposing, announce the
approach of tempests; the compass, which guides my
course ; the sextant, which shows the latitude by the altitude
of the sun; chronometers, by which I calculate the longi-
tude; and glasses for day and night, which I use to examine
the points of the horizon when the Nautilus rises to the sur-
face of the waves."
" These are the usual nautical instruments," I replied,
" and I know the use of them. But these others, no doubt,
answer to the particular requirements of the Nautilus.
This dial with the movable needle is a manometer, is it
not?"
" It is actually a manometer. But by communication
wnth the water, whose external pressure it indicates, it gives
our depth at the same time."
" And these other instruments, the use of which I can
not guess? "
" Here, professor, I ought to give you some explana-
tions. Will you be kind enough to listen to me?" He
was silent for a few moments, then he said : " There is a
powerful agent, obedient, rapid, easy, which conforms to
every use, and reigns supreme on board my vessel. Every-
thing is done by means of it. It lights it, warms it, and is
the soul of my mechanical apparatus. This agent is elec-
tricity."
" Electricity? " I cried in surprise.
" Yes, sir."
" Nevertheless, captain, you possess an extreme rapidity
of movement, which does not agree well with the power of
electricity. Until now its dynamic force has remained un-
58
ALL BY ELFXTRICITY 59
der restraint, and has only been able to produce a small
amount of power."
" Professor," said Captain Nemo, " my electricity is not
everybody's. You know what sea-water is composed of.
In a thousand grams are found ninety-six and a half per
cent, of water, and about two and two-thirds per cent, of
chloride of sodium; then, in a smaller quantity, chlorides
of magnesium and of potassium, bromide of magnesium,
sulphate of magnesia, sulphate and carbonate of lime. You
see, then, that chloride of sodium forms a large part of it
So it is this sodium that I extract from sea-water, and of
-which I compose my ingredients. I owe all to the ocean;
it produces electricity, and electricity gives heat, light, mo-
tion, and, in a word, life to the Nautilus."
" But not the air you breathe? "
" Oh, I could manufacture the air necessary for my con-
sumption, but it is useless, because I go up to the surface
of the water when I please. However, if electricity does
not furnish me with air to breathe, it w^orks at least the
powerful pumps that are stored in spacious reservoirs, and
which enable me to prolong at need, and as long as I will,
my stay in the depths of the sea. It gives a uniform and
unintermittent light, which the sun does not. Now look
at this clock ; it is electrical, and goes w' ith a regularity that
defies the best chronometers. I have divided it into twenty-
four hours, like the Italian clocks, because for me there is
neither night nor day, sun nor moon, but only that facti-
tious light that I take with me to the bottom of the sea.
Look! just now, it is ten o'clock in the morning."
" Exactly."
"Another application of electricity. This dial hanging
in front of us, indicates the speed of the Nautilus. An
electric thread puts it in communication with the screw,
and the needle indicates the real speed. Look! now we
are spinning along with a uniform speed of fifteen miles
an hour."
*' It is marvelous ! and I see, captain, you were right to
make use of this agent that takes the place of wind, water,
and steam."
" We have not finished, M. Aronnax," said Captain
Nemo, rising; " if you will follow me, we will examine the
stern of the Nautilus."
6o TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
Really, I knew already the front part of this submarine
boat, of which this is the exact division, starting from the
ship's waist: the dining-room, five yards long, separated
from the library by a water-tight partition ; the library, five
yards long; the large drawing-room, ten yards long, separ-
ated from the captain's room by a second water-tight par-
tition; the said room, five yards in length; mine, two and
half yards; and lastly, a reservoir of air, seven and a half
yards, that extended to the bows. Total length thirty-five
yards, or one hundred and five feet. The partitions had
doors that were shut hermetically by means of india-rubber
instruments, and they insured the safety of the Nautilus in
case of a leak.
I followed Captain Nemo through the waist, and arrived
at the center of the boat. There was a sort of well tliat
opened between two partitions. An iron ladder, fastened
with an iron hook to the partition, led to the upper end. I
asked the captain what the ladder was used for.
" It leads to the small boat," he said.
"What! have you a boat?" I exclaimed in surprise.
"Of course; an excellent vessel, light and insubmersiblc,
that serves either as a fishing or as a pleasure boat."
" But then, when you wish to embark, you are obliged to
come to the surface of the water? "
" Not at all. This boat is attached to the upper part of
the hull of the Nautilus, and occupies a cavity made for it.
It is decked, quite water-tight, and held together by solid
bolts. This ladder leads to a man-hole made in the hull of
the Nautilus, that corresponds with a similar hole made in
the side of the boat. By this double opening I get into the
small vessel. They shut the one belonging to the Nautilus,
I shut the other by means of screw pressure. I undo the
bolts, and the little boat goes up to the surface of the sea
with prodigious rapidity. I then open the panel of the
bridge, carefully shut till then; I mast it, hoist my sail,
take my oars, and I'm off."
" But how do you get back on board? "
" I do not come back, M. Arronnax; the Nautilus comes
to me."
" By your orders? "
" By my orders. An electric thread connects us. I
telegraph to it, and that is enough."
ALL BY ELECTRICITY 6i
<t
Really," I said, astonished at these marvels, " nothing
can be more simple."
After having passed by the cage of the staircase that led
to the platform, 1 saw a cabin six feet long, in which Conseil
and Ned Land, enchanted with their repast, were devouring
it with avidity. Then a door opened into a kitchen nine
feet long situated between the large storerooms. There
electricity, better than gas itself, did all the cooking. The
streams under the furnaces gave out to the sponges of
platina a heat wiiich was regularly kept up and distributed.
They also heated a distilling apparatus, which, by evapora-
tion, furnished excellent drinkable water. Near this
kitchen was a bath-room comfortably furnished, with hot
and cold water taps.
Next to the kitchen was the berth-room of the vessel,
sixteen feet long. But the door was shut, and I could not
see the management of it, which might have given me an
idea of the number of men employed on board the
A^autiliis.
At the bottom was a fourth partition, that separated this
office from the engine-room. A door opened, and I found
myself in the compartment where Captain Nemo — certainly
an engineer of a very high order — had arranged his locomo-
tive machinery. This engine-room, clearly lighted, did not
measure less than sixty-five feet in length. It was divided
into two parts; the first contained the materials for pro-
ducing electricity, and the second the machinery that con-
nected it with the screw. I examined it with great interest,
in order to understand the machinery of the Nautilus.
" You see," said the captain, " I use Bunsen's contri-
vances, not Ruhmkorff's. Those would not have been
powerful enough. Bunsen's are fewer in number, but
strong and large, which experience proves to be the best.
The electricity produced passes forward, where it works, by
electro-magnets of great size, on a system of levers and
cog-wheels that transmit the movement to the axle of the
screw. This one, the diameter of which is nineteen feet,
and the thread twenty-three feet, performs about a hun-
dred and twenty revolutions in a second."
"And you get then?"
" A speed of fifty miles an hour."
" I have seen the Nautilus maneuver before the Abra-
62 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
ham Loncoln, and I have my own ideas as to its speed. But
this is not enough. We must see where we go. We must
be able to direct it to the right, to the left, above, below.
How do you get to the great depths, where you find an in-
creasing resistance, which is rated by hundreds of atmos-
pheres? How do you return to the surface of the ocean?
And how do you maintain yourselves in the requisite
medium? Am I asking too much? "
" Not at all, professor," replied the captain with some
hesitation ; " since you may never leave this submarine boat.
Come into the saloon; it is our usual study, and there you
will learn all you want to know about the Nautilus."
CHAPTER Xn
SOME FIGURES
A MOMENT after we were seated on a divan in the saloon
smoking. The captain showed me a sketch that gave the
plan, section, and elevation of the Nautilus. Then he be-
gan his description in these words :
" Here, M. Aronnax, are the several dimensions of the
boat you are in. It is an elongated cylinder with conical
ends. It is very like a cigar in shape, a shape already
adopted in London in several constructions of the same
sort. The length of this cylinder, from stern to stern, is
exactly 232 feet, and its maximum breadth is twenty-six
feet. It is not built quite like your long-voyage steamers,
but its lines are sufficiently long, and its curves prolonged
enougli, to allow the water to slide of¥ easily, and oppose
no obstacle to its passage. These two dimensions enable
you to obtain by a simple calculation the surface and cubic
contents of the Nautilus. Its area measures 6,032 feet;
and its contents about 1,500 cubic yards; that is to say,
when completely immersed it displaces 50,000 feet of water,
or weighs 1.500 tons.
" When I made the plans for this submarine vessel, I
meant that nine-tenths sliould be submerged ; consequently,
it ought only to displace nine-tenths of its bulk, that is to
say, only to weigh tliat number of tons. I ought not, there-
fore, to have exceeded that weight, constructing it on the
aforesaid dimensions.
SOME FIGURES 63
" The Nautilus is composed of two hulls, one inside, the
other outside, joined by T-shaped irons, which render it
very strong. Indeed, owing to this cellular arrangement it
resists like a block, as if it were solid. Its sides cannot
yield; it coheres spontaneously, and not by the closeness of
its rivets; and the homogeneity of its construction, due to
the perfect union of the materials, enables it to defy the
roughest seas.
" These two hulls are composed of steel plates, whose
density is from .07 to .08 that of water. The first is not
less than two inches and a half thick, and weighs 394 tons.
The second envelope, the keel, twenty inches high and ten
thick, weighs alone sixty-two tons. The engine, the ballast,
the several accessories and apparatus appendages, the parti-
tions and bulkheads, weigh 961.62 tons. Do you follow all
this?"
" I do.'"
" Then, when the Nautilus is afloat under these circum-
stances, one-tenth is out of the water. Now, if I have
made reservoirs of a size equal to this tenth, or capable of
holding 150 tons, and if I fill them with water, the boat,
weighing then 1,507 tons, will be completely immersed.
That would happen, professor. These reservoirs are in the
lower parts of the Nautilus. I turn on taps and they fill,
and the vessel sinks that had just been level with the sur-
face."
" Well, captain, but now we come to the real difficulty.
I can understand your rising to the surface; but diving
below the surface, does not your submarine contrivance
encounter a pressure, and consequently undergo an upward
thrust of one atmosphere for every thirty feet of water,
just about fifteen pounds per square Inch? "
" Just so, sir."
" Then unless you quite fill the Nautilus, I do not see
how you can draw it down to those depths which at times
you reach."
" Professor, you must not confound statics with dy-
namics, or you will be exposed to grave errors. There
is very little labor spent in attaining the lower regions of
the ocean, for all bodies have a tendency to sink. When
I wanted to find out the necessary increase of weight re-
quired to sink the Nautilus, I had only to calculate the re-
64 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
duction of volume that sea-water acquires according to
the depth."
" That is evident."
"Now, if water is not absolutely incompressible, it is at
least capable of very slight compression. Indeed, after
the most recent calculations this reduction is only 0.000436
of an atmosphere for each thirty feet of depth. If we want
to sink 3,000 feet, I should keep account of the reduction
of bulk under a pressure equal to that of a column of water
of a thousand feet. The calculation is easily verified.
Now I have supplementary reservoirs capable of holding a
hundred tons. Therefore I can sink to a considerable
depth. When I wish to rise to the level of the sea, I only
let off the water ,and empty all the reservoirs if I should
desire the Nautilus to emerge from the tenth part of her
total capacity."
I had nothing to object to these reasonings.
" I admit your calculations, captain," I replied; " I should
be wrong to dispute them since daily experience confirms
them ; but I foresee a real difficulty in the way."
"W^hat, sir?"
"When you are about 1,000 feet deep, the walls of the
Nautilus bear a pressure of 100 atmospheres. If, then,
just now you were to empty the supplementary reservoirs,
to lighten the vessel, and to go up to the surface, the pumps
must overcome the pressure of 100 atmospheres, which is
1,500 lbs. per square inch. From that a power "
" That electricity alone can give," said the captain hastily.
" I repeat, sir, that the dynamic power of my engines is
almost infinite. The pumps of the Nautilus have an enor-
mous power, as you must have observed when their jets of
water burst like a torrent upon the Abraham Lincoln. Be-
sides, I use subsidiary reservoirs only to attain a mean depth
of 750 to- 1,000 fathoms, and that with a view of managing
my machines. Also, when I have a mind to visit the depths
of the ocean five or six miles below the surface, I make use
of slower but not less infallible means."
" What are they, captain ? "
" That involves my telling you how the Nautilus is
worked."
" I am impatient to learn."
" To steer this boat to starboard or port, to turn, in a
v. V Verne
SOME FIGURES 65
word, following a horizontal plan, I use an ordinary rudder
fixed on the back of the stern post, and with one wheel and
some tackle to steer by. But I can also make the Nautilus
rise and sink, and sink and rise, by a vertical movement
by means of two inclined planes fastened to its sides, oppo-
site the center of flotation, planes that move in every direc-
tion, and that are worked by powerful levers from the in-
terior. If the planes are kept parallel with the boat, it
moves horizontally. If slanted, the Nautilus, according to
this inclination, and under the influence of the screw, either
sinks diagonally or rises diagonally as it suits me. And
even if I wish to rise more quickly to the surface, I ship the
screw, and the pressure of the water causes the Nautilus to
rise vertically like a balloon filled with hydrogen."
" Bravo, captain ! But how can the steersman follow the
route in the middle of the waters? "
" The steersman is placed in a glazed box, that is raised
above the hull of the Nautilus, and which is furnished with
lenses."
"Are these lenses capable of resisting such pressure?"
" Perfectly. Glass, which breaks at a blow, is, never-
theless, capable of offering considerable resistance. During
some experiments of fishing by electric light in 1864 in the
Northern Seas, we saw plates less than a third of an inch
thick resist a pressure of sixteen atmospheres. Now, the
glass that I use is not less than thirty times thicker."
" Granted. But, after all, in order to see, the light must
exceed the darkness, and in the midst of the darkness in the
water, how can you see ? "
" Behind the steersman's cage is placed a powerful elec-
tric reflector, the rays from which light up the sea for half
a mile in front."
"Ah! bravo, bravo, captain! Now I can account for
this phosphorescence in the supposed narwhal that puzzled
us so. I now ask you if the boarding of the Nautilus and
of the Scotia, that has made such a noise, has been the result
of a chance renconter? "
" Quite accidental, sir. I was sailing only one fathom be-
low the surface of the water when the shock came. It had
no bad result."
" None, sir. But now, about your renconter with the
Abraham Lincoln? "
6^ TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" Professor, I am sorry for one of the best vessels in the
American navy; but they attacked me, and I was bound to
defend myself. I contented myself, however, with putting
the frigate hors de combat; she will not have any difficulty
in getting repaired at the next port."
" Ah, commander ! your Nautilus is certainly a marvel-
ous boat."
" Yes, professor; and I love it as if it were part of my-
self. If danger threatens one of your vessels on the ocean,
the first impression is the feeling of an abyss above and be-
low. On the Nautilus men's hearts never fail them. No
defects to be afraid of, for the double shell is as firm as
iron ; no rigging to attend to ; no sails for the wind to carry
away; no boilers to burst; no fire to fear, for the vessel
is made of iron, not of wood; no coal to run short, for elec-
tricity is the only mechanical agent; no collision to fear, for
it alone swims in deep water; no tempest to brave, for when
it dives below the water, it reaches absolute tranquility.
There, sir! that is the perfection of vessels! And if it is
true that the engineer has more confidence in the vessel than
the builder, and the builder than the captain himself, you
understand the trust I repose in my Nautilus; for I am at
once captain, builder, and engineer."
" But how could you construct this wonderful Nautilus
in secret? "
" Each separate portion, M. Aronnax, was brought from
different parts of the globe. The keel was forged at Creu-
sot, the shaft of the screw at Penn & Co.'s, London, the iron
plates of the hull at Laird's of Liverpool, the screw itself at
Scott's at Glasgow. The reservoirs were made by Cail
& Co. at Paris, the engine by Krupp in Prussia, its beak in
Motala's workshop in Sweden, its mathematical instruments
by Hart Brothers, of New York, etc.; and each of these
people had my orders under different names."
" But these parts had to be put together and arranged? "
" Professor, I had set up my workshops upon a desert
island in th(^ ocean. There my workmen, that is to say. the
brave men that I instructed and educated, and myself have
put together our Nautilus. Then, when the work was fin-
ished, fire destroyed all trace of our proceedings on this
island, that T could have jumped over if T had liked."
" Then the cost of this vessel is great? "
SOME FIGURES 67
«
M. Aronnax. an iron vessel costs £45 per ton. Now
the Nautilus weighed 1,500. It came therefore to £67,500
and £80,000 more for fitting it up, and about £200,000 with
the works of art and the collections it contains."
" One last question, Captain Nemo."
" Ask it, professor."
"You are rich?"
" Immensely rich, sir; and I could, without missing it, pay
the national dtbt of France."
I stared at the singular person who spoke thus. Was he
playing upon my credulity.'* The future would decide that.
CHAPTER XIII
THE BLACK RIVER
The portion of the terrestrial globe which is covered by
water is estimated at upward of eighty millions of acres.
This fluid mass comprises two billions, two hundred and
fifty millions of cubic miles, forming a spherical body of a
diameter of sixty leagues, the weight of which would be
three quintillions of tons. To comprehend the meaning of
these figures, it is necessary to observe that a quintillion is
to a billion as a billion is to unity; in other words, there are
as many billions in a quintillion as there are units in a bil-
lion. This mass of fluid is equal to about the quantity of
water which would be discharged by all the rivers of the
earth in forty thousand years.
During the geological epochs, the igneous period suc-
ceeded to the aqueous. The ocean originally prevailed
everywhere. Then by degrees, in the silurian period, the
tops of the mountains began to appear, the islands emerged,
then disappeared in partial deluges, reappeared, became set-
tled, formed continents, till at length the earth became geo-
graphically arranged, as we see in the present day. The
solid had wrested from the liquid thirty-seven million, six
hundred and fifty-seven square miles, equal to twelve bil-
lions, nine hundred and sixty millions of acres.
The shape of continents allows us to divide the waters
into five great portions : the Arctic or Frozen Ocean, the
Antarctic or Frozen Ocean, the Indian, the Atlantic, and
the Pacific Oceans.
68 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
The Pacific Ocean extends from north to south between
the two polar circles, and from east to west between Asia
and America, over an extent of 145 degrees of longitude.
It is the quietest of seas; its currents are broad and slow,
it has medium tides and abundant rain. Such was the
ocean that my fate destined me first to travel over under
these strange conditions.
" Sir," said Captain Nemo, " we will, if you please, take
our bearings and fix the starting-point of this voyage. It
is a quarter to twelve and I will now go up again to the
surface."
The captain pressed an electric clock three times. The
pumps began to drive the water from the tanks ; the needle
of the manometer marked by a different pressure the ascent
of the Nautilits, then it stopped.
" We have arrived," said the captain.
I went to the central staircase which opened on to the
platform, clambered up the iron steps, and found myself on
the upper part of the Nautilus.
The platform was only three feet out of water. The
front and back of the Nautilus was of that spindle-shape
which caused it justly to be compared to a cigar, I noticed
that its iron plates, slightly overlaying each other, resembled
the shell which clothes the bodies of our large terrestrial
reptiles. It explained to me how natural it was, in spite of
all glasses, that this boat should have been taken for a ma-
rine animal.
Toward the middle of the platform the long-boat, half
buried in the hull of the vessel, formed a slight excrescence.
Fore and aft rose two cages of medium height with inclined
sides, and partly closed by thick lenticular glasses ; one des-
tined for the steersman who directed the Nautilus, the other
containing a brillian lantern to give light on the road.
The sea was beautiful, the sky pure. Scarcely could the
long vehicle feel the broad undulations of the ocean. A
light breeze from the east rippled the surface of the waters.
The horizon, free from fog, made observation easy. Noth-
ing was in sight. Not a quicksand, not an island. A vast
desert.
Captain Nemo, by the help of his sextant, took the alti-
tude of the sun, which ought also to give the latitude. He
waited for some moments till its disk touched the horizon.
THE BLACK RIVER 69
While taking observations not a muscle moved ; the instru-
ment could not have been more motionless in a hand of
marble.
"Twelve o'clock, sir," said he. "When you like "
I cast a last look upon the sea, slightly yellowed by the
Japanese coast, and descended to the saloon.
" And now, sir, I leave you to your studies," added the
captain; "our course is E. N. E., our depth is twenty-six
fathoms. Here are maps on a large scale by which you may
follow it. The saloon is at your disposal, and with your
permission I will retire." Captain Nemo bowed, and I re-
mained alone, lost in thoughts all bearing on the commander
of the Nautilus.
For a whole hour was I deep in these reflections, seeking
to pierce this mystery so interesting to me. Then my eyes
fell upon the vast planisphere spread upon the table, and I
placed my finger on the very spot where the given latitude
and longitude crossed.
The sea has its large rivers like the continents. They
are special currents known by their temperature and their
color. The most remarkable of these is known by the name
of the Gulf Stream. Science has decided on the globe the
direction of five principal currents: one in the North At-
lantic, a second in the South, a third in the North Pacific,
a fourth in the South, and a fifth in the Southern Indian
Ocean. It is even probable that a sixth current existed
at one time or another in the Northern Indian Ocean, when
the Caspian and Aral Seas formed but one vast sheet of
water.
At this point indicated on the planisphere one of these
currents was rolling, the Kuro-Scivo of the Japanese, the
Black River, which, leaving the Gulf of Bengal where it is
warmed by the perpendicular rays of a tropical sun, crosses
the Straits of Malacca along the coast of Asia, turns into
the North Pacific to the Aleutian Islands, carrying with it
trunks of camphor-trees and other indigenous productions,
and edging the waves of the ocean with the pure indigo of
its warm water. It was this current that the Nautilus was
to follow. I followed it with my eye; saw it lose itself in
the vastness of the Pacific, and felt myself drawn with it,
when Ned Land and Conseil appeared at the door of the
saloon.
70 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
My two brave companions remained petrified at the sight
of the wonders spread before them.
"Where are we — where are we?" exclaimed the Cana-
dian. " In the museum at Quebec? "
" My friends," I answered, making a sign to them to
enter, " you are not in Canada, but on board the Nautilus,
fifty yards below the level of the sea."
" But, M. Aronnax," said Ned Land, " can you tell me
how many men there are on board? Ten, twenty, fifty, a
hundred?"
" I cannot answer you, Mr. Land ; it is better to abandon
for a time all idea of seizing the Nautilus or escaping from
it. This ship is a masterpiece of modern industry, and I
should be sorry not to have seen it. Many people would
accept the situation forced upon us, if only to move among
such wonders. So be quiet and let us try and see what
passes around us."
" See ! " exclaimed the harpooner, " but we can see noth-
ing in this iron prison! We are walking — we are sailing —
blindly."
Ned Land had scarcely pronounced these w^ords when all
was suddenly darkness. The luminous ceiling was gone,
and so rapidly that my eyes received a very painful impres-
sion.
We remained mute, not stirring, and not knowing what
surprise awaited us, whether agreeable or disagreeable. A
sliding noise was heard : one would have said thai panels
were working at the sides of the Nautilus.
" It is the end of the end ! " said Ned Land.
Suddenly liglit broke at each side of the saloon, through
two oblong openings. The litjuid mass appeared vividly
lit up by the electric gleam. Two crystal plates separated
us from the sea. At first I trembled at the thought that
this frail partition might break, but strong bands of copper
bound them, giving an almost infinite power of resistance.
The sea was distinctly visible for a mile all round the
Nautilus. Wiiat a spectacle! What pen can describe it?
Who could paint the effects of the light through those trans-
parent sheets of water, and the softness of the successive
gradations from the lower to the superior strata of the
ocean ?
We know the transparency of the sea, and that its clear-
THE BLACK RIVER 71
ness is far beyond that of rock water. The mineral and
organic substances which it holds in suspension heighten
its transparency. In certain parts of the ocean at the An-
tilles, under seventy-five fathoms of water, can be seen
with surprising clearness a bed of sand. The penetrating
power of the solar rays does not seem to cease for a depth
of one hundred and fifty fathoms. But in this middle
fluid traveled over by the Nautilus the electric brightness
was produced even in the bosom of the waves. It was no
longer luminous water, but liquid light.
On each side a window opened into this unexplored
abyss. The obscurity of the saloon showed to advantage
the brightness outside, and we looked out as if this pure
crystal had been the glass of an immense aquarium.
" You wished to see, friend Ned ; well, you see now."
" Curious ! curious ! " muttered the Canadian, who, for-
getting his ill-temper, seemed to submit to some irresistible
attraction ; " and one would come further than this to ad-
mire such a sight I "
"Ah!" thought I to myself, "I understand the hfe of
this man; he has made a world apart for himself, in which
he treasures all his greatest wonders."
For two whole hours an aquatic army escorted the Nau-
tilus. During their games, their bounds, while rivaling
each other in beauty, brightness, and velocity, I distin-
guished the green labre; the banded mullet, marked by a
double line of black; the round-tailed goby, of a white color,
with violet spots on the back; the Japanese scombrus, a
beautiful mackerel of these seas, with a blue body and sil-
very head ; the brilliant azurors, whose name alone defies de-
scription; some banded spares, with variegated fins of blue
and yellow; some aclostones, the woodcocks of the seas,
some specimens of which attain a yard in length ; Japanese
salamanders, spider lampreys, serpents six feet long, with
eyes small and lively, and a huge mouth bristling with teeth;
W'ith many other species.
Our imagination was kept at its height; interjections fol-
lowed quickly on each other. Ned named the fish, and
Conseil classed them. I was in ecstasies with the vivacity
of their movements and the beauty of their forms. Never
had it been given to me to surprise these animals, alive and
at liberty, in their natural element. I will not mention
72 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
all the varieties which passed before my dazzled eyes, all the
collection of the seas of China and Japan. These fish, more
numerous than the birds of the air, came, attracted, no
doubt, by the brilliant focus of the electric light.
Suddenly there was daylight in the saloon, the iron panels
closed again, and the enchanting vision disappeared. But
for a long time I dreamed on till my eyes fell on the instru-
ments hanging on the partition. The compass still showed
the course to be E. N. E., the manometer indicated a pres-
sure of five atmospheres, equivalent to a depth of twenty-
five fathoms, and the electric log gave a speed of fifteen
miles an hour. I expected Captain Nemo, but he did not
appear. The clock marked the hour of five.
Ned Land and Conseil returned to their cabin, and I re-
tired to my chamber. My dinner was ready. It was com-
posed of turtle soup made of the most delicate hawks-bills,
of a surmullet served with puff paste (the liver of which,
prepared by itself, was most delicious), and fillets of the
emperor-holocanthus, the savor of which seemed to me su-
perior even to salmon.
I passed the evening reading, writing, and thinking.
Then sleep overpowered me, and I stretched myself on my
couch of zostera, and slept profoundly, while the Nautilus
was gliding rapidly through the current of the Black River.
CHAPTER XIV
A NOTE OF INVITATION
The next day was the 9th of November. I awoke after
a long sleep of twelve hours. Conseil came, according to
custom, to know " how had I passed the night," and to offer
his services. He had left his friend the Canadian sleeping
like a man who had never done anything else all his life.
I let the worthy fellow chatter as he pleased, without caring
to answer him. I was preoccupied by the absence of the
captain during our sitting of the day before, and hoping to
see him to-day.
As soon as I was dressed I went into the saloon. It was
deserted. I plunged into the study of the conchological
treasures hidden beliind the glasses. I reveled also in great
herbals filled with the rarest marine plants, which although
A NOTE OF INVITATION 73
dried up, retained their lovely colors. Among these pre-
cious hydrophytes I remarked some vorticellce, pavonariae,
delicate ceramics with scarlet tints, some fan-shaped agari;
in short, a perfect series of algae.
The whole day passed without my being honored by a
visit from Captain Nemo. The panels of the saloon did
not open. Perhaps they did not wish us to tire of these
beautiful things. The course of the Nautilus was E, N. E.,
her speed twelve knots, the depth below the surface between
twenty-five and thirty fathoms.
The next day, loth of November, the same desertion, the
same solitude. I did not see one of the ship's crew; Ned
and Conseil spent the greater part of the day with me. They
were astonished at the inexplicable absence of the captain.
Was this singular man ill? Had he altered his intentions
.with regard to us? After all, as Conseil said, we enjoyed
perfect liberty, we were delicately and abundantly fed. Our
host kept to his terms of the treaty. We could not com-
plain, and, indeed, the singularity of our fate reserved such
wonderful compensation for us that we had no right to ac-
cuse it as yet.
That day I commenced the journal of these adventures
which has enabled me to relate them with more scrupulous
exactitude and minute detail. I wrote it on paper made
from the zostera marina.
November nth, early in the morning. The fresh air
spreading over the interior of the Nautilus told me that we
had come to the surface of the ocean to renew our supply
of oxygen. I directed my steps to the central staircase,
and mounted the platform.
It was six o'clock, the weather was cloudy, the sea gray
but calm. Scarcely a billow. Captain Nemo, whom I
hoped to meet, would he be there? I saw no one but the
steersman imprisoned in his glass cage. Seated upon the
projection formed by the hull of the pinnace, I inhaled the
salt breeze wath delight.
By degrees the fog disappeared under the action of the
sun's rays, the radiant orb rose from behind tlie eastern
horizon. The sea flamed under its glance like a train of
gunpowder. The clouds scattered in the heights were col-
ored with lively tints of beautiful shades, and numerous
" mare's tails," which betokened wind for that day. But
74 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
what was wind to this Nautilus, which tempests could not
frighten !
I was admiring this joyous rising of the sun, so gay, and
so life-giving, when I heard steps approaching the platform.
I was prepared to salute Captain Nemo, but it was his sec-
ond (whom I had already seen on the captain's first visit)
who appeared. He advanced on the platform, not seeming
to see me. With his powerful glass to his eye he scanned
every point of the horizon with great attention. This ex-
amination over, he approached the panel and pronounced a
sentence in exactly these terms. I have remembered it, for
every morning it was repeated under exactly the same con-
ditions. It was thus worded: " Nautron respoc lorni
virch."
What it meant I could not say.
These words pronounced, the second descended. I
thought that the Nautilus was about to return to its subma-
rine navigation. I regained the panel and returned to my
chamber.
Five days sped thus, without any change in our situation.
Every morning I mounted the platform. The same phrase
was pronounced by the same individual. But Captain Nemo
did not appear.
I had made up my mind that I should never see him again,
when, on the i6th November, on returning to my room with
Ned and Conseil, I found upon my table a note addressed
to me. I opened it impatiently. It was written in a bold,
clear hand, the characters rather pointed, recalling the Ger-
man type. The note was worded as follows :
" 1 6th of Novmber, 1867.
"To Professor Aronnax, on board the Nautilus:
" Captain Nemo invites Professor Aronnax to a hunting-
party, which will take place to-morrow morning in the
forests of the island of Crespo. He hopes that nothing
will prevent the jjrofessor from being present, and he will
with pleasure see him joined by his companions.
" Captain Nemo, Commander of the Nautilus."
" A hunt! " exclaimed Ned.
"And in the forests of the island of Crespo!" added
Conseil.
A NOTE OF INVITATION 75
" Oh, then the gentleman is going on terra firma? " re-
pHed Ned Land.
" That seems to me to be clearly indicated," said I, read-
ing the letter once more.
" Well, we must accept," said the Canadian. " But once
more on dry ground, we shall know what to do. Indeed, I
shall not be sorry to eat a piece of fresh venison."
Without seeking to reconcile what was contradictory be-
tween Captain Nemo's manifest aversion to islands and con-
tinents, and his invitation to hunt in a forest, I contented
myself with replying:
" Let us see first where the island of Crespo is."
I consulted the planisphere, and in 32° 40' north lat., and
157° 50' west long., I found a small island, recognized in
1 801 by Captain Crespo, and marked in the ancient Spanish
maps as Rocca de la Plata, the meaning of which is " The
Silver Rock." We were then about eighteen hundred miles
from our starting point, and the course of the Nautilus, a
little changed, was bringing it back toward the southeast.
I showed this little rock lost in the midst of the North
Pacific to my companions.
" If Captain Nemo does sometimes go on dry ground,"
said I, " he at least chooses desert islands.
Ned Land shrugged his shoulders without speaking, and
Conseil and he left me.
After supper, which was served by the steward, mute and
impassible, I went to bed, not without some anxiety.
The next morning, the 17th of November, on awakening
I felt that the Nautilus was perfectly still. I dressed quickly
and entered the saloon.
Captain Nemo was there, waiting for me. He rose,
bowed, and asked me if it was convenient for me to accom-
pany him. As he made no allusion to his absence during the
last eight days, I did not mention it, and simply answered
that my companions and myself were ready to follow him.
We entered the dining-room, and breakfast was served.
" M. Aronnax," said the captain, " pray share my break-
fast without ceremony ; we will chat as we eat. For though
I promised you a walk in the forest, I did not undertake to
find hotels there. So breakfast as a man who will most
likely not have his dinner till very late."
I did honor to the repast. It was composed of several
76 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
kinds of fish, and slices of holothuridse (excellent zoo-
phytes), and different sorts of seaweed. Our drink con-
sisted of pure water, to which the captain added some drops
of a fermented liquor, extracted by the Kamschatcha
method from a seaweed known under the name of Rhodo-
menia palmata. Captain Nemo ate at first without saying
a word. Then he began: " Sir, when I proposed to you to
hunt in my submarine forest of Crespo, you evidently
thought me mad. Sir, you should never judge lightly of
any man."
" But, captain, believe me "
" Be kind enough to listen, and you will then see whether
you have any cause to accuse me of folly and contradiction."
" I listen."
" You know as well as I do, professor, that man can live
under water, providing he carries with him a sufficient sup-
ply of breathable air. In submarine works, the workman,
clad in an impervious dress, with his head in a metal helmet,
receives air from above by means of forcing-pumps and
regulators."
'' That is a diving apparatus," said I.
"Just so; but under these conditions the man is not at
liberty; he is attached to the pump which sends him air
through an india-rubber tube, and if we were obliged to be
thus held to the Nautilus, we could not go far."
" And the means of getting free? " I asked.
" It is to use the Rouquayrol apparatus, invented by two
of your own countrymen, which I have brought to perfec-
tion for my own use, and which will allow you to risk your-
self under these new physiological conditions, without any
organ whatever suffering. It consists of a reservoir of thick
iron plates, in which I store the air under a pressure of
fifty atmospheres. This reservoir is fixed on the back by
means of braces, like a soldier's knapsack. Its upper part
forms a box in which the air is kept by means of a bellows,
and therefore cannot escape unless at its normal tension.
In the Rouquayrol apparatus such as we use, two india-
rubber pipes leave this box and join a sort of tent which
holds the nose and mouth ; one is to introduce fresh air,
the other to let out the foul, and the tongue closes one or
the other according to the wants of the respirator. But I,
in encountering great pressures at the bottom of the sea.
A NOTE OF INVITATION -j-]
was obliged to shut my head, like that of a diver, in a ball
of copper; and it is to this ball of copper that the two pipes,
the inspirator and the expirator, open."
" Perfect, Captain Nemo; but the air that you carry with
you must soon be used; when it only contains fifteen per
cent, of oxygen, it is no longer fit to breathe."
" Right ! but I told you, M. Aronnax, that the pumps of
the Nautilus allow me to store the air under considerable
pressure; and on those conditions, the reservoir of the ap-
paratus can readily furnish breathable air for nine or ten
hours."
'' I have no further objections to make," I answered; " I
will only ask you one thing, captain — how can you light
your road at the bottom of the sea? "
"With the Ruhmkorff apparatus, M. Aronnax; one is
carried on the back, the other is fastened to the waist. It
is composed of a Bunsen pile, which I do not work with
bichromate of potash, but with sodium. A wire is intro-
duced which collects the electricity produced, and directs
it toward a particularly made lantern. In this lantern is a
spiral glass which contains a small quantity of carbonic gas.
When the apparatus is at work, this gas becomes luminous,
giving out a white and continuous light. Thus provided,
I can breathe and I can see."
" Captain Nemo, to all my objections you make such
crushing answers that I dare no longer doubt. But if I
am forced to admit the Rouquayrol and Ruhmkorff appa-
ratus, I must be allowed some reservations with regard to
the gun I am to carry."
" But it is not a gun for powder," answered the captain.
** Then it is an air-gun."
" Doubtless ! How would you have me manufacture gun-
powder on board, without either saltpeter, sulphur, or char-
coal?"
" Besides," I added, " to fire under water in a medium
eight hundred and fifty-five times denser than the air, we
must conquer very considerable resistance."
" That would be no difficulty. There exists guns, accord-
ing to Fulton, perfected in England by Philip Coles and
Burley, in France by Furcy, and in Italy by Landi, which
are furnished with a peculiar system of closing, which can
fire under these conditions. But I repeat, having no pow-
7S> TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
der, I use air under great pressure, which the pumps of the
Nautilus furnish abundantly."
'' But this air must be rapidly used? "
" Well, have I not my Rouquayrol reservoir, which can
furnish it at need? A tap is all that is required. Besides,
M. Aronnax, you must see yourself that during our sub-
marine hunt we can spend but little air and but few balls."
" But it seems to me that in this twilight, and in the midst
of this fluid, which is very dense compared with the atmo-
sphere, shots could not go far, nor easily prove mortal."
" Sir, on the contrary, with this gun every blow is mor-
tal; and however lightly the animal is touched, it falls as if
struck bv a thunderbolt."
']Why?"
*' Because the balls sent by this gun are not ordinary
balls, but little cases of glass (invented by Leniebroek, an
Austrian chemist), of which I have a large supply. These
glass cases are covered with a case of steel, and weighted
with a pellet of lead; they are real Leyden bottles, into
which the electricity is forced to a very high tension. With
the slightest shock they are discharged, and the animal,
however strong it may be, falls dead. I must tell you that
these cases are size number four, and that the charge for
an ordinary gun would be ten."
" I will argue no longer," I replied, rising from the table ;
" I have nothing left me but to take my gun. At all events,
I will go where you go."
Captain Nemo then led me aft; and in passing before
Ned and Conseil's cabin, I called my two companions, who
followed immediately. We then came to a kind of cell near
the machinery-room, in which we were to put on our walk-
ing-dress.
CHAPTER XV
A WALK ON THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA
This cell was, to speak correctly, the arsenal and ward-
robe of the Nautilus. A dozen diving apparatus hung from
the partition, waiting our use.
Ned Land, on seeing them, showed evident repugnance
to dress himself in one.
ON THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA 79
" But, my worthy Ned, the forests of the island of Crespo
are nothing but submarine forests."
" Good ! " said the disappointed harpooner, who saw his
dreams of fresh meat fade away. " And you, M. Aronnax,
are you going to dress yourself in those clothes? "
" There is no alternative, Master Ned."
"As you please, sir," replied the harpooner, shrugging
his shoulders; "but as for me, unless I am forced, I will
never get into one."
'* No one will force you, Master Ned," said Captain
Nemo.
" Is Conseil going to risk it? " asked Ned.
" I follow my master wherever he goes," replied Conseil.
At the captain's call two of the ship's crew came to help
us to dress in these heavy and impervious clothes, made of
india-rubber without seam, and constructed expressly to re-
sist considerable pressure. One would have thought it a
suit of armor, both supple and resisting. This suit formed
trousers and waistcoat. The trousers were finished off with
thick boots, weighted with heavy leaden soles. The tex-
ture of the waistcoat was held together by bands of copper,
which crossed the chest, protecting it from the great pres-
sure of the water, and leaving the lungs free to act; the
sleeves ended in gloves, which in no way restrained the
movement of the hands. There was a vast difference no-
ticeable between these consummate apparatus and the old
cork breastplates, jackets, and other contrivances in vogue
during the eighteenth century.
Captain Nemo and one of his companions (a sort of
Hercules, who must have possessed great strength), Con-
seil and myself, were soon enveloped in the dresses. There
remained nothing more to be done but to inclose our heads
in the metal box. But before proceeding to this operation,
I asked the captain's permission to examine the guns we
were to carry.
One of the Nautilus men gave me a simple gun, the butt
end of which, made of steel hollow in the center, was rather
large. It served as a reservoir for compressed air, which
a valve worked by a spring allowed to escape into a metal
tube. A box of projectiles, in a groove, in the thickness
of the butt end, contained about twenty of these electric
balls, which by means of a spring were forced into the bar-
8o TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
rel of the gun. As soon as one shot was fired, another was
ready.
" Captain Nemo," said I, " this arm is perfect, and easily
handled ; I only ask to be allowed to try it. But how shall
we gain the bottom of the sea? "
" At this moment, professor, the Nautilus is stranded in
five fathoms, and we have nothing to do but to start."
" But how shall we get off ? "
" You shall see."
Captain Nemo thrust his head into the helmet, Conseil
and I did the same, not without hearing an ironical " Good
sport ! " from the Canadian. The upper part of our dress
terminated in a copper collar, upon w^iich was screwed the
metal helmet. Three holes, protected by thick glass, al-
lowed us to see in all directions, by simply turning our
heads in the interior of the head-dress. As soon as it was
in position, the Rouquayrol apparatus on our backs began
to act ; and, for my part, I could breathe with ease.
With the Ruhmkorff lamp hanging from my belt, and the
gun in my hand, I was ready to set out. But to speak the
truth, imprisoned in these heavy garments, and glued to the
deck by my leaden soles, it was impossible for me to take
a step.
But this state of things was provided for. I felt myself
being pushed into a little room contiguous to the wardrobe-
room. My companions followed, towed along in the same
way. I heard a water-tight door, furnished with stopper-
plates, close upon us, and we were wrapped in profound
darkness.
After some minutes, a loud hissing was heard. I felt
the cold mount from my feet to my chest. Evidently from
some part of the vessel they had by means of a tap given
entrance to the water, which was invading us, and with
which the room was soon filled. A second door cut in the
side of the Nautilus then opened. We saw a faint light.
In another instant our feet trod the bottom of the sea.
And now, how can I retrace the impression left upon me
by that walk under the waters? Words are impotent to
relate such w-ondcrs! Captain Nemo walked in front, his
companion followed some steps behind. Conseil and I re-
mained near each other, as if an excliange of words had
been possible through our metallic cases. I no longer felt
V. V Verne
ON THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA 8i
the weight of my clothing, or of my shoes, of my reservoir
of air, or my thick helmet, in the midst of which my head
rattled like an almond in its shell.
The light, which lit the soil thirty feet below the surface
of the ocean, astonished me by its power. The solar rays
shone through the watery mass easily, and dissipated all
shadow, so that I clearly distinguished objects at a distance
of a hundred and fifty yards. Beyond that the tints dark-
ened into fine gradations of ultramarine, and faded into
vague obscurity. Truly this water which surrounded me
was but another air denser than the terrestrial atmosphere,
but almost as transparent. Above me was the calm surface
of the sea. We were walking on fine, even sand, not wrin-
kled, as on a flat shore, which retains the impression of the
billows. This dazzling carpet, really a reflector, repelled
the rays of the sun with wonderful intensity, which ac-
counted for the vibration which penetrated every atom of
liquid. Shall I be believed when I say that, at the depth
of thirty feet, I could see as if I was in broad daylight?
For a quarter of an hour I trod on this sand, sown v/ith
the impalpable dust of shells. The hull of the Naiitilus_
resembling a long shoal, disappeared by degrees; but its
lantern, when darkness should overtake us in the waters,
would help to guide us on board by its distinct rays.
Soon forms of objects outlined in the distance were dis-
cernible. I recognized magnificent rocks, hung with a
tapestry of zoophytes of the most beautiful kind, and I was
at first struck by the peculiar efi'ect of this medium.
It was then ten in the morning; the rays of the sun struck
the surface of the waves at rather an oblique angle, and at
the touch of their light, decomposed by refraction as through
a prism, flowers, rocks, plants, shells and polypi were shaded
at the edges by the seven solar colors. It was marvelous,
a feast for the eyes, this complication of colored tints, a
perfect kaleidoscope of green, yellow, orange, violet, indigo,
and blue; in one word, the whole palette of an enthusiastic
colorist! Why could I not communicate to Conseil the
lively sensations which were mounting to my brain, and
rival him in expressions of admiration? For aught I
knew. Captain Nemo and his companions might be able to
exchange thought by means of signs previously agreed
upon. So for want of better, I talked to myself; I de-
82 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
claimed in the copper box which covered my head, thereby
expending more air in vain words than was, perhaps,
expedient.
V^arious kinds of iris, clusters of pure tuft-coral, prickly
fungi, and anemones, formed a brilliant garden of flowers,
whose festoons were waved by the gentle undulations caused
by our walk. It was a real grief to me to crush under my
feet the brilliant specimens of mollusks which strewed the
ground by thousands. But we were bound to walk, so we
went on, while above our heads waved shoals of medusae
whose umbrellas of opal or rose-pink, escalloped with a band
of blue, sheltered us from the rays of the sun, and fiery
pelagiae, which in the darkness would have strewn our path
with phosphorescent light.
All these wonders I saw in the space of a quarter of a
mile, scarcely stopping, and following Captain Nemo, who
beckoned me on by signs. Soon the nature of the soil
changed; to the sandy plain succeeded an extent of slimy
mud, which the Americans call " ooze," composed of equal
parts of silicious and calcareous shells. We then traveled
over a plain of seaweed of wild and luxuriant vegetation.
This sward v^'as of close texture, and soft to the feet, and
rivaled the softest carpet woven by the hand of man. But
while verdure was spread at our feet, it did not abandon
our heads. A light network of marine plants, of that in-
exhaustible family of seaweeds of which more than tw^o
thousand kinds are known, grew on the surface of the
water. I saw long ribbons of fucus floating, of most deli-
cate foliage, and some rhodomenise palmatse resembling the
fan of a cactus. I noticed that the green plants kept nearer
the top of the sea, while the red were at a greater depth,
leaving to the black or brown hydrophytes the care of form-
ing gardens and parterres in the remote beds of the ocean.
We had quitted the Nautilus about an hour and a half.
It was near noon; I knew by the perpendicularity of the
sun's rays, which were no longer refracted. The magical
colors disappeared by degrees, and the shades of emerald
and sapphire were effaced. We walked with a regular step,
which rang upon the ground with astonishing intensity;
the slightest noise was transmitted W'ith a quickness to
which the ear is unaccustomed on the earth ; indeed, water
is a better conductor of sound than air, in the ratio of four
ON THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA 8
o
to one. At this period the earth sloped downward ; the h'ght
took a uniform tint. We were at a depth of a hundred and
five yards and twenty inches, undergoing a pressure of six
atmosplieres.
At this depth I could still see the rays of the sun, though
feebly; to their intense brilliancy had succeeded a reddish
twilight, the lowest state between day and night ; but we
could still see well enough ; it was not necessary to resort
to the Ruhmkorff apparatus as yet. At this moment Cap-
tain Nemo stopped; he waited till I joined him, and then
pointed to an obscure mass, looming in the shadow, at a
short distance.
" It is the forest of the island of Crespo," thought I; and
I was not mistaken.
CHAPTER XVI
A SUBMARINE FOREST
We had at last arrived on the borders of this forest,
doubtless one of the finest of Captain's Nemo's immense
domains. He looked upon it as his own, and considered
he had the same right over it that the first men had in the
first days of the world. And, indeed, who would have dis-
puted with him the possession of this submarine property?
What other hardier pioneer would come, hatchet in hand,
to cut down the dark copses?
This forest was composed of large tree-plants; and the
moment we penetrated under its vast arcades, I was struck
by the singular position of their branches — a position I had
not yet observed.
Not an herb which carpeted the ground, not a branch
which clothed the trees, was either broken or bent, nor did
they extend horizontally; all stretched up to the surface of
the ocean. Not a filament, not a ribbon, however thin they
might be, but kept as straight as a rod of iron. The fuci
and llianas grew in rigid perpendicular lines, due to the
density of the element which had produced them. Motion-
less, yet, when bent to one side by the hand, they directly
resumed their former position. Truly it was the region of
perpendicularity !
1 soon accustomed myself to this fantastic position, as
84 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
well as to the comparative darkness which surrounded us.
The soil of the forest seemed covered with sharp blocks,
difficult to avoid. The submarine flora struck me as being
very perfect, and richer even than it would have been in
the arctic or tropical zones, where these productions are not
so plentiful. But for some minutes I involuntarily con-
founded the genera, taking zoophytes for hydrophytes, ani-
mals for plants; and who would not have been mistaken?
The fauna and the flora are too closely allied in this sub-
marine world.
These plants are self-propagated, and the principle of
their existence is in the water, which upholds and nourishes
them. The greater number, instead of leaves, shoot forth
blades of capricious shapes comprised within a scale of
colors — pink, carmine, green, olive, fawn, and brown. I
saw there (but not dried up, as our specimens of the Nau-
tilus are) pavonari spread like a fan as if to catch the
breeze; scarlet ceramics, whose laminaries extended their
edible shoots of fern-shaped nereocysti, which grow to a
height of fifteen feet; clusters of acetabuli, whose stems
increase in size upward; and numbers of other marine
plants, all devoid of flowers !
" Curious anomaly! fantastic element! " said an ingenious
naturalist, " in which the animal kingdom blossoms, and
the vegetable does not ! "
Under these numerous shrubs (as large as trees of the
temperate zone), and under their damp shadow, were massed
together real bushes of li^•ing flowers, hedges of zoophytes,
on which blossomed some zebra-meandrines, with crooked
grooves; some yellow caryophyllise ; and to complete the
illusion, the fish-flies flew from branch to branch like a
swarm of humming-birds, while yellow lepisacomthi, with
bristling jaws, dactylopteri, and monocentrides rose at our
feet like a flight of snipes.
In about an hour Captain Nemo gave the signal to halt.
I, for my part, was not sorry, and we stretched ourselves
under an arbor of alariae, the long thin blades of which
stood up like arrows.
This short rest seemed delicious to me; there was nothing
wanting but the charm of conversation; but, impossible to
speak, impossible to answer, T only put my great copper
head to Conseil's. I saw the worthy fellow's eyes glistening
A SUBMARLXE FOREST 85
with delight, and to show his satisfaction he shook himself
in his breastplate of air, in the most comical way in the
world.
After four hours of this walking I was surprised not to
find myself dreadfully hungry. How to account for this
state of the stomach I could not tell. But instead I felt an
insurmountable desire to sleep, which happens to all divers.
And my eyes soon closed behind the thick glasses, and I
fell into a heavy slumber, which the movement alone had
prevented before. Captain Nemo and his robust compan-
ion, stretched in the clear crystal, set us the example.
How long I remained buried in this drowsiness I cannot
judge; but when I woke, the sun seemed sinking toward
the horizon. Captain Nemo had already risen, and I was
beginning to stretch my limbs, when an unexpected appari-
tion brought me briskly to my feet.
A few steps off, a monster sea-spider, about thirty-eight
inches high, was watching me with squinting eyes, ready
to spring upon me. Though my diver's dress was thick
enough to defend me from the bite of this animal, I could
not help shuddering with horror. Conseil and the sailor
of the Nautilus awoke at this moment. Captain Nemo
pointed out the hideous crustacean, which a blow from the
butt end of the gun knocked over, and I saw the horrible
claws of the monster writhe in terrible convulsions. This
accident reminded me that other anmials more to be feared
might haunt these obscure depths, against whose attacks
my diving-dress would not protect me. I had never
thought of it before, but I now resolved to be upon my
guard. Indeed, I thought that this halt would mark the
termination of our walk; but I was mistaken, for, instead
of returning to the Nautilus, Captain Nemo continued his
bold excursion. The ground was still on the incline, its
declivity seemed to be getting greater, and to be leading us
to greater depths. It must have been about three o'clock
when we reached a narrow valley, between high perpen-
dicular walls, situated about seventy-five fathoms deep.
Thanks to the perfection of our apparatus, we were forty-
five fathoms below the limit which nature seems to have
imposed on man as to his submarine excursions.
I say seventy-five fathoms, though I had no instrument
by which to judge the distance. But I knew that even in
86 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
the clearest waters the solar rays could not penetrate fur-
ther. And accordingly the darkness deepened. At ten
paces not an object was visible. I was groping my way,
when I suddenly saw a brilliant white Hght. Captain Nemo
had just put his electric apparatus into use; his companion
did the same, and Conseil and I followed their example.
By turning a screw I established a communication between
the wire and the spiral glass, and the sea, lit by our four
lanterns, was brilliantly illuminated for a circle of thirty-
six yards.
Captain Nemo was still plunging into the dark depths of
the forest, whose trees were getting scarcer at every step.
I noticed that vegetable life disappeared sooner than animal
life. The medusre had already abandoned the arid soil,
from which a great number of animals, zoophytes, articu-
lata, mollusks, and fishes, still obtained sustenance.
As we walked, I thouglit the light of our Ruhmkorf¥ ap-
paratus could not fail to draw some inhabitant from its dark
couch. But if they did approach us, they at least kept at
a respectful distance from the hunters. Several times I
saw Captain Nemo stop, put his gun to his shoulder, and
after some moments drop it and walk on. At last, after
about four hours, this marvelous excursion came to an end.
A wall of superb rocks, in an imposing mass, rose before
us, a heap of gigantic blocks, an enormous steep granite
shore, forming dark grottoes, but which presented no prac-
ticable slope; it was the prop of the island of Crespo. It
was the earth ! Captain Nemo stopped suddenly. A ges-
ture of his brought us all to a halt; and however desirous I
might be to scale the wall, I was obliged to stop. Here
ended Captain Nemo's domains, and he would not go be-
yond them. Further on was a portion of the globe he might
not trample upon.
The return began. Captain Nemo had returned to the
head of his little band, directing their course without hesi-
tation. I thought we were not following the same road to
return to the N'autilus. The new road was very steep, and
consequently very painful. We approached the suface of
the sea rapidly. But this return to the upper strata was not
so sudden as to cause relief from the pressure too rapidly,
which might have produced serious disorder in our organi-
zation, and brought on internal lesions, so fatal to divers.
A SUBMARINE FOREST 87
Very soon light reappeared and grew, and the sun being
low on the horizon, the refraction edged the different ob-
jects with a spectral ring. At ten yards and a half deep, we
walked amid a shoal of little fishes of all kinds, more numer-
ous than the birds of the air, and also more agile; but no
aquatic game worthy of a shot had as yet met our gaze,
when at that moment I saw the captain shoulder his gun
quickly, and follow a moving object into the shrubs. He
fired — I heard a slight hissing, and the creature fell stunned
at some distance from us. It was a magnificent sea-otter,
an enhydrus, the only exclusively marine quadruped. This
otter was five feet long, and must have been very valuable.
Its skin, chestnut-brown above and silvery underneath,
would have made one of those beautiful furs so sought after
in the Russian and Chinese markets; the fineness and the
luster of its coat would certainly fetch £80. I admired this
curious mammal, with its rounded head ornamented with
short ears, its round eyes, and white whiskers like those of
a cat, with webbed feet and nails, and tufted tail. This
precious animal, hunted and tracked by fishermen, has now
become very rare, and taken refuge chiefly in the northern
parts of the Pacific, or probably its race would soon become
extinct.
Captain Nemo's companion took the beast, threw it over
his shoulder, and we continued our journey. For one hour
a plain of sand lay stretched before us. Sometimes it rose
to within two yards and some inches of the surface of the
water. I then saw our image clearly reflected, drawn in-
versely, and above us appeared an identical group reflecting
our movements and our actions ; in a word, like us in every
point, except that they walked with their heads downward
and their feet in the air.
Another effect I noticed, which was the passage of thick
clouds, which formed and vanished rapidly; but on reflec-
tion I understood that these seeming clouds were due to
the varying thickness of the reeds at the bottom, and I
cou'ld even see the fleecy foam wliich their broken tops
multiplied on the water, and the shadows of large birds
passing above our heads, whose rapid flight I could discern
on the surface of the sea.
On this occasion I was witness to one of the finest gun-
shots which ever made the nerves of a hunter thrill. A
88 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
large bird of great breadth of wing, clearly visible, ap-
proached, hovering over us. Captain Nemo's companion
shouldered his gun and fired, when it was only a few yards
above the waves. The creature fell stunned, and the force
of its fall brought it within the reach of the dexterous
hunter's grasp. It was an albatross of the finest kind.
Our march had not been interrupted by this incident.
For two hours we followed these sandy plains, then fields
of algae very disagreeable to cross. Candidly, I could do no
more when I saw a glimmer of light, which for a half mile
broke the darkness of the waters. It was the lantern of the
Nautilus. Before twenty minutes were over we should be
on board, and I should be able to breathe with ease; for it
seemed that my reservoir supplied air very deficient in oxy-
gen. But I did not reckon an accidental meeting, which
delayed our arrival for some time.
I had remained some steps behind, when I presently saw
Captain Nemo coming hurriedly toward me. With his
strong hand he bent me to the ground, his companion doing
the same to Conseil. At first I knew not what to think of
this sudden attack, but I was soon reassured by seeing the
captain lie down beside me, and remain immovable.
I was stretched on the ground, just under shelter of a bush
of algae, when, raising my head, I saw some enormous mass,
casting phosphorescent gleams, pass blusteringly by.
My blood froze in my veins as I recognized two formid-
able sharks which threatened us. It was a couple of tin-
toreas, terrible creatures, with enormous tails and a dull
glassy stare, the phosphorescent matter ejected from holes
pierced around the muzzle. Monstrous brutes ! which would
crush a whole man in their iron jaws. I did not know
whether Conseil stopped to classify them; for my part, I
noticed their silver bellies, and their huge mouths bristling
with teeth, from a very unscientific point of view, and more
as a possible victim than as a naturalist.
Happily the voracious creatures do not see well. They
passed without seeing us, brushing us with their brownish
fins, and we escaped by a miracle from a danger certainly
greater than meeting a tiger full-face in the forest. Half
an hour after, guided by the electric light, we reached the
Nautilus. The outside door had been left open, and Cap-
tain Nemo closed it as soon as we had entered the first
A SUBMARINE FOREST 89
cell. He then pressed a knob. I heard the pumps work-
ing in the midst of the vessel. I felt the water sinking
from around me, and in a few moments the cell was
entirely empty. The inside door then opened, and we en-
tered the vestry. There our diving-dress was taken off, not
without some trouble; and, fairly worn out from want of
food and sleep, I returned to my room, in great wonder at
this surprising excursion at the bottom of the sea.
CHAPTER XVn
FOUR THOUSAND LEAGUES UNDER THE PACIFIC
The next morning, the i8th of November, I had quite
recovered from my fatigues of the day before, and I went
up on to the platform, just as the second lieutenant was
uttering his daily phrase.
I was admiring the magnificent aspect of the ocean when
Captain Nemo appeared. He did not seem to be aware of
my presence, and began a series of astronomical observa-
tions. Then, when he had finished, he went and leaned on
the cage of the watchlight, and gazed abstractedly on the
ocean. In the meantime, a number of the sailors of the
Nautilus, all strong and healthy men, had come up on to
the platform. They came to draw up the nets that had
been laid all night. These sailors were evidently of differ-
ent nations, although the European type was visible in all
of them. I recognized some unmistakable Irishmen,
Frenchmen, some Slavs, and a Greek or a Candiote. They
were civil, and only used that odd language among them-
selves, the origin of which I could not guess, neither could
I question them.
The nets were hauled in. They were a large kind of
" chaluts," like those on the Normandy coast, great pockets
that the waves and a chain fixed in the smaller meshes kept
open. These pockets, drawn by iron poles, swept through
the water, and gathered in everything in their way. That
day they brought up curious specimens from those produc-
tive coasts — fishing-frogs that, from their comical move-
ments, have acquired the name of buffoons; black com-
mersons, furnished with antennae; trigger-fish, encircled
with red bands; orthragorisci, with very subtle venom; some
90 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
olive-colored lampreys; macrorhynci, covered with silvery
scales; trichiuri, the electric power of which is equal to that
of the gymnotus and cramp-fish ; scaly notopteri, with trans-
verse brown bands; greenish cod; several varieties of gobies,
etc.; also some larger fish; a caranx with a prominent head
a yard long; several fine bonitos, streaked with blue and
silver; and three splendid tunnies, which, spite of the swift-
ness of their motion, had not escaped the net.
I reckoned that the haul had brought in more than nine
hundredweight of fish. It was a fine haul, but not to be
wondered at. Indeed, the nets are let down for several
hours, and inclose in their meshes an infinite variety. We
had no lack of excellent food, and the rapidity of the Nau-
tilus and the attraction of the electric light could always
renew our supply. These several productions of the sea
were immediately lowered through the panel to the stew-
ard's room, some to be eaten fresh, and others pickled.
The fishing ended, the provision of air renewed, I thought
that the Nautilus was about to continue its submarine excur-
sion, and was preparing to return to my room, when, with-
out further preamble, the captain turned to me, saying:
" Professor, is not this ocean gifted with real life? It has
its tempers and its gentle moods. Yesterday it slept as we
did, and now it has woke after a quiet night. Look! " he
continued, " it wakes under the caresses of the sun. It is
going to renew its diurnal existence. It is an interesting
study to watch the play of its organization. It has a pulse,
arteries, spasms; and I agree with the learned Maury, who
discovered in it a circulation as real as the circulation of
blood in animals. Yes, the ocean has indeed circulation,
and to promote it, the Creator has caused things to multiply
in it — caloric, salt, and animalculas."
When Captain Nemo spoke thus, he seemed altogether
changed, and aroused an extraordinary emotion in me.
"Also," he added, "true existence is there; and I can
imagine the foundations of nautical towns, clusters of sub-
marine houses, which, like the Nautilus, would ascend every
morning to breathe at the surface of the water — free towns,
independent cities. Yet who knows whether some
despot "
Captain Nemo finished his sentence with a violent ges-
ture. Then, addressing me as if to chase away some sor-
UNDER THE PACIFIC 91
rowful thought, " M. Aronnax," he asked, " do you know
the depth of the ocean? "
" I only know, captain, what the principal soundings have
taught us."
*' Could you tell me them, so that I can suit them to my
purpose? "
"These are some," I replied, "that I remember. If I
am not mistaken, a depth of 8,000 yards has been found in
the North Atlantic, and 2,500 yards in the Mediterranean.
The most remarkable soundings have been made in the
South Atlantic, near the 35th parallel, and they gave 12,000
yards, 14.000 yards, and 15,000 yards. To sum up all, it is
reckoned that if the bottom of the sea were leveled, its mean
depth would be about one and three-quarter leagues."
" Well, professor," replied the captain, " we shall show
you better than that, I hope. As to the mean depth of this
part of the Pacific, I tell you it is only 4,000 yards."
Having said this, Captain Nemo went toward the panel,
and disappeared down the ladder. I followed him, and
went into the large drawing-room. The screw was imme-
diately put in motion, and the log gave twenty miles an
hour.
During the days and weeks that passed, Captain Nemo
was very sparing in his visits. I seldom saw him. The
lieutenant pricked the ship's course regularly on the chart,
so I could always tell exactly the route of the Nautilus.
Nearly every day, for some time, the panels of the draw-
ing-room were opened, and we were never tired of pene-
trating the mysteries of the submarine world.
The general direction of the Nautilus was southeast, and
it kept betw-een 100 and 150 yards of depth. One day,
however, I do not know why, being drawn diagonally by
means of the inclined planes, it touched the bed of the sea,
The thermometer indicated a temperature of 4.25 (Cent.) ;
a temperature that at this depth seemed common to all
latitudes.
At three o'clock on the morning of the 26th of November,
the Nautilus crossed the tropic of Cancer at 172° longitude.
On the 27th instant it sighted the Sandwich Islands, where
Cook died, February 14, 1779. We had then gone 4,860
leagues from our starting-point. In the morning, when I
went on the platform, I saw, two miles to windward,
92 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
Hawaii, the largest of the seven islands that form the group.
I saw clearly the cultivated ranges, and the several moun-
tain-chains that run parallel with the side, and the volca-
noes that overtop Mouna-Rea, which rises 5,000 yards above
the level of the sea. Besides other things the nets brought up
were several flabellarise and graceful polypi, that are peculiar
to that part of the ocean. The direction of the Nautilus
was still to the southeast. It crossed the equator December
I, in 142° longitude; and on the 4th of the same month,
after crossing rapidly and without anything particular oc-
curring, we sighted the Marquesas group. I saw, three
miles off, at 8° 57' latitude south, and 139° 32' west longi-
tude, Martin's peak in Nouka-Hiva, the largest of the group
that belongs to France. I only saw the woody mountains
against the horizon, because Captain Nemo did not wish to
bring the ship to the wind. There the nets brought up beau-
tiful specimens of fish; choryphenes, with azure fins and
tails like gold, the flesh of which is unrivaled; hologymnoses,
nearly destitute of scales, but of exquisite flavor! ostorhynes,
with bony jaws, and yellow-tinged thasards, as good as
bonitos ; all fish that would be of use to us. After leaving
these charming islands protected by the French flag, from
the 4th to the nth of December the Nautilus sailed over
about 2,000 miles. This navigation was remarkable for the
meeting with an immense shoal of calmars, near neighbors
to the cuttle. The French fisherman call them hornets; they
belong to the cephalopod class, and to the dibranchial family,
that comprehends the cuttles and the argonauts. These
animals were particularly studied by students of antiquity,
and they furnished numerous metaphors to the popular
orators, as well as excellent dishes for the tables of the rich
citizens, if one can believe Athenrsus, a Greek doctor, who
lived before Galen. It was during the night of the 9th or
loth of December that the Nautilus came across this shoal
of mollusks, that are peculiarly nocturnal. One could count
them by millions. They emigrate from the temperate to the
warmer zones, following the track of herrings and sardines.
We watched them through the thick crystal panes, swim-
ming down the wind with great rapidity, moving by means
of their locomotive tube, pursuing fish and mollusks. eating
the little ones, eaten by the big ones, and tossing abont in
indescribable confusion the ten arms that nature has placed
UNDER THE PACIFIC 93
on their heads hke a crest of pneumatic serpents. The
Nmitiliis, in spite of its speed, sailed for several hours in the
midst of these animals, and it nets brought in an enormous
quantity, among which I recognized the nine species that
D'Orbigny classed for the Pacific. One saw, while cross-
ing, that the sea displays the most wonderful sights. They
were in endless variety. The scene changed continually,
and we were called upon not only to contemplate the works
of the Creator in the midst of the liquid element, but to
penetrate the awful mysteries of the ocean.
During the daytime of the nth of December, I was busy
reading in the large drawing-room. Ned Land and Conseil
watched the luminous water through the half-open panels.
The Nautilus was immovable. Wliile its reservoirs were
filled, it kept at a depth of 1,000 yards, a region rarely
visited in the ocean, and in which large fish were seldom
seen.
I was then reading a charming book by Mace, " The
Slaves of the Stomach," and was learning some valuable
lessons from it, when Conseil interrupted me. " Will mas-
ter come here a moment? " he said in a curious voice.
" What is the matter, Conseil? "
" I want master to look."
I rose, went and leaned on my elbows before the panes,
and watched. In a full electric light, an enormous black
mass, quite immovable, was suspended in the midst of the
waters. I watched it attentively, seeking to find out the
nature of this gigantic cetacean. But a sudden thought
crossed my mind. " A vessel ! " I said, half aloud.
" Yes," replied the Canadian, " a disabled ship that has
sunk perpendicularly."
Ned Land was right; v/e were close to a vessel of which
the tattered shrouds still hung from tlieir chains. The keel
seemed to be in good order, and it had been wrecked at most
some few hours. Three stumps of masts, broken off about
two feet above the bridge, showed that the vessel had had to
sacrifice its masts. But, lying on its side, it had filled, and it
was heeling over to port. This skeleton of what it had once
been was a sad spectacle as it lay lost under the waves ; but
sadder still was the sight of the bridge, wdiere some corpses,
bound with ropes, were still lying. I counted five — four
men, one of whom was standing at the helm, and a woman
94 TWENTY THOUSAND LE.\GUES
standing by the poop holding an infant in her arms. She
was quite young. I could distinguish her features, which
the water had not decomposed, by the brilliant light from
the Nautilus. In one despairing effort, she had raised her
infant above her head, poor little thing! whose arms en-
circled its mother's neck. The attitude of the four sailors
was frightful, distorted as they were by their convulsive
movements, while making a last effort to free themselves
from the cords that bound them to the vessel. The steers-
man alone, calm, with a grave, clear face, his gray hair
glued to his forehead, and his hand clutching the wheel of
the helm, seemed even then to be guiding the three broken
masts through the depths of the ocean.
What a scene ! We were dumb ; our hearts beat fast be-
fore this shipwreck, taken as it were from life, and photo-
graphed in its last moments. And I saw already, coming
toward it with hungry eyes, enormous sharks, attracted by
the human flesh.
The Nautilus, turning, went round the submerged vessel,
and I read on the stern The Florida, Sunderland.
CHAPTER XVHI
VANIKORO
This terrible spectacle was the forerunner of the series
of maritime catastrophes that the Nautilus was destined to
meet with in its route. As long as it went through more
frequented waters, we often saw the hulls of shipwrecked
vessels that were rotting in the depths, and, deeper down,
cannons, bullets, anchors, chains, and a thousand other
iron materials eaten up by rust. On the nth of December,
we sighted the Pomotou Islands, the old " dangerous
group " of Bougainville, that extend over a space of 500
leagues at E. S. E. to W. N. W., from the Island Ducie to
that of Lazareff. This group covers an area of 370 square
leagues, and it is formed of sixty groups of islands, among
which the Gambler group is remarkal^lc, over which France
exercises sway. These are coral islands, slowly raised, but
continuous, created by the daily work of polypi. Then
this new island will be joined later on to the neighboring
groups, and a fifth continent will stretch from New Zea-
VANIKORO 95
land and New Caledonia, and from thence to the ISIar-
quesas.
One day, when I was suggesting this theory to Captain
Nemo, he replied coldly :
" The earth does not want any more new continents, but
new men."
Chance had conducted the Nautilus toward the island
of Clcrmont-Tonnerre, one of the most curious of the
group that was discovered in 1822 by Captain Bell of the
Minerva. I could study now the madreporal system, to
which are due the islands in this ocean.
jMadrepores (which must not be mistaken for corals)'
have a tissue lined with a calcareous crust, and the modifi-
cations of its structure have induced M. Milne-Edwards,
my worthy master, to class them into five sections. The
animalcul?e that the marine polypus secretes live by mil-
lions at the bottom of their cells. Their calcareous de-
posits become rocks, reefs, and large and small islands.
Here they form a ring, surrounding a little inland lake,
that communicates with the sea by means of gaps. There
they make barriers of reefs like those on the coast of New
Caledonia and the various Pomotou islands. In other
places, like those at Reunion and at Maurice, they raise
fringed reefs, high, straight walls, near which the depth of
the ocean is considerable.
Some cable-lengths off the shores of the island of Cler-
mont, I admired the gigantic work accomplished by these
microscopical workers. These walls are specially the work
of those madrepores known as milleporas, porites, madre-
pores, and astrasas. These polypi are found particularly
in the rough beds of the sea, near the surface; and conse-
quently it is from the upper part that they begin their ope-
ratiops in which they bury themselves by degrees with the
debris of the secretions that support them. Such is, at
least, Darwin's theory, who thus explains the formation of
the atolls, a superior theory (to my mind) to that given of
the foundation of the madreporical works, summits of
mountains or volcanoes, that are submerged some feet be-
low the level of the sea.
I could observe closely these curious walls, for perpen-
dicularly they were more than 300 yards deep, and our
electric sheets lighted up this calcareous matter brilliantly.
96 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
Replying to a question Conseil asked me as to the time
these colossal barriers took to be raised, I astonished him
much by telling him that learned men reckoned it about
the eighth of an inch in a hundred years.
Toward evening Clermont-Tonnerre was lost in the dis-
tance, and the route of the Nautilus was sensibly changed.
After having crossed the tropic of Capricorn in 135° longi-
tude, it sailed W. N. W., making again for the tropical
zone. Although the summer sun was very strong, we did
not suffer from the heat, for at fifteen or twenty fathoms
below the surface the temperature did not rise above from
ten to twelve degrees.
On December 15, we left to the east tlie bewitching
group of the Societies and the graceful Tahiti, queen of
the Pacific. I saw in the morning some miles to the wind-
ward, the elevated summits of the island. These waters
furnished our table with excellent fish, mackerel, bonitos,
and albicores, and some varieties of a sea-serpent called
munirophis.
On the 25th of December the Nautilus sailed into the
midst of the New Hebrides, discovered by Quiros in 1606,
and that Bougainville explored in 1768, and to which Cook
gave its present name in 1773. This group is composed
principally of nine large islands, that form a band of 120
leagues N. N. E. to S. S. W., between 15° and 20° south
latitude, and 164° and 168° longitude. We passed toler-
ably near to the island of Auron, that at noon looked like
a mass of green woods surmounted by a peak of great
height.
That day being Christmas Day, Ned Land seemed to re-
gret sorely the non-celebration of " Christmas," the family
fete of which Protestants are so fond. I had not seen
Captain Nemo for a week when, on the morning of the 27th',
he came into the large drawing-room, always seeming as if
he had seen you five minutes before. I was busily tracing
the route of the Nautilus on the planisphere. The captain
came up to me, put his finger on one spot on the chart,
and said this single word : " Vanikoro."
The effect was magical ! It was the name of the islands
on which La Perouse had been lost! I rose suddenly.
"The Nautilus has brought us to Vanikoro?" I asked.
"Yes, professor," said the captain.
V. V Verno
'13
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p ^-gs^J
1J17 ill'
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time
THE SECRETS OF THE SEA
I ruse, went and leaned on my elbows before ihe panes, and watched.
In a full electric light, an enormous black mass, quite immovable, was
suspended in the midst of the waters. I watched it attentively, seeking
to find out the nature of this gigantic cetacean. But a sudden thought
crossed my mind. "A vessel !'' I said, half aloud.
"Yes," replied the Canadian, "a disabled ship that has sunk per-
pendicularly."
Ned Land vv'as right; we were close to a vessel of which the tattered
shrouds still hung from their chains The keel seemed to be in good
order, and it had been wrecked at most some few hours. Three stumps
of masts, broken off about two feet above the bridge, showed that the
vessel had had to sacrifice its masts. This skeleton of what it had once
been was a sad spectacle as it lay lost under the waves; but sadder still
was the sight of the bridge, where some corpses, bound with ropes,
were still lying. — Page 93.
Vol.6.'
. vli.
VANIKORO 97
" And I can visit the celebrated islands where the
Boussole and the ^Astrolabe struck? "
"If you like, professor."
"When shall we be there?"
" We are there now."
Followed by Captain Nemo, I went up on to the plat-
form, and greedily scanned the horizon.
To the N.E. two volcanic islands emerged, of unequal
size, surrounded by a coral reef that measured forty miles
in circumference.
We were close to Vanikoro, really the one to which
Dumont d'Urville gave the name of Isle de la Recherche,
and exactly facing the little harbor of Vanon, situated in
16° 4' south latitude, and 164° 32' east longitude. The
earth seemed covered with verdure from the shore to the
summits in the interior, that were crowned by Mount
Kapogo, 476 feet high. The NaniilHs, having passed the
outer belt of rocks by a narrow strait, found itself among
breakers where the sea was from thirty to forty fathoms
deep. Under the verdant shade of some mangroves I per-
ceived some savages, who appeared greatly surprised at our
approach. In the long black body, moving between wind
and water, did they not see some formidable cetacean that
they regarded with suspicion?
Just then Captain Nemo asked me what I knew about
the wreck of La Perouse.
" Only what everyone knows, captain," I replied.
" And could you tell me what everyone knows about
it?" he inquired ironically.
" Easily."
I related to him all that the last works of Dumont
d'Urville had made known — works from which the follow-
ing is a brief account:
La Perouse, and his second, Captain de Langle, were
sent by Louis XVI, in 1785, on a voyage of circumnaviga-
tion. They embarked in the corvettes the Boussole and
the 'Astrolabe, neither of which were again heard of. In
1 79 1 the French government, justly uneasy as to the fate
of these two sloops, manned two large merchantmen, the
Recherche and the Esperance, which left Brest the 28th
of September, under tlie command of Bruni d'Entrecas-
teaux.
98 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
Two months after, they learned from Bowen, commander
of the Albemarle, that the debris of shipwrecked vessels
had been seen on the coasts of New Georgia. But D'En-
trecasteaux, ignoring this communication — rather uncer-
tain besides — directed his course toward the Admiralty
Isles, mentioned in a report of Captain Hunter's as being
the place where La Perouse was wrecked.
They sought in vain. The Esperance and the Recherche
passed before Vanikoro without stopping there, and in fact
this voyage was most disastrous, as it cost D'Entrecasteaux
his life, and those of two of his lieutenants, besides several
of his crew.
Captain Dillon, ia shrewd old Pacific sailor, was the first
to find unmistakable traces of the wrecks. On the 15th of
May, 1824, his vessel, the St. Patrick, passed close to
Tikopia, one of the New Hebrides. There a Lascar came
alongside in a canoe, sold him the handle of a sword in
silver, that bore the print of characters engraved on the
hilt. The Lascar pretended that six years before, during
a stay at Vanikoro, he had seen two Europeans that be-
longed to some vessels that had run aground on the reefs
some years ago.
Dillon guessed that he meant La Perouse, whose disap-
pearance had troubled the whole world. He tried to get
on to Vanikoro, where according to the Lascar he would
find numerous debris of the wreck, but winds and tide pre-
yented him,
Dillon returned to Calcutta. There he interested the
(Asiatic Society and the Indian Company in his discovery.
!A vessel, to which was given the name of the Recherche,
yras put at his disposal, and he set out, January 2T), 1827,
accompanied by a French agent.
The Recherche, after touching at several points in the
Pacific, cast anchor before Vanikoro, July 7, 1827, in this
same harbor of Vanon where the Nautilus was at this time.
There it collected numerous relics of the wreck — iron
utensils, anchors, pulley-strops, swivel-guns, an eighteen-
pound shot, fragments of astronomical instruments, a piece
of crown-work, and a bronze clock, bearing this inscrip-
tion: " Bazin m'a fait," the mark of the foundry of the
arsenal at Brest about 1785. There could be no further
doubt.
VANIKORO 99
Dillon, having made all inquiries, stayed in the unlucky-
place till October. Then lie quitted Vanikoro, and directed
his course toward New Zealand; put into Calcutta, April
7, 1828, and returned to France, where he was w^armly
welcomed by Charles X.
But at the same time, without knowing Dillon's move-
ments, Dumont d'Urville had already set out to find the
scene of the wreck. He had learned from a whaler that
same medals and a cross of St. Louis had been found in
the hands of some savages of Louisiade and New Caledonia.
He had then sailed, and two months after Dillon had left
Vanikoro, he put into Hobart Town. There he learned
the results of Dillon's inquiries, and found that a certain
James Hobbs, second lieutenant of the Union, of Calcutta,
after landing on an island situated 8° 18' south latitude,
and 156° 30' east longitude, had seen some iron bars and
red stuffs used by the natives of these parts. Dumont
d'Urville, much perplexed, and not knowing how to credit
the reports of low-class journals, decided to follow Dillon's
track.
On the loth of February, 1828, the Astrolabe appeared
off Tikopia, and took as guide and interpreter a deserter
found on the island; made his way to Vanikoro, sighted it
on the I2th inst., lay among the reefs until the 14th, and
not until the 20th did he cast anchor wdthin the barrier in
the harbor of Vanon.
On the 23d, several officers went round the island, and
brought back some unimportant trifles. The natives,
adopting a system of denials and evasions, refused to take
them to the unlucky place. This ambiguous conduct led
them to belie\e that the natives had ill-treated the cast-
aways, and indeed they seemed to fear that Dumont d'Ur-
ville had come to avenge La Perouse and his unfortunate
crew.
However, on the 26th, appeased by some presents, and
understanding that they had no reprisals to fear, they led
M. Jacquireot to the scene of the wreck.
There, in three or four fathoms of water, between the
reefs of Pacou and Vanou, lay anchors, cannons, pigs of
lead and iron, imbedded in the limy concretions. The
large boat and the whaler belonging to the Astrolabe were
sent to this place, and, not without some difficulty, their
100 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
crews hauled up an anchor weighing i,8oo pounds, a brass
gun, some pigs of iron, and two copper swivel-guns.
Dumont d'Urville, questioning the natives, learned, too,
that La Perouse, after losing both his vessels on the reefs
of this island, had constructed a smaller boat, only to be
lost a second time. Where? — no one knew.
But the French government, fearing that Dumont d'Ur-
ville was not acquainted with Dillon's movements, had sent
the sloop Bayonnaise, commanded by Legoarant de Trome-
lin, to Vanikoro. The Bayonnaise cast her anchor before
Vanikoro some months after the departure of the Astrolabe.
She found no new evidence but stated that the savages had
respected the monument to La Perouse. That is the sub-
stance of what I told to Captain Nemo.
" So," he said, " no one knows now where the third
vessel perished that was constructed by the castaways on
the island of Vanikoro? "
" No one knows."
Captain Nemo said nothing, but signed me to follow him
into the large salon. The Nautilus sank several 3'-ards be-
low the waves, and the panels were opened.
I hastened to the aperture, and under the crustations of
coral, covered with fungi, syphonules, alcyons, madre-
pores, through myriads of charming fish — girelles, g\y~
phisidri, pompherides, diacopes, and holocentres — I recog-
nized certain debris that the drags had not been able to
tear up : iron stirrups, anchors, cannons, bullets, capstan-
fittings, the stem of a ship — all objects clearly proving the
wreck of some vessel, and now carpeted with living flowers.
While I was looking on this desolate scene, Captain
Nemo said, in a sad voice, " Commander La Perouse set
out December 7, 1785, with his vessels La Bousolle and the
^Astrolabe. He first cast anchor at Botany Bay, visited the
Friendly Isles, New Caledonia, then directed his course
toward Santa Cruz, and put into Namouka, one of the
Hapa'i group. Then his vessel struck on the unknown
reefs of Vanikoro. The Bousolle, which went first, ran
aground on the southerly coast. The Astrolabe went to its
help, and ran aground too. The first vessel w-as destroyed
almost immediately. The second, stranded under the
wind, resisted some days. The natives made the cast-
aw^ays welcome. They installed themselves in the island,
VANIKORO loi
and constructed a smaller boat with the debris of the two
large ones. Some sailors stayed willingly at Vanikoro;
the others, weak and ill, set out with La Perouse. They
directed their course toward the Solomon Isles, and there
perished, with everything, on the westerly coast of the chief
island of the group, between Capes Deception and Satis-
faction."
" How do you know that? "
" By this, that I found on the spot where was the last
wreck."
Captain Nemo showed me a tin-plate box, stamped with
the French arms, and corroded by the salt water. He
opened it, and I saw a bundle of papers, yellow but still
readable. They were the instructions of the naval minis-
ter to Commander La Perouse, annotated in the margin in
Louis XVL's handwriting.
" Ah ! it is a fine death for a sailor ! " said Captain Nemo,
at last. " A coral tomb makes a quiet grave ; and I trust
that I and mv comrades will find no other."
CHAPTER XIX
TORRES STRAITS
During the night of the 27th of December, the Nautilus
left the shores of Vanikoro with great speed. Her course
was southwesterly, and in three days she had gone over the
750 leagues that separated it from La Perouse's group and
the southeast point of Papua.
Early on the ist of January, 1863, Conseil joined me on
the platform. " Master, will you pennit mc to wish you
a happy new year? "
"What! Conseil; exactly as if I was at Paris in my
study at the Jardin des Plantes ? Well, I accept your good
wishes, and thank you for them. Only, I will ask you what
you mean by a * happy new year,' under our circumstances?
Do you mean the year that will bring us to the end of our
imprisonment, or the year that sees us continue this strange
voyage ? "
" Really, I do not know how to answer, master. We are
sure to see curious things, and for the last two months we
have not had time for cnniii. The last marvel is always
I02 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
the most astonishing; and if we continue this progression,
I do not know how it will end. It is my opinion that we
shall never again see the like. I think, then, with no of-
fense to master, that a happy year would be one in which
we could see everything."
On January 2, we had made 11,340 miles, or 5,250
French leagues, since our starting-point in the Japan seas.
Before the ship's head stretched the dangerous shores of
the coral sea, on the northeast coast of Australia. Our
boat lay along some miles from the redoubtable bank on
which Cook's vessel was lost, June 10, 1770. The boat in
which Cook was, struck on a rock, and if it did not sink, it
was owing to a piece of the coral that was broken by the
shock, and fixed itself in the broken keel.
I had wished to visit the reef, 360 leagues long, against
which the sea, always rough, broke with great violence,
with a noise like thunder. But just then the inclined
planes drew the Nautilus down to a great depth, and I
could see nothing of the high coral walls. Two days after
crossing the coral sea, January 4, we sighted the Papuan
coasts. On this occasion. Captain Nemo informed me that
his intention was to get into the Indian Ocean by the Strait
of Torres. His communication ended there.
The Torres Straits are nearly thirty- four leagues wide;
but they are obstructed by an innumerable quantity of is-
lands, islets, breakers, and rocks, that make its navigation
almost impracticable; so that Captain Nemo took all need-
ful precautions to cross them. The Nantilits, floating be-
twixt wind and water, went at a moderate pace. Her
screw, like a cetacean's tail, beat the waves slowly.
Profiting by this, I and my two companions went up on
to the deserted platform. Before us was the steersman's
cage, and I expected that Captain Nemo was there direct-
ing the course of the Naufiliis. I had before me the ex-
cellent cliarts of the Strait of Torres, made out by the
hydrographical engineer Vincendon Dumoulin. These and
Captain King's are the best charts that clear the intricacies
of this strait, and I consulted them attentively. Round the
Nautilus the sea dashed furiousl3^ The course of the
waves, that went from southeast to northwest at the rate
of two and a half miles, broke on the coral that showed
itself here and there.
TORRES STRAITS 103
" This is a bad sea ! " remarked Ned Land.
" Detestable indeed, and one that does not suit a boat
like the Nautilus."
" The captain must be very sure of his route, for I see
there pieces of coral that would do for its keel if it only
touched them slightly."
Indeed the situation was dangerous, but the Nautilus
seemed to slide like magic off these rocks. It did not fol-
low the routes of the Astrolabe and the Zelce exactly, for
they proved fatal to Dumont d'Urville. It bore more
northward, coasted the island of Murray, and came back
to the southwest toward Cumberland Passage. I thought
it was going to pass it by, when, going back to northwest,
it went through a large quantity of islands and islets little
known, toward the Island Sound and Canal Mauvais.
I wondered if Captain Nemo, foolishly imprudent,
would steer his vessel into that pass where Dumont d'Ur-
ville's two corvettes touched; when, swerving again, and
cutting straight through to the west, he steered for the is-
land of Gilboa.
It was then three in the afternoon. The tide began to
recede, being quite full. The Nautilus approached the is-
land, that I still saw, with its remarkable border of screw-
pines. He stood off it at about two miles distant. Sud-
denly a shock overthrew me. The Nautilus just touched
a rock, and stayed immovable, laying lightly to port side.
When I rose, I perceived Captain Nemo and his lieu-
tenant on the platform. They were examining the situa-
tion of the vessel, and exchanging words in their incompre-
hensible dialect.
She was situated thus : two miles, on the starboard side,
appeared Gilboa, stretching from north to west like an
immense arm ; toward the south and east some coral showed
itself, left by the ebb. We had run aground, and in one of
those seas where the tides are middling — a sorry matter for
the floating of the Nautilus. However, the vessel had not
suffered, for her keel was solidly joined. But if she could
neither glide off nor move, she ran the risk of being for-
ever fastened to these rocks, and then Captain Nemo's
submarine vessel would be done for.
I was reflecting thus, when the captain, cool and calm,
always master of himself, approached me.
104 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" An accident? " I asked.
" No ; an incident"
" But an incident that will oblige you perhaps to become
an inhabitant of this land from which you flee?"
Captain Nemo looked at me curiously, and made a nega-
tive gesture, as much as to say that nothing would force
him to set foot on terra firma again. Then he said : " Be
sides, M. Aronnax, the Nautilus is not lost; it will carry
you yet into the midst of the marvels of the ocean. I do
not wish to be deprived so soon of the honor of your com-
pany."
*' However, Captain Nemo," I replied, without noticing
the ironical turn of his phrase, ** the Nautilus ran aground
in open sea. Now the tides are not strong in the Pacific;
and if you cannot lighten the Nautilus, I do not see how it
will be rcinflated."
"The tides are not strong in the Pacific; you are right
there, professor; but in Torres Straits, one finds still a
difference of a yard and a half between the level of high
and low seas. To-day is January 4, and in five days the
moon will be full. Now, I shall be very much astonished
if that complaisant satellite does not raise these masses of
water sufficiently, and render me a service that I should be
indebted to her for."
Having said this Captain Nemo, followed by his lieu-
tenant, redescended to the interior of the Nautilus. As
to the vessel, it moved not, and was immovable, as if the
coraline polypi had already walled it up with their inde-
structible cement.
" Well, sir? " said Ned Land, who came up to me after
the departure of the captain.
" Well, friend Ned, we will wait patiently for the tide
on the 9th instant; for it appears that the moon will have
the goodness to pull us off again."
"Really?"
" Really."
" And this captain is not going to cast anchor at all, since
the tide will suffice?" said Conseil simply.
The Canadian looked at Conseil, then shrugged his shoul-
ders.
" Sir, you may believe me when I tell you tliat this
j)iece of iron will navigate neither on nor under the sea
I
TORRES STR.\ITS 105
again; it is only fit to be sold for its weight. I think,
therefore, that the time has come to part company with
Captain Nemo."
" Friend Ned, I do not despair of this stout Nautilus, as
you do ; and in four days we shall know what to hold to on
the Pacific tides. Besides, flight might be possible if we
were in sight of the English or Provencal coasts; but on
the Papuan shores, it is another thing; and it will be time
enough to come to that extremity if the Nautilus does not
recover itself again, which at present I look upon as a
grave event."
" But do they know, at least, how to act circumspectly?
There is an island ; on that island there are trees ; under
those trees, terrestrial animals, bearers of cutlets and roast-
beef, to which I would willingly give a trial."
" In this, friend Ned is right," said Conseil, " and I
agree with him. Could not master obtain permission from
his friend Captain Nemo to put us on land, if only so as
not to lose the habit of treading on the solid parts of our
planet?" '•>-■
" I can ask him, but he will refuse."
"Will master risk it?" asked Conseil, "and we shall
know how to rely upon the captain's amiability."
To my great surprise Captain Nemo gave me the per-
mission I asked for, and he gave it very agreeably, without
even exacting from me a promise to return to the vessel;
but flight across New Guinea might be very perilous, and I
should not have counseled Ned Land to attempt it. Bet-
ter to be a prisoner on board the Nautilus than to fall into
the hands of the natives.
At eight o'clock, armed with guns and hatchets, we got
off the Nautilus. The sea was pretty calm ; a slight breeze
blew on land. Conseil and I rowing, we sped along
quickly, and Ned steered in the straight passage that the
breakers left between them. The boat was well handled,
and moved rapidly.
Ned Land could not restrain his joy. He was like a pris-
oner that had escaped from prison, and knew not that it
was necessary to re-enter it.
" Meat ! We are going to eat some meat ; and what
meat ! " he replied. " Real game ! no, bread, indeed. I
do not say that fish is not good ; we must not abuse it ; but
io6 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
a piece of fresh venison grilled on live coals will agreeably
vary our ordinary course."
" Gourmand! " said Conseil; "he makes my mouth wa-
ter."
" It remains to be seen," I said, " if these forests are full
of game, and if the game is not such as will hunt the hun-
ter himself."
" Well said, M. Aronnax," replied the Canadian, whose
teeth seemed sharpened like the edge of a hatchet; " but I
will eat tiger — loin of tiger — if there is no other quadru-
ped on this island."
" Friend Ned is uneasy about it," said Conseil.
" Whatever it may be," continued Ned Land, " every
animal with four paws without feathers, or with two paws
with feathers, will be saluted by my first shot."
" Very well ! Master Land's imprudences are begin-
ning."
"Never fear, M. Aronnax," replied the Canadian; "I
do not want twenty-five minutes to offer you a dish of my
sort."
At half-past eight the Nautilus' boat ran softly aground,
on a heavy sand, after having happily passed the coral reef
that surrounds the island of Gilboa.
CHAPTER XX
A FEW DAYS ON LAND
I WAS much impressed on touching land. Ned Land
tried the soil with his feet, as if to take possession of it.
However, it was only two months before that we had be-
come, according to Captain Nemo, " passengers on board
the Nautilus/' but, in reality, prisoners of its commander.
Without noticing all the beautiful specimens of Papuan
flora, the Canadian abandoned the agreeable for the useful.
He discovered a cocoa-tree, beat down some of the fruit,
broke them, and we drunk the milk and ate the nut with a
satisfaction that protested against the ordinary food on
the Nautilus.
"Excellent!" said Ned Land.
" Exquisite ! " replied Conseil.
"And I do not think," said the Canadian, "that he
A FEW DAYS ON LAND 107
would object to our introducing a cargo of cocoanuts on
board."
" I do not think he would, but he would not taste thcni,"
" So much the worse for him," said Conseil.
"And so much the better for us," replied Ned Land.
" There will be more for us."
" One word only, Master Land," I said to the harpooner,
who was beginning to ravage another cocoanut-tree.
" Cocoanuts are good things, but before filling the canoe
with them, it would be wise to reconnoiter and see if the
island does not produce some substance not less useful.
Fresli vegetables would certainly be welcome on board the
Naiitiliis/'
"Master is right," replied Conseil; "and I propose to
reserve three places in our vessel : one for fruits, the other
for vegetables, and the third for the venison, of which I
have not yet seen the smallest specimen."
" Conseil, we must not despair," said the Canadian.
" Let us continue," I returned, " and lie in wait. Al-
though the island seems uninhabited, it might still contain
some individuals who would be less sensitive than we on
the nature of game."
"Ho! ho!" said Ned Land, moving his jaws signifi-
cantly.
"Well, Ned!" cried Conseil.
" My word ! " returned the Canadian, " I begin to under-
stand the charms of anthropophagy."
"Ned! Ned! what are you saying? You, a man-eater?
I should not feel safe with you, especially as I share your
cabin. I might perhaps wake one day to find myself half-
devoured."
" Friend Conseil, I like you much, but not enough to eat
you unnecessarily."
" I would not trust you," replied Conseil. " But enough.
We must absolutely bring down some game to satisfy this
cannibal, or else, one of these fine mornings, master will
find only pieces of his servant to serve him."
While we were talking thus, we were penetrating the
somber arches of the forest, and for two hours we surveyed
it in all directions. Chance rewarded our search for eat-
able vegetables, and one of the most useful products of
the tropical zones furnished us with precious food that we
io8 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
missed on board. I speak of the bread-fruit tree, very
abundant in the island of Gilboa.
Ned Land knew these fruits well. He had already eaten
many during his numerous voyages, and he knew how to
prepare the eatable part. Moreover, the sight of them
excited him, and he could contain himself no longer.
" Master," he said, " I shall die if I do not taste a little
of this bread-fruit pie."
" Taste it, friend Ned, taste it as you want. We are
here to make experiments — make them."
" It won't take long," said the Canadian.
And provided with a lentil, he lighted a fire of dead
wood, that crackled joyously. During this time, Conseil
and I chose the best fruits of the artocarpus. Some had
not then attained a sufficient degree of maturity, and their
thick skin covered a white but rather fibrous pulp. Others,
the greater number yellow and gelatinous, waited only to
be picked.
These fruits inclose no kernel. Conseil brought a dozen
to Ned Land, who placed them on a coal fire, after having
cut them in thick slices, and while doing this repeating:
" You will see, master, how good this bread is. Ivlore so
when one has been deprived of it so long. It is not even
bread," added he, " but a delicate pastry. You have eaten
none, master? "
" No, Ned."
"Very well, prepare yourself for a juicy thing. If you
do not come for more, I am no longer the king of har-
pooners."
After some moments, the part of the fruits that was
exposed to the fire was completely roasted. The interior
looked like a white pastry, a sort of soft crumb, the flavor
of which was like that of an artichoke. It must be con-
fessed this bread was excellent, and I ate of it with great
relish.
" What time is it now? " asked the Canadian.
" Two o'clock at least," replied Conseil.
" How time flies on firm ground ! " sighed Ned Land.
" Let us be off," replied Conseil.
We returned through the forest, and completed our
collection by a raid upon the cabbage-palms, that we gath-
ered from the tops of the trees, little beans that I recognized
A FEW DAYS ON LAND 109
as the " abrou " of the Malays, and yams of a superior
quahty,
.We were loaded when we reached the boat. But Ned
Land did not find his provision sufficient. Fate, however,
favored us. Just as we were pushing off, he perceived
several trees, from twenty-five to thirty feet high, a species
of palm tree. These trees, as valuable as the artocarpus,
justly are reckoned among the most useful products of
Alalava.
At last, at five o'clock in the evening, loaded with our
riches, we quitted tlie shore, and half an hour after we
hailed the A'anfilus. No one appeared on our arrival.
The enormous iron-plated cylinder seemed deserted. The
provisions embarked, I descended to my chamber, and after
supper slept soundly.
The next day, January 6, nothing new on board. Not
a sound inside, not a sign of life. The boat rested along
the edge, in the same place in which we had left it. We
resolved to return to the island. Ned Land hoped to be
more fortunate than on the day before with regard to the
hunt, and wished to visit another part of the forest.
At dawn we set ofY. The boat, carried on by the waves
that flowed to shore, reached the island in a very few
minutes.
We landed, and thinking that it was better to give in to
the Canadian, we followed Ned Land, whose long limbs
threatened to distance us. He wound up the coast toward
the west; then, fording some torrents, he gained the high
plain that was bordered with admirable forests. Some
kingfishers were rambling along the water-courses, but
they would not let themselves be approached. Their cir-
cumspection proved to me that these birds knew what to
expect from bipeds of our species, and I concluded that, if
the island was not inhabited, at least human beings occa-
sionally frequented it.
After crossing a rather large prairie, we arrived at the
skirts of a little wood that was enlivened by the songs and
flights of a large number of birds.
" There are only birds! " said Conseil.
But they are eatable." replied the harpooner.
I do not agree with you, friend Ned, for T see only
parrots there."
((
no TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" Friend Conseil," said Ned gravely, " the parrot is like
pheasant to those who have nothing else."
" And," I added, " this bird, suitably prepared, is worth
knife and fork."
Indeed, under the thick foliage of this wood, a world of
parrots were flying from branch to branch, only needing a
careful education to speak the human language. For the
moment, they were chattering with parrots of all colors,
and grave cockatoos, who seemed to meditate upon some
philosophical problem, while brilliant red lories passed like
a piece of bunting carried away by the breeze; papuans,
with the finest azure colors, and in all a variety of winged
things most charming to behold, but few eatable.
However, a bird peculiar to these lands, and which has
never passed the limits of the Arrow and Papuan Islands,
was wanting in this collection. But fortune reserved it for
me before long.
After passing through a moderately thick copse, we
found a plain obstructed with bushes. I saw then those
magnificent birds, the disposition of whose long feathers
obliges them to fly against the wind. Their undulating
flight, graceful aerial curves, and the shading of their col-
ors, attracted and charmed one's looks. I had no trouble
in recognizing them.
" Birds of paradise ! " I exclaimed.
The Malays, who carry on a great trade in these birds
with the Chinese, have several means that we could not
employ for taking them. Sometimes they put snares at the
top of high trees that the birds of paradise prefer to fre-
quent. Sometimes they catch them with a viscous bird-
lime that paralyzes their movements. They even go so far
as to poison the fountain that the birds generally drink
from. But we were obliged to fire at them during flight,
which gave us few chances to bring them down ; and in-
deed, we vainly exhausted one-half of our ammunition.
About eleven o'clock in the morning, the first range of
mountains tliat form the center of the island was traversed,
and we liad killed nothing. Hunger drove us on. The
hunters had relied on the products of the chase, and they
were wrong. Happily Conseil, to his great surprise, made
a double shot and secured breakfast. He brought down a
white pigeon and a wood-pigeon, which, cleverly plucked
A FEW DAYS ON LAND iii
and suspended from a skewer, were roasted before a red
fire of dead wood. While those interesting birds were
cooking, Ned prepared the fruit of the artocarpus. Then
the wood-pigeons were devoured to the bones, and declared
excellent. The nutmeg, with which they are in the habit
of stuffing their crops, flavors their flesh and renders it
delicious eating.
" Now, Ned, what do you miss now ? "
" Some four-footed game, M. Aronnax. All these pig-
eons are only side-dishes and trifles ; and until I have killed
an animal with cutlets, I shall not be content."
" Nor I, Ned, if I do not catch a bird of paradise."
" Let us continue hunting," replied Conseil. " Let us
go toward the sea. We have arrived at the first declivities
of the mountains, and I think we had better regain the
region of forests."
That was sensible advice, and was followed out. After
walking for one hour, we had attained a forest of sago-
trees. Some inoffensive serpents glided away from us.
The birds of paradise fled at our approach, and truly I
despaired of getting near one, when Conseil, who was
walking in front, suddenly bent down, uttered a triumphant
cry, and came back to me bringing a magnificent specimen.
"Ah! bravo, Conseil!"
" JVIaster is very good."
" No, my boy ; you have made an excellent stroke. Take
one of these living birds, and carry it in your hand."
" If master will examine it, he will see that I have not
deserved great merit."
"Why, Conseil?"
" Because this bird is as drunk as a quail."
"Drunk!"
" Yes, sir ; drunk with the nutmegs that it devoured
under the nutmeg-tree under which I found it. See, friend
Ned, see the monstrous effects of intemperance! "
" By Jove ! " exclaimed the Canadian, " because I have
not drunk gin for two months, you must needs reproach
me!"
However, I examined the curious bird. Conseil was
right. The bird, drunk with the juice, was quite power-
less. It could not fly: it could hardly walk.
This bird belonged to the most beautiful of the eight
112 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
species that are found in Papua and in the neighboring
islands. It was the "large emerald bird, the most rare
kind." It measured three feet in length. Its head was
comparatively small, its eyes placed near the opening of
the beak, and also small. But the shades of color were
beautiful, having a yellow beak, brown feet and claws, nut-
colored wings with purple tips, pale yellow at the back of
the neck and head, and emerald color at the throat, chest-
nut on the breast and belly. Two horned downey nets
rose from below the tail, that prolonged the long light
feathers of admirable fineness, and they completed the
whole of this marvelous bird, that the natives have poeti-
cally named the " bird of the sun."
But if my wishes were satisfied by the possession of the
bird of paradise, the Canadian's were not yet. Happily
about two o'clock Ned Land brought down a magnificent
hog, from the brood of those the natives call *' bari-ou-
tang." The animal came in time for us to procure real
quadruped meat, and he was well received. Ned Land
was very proud of his shot. The hog, hit by the electric
ball, fell stone dead. The Canadian skinned and cleaned
it properly, after having taken half a dozen cutlets, des-
tined to furnish us with a grilled repast in the evening.
Then the hunt was resumed, and was still more marked by
Ned and Conseil's exploits.
The two friends, beating the bushes, roused a herd of
kangaroos, that fled and bounded along on their elastic
paws. But these animals did not take flight so rapidly
but what the electric capsule could stop their course.
"Ah, professor!" cried Ned Land, who was carried
away by the delights of the chase, "what excellent game!
and stewed too! What a supply for the Nautilus! two!
three ! five down ! And to think that we shall eat that
flesli, and that the idiots on board shall not have a crumb ! "
I think that, in the excess of his joy, the Canadian, if
he had not talked so much, would have killed them all.
But he contented himself with a single dozen of these in-
teresting marsupians. These animals were small. They
were a species of those " kangaroo rabbits " that live habit-
ually in the hollows of trees, and whose speed is extreme;
but they are moderately fat, and furnish, at least, estimable
food. We were very satisfied with the results of the hunt.
V. V Verno
A FEW DAYS OX LAND 113
Happy Ned proposed to return to this enchanting island
the next day, for he wished to depopulate it of all the eata-
ble quadrupeds. But he reckoned without his host.
At six o'clock in the evening we had regained the shore;
our boat was moored to the usual place. The Naiitilus,
like a long rock, emerged from the waves two miles from
the beach. Ned Land, without waiting, occupied himself
about the important dinner business. He understood all
about cooking well. The " bari-outang," grilled on the
coals, soon scented the air w^ith a delicious odor.
Indeed, the dinner was excellent. Two wood-pigeons
completed this extraordinary vicnu. The sago pasty, the
artocarpus bread, some mangos, half a dozen pineapples,
and the liquid fermented from some cocoanuts, overjoyed
us. I even think that my worthy companions' ideas had
not all the plainness desirable.
" Suppose we do not return to the Nautilus this e\-en-
ing? " said Conseil.
" Suppose we never return? " added Ned Land.
Just then a stone fell at our feet, and cut short the har-
pooner's proposition.
CHAPTER XXI
CAPTAIN nemo's THUNDERBOLT
\\'e looked at the edge of the forest without rising, my
hand stopping in the action of putting it to my mouth.
Ned Land's completing its ofiice.
" Stones do not fall from the sky," remarked Conseil,
" or they would merit the name of aerolites."
A second stone, carefully aimed, that made a savory
pigeon's leg fall from Conseil's hand, gave still more weight
to his observation. We all three arose, shouldered our
guns, and were ready to reply to any attack.
" Are they apes? " cried Ned Land.
Very nearly — they are savages."
To the boat ! " I said, hurrying to the sea.
It was indeed necessary to beat a retreat, for about
twenty natives, anncd with bows and slings, appeared on
the skirts of a copse that masked the horizon to the right,
hardly a hundred steps from us.
it
114 TWENTY THOUSAND LEL\GUES
Our boat was moored about sixtv feet from us. The
savages approached us, not running, but making hostile
demonstrations. Stones and arrows fell thickly,
Ned Land had not wished to leave his provisions; and.
in spite of his imminent danger, his pig on one side, and
kangaroos on the other, he went tolerably fast In two
minutes we were on the shore. To load the boat with
provisions and arms, to push it out to sea, and ship the
oars, was the work of an instant ^^'e had not gone two
cable-lengths when a hundred savages, howling and gesticu-
lating, entered the water up to their waists. I watched to
see if their apparition would attract some men from the
A'autilus on to the plaiform. But no. The enormous ma-
chine, lying off, was absolutely desened.
Twent}- minutes later we were on board. The panels
were open. After making the boat fast, we entered into
the interior of tiie Xauiilus.
I descended to the drawing-room, from whence I heard
some chords. Captain Nemo was there, bending over his
organ, and plunged in a musical ecstasy.
•• Captain! "
He did not hear me.
" Captain I " I said again, touching his hand.
He shuddered, and. turning round, said : *' Ah ! it is you,
professor? Well, have you had a good hunt? Have you
botanized successfully?"
"Yes. captain; but we have unfortunately brought a
troop of bipeds, whose \*icinitv troubles me."
"What bipeds?"
" Savages."
" Savages ! " he echoed ironically. " So you are aston-
ished, professor, at having set foot on a strange land and
finding savages ? Sa\-ages ! where are there not any ? Be-
sides, are they worse than others, these whom you call
savages? ''
" But, captain-
How m.any have you counted?**
" A hundred at least"
" M. Aronnax." replied Captain Nemo, placing his fin-
gers on the organ stops. " when all tlie natives of Papua
are assembled on this shore, the Xautilus will have nothing
to fear from their attacks."
CAPTAIN NEMO'S THUNDERBOLT 115
The captain's fingers were then running over the keys of
tlie instrument, and I remarked that he touched only the
black keys, which gave to his melodies an essentially
Scotch cliaracter. Soon he had forgotten my presence,
and had plunged into a reverie that I did not disturb. I
went up again on to the platform — night had already
fallen; for. in this low latitude, the sun sets rapidly and
without twilight. I could only see the island indistinctly;
but the numerous fires lighted on the beach showed that
the natives did not think of leaving it I was alone for
several hours, sometimes tliinking of the natives — but with-
out any dread of them, for the imperturbable confidence
of tlie captain was catching — sometimes forgetting them
to admire the splendors of the night. !My remembrances
went to France, in the train of those zodiacal stars that
would shine in some hours' time. The moon shone clearly
in the midst of the constellations of the zenith.
The night slipped away without any mischance, tlie
islanders frightened, no doubt, at the sight of a monster
aground in tlie bay. The panels were open, and would
have ottered an easv access to the interior of the Xaufiliis.
At six o'clock in the morning of the Sth of Januan.-, I
went up on to tlie platform. The dawn was breaking.
The island soon showed itself through the dissipating fogs
^ — first the shore, then the summits.
The natives were there, more numerous tlian on the day
before — 500 or 600 perhaps — some of them, profiting by
tlie low water, had come on to the coral, at less than two
cable-lengths from the Xautilits. I distinguished tliem
easily; they were true Papuans, with athletic figures; men
of good race, large high foreheads— large, but not broad,
and fiat — and white teeth. Their woolly hair, with a red-
dish tinge, showed ofif on their black, shining bodies like
those of the Nubians. From the lobes of their ears, cut
and distended, hung chaplets of bones. !Most of these sav-
ages were naked. Among them I remarked some v.-omen
dressed from the hips to tlie knees in quite a crinoline of
herbs, that sustained a vegetable waistband. Some chiefs
had ornamented their necks with a crescent and collars of
glass beads, red and white; nearly all were armed with
bows, arrows, and shields, and carried on their shoulders a
sort of net containing those round stones which they cast
ii6 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
from their slings with great skill. One of these chiefs,
rather near to the Nautilus, examined it attentively. He
was, perhaps, a " mado " of high rank, for he was draped
in a mat of banana leaves notched round the edges, and set
off with brilliant colors.
I could easily have knocked down this native, who was
within a short length; but I thought that it was better to
wait for real hostile demonstrations. Between Europeans
and savages, it is proper for the Europeans to parry sharply,
not to attack.
During low water the natives roamed about near the
Nautilus, but were not troublesome; I heard them fre-
quently repeat the word " Assai," and by their gestures I
understood that they invited me to go on land, an invita-
tion that I declined.
So that, on that day, the boat did not push off, to the
great displeasure of Master Land, who could not complete
his provisions.
This adroit Canadian employed his time in preparing
the viands and meat that he had brought off the island.
As for the savages, they returned to the shore about eleven
o'clock in the morning, as soon as the coral tops began to
disappear under the rising tide; but I saw their numbers
had increased considerably on the shore. Probably they
came from the neighboring islands, or very likely from
Papua. However, I had not seen a single native canoe.
Having nothing better to do, I thought of dragging these
beautiful limpid waters, under which I saw a profusion of
shells, zoophytes, and marine plants. Moreover, it was the
last day that the Nautilus would pass in these parts, if it
float in open sea the next day, according to Captain
Nemo's promise.
I therefore called Conseil, who brought me a little light
drag, very like those for the oyster fishery. Now to work !
For two hours we fished unceasingly, but without bringing
up any rarities. The drag was filled with midas-ears,
harps, melames, and particularly the most beautiful ham-
mers I have ever seen. We also brouglit up some holo-
thurias, pearl oysters, and a dozen little turtles, that were
reserved for the pantry on board.
But just when I expected it least. I put my hand on a
wonder, I miglit say a natural deformity, very rarely met
CAPTAIN NEMO'S THUNDERBOLT 117
with. Conseil was just dragging, and his net came up
filled with divers ordinary shells, when, all at once, he saw
me plunge my arm quickly into the net, to draw out a
shell, and heard me utter a conchological cry, that is to
say, the most piercing cry that human throat can utter.
*' What is the matter, sir? " he asked, in surprise; "has
master been bitten?"
" No, my boy; but I would willingly have given a finger
for my discovery."
"What discovery?"
" This shell." I said, holding up the object of my triumph.
" It is simply an olive porphyry, genus olive, order of the
pectinibranchidK, class of gasteropods, sub-class of mol-
luska."
" Yes, Conseil ; but instead of being rolled from right to
left, this olive turns from left to right."
" Is it possible?"
"Yes, my boy; it is a left shell."
Shells are all right-handed, with rare exceptions; and
when by chance their spiral is left, amateurs are ready to
pay their weight in gold.
Conseil and I were absorbed in the contemplation of our
treasure, and I w'as promising myself to enrich the museum
with it, when a stone, unfortunately thrown by a native,
struck against and broke the precious object in Conseil's
hand. I uttered a cry of despair! Conseil took up his
gun, and aimed at a savage who was poising his sling at
ten yards from him. I would have stopped him, but his
blow took effect, and broke the bracelet of amulets which
encircled the arm of the savage.
"Conseil!" cried I ;" Conseil ! "
",Well, sir! do you not see that the cannibal has com-
menced the attack? "
"A shell is not worth the life of a man," said I.
"Ah! the scoundrel!" cried Conseil; "I would rather
he had broken my shoulder ! "
Conseil was in earnest, but I was not of his opinion.
However, the situation had changed some minutes before,
and we had not perceived. A score of canoes surrounded
the Nautilus. These canoes, scooped out of the trunk of
a tree, long, narrow, well adapted for speed, were balanced
by means of a long bamboo pole, which floated on the
Ii8 • TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
water. They were managed by skillful, half -naked pad-
dlers, and I watched their advance with some uneasiness.
It was evident that these Papuans had already had dealings
with the Europeans, and knew their ships. But this long
iron cylinder anchored in the bay, vv'ithout masts or chim-
ney, what could they think of it? Nothing good, for at
first they kept at a respectful distance. However, seeing
it motionless, by degrees they took courage, and sought to
familiarize themselves with it. Now this familiarity was
precisely what it was necessary to avoid. Our arms, which
were noiseless, could only produce a moderate effect on the
savages, who have little respect for aught but blustering
things. The thunderbolt without the reverberations of
thunder would frighten man but little, though the danger
lies in the lightning, not in the noise.
At this moment the canoes approached the Nautilus,
and a shower of arrows alighted on her.
I went down to the saloon, but found no one there. I
ventured to knock at the door that opened into the captain's
room. " Come in," was the answer.
I entered, and found Captain Nemo deep In algebraical
calculations of x and other quantities.
I am disturbing you," said I, for courtesy's sake.
That is true, M. Aronnax," replied the captain ; " but
I think you have serious reasons for wishing to see me ? "
"Very grave ones; the natives are surrounding us in
their canoes, and in a few minutes we shall certainly be
attacked by many hundreds of savages."
" Ah ! " said Captain Nemo quietly, " they are come with
their canoes? "
" Yes, sir."
" Well, sir, we must close the hatches."
" Exactly, and I came to say to you "
" Nothing can be more simple," said Captain Nemo.
And pressing an electric button, he transmitted an order to
the ship's crew.
" It is all done, sir," said he, after some moments. " The
pinnace is ready, and the hatches are closed. You do not
fear, I imagine, that these gentlemen could stave in walls
on which the balls of your frigate have had no effect? "
" No, captain ; but a danger still exists."
"What is that, sir?"
a
CAPTAIN NEMO'S THUNDERBOLT 119
" It is that to-morrow, at about this hour, we must open
the hatches to renew the air of the NguHIks. Now if, at
this moment, the Papuans should occupy the platform, I
do not see how you could prevent them from entering."
"Then, sir, you suppose that they will board us?"
" I am certain of it,"
" Well, sir, let them come. I see no reason for hindering
them. After all, these Papuans are poor creatures, and I
am unwilling that my visit to the island of Gueberoan should
cost the life of a single one of these wretches."
Upon that I was going away; but Captain Nemo de-
tained me, and asked me to sit down by him. He ques-
tioned me with interest about our excursions on shore, and
our hunting, and seemed not to understand the craving
for meat that possessed the Canadian. Then the conver-
sation turned on various subjects, and without being more
communicative. Captain Nemo showed himself more
amiable.
Among other things, we happened to speak of the situ-
ation of the Naiitikis, run aground in exactly the same spot
in this strait where Dumont d'Urville was nearly lost.
Apropos of this, " This D'Urville was one of your great
sailors," said the captain to me; "one of your most intelli-
gent navigators. He is the Captain Cook of you French-
men. Unfortunate man of science, after having braved
the icebergs of the south pole, the coral reefs of Oceania,
the cannibals of the Pacific, to perish miserably in a rail-
way train! If this energetic man could have reflected dur-
ing the last moments of his life, w4iat must have been
uppermost in his last thoughts, do you suppose ? "
So speaking, Captain Nemo seemed moved, and his emo-
tion gave me a better opinion of him. Then, chart in
hand, we reviewed the travels of the French navigator, his
voyages of circumnavigation, his double detention at the
south pole, which led to the discovery of Adelaide and
Louis Philippe, and fixing the hydrographical bearings of
the principal islands of Oceania.
" That which your D'Urville has done on the surface of
the seas," said Captain Nemo, " that have I done under
them, and more easily, more completely than he. The
^Astrolabe and the Zelia, incessantly tossed about by the
hurricanes, could not be worth the Nautilus, quiet reposi-
120 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
tory of labor that she is, truly motionless in the midst of
the waters."
" To-morrow," added the captain, rising, " to-morrow,
at twenty minutes to three p. m. the Nautilus shall float,
and leave the Strait of Torres uninjured."
Having curtly pronounced these words, Captain Nemo
bowed slightly. This was to dismiss me, and I went back
to my room.
There I found Ccnscil, who wished to know the result
of my interview with the captain.
" My boy," said I, " when I feigned to believe that his
Nautilus was threatened by the natives of Papua, the cap-
tain answered me very sarcastically. I have but one thing
to say to you: Have confidence in him, and go to sleep in
peace."
" Have you no need of my services, sir? "
"No, my friend. What is Ned Land doing?"
" K you will excuse me, sir," answered Conseil, " friend
Ned is extremely busy making a kangaroo-pie, which will
be a marvel."
I remained alone, and went to bed, but slept indifferently.
I heard the noise of the savages, who stamped on the plat-
form, uttering deafening cries. The night passed thus,
without disturbing the ordinary repose of the crew. The
presence of these cannibals affected them no more than the
soldiers of a masked battery care for the ants that crawl
over its front.
At six in the morning I rose. The hatches had not been
opened. The inner air v.-as not renewed, but the reservoirs,
filled ready for any emergency, were now resorted to, and
discharged several cubit feet of oxygen into the exhausted
atmosphere of the Nautilus.
I worked in my room till noon, without having seen
Captain Nemo, even for an instant. On board no prepa-
rations for departure were visible.
I waited still some time, then went into the large saloon.
The clock marked lialf-past two. In ten minutes it would
be high tide, and if Captain Nemo had not made a rash
promise, the Naiiiilns would be immediately detached. H
not, many months would pass ere she could leave her bed
of corah
However, some warning vibrations began to be felt in
CAPTAIN NEMO'S THUNDERBOLT 121
the vessel. I heard the keel grating against the rough,
calcareous bottom of the coral reef.
At live-and-twenty minutes to three, Captain Nemo ap-
peared in the saloon.
" We are going to start," said he.
"Ah!" replied I.
" I have given the order to open the hatches."
"And the Papuans?"
" The Papuans ? " answered Captain Nemo, slightly-
shrugging his shoulders.
" Will they not come inside the Nautilus f "
"How?"
" Only by leaping over the hatches you have opened."
" I\I. Arronax," quietly answered Captain Nemo, " they
will not enter the hatches of the Nautilus in that way, even
if they were open."
I looked at the captain.
"You do not understand?" said he.
" Hardly."
" Well, come and you will see."
I directed my steps toward the central staircase. Tiiere
Ned Land and Conseil were slyly watching some of the
ship's crew, who were opening the hatches, while cries of
rage and fearful vociferations resounded outside.
The port lids were pulled down outside. Twenty horri-
ble faces appeared. But the first native who placed his
hand on the stair-rail, struck from behind by some invisible
force, I know not what, fled, uttering the most fearful
cries, and making the wildest contortions.
Ten of his companions followed him. They met with
the same fate.
Conseil was in ecstasy. Ned Land, carried away by his
violent instincts, rushed on to the staircase. But the mo-
ment he seized the rail with both hands, he, in his turn,
was overthrown.
" I am struck by a thunderbolt," cried he, with an em-
phatic oath.
This explained all. It was no rail, but a metallic cable,
charged with electricity from the deck, communicating
with the platform. Whoever touched it felt a powerful
shock — and this shock would have been mortal, if Captain
Nemo had discharged into the conductor the whole force
122 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
of the current. It might truly be said that between his
asssailants and himself he had stretched a network of elec-
tricity which none could pass with impunity.
Meanwhile, the exasperated Papuans had beaten a re-
treat, paralyzed with terror. As for us, half-laughing, we
consoled and rubbed the unfortunate Ned Land, who swore
like one possessed.
But, at this moment, the Nautilus, raised by the last
waves of the tide, quitted her coral bed exactly at the for-
tieth minute fixed by the captain. Her screw swept the
■waters slowly and majestically. Her speed increased grad-
ually, and sailing on the surface of the ocean, she quitted
safe and sound the dangerous passes of the Straits of
Torres.
CHAPTER XXII
" ^GRI SOMNIA "
The following day, loth January, the Nautilus continued
her course between two seas, but with such remarkable
speed that I could not estimate it at less than thirty-five
miles an hour. The rapidity of her screw was such that I
could neither follow nor count its evolutions. When I
reflected that this marvelous electric agent, after having
afforded motion, heat, and light to the Nautilus, still pro-
tected her from outward attack, and transformed her into
an ark of safety which no profane hand might touch with-
out being thunderstricken, my admiration was unbounded,
and from the structure it extended to the engineer who
had called it into existence.
Our course was directed to the west, and on the nth
January we doubled Cape Wessel, situated in 135° longi-
ture and 10° north latitude, which forms the east point of
the Gulf of Carpentaria. The reefs were still numerous,
but more equalized, and marked on the chart with extreme
precision. The Nautilus easily avoided the breakers of
Money to port, and the Victoria reefs to starboard, placed
at 130° longitude, and on the tenth parallel which we
strictly followed.
On the 13th of January, Captain Nemo arrived in the Sea
of Timor, and recognized the island of that name in 122°
longitude.
"^GRIA SOMNIA" 123
From this point the direction of the Nautilus indined
toward the southwest. Her head was set for the Indian
Ocean. Where would the fancy of Captain Nemo carry
us next? Would he return to the coast of Asia, or would
he approach again the shores of Europe ? Improbable con-
jectures both, for a man who fled from inhabited conti-
nents. Then, would he descend to the south? Was he
going to double the Cape of Good Hope, then Cape Horn,
and finally go as far as the antarctic pole ? Would he come
back at last to the Pacific, where his Nautilus could sail
free and independently? Time would show.
After having skirted the sands of Cartier, of Hibernia,
Seringapatam, and Scott, last efforts of the solid against
the liiiuid elenient, on the 14th January we lost sight of
land altogether. The speed of the Nautilus was consider-
ably abated, and with irregular course she sometimes swam
in the bosom of the waters, sometimes floated on their
surface.
During this period of the voyage, Captain Nemo made
some interesting experiments on the varied temperature of
the sea, in different beds. Under ordinary conditions,
these observations are made by means of rather complicated
instruments, and with somewhat doubtful results, by means
of thermometrical sounding-leads, the glasses often break-
ing under the pressure of the water, or an apparatus
grounded on the variations of the resistance of metals to
the electric currents. Results so obtained could not be
correctly calculated. On the contrary. Captain Nemo went
himself to test the temperature in the depths of the
sea, and his thermometer, placed in communication with
the different sheets of water, gave him the required degree
immediately and accurately.
It was thus that, either by overloading her reservoirs, or
by descending obliquely by means of her inclined planes,
the Nautilus successively attained the depth of three, four,
five, seven, nine, and ten thousand yards, and the definite
result of this experience was, that the sea preserved an
average temperature of four degrees and a half, at a depth
of five thousand fathoms, under all latitudes.
On the 1 6th of January, the Nautilus seemed becalmed,
only a few yards beneath the surface of the waves. Her
electric apparatus remained inactive, and her motionless
124 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
screw left her to drift at the mercy of the currents. I sup-
posed that the crew was occupied with interior repairs, ren-
dered necessary by the violence of the mechanical move-
ments of the machine.
My companions and I then witnessed a curious spectacle.
The hatches of the saloon were open, and as the beacon-
light of the Nautihts was not in action, a dim obscurity
reigned in the midst of the waters. I observed the state of
the sea under these conditions, and the largest fish appeared
to me no more than scarcely defined shadows, when the
Nautilus found herself suddenly transported into full light.
I thought at first that the beacon had been lighted, and
was casting its electric radiance into the liquid mass. I was
mistaken, and after a rapid survey perceived my error.
The Nautilus floated in the midst of a phosphorescent
bed, which, in this obscurity, became quite dazzling. It
was produced by myriads of luminous animalculse, whose
brilliancy was increased as they glided over the metalhc
hull of the vessel. I was surprised by lightning in the
midst of these luminous sheets, as though they had been
rivulets of lead melted in an ardent furnace, or metallic
masses brought to a white heat, so that, by force of con-
trast, certain portions of light appeared to cast a shade in
the midst of the general ignition, from which all shade
seemed banished. No; this was not the calm irradiation of
our ordinary lightning. There was unusual life and vigor;
this was truly living light !
In reality, it was an infinite agglomeration of colored in-
fusoria, of veritable globules of diaphanous jelly, provided
with a thread-like tentacle. As many as twenty-five thou-
sand have been counted in less than two cubic half-inches of
water. Their light was increased by the glimmering pecu-
liar to the medusae, starfish, aurelia, and other pliosphores-
cent zoophytes, impregnated by the grease of the organic
matter decomposed by the sea, and, perhaps, the mucous
secreted by the fish.
During several hours the Nautilus floated in these bril-
liant waves, and our admiration increased as we watched
the marine monsters disporting themselves like salaman-
ders. I saw there, in the midst of this fire that burns not,
the swift and elegant porpoise (the indefatigable clown of
tlie ocean), and some sword-fish ten feet long, those pro-
phetic heralds of the hurricane, whose formidable sword
^GRIA SOMNIA" 12
would now and tlien strike the glass of the saloon. Then
appeared the smaller fish, the variegated balista, the leaping
mackerel, wolfthorntails, and a hundred others which
striped the luminous atmosphere as they swam. This daz-
zling spectacle was enchanting ! Perhaps some atmospheric
condition increased the intensity of this phenomenon. Per-
haps some storm agitated the surface of the waves. But,
at this depth of some yards, the Noutiliis was unmoved by
its fury, and reposed peacefully in still water.
So we progressed, incessantly charmed by some new
marvel. Conseil arranged and classed his zoophytes, his
articulata, his molusks, his fishes. The days passed rapidly
away, and I took no account of them. Ned, according to
habit, tried to vary the diet on board. Like snails, we were
fixed to our shells, and I declare it is easy to lead a snail's
life.
Thus this life seemed easy and natural, and we thought
no longer of the life we led on land; but something hap-
pened to recall us to the strangeness of our situation.
On the iSth of January, the Nautilus was in 105° longi-
tude and 15" south latitude. The weather was threatening,
the sea rough and rolling. There was a strong east wind.
The barometer, which had been going down for some days,
foreboded a coming storm. I went up on the platform
just as the second lieutenant was taking the measure of
the horary angles, and waited, according to habit, till the
daily phrase was said. But, on this day, it was exchanged
for another phrase not less incomprehensible. Almost di-
rectly, I saw^ Captain Nemo appear, with a glass, looking
tow^ard the horizon.
For some minutes he was immovable, without taking his
eye off the point of observation. Then he lowered his
glass, and exchanged a few words with his lieutenant. The
latter seemed to be a victim to some emotion that he tried
In vain to repress. Captain Nemo, having more command
over himself, was cool. He seemed, too, to be making
some objections, to which the lieutenant replied by formal
assurances; at least I concluded so by the difference of
their tones and gestures. For myself, I had looked care-
fully in the direction indicated without seeing anything.
The sky and water were lost in the clear line of the horizon.
However, Captain Nemo walked from one end of the
platform to the other, without looking at me, perhaps with-
126 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
out seeing me. His step was firm, but less regular than
usual. He stopped sometimes, crossed his arms, and ob-
served the sea. What could he be looking for on that im-
mense expanse?
The Nautilus was then some hundreds of miles from the
nearest coast. The lieutenant had taken up the glass and
examined the horizon steadfastly, going and coming,
stamping his foot and showing more nervous agitation than
his superior officer. Besides, this mystery must necessarily
be solved, and before long; for, upon an order from Cap-
tain Nemo, the engine, increasing its propelling power, made
the screw turn more rapidl3^
Just then the lieutenant drew the captain's attention
again. The latter stopped walking and directed his glass
toward the place indicated. He looked long. I felt very
much puzzled, and descended to the drawing-room and
took out an excellent telescope that I generally used. Then,
leaning on the cage of the watch-light, that jutted out
from the front of the platform, set myself to look over all
the line of the sky and sea.
But my eye was no sooner applied to the glass, than it
was quickly snatched out of my hands.
I turned round. Captain Nemo was before me, but I did
not know him. His face was transfigured. His eyes
flashed sullenly; his teeth were set; his stiff body, clinched
fists, and head shrunk between his shoulders, betrayed the
violent agitation that pervaded his whole frame. He did
not move. My glass, fallen from his hands, had rolled at
his feet.
Had I unwittingly provoked this fit of anger? Did this
incomprehensible person imagine that I had discovered
some forbidden secret? No; I was not the object of this
hatred, for he was not looking at me, his eye was steadily
fixed upon the impenetrable point of the horizon. At last
Captain Nemo recovered himself. His agitation subsided.
He addressed some words in a foreign language to his lieu-
tenant, then turned to me. " M. Aronnax," he said, in
rather an imperious tone, " I require you to keep one of
the conditions that bind you to me."
" What is it, captain ? "
" You must be confined, with your companions, until I
think fit to release you."
"^GRIA SOMNIA" 127
t(
You are tlie master," I replied, looking steadily iat him.
" But may I ask you one question ? "
** None, sir."
There was no resisting this imperious command ; it would
have been useless. I went down to the cabin occupied by
Ned Land and Conseil, and told them the captain's deter-
mination. You may judge how this communication was
received by the Canadian.
But there was no time for altercation. Four of the crew
waited at the door, and conducted us to that cell where we
had passed our first night on board the Naiiiiliis.
Ned Land would have remonstrated, but the door was
shut upon him.
" Will master tell me what this means ? " asked Conseil.
I told my companions what had passed. They were as
astonished as I, and equally at a loss to account for it.
Meanwhile, I was absorbed in my own reflections, and
could think of nothing but the strange fear depicted in the
captain's countenance. I was utterly unable to account for
it, when my cogitations were disturbed by these words from
Ned Land : " Hallo! breakfast is ready! "
And indeed the table was laid. Evidently Captain Nemo
had given this order at the same time that he had hastened
the speed of the Nautilus.
"Will master permit me to make a recommendation?"
asked Conseil.
" Yes, my boy."
" Well, it is that master breakfast. It is prudent, for
we do not know what may happen."
" You are right, Conseil."
" Unfortunately," said Ned Land, " they have only given
us the ship's fare."
" Friend Ned," asked Conseil, " what would you have
said if the breakfast had been entirely forgotten?"
This argument cut short the harpooner's recriminations.
We sat down to table. The meal was eaten in silence.
Just then, the luminous globe that lighted the cell went
out, and left us in total darkness. Ned Land was soon
asleep, and what astonished me was that Conseil went off
into a heavy sleep. I was thinking what could have caused
his irresistible drowsiness, when I felt my brain becoming
stupefied. In spite of my efforts to keep my eyes open, they
128 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
would close. A painful suspicion seized me. Evidently
soporific substances had been mixed with the food we had
just taken. Imprisonment was not enough to conceal Cap-
tain Nemo's projects from us; sleep was more necessary.
I then heard the panels shut. The undulations of the
sea, which caused a slight rolling motion, ceased. Had
the Nautilus quitted the surface of the ocean? Had it gone
back to the motionless bed of water? I tried to resist sleep.
It was impossible. My breathing grew weak. I felt a
mortal cold freeze my stiffened and half-paralyzed limbs.
My eyelids, like leaden caps, fell over my eyes. I could
not raise them; a morbid sleep, full of hallucinations, bereft
me of my being. Then the visions disappeared, and left
me in complete insensibility.
CHAPTER XXIII
THE CORAL KINGDOM
The next day I woke with my head singularly clear.
To niy great surprise I was in my own room. My com-
panions, no doubt, had been reinstated in their cabin, with-
out having perceived it any more than I. Of what had
passed during the night they were as ignorant as I was,
and to penetrate this mystery I only reckoned upon the
chances of the future.
I then thought of quitting my room. Was I free again,
or a prisoner? Quite free. I opened the door, went to the
half -deck, went up the central stairs. The panels, shut the
evening before, were open. I went on to the platform.
Ned Land and Conseil waited there for me. I ques-
tioned them ; they knew nothing. Lost in a heavy sleep in
which they had been totally unconscious, they had been
astonislied at finding themselves in their cabin.
As for the Nautilus, it seemed quiet and mysterious as
ever. It floated on the surface of the waves at a moderate
pace. Nothing seemed changed on board.
The second lieutenant then came on to the platform, and
gave the usual order below.
As for Captain Nemo, he did not appear.
Of the people on board I only saw the impassive steward,
who served me with his usual dumb regularity.
V. V Verne
THE CORAL KINGDOM 129
About two o'clock, I was in the drawing-room, busied in
arranging my notes, when the captain opened tlie door and
appeared. I bowed. He made a shght inchnation in re-
turn, without speaking. I resumed my work, hioping that
he woukl perhaps give me some explanation of the events
of the preceding night. He made none. I looked at him.
He seemed fatigued; his heavy eyes had not been refreshed
by sleep; his face looked very sorrowful. He walked to
and fro, sat down and got up again, took up a chance
book, put it down, consulted his instruments without tak-
ing his habitual notes, and seemed restless and uneasy. At
last he came up to me, and said :
"Are you a doctor, M. Aronnax?"
I so little expected such a question that I stared some
time at him without answering.
"Are you a doctor?" he repeated. "Several of your
colleagues have studied medicine."
" Well," said I, " I am a doctor and resident surgeon to
the hospital. I practiced several years before entering the
museum."
" Very well, sir."
My answer had evidently satisfied the captain. But not
knowing what he w^ould say next. I waited for other ques-
tions, carefully reserving my answers according to circum-
stances.
" M. Aronnax, will you consent to prescribe for one of
my men?" he asked.
"Is he ill?"
" Yes."
" I am ready to follow you."
" Come then."
I own my heart beat, I do not know why. I saw a cer-
tain connection between the illness of one of the crew
and the events of the day before; and this mystery inter-
ested me at least as much as the sick man.
Captain Nemo conducted me to the poop of the Nautilus,
and escorted me into a cabin situated near the sailors'
quarters.
There, on a bed, lay a man about forty years of age, with
a resolute expression of countenance, a true type of an
Anglo-Saxon.
I leaned over him. He was not only ill, he was wounded.
I30 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
His head, swathed in bandages covered with blood, la_v on a
pillow. I undid the bandages, and the wounded man looked
at me with his large eyes and gave no sign of pain as I
did it. It was a horrible wound. The skull, shattered by
some deadly weapon, left the brain exposed, which w^as
much injured. Clots of blood had formed in the bruised
and broken mass, in color like the dregs of wine.
There was both contusion and suffusion of the brain.
His breathing was slow, and some spasmodic movements of
the muscles agitated his face. I felt his pulse. It was
intermittent. The extremities of the body were growing
cold already, and I saw death must inevitably ensue. After
dressing the unfortunate man's wounds, I readjusted the
bandages on his head, and turned to Captain Nemo.
" What caused this wound ? " I asked.
"What does it signify?" he replied evasively. "A
shock has broken one of the levers of the engine, which
struck him. But your opinion as to his state ? "
I hesitated before giving it.
" You may speak," said the captain. " This man does
not understand French."
I gave a last look at the wounded man.
" He will be dead in two hours."
" Can nothing save him? "
" Nothing."
Captain Nemo's hand contracted ; tears glistened in his
eyes, which I thought incapable of shedding any.
For some moments I still watched the dying man, whose
life ebbed slowly. His pallor increased under the electric
light that was shed over his deathbed. I looked at his
intelligent forehead, furrowed with premature wrinkles,
produced probably by misfortune and sorrow. I tried to
learn the secret of his life from the last words that escaped
his lips.
" You can go now, M. Aronnax." said the captain.
I left him in the dying man's cabin, and returned to my
room, much affected by this scene. During the whole day,
I was haunted by uncomfortable suspicions, and at night I
slept badly, and, between my broken dreams, I fancied I
heard distant sighs like the notes of a funeral psalm. Were
they prayers of the dead, murmured in that language
that I could not understand?
THE CORAL KINGDOM 131
The next morning I went on to the bridge. Captain
Nemo was there before me. As soon as he perceived me
he came to me.
" Professor, will it be convenient to you to make a sub-
marine excursion to-day?"
"With my companions?" I asked.
" If they like."
" V\'e obey your orders, captain."
" Will you be so good, then, as to put on your cork-
jackets?"
It was not a question of dead or dying. I rejoined Ned
Land and Conseil, and told them of Captain Nemo's propo-
sition. Conseil hastened to accept it, and this time the
Canadian seemed quite willing to follow our example.
It was eight o'clock in the morning. At half-past eight
we were equipped for this new excursion, and provided
with two contrivances for light and breathing. The double
door was open; and accompanied by Captain Nemo, who
was followed by a dozen of the crew, we set foot, at a
depth of about thirty feet, on the solid bottom on wdiich
the Nautilus rested.
A slight declivity ended in an uneven bottom, at fifteen
fathoms depth. This bottom differed entirely from the
one I had visited on my first excursion under the waters of
the Pacific Ocean. Here, there was no fine sand, no sub-
marine prairies, no sea-forest. I immediately recognized
that marvelous region in which, on that day, the captain
did the honors to us. It was the coral kingdom.
The light produced a thousand ch.arming varieties, play-
ing in the midst of the branches that were so vividly col-
ored. I seemed to see the membranous and cylindrical
tubes tremble beneath the undulation of the waters. I was
tempted to gather their fresh petals, ornamented with deli-
cate tentacles, some just blown, the others budding, while
small fish, swimming swiftly, touched them slightly like
flights of birds. But if my hand approached these living
flowers, these animated sensitive plants, the whole colony
took alarm. The white petals re-entered their red cases,
the flowers faded as I looked, and the bush changed into
a block of stony knobs.
Chance had thrown me just by the most precious speci-
mens of this zoophyte. This coral was more valuable than
132 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
that found in the Mediterranean, on the coasts of France,
Italy, and Barbary. Its tints justified the poetical names
of " Flower of Blood " and " Froth of Blood " that trade
has given to its most beautiful productions. Coral is sold
for £20 per ounce, and in this place the watery beds would
make the fortunes of a company of coral-clivers. This
precious matter, often confounded with other polypi,
formed then the inextricable plots called " macciota," and
on which I noticed several beautiful specimens of pink
coral.
But soon the bushes contracted, and the arborizations in-
creased. Real petrified thickets, long joists of fantastic
architecture, were disclosed before us. Captain Nemo
placed himself under a dark gallery, where by a slight
declivity we reached a depth of 100 yards. The light from
our lamps produced sometimes magical effects, following
the rough outlines of the natural arches, and pendants dis-
posed like lusters, that were tipped with points of fire. Be-
tween the coralline shrubs I noticed other polypi not less
curious — melites, and irises with articulated ramifications;
also some tufts of coral, some green, others red, like sea-
weed incrusted in their calcareous salts, that naturalists,
after long discussion, have definitely classed in the vegetable
kingdom. But following the remark of a thinking man,
" there is perhaps the real point where life rises obscurely
from the sleep of a stone, without detaching itself from the
rough point of departure."
At last, after walking two hours, we had attained a depth
of about 300 yards, that is to say, the extreme limit on
which coral begins to form. But there was no isolated
bush, nor modest brushwood, at the bottom of lofty trees.
It was an immense forest of large mineral vegetations,
enormous petrified trees, united by garlands of elegant
plumarias, sea bindweed, all adorned with clouds and reflec-
tions. We passed freely under their high branches, lost ill
the shade of the waves, while at our feet, tubipores, mean-
drines, stars, fungi, and caryophyllidae formed a carpet of
flowers sown with dazzling gems. What an indescribable
spectacle !
Captain Nemo had stopped. I and my companions
halted, and turning round, I saw his men were forming a
semicircle round their chief. Watching attentively, I ob-
THE CORAL KINGDOM 133
served that four of them carried on their shoulders an object
of an oblong shape.
We occupied in this place the center of a vast glade sur-
rounded by the lofty foliage of the submarine forest. Our
lamps threw over the place a sort of clear twilight that
singularly elongated the shadows on the ground. At the
end of the glade the darkness increased, and was only re-
lieved by the little sparks reflected by the points of coral.
Ned Land and Conseil were near me. We watched, and
I thought I was going to witness a strange scene. On ob-
serving the ground, I saw that it was raised in certain places
by slight excrescences incrustcd with limy deposits, and dis-
posed with a regularity that betrayed the hand of man.
In the midst of the glade, on a pedestal of rocks roughly
piled up, stood a cross of coral, that extended its long arms
that one might have imagined were made of petrified
blood.
Upon a sign from Captain Nemo, one of the men ad-
vanced ; and at some feet from the cross, he began to dig a
hole with a pickax that he took from his belt. I under-
stood all! This glade was a cemetery, this hole a tomb,
this oblong object the body of the man who had died in
the night! The captain and his men had come to bury
their companion in this general resting-place, at the bot-
tom of this inaccessible ocean !
The grave was being dug slowly; the fish fled on all sides
while the retreat was being thus disturbed; I heard the
strokes of the pickax, which sparkled when it hit upon
some flint lost at the bottom of the waters. The hole was
soon large and deep enough to receive the body. Then the
bearers approached; the body, enveloped in a tissue of white
byssus, was lowered into the damp grave. Captain Nemo.
with his arms crossed on his breast, and all the friends of
him who had loved them, knelt in prayer.
Tlie grave was then filled in with the rubbish taken from
the ground, which formed a slight mound. When this
was done. Captain Nemo and his men rose; then, approach-
ing the grave, they knelt again, and all extended their
hands in sign of a last adieu. Then the funeral procession
returned to the A'audliis, passing under the arches of the
forest, in the midst of thickets, along the coral bushes, and
still on the ascent. At last the fires on board appeared,
134 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
and their luminous track guided us to the Nautilus. At
one o'clock we had returned.
As soon as I had changed my clothes, I went up on to
the platform, and, a prey to conflicting emotions, I sat
down near the binnacle. Captain Nemo joined me. I rose
and said to him:
" So, as I said he would, this man died in the night? "
" Yes, M. Aronnax."
"And he rests now, near his companions, in the coral
cemetery ? "
" Yes, forgotten by all else, but not by us. We dug the
grave, and the polypi undertake to seal our dead for
eternity." And burying his face quickly in his hands, he
tried in vain to suppress a sob. Then he added: "Our
peaceful cemetery is there, some hundred feet below the
surface of the waves."
" Your dead sleep quietly, at least, captain, out of the
reach of sharks."
" Yes, sir, of sharks and men," gravely replied the
captain.
PART 11.
CHAPTER I
THE INDIAN OCEAN
E now come to the second part of our journey
under the sea. The first ended with the mov-
ing scene in the coral cemetery, which left such
a deep impression on my mind. Thus, in the
midst of this great sea. Captain Nemo's life
was passing even to his grave, which he had
prepared in one of its deepest abysses. There, not one of
the ocean's monsters could trouble the last sleep of the crew
of the Nautilus, of those friends riveted to each other in
death as in life. "Nor any man either," had added the
captain. Still the same fierce, implacable defiance toward
human society!
I could no longer content myself with the hypothesis
which satisfied Conseil. That worthy fellow persisted in
seeing in the commander of the Nautilus one of those un-
known savants who return mankind contempt for indiffer-
ence.
For him, he was a misunderstood genius, who, tired
of earth's deceptions, had taken refuge in this inaccessible
medium, where he might follow his instincts freely. To
my mind, this hypothesis explained but one side of Captain
Nemo's character.
Indeed, the mystery of that last night, during which we
had been locked in prison, the sleep, and the precaution
so violently taken by the captain of snatching from my
eyes tlie glass I had raised to sweep the horizon, the mortal
wound of the man, due to an unaccountable shock of the
Nautilus, all put me on a new track.
No; Captain Nemo was not satisfied with shunning man.
His formidable apparatus not only suited his instinct of
freedom, but, perhaps, also the design of some terrible
retaliation.
At this moment nothing is clear to me; I catch but a
glimpse of light amid all the darkness, and I must confine
myself to writing as events shall dictate.
That day, the 24th of January, 1868, at noon, the second
13S'
136 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
officer came to take the altitude of the sun. I mounted
the platform, lit a cigar, and watched the operation. It
seemed to me that the man did not understand French ; for
several times I made remarks in a loud voice, which must
have drawn from him some involuntary sign of attention,
if he had understood them; but he remained undisturbed
and dumb.
As he was taking observations with the sextant, one of
the sailors of the Nautilus (the strong man who had accom-
panied us on our first submarine excursion to the island of
Crespo) came to clean the glasses of the lantern. I exam-
ined the fittings of the apparatus, the strength of which
was increased a hundredfold by lenticular rings, placed
similar to those in a lighthouse, and which projected their
brilliance In a horizontal plane. The electric lamp was com-
bined in such a way as to give its most powerful light. In-
deed it was produced in vacuo, which insured both its steadi-
ness and its intensity. This vacuum economized the graphite
points, between which the luminous arc was developed — an
important point of economy for Captain Nemo, who could
not easily have replaced them; and under these conditions
their waste was imperceptible. When the Nautilus was
ready to continue its submarine journey, I went down to
the saloon. The panels were closed and the course marked
direct west.
We were furrowing the waters of the Indian Ocean, a
vast liquid plain with a surface of 1,200,000,000 of acres,
whose waters are so clear and transparent that any one
leaning over them would turn giddy. The Nantihts usually
floated between fifty and a hundred fathoms deep. We
went on so for some days. To any one but myself, who
had a great love for the sea, the hours would have seemed
long and monotonous; but the daily walks on the platform,
when I steeped myself in the reviving air of the ocean, the
sight of the rich waters through the windows of the saloon,
the books in the library, the compiling of my memoirs, took
up all my time, and left me not a moment of ennui or
[weariness.
From the 21st to the 23d of January, the Nautilus went
at the rate of two hundred and fifty leagues in twenty-four
hours, being five hundred and forty miles, or twenty-two
miles an hour. If we recognized many different varieties
THE INDIAN OCEAN 137
of fish, it was because, attracted by the electric light, they
tried to follow us; the greater part, however, were soon
distanced by our speed, though some kept their place in
the waters of the Nautilus for a time. The morning of the
24th, in 12° 5' south latitude, and 94° 33' longitude, we
observed Keeling Island, a madrepore formation, planted
with magnificent cocoas, which had been visited by Mr. Dar-
win and Captain P"itzroy. The Nautilus skirted the shores
of this desert island for a little distance. Its nets brought
up numerous specimens of polypi, and curious shells of
molluska. Some precious productions of the species of
delphinulse enriched the treasures of Captain Nemo, to
which I added an astrasa punctifera, a kind of parasite
polypus often found fixed to a shell. Soon Keeling Island
disappeared from the horizon, and our course was directed
to the northwest in the direction of the Indian Peninsula.
From Keeling Island our course was slower and more
variable, often taking us into great depths. Several times
they made use of the inclined planes, which certain internal
levers placed obliquely to the water-line. In that way we
went about two miles, but without ever obtaining the great-
est depths of the Indian Sea, which soundings of seven
thousand fathoms have never reached. As to the temper-
ature of the lower strata, the thermometer invariably indi-
cated 4° above zero. I only observed that, in the upper
regions, the water was always colder in the high levels than
at the surface of the sea.
On the 25th of January, the ocean was entirely deserted;
the Nautilus passed the day on the surface, beating the
waves with its powerful screw, and making them rebound
to a great height. Who under such circumstances would
not have taken it for a gigantic cetacean? Three parts of
this day I spent on the platform. I watched the sea.
Nothing on the horizon, till about four o'clock a steamer
running west on our counter. Her masts were visible for an
instant, but she could not see the Nautilus, being too low in
the water. I fancied this steamboat belonged to the P. O.
Company, which runs from Ceylon to Sydney, toucliing at
King George's Point and jMelbourne.
At five o'clock in the evening, before tliat fleeting twilight
which binds night to day in tropical zones, Conseil and I
were astonished by a curious spectacle.
138 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
It was a shoal of argonauts traveling along on the surface
of the ocean. We could count several hundreds. They
belonged to the tubercle kind which are peculiar to the
Indian seas.
These graceful mollusks moved backward by means of
their locomotive tube, through which they propelled the
water already drawn in. Of their eight tentacles, six were
elongated, and stretched out floating on the water, while
the other two, rolled up flat, were spread to the wind like
a light sail. I saw their spiral-shaped and fluted shells,
which Cuvier justly compare^ to an elegant skiff. A boat
indeed! It bears the creature which secretes it without its
adhering to it.
For nearly an hour the Nautilus floated in the midst of
this shoal of mollusks. Then I know not what sudden
fright they took; but as if at a signal every sail was furled,
the arms folded, the body drawn in, the shells turned over,
changing their center of gravity, and the whole fleet disap-
peared under the waves. Never did the ships of a squadron
maneuver with more unity. At that moment night fell
suddenly, and their reeds, scarcely raised by the breeze, lay
peaceably under the sides of the Nautilus.
The next day, 26th of January, we cut the equator at
the eighty-second meridian, and entered the northern
hemisphere. During the day, a formidable troop of sharks
accompanied us, terrible creatures, which multiply in these
seas, and make them very dangerous. They were " ces-
tracio philippi " sharks, with brown backs and whitish
bellies, armed with eleven rows of teeth — eyed sharks —
their throat being marked with a large black spot surrounded
with white like an eye. There v/ere also some Isabella
sharks, with rounded snouts marked with dark spots. These
powerful creatures often hurled themselves at the windows
of the saloon with such violence as to make us feel very
insecure. At such times Ned Land was no longer master
of himself. He wanted to go to the surface and harpoon
the monsters, particularly certain smooth-hound sharks,
whose mouth is studded with teeth like a mosaic; and large
tiger-sharks nearly six yards long, the last-named of which
seemed to excite him more particualrly. But the Nautilus,
accelerating her speed, easily left the most rapid of them
behind.
THE INDIAN OCEAN 139
The 27th of January, at the entrance of the vast Bay of
Bengal, we met repeatedly a forbidding spectacle — dead
bodies floating on the surface of the water. They were
the dead of the Indian villages, carried by the Ganges to
the level of the sea, and which the vultures, the only under-
takers of the country, had not been able to devour. But the
sharks did not fail to help them at their funereal work.
About seven o'clock in the evening, the Nautilus, half
immersed, was sailing in a sea of milk. At first sight the
ocean seemed lactified. Was it the effect of the lunar rays?
No; for the moon, scarcely two days old, was still lying
hidden under the horizon in the rays of the sun. The whole
sky, though lit by the sidereal rays, seemed black by contrast
with the whiteness of the waters.
Conseil could not believe his eyes, and questioned me as
to tlie cause of this strange phenomenon. Happily I was
able to answer him.
" It is called a milk sea," I explained ; " a large extent
of white wavelets often to be seen on the coasts of Am-
boyna, and in these parts of the sea."
" But, sir," said Conseil, " can you tell me what causes
such an effect? for I suppose the water is not really turned
into milk."
" No, my boy; and the whiteness which surprises 3^ou is
caused only by the presence of myriads of infusoria, a sort
of luminous little worm, gelatinous and without color, of
the thickness of a hair, and whose length is not more than
the seven-one-thousandths of an inch. These insects ad-
here to one another sometimes for several leagues."
" Several leagues ! " exclaimed Conseil.
" Yes, my boy ; and you need not try to compute the
number of these infusoria. You will not be able; for, if I
am not mistaken, ships have floated on these milk seas for
more than forty miles."
Toward midnight the sea suddenly resumed its usual
color; but behind us, even to the limits of the horizon, the
sky reflected the whitened waves, and for a long time
seemed impregnated with the vague glimmerings of an
aurora borealis.
CHAPTER 11
A NOVEL PROPOSAL OF CAPTAIN NEMO's
On the 28th of February, when at noon the Nautilus
came to the surface of the sea, in 9° 4' north latitude, there
was land in sight about eight miles to westward. The first
thing I noticed was a range of mountains about two thou-
sand feet high, the shapes of which were most capricious.
On taking the bearings, I knew that we were nearing the
island of Ceylon, the pearl which hangs from the lobe of
the Indian Peninsula.
Captain Nemo and his second appeared at this moment.
The captain glanced at the map, and, turning to me, said:
" The island of Ceylon, noted for its pearl-fisheries. Would
you like to visit one of them, M. Aronnax? "
" Certainly, captain."
" Well, the thing is easy. Though if we see the fisher-
ies, we shall not see the fishermen. The annual exporta-
tion has not yet begun. Never mind, I will give orders to
make for the Gulf of Manaar, where we shall arrive in the
night."
The captain said something to his second, who immedi-
ately went out. Soon the Nautilus returned to her native
element, and the manometer showed that she was about
thirty feet deep.
"Well, sir," said Captain Nemo, "you and your com-
panions shall visit the Bank of Manaar, and if by chance
some fisherman should be there, we shall see him at work."
"Agreed, captain! "
" By the by, M. Aronnax, you are not afraid of sharks? "
" Sharks ! " exclaimed I. The question seemed a very
hard one.
" Well ? " continued Captain Nemo.
" I admit, captain, that I am not vet very familiar with
that kind of fish."
" We are accustomed to them," replied Captain Nemo,
" and in time you will be. However, we shall be armed,
and on the road we may be able to hunt some of the tribe.
It is interesting. So, till to-morrow, sir, and early."
This said in a earless tone, Captain Nemo left the saloon.
Now, if you were invited to hunt the bear in the mountains
of Switzerland, what would you say? " \''ery well ! to-mor-
row we will go and hunt the bear." If you were asked to
140
A NOVEL PROPOSAL 141
hunt the lion in the plains of Atlas, or the tiger in the Indian
jungles, what would you say? " Ha! ha! its seems we are
going to hunt the tiger or the lion 1 " But when you are
invited to hunt the shark in its natural element, you would
perhaps reflect before accepting the invitation. As for my-
self, I passed my hand over my forehead, on which stood
large drops of cold perspiration. " Let us reflect," said I,
" and take our time. Hunting otters in submarine forests,
as we did in the island of Crespo, will pass; but going up
and down at the bottom of the sea, where one is almost
certain to meet sharks, is quite another thing ! I know well
that in certain countries, particularly in the Andaman
Islands, the negroes never hesitate to attack them with a
dagger in one hand and a running noose in the other; but I
also know that few who affront those creatures ever re-
turn alive. Moreover, I am not a negro, and, if I were, I
think a little hesitation in this case would not be very ill-
timed."
At this moment, Conseil and the Canadian entered, quite
composed, and even joyous. They knew not what awaited
them.
" Faith, sir," said Ned Land, " your Captain Nemo — the
devil take him! — has just made us a very pleasant offer."
"Ah!" said I, "you know?"
" If agreeable to you, sir," interrupted Conseil, " the com-
mander of the Nautilus has invited us to visit the magnifi-
cent Ceylon fisheries to-morrow, in your company; he did it
kindly, and behaved like a real gentleman."
" He said nothing more? "
" Nothing more, sir, except that he had already spoken to
you of this little walk."
" Sir," said Conseil, " would you give us some details of
the pearl-fishery? "
" As to the fishing itself," I asked, " or the incidents —
which?"
"On the fishing," replied the Canadian; "before enter-
ing upon the ground, it is as well to know something about
it."
" Very well ; sit down, my friends, and I will teach you."
Ned and Conseil seated themselves on an ottoman, and
the first thing the Canadian asked was, " Sir, what is a
pearl?"
142 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" My worthy Ned," I answered, " to the poet, a pearl is
a tear of the sea; to the Orientals, it is a drop of dew
solidified; to the ladies, it is a jewel of an oblong shape, of
a brilliancy of mother-of-pearl substance, which they wear
on their fingers, their necks, or their ears; for the chemist,
it is a mixture of phosphate and carbonate of lime, with a
little gelatine; and lastly, for naturalists, it is simply a
morbid secretion of the organ that produces the mother-of-
pearl among certain bivalves."
" Branch of molluska," said Conseil, " class of acephali,
order of testacea."
" Precisely so, my learned Conseil ; and, among these
testacea, the earshell, the tridacnse, the turbots — in a word,
all those which secrete mother-of-pearl, that is, the blue,
bluish, violet, or white substance which lines the interior
of their shells, are capable of producing pearls."
" Mussels too?" asked the Canadian.
" Yes, mussels of certain waters in Scotland, Wales, Ire-
land, Saxony, Bohemia, and France."
" Good ! For the future I shall pay attention," replied
the Canadian.
" But," I continued, " the particular mollusk which
secretes the pearl is the pearl-oyster, the M eleagrina mar-
garitifera, that precious pintadine. The pearl is nothing
but a nacreous formation, deposited in a globular form,
either adhering to the oyster shell, or buried in the folds
of the creature. On the shell it is fast; in the flesh it is
loose; but always has for a kernel a small, hard substance,
maybe a barren tgg, maybe a grain of sand, around which
the pearly matter deposits itself year after year successively,
and by thin concentric la5'ers."
"Are many pearls found in the same oyster?" asked
Conseil.
" Yes, my boy. There are some pintadines a perfect
casket. One oyster has been mentioned, though I allow
myself to doubt it, as having contained no less than a hun-
dred and fifty sharks."
" A hundred and fifty sharks! " exclaimed Ned Land.
" Did I say sharks? " said I hurriedly. " I meant to say
a hundred and fifty pearls. Sharks would not be sense."
" Certainly not," said Conseil ; " but will you tell us now
by what means they extract these pearls? "
A NOVEL PROPOSAL 143
" They proceed in various ways. When they adhere to
the shell, the fishermen often pull them off with pinchers;
but the most common way is to lay the pintadines on mats
of the seaweed vvhich covers the banks. Thus they die in
the open air; and at the end of ten days they are in a for-
ward state of decomposition. They are then plunged into
large reservoirs of sea-water; then they are opened and
washed. Now begins the double work of the sorters.
First they separate the layers of pearls, known in commerce
by the name of bastard whites and bastard blacks, which
are delivered in boxes of two hundred and fifty and three
hundred pounds each. Then they take the parenchyma of
the oyster, boil it. and pass it through a sieve in order to
extract the very smallest pearls."
" The price of these pearls varies according to their
size? " asked Conseil.
" Not only according to their size," I answered, " but
also according to their shape, their water (that is, their
color), and their luster; that is, that bright and diapered
sparkle which make them so charming to the eye. The
most beautiful are called virgin pearls or paragons. They
are formed alone in the tissue of the mollusk, are white,
often opaque, and sometimes have the transparency of an
opal; they are generally round or oval. The round are
m.ade into bracelets, the oval into pendants; and, being
more precious, are sold singly. Those adhering to the
shell of the oyster are more irregular in shape, and are
sold by weight. Lastly, in a lower order are classed those
small pearls known under the name of seed-pearls; they
are sold by measure, and are especially used in embroidery
for church ornaments."
"But," said Conseil, "is this pearl-fishing dangerous?"
"No," I answered quickly; "particularly if certain pre-
cautions are taken."
" What does one risk in such a calling? " said Ned Land;
"the swallowing of some mouthfuls of sea-water? "
" As you say, Ned. By the bye," said I, trying to take
Captain Nemo's careless tone, " are you afraid of sharks,
brave Ned?"
" I ! " replied the Canadian ; " a harpooner by profession?
It is my trade to make light of them."
" But," said I, " it is not a question of fishing for them
144 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
with an iron swivel, hoisting them into the vessel, cutting
off their tails with a blow of the chopper, ripping them
up, and throwing their hearts into the sea! "
" Then, it is a question of "
" Precisely."
"In the water?"
** In the water."
"Faith, with a good harpoon! You know, sir, these
sharks are ill-fashioned beasts. They must turn on their
bellies to seize you, and in that time "
Ned Land had a way of saying " seize " which made my
blood run cold.
" And you, Conseil, what do you think of sharks? "
" Me! " said Conseil. " I will be frank, sir."
" So much the better," thought I.
"If you, sir, mean to face the sharks, I do not see why
your faithful servant should not face them with you."
CHAPTER III
A PEARL OF TEN MILLIONS
The next morning at four o'clock I v/as awakened by
the steward, whom Captain Nemo had placed at my serv-
ice. I rose hurriedly, dressed, and went into the saloon.
Captain Nemo was awaiting me.
" M. Aronnax," said he, " are you ready to start? "
I am ready."
Then, please to follow me."
And my companions, captain?"
They have been told, and are waiting."
Are we not to put on our diver's dresses? " asked I.
" Not yet. I have not allowed the Nautilus to come too
near this coast, and we are some distance from the Manaar
Bank; but the boat is ready, and will take us to the exact
point of disembarking, which will save us a long way. It
carries our diving apparatus, which we will put on when
we begin our submarine journey."
Captain Nemo conducted me to the central staircase,
which led on to the platform. Ned and Conseil were al-
ready there, delighted at the idea of the " pleasure party "
which was preparing. Five sailors from the Nautilus,
V. V Varn©
((
it
((
A PEARL OF TEN MILLIONS 145
with their oars, waited in the boat, which had been made
fast against the side.
The night was still dark. Layers of clouds covered the
sky, allowing but few stars to be seen. I looked on the
side where the land lay, and saw nothing but a dark line
inclosing three parts of the horizon, from southwest to
northwest. The Nautilus, having returned during the night
up the western coast of Ceylon, was now west of the bay,
or rather gulf, formed by the mainland and the island of
Manaar. There, under the dark waters, stretched the pin-
tadine bank, an inexhaustible field of pearls, the lengtli o£
which is more than twenty miles.
Captain Nemo, Ned Land, Conseil, and I took our places
in the stern of the boat. The master went to the tiller; his
four companions leaned on their oars, the painter was cast
off, and we sheered off.
The boat went toward the south; the oarsmen did not
hurry. I noticed that their strokes, strong in the water,
only followed each other every ten seconds, according
to the method generally adopted in the navy. While the
craft was running by its own velocity, the liquid drops
struck the dark depths of the waves crisply like spats
of melted lead. A little billow, spreading wide, gave a
slight roll to the boat, and some samphire reeds flapped
before it.
We were silent. What was Captain Nemo thinking of?
Perhaps of the land he was approaching, and whicli he
found too near to him, contrary to the Canadian's opinion,
who thought it too far off. As to Conseil, he was merely
there from curiosity.
About half-past five, the first tints on the horizon showed
the upper line of coast more distinctly. Flat enough in
the east, it rose a little to the south. Five miles still lay
between us, and it was indistinct, owing to the mist on the
water. At six o'clock it became suddenly daylight, with
that rapidity peculiar to tropical regions, which know neither
dawn nor twilight. The solar rays pierced the curtain of
clouds piled up on the eastern horizon, and the radiant orb
rose rapidly. I saw land distinctly, with a few trees scat-
tered here and there. The boat neared ]\Ianaar Island,
which was rounded to the south. Captain Nemo rose from
his seat and watched the sea.
146 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
At a sign from him tKe anchor was dropped, but the
chain scarcely ran, for it was Httle more than a yard deep,
and this spot was one of the highest points of the bank of
pintadines.
" Here we are, M. Aronnax," said Captain Nemo. *' You
see that inclosed bay? Here, in a month, will be assem-
bled the numerous fishing-boats of the exporters, and these
are the waters their divers will ransack so boldly. Happily,
this bay is well situated for that kind of fishing. It is
sheltered from the strongest winds; the sea is never very
rough here, which makes it favorable for the diver's work.
We will now put on our dresses, and begin our walk."
I did not answer, and while watching the suspected waves,
began with the help of the sailors to put on my heavy sea-
dress. Captain Nemo and my companions were also dress-
ing. None of the Nautilus men were to accompany us on
this new excursion.
Soon we were enveloped to the throat in india-rubber
clothing; the air apparatus fixed to our backs by braces.
As to the Ruhmkorff apparatus, there was no necessity for
it. Before putting my head into the copper cap, I had
asked the question of the captain.
" They would be useless," he replied. " We are going
to no great depth, and the solar rays will be enough to
light our walk. Besides, it would not be prudent to carry
the electric light in these waters ; its brilliancy might attract
some of the dangerous inhabitants of the coast most inop-
portunely."
As Captain Nemo pronounced these words, I turned to
Conseil and Ned Land. But my two friends had already
incased their heads in the metal cap, and they could neither
hear nor answer.
One last question remained to ask of Captain Nemo.
" And our arms? " asked I; " our guns? "
" Guns ! what for? Do not mountaineers attack the bear
with a dagger in their hand, and is not steel ni.r than
lead? Here is a strong blade; put it in your belt, and we
start."
I looked at my companions; they were armed like us,
and, more than tliat, Ned Land was brandishing an enor-
mous Jiarpoon, which he had placed in the boat before leaving
the Nautilus.
A PEARL OF TEN T^IILLIONS 147
Then, following the captain's example, I allowed myself
to be dressed in the heavy copper helmet, and our reser-
voirs of air were at once in activity. An instant after, we
were landed, one after the other, in about two feet of
water upon an even sand. Captain Nemo made a sign
with his hand, and we followed him by a gentle declivity
till we disappeared under the waves.
Over our feet, like coveys of snipe in a bog, rose shoals
of fish, of the genus monoptera, which have no other fins
but their tail. I recognized the Javanese, a real serpent
two and a half feet long, of a livid color underneath, and
which might easily be mistaken for a conger eel if it was
not for the golden stripes on its sides.
The heightening sun lit the mass of waters more and
more. The soil changed by degrees. To the fine sand
succeeded a perfect causew-ay of boulders, covered with a
carpet of mollusks and zoophytes. At about seven o'clock
we found ourselves at last surveying the oyster-banks, on
which the pearl-oysters are reproduced by millions.
Captain Nemo pointed with his hand to the enormous
heap of oysters; and I could well understand that this
mine was inexhaustible, for nature's creative power is far
beyond man's instinct of destruction. Ned Land, faithful
to his instinct, hastened to fill a net which he carried by
his side with some of the finest specimens. But we could
not stop. We must follow the captain, who seemed to
guide himself by paths known only to himself. The ground
was sensibly rising, and sometimes, on holding up my arm,
it w-as above the surface of the sea. Often we rounded high
rocks scarped into pyramids. In their dark fractures huge
crustac?e, perched upon their high claws like some war-
machine, watched us with fixed eyes, and under our feet
crawled various kinds of annelides.
At this moment there opened before us a large grotto,
dug in a picturesque heap of rocks, and carpeted with all
the thick warp of the submarine flora. At first it seemed
very dark to me. The solar rays seemed to be extinguished
by successive gradations, until its vague transparencv be-
came nothing more than drowned light. Captain Nemo
entered; we followed. My eyes soon accustomed them-
selves to this relative state of darkness. I could distin-
guisli the arches springing capriciously from natural pillars,
148 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
standing broad upon their granite base, like the heavy
columns of Tuscan architecture. Why had our incompre-
hensible guide led us to the bottom of this submarine crypt?
I was soon to know. After descending a rather sharp de-
clivity, our feet trod the bottom of a kind of circular pit
There Captain Nemo stopped, and with his hand indicated
an object I had not yet perceived. It was an oyster of
extraordinary dimensions, a gigantic tridacne, a goblet which
could have contained a whole lake of holy water, a basin
the breadth of which was more than two yards and a half,
and consequently larger than that ornamenting the saloon
of the Nautilus. I approached this extraordinary mollusk.
It adhered by its byssus to a table of granite, and there,
isolated, it developed itself in the calm waters of the grotto.
I estimated the weight of this tridacne at 600 pounds. Such
an oyster would contain thirty pounds of meat; and one
must have the stomach of a Gargantua to demolish some
dozens of them.
Captain Nemo was evidently acquainted with the exist-
ence of this bivalve, and seemed to have a particular mo-
tive in verifying the actual state of this tridacne. The
shells were a little open; the captain came near, and put
his dagger between to prevent them from closing; then
with his hand he raised the membrane with its fringed
edges, which formed a cloak for the creature. There, be-
tween the folded plaits, I saw a loose pearl, whose size
equaled that of a cocoanut. Its globular shape, perfect
clearness, and admirable luster made it altogether a jewel
of inestimable value. Carried av/ay by my curiosity I
stretched out my hand to seize it, weigh it, and touch it,
but the captain stopped me, made a sign of refusal, and
quickly withdrew his dagger, and the two shells closed sud-
denly. I then understood Captain Nemo's intention. In
leaving this pearl hidden in the mantle of the tridacne, he
was allowing it to grow slowly. Each year the secretions of
the mollusk would add new concentric circles. I estimated
its value at £500,000 at least.
After ten minutes Captain Nemo stopped suddenly. I
thought he had halted previously to returning. No; by a
gesture lie bade us crouch beside him in a deep fracture of
the rock, his hand pointed to one part of the liquid mass,
which I watched attentively.
A PEARL OF TEN MILLIONS 149
About five yards from me a shadow appeared and sank to
the ground. The disquieting idea of sharks shot through
my mind, but I was mistaken ; and once again it was not a
monster of the ocean that we had to do with.
It was a man, a living man, an Indian, a fisherman, a
poor devil, who, I suppose, had come to glean before the
harvest. I could see the bottom of his canoe anchored
some feet above his head. He dived and went up succes-
sively. A stone held between his feet, cut in the shape of a
sugar-loaf, while a rope fastened him to his boat, helped
him to descend more rapidly. This was all his apparatus.
Reaching the bottom about five yards deep, he went on his
knees and filled his bag with oysters picked up at random.
Then he went up, emptied it, pulled up his stone, and be-
gan the operation once more, which lasted thirty seconds.
The diver did not see us. The shadow of the rock hid us
from sight. And how should this poor Indian ever dream
that men, beings like himself, should be there under the
water watching his movements, and losing no detail of the
fishing? Several times he went up in this way, and dived
again. He did not carry away more than ten at each
plunge, for he was obliged to pull them from the bank to
which they adhered by means of their strong byssus. And
how many of those oysters for which he risked his life had
no pearl in them! I watched him closely; his maneuvers
were regular, and for the space of half an hour, no danger
appeared to threaten him.
I was beginning to accustom myself to the sight of this
interesting fishing, when suddenly, as the Indian was on the
ground, I saw him make a gesture of terror, rise, and make
a spring to return to the surface of the sea.
I understood his dread. A gigantic shadow appeared
just above the unfortunate diver. It was a shark of enor-
mous size advancing diagonally, his eyes on fire, and his
jaws open. I was mute with horror and unable to move.
The voracious creature shot toward the Indian, who
threw himself on one side in order to avoid the shark's fins;
but not its tail, for it struck his chest, and stretched him
on the ground.
This scene lasted but a few seconds; the shark returned,
and, turning on his back, prepared himself for cutting the
Indian in two, when I saw Captain Nemo rise suddenly.
I50 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
and then, dagger in hand, walk straight to the monster,
ready to fight face to face with him. The very moment
the shark was going to snap the unhappy fisherman in two,
he perceived his new adversary, and, turning over, made
straight toward him.
I can still see Captain Nemo's position. Holding him-
self well together, he waited for the shark with admirable
coolness; and, when it rushed at him, threw himself on
one side with wonderful quickness, avoiding the shock,
and burying his dagger deep into its side. But it was not
all over. A terrible combat ensued.
The shark had seemed to roar, if I might say so. The
blood rushed in torrents from its wound. The sea was
dyed red, and through the opaque liquid I could distin-
guish nothing more. Nothing more, until the moment
when, like lightning, I saw the undaunted captain hang-
ing on to one of the creature's fins, struggling, as it were,
hand to hand with the monster, and dealing successive
blows at his enemy, yet still unable to give a decisive, fatal
one.
The shark's struggles agitated the water with such fury
that the rocking threatened to upset me.
I wanted to go to the captain's assistance, but, nailed to
the spot with horror, I could not stir.
I saw the haggard eye; I saw the different phases of the
fight. The captain fell to the earth, upset by the enor-
mous mass which leaned upon him. The shark's jaws
opened wide, like a pair of factory shears, and it would
have been all over with the captain; but, quick as thought,
harpoon in hand, Ned Land rushed toward the shark and
struck it with its sharp point.
The waves were impregnated with a mass of blood.
They rocked under the shark's movements, which beat
them with indescribable fury. Ned Land had not missed
his aim. It was the monster's death-rattle. Struck to the
heart, it struggled in dreadful convulsions, the shock of
which overthrew Conseil.
But Ned Land had disentangled the captain, who, get-
ting up without any wound, went straight to the Lidian,
quickly cut the cord which held him to the stone, took
him in his arms, and, with a sharp blow of his heel,
mounted to the surface.
A' PEARL OF TEN MILLIONS 151
We all three followed in a few seconds, saved by a mir-
acle, and reached the fisherman's boat.
Captain Nemo's first care was to recall the unfortunate
man to life again. I did not think he could succeed. I
hoped so, for the poor creature's immersion was not long;
but the blow from the shark's tail might have been his
death-blow.
Happily, with the captain's and Conseil's sharp friction,
I saw consciousness return by degrees. He opened his
eyes. What was his surprise, his terror even, at seeing
four great copper heads leaning over him! And, above all,
what must he have thought when Captain Nemo, drawing
from the pocket of his dress a bag of pearls, placed it in
his hand! This munificent charity from the man of the
waters to the poor Cingalese was accepted with a trembling
hand. His wondering eyes showed that he knew not to
w^hat superhuman beings he owed both this fortune and his
life.
At a sign from the captain we regained the bank, and
following the road already traversed, came in about half
•an hour to the anchor which held the canoe of the Nautilus
to the earth.
Opxce on board, we each, with the help of the sailors,
got rid of the heavy copper helmets.
Captain Nemo's first word was to the Canadian.
" Thank you. Master Land," said he.
" It was in revenge, captain," replied Ned Land. " I
owed you that."
A ghastly smile crossed the captain's lips ; that was all.
*' To the Nautilus" said he.
The boat flew over the waves. Some minutes after we
met the shark's dead body floating By the black markmg
•of the extremity of its fins, I recognized the terrible mela-
:nopteron of the Indian seas, of the species of s'nark prop-
.erly so called. It was more than twenty-five feet long ; its
enormous mouth occupied one-third of its body. It was
•an adult, as was known by its six rows of teeth placed in
,an isosceles triangle in the upper jaw.
Conpeil looked at it with scientific interest, and I am
sure thit he placed it, and not w^ithout reason, in the carti-
laginous class, of the chondropterygian order, with fixed
gills, of^lhe selacian family, in the genus of the sharks.
152 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
While I was contemplating this inert mass, a dozen of
these voracious beasts appeared round the boat; and, with-
out noticing us, threw themselves upon the dead body and
fought with one another for the pieces.
At half-past eight we were again on board the Nautilus.
There I reflected on the incidents which had taken place
in our excursion to the Manaar Bank.
Two conclusions I must inevitably draw from it — one
bearing upon the unparalleled courage of Captain Nemo,
the other upon his devotion to a human being, a represen-
tative of that race from which he fled beneath the sea.
Whatever he might say, this strange man had not yet suc-
ceeded in entirely crushing his heart.
When I made this observation to him, he answered in a
slightly moved tone, " That Indian, sir, is an inhabitant of
an oppressed country ; and I am still, and shall be, to my last
breath, one of them! "
CHAPTER IV
THE RED SEA
In the course of the day of the 29th of January, the
island of Ceylon disappeared under the horizon, and the
Nautilus, at a speed of twenty miles an hour, slid into the
labyrinth of canals which separate the Maldives from the
Laccadives. It coasted even the island of Kiltan, a land
originally madreporic, discovered by Vasco de Gama in
1499, ^'^d one of the nineteen principal islands of the Lac-
cadive Archipelago, situated between 10° and 14° 30' north
latitude, and 69° 50' 72" east longitude. We had made
16,220 miles, or 7,500 (French) leagues, from our starting-
point in the Japanese seas.
The next day (30th January), when the Nautilus went to
the surface of the ocean, there was no land in sight. Our
course was N.N.E., in the direction of the Sea of Oman,
between Arabia and the Indian Peninsula, which serves as
an outlet to the Persian Gulf. It was evidently a block
without any possible egress. Where was Captain Nemo
taking us to? I could not say. This, however, did not
satisfy the Canadian, who that day came to me asking where
we were going.
THE RED SEA 153
" We are going where our captain's fancy takes us, Mas-
ter Ned."
" His fancy cannot take us far, then," said the Canadian.
"The Persian Gulf has no outlet; and if we do go in, it
will not be long before we are out again."
" Very well, then, we will come out again, Master Land;
and if after the Persian Gulf the Nautilus would Hke to
visit the Red Sea, the Straits of Bab-el-mandeb are there
to give us entrance."
" I need not tell you, sir," said Ned Land, " that the Red
Sea is as much closed as the gulf, as the Isthmus of Suez
is not yet cut; and if it was, a boat as mysterious as ours
would not risk itself in a canal cut with sluices. And
again the Red Sea is not the road to take us back to
Europe."
" But I never said we were going back to Europe."
" What do you suppose, then ? "
" I suppose that after visiting the curious coasts of Arabia
and Egypt, the Nautilus will go down the Indian Ocean
again, perhaps cross the Channel of Mozambique, perhaps
off the Mascarenhas, so as to gain the Cape of Good Hope."
"And once at the Cape of Good Hope?" asked the
Canadian, with peculiar emphasis.
" Well, we shall penetrate into that Atlantic which we
do not yet know. Ah ! friend Ned, you are getting tired
of this journey under the sea: you are surfeited with the
incessantly varying spectacle of submarine wonders. For
my part, I shall be sorry to see the end of a voyage which
it is given to so few men to make."
For four days, till the 3d of February, the Nautilus
scoured the Sea of Oman, at various speeds and at various
depths. It seemed to go at random, as if hesitating as to
which road it should follow, but we never passed the Tropic
of Cancer.
In quitting this sea we sighted Muscat for an instant,
one of the most important towns of the country of Oman.
I admired its strange aspect, surrounded by black rocks
upon which its white houses and forts stood in relief. I
saw the rounded domes of its mosques, the elegant points
of its minarets, its fresh and verdant terraces. But it was
only a vision! the A'autilus soon sank under the waves of
that part of the sea.
154 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
We passed along the Arabian coast of Mahrah and
Hadramaut, for a distance of six miles, its undulating line
of mountains being occasionally relieved by some ancient
ruin. The 5th of February we at last entered the Gulf of
Aden, a perfect funnel introduced into the neck of Bab-el-
mandeb, through which the Indian waters entered the Red
Sea.
The 6th of February, the Nautilus floated in sight of
Aden, perched upon a promontory which a narrow isthmus
joins to the mainland, a kind of inaccessible Gibraltar, the
^Fortifications of which were rebuilt by the English after tak-
ing possession in 1839. I caught a glimpse of the octagon
minarets of this town, which was at one time, according to
the historian Edrisi, the richest commercial magazine on
the coast.
I certainly thought that Captain Nemo, arrived at this
point, would back out again; but I was mistaken, for he
did no such thing, much to my surprise.
The next day, the 7th of February, we entered the Straits
of Bab-el-mandeb, the name of which, in the Arab tongue,
means " The gate of tears."
To twenty miles in breadth, it is only thirty-two in
length. And for the Nautilus, starting at full speed, the
crossing was scarcely the work of an hour. But I saw
nothing, not even the island of Perim, with which the
British government has fortified the position of Aden.
There were too many English or French steamers of the
line of Suez to Bombay, Calcutta to Melbourne, and from
Bourbon to the Mauritius, furrowing this narrow passage,
for the Nautilus to venture to show itself. So it remained
prudently below. At last, about noon, we were in the
waters of the Red Sea.
I would not even seek to understand the caprice which
had decided Captain Nemo upon entering the gulf. But
I quite approved of the Nautilus entering it. Its speed
was lessened: sometimes it kept on the surface, sometimes
it dived to avoid a vessel, and thus I was able to observe
the upper and lower parts of this curious sea.
The 8th of February, from the first dawn of day. Mocha
came in sight, now a ruined town, whose walls would fall
at a gun-shot, yet which shelters here and there some ver-
dant date-trees; once an important city, containing six public
THE RED SEA 155
markets and twenty-six mosques, and with walls, defended
by fourteen forts, forming a girdle of two miles in cir-
cumference.
The Nautilus then approached the African shore, where
the depth of the sea was greater. There, between two
waters clear as crystal, through the open panels we were
allowed to contemplate the beautiful bushes of brillant coral,
and large blocks of rock clothed with a splendid fur of green
alg^e and fuci. What an indescribable spectacle, and what
variety of sites and landscapes along these sand-banks and
volcanic islands which bound the Lybian coast ! But where
these shrubs appeared in all their beauty was on the eastern
coast, w^iich the Nautilus soon gained. It was on the coast
of Tehama, for there not only did this display of zoophytes
flourish beneath the level of the sea, but they also formed
picturesque interlacings w^iich unfolded themselves about
sixty feet above the surface, more capricious but less highly
colored than those w^hose freshness was kept up by the vital
power of the waters.
What charming hours I passed thus at the window of
the saloon! What new specimens of submarine flora and
fauna did I admire under the brightness of our electric
lantern !
The 9th of February, the Nautilus floated in the broad-
est part of the Red Sea, which is comprised between Soua-
kin. on the west coast, and Koomfidah, on the east coast,
with a diameter of ninety miles.
That day at noon, after the bearings were taken, Cap-
tain Nemo mounted to the platform, where I happened to be,
and I was determined not to let him go down again with-
out at least pressing him regarding his ulterior projects.
As soon as he saw me he approached, and graciously offered
me a cigar.
"Well. sir. does this Red Sea please you? Have you
sufficiently observed the wonders it covers, its fishes, its
zoophytes, its parterres of sponges, and its forests of coral?
Did you catch a glimpse of the interesting towns on its
borders? "
" Yes, Captain Nemo," I replied ; " and the Nautilus is
wonderfully fitted for such a study. Ah ! it is an intelli-
gent boat! "
" Yes, sir, intelligent and invulnerable. It fears neither
156 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
the terrible tempests of the Red Sea, nor its currents, nor
its sand-banks."
" Certainly," said I, " this sea is quoted as one of the
worst, and in the time of the ancients, if I am not mis-
taken, its reputation was detestable."
" Detestable, M. Aronnax. The Greek and Latin his-
torians do not speak favorably of it, and Strabo says it is
very dangerous during the Etesian winds, and in the rainy
season. The Arabian Edrisi portrays it under the name of
the Gulf of Colzoum, and relates that vessels perished there
in great numbers on the sand-banks, and that no one would
risk sailing in the night. It is, he pretends, a sea subject
to fearful hurricanes, strewn with inhospitable islands, and
* which offers nothing good either on its surface or in its
depths.' Such, too, is the opinion of Arrian, Agathar-
cides, and Artemidorus."
" One may see," I replied, " that these historians never
sailed on board the Nautilus/'
"Just so," replied the captain, smiling; "and in that
respect moderns are not more advanced than the ancients.
It required many ages to find out the mechanical power of
steam. Who knows if, in another hundred years, we may
not see a second Nautilust Progress is slow, M. Aron-
nax."
"It is true," I answered; "your boat is at least a cen-
tury before its time, perhaps an era. What a misfortune
that the secret of such an invention should die with its
inventor ! "
Captain Nemo did not reply. After some minutes' si-
lence he continued: "You were speaking of the opinions
of ancient historians upon the dangers of the Red Sea."
" It is true," said I ; " but were not their fears exag-
gerated ? "
" Yes and no, M. Aronnax," replied Captain Nemo, who
seemed to know the Red Sea by heart. " That which is
no longer dangerous for a modern vessel, well rigged,
strongly built, and master of its own course, thanks to
obedient steam, offered all sorts of perils to the ships of
the ftncients. Picture to yourself those first navigators ven-
turing in ships made of planks sewn with the cords of the
palm trees, saturated with the grease of the sea-dog, and
covered with powdered resin! They had not even instru-
THE RED SEA 157
ments wherewith to take their bearings, and they went by
guess among currents of which they scarcely knew any-
thing. Under such conditions shipwrecks were, and must
have been, numerous. But in our time, steamers running
between Suez and the South Seas have nothing more to
fear from the fury of this gulf, in spite of contrary trade-
winds. The captains and passengers do not prepare for
their departure by offering propitiatory sacrifices; and, on
their return, they no longer go ornamented with wreaths
and gilt fillets to thank the gods in the neighboring temple."
"I agree with you," said I; "and steam seems to have
killed all gratitude in the hearts of sailors. But, captain,
since you seem to have especially studied this sea, can you
tell me the origin of its name?"
" There exist several explanations on the subject, IM.
Aronnax. Would you like to know the opinion of a chroni-
cler of the fourteenth century?"
" Willingly."
" This fanciful writer pretends that its name was given
to it after the passage of the Israelites, when Pharaoh
perished in the waves which closed at the voice of Moses."
"A poet's explanation, Captain Nemo," I replied; ''but
I cannot content myself with that. I ask you for your
personal opinion."
" Here it is, M. Aronnax. According to my idea, we
must see in this appellation of the Red Sea a translation
of the Hebrew word ' Edom ; ' and if the ancients gave
it that name, it was on account of the particular color of
its waters."
" But up to this time I have seen nothing but transparent
waves and without any particular color."
"Very likely; but as we advance to the bottom of the
gulf, you will see this singular appearance. I remember
seeing the Bay of Tor entirely red, like a sea of blood."
" And you attribute this color to the presence of a micro-
scopic seaweed which in some way produces this
effect?"
" Yes ; it is a mucilaginous purple matter, produced by
the restless little plants known by the name of trichodesmia,
of which it requires 40.000 to occupy the space of a square
0.04 of an inch. Perhaps we shall meet some when we
get to Tor."
158 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" So, Captain Nemo, it is not the first time you have
overrun the Red Sea on board the Nautilus f "
" No, sir."
" As you spoke a while ago of the passage of the Israel-
ites and of the catastrophe to the Egyptians, I will ask
whether you have met with traces under the water of this
great historical fact? "
" No sir ; and for a very good reason."
"What is it?"
" It is, that the spot where Moses and his people passed
is now so blocked up with sand that the camels can barely
bathe their legs there. You can well understand that there
would not be water enough for my Nautilus."
"And the spot?" I asked.
" The spot is situated a little above the Isthmus of Suez,
in the arm which formerly made a deep estuary when the
Red Sea extended to the Salt Lakes. Now, whether this
passage were miraculous or not, the Israelites, neverthe-
less, crossed there to reach the Promised Land, and Pha-
raoh's army perished precisely on that spot; and I think
that excavations made in the middle of the sand would
bring to light a large number of arms and instruments of
Egyptian origin."
" That is evident," I replied ; " and for the sake of archae-
ologists let us hope that these excavations will be made
sooner or later, when new towns are established on the
isthmus, after the construction of the Suez Canal; a canal,
which, however, would be very useless to a vessel like the
Nautilus."
" Very likely; but useful to the whole world," said Cap-
tain Nemo. " The ancients well understood the utility of
a communication between the Red Sea and the Mediter-
ranean for their commercial affairs ; but they did not think
of digging a canal direct, and took the Nile as an inter-
mediary. Very probably the canal which united the Nile
to the Red Sea was begun by Sesostris, if we may believe
tradition. One thing is certain, that in the year 615 before
Jesus Christ, Necos undertook the works of an alimentary
canal to the waters of the Nile, across the plain of Egypt,
looking toward Arabia. It took four days to go up this
canal, and it was so wide that two triremes could go abreast.
It was carried on by Darius, the son of Hystaspes, and
THE RED SEA 159
probably finished by Ptolemy II. Strabo saw it navigated ;
but its decline from the point of departure, near Bubastes,
to the Red Sea was so slight that it was only na^•igable for
a few months in the year. This canal answered all com-
mercial purposes to the age of Antoninus, when it was
abandoned and blocked up with sand. Restored by order
of the Calipli Omar, it was definitely destroyed in 761 or
^(^2 by Caliph Al-Mansor, who wished to prevent the ar-
rival of provisions to Mohammed-ben-Abdallah, who had
revolted against him. During the expedition into Egypt,
your General Bonaparte discovered traces of the works in
the Desert of Suez; and, surprised by the tide, he nearly
perished before regaining Hadjaroth, at the very place
where Moses had encamped three thousand years before
him."
" Well, captain, what the ancients dared not undertake,
this junction between the two seas, which will shorten the
road from Cadiz to India, M. Lesseps has succeeded in
doing; and before long he will have changed Africa into an
immense island."
" Yes, M. Aronnax ; you have the right to be proud of
your countryman. Such a man brings more honor to a
nation than great captains. He began, like so many others,
with disgust and rebuffs ; but he has triumphed, for he has
the genius of will. And it is sad to think that a work like
that, which ought to have been an international work, and
which would have sufficed to make a reign illustrious,
should have succeeded by the energy of one man. All
honor to M. Lesseps ! "
" Yes, honor to the great citizen ! " I replied, sur-
prised by the manner in which Captain Nemo had just
spoken.
'' Unfortunately." he continued, " I cannot take you
through the Suez Canal ; but you will be able to see the long
jetty of Port Said after to-morrow, when we shall be in
the Mediterranean."
" The Mediterranean ! " I exclaimed.
" Yes, sir; does that astonish you? "
" What astonishes me is to think that we shall be there
the day after to-morrow."
"Indeed?"
" Yes, captain, although by this time I ought to have
i6o TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
accustomed myself to be surprised at nothing since I have
been on board your boat."
" But the cause of this surprise? "
" Well ! it is the fearful speed you will have to put on
the Nautilus, if the day after to-morrow she is to be in the
Mediterranean, having made the round of Africa, and dou-
bled the Cape of Good Hope ! "
" Who told you that she would make the round of Africa,
and double the Cape of Good Hope, sir? "
" Well, unless the Nautilus sails on dry land, and passes
above the isthmus "
" Or beneath it, M. Aronnax."
"Beneath it!"
" Certainly," replied Captain Nemo quietly. " A long
time ago nature made under this tongue of land what man
has this day made on its surface."
" What ! such a passage exists? "
" Yes, a subterranean passage, which I have named the
Arabian Tunnel. It takes us beneath Suez, and opens into
the Gulf of Pelusium."
'' But this isthmus is composed of nothing but quick-
sands."
" To a certain depth. But at fifty-five yards only, there
is a solid layer of rock."
''Did you discover this passage by chance?" I asked,
more and more surprised.
" Chance and reasoning, sir; and by reasoning evert
more than by chance. Not only does this passage exist,
but I have profited by it several times. Without that I
should not have ventured this day into the impassable Red
Sea. I noticed that in the Red Sea and in the Mediter-
ranean there existed a certain number of fishes of a kind
perfectly identical — ophidia, fiatoles, girelles, and exocoeti.
Certain of that fact, I asked myself, was it possible that
there was no communication between the two seas? If
there was, the subterranean current must necesssarily run
from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean, from the sole
cause of difference of level. I caught a large number of
fishes in the neighborhood of Suez. I passed a copper ring
through their tails, and threw them back into the sea.
Some months later, on the coast of Syria, I caught some
of my fish ornamented with the ring. Thus the communi-
V. V Verne
THE RED SEA i6i
cation between the two w-as proved, I then sought for it
with my Nautilus; I discovered it, ventured into it, and
before long, sir, you too will have passed through my Ara-
bian Tunnel! "
CHAPTER V
THE ARABIAN TUNNEL
That same evening, in 21° 30' north latitude, the Nau-
tilus floated on the surface of the sea, approaching the
Arabian coast. I saw Djeddah, the most important count-
ing-house of Egypt, Syria, Turkey, and India. I distin-
guished clearly enough its buildings, the vessels anchored at
the quays, and those whose draught of water obliged them
to anchor in the roads. The sun, rather low on the horizon,
struck full on the houses of the town, bringing out their
whiteness. Outside, some wooden cabins, and some made
of reeds, showed the quarter inhabited by the Bedouins.
Soon Djeddah was shut out from view by the shadows of
night, and the NautiUis found herself under water slightly
phosphorescent.
The next day, the loth of February, we sighted several
ships running to windward. The Nautilus returned to its
submarine navigation ; but at noon, when her bearings were
taken, the sea being deserted, she rose again to her water-
line.
Accompanied by Ned and Conseil, I seated myself on
the platform. The coast on the eastern side looked like a
mass faintly printed upon a damp fog.
We were leaning on the side of the pinnace, talking Idly,
when Ned Land, stretching out his hand toward a spot on
the sea, said, " Do you see anything there, sir? "
"No, Ned," I replied; "but I have not your eyes, you
know."
" Look well," said Ned, " there, on the starboard beam,
about the height of the lantern! Do you not see a mass
which seems to move? "
"Certainly," said I, after close attention; "I see some-
thing resembling a long black body on the top of the
water."
And certainly before long the black object was not more
162 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
than a mile from us. It looked like a great sand-bank
deposited in the open sea. It was a gigantic dugong !
Ned Land looked eagerly. His eyes shone with covetous-
ness at the sight of the animal. His hand seemed ready
to harpoon it. One would have thought he was waiting
the moment to throw himself into the sea, and attack it
in its element.
At this instant Captain Nemo appeared on the platform.
He saw the dugong, understood the Canadian's attitude,
and addressing him, said :
"If you held a harpoon just now. Master Land, would
It not burn your hand ? "
" Just so, sir."
" And you would not be sorry to go back, for one day,
to your trade of a fisherman, and to add this cetacean to
the list of those you have already killed? "
" I should not, sir."
Well, you can try."
Thank you, sir," said Ned Land, his eyes flaming.
" Only," continued the captain, " I advise you for your
own sake not to miss the creature."
" Is the dugong dangerous to attack ? " I asked, in spite
of the Canadian's shrug of the shoulders.
"Yes," replied the captain; " sometimes the animal turns
upon its assailants and overturns their boat. But for Mas-
ter Land, this danger is not to be feared. His eye is
prompt, his arm sure."
At this moment seven men of the crew, mute and im-
movable as ever, mounted the platform. One carried a
harpoon and a line similar to those employed in catching
whales. The pinnace was lifted from the bridge, pulled
from its socket, and let down into the sea. Six oarsmen
took their seats, and the coxswain went to the tiller. Ned,
Conseil, and I went to the back of the boat.
"You are not coming, captain?" I asked
" No, sir; but I wish you good sport."
The boat put off, and lifted by the six rowers, drew
rapidly toward the dugong, which floated about two miles
from the Nautilus.
Arrived some cables' length from the cetacean, the speed
slackened, and the oars dipped noiselessly into the quiet
waters. Ned Land, harpoon in hand, stood in the fore part
THE ARABIAN TUNNEL 163
of the boat. The harpoon used for striking the whale is
generally attached to a very long cord, which runs out
rapidly as the wounded creature draws it after him. But
here the cord w^as not more than ten fathoms long, and the
extremity was attached to a small barrel, which, by floating,
was to show the course the dugong took while under the
water.
I stood, and carefully watched the Canadian's adversary.
The dugong, which also bears the name of the halicore,
closely resembles the manatee; its oblong body terminates
in a lengthened tail, and its lateral fins in perfect fingers.
Its difference from the manatee consists in its upper jaw,
which is armed with two long and pointed teeth, which
form on each side diverging tusks.
This dugong, which Ned Land was preparing to attack,
was of colossal dimensions; it was more than seven yards
long. It did not move, and seemed to be sleeping on the
waves, which circumstance made it easier to capture.
The boat approached within six yards of the animal.
The oars rested on the rowlocks. I half rose. Ned Land,
his body thrown a little back, brandished the harpoon in
his experienced hand.
Suddenly a hissing noise was heard, and the dugong dis-
appeared. The harpoon, although thrown with great force,
had apparently only struck the water.
"Curse it! " exclaimed the Canadian furiously; " I h ,-e
missed it ! "
" No," said I ; " the creature is wounded — look a the
blood; but your weapon has not stuck in his body."
" My harpoon ! my harpoon ! " cried Ned Land.
The sailors rowed on, and the coxswain made for the
floating barrel. The harpoon regained, we followed in
pursuit of the animal.
The latter came now and then to the surface to breathe.
Its wound had not weakened it, for it shot onward with
great rapidity.
The boat, rowed by strong arms, flew on its track. Sev-
eral times it approached within some few yards, and the
Canadian was ready to strike, but the dugong made off
with a sudden plunge, and it was impossible to reach it.
Imagine the passion which excited impatient Ned Land !
He hurled at the unfortunate creature the most energetic
i64 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
expletives in the English tongue. For my part I was only
vexed to see the dugong escape all our attacks.
We pursued it without relaxation for an hour, and I
began to think it would prove difficult to capture, when
the animal, possessed with the perverse idea of vengeance,
of which he had cause to repent, turned upon the pinnace
and assailed us in its turn.
This maneuver did not escape the Canadian.
" Look out ! " he cried.
The coxswain said some words in his outlandish tongue,
doubtless warning the men to keep on their guard.
The dugong came within twenty feet of the boat, stopped,
sniffed the air briskly with its large nostrils (not pierced at
the extremity, but in the upper part of its muzzle). Then
taking a spring he threw himself upon us.
The pinnace could not avoid the shock, and half upset,
shipped at least two tons of water, which had to be emptied;
but thanks to the coxswain, we caught it sideways, not full
front, so we were not quite overturned. While Ned Land,
clinging to the bows, belabored the gigantic animal with
blows from his harpoon, the creature's teeth were buried
in the gunwale, and it lifted the whole thing out of the water,
as a lion does a roebuck. We were upset over one another,
and I know not how the adventure would have ended, if the
Canadian, still raging against the beast, had not struck it to
the heart.
I heard its teeth grind on the iron plate, and the dugong
disappeared, carrying the harpoon with him. But the barrel
soon returned to the surface, and shortly after the body
of the animal, turned on its back. The boat came up with
it, took it in tow, and made straight for the Nautilus. It
required tackle of enormous strength to hoist the dugong
on to the platform. It weighed 10,000 pounds.
The next day, February nth, our larder v/as enriched by
some more delicate game. A flight of sea-swallows rested on
the Nautilus. It was a species of the Sterna nilotica,
peculiar to Egypt; its beak is black, head gray and pointed,
the eye surrounded by white spots, the back, wings, and
tail of a grayish color, the belly and throat white, and claws
red. They also took some dozen of Nile ducks, a wild bird
of high flavor, its throat and upper part of the head white
with black spots.
THE ARABIAN TUNNEL 165
About five o'clock in the evening we sighted to the north
the Cape of Ras-Mohammed. This cape forms the extrem-
ity of Arabia Petraea, comprised between the Gulf of Suez
and the Gulf of Acabah.
The Nauliliis penetrated into the Strait of Jubal, which
leads to the Gulf of Suez. I distinctly saw a high moun-
tain, towering between the two gulfs of Ras-Mohammed.
It was Mount Horeb, that Sinai at the top of which Moses
saw God face to face.
At six o'clock the Nmitilns, sometimes floating, some-
times immersed, passed some distance from Tor, situated
at the end of the bay, the w^aters of which seemed tinted
with red, an observation already made by Captain Nemo.
Then night fell in the midst of a heavy silence, sometimes
broken by the cries of the pelican and other night-birds,
and tlie noise of the waves breaking upon the shore, chafing
against the rocks, or the panting of some far-off steamer
beating the waters of the gulf with its noisy paddles.
From eight to nine o'clock the Nautilus remained some
fathoms under the water. According to my calculation we
must have been very near Suez. Through the panel of the
saloon I saw the bottom of the rocks brilliantly lit up by
our electric lamp. We seemed to be leaving the straits be-
hind us more and more.
At a quarter past nine, the vessel having returned to the
surface, I mounted the platform. Most impatient to pass
through Captain Nemo's tunnel, I could not stay in one
place, so came to breathe the fresh night-air.
Soon in the shadow I saw a pale light, half discolored by
the fog, shining about a mile from us.
"A floating lighthouse!" said someone near me.
I turned, and saw the captain.
" It is the floating light of Suez," he continued. " It
will not be long before we gain tiie entrance of the tunnel."
" The entrance cannot be easy? "
" No, sir ; and for that reason I am accustomed to go
into the steersman's cage, and myself direct our course.
And now if you will go down, M. Aronnax, the Xaiitilus
is going under the waves, and will not return to tlie sur-
face until after we have passed through the Arabian
Tunnel."
Captain Nemo led me toward the central staircase; half-
i66 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
way down he opened a door, traversed the upper deck, and
landed in the pilot's cage, which it may be remembered
rose at the extremity of the platform. It was a cabin
measuring six feet square, very much like that occupied by
the pilot on the steamboats of the Mississippi or Hudson.
In the midst worked a wheel, placed vertically, and caught
to the tiller-rope, which ran to the back of the Nautilus.
Four light-ports with lenticular glasses, let in a groove in
the partition of the cabin, allowed the man at the wheel to
see in all directions.
This cabin was dark, but soon my eyes accustomed tliem-
selves to the obscurity, and I perceived the pilot, a strong
man, with his hands resting on the spokes of the wheel.
Outside, the sea appeared vividly lit up by the lantern,
which shed its rays from the back of the cabin to the other
extremity of the platform.
" Now," said Captain Nemo, " let us try to make our
passage."
Electric wires connected the pilot's cage with the ma-
chinery-room, and from there the captain could communi-
cate simultaneously to his Nai{tilus the direction and the
speed. He pressed a metal knob, and at once the speed of
the screw diminished.
I looked in silence at the high straight wall we were
running by at this moment, the immovable base of a mas-
sive sandy coast. We followed it thus for an hour only
some few yards off.
Captain Nemo did not take his eye from the knob, sus-
pended by its two concentric circles in the cabin. At a
simple gesture the pilot modified the course of the Nautilus
every instant.
At a quarter past ten, the captain himself took the helm.
A large gallery, black and deep, opened before us. The
Nautilus went boldly into it. A strange roaring was heard
round its sides. It was the waters of the Red Sea, which
the incline of the tunnel precipitated violently toward the
Mediterranean. The Nautilus went with the torrent, rapid
as an arrow, in spite of the efforts of the machinery, which,
in order to offer more effective resistance, beat the waves
with reversed screw.
On the walls of the narrow passage I could see nothing
but brilliant rays, straight lines, furrows of fire, traced by
THE ARABIAN TUNNEL 167
the great speed, under the brllHant electric light. My heart
beat fast.
At thirty-five minutes past ten, Captain Nemo quitted
the helm ; and, turning to me, said :
" The Mediterranean ! "
In less than twenty minutes, the Nautilus, carried along
by the torrent, had passed through the Isthmus of Suez.
CHAPTER \T
THE GRECIAN ARCHIPELAGO
The next day, the 12th of February, at the dawn of day,
the Nautilus rose to the surface. I hastened to the plat-
form. Three miles to the south, the dim outline of
Pelusium was to be seen. A torrent had carried us from
one sea to the other. About seven o'clock Ned and Con-
seil joined me.
" Well, Sir Naturalist," said the Canadian, in a slightly
jovial tone, " and the Mediterranean? "
" We are floating on its surface, friend Ned."
" What! " said Conseil, " this very night? "
" Yes, this very night ; in a few minutes we have passed
this impassable isthmus."
" I do not believe it," replied the Canadian.
" Then you are wrong, Master Land," I continued ; " this
low coast which rounds off to the south is the Egyptian
coast. And you, who have such good eyes, Ned, you can
see the jetty of Port Said stretching into the sea."
The Canadian looked attentively. " Certainly you are
right, sir, and your captain is a first-rate man. We are in
the Mediterranean. Good! Now, if you please, let us
talk of our own little affair, but so that no one hears us."
I saw what the Canadian wanted, and. in my case, I
thought it better to let him talk, as he wished it; so we all
three went and sat down near the lantern, where we were
less exposed to the spray of the blades.
" Now, Ned, we listen; what have you to tell us? **
" What I have to tell you is very simple. We are in
Europe; and before Captain Nemo's caprices drag us once
more to the bottom of the Polar seas, or lead us into
Oceania, I ask to leave the Nautilus."
i68 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
I wished in no way to shackle the liberty of my compan-
ions, but I certainly felt no desire to leave Captain Nemo
at this time.
Thanks to him, and thanks to his apparatus, I was each
day nearer the completion of my submarine studies; and I
was rewriting my book of submarine depths in its very
element. Should I ever again have such an opportunity
of observing the wonders of the ocean? No, certainly not!
And I could not bring myself to the idea of abandoning the
Nautilus before the cycle of investigation was accomplished.
*' Friend Ned, answer me frankly, are you tired of being
on board? Are you sorry that destiny has thrown us into
Captain Nemo's hands? "
The Canadian remained some moments without answer-
ing. Then crossing his arms, he said, " Frankly, I do not
regret this journey under the seas. I shall be glad to have
made it ; but now that it is made, let us have done with it.
That is my idea."
" It will come to an end, Ned."
"Where and when?"
" Where I do not know, when I cannot say ; or, rather,
I suppose it will end when these seas have nothing more to
teach us."
" Then what do you hope for? " demanded the Canadian.
" That circumstances may occur as well six months hence
as now by which we may and ought to profit."
" Oh," said Ned Land, " and where shall we be in six
months, if you please, Sir Naturahst? "
"Perhaps in China; you know the Nautilus is a rapid
traveler. It goes through water as swallows through the
air, or as an express on the land. It does not fear fre-
quented seas; who can say that it may not beat the coasts
of France, England, or America, on which flight may be
attempted as advantageously as here."
" M. Aronnax," replied the Canadian, " your arguments
are rotten at the foundation. You speak in the future,
* We shall be there! we shall be here!' I speak in the
present, ' We are here, and we must profit by it.' "
Ned Land's logic pressed me hard, and I felt myself
beaten on that ground. I knew not what argument would
now tell in my favor.
" Sir," continued Ned, "let us suppose an impossibility;
THE GRECIAN ARCHIPELIGO 169
if Captain Nemo should this day offer you your liberty,
would you accept it? "
" I do not know," I answered.
"And if," he added, "the offer he made you this day
was never to be renewed, would you accept it? "
" Friend Ned, this is my answer. Your reasoning is
against me. We must not rely on Captain Nemo's good-
Avill. Common prudence forbids him to set us at liberty.
On the other side, prudence bids us profit by the first op-
portunity to leave the Nautilus."
" Well, M. Aronnax, tiiat is wisely said."
" Only one observation — just one. The occasion must
be serious, and our first attempt must succeed; if it fails,
we shall never find another, and Captain Nemo will never
forgive us."
" All that is true," replied the Canadian. " But your
observation applies equally to all attempts at flight whether
in two years' time, or in two days. But the question is
still this: if a favorable opportunity presents itself, it must
be seized."
" Agreed ! and now, Ned, will you tell me what you
mean by a favorable opportunity? "
" It will be that which, on a dark night, will bring the
Nautilus a short distance from some European coast."
"And you will try and save yourself by swimming? "
"Yes, if we were near enough to the bank, and if the
vessel was floating at the time. Not if the bank was far
away, and the boat was under the water."
"And in that case?"
" In that case, I should seek to make myself master of
the pinnace. I know how it is worked. We must get in-
side, and the bolts once drawn, we shall come to tlie sur-
face of the water, without even the pilot, who is in the
bows, perceiving our flight."
" Well, Ned, watch for the opportunity ; but do not for-
get that a hitch will ruin us."
" I will not forget, sir."
" And now, Ned, would you like to know what I think
of your project? "
" Certainly, M. Aronnax."
" Well, I think — I do not say I hope — I think that this
favorable opportunity will never present itself."
lyo TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
"Why not?"
" Because Captain Nemo cannot hide from himself that
we have not given up all hope of regaining our liberty, and
he will be on his guard, above all, in the seas, and in the
sight of European coasts."
" We shall see," repiled Ned Land, shaking his head de-
terminedly.
" And now, Ned Land," I added, " let us stop here. Not
another word on the subject. The day that you are ready,
come and let us know, and we will follow you. I rely en-
tirely upon you."
Thus ended a conversation which, at no very distant
time, led to such grave results. I must say here that facts
seemed to confirm my foresight, to the Canadian's great
despair. Did Captain Nemo distrust us in these fre-
quented seas, or did he only wish to hide himself from the
numerous vessels of all nations, which plowed the Medi-
terranean? I could not tell; but we were oftener between
waters, and far from the coast. Or, if the Nautilus did
emerge, nothing was to be seen but the pilot's cage; and
sometimes it went to great depths, for, between the
Grecian Archipelago and Asia Minor, we could not touch
the bottom at more than a thousand fathoms.
Thus I only knew we were near the Island of Carpathos,
one of the Sporades, by Captain Nemo reciting these lines
from Virgil :
*' Est in Carpathio Neptuni gurgite vates,
Caeruleus Proteus,"
as he pointed to a spot on the planisphere. It was indeed
the ancient abode of Proteus, the old shepherd of Neptune's
flocks, now the island of Scarpanto, situated between
Rhodes and Crete. I saw nothing but the granite base
through the glass panels of the saloon.
The next day, the 14th of February, I resolved to em-
ploy some hours in studying the fishes of the archipelago;
but for some reason or other, the panels remained hermetic-
ally sealed. Upon taking the course of the Nautilus I
found that we were going toward Candia, the ancient isle
of Crete. At the time I embarked on the Abraham
Lincoln, the whole of this island had risen in insurrection
against the despotism of the Turks. But how the insur-
gents had fared since that time I was absolutely ignorant,
THE GRECIAN ARCHIPELIGO 171
and it was not Captain Nemo, deprived of all land com-
munications, who could tell me.
I made no allusion to this event when that night I found
myself alone with him in the saloon. Besides, he seemed
to be taciturn and preoccupied. Then, contrary to his
custom, he ordered both panels to be opened, and going
from one to the other, observed the mass of waters atten-
tively To what end I could not guess; so, on my side,
I employed my time in studying the fish passing before
me. My eyes could not leave these wonders of the sea,
when they were suddenly struck by an unexpected ap-
parition.
In the midst of the waters a man appeared, a diver,
carrying at his belt a leathern purse. It was not a body
abandoned to the waves; it was a living man, swimming
with a strong hand, disappearing occasionally to take breath
at the surface.
I turned toward Captain Nemo, and in an agitated voice
exclaimed :
"A man shipwrecked! He must certainly be saved at
any price ! "
The captain did not answer me, but came and leaned
against the panel.
The man had approached, and with his face flattened
against the glass, was looking at us.
To my great amazement, Captain Nemo signed to him.
The diver answered with his hand, mounted immediately
to the surface of the water, and did not appear again.
" Do not be uncomfortable," said Captain Nemo. " It
is Nicholas of Cape Matapan; surnamed Pesca. He is well
known in all the Cyclades. A bold diver! water is his
element, and he lives more in it than on land, going con-
tinually from one island to another, even as far away as
Crete."
" You know him, captain? "
"Why not, M. Aronnax?"
Saying which, Captain Nemo went toward a piece of
furniture standing near the left panel of the saloon. Near
this piece of furniture, I saw a chest bound with iron, on
the cover of which was a copper plate, bearing the ciplier
of the Nautilus with its device.
At that moment, the captain without noticing my pres-
172 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
ence, opened the piece of furniture, a sort of strong box,
which held a great many ingots.
They were ingots of gold. From whence came this
precious metal, which represented an enormous sum?
V/here did the captain gather this gold from and what was
he going to do with it?
I did not say one word. I looked. Captain Nemo took
the ingots one by one, and arranged them methodically in
the chest, which he filled entirely. I estimated the contents
at more than 4,000 lbs. weight of gold, that is to say, nearly
£200,000.
The chest was securely fastened, and the captain wrote
an address on the lid, in characters which must have be-
longed to Modern Greece.
This done. Captain Nemo pressed a knob, the wire of
which communicated with the quarters of the crew. Four
men appeared, and, not without some trouble, pushed the
chest out of the saloon. Then I heard them hoisting it
up the iron staircase by means of pulleys.
At that moment Captain Nemo turned to me.
" And you were saying, sir? " said he.
" I was saying nothing, captain."
" Then, sir, if you will allow me, I will wish you good-
night"
Whereupon he turned and left the saloon.
I returned to my room much troubled, as one may be-
lieve. I vainly tried to sleep — I sought the connecting link
between the apparition of the diver and the chest filled with
gold. Soon, I felt by certain movements of pitching and
tossing that the Nautilus was leaving the depths and re-
turning to the surface.
Then I heard steps upon the platform; and I knew they
were unfastening the pinnace, and launching it upon the
waves. For one instant it struck the side of the Nautilus
then all noise ceased.
Two hours after, the same noise the same going and
coming was renewed; the boat was hoisted on board, re-
placed in its socket, and the Nautilus again plunged under
the waves.
So these millions had been transported to their address.
To what point of the continent? Who was Captain Nemo's
correspondent?
THE GRECIAN ARCHIPELIGO 173
The next day, I related to Conseil and the Canadian the
events of the night, which had excited my curiosity to the
highest degree. My companions were not less surprised
than myself.
"But where does he take his millions to?" asked Ned
Land.
To that there was no possible answer. I returned to the
saloon after having breakfast, and set to work. Till five
o'clock in the evening, I employed myself in arranging my
notes. At that moment (ought I to attribute it to some
peculiar idiosyncrasy?) I felt so great a heat that I was
obliged to take off my coat of byssus! It was strange, for
we were not under low latitudes; and even then, the Nau-
tilus, submerged as it was, ought to experience no change
of temperature. I looked at the manometer; it showed a
depth of sixty feet, to which atmospheric heat could never
attain.
I continued my work, but the temperature rose to such
a pitch as to be intolerable.
" Could there be fire on board? " I asked myself.
I was leaving the saloon, when Captain Nemo entered;
he approached the thermometer, consulted, and turning to
me, said:
" Forty-two degrees."
"I have noticed it, captain," I rephed; "and if it gets
much hotter we cannot bear it."
" Oh, sir, it will not get hotter if we do not wish it! "
"You can reduce it as you please, then?"
" No ; but I can go further from the stove which pro-
duces it."
" It is outward then ! "
"Certainly; we are floating in a current of boiling
water."
" Is it possible! " I exclaimed.
" Look."
The panels opened, and I saw the sea entirely w^hite all
round. A sulphurous smoke was curling amid the waves,
which boiled like water in a copper. I placed my hand on
one of the panes of glass, but the heat was so great that I
quickly took it off again.
" Where are we? " I asked.
" Near the island of Santorin, sir," replied the captain,
174 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" and just in the canal which separates Nea Kamenni from
Pah Kamenni. I wished to give you a sight of the curious
spectacle of a submarine eruption."
" I thought," said I, " that the formation of these new
islands was ended.
" Nothing is ever ended in the volcanic parts of the sea,"
repHed Captain Nemo; "and the globe is always being
worked by subterranean fires. Already, in the nineteenth
year of our era, according to Cassiodorus and Pliny, a new
island, Theia (the divine), appeared in the very place where
these islets have recently been formed. Then they sank
under the waves, to rise again in the year 69, when they
again subsided. Since that time to our days, the Plutonian
work has been suspended. But, on the 3d of February,
1866, a new island, which they named George Island,
emerged from the midst of the sulphurous vapor near Nea
Kamenni, and settled again the 6th of the same month.
Seven days after, the 13th of February, the island of
Aphroessa appeared, leaving between Nea Kamenni and
itself a canal ten yards broad. I was in these seas when
the phenomenon occurred, and I was able therefore to ob-
serve all the different phases. The island of Aphroessa, of
round form, measured 300 feet in diameter, and thirty feet
in height. It was composed of black and vriteous lava,
mixed with fragments of felspar. And lastly, on the loth
of March, a smaller island, called Reka, showed itself near
Nea Kamenni, and since then these three islands have
been joined together, forming but one and the same
island."
" And the canal in which we are at this moment?" I
asked.
" Here it is," replied Captain Nemo, showing me a map
of the archipelago. " You see I have marked the new
islands."
I returned to the glass. The Nautilus was no longer
moving, the heat was becoming unbearable. The sea, which
till now had been white, was red, owing to the presence
of salts of iron. In spite of the ship's being hermetically
sealed, an insupportable smell of sulphur filled the saloon,
and the brilliancy of the electricity was entirely extinguished
by bright scarlet flames. I was in a bath, I was choking,
I was broiled.
THE GRECIAN ARCHIPELIGO 175
" We can remain no longer in this boiling water," said I
to the captain.
" It would not be prudent," replied the impassive Cap-
tain Nemo.
An order was given; the Nautilus tacked about and left
the furnace it could not brave with impunity. A quarter
of an hour after we were breathing fresh air on the surface.
The thought then struck me that, if Ned Land had chosen
this part of the sea for our flight, we should never have
come alive out of this sea of fire.
The next day, the i6th of Februar}'-, we left the basin
which, between Rhodes and Alexandria, is reckoned about
1,500 fathoms in depth, and the A'autilus, passing some
distance from Cerigo, quitted the Grecian Archipelago,
after having doubled Cape IMatapan.
CHAPTER VII
THE MEDITERRANEAN IN FORTY-EIGHT HOURS
The Mediterranean, the blue sea par excellence, " the
great sea" of the Hebrews, "the sea" of the Greeks, the
" mare nostrum " of the Romans, bordered by orange trees,
aloes, cacti, and sea-pines; embalmed with the perfume of
the myrtle, surrounded by rude mountains, saturated with
pure and transparent air, but incessantly worked by under-
ground fires, a perfect battle field in which Neptune and
Pluto still dispute the empire of the world!
It is upon these banks, and on these waters, says Michelet,
that man is renewed in one of the most powerful climates
of the globe. But, beautiful as it was, I could only take
a rapid glance at the basin whose superficial area is two
millions of square yards. Even Captain Nemo's knowl-
edge was lost to me, for this enigmatical person did not
appear once during our passage at full speed. I estimated
the course which the Nautilus took under the waves of the
sea at about six hundred leagues, and it was accomplished
in forty-eight hours. Starting on the morning of the i6th
of February from the shores of Greece, we had crossed the
Straits of Gibraltar by sunrise on the i8th.
It was plain to me that this Mediterranean, inclosed in
the midst of those countries which he wished to avoid, was
176 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
distasteful to Captain Nemo. Those waves and those
breezes brought back too many remembrances, if not too
many regrets. Here he had no longer that independence
and that liberty of gait which he had when in the open
seas, and his Nautilus felt itself cramped between the close
shores of Africa and Europe.
Our speed was now twenty-five miles an hour. It may
be well understood that Ned Land, to his great disgust, was
obliged to renounce his intended flight. He could not
launch the pinnace, going at the rate of twelve or thirteen
yards every second. To quit the Nautilus under such con-
ditions would be as bad as jumping from a train going at
full speed — an imprudent thing, to say the least of it. Be-
sides, our vessel only mounted to the surface of the waves
at night to renew its stock of air; it was steered entirely
by the compass and the log.
I saw no more of the interior of this Mediterranean
than a traveler by express train perceives of the landscape
which flies before his eyes ; that is to say, the distant horizon,
and not the nearer objects which pass like a flash of light-
ning.
We passed between Sicily and the coast of Tunis. In
the narrow space between Cape Bon and the Straits of
Messina the bottom of the sea rose almost suddenly.
There was a perfect bank, on which there was not more
than nine fathoms of water, while on either side the depth
iwas ninety fathoms. The Nautilus had to maneuver very
carefully so as not to strike this submarine barrier.
I showed Conseil on the map of the Mediterranean the
spot occupied by this reef. " But if you please, sir," ob-
served Conseil, " it is like a real isthmus joining Europe to
Africa."
"Yes, my boy; it forms a perfect bar to the Straits of
Lybia, and the soundings of Smith have proved that in
former times the continents between Cape Boco and Cape
Furina were joined."
" I can well believe it," said Conseil.
" I will add," I continued, " that a similar barrier exists
between Gibraltar and Ceuta, which in geological times
formed the entire Mediterranean."
" What if some volcanic burst should one day raise these
two barriers above the waves? "
y. V yerno
THE MEDITERRANEAN 177
" It is not probable, Conseil."
"Well, but allow me to finish, please, sir; if this phe-
nomenon should take place, it will be troublesome for AI.
Lesseps, who has taken so much pains to pierce the
isthmus."
" I agree with you; but I repeat, Conseil, this phenom-
enon will never happen. The violence of subterranean
force is ever diminishing. Volcanoes, so plentiful in the
first days of the world, are being extinguished by degrees;
the internal heat is weakened ; the temperature of the lower
strata of the globe is lowered by a perceptible quantity
every century to the detriment of our globe, for its heat
is its life."
"But the sun?"
" The sun is not sufficient, Conseil. Can it give heat to
a dead body? "
" Not that I know of."
" Well, my friend, this earth will one day be that cold
corpse; it will become uninhabitable and uninhabited like
the moon, which has long since lost all its vital heat."
" In how many centuries? "
" In some hundreds of thousands of years, my boy."
" Then," said Conseil, " we shall have time to finish our
journey, that is, if Ned Land does not interfere with it."
And Conseil, reassured, returned to the study of the bank,
which we were skirting at a moderate speed.
There, beneath the rocky and volcanic bottom, lay out-
spread a living flora of sponges and reddish cydippes, which
emitted a slig'ht phosphorescent light, commonly known by
the name of sea-cucumbers; and walking comatukne more
than a yard long, the purple of which completely colored
the water around.
The Nautilus having now passed the high bank in the
Lybian Straits returned to the deep waters and its accus-
tomed speed. From that time no more mollusks, no more
articulates, no more zoophytes ; barely a few large fish pass-
ing like shadows. During the night of the i6th of Feb-
ruary', we entered the second jMediterranean basin, the great-
est depth of which is 1,450 fathoms. The A-autilus, by the
action of its screw, slid down the inclined planes, and buried
itself in the lowest depths of the sea.
On the 1 8th of February, about three o'clock in the morn-
178 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
ing, we were at the entrance of the Straits of Gibraltar.
There existed two currents — an upper one, long since
recognized, which conveys the waters of the ocean into
the basin of the Mediterranean; and a lower counter-cur-
rent, which reasoning has now shown to exist. Indeed,
the volume of water in the Mediterranean, incessantly-
added to by the waves of the Atlantic, and by rivers falling
into it, would each year raise the level of this sea, for its
evaporation is not sufficient to restore the equilibrium. As
it is not so, we must necessarily admit the existence of an
under-current, which empties into the basin of the Atlantic,
through the Straits of Gibraltar, the surplus waters of the
Mediterranean. A fact, indeed; and it was this counter-
current by which the Nautilus profited. It advanced
rapidly by the narrow pass. For one instant I caught a
glimpse of the beautiful ruins of the temple of Hercule^,
buried in the ground, according to Pliny, and with the low
island which supports it; and a few minutes later we were
floating on the Atlantic.
CHAPTER VIII
VIGO BAY
The Atlantic! a vast sheet of water, whose superficial
area covers twenty-five millions of square miles, the length
of which is nine thousand miles, with a mean breadth of
two thousand seven hundred — an ocean whose parallel
winding shores embrace an immense circumference,
watered by the largest rivers of the world, the St Lawrence,
the Mississippi, the Amazon, the Plata, the Orinoco, the
Niger, the Senegal, the Elbe, the Loire, and the Rhine,
which carry water from the most civilized, as Vvrell as from
the most savage countries! Magnificent field of water,
incessantly plowed by vessels of every nation, sheltered
by the flags of every nation, and which terminates in those
two terrible points so dreaded by mariners. Cape Horn,
and the Cape of Tempests!
The Nautilus was piercing the water with its sharp spur,
after having accomplished nearly ten thousand leagues in
three months and a half, a distance greater than the great
circle of the earth. Where were we going now, and what
VIGO BAY 179
was reserved for the future? The Nautilus, leaving the
Straits of Gibraltar, had gone far out. It returned to the
surface of the waves, and our daily walks on the platform
were restored to us.
I mounted at once, accompanied by Ned Land and Con-
seil. At a distance of about twelve miles, Cape St. Vincent
was dimly to be seen, forming the southwestern point of
the Spanish peninsula. A strong southerly gale was blow-
ing. The sea was swollen and billowy; it made the
Nautilus rock violently. It was almost impossible to keep
one's footing on the platform, which the heavy rolls of the
sea beat over every instant. So we descended after inhal-
ing some mouth fuls of fresh air.
I returned to my room, Conseil to his cabin; but the
Canadian, with a preoccupied air, followed me. Our rapid
passage across the Mediterranean had not allowed him to
put his project into execution, and he could not help show-
ing his disappointment. When the door of my room was
shut, he sat down and looked at me silently.
" Friend Ned," said I, " I understand you; but you can-
not reproach yourself. To have attempted to leave the
Nautilus under the circumstances would have been folly."
Ned Land did not answer; his compressed lips and frown-
ing brow showed with him the violent possession this fixed
idea had taken of his mind.
"Let us see," I continued; "we need not despair yet.
We are going up the coast of Portugal again; France and
England are not far off, where we can easily find refuge.
Now, if the A^autilus, on leaving the Straits of Gibraltar,
had gone to the south, if it had carried us toward regions
where there were no continents, I should share your un-
easiness. But w^e know now that Captain Nemo does not
fly from civilized seas, and in some days I think you can
act with security."
Ned Land still looked at me fixedly; at length his fixed
lips parted, and he said, " It is for to-night."
I drew myself up suddenly. I was, I admit, little pre-
pared for this communication. I wanted to answer the
Canadian, but words would not come.
" We agreed to wait for an opportunity," continued Ned
Land, " and the opportunity has arrived. This night we
shall be but a few miles from the Spanish coast. It is
i8o TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
cloudy. The wind blows freely. I have your word, M.
Aronnax, and I rely upon you."
As I was still silent, the Canadian approached me.
" To-night, at nine o'clock," said he. " I have warned
Conseil. At that moment, Captain Nemo will be shut up in
his room, probably in bed. Neither the engineers nor the
ship's crew can see us. Conseil and I will gain the central
staircase, and you, M. Aronnax, will remain in the library,
two steps from us, waiting my signal. The oars, the mast,
and the sail are in the canoe. I have even succeeded in
getting in some provisions. I have procured an English
wrench, to unfasten the bolts which attach it to the shell
of the Nautilus. So all is ready, till to-night."
" The sea is bad."
"That I allow," replied the Canadian; "but we must
risk that. Liberty is worth paying for; besides, the boat
is strong, and a few miles with a fair wind to carry us is no
great thing. Who knows but by to-morrow we may be
a hundred leagues av/ay ? Let circumstances only favor us,
and by ten or eleven o'clock we shall have landed on some
spot of terra finna, alive or dead. But adieu now till to-
night."
With these words, the Canadian withdrew, leaving me
almost dumb. I had imagined that, the chance gone, I
should have time to reflect and discuss the matter. My
obstinate companion had given me no time; and, after all,
what could I have said to him? Ned Land was perfectly
right. There was almost the opportunity to profit by.
Could I retract my word, and take upon myself the respon-
sibility of compromising the future of my companions?
To-morrow Captain Nemo might take us far from all land.
At that moment a rather loud hissing told me that the
reservoirs were filling, and that the Nautilus was sinking
under the waves of the Atlantic.
A sad day I passed, between the desire of regaining my
liberty of action, and of abandoning the wonderful Nau-
tilus, and leaving my submarine studies incomplete.
What dreadful hours I passed thus! sometimes seeing
myself and companions safely landed, sometimes wishing,
in spite of my reason, that some unforeseen circumstances
would prevent the realization of Ned Land's project.
Twice I went to the saloon. I wished to consult the
VIGO BAY i8i
compass. I wished to see if the direction the Nautilus was
taking was bringing us nearer or taking us further from the
coast. But no; the A'autilus kept in Portuguese waters.
I must therefore take my part, and prepare for flight.
My luggage was not heavy ; my notes, nothing more.
As to Captain Nemo, I asked myself what he would
think of our escape; what trouble, what wrong it might
cause him, and what he mig'ht do in case of its discovery
or failure. Certainly I had no cause to complain of him;
on the contrary, never was hospitality freer than his. In
leaving him I could not be taxed with ingratitude. No
oath bound us to him. It was on the strength of circum-
stances he relied, and not upon our word, to fix us forever.
I had not seen the captain since our visit to the island of
Santorin. Would chance bring me to his presence before
our departure? I wished it, and I feared it at the same
time. I listened if I could hear him walking in the room
contiguous to mine. No sound reached my ear. I felt an
unbearable uneasiness. This day of waiting seemed
eternal. Hours struck too slowly to keep pace with my
impatience.
My dinner was served in my room as usual. I ate but
little, I was too preoccupied. I left the table at seven
o'clock. A hundred and twenty minutes (I counted them)
still separated me from the moment in wliich I was to join
Ned Land. My agitation redoubled. My pulse beat vio-
lently. I could not remain quiet. I went and came, hop-
ing to calm my troubled spirit by constant movement. The
idea of failure in our bold enterprise was the least painful of
my anxieties; but the thought of seeing our project dis-
covered before leaving the N'autilus, of being brought be-
fore Captain Nemo, irritated, or (what was worse) sad-
dened at my desertion, made my heart beat.
I wanted to see the saloon for the last time. I descended
the stairs, and arrived in the museum where I had passed
so many useful and agreeable hours. I looked at all its
riches, all its treasures, like a man on the eve of an eternal
exile who was leaving never to return. These wonders
of nature, these masterpieces of art, among which, for so
many days, my life had been concentrated, I was going to
abandon them forever! I should like to have taken a last
look throusfh the windows of the saloon into the waters
i82 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
of the Atlantic; but the panels were hermetically closed,
and a cloak of steel separated me from that ocean which I
had not yet explored.
In passing through the saloon, I came near the door,
let into the angle, which opened into the captain's room.
To my great surprise this door was ajar. I drew back,
involuntarily. If Captain Nemo should be in his room,
he could see me. But, hearing no noise, I drew nearer.
The room was deserted. I pushed open the door, and
took some steps forward. Still the same monk-like severity
of aspect.
Suddenly the clock struck eight. The first beat of the
hammer on the bell awoke me from my dreams. I trem-
bled as if an invisible eye had plunged into my most secret
thoughts, and I hurried from the room.
There my eye fell upon the compass. Our course was
still north. The log indicated moderate speed, the ma-
nometer a depth of about sixty feet.
I returned to my room, clothed myself warmly — sea-
boats, an otterskin cap, a great-coat of byssus, lined with
sealskin; I was ready, I was waiting. The vibration of
the screw alone broke the deep silence which reigned on
board. I listened attentively. Would no loud voice sud-
denly inform me that Ned Land had been surprised in his
projected flight? A mortal dread hung over me, and I
vainly tried to regain my accustomed coolness.
At a few minutes to nine, I put my ear to the captain's
door. No noise. I left my room and returned to the
saloon, which was half in obscurity, but deserted.
I opened the door communicating with the library. The
same insufficient light, the same solitude. I placed myself
near the door leading to the central staircase, and there
waited for Ned Land's signal.
At that moment the trembling of the screw sensibly
diminished, then it stopped entirely. The silence was now
only disturbed by the beatings of my own heart. Sud-
denly a slight shock was felt; and I knew that the Nautilus
had stopped at the bottom of the ocean. My uneasiness
increased. The Canadian's signal did not come. I felt
inclined to join Ned Land and beg of him to put off his
attempt. I felt that we were not sailing under our usual
conditions.
VIGO BAY 183
At this moment the door of the large saloon opened, and
Captain Nemo appeared. He saw me, and, without further
preamble, began in an amiable tone of voice :
" Ah, sir ! I have been looking for you. Do you know
the history of Spain? "
Now, one might know the history of one's own country
by heart; but in the condition I was at the time, with
troubled mind and head quite lost, I could not have said a
word of it.
" Well," continued Captain Nemo, " you heard my
question? Do you know the history of Spain?"
" Very slightly," I answered.
"Well, here are learned men having to learn," said the
captain. " Come, sit down, and I will tell you a curious
episode in this history. Sir, listen well," said he; "this
history will interest you on one side, for it will answer a
question which doubtless you have not been able to solve."
" I listen, captain," said I, not knowing what my inter-
locutor was driving at, and asking myself if this incident
was bearing on our projected flight.
" Sir, if you have no objection, we will go back to 1702.
You cannot be ignorant that your king, Louis XIV., think-
ing that the gesture of a potentate was sufficient to bring
the Pyrenees under his yoke, had imposed the Duke of
Anjou, his grandson, on the Spaniards. This prince
reigned more or less badly under the name of Philip V.,
and had a strong party against him abroad. Indeed, the
preceding year, the royal houses of Holland, Austria, and
England had concluded a treaty of alliance at the Hague,
with the intention of plucking the crown of Spain from
the head of Philip V., and placing it on that of an arch-
duke to whom tliey prematurely gave the title of Charles
III.
" Spain must resist this coalition ; but she was almost
entirely unprovided with either soldiers or sailors. How-
ever, money would not fail them, provided that their
galleons, laden with gold and silver from America, once
entered their ports. And about the end of 170J they ex-
pected a rich convoy which France was escorting with a
fleet of twenty-three vessels, commanded by Admiral
Chateau-Renaud, for the ships of the coalition were already
beating the Atlantic. This convoy was to go to Cadiz,
i84 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
but the admiral, hearing that an English fleet was cruising
in those waters, resolved to make for a French port.
" The Spanish commanders of the convoy objected to
this decision. They wanted to be taken to a Spanish port,
and if not to Cadiz, into Vigo Bay, situated on the north-
west coast of Spain, and which was not blocked.
" Admiral Chateau-Renaud had the rashness to obey this
injunction, and the galleons entered Vigo Bay.
" Unfortunately, it formed an open road which could
not be defended in any way. They must therefore hasten
to unload the galleons before the arrival of the combined
fleet ; and time would not have failed them had not a miser-
able question of rivalry suddenly arisen.
" You are following the chain of events? " asked Captain
Nemo.
" Perfectly," said I, not knowing the end proposed by
this historical lesson.
" I will continue. This is what passed. The merchants
of Cadiz had a privilege by which they had the right of
receiving all merchandise coming from the West Indies.
Now, to disembark these ingots at the port of Vigo was
depriving them of their rights. They complained at
Madrid, and obtained the consent of the weak-minded
Philip that the convoy, without discharging its cargo,
should remain sequestered in the roads of Vigo until the
enemy had disappeared.
" But while coming to this decision, on the 226. of Octo-
ber, 1702, the English vessels arrived in Vigo Bay, when
Admiral Chateau-Renaud, in spite of inferior forces,
fought bravely. But seeing that the treasure must fall
into the enemy's hands, he burned and scuttled every gal-
leon, which went to the bottom with their immense riches."
Captain Nemo stopped. I admit I could not yet see why
this history should interest me.
"Well?" I asked.
"Well, M. Aronnax," replied Captain Nemo, "we are
in that Vigo Bay; and it rests with yourself whether you
will penetrate its mysteries."
The captain rose, telling me to follow him. I had had
time to recover. I obeyed. The saloon was dark, but
through the transparent glass the waves were sparkling. I
looked.
VIGO BAY 185
For half a mile around the Nautilus the waters seemed
bathed in electric light. The sandy bottom was clean and
bright. Some of the ship's crew in their diving-dresses
were clearing away half-rotten barrels and empty cases
from the midst of the blackened wrecks. From these cases
and from these barrels escaped ingots of gold and silver,
cascades of piastres and jewels. The sand was heaped up
with them. Laden with their precious booty the men re-
turned to the Nautilus, disposed of their burden, and went
back to this inexhaustible fishery of gold and silver.
I understood now. This was the scene of the battle of
the 22d of October, 1702. Here on this very spot the gal-
leons laden for the Spanish government had sunk. Here
Captain Nemo came, according to his wants, to pack up
those millions with which he burdened the Nautilus. It
was for him and him alone America had given up her pre-
cious metals. He was heir direct, without anyone to share
in those treasures torn from the Incas and from the con-
quered of Ferdinand Cortez.
"Did you know, sir," he asked, smiling, "that the sea
contained such riches?"
" I knew," I answered, " that they value the money held
in suspension in these waters at two millions."
" Doubtless ; but to extract this money the expense would
be greater than the profit. Here, on the contrary, I have
but to pick up what man has lost; and not only in Vigo
Bay, but in a thousand other spots where shipwrecks have
happened, and which are marked on my submarine map.
Can you understand now the source of the millions I am
worth?"
" I understand, captain. But allow me to tell you that
in exploring Vigo Bay you have only been beforehand with
a rival society."
"And which?"
" A society which has received from the Spanisli govern-
ment the privilege of seeking tliese buried galleons. The
shareholders are led on by the allurement of an enormous
bounty, for they value these rich shipwrecks at five hundred
millions."
" Five hundred millions they were," answered Captain
Nemo, " but they are so no longer."
" Just so," said T ; " and a warning to those shareholders
i86 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
would be an act of charity. But who knows if it would be
well received? What gamblers usually regret above all is
less the loss of their money, than of their foolish hopes.
After all, I pity them less than the thousands of unfor-
tunates to whom so much riches well distributed would have
been profitable, while for them they will be forever barren."
I had no sooner expressed this regret than I felt that it
must have wounded Captain Nemo.
"Barren!" he exclaimed with animation. "Do you
think then, sir, that these riches are lost because I gather
them? Is it for myself alone, according to your idea, that
I take the trouble to collect these treasures ? Who told you
that I did not make a good use of it. Do you think I am
ignorant that there are suffering beings and oppressed races
on this earth, miserable creatures to console, victims to
avenge ? Do you not understand ? "
Captain Nemo stopped at these last words regretting
perhaps that he had spoken so much. But I had guessed
that, whatever the motive which had forced him to seek
independence under the sea, it had left him still a man,
that his heart still beat for the sufferings of humanity, and
that his immense charity was for oppressed races as well as
individuals. And I then understood for whom those mil-
lions were destined, which were forwarded by Captain
Nemo when the Nautilus was cruising in the waters of
Crete.
CHAPTER IX
A VANISHED CONTINENT
The next morning, the 19th of February, I saw the
Canadian enter my room. I expected this visit. He
looked very disappointed.
"Well, sir?" said he.
" Well, Ned, fortune was against us yesterday."
" Yes ; that captain must needs stop exactly at the hour
we intended leaving his vessel."
" Yes, Ned, he had business at his banker's."
"His bankers!"
" Or rather his banking-house ; by that I mean the ocean,
where his riches are safer than in the chests of the state."
I then related to the Canadian the incidents of the pre-
A VANISHED CONTINENT 187
ceding night, hoping to bring him back to the idea of not
abandoning the captain ; but my recital had no other re-
sult than an energetically expressed regret from Ned that
he had not been able to take a walk on the battle field of
\'igo on his own account.
" However," said he, ** all is not ended. It is only a
blow of the harpoon lost. Another time we must succeed ;
and to-night, if necessary "
" In what direction is the A' ait til its going? " I asked.
" I do not know," replied Ned.
" Well, at noon we shall see the point."
The Canadian returned to Conseil. As soon as I was
dressed, I went into the saloon. The compass was not re-
assuring. The course of the Nautilus was S. S. W. We
were turning our backs on Europe.
I waited with some impatience till the ship's place was
pricked on the chart. At about half-past eleven the reser-
voirs were emptied, and our vessel rose to the surface of the
ocean. I rushed toward the platform. Ned Land had
preceded me. No more land in sight. Nothing but an
immense sea. Some sails on the horizon, doubtless those
going to San Roque in search of favorable winds for doub-
ling the Cape of Good Hope. The weather was cloudy.
A gale of wind was preparing. Ned raved, and tried to
pierce the cloudy horizon. He still hoped that behind all
that fog stretched the land lie so longed for.
At noon the sun showed itself for an instant. The sec-
ond profited by this brightness to take its height. Then
the sea becoming more billowy, we descended, and the
panel closed.
An hour after, upon consulting the chart, I saw the posi-
tion of the Naittilits was marked at 16° 17' longitude, and
33° 22' latitude, at 150 leagues from the nearest coast.
There was no means of flight, and I leave you to imagine
the rage of the Canadian, when I informed him of our
situation.
For myself, I was not particularly sorry. I felt light-
ened of the load which had oppressed me, and was able to
return with some degree of calmness to my accustomed
work.
That night, about eleven o'clock, I recived a most unex-
pected visit from Captain Nemo. He asked me very gra-
i88 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
ciously if I felt fatigued from my watch of the preceding
night. I answered in the negative.
" Then, M. Aronnax, I propose a curious excursion."
" Propose, captain."
" You have hitherto only visited the submarine depths
by daylight, under the brightness of the sun. Would it
suit you to see them in the darkness of the night? "
" Most willingly."
" I warn you, the way will be tiring. We shall have far
to walk, and must climb a mountain. The roads are not
well kept."
" What you say captain, only heightens my curiosity ; I
am ready to follow you."
" Come, then, sir, we will put on our diving-dresses."
Arrived at the robing-room, I saw that neither of my
companions nor any of the ship's crew were to follow us on
this excursion. Captain Nemo had not even proposed my
taking with me either Ned or Conseil.
In a few moments we had put on our diving-dresses;
they placed on our backs the reservoirs, abundantly filled
with air, but no electric lamps were prepared. I called the
captain's attention to the fact.
" They will be useless," he replied.
I thought I had not heard aright, but I could not repeat
my observation, for the captain's head had already disap-
peared in its metal case. I finished harnessing myself, I
felt them put an iron-pointed stick into my hand, and some
minutes later, after going through the usual form, we set
foot on the bottom of the Atlantic, at a depth of 150
fathoms. Midnight was near. The waters were pro-
foundly dark, but Captain Nemo pointed out in the dis-
tance a reddish spot, a sort of large light shining brilliantly,
about two miles from the Nautilus. What this fire might
be, what could feed it, why and how it lit up the liquid
mass, I could not say. In any case, it did light our way,
vaguely, it is true, but I soon accustomed myself to the
peculiar darkness, and I understood, under such circum-
stances, the uselessness of the Ruhmkorff apparatus.
As we advanced, I heard a kind of pattering above my
head. The noise redoubling, sometimes producing a con-
tinual shower, I soon understood the cause. It was rain
falling violently, and crisping the surface of the waves.
A VANISHED CONTINENT 189
Instinctively the thought flashed across my mind that I should
be wet through 1 By the water ! in the midst of the water !
I could not help laughing at the odd idea. But indeed, in
the thick diving-dress, the liquid element is no longer felt,
and one only seems to be in an atmosphere somewhat denser
than the terrestrial atmosphere. Nothing more.
After half an hour's walk the soil became stony. Me-
dusce, microscopic Crustacea, and pennatulcs lit it slightly
with their phosphorescent gleam. I caught a glimpse of
pieces of stone covered with millions of zoophytes and
masses of seawood. Aly feet often slipped upon this vis-
cous carpet of seaweed, and without my iron-tipped stick
I should have fallen more than once. In turning round I
could still see the whitish lantern of the Nautilus beginning
to pale in the distance.
But the rosy light which guided us increased and lit up the
horizon. The presence of this fire under water puzzled me
in the highest degree. Was it some electric effulgence?
W^as I going toward a natural phenomenon as yet unknown
to the savants of the earth? Or even (for this thought
crossed my brain) had the hand of man aught to do with
this conflagration? Had he fanned this flame? Was I
to meet in these depths companions and friends of Captain
Nemo whom he was going to visit, and who, like him. led
this strange existence? Should I find down there a whole
colony of exiles, who, weary of the miseries of this earth,
had sought and found independence in the deep ocean?
All these foolish and unreasonable ideas pursued me. And
in this condition of mind, overexcited by the succession of
wonders continually passing before my eyes, I should not
have been surprised to meet at the bottom of the sea one
of those wonderful submarine towns of which Captain
Nemo dreamed.
Our road grew lighter and lighter.. The white glimmer
came in rays from the summit of a mountain of about Soo
feet higli. But what I saw was simply a reflection, de-
veloped by the clearness of the waters. The source of this
inexplicable light was a fire on the opposite side of the
mountain.
In the midst of this stony maze, furrowing the bottom of
the Atlantic. Captain Nemo advanced without hesitation.
He knew this drearv road. Doubtless he had often traveled
I90 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
over it, and could not lose himself. I followed him with
unshaken confidence. He seemed to me like a genie of the
sea; and, as he walked before me, I could not help admiring
his stature, which was outlined in black on the luminous
horizon.
It was one in the morning when we arrived at the first
slopes of the mountain ; but to gain access to them we must
venture through the difficult paths of a vast copse.
Yes; a copse of dead trees, without leaves, without sap,
trees petrified by the action of the water, and here and
there overtopped by gigantic pines. It was like a coal pit,
still standing, holding by the roots to the broken soil, and
\yhose branches, like fine black paper cuttings, showed dis-
tinctly on the watery ceiling. Picture to yourself a forest
in the Hartz, hanging on to the sides of the mountain, but
a forest swallowed up. The paths were encumbered with
seaweed and fucus, between which groveled a whole world
of Crustacea. I went along, climbing the rocks, striding
over extended trunks, breaking the sea bind-weed which
hung from one tree to the other, and frightening the fishes,
which flew from branch to branch. Pressing onward, I
felt no fatigue. I followed my guide, who was never
tired. What a spectacle! how can I express it? how paint
the aspect of those woods and rocks in this medium —
their under parts dark and wild, the upper colored with red
tints, by that light which the reflecting powers of the
waters doubled? We climbed rocks, which fell directly
after with gigantic bounds, and the low growling of an
avalanche. To right and left ran long, dark galleries,
where sight was lost. Here opened vast glades which the
hand of man seemed to have worked; and I sometimes asked
myself if some inhabitant of these submarine regions would
not suddenly appear to me.
But Captain Nemo was still mounting. I could not stay
behind. I followed boldly. My stick gave me good help.
A false step would have been dangerous on the narrow
passes sloping down to the sides of the gulfs; but I walked
with firm step, without feeling any giddiness. Now I
jurnped a crevice the depth of which would have made me
hesitate had it been among the glaciers on the land ; now I
ventured on the unsteady trunk of a tree, thrown across
from one abyss to the other, without looking under my
A VANISHED CONTINENT 191
feet, having only eyes to admire the wonderful sights of
this region.
There, monumental rocks, leaning on their regularly cut
bases, seemed to defy all laws of equilibrium. From be-
tween their stony knees, trees sprang, like a jet under heavy
pressure, and upheld others which upheld them. Natural
towers, large scarps, cut perpendicularly, like a " curtain,"
inclined at an angle which the laws of gravitation could
never have tolerated in terrestrial regions.
Two hours after quitting the Nautilus, we had crossed
the line of trees, and a hundred feet above our heads rose
the top of the mountain, which cast a shadow on the bril-
liant irradiation of the opposite slope. Some petrified
shrubs ran fantastically here and there. Fishes got up
under our feet like birds in the long grass. The massive
rocks were rent with impenetrable fractures, deep grottoes,
and unfathomable holes, at the bottom of which formidable
creatures might be heard moving. My blood curdled when
I saw enormous antennae blocking my road, or some fright-
ful claw closing with a noise in the shadow of some cavity.
^Millions of luminous spots shone brightly in the midst of
the darkness. They were the eyes of giant Crustacea
crouched in their holes; giant lobsters setting themselves
up like halberdiers, and moving their claws with the click-
ing sound of pinchers; titanic crabs, pointed like a gun
on its carriage; and frightful-looking poulps. interweaving
their tentacles like a living nest of serpents.
We had now arrived on the first platform, where other
surprises awaited me. Before us lay some picturesque
ruins which betrayed the hand of man and not that of tiie
Creator. There were vast heaps of stone, among which
might be traced the vague and shadowy forms of castles
and temples clothed with a world of blossoming zoophytes,
and over which, instead of ivy, seaweed and fucus threw a
thick vegetable mantle. But what was this portion of the
globe which had been swallowed by cataclysms? W'lio had
placed those rocks and stones like cromlechs of prehistoric
times? Where was I? Wliither had Captain Nemo's
fancy hurried me?
I would fain have asked him ; not being able to, I stopped
him — I seized his arm. But shaking his head, and point-
ing to the hightest point of the mountain, he seemed to say:
192 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" Come, come along ; come higher ! "
I followed, and in a few minutes I had climbed to the
top, which for a circle of ten yards commanded the whole
mass of rock.
I looked down the side we had just climbed. The
mountain did not rise more than seven or eight hundred
feet above the level of the plain; but on the opposite side
it commanded from twice that height the depths of this
part of the Atlantic. My eyes ranged far over a large
space lit by a violent fulguration. In fact, the mountain
was a volcano.
At fifty feet above the peak, in the midst of a rain of
stones and scoriae, a large crater was vomiting forth tor-
rents of lava which fell in a cascade of fire into the bosom
of the liquid mass. Thus situated, this volcano lit the
lower plain like an immense torch, even to the extreme
limits of the horizon. I said that the submarine crater
threw up lava, but no flames. Flames require the oxygen
of the air to feed upon, and cannot be developed under
water; but streams of lava, having in themselves the prin-
ciples of their incandescence, can attain a white heat, fight
vigorously against the liquid element, and turn it to vapor
by contact.
Rapid currents bearing all these gases in diffusion, and
torrents of lava, slid rapidly to the bottom of the mountain
like an eruption of Vesuvius on another Terra del
Greco.
There indeed, under my eyes, ruined, destroyed, lay a
town — its roofs open to the sky, its temples fallen, its
arches dislocated, its columns lying on the ground, from
which one could still recognize the massive character of
Tuscan architecture. Further on, some remains of a gi-
gantic aqueduct; here the high base of an Acropolis, with
the floating outline of a Parthenon; there traces of a quay,
as if an ancient port had formerly abutted on the borders
of the ocean, and disappeared with its merchant vessels and
its war galleys. Further on again, long lines of sunken
walls and broad deserted streets — a perfect Pompeii
escaped beneath the waters. Such was the sight that Cap-
tain Nemo brought before my eyes.
Where was I ? Where was I ? I must know at any cost.
I tried to speak, but Captain Nemo stopped me by a ges-
V. V Verne
A VANISHED CONTINENT 193
tare, and picking up a piece of chalk stone advanced to a
rock of black basalt, and traced the one word,
Atlantis.
What a light shot through my mind! Atlantis, the
ancient ^leropis of Theopompus, the Atlantis of Plato, that
continent denied by Origen, Jamblichus, DAnville, Malte-
Brun, and Humboldt, who placed its disappearance among
the legendary tales admitted by Posidonius, Pliny, Am-
mianus Marcellinus, Tertullian, Engel, Buffon, and
D'Avezac. I had it there now before my eyes, bearing
upon it the unexceptionable testimony of its catastrophe.
The^ region thus ingulfed was beyond Europe, x\sia, and
Lybia, beyond the columns of Hercules, where those power-
ful people, the Atlantides, lived, against whom the first
wars of ancient Greece were waged.
Thus, led by the strangest destiny, I was treading under
foot the mountains of this continent, touching with my
hand those ruins a thousand generations old, and contem-
porary with the geological epochs. I was walking on the
very spot where the contemporaries of the first man had
walked.
While I was trying to fix in my mind every detail of this
grand landscape Captain Nemo remained motionless, as if
petrified in mute ecstasy, leaning on a mossy stone. Was
he dreaming of those generations long since disappeared?
Was he asking them the secret of human destiny? Was it
here this strange man came to steep himself in historical
recollections and live again this ancient life — he who wanted
no modern one? What would I not have given to know
his thoughts, to share them, to understand them ! We re-
mained for an hour at this place, contemplating the vast
plain under the brightness of the lava, which was some-
times wonderfully intense. Rapid tremblings ran along
the mountain caused by internal bubblings, deep noises dis-
tinctly transmitted through the liquid medium were echoed
with majestic grandeur. At this moment the moon ap-
peared through the mass of waters and threw her pale rays
on the buried continent. It was but a gleam, but what an
indescribable effect ! The captain rose, cast one last look
on the immense plain, and then bade me follow him.
194 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
We descended the mountain rapidly, and the mineral for-
est once passed, I saw the lantern of the Naiitilus shining
like a star. The captain walked straight to it, and we got
on board as the first rays of light whitened the surface of
the ocean.
CHAPTER X
THE SUBMARINE COAL-MINES
The next day, the 20th of February, I awoke very late;
the fatigues of the previous night had prolonged my sleep
until eleven o'clock. I dressed quickly and hastened to
find the course the Nautilus was taking. The instruments
showed it to be still toward the south, with a speed of
twenty miles an hour and a depth of fifty fathoms.
The species of fishes here did not differ much from those
already noticed. There were rays of giant size, five yards
long and endowed with great muscular strength, which
enabled them to shoot above the waves; sharks of many
kinds, among others a glaucus fifteen feet long, with tri-
angular sharp teeth, and whose transparency rendered it al-
most invisible in the water.
Among bony fish Conseil noticed some blackish makairas
about three yards long, armed at the upper jaw with a pierc-
ing sword; other bright-colored creatures, known in the
time of Aristotle by the name of the sea-dragon, which are
dangerous to capture on account of the spikes on their back;
also some coryphsenes with brown backs marked with little
blue stripes and surrounded with a gold border ; some beauti-
ful dorades, and swordfish four-and-twenty feet long, swim-
ming in troops, fierce animals, but rather herbivorous than
carnivorous.
About four o'clock the soil, generally composed of a thick
mud mixed with petrified wood, changed by degrees, and it
became more stony and seemed strewn with conglomerate
and pieces of basalt, with a sprinkling of lava and sulphur-
ous obsidian. I thought that a mountainous region was
succeeding the long plains, and accordingly, after a few evo-
lutions of the Nautilus, I saw the southerly horizon blocked
by a high wall which seemed to close all exit. Its summit
evidently passed the level of the ocean. It must be a con-
THE SUBMARINE COAL-MINES 195
tinent, or at least an island — one of the Canaries, or of the
Cape Verd Islands. The bearings not being yet taken, per-
haps designedly, I was ignorant of our exact position. In
any case, such a wall seemed to me to mark the limits of
that Atlantis of which we had in reality passed over only
the smallest part.
jMuch longer should I have remained at the window, ad-
miring the beauties of sea and sky, but the panels closed.
At this moment tlie Nautilus arrived at the side of this high
perpendicular wall. What it would do I could not guess.
I returned to my room; it no longer moved. I laid myself
down with the full intention of w-aking after a few hours'
sleep, but it was eight o'clock the next day when I entered
the saloon. I looked at the manometer. It told me that
the Nautilus was floating on the surface of the ocean. Be-
sides, I heard steps on the platform. I went to the panel.
It was open; but instead of broad daylight, as I expected,
I was surrounded by profound darkness. Where were we?
Was I mistaken? Was it still night? No; not a star was
shining, and night has not that utter darkness.
I knew not what to think, when a voice near me said :
" Is that you, professor? "
"Ah! captain,'" I answered, '* where are we?"
" Under ground, sir."
"Under ground!" I exclaimed. "And the Nautilus
floating still?"
" It always floats."
"* But I do not understand."
" Wait a few minutes, our lantern will be lit, and if you
like light places, you will be satisfied."
I stood on the platform and waited. The darkness was
so complete that I could not even see Captain Nemo; but
looking to the zenith, exactly above my head, I seemed to
catch an undecided gleam, a kind of twilight filling a circu-
lar hole. At this instant the lantern was lit, and its vivid-
ness dispelled the faint light. I closed my dazzled eyes for
an instant, and then looked again. The Nautilus was
stationary, floating near a mountain which formed a sort of
quay. The lake tlien supi)orting it was a lake imprisoned
by a circle of walls, measuring two miles in diameter and
six in circumference. Its level (the manometer showed)
could only be the same as the outside level, for there must
196 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
necessarily be a communication between the lake and the
sea. The high partitions, leaning forward on their base,
grew into a vaulted roof bearing the shape of an immense
funnel turned upside down, the height being about five or
six hundred yards. At the summit was a circular orifice,
by which I had caught the slight gleam of light, evidently
daylight.
" Where are we? " I asked.
" In the very heart of an extinct volcano, the interior of
which has been invaded by the sea, after some great con-
vulsion of the earth. While you were sleeping, professor,
the Nautilus penetrated to this lagoon by a natural canal,
which opens about ten yards beneath the surface of the
ocean. This is its harbor of refuge, a sure, commodious,
and mysterious one, sheltered from all gales. Show me, if
you can, on the coasts of any of your continents or islands,
a road which can give such perfect refuge from all storms,"
" Certainly," I replied, " you are in safety here, Captain
Nemo. Who could reach you in the heart of a volcano?
But did I not see an opening at its summit? "
" Yes ; its crater, formerly filled with lava, vapor, and
flames, and which now gives entrance to the life-giving air
we breathe."
*' But what is this volcanic mountain? "
" It belongs to one of the numerous islands with which
this sea is strewn — to vessels a simple sand-bank — to us an
immense cavern. Chance led me to discover it, and chance
led me well."
"But of what use is this refuge, captain? The Nauti-
lus wants no port."
" No, sir; but it wants electricity to make it move, and
the wherewithal to make the electricity — sodium to feed
the elements, coal from which to get tlie sodium, and a coal-
mine to supply the coal. And exactly on this spot the sea
covers entire forests imbedded during the geological
periods, now mineralized, and transformed into coal; for me
they are an inexhaustible mine."
" Your men follow the trade of miners here, then, cap-
tain?"
** Exactly so. These mines extend under the waves like
the mines of Newcastle. Here, in their diving-dresses,
pickax and shovel in hand, my men extract the coal, which
THE SUBMARINE COAL-MIXES 197
I do not even ask from the mines of the earth. When I
burn this combustible for the manufacture of sodium, tiic
smoke, escaping from tlie crater of the mountain, gives it
the appearance of a still active volcano."
" And we shall see your companions at work."
" No; not this time at least; for I am in a hurry to con-
tinue our submarine tour of the earth. So I shall content
myself with drawing from the reserve of sodium 1 already
possess. The time for loading is one day only, and we
continue our voyage. So if you wish to go over the cavern,
and make the round of the lagoon, you must take advan-
tage of to-day, jM. Aronnax."
I thanked the captain, and went to look for my compan-
ions, who had not yet left their cabin. I invited them to
follow me without saying where we were. They mounted
the platform. Conseil, who was astonished at nothing,
seemed to look upon it as quite natural that he should wake
under a mountain, after having fallen asleep under the
waves. But Ned Land thought of nothing but finding
whether the cavern had any exit. After breakfast, about
ten o'clock, we went down on to the mountain.
" Here we are, once more on land," said Conseil.
" I do not call this land," said the Canadian. " And be-
sides, we are not on it, but beneath it."
Between the walls of the mountain and the waters of the
lake lay a sandy shore, which, at its greatest breadth, meas-
ured five hundred feet. On this soil one might easily make
the tour of the lake. But the base of the liigh partitions
was stony ground, with volcanic blocks and enormous
pumice-stones lying in picturesque heaps. All these de-
tached masses, covered with enamel, polished by the action
of the subterraneous fires, shone resplendent by the light
of our electric lantern. The mica-dust from the shore, ris-
ing under our feet, flew like a cloud of sparks. The bot-
tom now rose sensibly, and we soon arrived at long circu-
itous slopes, or inclined planes, which took us higher by
degrees; but we were obliged to walk carefully among these
conglomerates, bound by no cement, the feet slipping on the
glassy tracliytc. composed of crystal, felspar, and (juartz.
The volcanic nature of this enormous excavation was con-
firmed on all sides, and I pointed it out to my companions.
" Picture to vourselves," said T. " what this crater must
198 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
have been when filled with boiling lava, and when the level
of the incandescent liquid rose to the orifice of the moun-
tain, as though melted on the top of a hot plate."
" I can picture it perfectly," said Conseil. " But, sir, will
you tell me why the Great Architect has suspended opera-
tions, and how it is that the furnace is replaced by the cpiet
waters of the lake? "
" Most probably, Conseil, because some convulsion be-
neath the ocean produced that very opening which has
served as a passage for the Nautilus. Then the waters of
the Atlantic rushed into the interior of the mountain. There
must have been a terrible struggle between the two elements,
a struggle which ended in the victory of Neptune. But
many ages have run out since then, and the submerged vol-
cano is now a peaceable grotto."
"Very well," replied Ned Land; "I accept the explana-
tion, sir; but, in our own interests, I regret that the opening
of which you speak was not made above the level of the
sea."
" But, friend Ned," said Conseil, " if the passage had
not been under the sea, the Nautilus could not have gone
through it."
We continued ascending. The steps became more and
more perpendicular and narrow. Deep excavations, which
we were obliged to cross, cut them here and there; sloping
masses had to be turned. We slid upon our knees and
crawled along. But Conseil's dexterity and the Canadian's
strength surmounted all obstacles. At a height of about
thirty-one feet, the nature of the ground changed without
becoming more practicable. To the conglomerate and
trachyte succeeded black basalt, the first dispread in layers
full of bubbles, the latter forming regular prisms, placed
like a colonnade supporting the spring of the immense
vault, an admirable specimen of natural architecture. Be-
tween the blocks of basalt wound long streams of lava, long
since grown cold, encrusted with bituminous rays; and in
some places there were spread large carpets of sulphur. A
more powerful light shone through the upper crater, slied-
ding a vague glimmer over these volcanic depressions for-
ever buried in the bosom of this extinguished mountain.
But our upward march was soon stopped at a height of
about two hundred and fifty feet by impassable obstacles.
THE SUBMARINE COAL-MINES 199
There was a complete vaulted arch overhanging us, and our
ascent was clianged to a circular walk. At the last change
vegetable life began to struggle with the mineral. Some
shrubs, and even some trees, grew from the fractures of the
walls. I recognized some euphorbias, with the caustic sugar
coming from them; heliotropes, quite incapable of justifying
their name, sadly drooped their clusters of flowers, both
their color and perfume half gone. Here and there some
chrysanthemums grew timidly at the foot of an aloe with
long sickly looking leaves. But between the streams of
lava, I saw some little violets still slightly perfumed, and I
admit that I smelt them with delight. Perfume is the soul
of the flower, and sea-flowers, those splendid hydrophytes,
have no soul.
We had arrived at the foot of some sturdy dragon trees,
which had pushed aside the rocks with their strong roots,
when Ned Land exclaimed :
" Ah ! sir, a hive ! a hive ! "
"A hive! " I replied with a gesture of incredulity.
"Yes, a hive," repeated the Canadian; "and bees hum-
ming around it."
I approached, and was bound to believe my own eyes.
There, at a hole bored in one of the dragon trees, were some
thousands of these ingenious insects, so common in all the
Canaries, and whose produce is so much esteemed. Natu-
rally enough, the Canadian wished to gather the honey, and
I could not well oppose liis wish. A quantity of dry leaves,
mixed with sulphur, he lit with a spark from his flint, and
he began to smoke out tlie bees. The humming ceased by
degrees, and the hive eventually yielded several pounds of
the sweetest honey, with w^hich Ned Land filled his haver-
sack.
" When I have mixed this honey with the paste of the
artocarpus," said he, " I shall be able to offer you a succu-
lent cake."
" Upon my word," said Conseil, " it will be gingerbread."
" Never mind the gingerbread," said I; " let us continue
our interesting walk."
At every turn of the path we were following, the lake
appeared in all its length and breadth. The lantern lit up
the whole of its peaceable surface which knew neither rip-
ple nor wave. The Nautilus remained perfectly immov-
20O TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
able. On the platform, and on the mountain, the ship's
crew were working like black shadows clearly carved against
the luminous atmosphere. We were now going round the
highest crest of the first layers of rock which upheld the
roof. I then saw that bees were not the only representatives
of the animal kingdom in the interior of the vol-
cano. Birds of prey hovered here and there in the shadows,
or fled from their nests on the top of the rocks. There
were sparrow-hawks with white breasts, and kestrels, and
down the slopes scampered, with their long legs, several
fine fat bustards. I leave anyone to imagine the covetous-
ness of the Canadian at the sight of this savory game, and
whether he did not regret having no gun. But he did his
best to replace the lead by stones, and after several fruit-
less attempts, he succeeded in wounding a magnificent bird.
To say that he risked his life tv/enty times before reaching
it, is but the truth ; but he managed so well that the creature
joined the honey cakes in his bag. We were now obliged
to descend toward the shore, the crest becoming imprac-
ticable. Above us the crater seemed to gape like the mouth
of a well. From this place the sky could be clearly seen,
and clouds, dissipated by the west wind, leaving behind
them, even on the summit of the mountain, their misty
remnants — certain proof that they were only moderately
high, for the volcano did not rise more than eight hundred
feet above the level of the ocean. Half an hour after the
Canadian's last exploit we had regained the inner shore.
Here the flora was represented by large carpets of marine
crystal, a little umbelliferous plant very good to pickle,
which also bears the name of pierce-stone and sea-fennel.
Conseil gathered some bundles of it. As to the fauna, it
might be counted by thousands of Crustacea of all sorts,
lobsters, crabs, paljemons, spider crabs, chameleon shrimps,
and a large number of shells, rockfish, and limpets. Three-
quarters of an hour later, we had finished our circuitous
walk, and were on board. The crew had just finished load-
ing the sodium, and the Nautilus could have left that instant.
But Captain Nemo gave no order. Did he wish to wait
until night, and leave the submarine passage secretly? Per-
haps so. Whatever it might be, the next day, the Nautilus,
having left its port, steered clear of all land at a few yards
beneath the waves of the Atlantic.
CHAPTER XI
THE SARGASSO SEA
That day the A'autilus crossed a singular part of the
Atlantic Ocean. Xo one can be ignorant of the existence
of a current of warm water, known by the name of the
Gulf Stream. After leaving the Gulf of ^lexico, about
the twenty-fifth degree of north latitude, this current di-
vides into two arms, the principal one going toward the coast
of Ireland and Xorway, while the second bends to the south
rbout the height of the Azores; then, touching the African
shore, and describing a lengthened oval, returns to the
Antilles. This second arm — it is rather a collar than an
arm —surrounds with its circles of warm water that por-
tion of the cold, quiet, immovable ocean called the Sar-
gasso Sea, a perfect lake in the open Atlantic: it takes no
less than three years for the great current to pass round it.
Such was the region the A'aiitilns was now visiting, a per-
fect meadow, a close carpet of seaweed, fucus, and tropical
berries, so thick and so compact that the stem of a vessel
could hardly tear its way through it. And Captain Xemo,
not wishing to entangle his screw in this herbaceous mass,
kept some yards beneath the surface of the waves. The
name Sargasso comes from the Spanish word " sargazzo "
which signifies kelp. This kelp or varech, or berry-plant,
is the principal formation of this immense bank. And this
is the reason, according to the learned ]Maury, the author of
" The Physical Geography of the Globe," why these hydro-
phytes unite in the peaceful basin of the Atlantic. The only
explanation which can be given, he says, seems to me to re-
sult from the experience known to all the world. Place
in a vase some fragments of cork or other floating body,
and give to the water in the vase a circular movement the
scattered fragments will unite in a group in the center of the
liquid surface, that is to say, in the part least agitated. In
the phenomenon we are considering, the Atlantic is the vase,
the Gulf Stream the circular current, and the Sargasso Sea
the central point at which the floating bodies unite.
I share ]\Iaury's opinion, and I was able to study the phe-
nomenon in the very midst, where vessels rarely penetrate.
Above us floated products of all kinds, heaped up among:
these brownish plants: trunks of trees torn from the Andes
or the Rocky Mountains, and floated by the Amazon or the
201
202 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
Mississippi; numerous wrecks, remains of keels, or ships'
bottoms, side planks stove in, and so weighted with shells
and barnacles that they could not again rise to the surface.
And time will one day justify Maury's other opinion, that
these substances thus accumulated for ages will become pet-
rified by the action of the water, and will then form inex-
haustible coal-mines — a precious reserve prepared by far-
seeing nature for the moment when men shall have exhausted
the mines of continents.
In the midst of this inextricable mass of plants and sea-
weed, I noticed some charming pink halcyons and actiniae,
with their long tentacles trailing after them ; medusae, green,
red, and blue, and the great rhyostoms of Cuvier, the large
umbrella of which was bordered and festooned with violet.
All the day of the 226. of February we passed in the
Sargasso Sea, where such fish as are partial to marine plants
and fuci find abundant nourishment. The next, the ocean
had returned to its accustomed aspect. From this time
for nineteen days, from the 23d of February to the 12th of
March, the Nautilus kept in the middle of the Atlantic,
carrying us at a constant speed of a hundred leagues in
twenty- four hours. Captain Nemo evidently intended ac-
complishing his submarine programme, and I imagined that
he intended, after doubling Cape Horn, to return to the
Australian seas of the Pacific. Ned Land had cause for
fear. In these large seas, void of islands, we could not at-
tempt to leave the boat. Nor had we any means of opposing
Captain Nemo's will. Our only course was to submit; but
what we could neither gain by force nor cunning, I liked
to think might be obtained by persuasion. This voyage
ended, would he not consent to restore our liberty, under an
oath never to reveal his existence? — an oath of honor which
we should have religiously kept. But we must consider that
delicate question with the captain. But was I free to claim
this liberty? Had he not himself said from the beginning,
in the firmest manner, that the secret of his life exacted
from him our lasting imprisonment on board the Nautilus?
And would not my four months' silence appear to him a
tacit acceptance of our situation? And would not a return
to the subject result in raising suspicions which might be
hurtful to our projects if at some future time a favorable
opportunity oiTered to return to them?
THE SARGASSO SEA 203
During the nineteen days mentioned above, no incident
of any note happened to signahze our voyage. 1 saw htile
of the captain; he was at work. In the hbrary I often
found his books left open, especially those on natural his-
tory. My work on submarine depths, conned over by him,
was covered with marginal notes, often contradicting my
theories and systems; but the captain contented himself with
thus purging my work; it was very rare for him to discuss
it with me. Sometimes I heard the melancholy tones of
his organ; but only at night, in the midst of the deepest
obscurity, when the Nautilus slept upon t)ie deserted ocean.
During this part of our voyage we sailed whole days on the
surface of the waves. The sea seemed abandoned. A few
sailing-vessels, on the road to India, were making for the
Cape of Good Hope. One day we were followed by the
boats of a whaler, who, no doubt, took us for some enor-
mous whale of great price; but Captain Nemo did not wish
the worthy fellows to lose their time and trouble, so ended
the chase by plunging under the water. Our navigation
continued until the 13th of March; that day the Nautilus
was employed in taking soundings, which greatly interested
me. We had then made about 13,000 leagues since our de-
parture from the high seas of tlie Pacific. The bearings
gave us 45° 37' south latitude, and 37° 53' west longitude.
It w-as the same water in which Captain Denham, of the
Herald, sounded 7,000 fathoms without finding the bottom.
There, too. Lieutenant Parker of the American frigate
Congress, could not touch the bottom with 15,140 yards.
Captain Xemo intended seeking the bottom of the ocean by
a diagonal sufficiently lengthened by means of lateral planes,
placed at an angle of forty-five degrees with the water-line
of the Nautilus. Then the screw set to work at its maxi-
mum speed, its four blades beating the waves with inde-
scribable force. Under this powerful pressure the hull of
the Nautilus quivered like a sonorous chord, and sank
regularly under tiie water.
At 7,000 fathoms I saw some blackish tops rising from
the midst of the waters; but these summits might belong
to high mountains like the Himalayas or Mount Blanc, even
higher; and tlie depth of the abyss remained incalculable.
The Nautilus descended still lower, in spite of the great
pressure. I felt the steel plates tremble at the fastenings
204 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
of the bolts; its bars bent, its partitions groaned; the win-
dows of the saloon seemed to curve under the pressure of
the waters. And this firm structure would doubtless have
yielded, if, as the captain had said, it had not been capable
of resistance like a solid block. In skirting the declivity
of these rocks, lost under the water, I still saw some shells,
some serpulse and spinorbes, still living, and some specimens
of asteriads. But soon this last representative of animal
life disappeared; and at the depth of more than three
leagues, the Nautilus had passed the limits of submarine
existence, even as a balloon does when it rises above the
respirable atmosphere. We had attained a depth of 16,000
yards (four leagues), and the sides of the Nautilus then
bore a pressure of 1,600 atmospheres, that is to say, 3,200
pounds to each square two-fifths of an inch of its entire
surface.
" What a situation to be in! " I exclaimed. "To over-
run these deep regions where man has never trod! Look,
captain, look at these magnificent rocks, these uninhabited
grottoes, these lowest receptacles of the globe, where life is
no longer possible ! What unknown sights are here ! Why
should we be unable to preserve a remembrance of them? "
" Would you like to carry away more than the remem-
brance? " said Captain Nemo.
" What do you mean by those words? "
" I mean to say that nothing is easier than to take a photo-
graphic vievv^ of this submarine region."
I had not time to express my surprise at this new proposi-
tion, when, at Captain Nemo's call, an objective was brought
into the saloon. Through the widely opened panel, the
liquid mass was bright with electricity, which was distributed
with such uniformity that not a shadow, not a gradation,
was to be seen in our manufactured light. The Nautilus
remained motionless, the force of its screw subdued by the
inclination of its planes: the instrument was propped on the
bottom of the oceanic site, and in a few seconds we had
obtained a perfect negative, from which may be seen those
primitive rocks, which have never looked upon the light
of heaven; that lowest granite which forms the foundation
of the globe; those deep grottoes, woven in the stony mass
whose outlines were of such sharpness, and the border lines
of which are marked in black, as if done by the brush of
THE SARGASSO SEA 205
some Flemish artist. Beyond that again a horizon of
mountains, an admirable undulating line, forming the
prospective of the landscape. I cannot describe the effect
of these smooth, black, polished rocks, without moss, with-
out a spot, and of strange forms, standing solidly on the
sandy carpet, which sparkled under the jets of our electric
light.
But the operation being over, Captain Nemo said : " Let
us go up; we must not abuse our position, nor expose the
Nantili'.s too long to such great pressure."
" Go up again ! " I exclaimed.
" Hold well on."
I had not time to understand why the caption cautioned
me thus, when I was thrown forward on to the carpet. At
a signal from the captain, its screw was shipped, and its
blades raised vertically; the N'autilus shot into the air like
a balloon, rising with stunning rapidity, and cutting the
mass of waters with a sonorous agitation. Nothing was
visible; and in four minutes it had shot through the four
leagues which separated it from the ocean, and, after emerg-
ing like a flying-fish, fell, making the waves rebound to an
enormous height.
CHAPTER XH
CACHALOTS AND WHALES
During the nights of the 13111 and 14th of March, the
Nautilus returned to its southerly course. I fancied that,
when on a level with Cape Horn, he would turn the helm
westward, in order to beat the Pacific seas, and so complete
the tour of the world. He did nothing of the kind, but
continued on his way to the southern regions. Where was
he going to? To the pole? It was madness! I began to
think that the captain's temerity justified Ned Land's fears.
For some time past the Canadian had not spoken to me of
his projects of flight; he was less communicative, almost
silent. I could see that this lengthened imprisonment was
weighing upon him. and T felt that rage was burning within
him. When he met the captain his eyes lit up with sup-
pressed anger; and T feared that his natural violence would
lead him into some extreme. That day, the 14th of March,
206 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
Conseil and he came to me in my room. I inquired the
cause of their visit.
"A simple question to ask you, sir," rephed the Cana-
dian.
" Speak, Ned."
" How many men are there on board the Nautilus, do
you think? "
" I cannot tell, my friend."
" I should say that its working does not require a large
crew."
" Certainly, under existing conditions, ten men, at the
most, ought to be enough."
" Well, why should there be any more? "
" Why? " I repliedj looking fixedly at Ned Land, whose
meaning was easy to guess. " Because," I added, " if m.y
surmises are correct, and if I have well understood the
captain's existence, the Nautilus is not only a vessel, it is
also a place of refuge for those who, like its commander,
have broken every tie upon earth."
" Perhaps so," said Conseil; "but, in any case, the Nau-
tilus can only contain a certain number of men. Could
not you, sir, estimate their maximum? "
"How, Conseil?"
"By calculation; given the size of the vessel, which you
know, sir, and consequently the quantity of air it contains,
knowing also how much each man expends at a breath, and
comparing these results with the fact that the Nautilus is
obliged to go to the surface every twenty-four hours for
a supply of air."
Conseil had not finished the sentence before I saw what
he was driving at.
"I understand," said I; "but that calculation, though
simple enough, can give but a very uncertain result."
" Never mind," said Ned Land urgently.
" Here it is, then," said I. " In one hour each man con-
sumes the ox3^gen contained in twenty gallons of air; and in
twenty-four, that contained in 480 gallons. We must,
therefore, find ho\y many times 480 gallons of air the Nau-
tilus contains."
" Just so," said Conseil.
" Or," I continued, " the size of the Nautilus being 1,500
tons, and one ton holding 200 gallons, it contains 300,000
CACHALOTS AND WALES 207
gallons of air, which, divided by 480, gives a quotient of
625. Which means to say, strictly speaking, that the air
contained in the Nautilus would suffice for 625 men for
twenty-four hours."
" Six hundred and twenty-five ! " repeated Ned.
" But remember, that all of us, passengers, sailors, and
officers included, w^ould not form a tenth part of that num-
ber."
" Still too many for three men," murmured Conseil.
The Canadian shook his head, passed his hand across his
forehead, and left the room without answering.
" Will you allow me to make one observation, sir? " said
Conseil. " Poor Ned is longing for everything that he
cannot have. His past life is always present to him; every-
thing that we are forbidden he regrets. His head is full
of old recollections. And we must understand him. What
has he to do here? Nothing; he is not learned Hke you,
sir; and has not the same taste for the beauties of the sea
that we have. He would risk everything to be able to go
once more into a tavern in his own country."
Certainly the monotony on board must seem intolerable
to tlie Canadian, accustomed as he was to a life of liberty
and activity. Events were rare which could rouse him to
any show of spirit; but that day an event did happen which
recalled the bright days of the harpooner. About eleven
in the morning, being on the surface of the ocean, the Nau-
tilus fell in with a troop of whales — an encounter which did
not astonish me, knowing that these creatures, hunted to
the death, had taken refuge in high latitudes.
We were seated on the platform, with a quiet sea. The
month of March in those latitudes gave us some lovely au-
tumnal days. It was the Canadian — he could not be mis-
taken — who signaled a whale on the eastern horizon.
Looking attentively one might see its black back rise and
fall with the waves five miles from the Nautilus.
"Ah!" exclaimed Ned Land, "if I was on board a
whaler now, such a meeting would give me pleasure. It is
one of large size. See with what strengtii its blow-holes
throw up columns of air and steam! Confound it, why am
I bound to these steel plates? "
" What, Ned," said I, " you have not forgotten your old
ideas of fishing?"
2o8 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" Can a whale-fisher ever forget his old trade, sir? Can
he ever become weary of the emotions caused hy such a
chase? "
" You have never fished in these seas, Ned? "
"Never, sir; in the northern only, and as much in Beh-
ring as in Davis Straits."
" Then the southern whale is still unknown to you. It is
the Greenland whale you have hunted up to this time, and
that would not risk passing through the warm waters of the
equator. Whales are localized according to their kinds, in
certain seas which they never leave. And if one of these
creatures went from Behring to Davis Straits, it must be
simply because there is a passage from one sea to the other,
either on the American or the Asiatic side."
" In that case, as I have never fished in these seas, I do
not know the kind of whale frequenting them."
" I have told you, Ned."
"A greater reason for making their acquaintance," said
Conseil.
"Look! look!" exclaimed the Canadian, "they ap-
proach; they aggravate me; they know that I cannot get at
them!"
Ned stamped his feet. His hand trembled as he grasped
an imaginary harpoon.
" Are these cetacea as large as those of the northern
seas ? " asked he.
" Very nearly, Ned."
** Because I have seen large whales, sir, whales measuring
a hundred feet. I have even been told that those of Hulla-
moch and Umgallick, of the Aleutian Islands, are some-
times a hundred and fifty feet long."
" That seems to me exaggeration. These creatures are
only balsenopterons, provided with dorsal fins ; and, like the
cachalots, are generally much smaller than the Greenland
whale."
" Ah ! " exclaimed the Canadian, whose eyes had never
left the ocean, "they are coming nearer; they are in the
same water as the Nautilus! "
Then returning to the conversation, he said :
" You spoke of the cachalot as a small creature. I have
heard of gigantic ones. They are intelligent cetacea. It
is said of some that they cover themselves with seaweed
V, V Verne
.fl .loV
einotJ
hed in these seas, Ned? "
rrorthcrn onlv. and as mti.:
southern whale is still unknown to you.^
le you have ' d up to this time,
liK passi^" ' :e warm waters oi
'^ -'■■ '^ ..,vding to their "'''^
' seas e. And if on
went Straits, it must bt^
to the ot'
A MYSTERIOUS VISITOR
Contrary to his custom, he ordered both panels to be opened, and
goin^ from one to the other, observed the mass of waters attentively.
To what end I could not guess; so, on my side, I employed my time in
studying the fish passing before me. My eyes could not leave these
wonders of the sea, when they were suddenly struck by an unexpected
apparition.
In the midst of the waters a man appeared, a diver, carrying at his
belt a leathern purse. It was not a body abandoned to the w-aves; it
was a living man, swimming with a strong hand, disappearing occasion-
ally to take breath at the surface. — Page 171.
b.and trembled as he gra
cea as large as those of the iv
, ^e.<i. ?.?r 'vhales measf"
those
and UmL; ands, are so
a hundred a^
to a*
vclaimed thi - neve
m, "they a^ y arc in th<
^°'-^- lie ones. 1 ':acea.
.' that thev seaw
CACHALOTS AND WALES 209
and fucus, and then are taken for islands. People encamp
upon them, and settle there; li<]jlit a fire "
"And build houses," said Conseil,
" Yes, joker," said Xed Land. " And one fine day the
creature plunges, carrying with it all the inhabitants to the
bottom of tiie sea."
" Something like the travels of Sindbad the Sailor," I re-
plied, laughing.
" Ah ! " suddenly exclaimed Ned Land, " it is not one
whale; there are ten— there are twenty — it is a whole troop!
And I not able to do anytiiing! liands and feet tied! "
" But, friend Ned," said Conseil, " why do you not ask
Captain Nemo's permission to chase them? "
Conseil had not finished his sentence when Ned Land
had lowered himself through the panel to seek the captain.
A few minutes afterward the two appeared together on the
platform.
Captain Nemo watched the troop of cetacea playing on
the waters about a mile from the Nautilus.
"They are southern whales," said he; "there goes the
fortune of a whole fleet of whalers."
" Well, sir," asked the Canadian, " can I not chase them,
if only to remind me of my old trade of harpooner? "
"And to what purpose?" replied Captain Nemo; " only
to destroy! We have nothing to do witli whale-oil on
board."
" But, sir," continued the Canadian, " in the Red Sea you
allowed us to follow the dugong."
" Then it was to procure fresh meat for my crew. Here
it would be killing for killing's sake. I know that is a
privilege reserved for man, but I do not approve of such
murderous pastime. In destroying the southern whale (like
the Greenland whale, an inoffensive creature), your traders
do a culpable action, Master Land. They have already de-
populated the whole of Baflin's Bay, and are annihilating a
class of useful animals. Leave the unfortunate cetacea
alone. They have plenty of natural enemies — cachalots,
swordfish, and sawfish — witliout your troubling tliem."
The captain was riglit. The barbarous and inconsiderate
greed of these fishermen will one day cause the disajijiear-
ance of the last whale in the ocean. Ned Land whistled
" Yankee Doodle " between his teeth, thrust his hands into
'210 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
his pockets, and turned his back upon us. But Captain
Nemo watched the troop of cetacea, and addressing me
said, " I was right in saying that whales had natural enemies
enough, without counting man. These will have plenty to
do before long. Do you see, M. Aronnax, about eight miles
to leeward, those blackish moving points? "
Yes, captain," I replied.
Those are cachalots or sperm whales — terrible animals,
which I have sometimes met in troops of two or three hun-
dred. As to those, they are cruel, mischievous creatures;
they would be right in exterminating them."
The Canadian turned quickly at the last words.
" Well, captain," said he, " it is still time, in the interest
of the real whales."
" It is useless to expose one's self, professor. The Naii-
tihis will disperse them. It is armed with a steel spur as
good as Master Land's harpoon, I imagine."
The Canadian did not put himself out enough to shrug
his shoulders. Attack cetacea with blows of a spur! Who
had ever heard of such a thing?
"Wait, M. Aronnax," said Captain Nemo. "We will
show you something you have never yet seen. We have no
pity for these ferocious creatures. They are nothing but
mouth and teeth."
Mouth and teeth! No one could better describe the
macrocephalous cachalot, which is sometimes more than
seventy-five feet long. Its enormous head occupies one-
third of its entire body. Better armed than the right
whale, whose upper jaw is furnished only with whalebone,
it is supplied with twenty-five large tusks, about eight inches
long, cylindrical and conical at the top, each weighing two
pounds. It is in the upper part of this enormous head, in
great cavities divided by cartilages, that is to be found
from six to eight hundred pounds of that precious oil
called spermaceti. The cachalot is a disagreeable creature,
more tadpole than fish, according to Fredol's description.
It is badly formed, the whole of its left side being (if we
may say it) a " failure," and being only able to see with
its right eye. But the formidable troop was nearing us.
They had seen the whales and were preparing to attack
them. One could judge beforehand that the cachalots
would be victorious, not only because they were better built
CACHALOTS AND WALES 211
for attack than their inoffensive adversaries, but also be-
cause they could remain longer under water without com-
ing to the surface. There was only just time to go to the
help of the whales. The Nautilus went under water.
Conseil, Ned Land, and I took our places before the win-
dow in the saloon, and Captain Nemo joined the pilot in
his cage to work his apparatus as an engine of destruction.
Soon I felt the beatings of the screw quicken, and our speed
increased. The battle between the cachalots and the
whales had already begun when the Nautilus arrived.
They did not at first show any fear at the sight of this new
monster joining in the conflict. But they soon had to
guard against its blows. What a battle 1 The Nautilus
was nothing but a formidable harpoon, brandished by the
hand of its captain. It hurled itself against the fleshy
mass, passing through from one part to the other, leaving
behind it two quivering halves of the animal. It could
not feel the formidable blows from their tails upon its
sides, nor the shock which it produced itself, much more.
One cachalot killed, it ran at the next, tacked on the spot
that it might not miss its prey, going forward and back-
ward, answering to its helm, plunging when the cetacean
dived into the deep waters, coming up with it when it re-
turned to the surface, striking it front or sideways, cutting
or tearing in all directions, and at any pace, piercing it
with its terrible spur. What carnage! What a noise on
the surface of the waves! What sharp hissing, and what
snorting peculiar to these enraged animals ! In the midst
of these waters generally so peaceful their tails made per-
fect billows. For one hour this wholesale massacre con-
tinued, from which the cachalots could not escape. Sev-
eral times ten or twelve united tried to crush the Nautilus
by their weight. From the window we could see their
enormous moullis studded with tusks, and their formidable
eyes. Ned Land could not contain himself, he threatened
and swore at them. W^e could feel them clinging to our
vessel like dogs worrying a wild boar in a copse. But the
Nautilus, working its screw, carried them here and there,
or to the upper levels of the ocean, without caring for
their enormous weight, nor the powerful strain on the ves-
sel. At length, the mass of cachalots broke up, the waves
became quiet, and I felt that we were rising to the surface.
212 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
The panel opened, and we hurried on to the platform.
The sea was covered with mutilated bodies. A formidable
explosion could not have divided and torn this fleshy mass
with more violence. We were floating amid gigantic
bodies, bluish on the back and white underneath, covered
with enormous protuberances. Some terrified cachalots
were flying toward the horizon. The waves were dyed
red for several miles, and the Nautilus floated in a sea of
blood. Captain Nemo joined us.
" Well, Master Land? " said he.
" Well, sir," replied the Canadian, whose enthusiasm had
somewhat calmed ; " it is a terrible spectacle, certainly.
But I am not a butcher. I am a hunter, and I call this a
butchery."
" It is a massacre of mischievous creatures," replied the
captain; "and the Nautilus is not a butcher's knife."
" I like my harpoon better," said the Canadian.
" Everyone to his own," answered the captain, looking
fixedly at Ned Land.
I feared he would commit some act of violence, which
would end in sad consequences. But his anger was turned
by the sight of a whale which the Nautilus had just come
up with. The creature had not quite escaped from the
cachalot's teeth. I recognized the southern whale by its
flat head, which is entirely black. Anatomically, it is dis-
tinguished from the white whale and the North-Cape whale
by the seven cervical vertebrae, and it has two more ribs
than its congeners. The unfortunate cetacean was lying
on its side, riddled with holes from the bites, and quite
dead. From its mutilated fin still hung a young whale
which it could not save from the massacre. Its open mouth
let the water flow in and out, murmuring like the waves
breaking on the shore. Captain Nemo steered close to the
corpse of the creature. Two of his men mounted its side,
and I saw, not without surprise, that they were drawing
from its breasts all the milk which they contained, that is
to say, about two or three tons. The captain offered me a
cup of the milk, which was still warm. I could not help
showing my repugnance to the drink; but he assured me
that it was excellent, and not to be distinguished from cow's
milk. I tasted it, and was of his opinion. It was a use-
ful reserve to us, for in the shape of salt butter or cheese
CACHALOTS AND WALES 213
it would form an agreeable variety from our ordinary food.
From that day I noticed with uneasiness that Ned Land's
ill-will toward Captain Nemo increased, and I resolved to
watch the Canadian's gestures closely.
CHAPTER XIII
THE ICEBERG
The Nautilus was steadily pursuing its southerly course,
following the fiftieth meridian with considerable speed.
Did he wish to reach the pole? I did not tiiink so, for
every attempt to reach that point had hitherto failed.
Again the season was far advanced; for in the antarctic
regions the 13th of March corresponds with the 13th of
September of northern regions, which begins at the equi-
noctial season. On the 14th of March I saw floating ice in
latitude 55°, merely pale bits of debris from twenty to
twenty-five feet long, forming banks over which the sea
curled. The Nautilus remained on the surface of the
ocean. Ned Land, who had fished in the arctic seas, was
familiar with its icebergs; but Conseil and I admired them
for the first time. In the atmosphere toward the southern
horizon stretched a white dazzling band. English whalers
had given it the name of " ice blink." However thick
the clouds may be, it is always visible, and announces the
presence of an ice-pack or bank. Accordingly, larger
blocks soon appeared, whose brilliancy changed with the
caprices of the fog. Some of these masses showed green
veins, as if long undulating lines had been traced with sul-
phate of copper; others resembled enormous amethysts
with the liglit shining through them. Some reflected the
light of day upon a thousand crystal facets. Others
shaded with vivid calcareous reflections resembled a perfect
town of marble. The more we neared the south the more
these floating islands increased both in number and im-
portance.
At the sixtieth degree of latitude, every pass had dis-
appeared. But seeking carefully. Captain Nemo soon
found a narrow opening, through which he boldly slipped,
knowing, however, that it would close behind him. Thus,
guided by this clever hand, the Nautilus passed through
214 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
all the ice with a precision which quite charmed Conseil;
icebergs or mountains, ice-fields or smooth plains, seeming
to have no limits, drift ice or floating ice-packs, or plains
broken up, called palchs when they are circular, and streams
when they are made up of long strips. The temperature
was very low ; the thermometer exposed to the air marked
two or three degrees below zero, but we were warmly clad
with fur, at the expense of the sea bear and seal. The
interior of the Nautilus, warmed regularly by its electric
apparatus, defied the most intense cold. Besides, it would
only have been necessary to go some yards beneath the
waves to find a more bearable temperature. Two months
earlier we should have had perpetual daylight in these lati-
tudes ; but already we had three or four hours night, and by
and by there would be six months of darkness in these cir-
cumpolar regions. On the 15th of March we were in the
latitude of New Shetland and South Orkney. The captain
told me that formerly numerous tribes of seals inhabited
them ; but that English and American whalers, in their rage
for destruction, massacred both old and young; thus where
there was once life and animation, they had left silence
and death.
About eight o'clock on the morning of the i6th of
March, the Nautilus, following the fifty-fifth meridian, cut
the antarctic polar circle. Ice surrounded us on all sides,
and closed the horizon. But Captain Nemo went from one
opening to another, still going higher. I cannot express
my astonishment at the beauties of these new regions. The
ice took most surprising forms. Here the grouping formed
an Oriental town, with innumerable mosques and mina-
rets; there a fallen city thrown to the earth, as it were, by
some convulsion of nature. The whole aspect was con-
stantly changed by the oblique rays of the sun, or lost in
the grayish fog amid hurricanes of snow. Detonations
and falls were heard on all sides, great overthrows of ice-
bergs, which altered the whole landscape like a diorama.
Often seeing no exit, I thought we were definitively pris-
oners; but instinct guiding him at the slightest indication,
Captain Nemo would discover a new pass. He was never
mistaken when he saw the thin threads of bluish water
trickling along the icefields; and I had no doubt that he
had already ventured into the midst of these antarctic seas
THE ICEBERG 215
before. On the i6th of March, however, the ice-fields ab-
solutely blocked our road. It was not the iceberg itself, as
yet, but vast fields cemented by the cold. But this obstacle
could not stop Captain Nemo: he hurled himself against it
with frightful violence. The Nautilus entered the brittle
mass like a wedge, and split it wuth frightful crackings.
It was the battering-ram of the ancients hurled by infinite
strength. The ice, thrown high in the air, fell like hail
around us. By its own power of impulsion our apparatus
made a canal for itself; sometimes carried away by its own
impetus, it lodged on the ice-field, crushing it with its
weight, and sometimes buried beneath it, dividing it by a
simple pitching movement, producing large rents in it.
Violent gales assailed us at this time, accompanied by thick
fogs, through which, from one end of the platform to the
other, we could see nothing. The wind blew sharply from
all points of the compass, and the snow lay in such hard
heaps that we had to break it with blows of a pickax. The
temperature was always at five degrees below zero; every
outward part of the Nautilus was covered with ice. AJ
rigged vessel could never have worked its way there, for all
the rigging would have been entangled in the blocked-up
gorges. A vessel without sails, with electricity for its
motive-power, and wanting no coal, could alone brave such
high latitudes. At length, on the i8th of March, after
many useless assaults, the Nautilus was positively blocked.
It was no longer either streams, packs, or ice-fields, but an
interminable and immovable barrier, formed by mountains
soldered together.
"An iceberg! " said the Canadian to me.
I knew that to Ned Land, as well as to all other naviga-
tors who had preceded us, this was an inevitable obstacle.
The sun appearing for an instant at noon. Captain Nemo
took an observation as near as possible, which gave our
situation at 51° 30' longitude and 67° 39' of south latitude.
We had advanced one degree more in this antarctic region.
Of the liquid surface of tlie sea there was no longer a
glimpse. Under the spur of the Nautilus lay stretched a
vast plain, entangled with confused blocks. Here and
there sharp points, ajid slender needles rising to a height
of 200 feet; further on a steep shore, hewn as it were with
an ax, and clothed with grayish tints; huge mirrors, re-
2i6 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
fleeting a few rays of sunshine, half drowned in the fog.
And over this desolate face of nature a stern silence
reigned, scarcely broken by the flapping of the wings of
petrels and puffins. Everything was frozen — even the
noise. The Nautilus was then obliged to stop in its ad-
venturous course amid these fields of ice. In spite of our
efforts, in spite of the powerful means employed to break
up the ice, the Nautilus remained immovable. Generally,
when we can proceed no further, we have return still open
to us; but here return was as impossible as advance, for
every pass had closed behind us ; and for the few moments
when we were stationary, we were likely to be entirely
blocked, which did, indeed, happen about two o'clock in
the afternoon, the fresh ice forming around its sides with
astonishing rapidity. I was obliged to admit that Captain
Nemo was more than imprudent. I was on the platform at
that moment. The captain had been observing our situa-
tion for some time past, when he said to me : " Well, sir,
what do you think of this? "
" I think that we are caught, captain."
" So, M. Aronnax, you really think that the N'aufilus
cannot disengage itself? "
" W^ith difficulty, captain ; for the season is already too
far advanced for 3'ou to reckon on the breaking up of the
ice."
** Ah ! sir," said Captain Nemo, in an ironical tone, " you
will always be the same. You see nothing but difficulties
and obstacles. I affirm that not only can the Nautilus dis-
engage itself, but also that it can go further still."
" Further to the south ? " I asked, looking at the captain.
" Yes, sir; it shall go to the pole."
" To the pole! " I exclaimed, unable to repress a gesture
of incredulity.
" Yes," replied the captain coldly, " to the antarctic pole,
to that unknown point from whence springs every meridian
of the globe. You know whether I can do as I please with
the Nautilus/'
Yes, I knew that. I knew that this man was bold, even
to rashness. But to conquer those obstacles which bristled
round the south pole, rendering it more inaccessible than
the north, which had not yet been reached by the boldest
navigators — was it not a mad enterprise, one which only a
THE ICEBERG 217
maniac would have conceived? It then came into my head
to ask Captain Nemo if he had ever discovered that pole
which had never yet been trodden by a human creature.
" No, sir," he replied ; " but we will discover it together.
Where others have failed, / will not fail. I have never yet
led my Nautilus so far into southern seas; but I repeat, it
shall go farther yet."
" I can well believe you, captain," said I, in a slightly
ironical tone. " I believe you ! Let us go ahead ! There
are no obstacles for us! Let us smash this iceberg! Let
us blow it up ; and if it resists, let us give the Nautilus wings
to fly over it! "
"Over it, sir!" said Captain Nemo quietly; "no, not
over it, but under it ! "
" Under it! " I exclaimed, a sudden idea of the captain's
projects flashing upon my mind. I understood the wonder-
ful qualities of the Nautilus were going to serve us in this
superhuman enterprise.
" I see we are beginning to understand one another, sir,"
said the captain, half smiling. " You begin to see the pos-
sibility — I should say the success — of this attempt. That
which is impossible for an ordinary vessel, is easy to the
Nautilus. If a continent lies before the pole, it must stop
before the continent; but, if, on the contrary, tlie pole is
washed by open sea, it will go even to the pole."
" Certainly," said I, carried away by the captain's rea-
soning; "if the surface of the sea is solidified by the ice,
the lower depths are free by the providential law which
has placed the maximum of density of the waters of the
ocean one degree higher than freezing-point; and, if I am
not mistaken, the portion of this iceberg which is above
the water is as one to four to that which is below."
" \^ery nearly, sir; for one foot of iceberg above the sea
there are three below it. If these ice mountains are not
more than 300 feet above the surface, they are not more
than 900 beneath. And what are 900 feet to the
Nautilus^ "
" Nothing, sir."
" It could even seek at greater depths that uniform tem-
perature of sea-water, and there brave with impunity the
thirty or forty degrees of surface cold."
" Just so, sir — just so," I replied, getting animated.
2i8 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" The only difficulty," continued Captain Nemo, " is
that of remaining several days without renewing our pro-
vision of air."
" Is that all ? The Nautilus has vast reservoirs ; we can
fill them, and they will supply us with all the oxygen we
"want."
" Well thought of, M. Aronnax," replied the captain,
smiling. " But not wishing you to accuse me of rashness,
I will first give you all my objections."
" Have you any more to make? "
" Only one. It is possible, if the sea exists at the south
pole, that it may be covered; and, consequently, we shall
be unable to come to the surface."
*' Gc>od, sir ! but do you forget that the Nautilus is armed
■with a powerful spur, and could we not send it diagonally
agair^st these fields of ice, which would open at the shock? "
"' Ah! sir, you are full of ideas to-day."
'' Besides, captain," I added enthusiastically, " why
■should we not find the sea open at the south pole as well as
'at the north? The frozen poles and the poles of the earth
do not coincide, either in the southern or in the northern
regions ; and, until it is proved to the contrary, we may sup-
pose either a continent or an ocean free from ice at these
two points of the globe."
" I think so, too, M. Aronnax," replied Captain Nemo.
" I only wish you to observe that, after having made so
many objections to my project, you are now crushing me
with arguments in its favor."
The preparations for this audacious attempt now began.
The powerful pumps of the Nautilus were working air into
the reservoirs and storing it at high pressure. About four
o'clock Captain Nemo announced the closing of the panels
on the platform. I threw one last look at the massive ice-
berg which we were going to cross. The weather was clear,
the atmosphere was pure enough, the cold very great, be-
ing twelve degrees below zero; but the wind having gone
down, this temperature was not so unbearable. About ten
men mounted the sides of the Nautilus, armed with pick-
axes to break the ice around the vessel, which was soon free.
The operation was cjuickly performed, for the fresh ice
was still very thin. We all went below. The usual reser-
voirs were filled with the newly liberated water, and the
THE ICEBERG 219
Nautilus soon descended. I had taken my place with Con-
seil in the saloon ; through the open window we could see
the lower beds of the Southern Ocean. The thermometer
went up, the needle of the compass deviated on the dial.
At about 900 feet, as Captain Nemo had foreseen, we were
floating beneath the undulating bottom of the iceberg.
But the Nautilus went lower still — it went to the depth of
four hundred fathoms. The temperature of the water at
the surface showed twelve degrees, it was now only ten ;
we had gained two. I need not say the temperature of the
Nautilus was raised by its heating apparatus to a much
higher degree ; every maneuver was accomplished with won-
derful precision.
" We shall pass it. if you please, sir," said Conseil.
" I believe we shall," I said in a tone of firm conviction.
In this open sea, the Nautilus had taken its course di-
rect to the pole, without leaving the fifty-second meridian.
From 67° 30' to 90°, twenty-two degrees and a half of
latitude remained to travel; that is, about five hundred
leagues. The Nautilus kept up a mean speed of twenty-
six miles an hour — the speed of an express train. If that
was kept up. in forty hours we should reach the pole.
For a part of the night the novelty of the situation kept
us at the window\ The sea was lit with the electric lantern ;
but it was deserted; fishes did not sojourn in these impris-
oned waters; they only found there a passage to take them
from the antarctic ocean to the open polar sea. Our prog-
ress was rapid; w^e could feel it by the quivering of the
long steel body. About two in the morning. I took some
hours' repose, and Conseil did the same. In crossing the
waist I did not meet Captain Nemo; I supposed him to be
in the pilot's cage. The next morning, the 19th of March,
I took my post once more in the saloon. The electric log
told me that the speed of the Nautilus had been slackened.
It was then going toward the surface, but prudently empty-
ing its reservoirs very slowly. My heart beat fast. Were
we going to emerge and regain the open polar atmospliere ?
No! A shock told me that the Nautilus had struck the
bottom of the iceberg, still very thick, judging from the
deadened sound. We had indeed " struck," to use a sea
expression, but in an inverse sense, and at a thousand yards
deep. This would give three thousand feet of ice above us;
220 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
and one thousand more above the water-mark. The ice-
berg was then higher than at its borders — not a very reas-
suring fact. Several times that day the Nautilus tried
again, and every time it struck the wall which lay like a
ceiling above it. Sometimes the depth was but 600 yards,
leaving only 200 to rise above the surface. Yet even this
was twice the height it had been when the Nautilus had gone
under the waves. I carefully noted the different depths,
and thus obtained a submarine profile of the chain as it was
developed under the water. That night no change had
taken place in our situation. Still ice between four and five
hundred yards in depth ! It was evidently diminishing, but
still what a thickness between us and the surface of the
ocean ! It was then eight. According to the daily custom
on board the Nautilus, its air should have been renewed four
hours ago; but I did not suffer much, although Captain
Nemo had not yet made any demand upon his reserve of
oxygen. My sleep was painful that night; hope and fear
besieged me by turns; I rose several times. The groping
of the Nautilus continued. About three in the morning, I
noticed that the lower surface of the iceberg was only about
fifty feet deep. One hundred and fifty feet now separated
us from the surface of the waters. The iceberg was by
degrees becoming an ice-field, the mountain a plain. My
eyes never left the manometer. We were still rising diag-
onally to the surface, which sparkled under the electric rays.
The iceberg was stretching both above and beneath into
lengthening slopes; mile after mile it was getting thinner.
At length, at six in the morning of that memorable day, the
19th of March, the door of the saloon opened, and Captain
Nemo appeared.
" The sea is open ! " was all he said.
CHAPTER XIV
THE SOUTH POLE
I RUSHED on to the platform. Yes ! the open sea, with
but a few scattered pieces of ice and moving icebergs — a
long stretch of sea; a world of birds in the air, and myriads
of fishes under those waters, which varied from intense
blue to olive-green, according to the bottom. The ther-
THE SOUTH POLE 221
mometer marked three degrees centigrade above zero. It
was comparatively spring, shut up as we were behind this
iceberg, whose lengthened mass was dimly seen on our
northern horizon.
" Are we at the pole? " I asked the captain, with a beat-
ing heart.
" I do not know," he replied. " At noon I will take our
bearings."
" But will the sun show himself through this fog? " said
I, looking at the leaden sky.
" However little it shows, it will be enough," replied the
captain.
About ten miles south, a solitary island rose to a height
of one hundred and four yards. We made for it, but care-
fully, for the sea might be strewn with banks. One hour
afterward we had reached it, two hours later we had made
the round of it. It measured four or five miles in circum-
ference. A narrow canal separated it from a considerable
stretch of land, perliaps a continent, for we could not see
its limits. The existence of this land seemed to give some
color to Maury's hypothesis. The ingenious American has
remarked that between the south pole and the sixtieth
parallel, the sea is covered with floating ice of enormous
size, which is never met with in the North Atlantic. From
this fact he has drawn the conclusion that the antarctic
circle incloses considerable continents, as icebergs cannot
form in open sea, but only on the coasts. According to
these calculations, the mass of ice surrounding the southern
pole forms a vast cap, the circumference of which must be,
at least, 2,500 miles. But the Nautilus, for fear of running
aground, had stopped about three cables' length from a
strand over which reared a superb heap of rocks. The
boat was launched; the captain, two of his men bearing in-
struments, Conseil, and myself, were in it. It was ten in
the morning. I had not seen Ned Land. Doubtless the
Canadian did not wish to admit the presence of the soutli
pole. A few strokes of the oar brought us to the sand,
where we ran ashore. Conseil was going to jump on to the
land, when I held him back.
" Sir," said I to Captain Nemo, " to you belongs the
honor of first setting foot on this land."
" Yes, sir," said the captain; " and if I do not hesitate to
2.22 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
tread this south pole, it is because, up to this time, no hu-
man being has left a trace there."
Saying this, he jumped lightly on to the sand. His heart
beat with emotion. He climbed a rock, sloping to a little
promontory; and there, with his arms crossed, mute and
motionless, and with an eager look, he seemed to take pos-
session of these southern regions. After five minutes
passed in this ecstasy, he turned to us.
" When you like, sir."
I landed, followed by Conseil, leaving the two men in the
boat. For a long way the soil was composed of a reddish,
sandy stone, something like crushed brick, scoriae, streams
of lava, and pumice-stones. One could not mistake its vol-
canic origin. In some parts, slight curls of smoke emitted
a sulphurous smell, proving that the internal fires had lost
nothing of their expansive powers, though, having climbed
a high acclivity, I could see no volcano for a radius of sev-
eral miles. We know that in those antarctic countries,
James Ross found two craters, the Erebus and Terror, in
full activity, on the 167th meridian, latitude "jy" 32'. The
vegetation of this desolate continent seemed to me much
restricted. Some lichens of the species usnea melanoxantha
lay upon the black rocks; some microscopic plants, rudi-
mentary diatomas, a kind of cells, placed between two
quartz shells; long purple and scarlet fucus, supported on
little swimming bladders, which the breaking of the waves
brought to the shore. These constituted the meager flora
of this region. The shore was strewn with mollusks, little
mussels, limpets, smooth bucards in the shape of a heart,
and particularly some clios, with oblong membranous bod-
ies, the head of which was formed of two rounded lobes.
I also saw myriads of northern clios, one and a quarter
inches long, of which a whale would swallow a whole world
at a mouthful; and some charming pteropods, perfect sea-
butterflies, animating the waters on the skirts of the shore.
About half a mile further on, the soil was riddled with
ruff's nests, a sort of laying ground, out of which many
birds were issuing. Captain Nemo had some hundreds
hunted. They uttered a cry like the braying of an ass, were
about the size of a goose, slate color on the body, white be-
neath, with a yellow line round their throats; they allowed
themselves to be killed with a stone, never trying to escape.
THE SOUTH POLE 223
But the fog did not lift, and at eleven the sun had not yet
shown itself. Its absence made me uneasy. Without it
no observations were possible. How then could we decide
whether we had reached the pole? When I rejoined Cap-
tain Nemo, I found him leaning on a piece of rock, silently
watching the sky. He seemed impatient and vexed. But
what was to be done? This rash and powerful man could
not command the sun as he did the sea. Noon arrived
without the orb of day showing itself for an instant. \Yt
could not even tell its position behind the curtain of fog;
and soon the fog turned to snow.
" Till to-morrow." said the captain quietly, and we re-
turned to the Nautilus amid these troublesome atmospheric
disturbances.
The tempest of snow continued till the next day. It
was impossible to remain on the platform. From the
saloon, where I was taking notes of incidents happening
during this excursion to the polar continent, I could hear
the cries of petrels and albatrosses sporting in the midst of
this violent storm. The Nautilus did not remain motion-
less, but skirted the coast, advancing ten miles more to the
south in the half-light left by the sun as it skirted the edge
of the horizon. The next day, the 20th of March, the
snow had ceased. The cold was a little greater, the ther-
mometer showing two degrees below zero. The fog was
rising, and I hoped that that day our observation might be
taken. Captain Nemo not having yet appeared, the boat
took Conseil and myself to land. The soil was still of the
same volcanic nature; everywhere were traces of lava,
scoriae, and basalt; but the crater which had vomited them
I could not see. Here, as lower down, this continent was
alive with myriads of birds ; but their rule was now divided
with large troops of sea-mammals, looking at us with their
soft eyes. There were several kinds of seals, some stretched
on the earth, some on flakes of ice. many going in and out
of the sea. They did not flee at our approach, never hav-
ing had anything to do with man ; and I reckoned that there
were provisions there for hundreds of vessels.
" Sir," said Conseil, " will you tell me the names of
these creatures? "
" They are seals and morses."
It was now eight in the mprning. Four hours remained
224 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
to us before the sun could be observed with advantage. I
directed our step toward a vast bay cut in the steep granite
shore. There, I can aver that earth and ice were lost to
sight by the numbers of sea-mammals covering them, and I
involuntarily sought for old Proteus, the mythological shep-
herd who watched these immense flocks of Neptune. There
were more seals than anything else, forming distinct groups,
male and female, the father watching over his family, the
mother suckling her little ones, some already strong enough
to go a few steps. When they wished to change their
place, they took little jumps, made by the contraction of
their bodies, and helped awkwardly enough by their imper-
fect fin, which, as with the lamantin, their congener, forms
a perfect forearm. I should say that in the water, which
is their element — the spine of these creatures is flexible —
with smooth and close skin and webbed feet, they swim
admirably. In resting on the earth they take the most
graceful attitudes. Thus the ancients, observing their
soft and expressive looks, which cannot be surpassed by
the most beautiful look a woman can give, their clear
voluptuous eyes, their charming positions, and the poetry of
their manners, metamorphosed them, the male into a triton
and the female into a mermaid. I made Conseil notice the
considerable development of the lobes of the brain in these
interesting cetaceans. No mammal, except man, has such
a quantity of cerebral matter; they are also capable of re-
ceiving a certain amount of education, are easily domesti-
cated, and I think, with other naturalists, that, if properly
taught, they would be of great service as fishing-dogs.
The greater part of them slept on the rocks or on the sand.
Among these seals, properly so called, which have no ex-
ternal ears (in which they differ from the otter, whose ears
are prominent), I noticed several varieties of stenorhynchi
about three yards long, with a white coat, bulldog heads,
armed with teeth in both jaws, four incisors at the top and
four at the bottom, and two large canine teeth in the shape
of a " fleur de lis." Among them glided sea-elephants, a
kind of seal, with short flexible trunks. The giants of this
species measured twenty feet round, and ten yards and a
half in length ; but they did not move as we approached.
"These creatures are not dangerous?" asked Conseil.
" No ; not unless you attack them. When they have to
V. V Verne
THE SOUTH POLE 225
defend their young, their rage is terrible, and it is not un-
common for them to break the fishing-boats to pieces."
" They are quite right," said Conseil.
" I do not say they are not."
Two miles farther on we were stopped by the promon-
tory which shelters the bay from the southerly winds. Be-
yond it we heard loud bellowings such as a troop of rumi-
nants would produce.
" Good ! " said Conseil; " a concert of bulls ! "
" No ; a concert of morses."
"They are fighting!"
"They are either fighting or playing."
We now began to climb the blackish rocks, amid unfore-
seen stumbles, and over stones which the ice made slippery.
More than once I rolled over. Conseil, more prudent or
more steady, did not stumble, and helped me up, saying:
" If, sir, you would have the kindness to take wider steps,
you would preserve your equilibrium better."
Arrived at the upper ridge of the promontory, I saw a
vast white plain covered with morses. They were playing
among themselves, and w^iat we heard were bellowings of
pleasure, not of anger.
As I passed near these curious animals, I could examine
them leisurely, for they did not move. Their skins were
thick and rugged, of a yellowish tint, approaching to red;
their hair was short and scant. Some of them were four
yards and a quarter long. Quieter and less timid than
their congeners of the north, they did not, like them, place
sentinels round the outskirts of their encampment. After
examining this city of morses, I began to think of return-
ing. It was eleven o'clock, and if Captain Nemo found
the conditions favorable for observations, I wished to be
present at the operation. We followed a narrow pathway
running along the summit of the steep shore. At half-
past eleven we had reached the place where we landed.
The boat had run aground bringing the captain. I saw
him standing on a block of basalt, his instruments near
him, his eyes fixed on the northern horizon, near which the
sun was then describing a lengthened curve. I took my
place beside him, and waited without speaking. Noon
arrived, and, as before, the sun did not appear. It was a
fatality. Observations were still wanting. If not accom-
226 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
plished to-morrow, we must give up all idea of taking any.
We were indeed exactly at the 20th of March. To-mor-
row, the 2 1 St, would be the equinox; the sun would
disappear behind the horizon for six months, and with its
disappearance the long polar night would begin. Since
the September equinox it had emerged from the northern
horizon, rising by lengthened spirals up to the 21st of De-
cember. At this period, the summer solstice of the north-
ern regions, it had begun to descend, and to-morrow was
to shed its last rays upon them. I communicated my fears
and observations to Captain Nemo.
" You are right, M. Aronnax," said he ; " if to-morrow I
cannot take the altitude of the sun, I shall not be able to do
it for six months. But precisely because chance has led
me into these seas on the 21st of March, my bearings will
be easy to take, if at twelve we can see the sun."
"Why, captain?"
" Because then the orb of day describes such lengthened
curves, that it is difficult to measure exactly its height
above the horizon, and grave errors may be made with in-
struments."
What will you do then ? "
I shall only use my chronometer," replied Captain
Nemo. "If to-morrow, the 21st of Marcli, the disk of the
sun, allowing for refraction, is exactly cut by the northern
horizon, it will show that I am at the south pole."
" Just so," said I. " But this statement is not mathe-
matically correct, because the equinox does not necessarily
begin at noon."
"Very likely, sir; but the error will not be a hundred
yards, and we do not want more. Till to-morrow then! "
Captain Nemo returned on board. Conseil and I re-
mained to survey the shore, observing and studying until
five o'clock. Then I went to bed, not, however, without
invoking, like the Indian, the favor of the radiant orb.
The next day, the 21st of March, at five in the morning, I
mounted the platform. I found Captain Nemo there.
" The weather is lightening a little," said he. " I have
some hope. After breakfast we will go on shore, and
choose a post for observation."
That point settled, I sought Ned Land. I wanted to
take him with me. But the obstinate Canadian refused,
it
it
THE SOUTH POLE 227
and I saw that his taciturnity and his bad humor grew day
by day. After all I was not sorry for his obstinacy under
the circumstances. Indeed, there were too many seals on
shore, and we ought not to lay such temptations in this
unreflecting fisherman's way. Breakfast over, we went on
shore. The Nautilus had gone some miles further up in
the night. It was a whole league from the coast, above
which reared a sharp peak about five hundred yards high.
The boat took with me Captain Nemo, two men of the
crew, and the instruments, which consisted of a chronome-
ter, a telescope, and a barometer.
At nine we landed; the sky was brightening, the clouds
were flying to the south, and the fog seemed to be leaving
the cold surface of tlie waters. Captain Nemo went to-
ward the peak, which he doubtless meant to be his observa-
tory. It was a painful ascent over the sharp lava and the
pumice-stones, in an atmosphere often impregnated with
a sulphurous smell from the smoking cracks. For a man
unaccustomed to walk on land, the captain climbed the
steep slopes with an agility I never saw equaled, and which
a hunter would have envied. We were two hours getting
to the summit of this peak, which was half porphyry and
half basalt. From thence we looked upon a vast sea, which,
toward the north, distinctly traced its boundary line upon
the sky. At our feet lay fields of dazzling whiteness.
Over our heads a pale azure, free from fog. To the north
the disk of the sun seemed like a ball of fire, already horned
by the cutting of the horizon. From the bosom of the
water rose sheaves of liquid jets by hundreds. In the dis-
t2ince lay the Nautilus like a cetacean asleep on the water.
Behind us, and on either hand, an immense country, and a
chaotic heap of rocks and ice, the limits of which were not
visible. On arriving at the summit. Captain Nemo care-
fully took the mean height of the barometer, for he would
have to consider that in taking his observations. At a
quarter to twelve, the sun, then seen only by refraction,
looked like a golden disk shedding its last rays upon this
deserted continent, and seas which never man had yet
plowed. Captain Nemo, furnished with a lenticular glass,
which, by means of a mirror, corrected the refraction,
watched the orb sinking below the horizon by degrees, fol-
lowing a lengthened diagonal. I held the chronometer.
228 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
My heart beat fast. If the disappearance of the half-disk
of tlie sun coincided with twelve o'clock on the chronome-
ter, we were at the pole itself.
" Twelve ! " I exclaimd.
" The south pole ! " replied Captain Nemo, in a grave
voice, handing me the glass, which showed the orb cut in
exactly equal parts by the horizon.
I looked at the last rays crowning the peak, and the
shadows mounting by degrees up its slopes. At that mo-
ment Captain Nemo, resting with his hand on my shoulder,
said:
"I, Captain Nemo, on this 2ist day of March, 1868,
have reached the south pole on the ninetieth degree; and I
take possession of this part of the globe, equal to one-sixth"
of the known continents."
" In whose name, captain? "
" In my own, sir ! "
Saying which. Captain Nemo unfurled a black banner,
bearing an N in gold quartered on its bunting. Then
turning toward the orb of day, whose last rays lapped the
horizon of the sea, he exclaimed:
" Adieu, sun ! Disappear, thou radiant orb ! rest beneath
this open sea, and let a night of six months spread its shad-
ows over my new domains ! "
CHAPTER XV
ACCIDENT OR INCIDENT?
The next day, the 22d of March, at six in the morning,
preparations for departure were begun. The last gleams
of twilight were melting into night. The cold was great;
the constellations shone with wonderful intensity. In the
zenith glittered that wondrous Southern Cross — the polar
bear of antarctic regions. The thermometer showed twelve
degrees below zero, and when the wind freshened, it was
most biting. Flakes of ice increased on the open water.
The sea seemed everywhere alike. Numerous blackish
patches spread on the surface, showing the formation of
fresh ice. Evidently the southern basin, frozen during the
six winter months, was absolutely inaccessible. What be-
came of the whales in that time ? Doubtless they went be-
ACCIDENT OR INCIDENT?. 229
neath the icebergs, seeking more practicable seas. As to
the seals and morses, accustomed to live in a hard climate,
they remained on these icy shores. These creatures have
the instinct to break holes in the ice-fields, and to keep
them open. To these holes they come for breath; when
the birds, driven away by the cold, have emigrated to the
north, these sea mammals remain sole masters of the polar
continent. But the reservoirs were filling with water, and
the Naiifiliis was slowly descending. At 1,000 feet deep it
stopped; its screw beat the waves, and it advanced straight
toward the north, at a speed of fifteen miles an hour.
Toward night it was already floating under the immense
body of an iceberg. At three in the morning I was awak-
ened by a violent shock. I sat up in my bed and listened
in the darkness, when I was thrown into the middle of the
room. The Nautilus, after having struck, had rebounded
violently. I groped along the partition, and by the stair-
case to the saloon, which was lit by the luminous ceiling.
The furniture was upset. Fortunately the windows were
firmly set, and had held fast. The pictures on the star-
board side, from being no longer vertical, were clinging to
the paper, while those of the port side were hanging at least
a foot from the wall. The Nautilus was lying on its star-
board side perfectly motionless. I heard footsteps, and a
confusion of voices; but Captain Nemo did not appear.
As I was leaving the saloon, Ned Land and Conseil entered.
" What is the matter? " said I, at once.
" I came to ask you, sir," said Conseil.
" Confound it ! " exclaimed the Canadian, " I know well
enough! The Nautilus has struck; and judging by the
way she lies, I do not think she will right herself as she
did the first time in Torres Straits."
" But," I asked, " has she at least come to the surface of
the sea? "
" We do not know," said Conseil.
" It is easy to decide," I answered. I consulted the man-
ometer. To my great surprise it showed a depth of more
than 180 fathoms. "What does that mean?" I ex-
claimed.
" We must ask Captain Nemo," said Conseil.
"But where shall we find him?" said Ned Land.
" Follow me," said I to my companions.
230 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
We left the saloon. There was no one in the Hbrary.
At the center staircase, by the berths of the ship's crew,
there was no one. I thought that Captain Nemo must be
in the pilot's cage. It was best to wait. We all returned
to the saloon. For twenty minutes we remained thus, try-
ing to hear the slightest noise which might be made on
board the Nautilus, when Captain Nemo entered. He
seemed not to see us; his face, generally so impassive,
showed signs of uneasiness. He watched the compass si-
lently, then the manometer; and going to the planisphere,
placed his finger on the spot representing the southern seas.
I would not interrupt him, but, some minutes later, when
he turned toward me, I said, using one of his own expres-
sions in the Torres Straits:
"An incident? captain?"
" No, sir ; an accident this time."
"Serious?"
" Perhaps."
" Is the danger immediate ? "
" No."
" The Nautilus has stranded ? "
" Yes."
"And this has happened — how?"
"From a caprice of nature, not from the ignorance of
man. Not a mistake has been made in the working. But
we cannot prevent equilibrium from producing its effects.
We may brave human laws, but we cannot resist natural
ones."
Captain Nemo had chosen a strange moment for uttering
this philosophical reflection. On the whole, his answer
helped me little.
" May I ask, sir, the cause of this accident? "
" An enormous block of ice, a whole mountain, has
turned over," he replied. " When icebergs are undermined
at their base by warmer water or reiterated shocks, their
center of gravity rises, and the whole thing turns over.
This is what has happened; one of these blocks, as it fell,
struck the Nautilus, then, gliding under its hull, raised it
with irresistible force, bringing it into beds which are not
so thick, where it is lying on its side."
*' But can we not get the Nautilus off by emptying its
reservoirs, that it may regain its equilibrium? "
ACCIDENT OR INCIDENT? 231
" That, sir, is being clone at this moment. You can hear
the pump working. Look at the needle of the manometer ;
it shows that the Nautilus is rising, but the block of ice is
rising with it; and, until some obstacle stops its ascending
motion, our position cannot be altered."
Indeed, the Nautilus still held the same position to star-
board; doubtless it would right itself when the block
stopped. But at this moment who knows if we may not
strike the upper part of the iceberg, and if we may not be
frightfully crushed between the two glassy surfaces? I re-
flected on all the consequences of our position. Captain
Nemo never took his eyes ofif the manometer. Since the
fall of the iceberg, the Nautilus had risen about a hundred
and fifty feet, but it still made the same angle with the per-
pendicular. Suddenly a slight movement was felt in the
hold. Evidently it was righting a little. Things hanging
in the saloon were sensibly returning to their normal posi-
tion. The partitions were nearing the upright. No one
spoke. With beating hearts we watched and felt the
straightening. The boards became horizontal under our
feet. Ten minutes passed.
" At last we have righted ! " I exclaimed.
" Yes," said Captain Nemo, going to the door of the
saloon.
" But are we floating? " I asked.
"Certainly," he replied; "since the reservoirs are not
empty; and, when empty, the Nautilus must rise to the
surface of the sea."
We were in open sea; but at a distance of about ten
yards, on either side of the Nautilus, rose a dazzling wall of
ice. Above and beneath the same wall. Above, because
the lower surface of the iceberg stretched over us like an
immense ceiling. Beneath, because the overturned block,
having slid by degrees, had found a resting-place on the lat-
eral walls, which kept it in that position. The Nautilus was
really imprisoned in a perfect tunnel of ice more than twenty
yards in breadth, filled with quiet water. It was easy to
get out of it by going either forward or backward, and then
make a free passage under the iceberg, some hundreds of
yards deeper. The luminous ceiling had been extinguislied.
but the saloon was still resplendent with intense light. It
was the powerful reflection from the glass partition sent
232 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
violently back to the sheets of the lantern. I cannot de-
scribe the effect of the voltaic rays upon the great blocks
so capriciously cut; upon every angle, every ridge, every
facet, was thrown a different light, according to the nature
of the veins running through the ice; a dazzling mine of
gems, particularly of sapphires, their blue rays crossing
with the green of the emerald. Here and there were opal
shades of wonderful softness, running through bright spots
like diamonds of fire, the brilliancy of which the eye could
not bear. The power of the lantern seemed increased a
hundredfold, like a lamp through the lenticular plates of a
first-class lighthouse.
" How beautiful! how beautiful!" cried Conseil.
" Yes," I said, " it is a wonderful sight. Is it not, Ned? "
"Yes, confound it! Yes," answered Ned Land, "it is
superb! I am mad at being obliged to admit it. No one
has ever seen anything like it; but the sight may cost us
dear. And if I must say all, I think we are seeing here
things which God never intended man to see."
Ned was right, it was too beautiful. Suddenly a cry
from Conseil made me turn.
"What is it?" I asked.
" Shut your eyes, sir! do not look, sir! " Saying which,
Conseil clapped his hands over his eyes.
" But what is the matter, my boy ? "
" I am dazzled, blinded."
My eyes turned involuntarily toward the glass, but I
could not stand the fire which seemed to devour them. I
understood what had happened. The Nautilus had put on
full speed. All the quiet luster of the ice-walls was at once
changed into flashes of lightning. The fire from these
myriads of diamonds was blinding. It required some time
to calm our troubled looks. At last the hands were taken
down.
" Faith, I should never have believed it," said Conseil.
It was then five in the morning; and at that moment a
shock was felt at the bows of the Nautilus. I knew that its
spur had struck a block of ice. It must have been a false
maneuver, for this submarine tunnel, obstructed by blocks,
was not very easy of navigation. I thought that Captain
Nemo, by changing his course, would either turn these ob-
stacles, or else follow the windings of the tunnel. In any
ACCIDENT OR INCIDENT? 233
case, the road before us could not be entirely blocked. But.
contrary to my expectations, the Nautilus took a decided
retrograde motion.
" We are going backward? " said Conseil.
" Yes," I replied. " This end of the tunnel can have no
egress."
"And then?"
" Then," said I, ** the working is easy. We must go back
again, and go out at the southern opening. That is all."
In speaking thus, I wished to appear more confident than
I really was. But the retrograde motion of the Nautilus
was increasing; and, reversing the screw, it carried us at
great speed.
" It will be a hindrance," said Ned.
" What does it matter, some hours more or less, provided
we get out at last? "
" Yes," repeated Ned Land, " provided we do get out
at last ! "
For a short time I walked from the saloon to the library.
My companions were silent. I soon threw myself on an
ottoman, and took a book, which my eyes overran mechani-
cally. A quarter of an hour after, Conseil, approacliing me,
said, ** Is what you are reading very interesting, sir? "
"Very interesting!" I replied.
" I sliould think so, sir. It is 3'our own book you are
reading."
"My book?"
And indeed I was holding in my hand the work on the
" Great Submarine Depths." I did not even dream of it.
I closed the book, and returned to my walk. Ned and
Conseil rose to go.
" Stay here, my friends," said I, detaining them. " Let
us remain together until we are out of this block."
" As you please, sir," Conseil replied.
Some hours passed. I often looked at the instruments
hanging from the partition. The manometer showed that
the Nautilus kept at a constant depth of more than three
hundred yards; the compass still pointed to the south; the
log indicated a speed of twenty miles an hour, which, in
such a cramped space, was very great. But Captain Nemo
knew that he could not hasten too much, and tliat minutes
were worth ages to us. At twenty-five minutes past eight
234 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
a second shock took place, this time from behind. I turned
pale. My companions were close by my side. I seized
Conseil's hand. Our looks expressed our feelings better
than words. At this moment the captain entered the saloon.
I went up to him.
" Our course is barred southward? " I asked.
" Yes, sir. The iceberg has shifted, and closed every
outlet."
" We are blocked up, then? "
".Yes."
CHAPTER XVI
WANT OF AIR
Thus, around the Nautilus, above and below, was an
impenetrable wall of ice. We were prisoners to the iceberg.
I watched the captain. His countenance had resumed its
habitual imperturbability.
" Gentlemen," he said calmly, " there are two ways of
dying in the circumstances in which we are placed." (This
inexplicable person had the air of a mathematical professor
lecturing to his pupils.) "The first is to be crushed; the
second is to die of suffocation. I do not speak of the pos-
sibility of dying of hunger, for the supply of provisions in
the Nautilus will certainly last longer than we shall. Let
us then calculate our chances."
" As to suffocation, captain," I replied, " that is not to
be feared, because our reservoirs are full."
"Just so; but they will only yield two days' supply b£
air. Now, for thirty-six hours we have been hidden under
the water, and already the heavy atmosphere of the Nauti-
lus requires renewal. In forty-eight hours our reserve will
be exhausted."
" Well, captain, can we be delivered before forty-eight
hours? "
" We will attempt it, at least, by piercing the wall that
surrounds us."
"On which side?"
" Sound will tell us. I am going to run the Nautilus
aground on the lower bank, and my men wiH attack the
iceberg on the side that is least thick."
Captain Nemo went out. Soon I discovered by a hissing
WANT OF AIR
235
noise that the water was entering the reservoirs. The Nau-
tihis sank slowly, and rested on the ice at a depth of 350
yards, the depth at which the lower bank was immersed.
" My friends," I said, " our situation is serious, but I
rely on your courage and energy."
" Sir," replied the Canadian, " I am ready to do any-
thing for the general safety."
*' Good! Ned," and I held out my hand to the Canadian.
" I will add," he continued, " that being as handy with
the pickax as with the harpoon, if I can be useful to the
captain, he can command my services."
" He will not refuse your help. Come, Ned ! "
I led him to the room where the crew of the Nautilus were
putting on their cork-jackets. I told the captain of Ned's
proposal, which he accepted. The Canadian put on his sea-
costume, and was ready as soon as his companions. When
Ned was dressed, I reentered the drawing-room, where the
panes of glass were open, and, posted near Conseil, I exam-
ined the ambient beds that supported the Nautilus. Some
instants after, we saw a dozen of the crew set foot on the
bank of ice, and among them Ned Land, easily known by
his stature. Captain Nemo was with them. Before pro-
ceeding to dig the walls, he took the soundings, to be sure
of working in the right direction. Long sounding-lines
were sunk in the side walls, but after fifteen yards they
were again stopped by the thick wall. It was useless to at-
tack it on the ceiling-like surface, since the iceberg itself
measured more than 400 yards in height. Captain Nemo
then sounded the lower surface. There ten yards of wall
separated us from the water, so great was the tliickness of
the ice-field. It was necessary, therefore, to cut from it a
piece equal in extent to the water-line of the Nautilus.
There was about 6,000 cubic yards to detach, so as to dig a
hole by which we could descend to the ice-field. The work
was begun immediately, and carried on with indefatigable
energy. Instead of digging round the A^autilus. which
would have Involved greater difiiculty. Captain Nemo had
an immense trench made at eight yards from the port quar-
ter. Then the men set to work simultaneously with their
screws on several points of its circumference. Presently
the pickax attacked this compact matter vigorously, and
large blocks were detached from the mass. By a curious
2^6 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
effect of specific gravity, these blocks, lighter than water,
fled, so to speak, to the vault of the tunnel, that increased in
thickness at the top in proportion as it diminished at the
base. But that mattered little, so long as the lower part
grew thinner. After two hours' hard work, Ned Land
came in exhausted. He and his comrades were replaced
by new workers, whom Conseil and I joined. The second
lieutenant of the Nautilus superintended us. The water
seemed singularly cold, but I soon got warm handling the
pickax. My movements were free enough, although they
were made under a pressure of thirty atmospheres. When
I reentered, after working two hours, to take some food and
rest, I found a perceptible difference between the pure fluid
v^^ith which the Rouquayrol engine supplied me, and the at-
mosphere of the Nautilus, already charged with carbonic
acid. The air had not been renewed for forty-eight hours,
and its vivifying qualities were considerably enfeebled.
However, after a lapse of twelve hours, we had only raised
a block of ice one yard thick, on the marked surface, which
was about 600 cubic yards ! Reckoning that it took twelve
hours to accomplish tliis much, it would take five nights and
four days to bring this enterprise to a satisfactory conclu-
sion. Five nights and four days! And we have only air
enough for two days in the reservoirs ! " Without taking
into account," said Ned, " that, even if we get out of this in-
fernal prison, we shall also be imprisoned under the ice-
berg, shut out from all possible communication with the
atmosphere." True enough ! Who could then foresee the
minimum of time necessary for our deliverance? We
might be suffocated before the Nautilus could regain the
surface of the waves! Was it destined to perish in this
ice-tomb, with all those it inclosed? The situation was
terrible. But everyone had looked the danger in the face,
and each was determined to do his duty to the last.
As I expected, during the night a new block a yard square
was carried away, and still further sank the immense hol-
low. But in the morning, when dressed in my cork-jacket,
I traversed the slushy mass at a temperature of six or seven
degrees below zero, I remarked that the side walls were
gradually closing in. The beds of water furthest from the
trench, that were not warmed by the men's mere work,
showed a tendency to solidification. In presence of this
WANT OF AIR 237
new and imminent danger, what would become of our
chances of safety, and how hinder the solidification of this
liquid medium, that would burst the partitions of the Naii-
tilus like glass ?
I did not tell my companions of this new danger. What
w^as the good of damping the energy they displayed in the
painful work of escape? But when I went on board again,
I told Captain Nemo of this grave complication.
" I know it," he said, in that calm tone which could coun-
teract the most terrible apprehensions. " It is one danger
more; but I see no way of escaping it; the only chance of
safety is to go quicker than solidification. We must be
beforehand with it, that is all."
On this day for several hours I used my pickax vigor-
ously. The work kept me up. Besides, to work was to
quit the Nautilus, and breathe directly the pure air drawn
from the reservoirs, and supplied by our apparatus, and to
quit the impoverished and vitiated atmosphere. Toward
evening the trench was dug one yard deeper. When I re-
turned on board, I was nearly suffocated by the carbonic
acid with which the air was filled — ah ! if we had only the
chemical means to drive away this deleterious gas ! We had
plenty of oxygen; all this water contained a considerable
quantity, and by dissolving it with our powerful piles, it
would restore the vivifying fluid. I had thought well over
it; but of what good was that, since the carbonic acid pro-
duced by our respiration had invaded every part of the
vessel? To absorb it, it was necessary to fill some jars with
caustic potash, and to shake them incessantly. Now this
substance was wanting on board, and nothing could replace
it. On that evening. Captain Nemo ought to open the taps
of his reservoirs, and let some pure air into the interior of
the Nautilus; without this precaution, we could not get rid
of the sense of suffocation. The next day, March 26th, I
resumed my miner's work in beginning the fifth yard. The
side walls and the lower surface of the iceberg thickened
visibly. It was evident that they would meet before the
Nautilus. The captain understood me, and signed to me
for an instant, my pickax nearly fell from my hands. Wliat
was the good of digging if I must be suffocated, crushed by
the water that was turning into stone? — a punishment that
the ferocity of the savages even would not have invented!
238 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
Just then Captain Nemo passed near me. I touched his
hand and showed him the walls of our prison. The wall to
port had advanced to at least four yards from the hull of the
Nautilus. The captain understood me, and signed to me
to follow him. We went on board. I took off my cork-
jacket, and accompanied him into the drawing-room.
" M. Aronnax, we must attempt some desperate means,
or we shall be sealed up in this solidified water as in ce-
ment."
" Yes ; but what is to be done ? "
"Ah! if my Nautilus were strong enough to bear this
pressure without being crushed ! "
" Well ? " I asked, not catching the captain's idea.
" Do you not understand," he replied, " that this con-
gelation of water will help us? Do you not see that, by its
solidification, it would burst through this field of ice that
imprisons us, as, when it freezes, it bursts the hardest stones?
Do you not perceive that it would be an agent of safety in-
stead of destruction? "
"Yes, captain, perhaps. But whatever resistance to
crushing the Nautilus possesses, it could not support this
terrible pressure, and would be flattened like an iron plate."
" I know it, sir. Therefore we must not reckon on the
aid of nature, but on our own exertions. We must stop
this solidification. Not only will the side walls be pressed
together; but there is not ten feet of water before or behind
the Nautilus. The congelation gains on us on all sides."
" How long will the air in the reservoirs last for us to
breathe on board ? "
The captain looked in my face. " After to-morrow they
will be empty ! "
A cold sweat came over me. However, ought I to have
been astonished at the answer? On March 22, the Nautilus
[was in the open polar seas. We were at 26°. For five
days we had lived on the reserve on board. And what was
left of the respirable air must be kept for the workers.
Even now, as I write, my recollection is still so vivid that
an involuntary terror seizes me, and my lungs seem to be
without air. Meanwhile Captain Nemo reflected silently,
and evidently an idea had struck him; but he seemed to
reject it. At last, these words escaped his lips:
, " Boiling water ! " he muttered.
WANT OF AIR 239
" Boiling water? " I cried.
" Yes, sir. We are inclosed in a space that is relatively
confined. Would not jets of boiling water, constantly in-
jected by the pumps, raise the temperature in this part, and
stay the congelation ? "
" Let us try it," I said resolutely.
" Let us try, professor."
The thermometer then stood at seven degrees outside.
Captain Nemo took me to the galleys, where the vast dis-
tillatory machines stood that furnished the drinkable water
by evaporation. They filled these with water, and all the
electric heat from the piles was thrown through the worms
bathed in the liquid. In a few minutes this water reached
a hundred degrees. It was directed toward the pumps,
while fresh water replaced it in proportion. The heat de-
veloped by the troughs was such that cold water, drawn up
from the sea, after only having gone through the machines,
came boiling into the body of the pump. The injection
was begun, and three hours after the thermometer marked
six degrees below zero outside. One degree was gained.
Two hours later, the thermometer only marked four de-
grees.
*' We shall succeed," I said to the captain, after having
anxiously watched the result of the operation.
" I think," he answered, " that we shall not be crushed.
We have no more suffocation to fear."
During the night the temperature of the water rose to
one degree below zero. The injections could not carry it
to a higher point. But as the congelation of the sea-water
produces at least two degrees, I was at last reassured against
the dangers of solidification.
The next day, March 2.^, six yards of ice had been
cleared, four yards only remaining to be cleared away.
There was yet forty-eight hours' work. The air could not
be renewed in the interior of the Nautilus. And this day
would make it worse. An intolerable weight oppressed
me. Toward three o'clock in the evening, this feeling rose
to a violent degree. Yawns dislocated my jaws. My
lungs panted as they inhaled this burning fluid, which be-
came rarefied more and more. A moral torpor took hold
of me. I was powerless, almost unconscious. My brave
Conseil, though exhibiting the same symptoms and suffer-
240 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
ing in the same manner, never left me. He took my hand
and encouraged me, and I heard him murmur, " Oh, if I
could only not breathe, so as to leave more air for my
master! "
Tears came into my eyes on hearing him speak thus. If
our situation to all was intolerable in the interior, with
what haste and gladness would we put on our cork-jackets
to work in our turn ! Pickaxes sounded on the frozen ice-
beds. Our arms ached, the skin was torn off our hands.
But what were these fatigues, what did the wounds matter?
Vital air came to the lungs ! we breathed ! we breathed !
All this time no one prolonged his voluntary task beyond
the prescribed time. His task accomplished, each one
handed in turn to his panting companions the apparatus
that supplied him with life. Captain Nemo set the exam-
ple, and submitted first to this severe discipline. When
the time came he gave up his apparatus to another, and
returned to the vitiated air on board, calm, unflinching, un-
murmuring.
On that day the ordinary work was accomplished with
unusual vigor. Only two yards remained to be raised from
the surface. Two yards only separated us from the open
sea. But the reservoirs were nearly emptied of air. The
little that remained ought to be kept for the workers ; not a
particle for thie Nautilus. When I went back on board, I
was half-suffocated. What a night! I know not how to
describe it. The next day my breathing was oppressed.
Dizziness accompanied the pain in my head, and made me
like a drunken man. My companions showed the same
symptoms. Some of the crew had rattling in the throat.
On that day, the sixth of our imprisonment, Captain
Nemo, finding the pickaxes work too slowly, resolved to
crush the ice-bed that still separated us from the liquid
sheet. This man's coolness and energy never forsook him.
He subdued his physical pains by moral force.
By his orders the vessel was lightened, that is to say,
raised from the ice-bed by a change of specific gravity.
When it floated tliey towed it so as to bring it above the
immense trench made on the level of the water-line. Then
filling his reservoirs of water, he descended and shut him-
self up in the hole.
Just then all the crew came on board, and the double
V. V Verne
WANT OF AIR 241
door of communication was shut. The Nautilus then
rested on the bed of ice, -which was not one yard diick,
and which the sounding leads had perforated in a thousancl
places. The taps of the reservoirs were then opened, and
a hundred cubic yards of water was let in, increasing the
weight of the Nan til us to 1800 tons. We waited, we list-
ened, forgetting our sufferings in hope. Our safety de-
pended on this last chance. Notwithstanding the buzzing
in my head, I soon heard the humming sound under the
hull of the Nautilus. The ice cracked with a singular noise,
like tearing paper, and the Nautilus sank.
" We are off ! " murmured Conseil in my ear.
I could not answer him. I seized his hand, and pressed
it convulsively. All at once, carried away by its frightful
overcharge, the Nautilus sank like a bullet under the v.-aters,
that is to say, it fell as if it was in a vacuum. Then all
the electric force was put on the pumps, that soon began
to let the water out of the reservoirs. After some minutes,
our fall was stopped. Soon, too, the manometer indicated
an ascending movement. The screw, going at full speed,
made the iron hull tremble to its very bolts, and drew us
toward the north. But if this floating under the iceberg is
to last another day before we reach the open sea, I shall
be dead first.
Half stretchied upon a divan in the library, I was suffo-
cating. My face was purple, my lips blue, my faculties
suspended. I neither saw nor heard. All notion of time
had gone from my mind. Aly muscles could not contract.
I do not know how many hours passed thus, but I was con-
scious of the agony that was coming over mc. I felt as if
I was going to die. Suddenly I came to. Some breaths
of air penetrated my lungs. Had we risen to the surface
of the waves? Were we free of the iceberg? No; Ned
and Conseil, my two brave friends, were sacrificing them-
selves to save me. Some particles of air still remained at
the bottom of one apparatus. Instead of using it, they had
kept it for me, and while they were being suffocated, they
gave me life drop by drop. I wanted to push back the
thing; they held my hands, and for some moments I
breathed freely. I looked at the clock; it was eleven in
the morning. It ought to be the 2Sth of ]\Iarch. The
Nautilus went at a friglitful pace, forty miles an hour. It
242 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
literally tore through the water. Where was Captain
Nemo? Had he succumbed? Were his companions dead
with him? At the moment, the manometer indicated that
we were not more than twenty feet from the surface. A
mere plate of ice separated us from the atmosphere; could
we not break it? Perhaps. In any case the Nautilus was
going to attempt it. I felt that it was in an oblique posi-
tion, lowering the stern, and raising the bows. The intro-
duction of water had been the means of disturbing its
equilibrium. Then, impelled by its powerful screw, it at-
tacked the ice-field from beneath like a formidable batter-
ing-ram. It broke it by backing and then rushing forward
against the field, which gradually gave way; and at last,
dashing suddenly against it, shot forward on the icy field,
that crushed beneath its weight. The panel was opened —
one might say torn off — and the pure air came in in abun-
dance to all parts of the Nautilus.
CHAPTER XVII
FROM CAPE HORN TO THE AMAZON
How I got on to the platform, I have no idea; perhaps
the Canadian had carried me there. But I breathed, I in-
haled the vivifying sea-air. My two companions were get-
ting drunk with the fresh particles. We had no need to
restrain ourselves; we could draw this air freely into our
lungs, and it was the breeze, the breeze alone, that filled us
with this keen enjoyment.
"Ah!" said Conseil, "how delightful this oxygen is!
Master need not fear to breathe it. There is enough for
everybody."
Ned Land did not speak, but he opened his jaws wide
enough to frighten a shark. Our strength soon returned,
and when I looked round me, I saw we were alone on the
platform. The foreign seamen in the Nautilus were con-
tented with the air that circulated in the interior; none of
them had come to drink in the open air.
The first words I spoke were words of gratitude and
thankfulness to my two companions. Ned and Conseil had
prolonged my life during the last hours of this long agony.
All my gratitude could not repay such devotion.
TO THE AMAZON 243
" My friends," said I, " we are bound one to the olher
forever, and I am under infinite obligations to you."
" Which I shall take advantage of," exclaimed the
Canadian.
" What do you mean? " said Conscil.
** I mean that I shall take you with me when I leave this
infernal Nautilus."
" Well," said Conseil, " after all this, are we going
right? "^
" Yes," I replied, " for we are going the way of the sun,
and here the sun is in the north."
" No doubt," said Ned Land; " but it remains to be seen
whether he will bring the ship into the Pacific or the At-
lantic Ocean, that is, into frequented or into deserted
seas."
I could not answer that question, and I feared that Cap-
tain Nemo would rather take us to the vast ocean that
touches the coasts of Asia and America at the same time.
He would thus complete the tour round the submarine
world, and return to those waters in which the Nautilus
could sail freely. We ought, before long, to settle this
important point. The Nautilus went at a rapid pace. The
polar circle was soon passed, and the course shaped for
Cape Horn. We w^ere off the American point, March 31,
at seven o'clock in the evening. Then all our past suffer-
ings W'Cre forgotten. The remembrance of that imprison-
ment in the ice was effaced from our minds. We only
thought of the future. Captain Nemo did not appear again
either in the drawing-room or on the platfonn. The point
shown each day on the planisphere, and marked by the
lieutenant, showed me the exact direction of the Nautilus.
Now, on that evening, it was evident, to my great satis-
faction, that we were going back to the north by the At-
lantic. The next day, April i, when the Nautilus ascended
to the surface, some minutes before noon, we sighted land
to the west. It was Terra del Fucgo, which the first navi-
gators named thus from seeing the quantity of smoke that
rose from the natives' huts. The coast seemed low to me,
but in the distance rose high mountains. I even thought
I had a glimpse of Mount Sarmicnto. that rises 2,070 yards
above the level of the sea, with a very pointed summit,
which, according as it is misty or clear, is a sign of fine or
244 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
of wet weather. At this moment, the peak was clearly de-
fined against the sky. The Nautilus, diving again under
the water, followed the American coast. Captain Nemo
did not show himself. Until the 3d of April we did not
quit the shores of Patagonia, sometimes under the ocean,
sometimes at the surface. The Nautilus passed beyond
the large estuary formed by the mouth of the Plata, and
was, on the 4th of April, fifty-six miles off Uruguay. Its
direction was northward, and followed the long windings
of the coast of South America. We had then made 16,000
leagues since our embarkation in the seas of Japan. About
eleven o'clock in the morning the Tropic of Capricorn was
crossed on the thirty-seventh meridian, and we passed Cape
Frio standing out to sea. Captain Nemo, to Ned Land's
great displeasure, did not like the neighborhood of the in-
habited coasts of Brazil, for we went at a giddy speed.
Not a fish, not a bird of the swiftest kind could follow us,
and the natural curiosities of these seas escaped all obser-
vation.
This speed was kept up for several days, and in the even-
ing of the 9th of April we sighted the most easterly point
of South America that forms Cape San Roque. But then
the Nautilus swerved again, and sought the lowest depth
of a submarine valley, which is between this cape and
Sierra Leone on the African coast. This valley bifurcates
to the parallel of the Antilles, and terminates at the north
by the enormous depression of 9,000 yards. In this place,
the geological basin of the ocean forms, as far as the Lesser
Antilles, a cliff of three and a half miles perpendicular in
height, and at the parallel of the Cape Verd Islands, an-
other wall not less considerable, that incloses thus all the
sunk continent of the Atlantic. The bottom of this im-
mense valley is dotted v/ith some mountains, that give to
these submarine places a picturesque aspect. I speak, more-
over, from the manuscript charts that were in the library
of the Nautilus — charts evidently due to Captain Nemo's
hand, and made after his personal observations. For two
days the desert and deep waters were visited by means of
the inclined planes. The Nautilus was furnished with
long diagonal broadsides, which carried it to all elevations.
But, on the nth of April, it rose suddenly, and land ap-
peared at the mouth of the Amazon River, a vast estuary.
TO THE AMAZON 245
the embouchure of which is so considerable that it fresh-
ens and purifies the sea-water for the distance of several
leagues.
The equator was crossed. Twenty miles to the west
were the Guianas, a French territory, on which we could
have found an easy refuge; but a stiff breeze was blowing,
and the furious waves would not have allov/ed a single boat
to face them. Ned Land understood that, no doubt, for
he spoke not a word about it. For my part, I made no
allusion to his schemes of flight, for I would not urge him
to make an attempt that must inevitably fail. I made the
time pass pleasantly by interesting studies. During the
days of April nth and 12th the A'aiitiliis did not leave the
surface of the sea, and the net brought in a marvelous haul
of zoophytes, fish, and reptiles.
I must not omit to mention one fish that Conseil will
long remember, and with good reason. Our nets had
hauled up a sort of very flat ray-fish, which, with the tail
cut off, formed a perfect disk, and weighed twenty ounces.
It was white underneath, red above, with large round spots
of dark blue encircled with black, very glossy skin, termi-
nating in a bilobed fin. Laid out on the platform, it strug-
gled, tried to turn itself by convulsive movements, and
made so many efforts that one last turn had nearly sent it
into the sea. But Conseil, not wishing to let the fish go,
rushed to it, and, before I could prevent him. had seized
it with both hands. In a moment he was overthrown, his
legs in the air, and half his body paralyzed, crying:
" Oh, master, master ! come to me ! "
It was the first time the poor boy had not spoken to me
in the third person. The Canadian and I took him up,
and rubbed his contracted arms till he became sensible.
The unfortunate Conseil had attacked a cramplish of the
most dangerous kind, the cumana. This odd animal, in a
medium conductor like water, strikes fish at several yards'
distance, so great is the power of its electric organ, the
two principal surfaces of which do not measure less than
twenty-seven square feet. The next day, April 12, the
Nautilus approached the Dutch coast, near the mouth of
the Maroni. There several groups of sea-cows herded
together: they were manatees, that, like the dugong and
the stellera. belong to the sirenian order. These beautiful
246 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
animals, peaceable and inoffensive, from eighteen to twen-
ty-one feet in length, weigh at least sixteen hundred-
weight. I told Ned Land and Conseil that provident na-
ture had assigned an important role to these mammalia.
Indeed, they, like the seals, are designed to graze on the
submarine prairies, and thus destroy the accumulation of
weed that obstructs the tropical rivers.
" And do you know," I added, " what has been the re-
sult since men have almost entirely annihilated this useful
race? That the putrified weeds have poisoned the air,
and the poisoned air causes the yellow fever, that desolates
these beautiful countries. Enormous vegetations are mul-
tiplied under the torrid seas, and the evil is irresistibly de-
veloped from the mouth of the Rio de la Plata to Florida.
If we are to believe Toussenel, this plague is nothing to
what it would be if the seas were cleared of whales and
seals. Then, infested with poulps, medusae, and cuttle-
fish, they W'Ould become immense centers of infection, since
their waves would not possess ' these vast stomachs that
God had charged to infest the surface of the seas.' "
However, without disputing these theories, the crew of
the Nautilus took possession of half a dozen manatees.
They provisioned the larders with excellent flesh, superior
to beef and veal. This sport was not interesting. The
manatees allowed themselves to be hit without defending
themselves. Several thousand pounds of meat were stored
up on board to be dried. On this day, a successful haul of
fish increased the stores of the Nautilus, so full of game
were these seas. They were echeneides; their flattened
disks were composed of transverse movable cartilaginous
plates, by which the animal was enabled to create a vacuum,
and so to adhere to any object like a cupping-glass.
The echeneis effects their capture with extraordinary pre-
cision and certainty. This animal is, indeed, a living fish-
hook, which would make the fortune of an inexperienced
fisherman. The crew of the Nautilus tied a ring to the
tail of these fish, so large as not to encumber their move-
ments, and to this ring a long cord, lashed to the ship's side
by the other end. The echeneids, thrown into the sea, di-
rectly began their game, and fixed themselves to the breast-
plate of some turtles. Their tenacity was such that they
would be torn apart rather than let go their hold. The
TO THE AMAZON 247
men hauled them on board, and with them the turtles to
which they adhered.
This day's fishing brought to a close our stay on the
shores of the Amazon, and by nightfall the Nautiiiis had
regained the high seas.
CHAPTER XVHI
THE DEVILFISH
For several days the Nautilus kept off from the Ameri-
can coast. Evidently it did not wish to risk the tides of
the Gulf of Mexico, or of the sea of the Antilles. April
1 6th, we sighted Martinique and Guadaloupe from a dis-
tance of about thirty miles. I saw their tall peaks for an
instant. The Canadian, who counted on carrying out his
projects in the Gulf, by either landing, or hailing one of
the numerous boats that coast from one island to another,
was quite disheartened. Flight would have been quite
practicable, if Ned Land had been able to take possession
of the boat without the captain's knowledge. But in the
open sea it could not be thought of. The Canadian, Con-
seil, and I had a long conversation on this subject. For
six months we had been prisoners on board the Nautilus.
We had traveled 17,000 leagues; and, as Ned Land said,
there was no reason why it should not come to an end.
We could hope nothing from the captain of the Nautilus,
but only from ourselves. Besides, for some time past he
had become graver, more retired, less sociable. He seemed
to shun me. I met him rarely. Formerly, he was pleased
to explain the submarine marvels to me; now, he left me
to my studies, and came no more to the saloon. What
change had come over him? For what cause? For my
part, I did not wish to bury with me my curious and novel
studies. I had now the power to write the true book of
the sea .
April 20th, we had risen to a mean height of 1.500 yards.
The land nearest us then was the archipelago of the Ba-
hamas. There rose high submarine cliffs covered witli
large weeds, giant laminaria^ and fuci. a perfect espalier
of hydrophytes worthy of a Titan world. Tt was about
eleven o'clock when Ned Land drew my attention to a
248 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
formidable pricking, like the sting of an ant, which was
produced by means of large seaweeds.
" Well," I said, " these are proper caverns for devilfish,
and I should not be astonished to see some of these mon-
sters."
"What!" said Conseii; "cuttle-fish, real cuttle-fish, of
the cephalopod class } "
"No," I said; " octopi of huge dimensions."
" I will never believe that such animals exist," said Ned.
" Well," said Conseii, with the most serious air in the
world, " I remember perfectly to have seen a large vessel
drawn under the waves by a devilfish's arm."
"You saw that?" said the Canadian.
" Yes, Ned."
" With your own eyes ? "
" With my own eyes."
" Where, pray, might that be ? "
" At St. Malo," answered Conseii.
" In the port? " said Ned ironically.
" No ; in a church," replied Conseii.
" In a church ! " cried the Canadian.
" Yes ; friend Ned. In a picture representing the devil-
fish in question."
" Good ! " said Ned Land, bursting out laughing.
" He is quite right," I said. " I have heard of this pic-
ture; but the subject represented is taken from a legend,
and you know what to think of legends in the matter of
natural history. Besides, when it is a question of mon-
sters, the imagination is apt to run wild. Not only is it
supposed that these poulps can draw down vessels, but a
certain Olaiis Magnus speaks of an octopus a mile long,
that is more like an island than an animal. It is also said
that the Bishop of Nidros was building an altar on an
immense rock. Mass finished, the rock began to walk,
and returned to the sea. The rock was a poulp. An-
other bishop, Pontoppidan, speaks also of a poulp on which
a regiment of cavalry could maneuver. Lastly, the ancient
naturalists speak of monsters whose mouths were like
gulfs, and which were too large to pass through the Straits
of Gibraltar."
" But how much is true of these stories? " asked Conseii.
"Nothing, my friends; at least of that which passes the
((
THE DEVILFISH 249
limit of truth to get to fable or legend. Nevertheless,
there must be some ground for the imagination of the
story-tellers. One cannot deny that octopi and cuttle-fish
exist of a large species, inferior, however, to the cetaceans.
Aristotle has stated the dimensions of a cuttle-fish as five
cubits, or nine feet two inches. Our fishermen frequently
see some that are more than four feet long. Some skele-
tons of octopi are preserved in the museums of Trieste and
Alontpelier, that measure two yards in length. Besides,
according to the calculations of some naturalists, one of
these animals, only six feet long, would have tentacles
twenty-se\en feet long. That would suffice to make a
formidable monster."
Do they fish for them in these days ? " asked Ned.
If they do not fish for them, sailors see them at least.
One of my friends. Captain Paul Bos of Havre, has often
affirmed that he met one of these monsters, of colossal
dimensions, in the Indian seas. But the most astonishing
fact, which forbids our denying the existence of these gi-
gantic animals, happened some years ago, in 1861."
"What is the fact?" asked Ned Land.
"This is it. In 1861, to the northeast of Teneriffe,
very nearly in the same latitude we are in now, the crew of
the dispatch-boat Alcctor perceived a monstrous octopus
swimming in the waters. Captain Bouguer went near to
the animal, and attacked it with harpoons and guns, w^ith-
out much success, for balls and harpoons glided over the
soft flesh. After several fruitless attempts, the crew tried
to pass a slip-knot round the body of the mollusk. The
noose slipped as far as the caudal fins, and there stopped.
They tried then to haul it on board, but its weight was so
considerable that the tightness of the cord separated the
tail from the body, and, deprived of this ornament, he dis-
appeared under the water."
"Indeed! is that a fact?"
"An indisputable fact, my good Ned. They proposed
to name this octopus * Bouguer's devilfish.' "
"What length was it?" asked the Canadian.
"Did it not measure about six yards?" said Conseil.
Avho. posted at the window, was examining again tlie ir-
regular windings of the cliffs.
" Precisely," I replied.
250 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" Its head," rejoined Conseil, " was it not crowned with
eight tentacles, that beat the water Hke a nest of serpents? "
" Precisely."
" Had not its eyes, placed at the back of its head, con-
siderable development?"
" Yes, Conseil."
" And was not its mouth like a parrot's beak? "
" Exactly, Conseil."
" Very well ! no offense to master," he replied quietly ;
" if this is not Bouguer's devilfish, it is, at least, one of
its brothers."
I looked at Conseil. Ned Land hurried to the window.
" What a horrible beast ! " he cried.
I looked in my turn, and could not repress a gesture of
disgust. Before my eyes was a horrible monster, worthy
to figure in the legends of the marvelous. It was an im-
mense octopus, being eight yards long. It swam cross-
ways in the direction of the Nautilus with great speed,
watching us with its enormous staring green eyes. Its
eight arms, or rather feet, fixed to its head, that have given
the name of octopus to these animals, were twice as long
as its body, and were twisted like the Furies' hair. One
could see the 250 air-holes on the inner side of the tenta-
cles. The monster's mouth, a horned beak like a parrot's,
opened and shut vertically. Its tongue, a horned sub-
stance, furnished with several rows of pointed teeth, came
out quivering from this veritable pair of shears. What a
freak of nature — a bird's beak on a mollusk! Its spindle-
like body formed a fleshy mass that might weigh 4,000 to
5,000 lbs. ; the varying color changing with great rapidity,
according to the irritation of the animal, passed succes-
sively from livid gray to reddish-brown. What irritated
this mollusk? No doubt the presence of the Nautilus,
more formidable than itself, and on which its suckers or
its jaws had no hold. Yet, what monsters these octopi
are! what vitality the Creator has given them! what vigor
in their movements ! and they possess three hearts ! Chance
had brought us in presence of this devilfish, and I did not
wish to lose the opportunity of carefully studying this
specimen of cephalopods. I overcame the horror that in-
spired me; and, taking a pencil, began to draw it.
" Perhaps this is the same which the Alcctor saw."
THE DEVILFISH 251
" No," replied the Canadian; " for this is whole and the
other had lost its tail."
" That is no reason," I replied. " The arms and tails
of these animals are re-formed by re-integraliun; and, in
seven years, the tail of Bouguer's devilfish has no doubt
had time to grow."
By this time other octopi appeared at the port light.
I counted seven. They formed a procession after the
Nautilus, and I heard their beaks gnashing against the
iron hull. I continued my work. These monsters kept in
the water with such precision that they seemed immovable.
Suddenly the Nautilus stopped. A shock made it tremble
in every plate.
" Have we struck anything? " I asked.
" In any case," replied the Canadian, " we shall be free,
for we are floating."
The Nautilus was floating, no doubt, but it did not move.
A minute passed. Captain Nemo, followed by his lieuten-
ant, entered the drawing-room. I had not seen him for
some time. He seemed dull. Without noticing or speak-
ing to us, he went to the panel, looked at the octopi, and
said something to his lieutenant. The latter went out.
Soon the panels were shut. The ceiling was lighted. I
went toward the captain.
"A curious collection of octopi?" I said.
"Yes, indeed, Mr. Naturalist." he replied; "and we are
going to fight them, man to beast."
I looked at him. I thought I had not heard aright.
" Man to beast? " I repeated.
" Yes, sir. The screw is stopped. I think that the
horny jaw of one of the devilfish is entangled in the blades.
That is what prevents our moving."
" What are you going to do? "
" Rise to the surface, and slaughter this vermin."
" A difficult enterprise."
" Yes, indeed. The electric bullets are powerless against
the soft flesh, where they do not find resistance enough to
go ofiF. But we shall attack them with the hatchet which
will be more effective."
"And the harpoon, sir," said the Canadian, "if you do
not refuse my help."
" I will accept it, Master Land."
252 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
"We will follow you," I said; and following Captain
Nemo, we went toward the central staircase.
There, about ten men with boarding hatchets were ready
for the attack. Conseil and I took two hatchets; Ned
Land seized a harpoon. The Nautilus had then risen to
the surface. One of the sailors, posted on the top ladder-
step, unscrewed the bolts of the panels. But hardly were
the screws loosed, when the panel rose with great violence,
evidently drawn by the suckers of an octopus's arm. Ln-
mediately one of these arms slid like a serpent down the
opening, and twenty others were above. With one blow
of the ax, Captain Nemo cut this formidable tentacle, that
slid wriggling down the ladder. Just as we were pressing
one on the other to reach the platform, two other arms,
lashing the air, came down on the seaman placed before
Captain Nemo and lifted him up with irresistible power.
Captain Nemo uttered a cry, and rushed out. We hurried
after him.
What a scene! The unhappy man, seized by the tenta-
cle, and fixed to the suckers, was balanced in the air at the
caprice of this enormous trunk. He rattled in his throat,
he was stifled, he cried, "Help! help!" These words,
spoken in French, startled me ! I had a fellow-countryman
on board, perhaps several! That heartrending cry! I
shall hear it all my life. The unfortunate man was lost.
Who could rescue him from that powerful pressure?
However, Captain Nemo had rushed to the devilfish, and
with one blow of the ax had cut through one arm. His
lieutenant struggled furiously against other monsters that
crept on the flanks of the Nautilus. The crew fought with
their axes. The Canadian, Conseil, and I buried our
weapons in the fleshy masses; a strong smell of musk pene-
trated the atmosphere. It was horrible!
For one instant, I thought the unhappy man entangled
with the devilfish would be torn from its powerful suction.
Seven of the eight arms had been cut off. One only
wriggled in the air, brandishing the victim like a feather.
But just as Captain Nemo and his lieutenant threw them-
selves on it, the animal ejected a stream of black liquid.
We^ were blinded with it. When the cloud dispersed, the
devilfish had disappeared, and my unfortunate country-
man witi: it. Ten or twelve octopi now invaded the plat-
THE DEVILFISH 253
form and sides of the Nautilus. We rolled pell-mell into
the midst of this nest of serpents, that wriggled on the
platform in the waves of blood and ink. It seemed as
though these slimy tentacles sprang up like the liydra's
heads. Ned Land's harpoon, at each stroke, was plunged
into the staring eyes of the devilfish. But my bold com-
panion was suddenly overturned by the tentacles of a mon-
ster he had not been able to avoid.
Ah ! how my heart beat with emotion and horror ! The
formidable beak of a devilfish was open over Ned Land.
The unhappy man would be cut in two. I rushed to his
succor. But Captain Nemo was before me; his ax disap-
peared between the two enormous jaws, and, miraculously
saved, the Canadian, rising, plunged his harpoon deep into
the triple heart of the octopus.
" I owed myself this revenge 1 " said the captain to the
Canadian.
Ned bowed without replying. The combat had lasted a
quarter of an hour. The monsters, vanquished and muti-
lated, left us at last, and disappeared under the waves.
Captain Nemo, covered with blood, nearly exhausted,
gazed upon the sea that had swallowed up one of his com-
panions, and great tears gathered in his eyes.
CHAPTER XIX
THE GULF STREAM
This terrible scene of the 20th of April none of us can
ever forget. I have written it under the influence of vio-
lent emotion. Since then I have revised the recital; I
have read it to Conseil and to the Canadian. They found
it exact as to facts, but insufficient as to effect. To paint
such pictures, one must have the pen of the most illustrious
of our poets, the author of " The Toilers of the Deep."
I have said that Captain Nemo wept while watching the
waves; his grief was great. It was the second companion
he had lost since our arrival on board, and what a death !
That friend, crushed, stifled, bruised by the dreadful arms
of a devilfish, pounded by his iron jaws, would not rest
with his comrades in the peaceful coral cemetery! In the
midst of the struggle, it was the despairing cry uttered by
254 TWENTY, THOUSAND LEAGUES
the unfortunate man that had torn my heart. The poor
Frenchman, forgetting his conventional language, had
taken to his own mother tongue, to utter a last appeal!
Among the crew of the Nautilus, associated with the body
and soul of the captain, recoiling like him from all con-
tact with men, I had a fellow-countryman. Did he alone
represent France in this mysterious association, evidently
composed of individuals of divers nationalities? It was one
of these insoluble problems that rose up unceasingly before
my mind!
Captain Nemo entered his room, and I saw him no more
for some time. But that he was sad and irresolute I could
see by the vessel, of which he was the soul, and which re-
ceived all his impressions. The Nautilus did not keep on
in its settled course; it floated about like a corpse at the
will of the waves. It went at random. He could not
tear himself away from the scene of the last struggle, from
this sea that had devoured one of his men. Ten days
passed thus. It was not till the ist of May that the Nauti-
lus resumed its northerly course, after having sighted the
Bahamas at the mouth of the Bahama Canal. We were
then following the current of the largest river of the sea,
that has its banks, its fish, and its proper temperatures.
I mean the Gulf Stream. It is really a river, that flows
freely in the midst of the Atlantic, and whose waters do
not mix with the ocean waters. It is a salt river, Salter
than the surrounding sea. Its mean depth is 1,500 fath-
oms, its mean breadth fifty miles. In certain places the
current flows with the speed of two miles and a half an
hour. The body of its waters is more considerable than
that of all the rivers on the globe. It was on this ocean
river that the Nautilus then sailed.
May 8th, we were still crossing Cape Hatteras, at the
height of the North Caroline. The width of the Gulf
Stream there is seventy-five miles, and its depth 210 yards.
The Nautilus still went at random; all supervision seemed
abandoned. I thought that, under these circumstances, es-
cape would be possible. Indeed, the inhabited shores
offered anywhere an easy refuge. The sea was incessantly
plowed by the steamers that ply between New York or
Boston and the Gulf of Mexico, and overrun day and
night by the little schooners coasting about the several
THE GULF STREAM 255
parts of the American coast. We could hope to be picked
up. It was a favorable opportunity, notwithstanding the
thirty miles that separated the Nautilus from the coasts of
the Union. One unfortunate circumstance thwarted the
Canadian's plans. The weather was very bad. We were
nearing those shores where tempests are so frequent, that
country of waterspouts and cyclones actually engendered
by the current of the Gulf Stream. To tempt the sea in
a frail boat was certain destruction! Ned Land owned
this himself. He fretted, seized with nostalgia that
flight only could cure.
" Master," he said that day to me, " this must come to
an end. I must make a clean breast of it. This Nemo
is leaving land and going up to the north. But I declare
to you, I have had enough of the south pole, and I will
not follow him to the north."
" What is to be done, Ned, since flight is impracticable
just now?"
" We must speak to the captain," said he ; " you said
nothing when we were in your native seas. I will speak,
now we are in mine. When I think that before long the
Nautilus will be by Nova Scotia, and that there near New-
foundland is a large bay, and into that bay the St. Law-
rence empties itself, and that the St. Lawrence is my river,
the river by Quebec, my native town — when I think of this
I feel furious, it makes my hair stand on end. Sir, I
would rather throw myself into the sea! I will not stay
here. I am stifled ! "
The Canadian was evidently losing all patience. His
vigorous nature could not stand this prolonged imprison-
ment. His face altered daily; his temper became more
surly. I knew what he must suft"er, for I was seized with
nostalgia myself. Nearly seven months had passed with-
out our having had any news from land; Captain Nemo's
isolation, his altered spirits, especially since the fight with
the poulps, his taciturnity, all made me view things in a
different light
" Well, sir?" said Ned, seeing I did not reply.
" Well, Ned! do you wish me to ask Captain Nemo his
intentions concerning us?"
" Yes. sir."
"Although he has already made them known?"
2c6 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
"Yes; I wish it settled finally. Speak for me, in my
name only, if you like."
" But I so seldom meet him. He avoids me."
" That is all the more reason for you to go to see him."
I went to my room. From thence I meant to go to
Captain Nemo's. It would not do to let this opportunity
of meeting him slip. I knocked at the door. No answer.
I knocked again, then turned the handle. The door
opened, I went in. The captain was there. Bending over
his work-tal)le, he had not heard me. Resolved not to go
without having spoken, I approached him. He raised his
head quickly, frowned, and said roughly, " You here !
What do you want? "
" To speak to you, captain."
" But I am busy, sir ; I am working. I leave you at
liberty to shut yourself up; cannot I be allowed the same? "
This reception was not encouraging; but I was deter-
mined to hear and answer everything.
" Sir," I said coldly, " I have to speak to you on a mat-
ter that admits of no delay."
" What is that, sir? " he replied ironically. " Have you
discovered something that has escaped me, or has the sea
delivered up any new secrets ? "
We were at cross-purposes. But before I could reply,
he showed me an open manuscript on his table, and said.
in a more serious tone, " Here, M. Aronnax, is a manu-
script written in several languages. It contains the sum
of my studies of the sea; and, if it please God, it shall not
perish with me. This manuscript, signed with my name,
completed with the history of my life, will be shut up in a
little insubmersible case. The last survivor of all of us on
board the Nautilus will throw this case into the sea, and it
will go whither it is borne by the waves."
This man's name! his history written by himself! His
mystery would then be revealed some day.
" Captain," I said, " I can but approve of the idea that
makes yoii act thus. The result of your studies must not
be lost. But the means you employ seem to me to be
primitive. Who knows where the winds will carry this
case, and in whose hands it will fall? Could you not use
some other means ? Could not you, or one of yours "
" Never, sir! " he said, hastily interrupting me.
V. V Verne
THE GULF STREAM 257
" But I and my companions are ready to keep this
manuscript in store; and, if you will put us at liberty "
" At liberty? " said the captain, rising.
"Yes, sir; that is the subject on which I wish to ques-
tion you. For seven months we have been here on board,
and I ask you to-day, in the name of my companions, and
in my own, if your intention is to keep us here always? "
" M. Aronnax, I will answer you to-day as I did seven
months ago; whoever enters the Nautilus must never
quit it"
" You impose actual slavery on us ! "
" Give it what name you please."
" But everywhere the slave has the right to regain his
liberty."
" Who denies you this right? Have I ever tried to chain
you with an oath? "
He looked at me with his arms crossed.
" Sir," I said, " to return a second time to this subject
will be neither to your nor to my taste; but as we have en-
tered upon it, let us go through with it. I repeat, it is not
only myself whom it concerns. Study is to me a relief, a
diversion, a passion that could make me forget everything.
Like you, I am willing to live obscure in the frail hope of
bequeathing one day, to future time, the result of my la-
bors. But it is otherwise with Ned Land. Every man,
worthy of the name, deserves some consideration. Have
you thought that love of liberty, hatred of slavery, can
give rise to schemes of revenge in a nature like the Cana-
dian's; that he could think, attempt, and try "
I was silenced ; Captain Nemo rose.
" Whatever Ned Land thinks of, attempts, or tries, what
does it matter to me? I did not seek him! It is not for
my pleasure that I keep him on board! As for you, M.
Aronnax, you are one of those who can understand every-
thing, even silence. I have nothing more to say to you.
Let this first time you have come to treat of this subject be
the last; for a second time I will not listen to you."
I retired. Our situation was critical. I related my con-
versation to my two companions.
" We know now," said Ned. " that we can expect noth-
ing from this man. The Naufilus is nearing Long Island.
We will escape, whatever the weather may be."
258 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
But the sky became more and more threatening. Symp-
toms of a hurricane became manifest. The atmosphere
was becoming white and misty. On the horizon fine
streaks of cirrus clouds were succeeded by masses of
cumuli. Other low clouds passed swiftly by. The swol-
len sea rose in huge billows. The birds disappeared, with
the exception of the petrels, those friends of the storm.
The barometer fell sensibly, and indicated an extreme ten-
sion of the vapors. The mixture of the storm-glass was
decomposed under the influence of the electricity that per-
vaded the atmosphere. The tempest burst on the i8th of
May, just as the Nautilus was floating off Long Island,
some miles from the port of New York. I can dscribe this
strife of the elements! for, instead of fleeing to the depths
of the sea, Captain Nemo, by an unaccountable caprice,
would brave it at the surface. The wind blew from the
southwest at first. Captain Nemo, during the squalls, had
taken his place on the platform. He had made himself
fast, to prevent being washed overboard by tlie monstrous
waves. I had hoisted myself up, and made myself fast
also, dividing my admiration between the tempest and this
extraordinary man who was coping with it. The raging
sea was swept by huge cloud-drifts, which were actually
saturated with the waves. The Nautilus, sometimes lying
on its side, sometimes standing up like a mast, rolled and
pitched terribly. About five o'clock a torrent of rain fell,
that lulled neither sea nor wind. The hurricane blew
nearly forty leagues an hour. It is under these conditions
that it overturns houses, breaks iron gates, displaces twen-
ty-four-pounders. However, the Nautilus, in the midst of
the tempest, confirmed the words of a clever engineer:
" There is no well-constructed hull that cannot defy the
sea." This was not a resisting rock ; it was a steel spindle,
obedient and movable, without rigging or masts, that
braved its fury with impunity. However, I watched these
raging waves attentively. They measured fifteen feet in
height, and 150 to 175 yards long, and their speed of prop-
agation was thirty feet per second. Their bulk and power
increased with the depth of the water. Such waves as
these at the Hebrides have displaced a mass weighing 8,400
lbs. They are they which, in the tempest of December 23,
1864, after destroying the town of Yeddo, in Japan, broke
THE GULF STREAM 259
the same day on the shores of America. The intcnsiiy of
the tempest increased with tlie night. The barometer, as
in i860 at Reunion during a cyclone, fell seven-tenths at
the close of day. I saw a large vessel pass the horizon
struggling painfully. She was trying to lie to under half
steam, to keep up above the waves. It was prubably one
of the steamers of the line from New York to Liverpool
or Havre. It soon disappeared in the gloom. At ten
o'clock in the evening the sky was on fire. The atmosphere
was streaked with vivid lightning. I could not bear the
brightness of it; while the captain, looking at it, seemed
to envy the spirit of the tempest. A terrible noise filled
the air, a complex noise, made up of the howls of the
crushed waves, the roaring of the wind, and the claps of
thunder. The wind veered suddenly to all points of the
horizon; and the cyclone, rising in the east, returned after
passing by the north, west, and south, in the inverse course
pursued by the circular storms of the southern hemisphere.
Ah, that Gulf Stream! It deserves its name of the King
of Tempests. It is that which causes those formidable cy-
clones, by the difference of temperature between its air
and its currents. A shower of fire had succeeded the rain.
The drops of water were changed to sharp spikes. One
would have thought that Captain Nemo was courting a
death worthy of himself, a death by lightning. As the
Nautilus, pitching dreadfully, raised its steel spur in the
air, it seemed to act as a conductor, and I saw long sparks
burst from it. Crushed and without strength, I crawled
to the panel, opened it, and descended to the saloon. The
storm was then at its height. It was impossible to stand
upright in the interior of the Nautilus. Cai)tain Nemo
came down about twelve. I heard the reservoirs filling by
degrees, and the Nautilus sank slowly beneath the waves.
Through the open windows in the saloon I saw large fish,
terrified, passing like phantoms in the water. Some were
struck before my eyes. The Nautilus was still descending.
I thought that at about eight fathoms deep we should find
a calm. But no! the upper beds were too violently agitated
for that. We had to seek repose at more than twenty-five
fathoms in the bowels of the deep. But there, what (juiet,
what silence, what peace ! Who could have told that such
a hurricane had been let loose on the surface of that ocean?
CHAPTER XX
FINDING THE " AVENGER "
In consequence of the storm, we had been thrown east-
ward once more. All hope of escape on the shores of New
York or St. Lawrence had faded away; and poor Ned, in
despair, had isolated himself like Captain Nemo. Conseil
and I, however, never left each other. I said that the
Nautilus had gone aside to the east. I should have said
(to be more exact) the northeast. For some days it wan-
dered, first on the surface and then beneath it, amid those
fogs so dreaded by sailors. What accidents are due to
these thick fogs! What shocks upon these reefs when
the wind drowns the breaking of the waves ! What col-
lisions between vessels, in spite of their warning lights,
whistles, and alarm-bells! And the bottoms of these seas
look like a field of battle, where still lie all the conquered
of the ocean; some old and already incrusted, others fresh
and reflecting from their iron bands and copper plates the
brilliancy of our lantern.
On the 15th of May we were at the extreme south of the
Bank of Newfoundland. This bank consists of alluvia, or
large heaps of organic matter, brought either from the
equator by the Gulf Stream, or from the north pole by
the counter-current of cold water which skirts the Ameri-
can coasts. There also are heaped up those erratic blocks
which are carried along by the broken ice; and close by, a
vast charnel-house of mollusks or zoophytes, which perish
here by millions. The depth of the sea is not great at
Newfoundland — not more than some hundreds of fathoms;
but toward the south is a depression of 1,500 fathoms.
There the Gulf Stream widens. It loses some of its speed
and some of its temperature, but it becomes a sea.
It was on the 17th of May, about 500 miles from Heart's
Content, at a depth of more than 1,400 fathoms, that I saw
the electric cable lying on the bottom. Conseil, to whom
I had not mentioned it, thought at first that it was a gi-
gantic sea-serpent. But I undeceived the worthy fellow,
and by way of consolation related several particulars in the
laying of this cable. The first one was laid in the years
1857 and 1858; but after transmitting about 400 telegrams,
would not act any longer. In 1863, the engineers con-
structed another one, measuring 2,000 miles in length, and
260
FINDING THE AVENGER 261
weighing 4.500 tons, ^vhich was embarked on the Great
Eastern. This attempt also failed.
On the 25th of May, the Nautilus, being at a depth of
more than 1,918 fathoms, was on the precise spot where
the rupture occurred which ruined the enterprise. It was
within 638 miles of the coast of Ireland; and at half-past
two in the afternoon they discovered that communication
with Europe had ceased. The electricians on board re-
solved to cut the cable before fishing it up, and at eleven
o'clock at night they had recovered the damaged part.
They made another point and spliced it, and it was once
more submerged. But some days after it broke again, and
in the depths of the ocean could not be recaptured. The
Americans, however, were not discouraged, Cyrus Field,
the bold promoter of the enterprise, as he had sunk all his
own fortune, set a new subscription on foot, which was at
once answered, and another cable was constructed on better
principles. The bundles of conducting wires were each
enveloped in gutta-percha, and protected by a wadding of
hemp, contained in a metallic covering. The Great
Eastern sailed on the 13th of July, 1866, The operation
worked well. But one incident occurred. Several times
in unrolling the cable they observed that nails had been
recently forced into it, evidently with the motive of de-
stroying it. Captain Anderson, the officers and engineers,
consulted together, and had it posted up that if the offender
was surprised on board, he would be thrown without fur-
ther trial into the sea. From that time tlie criminal at-
tempt was never repeated.
On the 23d of July the Great Eastern was not more than
500 miles from Newfoundland, when they telegraphed
from Ireland news of the armistice concluded between
Prussia and Austria after Sadowa. On the 27th. in the
midst of heavy fogs, they reached the port of Heart's
Content, The enterprise was successfully terminated; and
for its first dispatch young America addressed old Europe
in these words of wisdom so rarely understood : " Glory to
God in the highest, and on earth peace, good-will toward
men."
I did not expect to find the electric cable in its primitive
state, such as it was on leaving the manufactory. The
long serpent, covered with the remains of shells, bristling
262 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
with foramini ferae, was incrusted with a strong coating
which served as a protection against all boring mollusks.
It lay quietly sheltered from the motions of the sea, and
under a favorable pressure for the transmission of the
electric spark which passes from Europe to America in
0.32 of a second. Doubtless this cable will last for a great
length of time, for they find that the gutta-percha covering
is improved by the sea-water. Besides, on this level, so
well chosen, the cable is never so deeply submerged as to
cause it to break. The Nautilus followed it to the lowest
depth, which was more than 2,212 fathoms, and there it
lay without any anchorage; and then we reached the spot
where the accident had taken place in 1863. The bottom
of the ocean then formed a valley about 100 miles broad,
in which Mont Blanc might have been placed without its
summit appearing above the waves. This valley is closed
at the east by a perpendicular wall more than 2,000 yards
high. We arrived there on the 28th of May, and the
Nautilus was then not more than 120 miles from Ireland.
Was Captain Nemo going to land on the British Isles?
No. To my great surprise he made for the south, once
more coming back toward European seas. In rounding
the Emerald Isle, for one instant I caught sight of Cape
Clear, and the light which guides the thousands of vessels
leaving Glasgow or Liverpool. An important question
then arose in my mind. Did the Nautilus dare entangle
itself in the English Channel? Ned Land, who had reap-
peared since we had been nearing land, did not cease to
question me. How could I answer? Captain Nemo re-
mained invisible. After having shown the Canadian a
glimpse of American shores, was he going to show me the
coast of France?
But the Nautilus was still going southward. On the 30tli
of May, it passed in sight of Land's End, between the ex-
treme point of England and the Scilly Isles, which were
left to starboard. If he wished to enter the English
Channel he must go straight to the east. He did not do so.
During the whole of the 31st of May, the Nautilus de-
scribed a series of circles on the water, which greatly in-
terested me. It seemed to be seeking a spot it had some
trouble in finding. At noon, Cai)tain Nemo himself came
to work the ship's log. He spoke no word to me, but
FlNDlx\G THE AVENGER 263
seemed gloomier than ever. What could sadden him thus?
Was it his proximity to European shores? Had he some
recollections of his abandoned country? H not, what did
he feel? Remorse or regret? For a long while this
thought haunted my mind, and I had a kind of presenti-
ment that before long chance would betray the captain's
secrets.
The next day, the 1st of June, the Naiitilns continued
the same process. It was evidently seeking some particular
spot in the ocean. Captain Nemo took the sun's altitude
as he had done the day before. The sea was beautiful,
the sky clear. About eight miles to the east, a large steam-
vessel could be discerned on the horizon. No flag fluttered
from its mast, and I could not discover its nationality.
Some minutes before the sun passed the meridian, Captain
Nemo took his sextant, and watched with great attention.
The perfect rest of the water greatly helped the operation.
The Nautilus was iTiotionless ; it neither rolled nor pitched.
I was on the platform when the altitude was taken, and
the captain pronounced these words — " It is here."
He turned and went below. Had he seen the vessel
which was changing its course and seemed to be nearing
us ? I could not tell. I returned to the saloon. The pan-
els closed, I heard the hissing of the water in tlie reservoirs.
The Nautilus began to sink, following a vertical line, for
its screw communicated no motion to it. Some minutes
later it stopped at a depth of inore than 420 fathoms, rest-
ing on the ground. The luminous ceiling was darkened,
then the panels were opened, and through the glass I savv^
the sea brilliantly illuminated by the rays of our lantern
for at least half a mile round us.
I looked to the port side, and saw nothing but an im-
mensity of quiet waters. But to starboard, on the bottom
appeared a large protuberance, which at once attracted my
attention. One would have thought it a ruin buried under
a coating of white shells, much resembling a covering of
snow. Upon examining the mass attentively, I could rec-
ognize the ever-thickening form of a vessel bare of its
masts, which must have sunk. It certainly belonged to
past times. This wreck, to be thus incrusted with the
lime of the water, must already be able to count many
years passed at the bottom of the ocean.
264 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
What was this vessel? Why did the Nautilus visit its
tomb? Could it have been aught but a shipwreck which
had drawn it under the water? I knew not what to think,
when near me in a slow voice I heard Captain Nemo say :
" At one time this ship was called the Marseillais. It
carried seventy-four guns, and was launched in 1762. In
1778, the 13th of August, commanded by La Poype-Ver-
trieux, it fought boldly against the Preston. In 1779, on
the 4th of July, it was at the taking of Grenada, with the
squadron of Admiral Estaing. In 1781, on the 5th of
September, it took part in the battle of Comte de Grasse,
in Chesapeake Bay. In 1794, the French Republic changed
its name. On the i6th of April, in the same year, it
joined the squadron of Villaret Joyeuse, at Brest, being
intrusted with the escort of a cargo of corn coming from
America, under the command of Admiral Van Stabel.
On the nth and 12th Prairal of the second year, this
squadron fell in with an English fleet. Sir, to-day is the
13th Prairal, the ist of June, 1868. It is now seventy-
four years ago, day for day, on this very spot, in latitude
47" 24', longitude ly" 28', that this vessel, after fighting
heroically, losing its three masts, with the water in its hold,
and the third of its crew disabled, preferred sinking with its
356 sailors to surrendering; and nailing its colors to the
poop, disappeared under the waves to the cry of * Long
live the Republic ! ' "
" The 'Avenger! " I exclaimed.
" Yes, sir, the 'Avenger! A good name ! " muttered
Captain Nemo, crossing his arms.
CHAPTER XXI
A HECATOMB
The way of describing this unlooked-for scene, the
history of the patriot ship, told at first so coldly, and the
emotion with which this strange man pronounced the last
words, the name of the Avenger, the significance of which
could not escape me, all impressed itself deeply on my
mind. My eyes did not leave the captain; who, with his
hand stretched out to sea, was watching with a glowing
eye the glorious wreck. Perhaps I was never to know
A HECTACOMB 265
who he was, from whence he came, or where he was going
to, but I saw the man move, and apart from the savant.
It was no common misanthropy which had shut Captain
Nemo and his companions within the Naiitiliis, but a ha-
tred, either monstrous or subhme, which time could never
weaken. Did this hatred still seek for vengeance? The
future would soon teach me that. But the Naiiiilus was
rising slowly to the surface of the sea, and the form of the
Avenger disappeared by degrees from my sight. Soon a
slight rolling told me that we were in the open air. At
that moment a dull boom was heard. I looked at the cap-
tain. He did not move.
"Captain! "said I.
He did not answer. I left him and mounted the plat-
form. Conseil and the Canadian were already there.
"Where did that sound come from?" I asked.
" It was a gunshot," replied Ned Land.
I looked in the direction of the vessel I had already seen.
It was Hearing the Nautilus, and we could see that it was
putting on steam. It was within six miles of us.
" What is that ship, Ned?"
" By its rigging, and the height of its lower masts," said
the Canadian, " I bet she is a ship of war. May it reach
us; and, if necessary, sink this cursed Nautilus."
" Friend Ned," replied Conseil, " what harm can it do
to the Nautilus? Can it attack it beneath the waves? Can
it cannonade us at the bottom of the sea? "
" Tell me, Ned," said I, " can you recognize what coun-
try she belongs to ? "
The Canadian knitted his eyebrows, dropped his eyelids,
and screwed up the corners of his eyes, and for a few
moments fixed a piercing look upon the vessel.
" No, sir," he replied ; " I cannot tell what nation she
belongs to, for she shows no colors. But I can declare she
is a man-of-war, for a long pennant flutters from her main-
mast."
For a quarter of an hour we watched the ship which was
steaming toward us. I could not. however, believe that
she could see the Nautilus from that distance, and still less
that she could know what this submarine engine was.
Soon the Canadian informed me that she was a large ar-
mored two-decker ram. A thick black smoke was pouring
266 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
from her two funnels. Her closely furled sails were
stopped to her yards. She hoisted no flag at her mizzen-
peak. The distance prevented us from distinguishing the
colors of her pennant, w'hich floated like a thin ribbon. She
advanced rapidly. If Captain Nemo allowed her to ap-
proach, there was a chance of salvation for us.
" Sir," said Ned Land, " if that vessel passes within a
mile of us, I shall throw myself into the sea, and I should
advise you to do the same."
I did not reply to the Canadian's suggestion, but con-
tinued watching the ship. Whether English, French,
American, or Russian, she would be sure to take us in if
we could only reach her. Presently a white smoke burst
from the forepart of the vessel; some seconds after the
water, agitated by the fall of a heavy body, splashed the
stern of the Nautilus, and shortly afterward a loud ex-
plosion struck my ear.
" What ! they are firing at us ! " I exclaimed.
" So please you, sir," said Ned, " they have recognized
the unicorn, and they are firing at us."
" But," I exclaimed, " surely they can see that there are
men in the case ? "
" It is, perhaps because of that," replied Ned Land, look-
ing at me.
A whole flood of light burst upon my mind. Doubtless
they knew now how to believe the stories of the pretended
monster. No doubt, on board the Abraham Lincoln, when
the Canadian struck it with the harpoon. Commander Far-
ragut had recognized in the supposed narwhal a submarine
vessel, more dangerous than a supernatural cetacean. Yes,
it must have been so; and on every sea they were now
seeking this engine of destruction. Terrible indeed! if as
we supposed. Captain Nemo employed the Nautilus in
works of vengeance. On the night when we were impris-
oned in that cell, in the midst of the Indian Ocean, had
he not attacked some vessel ? Tlie man buried in the coral
cemetery, had he not been a victim to the shock caused by
the Nautilus? Yes, I repeat it, it must be so. One part
of the mysterious existence of Captain Nemo had been un-
veiled; and, if his identity had not been recognized, at least,
the nations united against him were no longer hunting a
chimerical creature, but a man who had vowed a deadly
A HECTACOxMB 267
hatred against them. All the formidable past rose before
me. Instead of meeting friends on board the approaching
ship, we could only expect pitiless enemies. But the shot
rattled about us. Some of them struck the sea and rico-
chetted, losing themselves in the distance. But none
touched the Nautilus. The vessel was not more than three
miles from us. In spite of the serious cannonade, Cap-
tain Nemo did not appear on the platform; but, if one of
the conical projectiles had struck the shell of the Nautilus,
it would have been fatal. The Canadian then said. " Sir,
we must do all we can to get out of this dilemma. Let us
signal them. They will then, perhaps, understand that we
are honest folks."
Ned Land took his handkerchief to wave in the air;
but he had scarcely displayed it, when he was struck down
by an iron hand, and fell, in spite of his great strength,
upon the deck.
"Fool!" exclaimed the captain, "do you wish to be
pierced by tlie spur of the Nautilus before it is hurled at
this vessel? "
Captain Nemo was terrible to hear; he was still more
terrible to see. His face was deadly pale, with a spasm at
his heart. For an instant it must have ceased to beat. His
pupils were fearfully contracted. He did not speak, he
roared, as, w^ith his body thrown forward, he wrung the
Canadian's shoulders. Then, leaving him, and turning to
the ship of war, whose shot was still raining round him.
he exclaimed, with a powerful voice, " Ah. ship of an
accursed nation, you know who I am ! I do not want your
colors to know you by. Look ! and I will show you mine ! "
And on the forepart of the platform Captain Nemo un-
furled a black flag, similar to the one he had placed at the
south pole. At that moment a shot struck the sliell of the
Nautilus obliquely, without piercing it; and. rebounding
near the captain,' was lost in the sea. He shrugged his
shoulders ; and addressing me, said shortly. " Go down,
vou and vour companions, go down ! "
" Sir," ' I exclaimed, " are you going to attack this
vessel ? "
" Sir, I am going to sink it."
"You will not do that?"
" I shall do it," he replied coldly. " And I advise you
268 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
not to judge me, sir. Fate has shown you what you
ought not to have seen. The attack has begun; go down."
"What is this vessel?"
" You do not know ? Very well ! so much the better !
its nationality to you, at least, will be a secret. Go down ! "
We could but obey. About fifteen of the sailors sur-
rounded the captain, looking with implacable hatred at the
vessel nearing them. One could feel that the same desire
of vengeance animated every soul. I went down at the
moment another projectile struck the Nautilus, and I heard
the captain exclaim:
" Strike, mad vessel. Shower your useless shot ! And
then, you will not escape the spur of the Nautilus. But
it is not here that you shall perish ! I would not have your
ruins mingle with those of the Avenger! "
I reached my room. The captain and his second had
remained on the platform. The screw was set in motion,
and the Nautilus, moving with speed, was soon beyond
the reach of the ship's guns. But the pursuit continued,
and Captain Nemo contented himself with keeping his
distance.
About four in the afternoon, being no longer able to
contain my impatience, I went to the central staircase.
The panel was open, and I ventured on to the platform.
The captain was still walking up and down with an agi-
tated step. He was looking at the ship, which was five or
six miles to leeward.
He was going round it like a wild beast, and drawing it
eastward, he allowed them to pursue. But he did not
attack. Perhaps he still hesitated? I wished to mediate
once more. But I had scarcely spoken, when Captain
Nemo imposed silence, saying :
*' I am the law, and I am the judge ! I am the oppressed,
and there is the oppressor! Through him I have lost all
that I loved, cherished and venerated — country, wife, chil-
dren, father and mother. I saw all perish! All that I
hate is there ! Say no more ! "
I cast a last look at the man-of-war, which was putting
on steam, and rejoined Ned and Conseil.
"We will fly!" I exclaimed.
Good ! " said Ned. " What is this vessel ? "
I do not know; but whatever it is, it will be sunk be-
<<
A HECTACOMB 269
fore night. In any case, it is better to perish with it, than
be made accompHces in a retahation, the justice of which
we cannot judge."
" That is my opinion, too," said Ned Land coolly. " Let
us wait for night."
Night arrived. Deep silence reigned on board. The
compass showed that the Nautilus iiad not altered its
course. It was on the surface, rolling slightly. My com-
panions and I resolved to fly when the vessel should be
near enough either to hear us or to see us; for the moon,
which would be full in two or three days, shone brightly.
Once on board the ship, if we could not prevent the blow
which threatened it, we could, at least we would, do all
that circumstances would allow. Several times I thought
the Nautilus was preparing for attack; but Captain Nemo
contented himself wath allowing his adversary to approach,
and then fled once more before it.
Part of the night passed without any incident. We
watched the opportunity for action. We spoke little, for
we were too much moved. Ned Land would have thrown
himself into the sea, but I forced him to wait. According
to my idea, the Nautilus would attack the ship at her water-
line, and then it would not only be possible, but very easy
to fly.
At three in the morning, full of uneasiness, I mounted
the platform. Captain Nemo had not left it. He was
standing at the forepart near his flag, which a slight breeze
displayed above his head. He did not take his eyes from
the vessel. The intensity of his look seemed to attract,
and fascinate, and draw it onward more surely than if he
had been towing it. The moon was then passing the merid-
ian. Jupiter w^as rising in the east. Amid this peaceful
scene of nature, sky and ocean rivaled each other in tran-
quility, the sea offering to the orbs of night the finest
mirror they could ever have in which to reflect their image.
As I thought of the deep calm of these elements, compared
with all those passions brooding imperceptibly within the
Nautilus, I shuddered.
The vessel was within two miles of us. It was ever
nearing that phosphorescent light which showed the pres-
ence of the Nautilus. I could see its green and red lights,
and its white lantern hanging from the large mizzen-niast.
270 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
An indistinct vibration quivered through its rigging, show-
ing that the furnaces were heated to the uttermost. Sheaves
of sparks and red ashes flew from the funnels, shining in
the atmosphere like stars.
I remained thus until six in the morning, without Cap-
tain Nemo noticing me. The ship stood about a mile and
a half from us, and with the first dawn of day the firing
began afresh. The moment could not be far off when,
the Nautilus attacking its adversary, my companions and
myself should forever leave this man. I was preparing to
go down to remind them when the second mounted the
platform, accompanied by several sailors. Captain Nemo
either did not or would not see them. Some steps were
taken v/hich might be called the signal for action. They
were very simple. The iron balustrade around the plat-
form was lowered, and the lantern and pilot cages were
pushed within the shell until they were flush with the deck.
The long surface of the steel cigar no longer offered a
single point to check its maneuvers. I returned to the
saloon. The Nautilus still floated; some streaks of light
were filtering through the liquid beds. With the undula-
tions of the waves the windows were brightened by the red
streaks of the rising sun, and this dreadful day of the 2d of
June had dawned.
At five o'clock, the log showed that the speed of the
Nautilus was slackening, and I knew that it was allowing
them to draw nearer. Besides, the reports were heard
more distinctly, and the projectiles, laboring through the
ambient water, were extinguished with a strange hissing
noise.
" My friends," said I, " the moment is come. One grasp
of the hand, and may God protect us ! "
Ned Land was resolute, Conseil calm, myself so nervous
that I knew not how to contain myself. We all passed into
the library ; but the moment I pushed the door opening on to
the central staircase, I heard the upper panel close sharply.
The Canadian rushed on to the stairs, but I stopped him. A
well-known hissing noise told me that the water was run-
ning into the reservoirs, and in a few minutes the Nautilus
was some yards beneath the surface of the waves. I un-
derstood the maneuver. It was too late to act. The Nau-
tilus did not wish to strike at the impenetrable cuirass, but
A HECTACOMB 271
below the water-line, where the metallic covering no longer
protected it.
We were again imprisoned, unwilling witnesses of the
dreadful drama that was preparing. We had scarcely time
to reflect; taking refuge in my room, we looked at each
other without speaking. A deep stupor had taken hold of
my mind; thought seemed to stand still. I was in that
painful state of expectalion preceding a dreadful rcpurt.
I waited, I listened; every sense was merged in tiiat of
hearing! The speed of the Nautilus was accelerated. It
was preparing to rush. The whole ship trembled. Sud-
denly I screamed. I felt the shock, but comi)aratively
light. I felt the penetrating power of the steel spur. I
heard rattlings and scrapings. But the Nautilus, carried
along by its propelling power, passed through the masi of
the vessel, like a needle through sail-cloth !
I could stand it no longer. Mad, out of my mind, I
rushed from my room into the saloon. Captain Nemo was
there, mute, gloomy, implacable; he was looking through
the port panel. A large mass cast a shadow on the water;
and that it might lose nothing of her agony, the Nautilus
was going down into the abyss with her. Ten yards from
me I saw the open shell through which the water was
rushing with the noise of thunder, then the double line of
guns and netting. The bridge was covered with black,
agitated shadows.
The water was rising. The poor creatures were crowd-
ing the ratlings, clinging to the masts, struggling under
water. It was a human ant-heap overtaken by the sea.
Paralyzed, stiffened with anguish, my hair standing on end,
with eyes wide open, panting, without breath and without
voice, I too was watching! An irresistible attraction glued
me to the glass! Suddenly an explosion took place. The
compressed air blew up her decks, as if the magazines had
caught fire. Then the unfortunate vessel sank more rap-
idly. Her topmast, laden with victims, now appeared:
then her spars, bending under the weight of men ; and last
of all, the top of her main-mast. Then the dark mass
disappeared, and with it the dead crew, drawn down by
the strong eddy.
I turned to Captain Nemo. That terrible avenger, a
perfect archangel of hatred, was still looking. When ail
2^2 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
was over, he turned to his room, opened the door, and en-
tered. I followed him with my eyes. On the end wall
beneath his heroes, I saw the portrait of a woman still
young, and two little children. Captain Nemo looked at
them for some moments, stretched his arms toward them,
and kneeling down burst into deep sobs.
CHAPTER XXn
THE LAST WORDS OF CAPTAIN NEMO
The panels had closed on this dreadful vision, but light
had not returned to the saloon: all was silence and dark-
ness within the Nautilus. At wonderful speed, a hundred
feet beneath the water, it was leaving this desolate spot.
Whither was it going? To the north or south? Where
was the man flying to after such dreadful retaliation? I
had returned to my room, where Ned and Conseil had re-
mained silent enough. I felt an insurmountable horror for
Captain Nemo. Whatever he had suffered at the hands of
these men, he had no right to punish thus. He had made
me, if not an accomplice, at least a witness of his ven-
geance. At eleven the electric light reappeared, I passed
into the saloon. It was deserted. I consulted the different
instruments. The Nautilus was flying northward at the
rate of twenty-five miles an hour, now on the surface, and
now thirty feet below it. On taking the bearings by the
chart, I saw that we were passing the mouth of the Manche,
and that our course was hurrying us toward the northern
seas at a frightful speed. That night we had crossed two
hundred leagues of the Atlantic. The shadows fell, and the
sea was covered with darkness until the rising of the moon.
I went to my room, but could not sleep. I was troubled
with dreadful nightmare. The horrible scene of destruc-
tion was continually before my eyes. From that day, who
could tell into what part of the North Atlantic basin the
Nautilus would take us? Still with unaccountable speed.
Still in the midst of these northern fogs. Would it touch
at Spitzbergen, or on the shores of Nova Zembla? Should
we explore those unknown seas, the White Sea, the Sea of
Kara, the Gulf of Obi, the Archipelago of Liarrov, and the
unknown coast of Asia? I could not say. I could no
V. V Verne
LAST WORDS OF CAPTAIN NEMO
0—7
longer judge of the time that ^vas passing. The clocks liad
been stopped on board. It seemed, as in polar countries,
that night and day no longer followed their regular course.
I felt myself being drawn into that strange region where
the foundered imagination of Edgar Poe roamed at will.
Like the fabulous Gordon P}Tn, at every moment I ex-
pected to see " that veiled human figure, of larger propor-
tions than those of any inhabitant of the earth, thrown
across the cataract which defends the approach to the pole."
I estimated (though perhaps I may be mistaken) —
I estimated this adventurous course of the Nautilus to have
lasted fifteen or twenty days. And I know not how much
longer it might have lasted, had it not been for the catas-
trophe Avhich ended this voyage. Of Captain Nemo I saw
nothing w^hatever now, nor of his second. Not a man of
the crew was visible for an instant. The Nautilus was
almost incessantly under water. When we came to the
surface to renew the air. the panels opened and shut me-
chanically. There were no more marks on the planisphere.
I knew not where we were. And the Canadian, too. his
strength and patience at an end, appeared no more. Con-
seil could not draw a word from him, and fearing that, in
a dreadful fit of madness, he might kill himself, watched
him with constant devotion. One morning (what date it
was I could not say), I had fallen into a heavy sleep
toward the early hours, a sleep both painful and unhealthy,
when I suddenly awoke. Ned Land was leaning over me,
saying in a low voice, ** We are going to fly."
I sat up.
" When shall we go? " I asked.
" To-morrow night. All inspection on board the Nauti-
lus seems to have ceased. All appear to be stupefied. You
w^ill be ready, sir? "
"Yes; where are we?"
" In sight of land. I took the reckoning this morning
in the fog — twenty miles to the east."
" What country is it?"
" I do not know, but whatever it is we will take refuge
there."
"Yes. Ned. yes. We will fly to-night, even if the sea
sfiould swallow us up."
" The sea is bad, the wind violent, but twenty miles in
274 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
that light boat of the Nautilus does not frighten me.
Unknown to the crew I have been able to procure food and
some bottles of water."
" I will follow you."
" But," continued the Canadian, " if I am surprised I
will defend myself; I will force them to kill me."
"We will die together, friend Ned."
I had made up my mind to all. The Canadian left me.
I reached the platform, on which I could with difficulty
support myself against the shock of the waves. The sky
was threatening, but as land was in those thick brown
shadows we must fly. I returned to the saloon, fearing
and yet hoping to see Captain Nemo, washing and yet not
wishing to see him. What could I have said to him?
Could I hide the involuntary horror with which he inspired
me? No. It was better that I should not meet him face
to face; better to forget him. And yet — How long
seemed that day, the last that I should pass in the Nautilus.
I remained alone. Ned Land and Conseil avoided speak-
ing, for fear of betraying themselves. At six I dined, but
I was not hungry; I forced myself to eat in spite of my dis-
gust, that I might not weaken myself. At half-past six
Ned Land came to my room saying, " We shall not see
each other again before our departure. At ten the moon
will not be risen. We will profit by the darkness. Come
to the boat; Conseil and I will wait for you."
The Canadian went out without giving me time to an-
swer. Wishing to verify the course of the Nautilus, I
went to the saloon. We were running N.N.E. at frightful
speed and more than fifty yards deep. I cast a last look
on these wonders of nature, on the riches of art heaped up
in this museum, upon the unrivaled collection destined to
perish at the bottom of the sea with him who had formed
it. I wished to fix an indelible impression of it in my
mind. I remained an hour thus, bathed in the light of that
luminous ceiling, and passing in review those treasures
shining under their glasses. Then I returned to my room.
I dressed myself in strong sea clothing. I collected my
notes, placing them carefully about me. My heart beat
loudly. I could not check its pulsations. Certainly my
trouble and agitation would have betrayed me to Captain
Nemo's eyes. What was he doing at this moment? I
LAST WORDS OF CAPTAIN NEMO 275
listened at the door of his room. I heard steps. Caplain
Nemo was there. He had not gone to rest. At every
moment I expected to see him appear and ask me \vhy I
wished to fly. I was constantly on the alert. !My imagina-
tion magnified everything. The impression became at last
so poignant that I asked myself if it would not be better to
go to the captain's room, see him face to face, and brave
him with look and gesture.
It was the inspiration of a madman; fortunately I re-
sisted the desire, and stretched myself on my bed to quiet
my bodily agitation. My nerves were somewliat calmer^
but in my excited brain I saw over again all my existence
on board the Nautilus; every incident, either happy or un-
fortunate, which had happened since my disappearance from
the Abraham Lincoln — the submarine hunt, the Torres
Straits, the savages of Papua, the running ashore, the coral
cemetery, the passage of Suez, the island of Santorin, the
Cretan diver, \'igo Bay, Atlanta, the iceberg, the south
pole, the imprisonment in the ice, the fight among the
poulps, the storm in the Gulf Stream, the Avenger, and
the horrible scene of the vessel sunk with all her crew.
All these events passed before my eyes like scenes in a
drama. Then Captain Nemo seemed to grow enormously,
his features to assume superhuman proportions. He was
no longer my equal, but a man of the waters, the genie of
the sea.
It was then half-past nine. I held my head between my
hands to keep it from bursting. I closed my eyes. I would
not think any longer. There was another half-hour to
wait, another half-hour of a nightmare, which might drive
me mad.
At that moment I heard the distant strains of the organ,
a sad harmony to an undefinable chant, the wail of a soul
longing to break these earthly bonds. I listened with every
sense, scarcely breathing; plunged, like Captain Nemo, in
that musical ecstasy, which was drawing him in spirit to
the end of life.
Then a sudden thought terrified me. Captain Nemo had
left his room. He was in the saloon, which I must cross to
fly. There I should meet him for the last time. He would
see me, perhaps speak to me. A gesture of his might de-
stroy me, a single word chain me on board.
276 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
But ten was about to strike. The moment had now
come for me to leave my room and join my waiting com-
panions.
I must not hesitate, even if Captain Nemo himself should
rise before me. I opened my door carefully; and even
then, as it turned on its hinges, it seemed to me to make a
dreadful noise. Perhaps it only existed in my own
imagination.
I crept along the dark stairs of the Nautilus, stopping at
each step to check the beating of my heart. I reached the
door of the saloon, and opened it gently. It was plunged
in profound darkness. The strains of the organ sounded
faintly. Captain Nemo was there. He did not see me.
In the full light I do not think he would have noticed me,
so entirely was he absorbed in the ecstasy.
I crept along the carpet, avoiding the slightest sound
which might betray my presence. I was at least five min-
utes reaching the door, at the opposite side, opening into
the library.
I was going to open it, when a sigh from Captain Nemo
nailed me to the spot. I knew that he was rising. I could
even see him, for the light from the library came through
to the saloon. He came toward me silently, with his arms
crossed, gliding like a specter rather than walking. His
breast was swelling with sobs; and I heard him murmur
these words (the last which ever struck my ear) :
" Almighty God ! enough ! enough ! "
Was it a confession of remorse which thus escaped from
this man's conscience?
In desperation I rushed through the library, mounted the
central staircase, and following the upper flight reached
the boat. I crept through the opening, which had already
admitted my two companions.
Let us go ! let us go ! " I exclaimed.
Directly ! " replied the Canadian.
The orifice in the plates of the Nautilus was first closed,
and fastened down by means of a false key, with which
Ned Land had provided himself; the opening in the boat
was also closed. The Canadian began to loosen the bolts
which still held us to tHe submarine boat.
Suddenly a noise within was heard. Voices were an-
swering each other loudly. What was the matter? Had
tt
LAST WORDS OF CAPTAIN NEMO ^-j-j
they discovered our flight? I felt Ned Land shpping a
dagger into my hand.
" Yes," I nuirnnired, " we know how to die ! "
The Canadian had stopped in his work. But one word
many times repeated, a dreadful word, revealed the cause
of the agitation spreading on board the Nautilus. It was
not we the crew were looking after !
"The maelstrom! the maelstrom!" I exclaimed in
horror.
The maelstrom! Could a more dreadful word in a more
dreadful situation have sounded in our ears! We were
then upon the dangerous coast of Norway. Was the Nau-
tilus being drawn into this gulf at the moment our boat
was going to leave its sides? We knew that at the tide the
pent-up waters between the islands of Ferroe and Loffoden
rush with irresistible violence, forming a whirlpool from
which no vessel ever escapes. From every point of the
horizon enormous waves were meeting, forming a gulf
justly called the " Navel of the Ocean," whose power of
attraction extends to a distance of twelve miles. There,
not only vessels, but whales, are sacrificed, as well as white
bears from the northern regions.
It is thither that the Nautilus, voluntarily or involun-
tarily, had been run by the captain.
It was describing a spiral, the circumference of which
was lessening by degrees, and the boat, which was still
fastened to its side, was carried along with giddy speed. I
felt that sickly giddiness which arises from long-continued
whirling round.
We were in dread. Our horror was at its height, circu-
lation had stopped, all nervous influence was annihilated,
and we were covered with cold sweat, like a sweat of
agony! And what noise around our frail bark. What
roarings repeated by the echo miles away! What an up-
roar was that of the waters broken on tlie sharp rocks at
the bottom, where the hardest bodies are crushed, and trees
torn away, " with all the fur rubbed off," according to the
Norwegian phrase!
What a situation to be in! We rocked frightfully. The
Nautilus defended itself like a human being. Its steel
muscles cracked. Sometimes it seemed to stand upright,
and we with it!
278 TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES
" We must hold on," said Ned, " and look after the bolts.
We may still be saved if we stick to the Nautilus "
He had not finished the words when we heard a crashing
noise, the bolts gave way, and the boat, torn from its
groove, was hurled like a stone from a sling into the midst
of the whirlpool.
My head struck on a piece of iron, and with the violent
shock I lost all consciousness.
CHAPTER XXni
CONCLUSION
Thus ends the voyage under the seas. What passed
during that night — how the boat escaped from the eddies
of the maelstrom, how Ned Land, Conseil, and myself ever
came out of the gulf — I cannot tell.
But when I returned to consciousness, I was lying in a
fisherman's hut, on the Loffoden Isles. My two compan-
ions, safe and sound, were near me holding my hands. We
embraced each other heartily.
At that moment we could not think of returning to
France. The means of communication between the north
of Norway and the south are rare, and I was therefore
obliged to wait for the steamboat running monthly from
Cape North.
And among the worthy people who have so kindly re-
ceived us I revise my record of these adventures once more.
Not a fact has been omitted, not a detail exaggerated. It
is a faithful narrative of this incredible expedition in an
element inaccessible to man, but to which Progress will
one day open a road.
Shall I be believed? I do not know. And it matters
little, after all. What I now afiirm is, that I have a right
to speak of these seas, under which, in less than ten months,
I have crossed 20,000 leagues in that submarine tour of the
world which has revealed so many wonders.
But what has become of the NaiitUus? Did it resist the
pressure of the maelstrom? Does Captain Nemo still live?
And does he still follow under the ocean those frightful
retaliations? Or did he stop after that last hecatomb?
Will the waves one day carry to him this manuscript
CONCLUSION 279
containing the history of his Hfe? Shall I ever know the
name of this man? Will the missing vessel tell us by its
nationality that of Captain Nemo?
I hope so. And I also hope that his powerful vessel has
conquered the sea at its most terrible gulf, and that the
Nautilus has survived where so many other vessels have
been lost! If it be so, if Captain Nemo still inhabits the
ocean, his adopted country, may hatred be appeased in
that savage heart! May the contemplation of so many
wonders extinguish forever the spirit of vengeance! May
the judge disappear, and the philosopher continue the peace-
ful exploration of the sea! If his destiny be strange, it is
also sublime. Have I not understood it myself? Have
I not lived ten months of this unnatural life? And to the
question asked by Ecclesiastes 3,000 years ago, " That
which is far off and exceeding deep, who can find it out? "
two men alone of all now living have the right to give an
answer :
Captain Nemo and Myself.
THE END
The Mysterious Island
Dropped From the Clouds
The Mysterious Island
Dropped From the Clouds
CHAPTER I
VOICES IN THE AIR
RE we rising again?" "No. On the con-
A • trary." "Are we descending?" "Worse
J\^ j than that, Captain! we are faUing!" "For
Heaven's sake heave out the ballast ! "
"There! the last sack is empty!" Does
the balloon rise? " " No! " " I hear a noise
like the dashing of waves!" "The sea is below the car!
It cannot be more than 500 feet from us!" " Overboard
with every weight! Everything!"
Such were the loud and startling words which resounded
through the air, above the vast watery desert of the Pacific,
about four o'clock in the evening of March 23rd, 1865.
Few can possibly have forgotten the terrible storm from
the northeast, in the middle of the equinox of that year.
The tempest raged without intermission from the i8th to
the 26th of March. Its ravages were terrible in America,
Europe, and Asia, covering a width of eighteen hundred
miles, and extending obliquely to the equator from the
thirty-fifth north parallel to the fortieth south parallel.
Towns were overthrown, forests uprooted, coasts devas-
tated by the mountains of water which were precipitated
on them, vessels cast on the shore, which the published
accounts numbered by hundreds, whole districts leveled
by waterspouts which destroyed everything they passed
over, several thousand people crushed on land or drowned
at sea; such were the traces of its fury, left by this devas-
tating tempest. It surpassed in disasters those which so
frightfully ravaged Havana and Guadaloupe, one on Octo-
ber 25th, 1810, the other on July 26th, 1825.
But while so many catastrophes were taking place on
land and at sea, a drama not less exciting was being en-
acted in the agitated air. In fact, a balloon, as a ball miglit
be carried on the summit of a waterspout, had been taken
2»3
284 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
into the circling movement of a column of air and had trav-
ersed space at the rate of ninety miles an hour, turning
round and round as if seized by some aerial maelstrom.
Beneath the lower point of the balloon swung a car, con-
taining five passengers, scarcely visible in the midst of the
thick vapor mingled with spray which hung over the sur-
face of the ocean.
Whence, it may be asked, had come that plaything of
the tempest? From what part of the world did it rise?
It surely could not have started during the storm. But
the storm has raged five days already, and the first symp-
toms were manifested on the i8th. It cannot be doubted
that the balloon came from a great distance, for it could
not have traveled less than two thousand miles in twenty-
four hours.
At any rate the passengers, destitute of all marks for
their guidance, could not have possessed the means of
reckoning the route traversed since their departure. It was
a remarkable fact that, although in the yery midst of the
furious tempest, they did not suffer from it. They were
thrown about and whirled round and round without feeling
the rotation in the slightest degree, or being sensible that
they were removed from a horizontal position.
Their eyes could not pierce through the thick mist which
had gathered beneath the car. Dark vapor was all around
them. Such was the density of the atmosphere that they
could not be certain whether it was day or night. No
reflection of light, no sound from inhabitated land, no roar-
ing of the ocean, could have reached them through the
obscurity, while suspended in those elevated zones. Their
rapid descent alone had informed them of the dangers which
they ran from the waves. However, the balloon, lightened
of heavy articles, such as ammunition, arms and provisions,
had risen into the higher layers of the atmosphere, to a
height of 4,500 feet. The voyagers, after having discovered
that the sea extended beneath them, and thinking the
dangers above less dreadful than those below, did not hesi-
tate to throw overboard even their most useful articles,
while they endeavored to lose no more of that fluid, the
life of their enterprise, which sustained them above the
abyss.
The night passed in the midst of alarms which would
VOICES IN THE AIR 285
have been death to less energetic souls. Again the day
appeared and with it the tempest began to moderate. From
the beginning of that day, the 24th of March, it showed
symptoms of abating. At dawn, some of the ligliter clouds
had risen into the more lofty regions of the air. In a few
hours the wind had changed from a hurricane to a fresh
breeze, that is to say, the rate of the transit of the atmos-
pheric layers was diminished by half. It was still what
sailors call " a close-reefed topsail breeze," but the com-
motion in the elements had not the less considerably dimin-
ished.
Towards eleven o'clock, the lower region of the air was
sensibly clearer. The atmosphere threw off that chilly
dampness which is felt after the passage of a great meteor.
The storm did not seem to have gone further to the west.
It appeared to have exhausted itself. Could it have passed
away in electric sheets, as is sometimes the case with regard
to the typhoons of the Indian Ocean?
But at the same time, it was also evident that the balloon
was again slowly descending with a regular movement. It
appeared as if it were, little by little, collapsing, and that its
case was lengthening and extending, passing from a spher-
ical to an oval form. Towards mid-day the balloon was
hovering above the sea at a height of only 2,000 feet. It
contained 50,000 cubic feet of gas, and, thanks to its capa-
city, it could maintain itself a long time in the air, although
it should reach a great altitude or might be thrown into a
horizontal position.
Perceiving their danger, the passengers cast away the last
articles which still weighed down the car, the few provisions
they had kept, everything, even to their pocket-knives, apd
one of them, having hoisted himself onto the circles which
united the cords of the net, tried to secure more firmly the
lower point of the balloon.
It was, however, evident to the voyagers that the gas
was failing, and that the balloon could no longer be sus-
tained in the higher regions. They must infallibly perish!
There was not a continent, nor even an island, visible
beneath them. The watery expanse did not present a
single speck of land, not a solid surface upon which their
anchor could hold.
It was the open sea, whose waves were still dashing with
286 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
tremendous violence ! It was the ocean, without any visible
limits, even for those whose gaze, from their command-
ing position, extended over a radius of forty miles. The
vast liquid plain, lashed without mercy by the storm, ap-
peared as if covered with herds of furious chargers, whose
white and disheveled crests were streaming in the wind.
No land was in sight, not a solitary ship could be seen.
It was necessary at any cost to arrest their downward
course, and to prevent the balloon from being engulfed in
the waves. The voyagers directed all their energies to
this urgent work. But, notwithstanding their efforts, the
balloon still fell, it was also suddenly overthrown, following
the direction of the wind, that is to say, from the north-
east to the southwest.
Frightful indeed was the situation of these unfortunate
men. They were evidently no longer masters of the ma-
chine. All their attempts were useless. The case of the
balloon collapsed more and more. The gas escaped without
any possibility of retaining it. Their descent was visibly
accelerated, and soon after mid-day the car hung within
600 feet of the ocean.
It was impossible to prevent the escape of gas, which
rushed through a large rent in the silk. By lightening the
car of all the articles which it contained, the passengers
had been able to prolong their suspension in the air for a
few hours. But the inevitable catastrophe could only be
retarded, and if land did not appear before night, voyagers,
car, and balloon must to a certainty vanish beneath the
waves. Two more hours passed and the balloon was
scarcely 400 feet above the water.
They now resorted to the only remaining expedient.
They were truly dauntless men, who knew how to look
death in the face. Not a single murmur escaped from
their lips. They were determined to struggle to the last
minute, to do anything to retard their fall. The car was
only a sort of willow basket, unable to float, and there was
not the slightest possibility of maintaining it on the surface
of the sea.
At that moment a loud voice, the voice of a man whose
heart was inaccessible to fear, was heard. To this voice
responded others not less determined. " Is everything
thrown out? " " No, here are still 2,000 dollars in gold."
VOICES IN THE AIR 287
A heavy bag immediately plunged into the sea. " Does
the balloon rise? " " A little, but it will not be long before
it falls again." "What still remains to be thrown out?"
" Nothing." " Yes ! the car ! " " Let us catch hold of the
net, and into the sea with the car."
This was, in fact, the last and only mode of lightening
the balloon. The ropes which held the car were cut, and
the balloon mounted 2,000 feet. The five voyagers hoisted
themselves into the net, and clung to the meshes, gazing at
the abyss.
The delicate sensibility of balloons is well known. It is
sufficient to throw out the lightest article to produce a
difference in its vertical position. The apparatus in the
air is like a balance of mathematical precision. It can be
thus easily understood that when it is lightened of any
considerable weight its movement will be impetuous and
sudden. So it happened on this occasion. But after being
suspended for an instant aloft, the balloon began to re-
descend, the gas escaping by the rent which it was impos-
sible to repair.
The men had done all that men could do. No human
efforts could save them now. They must trust to the mercy
of Him who rules the elements. At four o'clock the bal-
loon was only 500 feet above the surface of the water.
A loud barking was heard. A dog accompanied the
voyagers, and was held pressed close to his master in the
meshes of the net.
" Top has seen something," cried one of the men. Then
immediately a loud voice shouted, "Land! land!"
The balloon, which the wind still drove towards the
southwest, had since daybreak gone a considerable distance,
which might be reckoned by hundreds of miles, and a toler-
ably high land had, in fact, appeared in that direction.
But this land was still thirty miles off. It would not take
less than an hour to get to it, and then there was the chance
of falling to leeward.
An hour! Might not the balloon before that be emptied
of all the fluid it yet retained?
Such was the terrible question! The voyagers could
distinctly see that solid spot which they must reach at any
cost. They were ignorant of what it was, whether an
island or a continent, for they did not know to what part
288 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
of the world the hurricane had driven them. But they
must reach this land, whether inhabited or desolate, whether
hospitable or not.
It was evident that the balloon could no longer support
itself! Several times already had the crests of the enor-
mous billows licked the bottom of the net, making it still
heavier, and the ballon only half rose, like a bird with a
wounded wing. Half an hour later the land was not more
than a mile off, but the balloon, exhausted, flabby, hanging
in great folds, had gas in its upper part alone. The voy-
agers, clinging to the net, were still too heavy for it, and
soon, half plunged in the sea, they were beaten by the furi-
ous waves. The balloon-case bulged out again, and the
wind, taking it, drove it along like a vessel. Might it not
possibly thus reach the land?
But, when only two hundred fathoms off, terrible cries
resounded from four pairs of lungs at once. The balloon,
which had appeared as if it would never rise again, sud-
denly made an unexpected bound, after having been struck
by a tremendous sea. As if it had been at that instant re-
lieved of another part of its weight, it mounted to a height
of 1,500 feet. There it met a current of wind, which in-
stead of taking it directly to the coast, carried it in a nearly
parallel direction. Two minutes later, it reapproached
obliquely, and finally it fell on a sandy beach, out of the
reach of the waves.
The voyagers, aiding each other, managed to disengage
themselves from the meshes of the net. The balloon, re-
lieved from their weight, was taken by the wind, and like
a wounded bird which revives for an instant, disappeared
into space.
But the car had contained five passengers, with a dog, and
the balloon only left four on the shore.
The missing person had evidently been swept off by the
sea, which had struck the net, and it was owing to this
circumstance that the lightened balloon had risen the last
time, before it reached the land. Scarcely had the four
castaways set foot on firm ground, than they all, thinking
of the absent one, simultaneously exclaimed, " Perhaps he
will try to swim to land! Let us save him! let us save
him!"
Y. V Verne
CHAPTER II
AN INCIDENT IN THE WAR OF SECESSION
Those whom the hurricane had just thrown on this coast
were neither aeronauts by profession nor amateurs. They
were prisoners of war whose boldness had induced them to
escape in this extraordinary manner.
A hundred times they had ahuost perished. A hundred
times they had almost fallen from their torn balloon into the
depths of the ocean. But Heaven had reserved them for a
strange destiny, and after having, on the 20th of March,
escaped from Richmond, besieged by the troops of General
Ulysses Grant, they found themselves seven thousand miles
from the capital of Virginia, which was the principal strong-
hold of the south, during the terrible war of Secession.
Their aerial voyage had lasted five days.
The curious circumstances which led to the escape of the
prisoners were as follows: That same year, in the month
of February, 1865, in one of the coups-de-main by which
General Grant attempted, though in vain, to possess him-
self of Richmond, several of his officers fell into the power
of the enemy and were detained in the town. One of the
most distinguished was Captain Cyrus Harding. He was a
native of Massachusetts, a first-class engineer, to whom the
government had confided, during the war, the direction of
the railways, which were so important at that time. A
true Northerner, thin, bony, lean, about forty-five years of
age; his close-cut hair and his beard, of which he only kept
a thick mustache, were already getting gray. He had one
of those finely-developed heads which appear made to be
struck on a medal, piercing eyes, a serious mouth, the
physiognomy of a clever man of the military school. He
was one of those engineers who began by handling the
hammer and pickax, like generals who first act as common
soldiers. Besides mental power, he also possessed great
manual dexterity. His muscles exhibited remarkable
proofs of tenacity. A man of action as well as a man of
thought, all he did was without efTort to one of his vigorous
and sanguine temperament. Learned, clear-headed, and
practical, he fulfilled in all emergencies those three condi-
tions which united ought to insure human success, — activity
of mind and body, impetuous wishes, and powerful will.
He might have taken for his motto that of William of
289
290 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
Orange in the 17th century: "I can undertake and perse-
vere even without hope of success." Cyrus Harding was
courage personified. He had been in all the battles of the
war. After having begun as a volunteer in Illinois, under
Ulysses Grant, he fought at Paduah, Belmont, Pittsburg
Landing, at the siege of Corinth, Port Gibson, Black River,
Chattanooga, Wilderness, Potomac, everywhere and vali-
antly, a soldier worthy of the general who said, " I never
count my dead ! " And hundreds of times Captain Harding
had almost been among those who were not counted by the
terrible Grant; but in these combats where he never spared
himself, fortune favored him till the moment when he was
wounded and taken prisoner on the field of battle near
Richmond. At the same time and on the same day another
important personage fell into the hands of the Southerners.
This was no other than Gideon Spilett, a reporter for the
New York Herald, who had been ordered to follow the
changes of the war in the midst of the northern armies.
Gideon Spilett was one of that race of indomitable Eng-
lish and American chroniclers, like Stanley and others, who
stop at nothing to obtain exact information, and transmit
it to their journal in the shortest possible time. The news-
papers of the Union, such as the Neiv York Herald, are
actual powers in the state, and their reporters are their
representatives. Gideon Spilett ranked among the first of
those reporters : a man of great merit, energetic, prompt and
ready for anything, full of ideas, having traveled over the
whole world, soldier and artist, enthusiastic in council, reso-
lute in action, caring neither for trouble, fatigue, nor dan-
ger, when in pursuit of information, for himself first, and
then for his journal, a perfect treasury of knowledge on all
sorts of curious subjects of the unpublished, of the un-
known, and of the impossible. He was one of those intrepid
observers who write under fire, " reporting " amongst bul-
lets, and to whom every danger is welcome.
He had been in all the battles, in the first rank, revolver
in one hand, note-book in the other ; grape-shot never made
his pencil tremble. He did not fatigue the wires with in-
cessant telegrams, like those who speak when they have
nothing to say, but each of his notes, short, decisive, and
clear, threw light on some important point. Besides he was
not wanting in humor. It was he who, after the battle of
AN INCIDENT 291
the Black River, determined at any cost to keep other re-
porters ^from the telegraph office; so after having announced
to his journal the result of the battle, he telegraphed for
two hours the first chapters of the Bible. It cost the New
York Herald two thousand dollars, but the New York
Herald published the first intelligence.
Gideon Spilett was tall. He was rather more than forty
years of age. Light whiskers bordering on red surrounded
his face. His eye was steady, lively, rapid in its changes.
It was the eye of a man accustomed to take in at a glance
all the details of a scene. Well built, he was inured to all
climates, like a bar of steel hardened in cold water.
For ten years Gideon Spilett had been the reporter of
the New York Herald, which he enriched by his letters and
drawings, for he was as skillful in the use of the pencil as of
the pen. When he was captured, he was in the act of
making a description and sketch of the battle. The last
words in his note-book were these : " A Southern rifleman
has just taken aim at me, but " The Southerner not-
withstanding missed Gideon Spilett, who, with his usual
fortune, came out of this affair without a scratch.
Cyrus Harding and Gideon Spilett, who did not know
each other except by reputation, had both been carried to
Richmond. The engineer's wounds rapidly healed, and it
was during his convalesence that he made acquaintance
with the reporter. The two men then learned to appreciate
each other. Soon their common aim had but one object,
that of escaping, rejoining Grant's army, and fighting to-
gether in the ranks of the Federals.
The two Americans had from the first determined to
seize every chance; but although they were allowed to
wander at liberty in the town, Richmond was so strictly
guarded, that escape appeared impossible. In the mean-
while Captain Harding was rejoined by a servant who was
devoted to him in life and in death. This intrepid fellow
was a negro born on the engineer's estate, of a slave father
and mother, but to whom Cyrus, who was an Abolitionist
from conviction and heart, had long since given his free-
dom. The once slave, though free, would not leave his
master. He would have died for him. He was a man of
about thirty, vigorous, active, clever, intelligent, gentle, and
calm, sometimes naive, always merry, obliging, and honest.
292 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
His name was Nebuchadnezzar, but he only answered to
the famihar abreviation of Neb.
When Neb heard that his master had been made prisoner,
he left Massachusetts without hesitating an instant, ar-
rived before Richmond, and by dint of stratagem and
shrewdness, after having risked his life twenty times over,
managed to penetrate into the besieged town. The pleasure
of Harding on seeing his servant, and the joy of Neb at
finding his master, can scarcely be described.
But though Neb had been able to make his way into
Richmond, it was quite another thing to get out again, for
the Northern prisoners were very strictly watched. Some
extraordinary opportunity w'as needed to make the attempt
with any chance of success, and this opportunity not only
did not present itself, but was very difficult to find.
Meanwhile Grant continued his energetic operations.
The victory of Petersburg had been very dearly bought.
His forces, united to those of Butler, had as yet been un-
successful before Richmond, and nothing gave the prisoners
any hope of a speedy deliverance. The reporter, to whom
his tedious captivity did not offer a single incident worthy
of note, could stand it no longer. His usually active mind
was occupied with one sole thought — how he might get
out of Richmond at any cost. Several times had he even
made the attempt, but was stopped by some unsurmountable
obstacle.
H the prisoners were anxious to escape and join Grant's
army, certain of the besieged were no less anxious to reach
the Southern forces in the field. Amongst them was one
Jonathan Forster, a determined Southerner. The truth
was, that if the prisoners of the Secessionists could not leave
the town, neither could the Secessionists themselves, while
the Northern army invested it. The Governor of Rich-
mond for a long time had been unable to communicate with
General Lee, and he very much wished to make known to
him the situation of the town, so as to hasten the march
of the army to their relief. Thus Jonathan Forster accord-
ingly conceived the idea of rising in a balloon, so as to pass
over the besieging lines, and in that way reach the Seces-
sionist camp.
The Governor authorized the attempt. A balloon was
manufactured and placed at the disposal of Forster, who
AN INCIDENT 293
was to be accompanied by five other persons. They were
furnished with arms in case they might have to defend
themselves when they ahghted, and provisions in the event
of their aerial voyage being prolonged. Tlie departure of
the balloon was fixed for the i8th of March. It should be
effected during the night, with a northwest wind of moder-
ate force, and the aeronauts calculated that they would
reach General Lee's camp in a few hours.
But this northwest wind was not a simple breeze. On
the iSth it was evident that it was changing to a hurricane.
The tempest soon became such that Forstcr's departure was
deferred, for it was impossible to risk the balloon and those
whom it carried in the midst of the furious elements.
The balloon, inflated on the great square of Richmond,
was ready to depart on the first abatement of the wind,
and, as ma}^ be supposed, the impatience among the be-
sieged to see the storm moderate was very great.
The i8th and 19th of March passed without any altera-
tion in the weather. There was even great difficulty in
keeping the balloon fastened to the ground, as the squalls
dashed it furiously about. The night of the 19th passed,
but the next morning the storm blew w^ith redoubled force.
The departure of the balloon was impossible.
On that day the engineer, Cyrus Harding, w^as accosted
in one of the streets of Richmond by a person whom he did
not in the least know\ This was a sailor named Pencroft,
a man of about thirty-five or forty years of age, strongly
built, very sunburnt, and possessed of a pair of bright
sparkling eyes and a remarkably good physiognomy. Pen-
croft was an American from the North, who had sailed all
the ocean over, and who had gone through every possible
and almost impossible adventure that a being with two feet
and no wings could encounter. It is needless to say that
he was a bold, dashing fellow, ready to dare anything and
was astonished at nothing. Pencroft at the beginning of
the year had gone to Richmond on business, with a young
boy of fifteen from New Jersey, son of a former captain, an
orphan, whom he loved as if he had been his own child.
Not having been able to leave the town before the first
operations of the siege, he found himself shut up, to his
great disgust; but, not accustomed to succumb to difficulties,
he resolved to escape by some means or other. He knew the
294 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
engineer-officer by reputation ; he knew with what impa-
tience that determined man chafed under his restraint. On
this day he did not, therefore, hesitate to accost him, saying,
without circumlocution, " Have you had enough of Rich-
mond, captain ? "
The engineer looked fixedly at the sailor who added in a
low voice, " Captain Harding, v/ill you try to escape? "
" When? " asked the engineer quickly, and it was evident
that this question was uttered without consideration, for
he had not yet examined the stranger who addressed him.
But after having with a penetrating eye observed the open
face of the sailor, he was convinced that he had before him
an honest man.
" Who are you ? " he asked briefly.
Pencroft made himself known.
" Well," replied Harding, " and in what way do you
propose to escape? "
" By that lazy balloon which is left there doing nothing,
and which looks to me as if it was waiting on purpose for
us "
There was no necessity for the sailor to finish his sen-
tence. The engineer understood him at once. He seized
Pencroft by the arm, and dragged him to his house. There
the sailor developed his project, which was indeed ex-
tremely simple. They risked nothing but their lives in its
execution. The hurricane was in all its violence, it is true,
but so clever and daring an engineer as Cyrus Harding,
knew perfectly well how to manage a balloon. Had he
himself been as well acquainted with the art of sailing in the
air as he was with the navigation of a ship, Pencroft would
not have hesitated to set out, of course taking his young
friend Herbert with him ; for, accustomed to brave the fierc-
est tempests of the ocean, he was not to be hindered on
account of the hurricane.
Captain Harding had listened to the sailor without say-
ing a word, but his eyes shone with satisfaction. Here
was the long-sought opportunity, — he was not a man to
let it pass. The plan was feasible, though, it must be con-
fessed, dangerous in the extreme. In the night, in spite of
their guards, they might approach the balloon, slip into the
car, and cut the cords which held it. There was no doubt
that they might be killed, but on the other hand they might
AN INCIDENT 295
succeed, and without this storm — Without this storm the
balloon would have started already and the looked-for op-
portunity would not have presented itself.
" I am not alone! " said Harding at last.
"How many people do you wish to bring with you?"
asked the sailor.
" Two; my friend Spilett, and my ser^^ant Neb."
"That will be three." replied Pencroft; "and with Her-
bert and me five. But the balloon will hold si.x "
" That will be enough, we will go," answered Harding
in a firm voice. This " we " included Spilett, for the re-
porter, as his friend well knew, was not a man to draw
back, and when the project was communicated to him he
approved of it unreservedly. What astonished him was that
so simple an idea had not occurred to him before. As to
Neb, he followed his master wherever his master wished
to go.
" This evening, then," said Pencroft, " we will all meet
out there."
" This evening, at ten o'clock," replied Captain Harding;
"and Heaven grant that the storm does not abate before
our departure."
Pencroft took leave of the two friends, and returned to
his lodging, where young Herbert Brown had remained.
The courageous boy knew of the sailor's plan, and it was
not without anxiety that he awaited the result of the pro-
posal being made to the engineer. Thus five determined
persons were about to abandon themselves to tlie mercy of
the tempestuous elements !
No! the storm did not abate, and neither Jonathan Fors-
ter nor his companions dreamt of confronting it in that
frail car.
It would be a terrible journey; but the engineer only
feared one thing. The balloon, held to the ground and
dashed about by the wind might be torn to shreds before
the time to start. For several hours he roamed round the
nearly deserted square, surveying the apparatus. Pencroft
did the same on his side, his hands in his pockets, yawning
now and then like a man who did not know how to kill the
time, but really dreading, like his friend, either the escape
or destruction of the balloon. Evening arrived. The night
was dark in the extreme. Thick mists passed like clouds
296 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
close to the ground. Rain fell mingled with snow. It was
very cold. It seemed as if the violent storm had produced
a truce between the besiegers and the besieged, and that the
cannon was silenced by the louder detonations of the storm.
The streets of the town were deserted. It had not even
appeared necessary in that horrible weather to place a guard
in the square, in the midst of which plunged the balloon.
Everything favored the departure of the prisoners. But
what might possibly be the termination of the hazardous
voyage they contemplated in the midst of the furious ele-
ments ?
" Dirty weather ! " exclaimed Pencroft, fixing his hat
firmly on his head with a blow of his fist; " but pshaw, we
shall succeed all the same ! "
At half-past nine, Harding, and his companions glided
from different directions into the square, which the gas-
lamps, extinguished by the wind, had left in total obscurity.
Even the enormous balloon, almost beaten to the ground,
could not be seen. Independently of the sacks of ballast,
to which the cords of the net were fastened, the car was
held by a strong cable passed through a ring in the pave-
ment. The five prisoners met by the car. They had not
been perceived, and such was the darkness that they could
not even see one another.
Without speaking a word, Harding, Spilett, Neb, and
Herbert, took their places in the car, whilst Pencroft by the
engineer's order detached successively the bags of ballast.
It was the work of a few minutes only, and the sailor re-
joined his companions.
The balloon was then only held by the cable, and the
engineer had nothing to do but to give the word.
At that moment a dog sprang with a bound into the car.
It was Top, a favorite of the engineer. The faithful crea-
ture, having broken his chain, had followed his master.
He, however, fearing that its additional weight might im-
pede their ascent, wished to send away the animal.
" One more will make but little difference, poor beast! "
exclaimed Pencroft, heaving out two bags of sand, and as
he spoke letting go the cable; the balloon ascending in an
oblique direction, disappeared, after having dashed the car
against two chimneys, which it threw down as it swept by
them.
AN INCIDENT 297
Then, indeed, the full rage of the hurricane was exhibited
to the voyagers. During the night the engineer could not
dream of descending, and when day broke, even a glimpse of
the earth below was intercepted by fog.
Five days had passed when a partial clearing allowed
them to see the wide extending ocean beneatli their feet,
now lashed into the maddest fury by the gale.
Our readers will recollect what befell these five daring
individuals who set out on their hazardous expedition in the
balloon on the 20th of March. Five days afterwards four
of them were thrown on a desert coast, seven thousand
miles from their country ! But one of their number was
missing, the man who was to be their guide, their leading
spirit, the engineer. Captain Harding! The instant they
had recovered their feet, they all hurried to tlie beach in the
hopes of rendering him assistance.
CHAPTER III
A DREADFUL NIGHT
The engineer, the meshes of the net having given way,
had been carried off by a wave. His dog also had disap-
peared. The faithful animal had voluntarily leaped out
to help his master. " Forward," cried the reporter; and all
four, Spilett, Herbert, Pencroft, and Neb, forgetting their
fatigue, began their search. Poor Neb shed bitter tears,
giving way to despair at the thoughts of having lost the
only being he loved on earth.
Only two minutes had passed from the time when Cyrus
Harding disappeared to the moment when his companions
set foot on the ground. They had hopes therefore of arriv-
ing in time to save him. " Let us look for him ! let us look
for him ! " cried Neb.
"Yes, Neb," replied Gideon Spilett, "and we will find
him too ! "
"Living, I trust!"
"StilHiving!"
" Can he swim? " asked Pencroft.
" Yes," replied Neb, " and besides. Top is there."
The sailor, observing the heavy surf on the shore, shook
his head.
298 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
The erxgineer had disappeared to the north of the shore,
and nearly half a mile from the place where the castaways
had landed. The nearest point of the beach he could reach
was thus fully that distance off.
It was then nearly six o'clock. N thick fog made the
night very dark. The castaways proceeded towards the
north of the land on which chance had thrown them, an
unknown region, the geographical situation of which they
could not even guess. They were walking upon a sandy
soil, mingled with stones, which appeared destitute of any
sort of vegetation. The ground, very unequal and rough,
was in some places perfectly riddled with holes, making
walking extremely painful. From these holes escaped every
minute great birds of clumsy flight, which flew in all direc-
tions. Others, more active, rose in flocks and passed in
clouds over their heads. The sailor thought he recognized
gulls and cormorants, whose shrill cries rose above the
roaring of the sea.
From time to time the castaways stopped and shouted,
then listened for some response from the ocean, for they
thought that if the engineer had landed, and they had been
near to the place, they would have heard the barking of the
dog Top, even should Harding himself have been unable to
give any sign of existence. They stopped to listen, but
no sound arose above the roaring of the waves and the
dashing of the surf. The little band then continued their
march forward, searching into every hollow of the shore.
After walking for twenty minutes, the four castaways
were suddenly brought to a standstill by the sight of foam-
ing billows close to their feet. The solid ground ended
here. The}'' found themselves at the extremity of a sharp
point on which the sea broke furiously.
" It is a promontory," said the sailor ; " we must retrace
our steps, holding towards the right, and we shall thus gain
the mainland."
" But if he is there," said Neb, pointing to the ocean,
whose waves shone of a snowy white in the darkness.
" Well, let us call again," and all uniting their voices, they
gave a vigorous shout, but there came no reply. They
waited for a lull, then began again; still no reply.
The castaways accordingly returned, following the oppo-
site side of the promontory, over a soil equally sandy and
A DREADFUL NIGHT 299
rugged. However, Pencroft observed that the shore was
more equal, that the ground rose, and he declared that it
was joined by a long slope to a hill, whose massive front he
thought that he could see looming indistinctly through the
mist. The birds were less numerous on this part of the
shore ; the sea was also less tumultuous, and they observed
that the agitation of the waves was diminished. The noise
of the surf was scarcely heard. This side of the promontory
evidently formed a semi-circular bay, which the sharp point
sheltered from the breakers of the open sea. But to follow
this direction was to go south, exactly opposite to that part
of the coast where Harding might have landed. After a
walk of a mile and a half, the shore presented no curve
which would permit them to return to the north. This
promontory, of which they had turned the point, must be at-
tached to the mainland. The castaways, although their
strength was nearly exhausted, still marched courageously
forward, hoping every moment to meet with a sudden angle
which would set them in the first direction. What was
their disappointment, when, after trudging nearly two
miles, having reached an elevated point composed of slip-
pery rocks, they found themselves again stopped by the sea.
" We are on an islet," said Pencroft, " and we have sur-
veyed it from one extremity to the other."
The sailor was right; they had been thrown, not on a
continent, not even on an island, but on an islet not more
than two miles in length, and even less in breadth.
Was this barren spot the desolate refuge of sea-birds,
strewn with stones and destitute of vegetation, attached to
a more important archipelago? It was impossible to say.
When the voyagers from their car saw the land through
the mist, they had not been able to reconnoiter it sut'hciently.
However, Pencroft, accustomed with his sailor eyes to
pierce through the gloom, was almost certain that he could
clearly distinguish in the west confused masses which in-
dicated an elevated coast. But they could not in the dark
determine whether it was a single island, or connected with
others. They could not leave it either, as the sea sur-
rounded them; they must therefore put off till the next day
their search for the engineer, from whom, alas! not a single
cry had reached them to show that he was still in existence.
" The silence of our friend proves nothing," said the re-
300 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
porter. " Perhaps he has fainted or is wounded, and un-
able to reply directly, so we will not despair."
The reporter then proposed to light a fire on a point of
the islet, which would serve as a signal to the engineer.
But they searched in vain for wood or dry brambles; noth-
ing but sand and stones were to be found. The grief of
Neb and his companions, who were all strongly attached
to the intrepid Harding, can be better pictured than de-
scribed. It was too evident that they were powerless to
help him. They must wait with what patience they could
for daylight. Either the engineer had been able to save
himself, and had already found a refuge on some point of
the coast, or he was lost forever! The long and painful
hours passed by. The cold was intense. The castaways
suffered cruelly, but they scarcely perceived it. They did
not even think of taking a minute's rest. Forgetting every-
thing but their chief, hoping or wishing to hope on, they
continued to walk up and down on this sterile spot, always
returning to its northern point, where they could approach
nearest to the scene of the catastrophe. They listened,
they called, and then uniting their voices, they endeavored
to raise even a louder shout than before, which would be
transmitted to a great distance. The wind had now fallen
almost to a calm, and the noise of the sea began also to
subside. One of Neb's shouts even appeared to produce
an echo. Herbert directed Pencroft's attention to it, add-
ing, " That proves that there is a coast to the west, at no
great distance."
The sailor nodded; besides, his eyes could not deceive
him. If he had discovered land, however indistinct it might
appear, land was sure to be there. But that distant echo
was the only response produced by Neb's shouts, while a
heavy gloom hung over all the island.
The sky began clearing little by little. Towards mid-
night the stars shone out, and if the engineer had been
there with his companions he would have remarked that
these stars did not belong to the Northern hemisphere.
The polar star was not visible, the constellations were not
those which they had been accustomed to see in the United
States; the Southern Cross glittered brightly in the sky.
The niglit passed av/ay. Towards five o'clock in the
morning of the 25th of March, the dawn began to lighten;
A DREADFUL NIGHT 301
but the horizon still remained dark, and with daybreak a
thick mist rose from the sea, so that the eye could scarcely
penetrate beyond twenty feet or so from where they stood.
The castaways could distinguish nothing around them.
Whilst the gaze of the reporter and Neb were cast upon the
ocean, the sailor and Herbert looked eagerly for the coast
in the west. But not a speck of land was visible. " Never
mind," said Pencroft, " though I do not see the land, I feel
it ... it is there . . . there ... as sure as the fact that
we are no longer at Richmond."
The fog was not long in rising. It was only a fine-weather
mist. A hot sun soon penetrated to the surface of the
island. About half-past six, three-quarters of an hour after
sunrise, the mist became more transparent. It grew thicker
above, but cleared away below. Soon the isle appeared
as if it had descended from a cloud, then the sea showed
itself around them, spreading far away towards the east, but
bounded on the west by an abrupt and precipitous coast.
Yes! the land was there. Their safety was at least pro-
visionally insured. The islet and the coast were separated
by a channel about half a mile in breadth, through which
rushed an extremely rapid current.
However, one of the castaways, following the impulse
of his heart, immediately threw himself into the current,
without consulting his companions, without saying a single
word. It was Neb. He was in haste to be on the other
side, and to climb towards the north. It had been im-
possible to hold him back. Pencroft called him in vain.
The reporter prepared to follow him, but Pencroft stopped
him. "Do you want to cross the channel?" he asked.
"Yes," replied Spilett. "All right!" said the seaman;
" wait a bit; Neb is well able to carry help to his master.
If we venture into the channel, we risk being carried into
the open sea by the current, which is running very strong;
but, if I'm not wrong, it is ebbing. See. the tide is going
down over the sand. Let us have patience, and at low-
water it is possible we may find a fordable passage." " You
are right," replied the reporter, " we will not separate more
than we can help."
During this time Neb was struggling vigorously against
the current. He was crossing in an oblique direction. His
black shoulders could be seen emerging at each stroke.
302 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
He was carried down very quickly, but he also made way
towards the shore. It took more than half an hour to cross
from the islet to the land, and he reached the shore several
hundred feet from the place opposite which he had started.
Landing at the foot of a high wall of granite, he shook
himself vigorously; and then, setting off running, soon dis-
appeared behind a rocky point, which projected to nearly
the height of the northern extremity of the islet.
Neb's companions had watched his daring attempt with
painful anxiety, and when he was out of sight, they fixed
their attention on the land where their hope of safety lay,
whilst eating some shell-fish with which the sand was
strewn. It was a wretched repast, but still it was better
than nothing. The opposite coast formed one vast bay,
terminating on the south by a very sharp point, which was
destitute of all vegetation, and was of a very wild aspect.
This point abutted on the shore in a grotesque outline of
high granite rocks. Towards the north, on the contrary,
the bay widened, and a more rounded coast appeared, trend-
ing from the southwest to the northeast, and terminating
in a slender cape. The distance between these two ex-
tremities, which made the bow of the bay, was about eight
miles. Half a mile from the shore rose the islet, which
somewhat resembled the carcass of a gigantic whale. Its
extreme breadth was not more than a quarter of a mile.
Opposite the islet, the beach consisted first of sand, cov-
ered with black stones, which were now appearing little by
little above the retreating tide. The second level was sepa-
rated by a perpendicular granite cliff, terminated at the top
by an unequal edge at a height of at least 300 feet. It
continued thus for three miles, rising suddenly on the right
into a precipice which looked as if cut by the hand of man.
On the left, above the promontory, this irregular and jagged
cliff descended by a long slope of conglomerate rocks till it
mingled with the ground of the southern point. On the up-
per plateau of the coast not a tree appeared. It was a flat
table-land like that above Cape Town at the Cape of Good
Hope, but of reduced proportions; at least so it appeared
seen from the islet. However, verdure was not wanting to
the right beyond the precipice. They could easily dis-
tinguish a confused mass of great trees, which extended be-
yond the limits of their view. This verdure relieved the eye,
A DREADFUL NIGHT 303
so long wearied by the continued ranges of granite. Lastly,
beyond and above the plateau, in a northwesterly direction
and at a distance of at least seven miles, glittered a white
summit which reflected the sun's rays. It was that of a
lofty mountain, capped with snow.
The question could not at present be decided whether
this land formed an island, or whether it belonged to a
continent. But on beholding the convulsed masses heaped
up on the left, no geologist would have hesitated to give
them a volcanic origin, for they were unquestionably the
work of subterranean convulsions.
Gideon Spilett, Pencroft, and Herbert attentively exam-
ined this land, on which they might perhaps have to live
many long years; on which indeed they might even die,
should it be out of the usual track of vessels, as was too
likely to be the case.
" Well," asked Herbert, "what do you say, Pencroft?"
" There is some good and some bad, as in everything,"
replied the sailor. " We shall see. But now the ebb is
evidently making. In three hours we will attempt the
passage, and once on the other side we will try to get out
of this scrape, and I hope may find the captain." Pencroft
was not wrong in his anticipations. Three hours later at
low tide, the greater part of the sand forming the bed of
the channel was uncovered. Between the islet and the coast
there only remained a narrow channel which would no doubt
be easy to cross.
About ten o'clock, Gideon Spilett and his companions
stripped themselves of their clothes, which they placed in
bundles on their heads, and then ventured into the water,
which was not more than five feet deep. Herbert, for
whom it was too deep, swam like a fish, and got through
capitally. All three arrived without difficulty on the oppo-
site shore. Quickly drying themselves in the sun, they put
on their clothes, which they had preserved from contact
with the water, and sat down to take counsel together what
to do next.
CHAPTER IV
THE CHIMNEYS
All at once the reporter sprang up, and telling the sailor
that he would rejoin them at that same place, he climbed
the cliff in the direction which the negro Neb had taken a
few hours before. Anxiety hastened his steps, for he longed
to obtain news of his friend, and he soon disappeared round
an angle of the cliff. Herbert greatly wished to accompany
him.
" Stop here, my boy," said the sailor; "we have to pre-
pare an encampment, and to try and find rather better grub
than these shell-fish. Our friends will want something
when they come back. There is work for everybody."
" I am ready," replied Herbert.
" All right," said the sailor; " that will do. We must set
about it regularly. We are tired, cold, and hungry; there-
fore we must have shelter, fire, and food. There is wood
in the forest, and eggs in nests; we have only to find a
house."
" Very well," returned Herbert, " I will look for a cave
amongst the rocks, and I shall be sure to discover some hole
into which we can creep."
" All right," said Pencrof t ; " go on, my boy."
They both walked to the foot of the enormous wall over
the beach, far from which the tide had now retreated ; but
instead of going towards the north, they went southwards.
Pencroft had remarked, several hundred feet from the place
at which they landed, a narrow cutting, out of which he
thought a river or stream might issue. Now, on the one
hand it was important to settle themselves in the neighbor-
hood of a good stream of water, and on the other it was
possible that the current had thrown Cyrus Harding on the
shore there.
The cliff, as has been said, rose to a height of three hun-
dred feet, but the mass was unbroken throughout, and
even at its base, scarcely washed by the sea, it did not offer
the smallest fissure which would serve as a dwelling. It was
a perpendicular wall of very hard granite, which even the
waves had not worn away. Towards the summit fluttered
myriads of sea-fowl, and especially those of the web-footed
species, with long, flat, pointed beaks — a clamorous tribe,
bold in the presence of man, who probably for the first time
V. V Verne jq^
THE CHIMNEYS 305
thus invaded their domains. Pencroft recognized the skua
and other gulls among them, the voracious little sea-mews,
which in great numbers nestled in the crevices of the granite.
A shot fired among this swarm would have killed a great
number, but to fire a shot a gun was needed, and neither
Pencroft nor Herbert had one; besides this, gulls and sea-
mews are scarcely eatable, and even their eggs have a de-
testable taste. However, Herbert, who had gone forward a
little more to the left, soon came upon rocks covered with
sea-weed, which, some hours later, would be hidden by the
high tide On these rocks, in the midst of slippery wrack,
abounded bivalve shell-fish, not to be despised by starving
people. Herbert in delight called Pencroft, who ran up
hastily.
"Why! here are mussels?" cried the sailor; "these will
do instead of eggs ! "
" They are not mussels," replied Herbert, who was atten-
tively examining the molluscs attached to the rocks; " they
are lithodomes."
" Are they good to eat? " asked Pencroft.
" Perfectly so."
" Then let us eat some lithodomes."
The sailor could rely upon Herbert; the young boy was
well up in natural history, and always had had quite a pas-
sion for the science. His father had encouraged him in it,'
by letting him attend the lectures of the best professors in
Boston, who were very fond of the intelligent, industrious
lad. This turn for natural history was, more than once in
the course of time, of great use. These lithodomes were
oblong shells, suspended in clusters and adhering very tightly
to the rocks. They belong to that species of molluscous per-
forators which excavate holes in the hardest stones; their
shell is rounded at both ends, a feature which is not re-
marked in the common mussel.
Pencroft and Herbert made a good meal of the lithodomes,
which were then half opened to the sun. They ate them
as oysters, and as they had a strong peppery taste, they were
palatable without condiments of any sort.
Their hunger was thus appeased for the time, but not their
thirst, which increased after eating these naturally-spiced
molluscs. They had then to find fresh water, and it was
not likely that it would be wanting in such a capriciously
uneven region. Pencroft and Herbert, after having taken
3o6 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
the precaution of collecting an ample supply of lithodomes,
with which they filled their pockets and handkerchiefs, re-
gained the foot of the cliff.
Two hundred paces farther they arrived at the cutting,
through which, as Pencroft had guessed, ran a stream of
water, whether fresh or not was to be ascertained. At this
place the wall appeared to have been separated by some
violent subterranean force. At its base was hollowed out
a little creek, the farthest part of which formed a tolerably
sharp angle. The watercourse at that part measured loo
feet in breadth, and its two banks on each side were scarcely
twenty feet high. The river became strong almost directly
between the two walls of granite, which began to sink above
the mouth ; it then suddenly turned and disappeared beneath
a wood of stunted trees half a mile off.
" Here is the water, and yonder is the wood we require ! "
said Pencroft. " Well, Herbert, now we only want the
house."
The water of the river was limpid. The sailor ascer-
tained that at this time — that is to say, at low tide, when
the rising floods did not reach it — it w^as sweet. This im-
portant point established, Herbert looked for some cavity
which would serve them as a retreat, but in vain ; everywhere
the wall appeared smooth, plain, and perpendicular.
However, at the mouth of the watercourse and above the
reach of the high tide, the convulsions of nature had formed,
not a grotto, but a pile of enormous rocks, such as are often
met with in granite countries and which bear the name of
" Chimneys."
Pencroft and Herbert penetrated quite far in amongst
the rocks, by sandy passages in which light was not want-
ing, for it entered through the openings which w^ere left
between the blocks, of which some were only sustained by
a miracle of equilibrium; but with the light came also air — >
a regular corridor-gale — and with the wind the sharp cold
from the exterior. However, the sailor thought that by
stopping up some of the openings with a mixture of stones
and sand, the Chimneys could be rendered habitable. Their
geometrical plan represented the typographic sign " &," so
by isolating the upper mouth of the sign, through which the
south and west winds blew so strongly, they could succeed in
making the lower part of use.
THE CHIMNEYS 307
" Here's our work," said Pencroft, " and if we ever see
Captain Harding again, he will know how to make some-
thing of this labyrinth."
" We shall see him again, Pencroft," cried Herbert, " and
when he returns he must find a tolerable dwelling here. It
will be so, if we can make a fireplace in the left passage and
keep an opening for the smoke."
" So w-e can, my boy," replied the sailor, " and these
Chimneys will serve our turn. Let us set to work, but first
come and get a store of fuel. I think some branches will
be very useful in stopping up these openings, through which
the wind shrieks like so many fiends."
Herbert and Pencroft left the Chimneys, and, turning
the angle, they began to climb the left bank of the river.
The current here was quite rapid, and drifted down some
dead wood. The rising tide — and it could already be per-
ceived — must drive it back with force to a considerable dis-
tance. The sailor then thought that they could utilize this
ebb and flow for the transport of heavy objects.
After having walked for a quarter of an hour, the sailor
and the boy arrived at the angle which the river made in
turning towards the left. From this point its course was
pursued through a forest of magnificent trees. These trees
still retained their verdure, notwithstanding the advanced
season, for they belonged to the family of "coniferai,"
which is spread over all the regions of the globe, from
northern climates to the tropics. The young naturalist
recognized especially the " deodara," which are very numer-
ous in the Himalayan zone, and which spread around them
a most agreeable odor. Between these beautiful trees
sprang up clusters of firs, whose opaque open parasol boughs
spread wide around. Among the long grass, Pencroft felt
that his feet were crushing dry branches which crackled like
fireworks.
"Well, my boy," said he to Herbert, "if I don't know
the name of these trees, at any rate I reckon that we mav
call them 'burning wood,' and just now that's the chief
thing we want."
" Let us get a supply," replied Herbert, who immediately
set to work.
The collection was easily made. It was not even neces-
sary to lop the trees, for enormous quantities of dead wood
3o8 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
were lying at their feet; but if fuel was not \Yanting, the
means of transporting it was not yet found. The wood,
being very dry, would burn rapidly; it was therefore neces-
sary to carry to the Chimneys a considerable quantity, and
the loads of two men would not be sufficient. Herbert re-
marked this.
" Well, my boy," replied the sailor, " there must be some
way of carrying this wood; there is always a way of doing
everything. If we had a cart or a boat, it would be easy
enough."
" But we have the river," said Herbert.
"Right," replied Pencroft; "the river will be to us like
a road which carries of itself, and rafts have not been in-
vented for nothing."
" Only," observed Herbert, " at this moment our road is
going the wrong way, for the tide is rising ! "
" We shall be all right if we wait till it ebbs," replied
the sailor, " and then we will trust it to carry your fuel to
the Chimneys. Let us get the raft ready."
The sailor, followed by Herbert, directed his steps to-
wards the river. They both carried, each in proportion to
his strength, a load of wood bound in faggots. They found
on the bank also a great quantity of dead branches in the
midst of grass, among which the foot of man had probably
never before trod. Pencroft began directly to make his
raft In a kind of little bay, created by a point of the shore
which broke the current, the sailor and the lad placed some
good-sized pieces of wood, which they had fastened together
with dry creepers. A raft was thus formed, on which they
stacked all they had collected, sufficient, indeed, to have
loaded at least twenty men. In an hour the work was
finished, and the raft, mioored to the bank, awaited the turn-
ing of the tide.
There were still several hours to be occupied, and with
one consent Pencroft and Herbert resolved to gain the upper
plateau, so as to have a more extended view of the surround-
ing country.
Exactly two hundred feet behind the angle formed by the
river, the wall, terminated by a fall of rocks, died away
in a gentle slope to the edge of the forest. It was a natural
staircase. Herbert and the sailor began their ascent; thanks
to the vigor of their muscles they reached the summit in a
THE CHIMNEYS 309
few minutes, and proceeded to the point above the mouth
of the river.
On attaining it, their first look was cast upon the ocean
which not long before they had traversed in such a terrible
condition. They observed, with emotion, all that part to
the north of the coast on which the catastrophe had taken
place. It was there tliat Cyrus Harding had disappeared.
They looked to see if some portion of their balloon, to which
a man might possibly cling, yet existed. Xotliing! The
sea was but one vast waterj^ desert. As to tlie coast, it was
solitary also. Neither the reporter nor Neb could be any-
where seen. But it was possible that at tliis time they were
both too far away to be perceived.
" Something tells me," cried Herbert, " that a man as
energetic as Captain Harding would not let himself be
drowned like other people. He must have reached some
point of the shore; don't you think so, Pencroft? "
The sailor shook his head sadly. He little expected ever
to see Cyrus Harding again; but wishing to leave some
hope to Herbert: "Doubtless, doubtless," said he; "our
engineer is a man who would get out of a scrape to which
anyone else would yield."
In the meantime he examined the coast with great at-
tention. Stretched out below them was the sandy shore,
bounded on the right of the river's mouth by lines of
breakers. The rocks which were visible appeared like
amphibious monsters reposing in the surf. Beyond the
reef, the sea sparkled beneath the sun's rays. To the south
a sharp point closed the horizon, and it could not be seen if
the land was prolonged in that direction, or if it ran south-
east and northwest, which would have made this coast a
very long peninsula. At the northern extremity of the bay
the outline of the shore was continued to a great distance
in a wider curve. There the shore was low, flat, without
cliffs, and with great banks of sand, which the tide left un-
covered. Pencroft and Herbert tlien returned towards the
west. Their attention was first arrested by the
snow-topped mountain which rose at a distance of six
or seven miles. From its first declivities to within two
miles of the coast were spread vast masses of wood, relieved
by large green patches, caused by the presence of evergreen
trees. Then, from the edge of this forest to the shore ex-
310 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
tended a plain, scattered irregularly with groups of trees.
Here and there on the left sparkled through glades the waters
of the little river; they could trace its winding course back
towards the spurs of the mountain, among which it seemed
to spring. At the point where the sailor had left his raft
of wood, it began to run between the two high granite walls ;
but if on the left bank the wall remained clear and abrupt,
on the right bank, on the contrary, it sank gradually, the mas-
sive sides changed to isolated rocks, the rocks to stones, the
stones to shingle, running to the extremity of the point.
" Are we on an island? " murmured the sailor.
*' At any rate, it seems to be big enough," replied the lad.
" An island, ever so big, is an island all the same ! " said
Pencroft.
But this important question could not yet be answered.
A more perfect survey would be required to settle the point.
As to the land itself, island or continent, it appeared fertile,
agreeable in its aspect, and varied in its productions.
"This is satisfactory," observed Pencroft; "and in our
misfortune, we must thank Providence for it."
" God be praised ! " responded Herbert, whose pious heart
was full of gratitude to the Author of all things.
Pencroft and Herbert examined for some time the country
on which they had been cast; but it was difficult to guess
after so hasty an inspection what the future had in store
for them.
They then returned, following the southern crest of the
granite platform, bordered by a long fringe of jagged rocks,
of the most whimsical shapes. Some hundreds of birds
lived there nestled in the holes of the stone ; Herbert, jump-
ing over the rocks, startled a whole flock of these winged
creatures.
" Oh ! " cried he, " those are not gulls nor sea-mews ! '*
" What are they then? " asked Pencroft.
" Upon my word, one would say they were pigeons ! "
" Just so, but these are wild or rock pigeons. I recognize
them by the double band of black on the wing, by the white
tail, and by their slate-colored plumage. But if the rock-
pigeon is good to eat, its eggs must be excellent, and we
will soon see how many they may have left in their nests! "
" We will not give them time to hatch, unless it is in the
shape of an omelette! " replied Pencroft merrily.
THE CHIMNEYS 311
" But what will you make your omelette in? " asked Her-
bert; " in your hat? "
"Well!" replied the sailor, "I am not quite conjuror
enough for that ; we must come down to eggs in the shell,
my boy, and I will undertake to despatch the hardest ! "
Pencroft and Herbert attentively examined the cavities in
the granite, and they really found eggs in some of the hol-
lows. A few dozen being collected, were packed in the
sailor's handkerchief, and as the time when the tide would
be full was approaching, Pencroft and Herbert began to
redescend towards the watercourse. When they arrived
there, it was an hour after mid-day. The tide had already
turned. They must now avail themselves of the ebb to take
the wood to the mouth. Pencroft did not intend to let the
raft go away in the current without guidance, neither did
he mean to embark on it himself to steer it. But a sailor
is never at loss when there is a question of cables or ropes,
and Pencroft rapidly twisted a cord, a few fathoms long,
made of dry creepers. This vegetable cable was fastened
to the after-part of the raft, and the sailor held it in his
hand while Herbert, pushing off the raft with a long pole,
kept it in the current. This succeeded capitally. The
enormous load of wood drifted down with the current. The
bank was very equal; there was no fear that the raft would
run aground, and before two o'clock they arrived at the
river's mouth, a few paces from the Chimneys.
CHAPTER V
HOW TO PROCURE FIRE
Pencroft's first care, after unloading the raft, was to
render the cave habitable by stopping up all the holes which
made it draughty. Sand, stones, twisted branches, wet clay,
closed up the galleries open to the south winds. One nar-
row and winding opening at the side was kept, to lead out
the smoke and to make tlie fire draw. The cave was thus
divided into three or four rooms, if such dark dens with
which a donkev would scarcely have been contented de-
served the name. But they were dry, and there was space to
stand upright, at least in the principal room, which occupied
the center. The floor was covered with fine sand, and taking
312 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
all in all they were well pleased with it for want of a better.
" Perhaps," said Herbert, while he and Pencroft were
working, " our companions have found a much superior
place."
"Very likely," replied the seaman; "but, as we don't
know, we must work all the same. Better to have two
strings to one's bow than no string at all ! "
" Oh! " exclaimed Herbert, " how jolly it will be if they
find Captain Harding and bring him back with them ! "
"Yes, indeed!" said Pencroft, "that was a man of the
right sort."
" Was ! " exclaimed Herbert, " do you despair of ever
seeing him again? "
" God forbid ! " replied the sailor.
Their work was soon done, and Pencroft declared him-
self well satisfied. " Now," said he, " our friends can come
back when they like. They will find a shelter."
They now had only to make a fireplace and to prepare
the supper — an easy task. Large flat stones were placed
on the ground at the opening of the narrow passage which
had been kept. This, if the smoke did not take the heat
out with it, would be enough to maintain an equal tempera-
ture inside. Their wood was stowed away in one of the
rooms, and the sailor laid in the fireplace some logs and
brushwood. The seaman was busy with this when Herbert
asked him if he had any matches.
" Certainly," replied Pencroft, " and I may say happily,
for without matches or tinder we should be in a fix."
" Still we might get fire as the savages do," replied Her-
bert, " by rubbing two bits of dry stick one against the
other."
" All right; try, my boy, and let's see if you can do any-
thing besides exercising your arms."
" Well, it's a very simple proceeding, and much used in
the islands of the Pacific."
" I don't deny it," replied Pencroft, " but the savages
must know how to do it or employ a peculiar wood, for
more than once I have tried to get fire in that way, but I
could never manage it. I must say I prefer matches. By-
the-bye, where are my matches? "
Pencroft searched in his waistcoat for the box, which was
always there, for he was a confirmed smoker. He could
HOW TO PROCURE FIRE 313
not find it; he rummaged the pockets of his trousers, but, to
his horror, he could nowhere discover the box.
" Here's a go! " said he, looking at Herbert. " The box
must have fallen out of my pocket and got lost! Surely,
Herbert, you must have something — a tinder-box — anything
that can possibly make fire ! "
" No, I haven't, Pencroft."
The sailor rushed out, followed by the boy. On the sand,
among the rocks, near the river's bank, they both searched
carefully, but in vain. The box was of copper, and there-
fore would have been easily seen.
" Pencroft," asked Herbert, "didn't you throw it out of
the car?"
" I knew better than that," replied the sailor; "but such
a small article could easily disappear in the tumbling about
we have gone through. I would rather even have lost my
pipe ! Confound the box! Where can it be? "
" Look here, the tide is going down," said Herbert ; " let's
run to the place where we landed."
It was scarcely probable that they w^ould find the box,
if the waves had rolled it about among the pebbles at high
tide, but it was as well to try. Herbert and Pencroft walked
rapidly to the point where they had landed in the morning,
about two hundred feet from the cave. They hunted there,
amongst the shingle, in the clefts of the rocks, but found
nothing. If the box had fallen at this place it must have
been swept away by the w-aves. As the sea went down, they
searched every little crevice with no result. It was a grave
loss in their circumstances, and for the time irreparable.
Pencroft could not hide his vexation ; he looked very anxious,
but said not a word. Herbert tried to console him by ob-
serving, that if they had found the matches, they would, ver}-
likely, have been wetted by the sea and useless,
" No, my boy," replied the sailor; " they were in a copper
box which shut very tightly; and now what think you are
we to do ? "
" We shall certainly find some way of making a fire," said
Herbert. "Captain Harding or Mr. Spilctt will not be
without them."
"Yes," replied Pencroft; "but in the meantime we are
without fire, and our companions will find but a sorry repast
on their return."
314 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
" But," said Herbert quickly, " do you think it possible
that they have no tinder or matches? "
" I doubt it," replied the sailor, shaking his head, " for
neither Neb nor Captain Harding smoke, and I believe that
Mr. Spilett would rather keep his note-book than his match-
box."
Herbert did not reply. The loss of the box was certainly
to be regretted, but the boy was still sure of procuring fire
in some way or other. Pencroft, more experienced, did not
think so, although he was not a man to trouble himself about
a small or great grievance. At any rate, there was only one
thing to be done — to await the return of Neb and the
reporter; but they must give up the feast of hard eggs which
they had meant to prepare, and a meal of raw flesh was
not an agreeable prospect either for themselves or for the
others.
Before returning to the cave, the sailor and Herbert, in
the event of fire being positively unattainable, collected some
more shell-fish, and then silently retraced their steps to their
dwelling.
Pencroft, his eyes fixed on the ground, still looked for
his box. He even climbed up the left bank of the river from
its mouth to the angle where the raft had been moored. He
returned to the plateau, went over it in every direction,
searched amongst the high grass on the border of the forest,
all in vain.
It was five in the evening when he and Herbert re-entered
the cave. It is useless to say that the darkest corners of
the passages were ransacked before they were obliged to
give it up in despair. Towards six o'clock, when the sun
was disappearing behind the highlands of the west, Her-
bert, who was walking up and down on the strand, signalized
the return of Neb and Spilett.
They were returning alone ! — The boy's heart sank ; the
sailor had not been deceived in his forebodings ; the engineer,
Cyrus Plarding, had not been found !
The reporter, on his arrival, sat down on a rock, without
saying anything. Exhausted with fatigue, dying of hunger,
he had not strength to utter a word.
As to Neb, his red eyes showed how he had cried, and
the tears which he could not restrain told too clearly that
he had lost all hope.
HOW TO PROCURE FIRE 315
The reporter recounted all that they had done in their
attempt to recover Cyrus Harding. He and Neb had sur-
veyed the coast for a distance of eight miles, and conse-
quently much beyond the place where the balloon had fallen
the last time but one, a fall which was followed by the
disappearance of the engineer and the dog Top. The shore
was solitary; not a vestige of a mark. Not even a pebble
recently displaced; not a trace on the sand; not a human
footstep on all that part of the beach. It was clear that
that portion of the shore had never been visited by a human
being. The sea was as deserted as the land, and it was
there, a few hundred feet from the coast, that the engineer
must have found a tomb.
As Spilett ended his account. Neb jumped up, exclaim-
ing in a voice which showed how hope struggled within
him, " No ! he is not dead ! he can't be dead ! It might hap-
pen to anyone else, but never to him! He could get out
of anything ! " Then his strength forsaking him, " Oh ! I
can do no more ! " he murmured.
" Neb," said Herbert, running to him, " we will find him!
God will give him back to us! But in the meantime you
are hungry, and you must eat something."
So saying, he offered the poor negro a few handfuls of
shell-fish, which was indeed wretched and insufficient food.
Neb had not eaten anything for several hours, but he re-
fused them. He could not, would not live without his
master.
As to Gideon Spilett, he devoured the shell-fish, then he
laid himself down on the sand, at the foot of a rock. He
was very weak, but calm. Herbert went up to him. and tak-
ing his hand, " Sir," said he, " we have found a shelter which
will be better than lying here. Night is advancing. Come
and rest! To-morrow we will search farther."
The reporter got up, and guided by the boy went towards
the cave. On the way, Pencroft asked him in the most
natural tone, it by chance he happened to have a match.
The reporter stopped, felt in his pockets, but finding noth-
ing said, " I had some, but I think I must have thrown
them away."
The seaman then put the same question to Neb and re-
ceived the same answer.
" Confound it! " exclaimed the sailor.
3i6 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
The reporter heard him and seizing his arm, " Have you
no matches? " he asked.
*' Not one, and no fire in consequence? "
" Ah ! " cried Neb, " if my master was here, he would
know what to do ! "
The four castaways remained motionless, looking uneasily
at each other. Herbert was the first to break the silence by
saying, " Mr. Spilett, you are a smoker and always have
matches about you; perhaps you haven't looked well, try
again, a single match will be enough ! "
The reporter hunted again in the pockets of his trousers,
waistcoat, and great-coat, and at last to Pencroft's great joy,
not less to his extreme surprise, he felt a tiny piece of wood
entangled in the lining of his waistcoat. He seized it with
his fingers through the stuff, but he could not get it out. li
this was a match and a single one, it was of great import-
ance not to rub off the phosphorus.
" Will you let me try ? " said the boy, and very cleverly,
without breaking it, he managed to draw out the wretched
yet precious little bit of wood which was of such great im-
portance to these poor men. It was unused.
" Hurrah! " cried Pencroft; " it is as good as having a
whole cargo!" He took the match, and, followed by his
companions, entered the cave.
This small piece of wood, of which so many in an in-
habited country are wasted with indifference and are of no
value, must here be used with the greatest caution.
The sailor first made sure that it was quite dry; that done,
" We must have some paper," said he.
" Here," replied Spilett, after some hesitation tearing a
leaf out of his note-book.
Pencroft took the piece of paper which the reporter held
out to him, and knelt down before the fireplace. Some
handfuls of grass, leaves, and dry moss were placed under
the faggots and disposed in such a way that the air could
easily circulate, and the dry wood would as a consequence
catch fire.
Pencroft then twisted the piece of paper into the shape
of a cone, as smokers do in a high wind, and poked it in
amongst the moss. Taking a small, rough stone, he wiped
it carefully, and with a beating heart, holding his breath, he
gently rubbed the match. The first attempt did not produce
HOW TO PROCURE FIRE 317
any effect. Pencroft had not struck hard enough, fearing
to rub off the phosphorus.
"No, I can't do it," said he, "my hand trembles, the
match has missed fire; I cannot, I will not! " and rising, he
told Herbert to take his place.
Certainly the boy had never in all his life been so nervous.
Prometheus going to steal the fire from heaven could not
have been more anxious. He did not hesitate, however, but
struck the match directly.
A little spluttering was heard and a tiny blue flame
sprang up, making a choking smoke. Herbert quietly turned
the match so as to augment the flame, and then slipped it
into the paper cone, which in a few seconds too caught fire,
and then the moss.
A minute later the dry wood crackled and a cheerful
flarne, assisted by the vigorous blowing of the sailor, sprang
up in the midst of the darkness.
"At last! " cried Pencroft, getting up; " I was never so
nervous before in all my hfe ! "
The fiat stones made a capital fireplace. The smoke
went quite easily out at the narrow passage, the chimney
drew, and a very agreeable warmth was not long in being
felt.
They must now take great care not to let the fire go out,
and always to keep some embers alight. It only needed
care and attention, as they had plenty of wood and could
renew their store at any time.
Pencroft's first thought was to use the fire by preparing
a more nourishing supper than a dish of shell-fish. Two
dozen eggs were brought by Herbert. The reporter, lean-
. ing up in a corner, watched these preparations without say-
ing anything. A threefold thought weighed on his mind.
Was Cyrus still alive? H he was alive, where was he? If
he had survived from his fall, how was it that he had not
found some means of making known his existence? As to
Neb, he was roaming about the shore. He was like a body
(without a soul.
Pencroft knew fifty ways of cooking eggs, but this time
he had no choice, and was obliged to content himself with
roasting them under the hot cinders. In a few minutes the
cooking was done, and the seaman invited the reporter to
take his share of the supper. Such was the first repast of
3i8 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
the castaways on this unknown coast. The hard eggs were
excellent, and as eggs contain everything indispensable to
man's nourishment, these poor people thought themselves
well off, and were much strengthened by them. Oh ! if only
one of them had not been missing at this meal! If the five
prisoners who escaped from Richmond had all been there,
under the piled-up rocks, before this clear, crackling fire on
the dry sand, what thanksgivings must they have rendered
to Heaven! But the most ingenious, the most learned, he
who was their unquestioned chief, Cyrus Harding was, alas!
missing, and his body had not even obtained a burial-place.
Thus passed the 25th of March. Night had come on.
Outside could be heard the howling of the wind and the
monotonous sound of the surf breaking on the shore. The
waves rolled the shingle backwards and forwards with a
deafening noise.
The reporter retired into a dark corner after having
shortly noted down the occurrences of the day; the first ap-
pearance of this new land, the loss of their leader, the ex-
ploration of the coast, the incident of the matches, etc. ; and
then overcome by fatigue, he managed to forget his sorrow
in sleep. Herbert went to sleep directly. As to the sailor,
he passed the night with one eye on the fire, on which he did
not spare fuel. But one of the castaways did not sleep in
the cave. The inconsolable, despairing Neb, notwithstand-
ing all that his companions could say to induce him to take
some rest, wandered all night long on the shore, calling on
his master.
CHAPTER VI
THE INVENTORY OF THE CASTAWAYS
The inventory of the articles possessed by these casta-
ways from the clouds, thrown upon a coast which appeared
to be uninhabited, was soon made out. They had nothing,
save the clothes which they were wearing at the time of the
catastrophe. We must mention, however, a note-book and
a watch which Gideon Spilett had kept, doubtless by inad-
vertence, not a weapon, not a tool, not even a pocket-knife;
for while in the car they had thrown out everything to lighten
the balloon. The imaginary heroes of Daniel De Foe or of
INVENTORY OF THE CASTAWAYS 319
Wyss, as well as Selkirk and Raynal, sliipwrecked on Juan
Fernandez and on the archipelago of the Aucklands, were
never in such absolute destitution. Either they had abun-
dant resources from their stranded vessels, in grain, cattle,
tools, ammunition, or else some things were thrown upon
the coast which supplied them with all the first necessities of
life. But here, not any instrument whatever, not a utensil.
From nothing they must supply themselves with every tiling.
And yet, if Cyrus Harding had been with them, if the en-
gineer could have brought his practical science, his inven-
tive mind to bear on their situation, perhaps all hope would
not have been lost. Alas ! they must hope no longer again
to see Cyrus Harding. The castaways could expect noth-
ing but from themselves and from that Providence which
never abandons those whose faith is sincere.
But ought they to establish themselves on this part of the
coast, without trying to know to what continent it belonged,
if it was inhabited, or if they were on the shore of a desert
island?
It was an important question, and should be solved with
the shortest possible delay. From its answer they would
know what measures to take. However, according to Pen"
croft's advice, it appeared best to wait a few days before
commencing an exploration. They must, in fact, prepare
some provisions and procure more strengthening food than
eggs and molluscs. The explorers, before undertaking new
fatigues, must first of all recruit their strength.
The Chimneys offered a retreat sufficient for the present.
The fire was lighted, and it was easy to preserve some em-
bers. There were plenty of shell-fish and eggs amongst the
rocks and on the beach. It would be easy to kill a few of the
pigeons which were flying by hundreds about the summit
of the plateau, either with sticks or stones. Perhaps the
trees of the neighboring forest w^ould supply them with eat-
able fruit. Lastly, the sweet water was there.
It was accordingly settled that for a few days they would
remain at the Chimneys so as to prepare themselves for an
expedition, either along the shore or into the interior of the
country. This plan suited Neb particularly. ^ As obstinate
in his ideas as in his presentiments, he was in no haste to
abandon this part of the coast, the scene of the catastrophe.
He did not, he would not believe in the loss of Cyrus Hard-
320 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
ing. No, it did not seem to him possible that such a man had
ended in this vulgar fashion, carried away by a wave,
drowned in the floods, a few hundred feet from a shore. As
long as the waves had not cast up the body of the engineer,
as long as he. Neb, had not seen with his eyes, touched with
his hands the corpse of his master, he would not believe in
his death ! And this idea rooted itself deeper than ever in
his determined heart. An illusion perhaps, but still an il-
lusion to be respected, and one which the sailor did not wish
to destroy. As for him, he hoped no longer, but there was
no use in arguing with Neb. He was like the dog vvho will
not leave the place where his master is buried, and his grief
was such that most probably he would not survive him.
This same morning, the 26th of March, at daybreak, Neb
had set out on the shore in a northerly direction, and he had
returned to the spot where the sea, no doubt, had closed over
the unfortunate Harding.
That day's breakfast was composed solely of pigeon's eggs
and lithodomes. Herbert had found some salt deposited by
evaporation in the hollows of the rocks, and this mineral was
very welcome.
. The repast ended, Pencroft asked the reporter if he wished
to accompany Herbert and himself to the forest, where they
were going to try to hunt. But on consideration, it was
thought necessary that someone should remain to keep
the fire, and to be at hand in the highly improbable event
of Neb requiring aid. The reporter accordingly remained
behind.
" To the chase, Herbert," said the sailor. " We shall find
ammunition on our way, and cut our weapons in the forest."
But at the moment of starting, Herbert observed, that since
they had no tinder, it would perhaps be prudent to replace it
by another substance.
"What?" asked Pencroft.
" Burnt linen," replied the boy. " That could in case of
need serve for tinder."
The sailor thought it very sensible advice. Only it had
the inconvenience of necessitating the sacrifice of a piece of
handkerchief. Notwithstanding, the thing was well worth
while trying, and a part of Pencroft's large checked hand-
kerchief was soon reduced to the state of a half-burnt rag.
This inflammable material was placed in the central cham-
V. V Verne
INVENTORY OF THE CASTAWAYS 321
ber at the bottom of a little cavity in the rock, sheltered from
all wind and damp.
It was nine o'clock in the morning. The w^eather was
threatening and the breeze blew from the southeast. Her-
bert and Pencroft turned the angle of the Chimneys, not
without having cast a look at the smoke which, just at that
place, curled round a point of rock: they ascended the left
bank of the river.
Arrived at the forest, Pencroft broke from the first tree
two stout branches which he transformed into clubs, the
ends of which Herbert rubbed smooth on a rock. Oh ! what
would they not have given for a knife!
The two hunters now advanced among the long grass, fol-
lowing the bank. From the turning which directed its course
to the southwest, the river narrowed gradually and the chan-
nel lay between high banks, over which the trees formed a
double arch. Pencroft, lest they should lose themselves, re-
solved to follow the course of the stream, which would
always lead them back to the point from which they started.
But the bank was not without some obstacles : here, the flex-
ible branches of the trees bent level with the current; there,
creepers and thorns which they had to break down with
their sticks. Herbert often glided among the broken stumps
with the agility of a young cat, and disappeared in the under-
wood. But Pencroft called him back directly, begging him
not to w^ander away. Meanwhile, the sailor attentively ob-
served the disposition and nature of the surrounding coun-
try. On the left bank, the ground, which was flat and
marshy, rose imperceptibly towards the interior. It looked
there like a network of liquid threads which doubtless
reached the river by some underground drain. Sometimes
a stream ran through the underwood, which they crossed
without difficulty. The opposite shore appeared to be more
uneven, and the valley, of which the river occupied the bot-
tom, was more clearly visible. The hill, covered with trees
disposed in terraces, intercepted the view. On the right
bank walking would have been difficult, for the declivities fell
suddenly, and the trees bending over the water were only
sustained by the strength of their roots.
It is needless to add that this forest, as well as the coast
already surveyed, was destitute of any sign of human life.
Pencroft only saw traces of quadrupeds, fresh footprints of
322 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
animals, of which he could not recognize the species. In all
probability, and such was also Herbert's opinion, some had
been left by formidable wild beasts which doubtless would
give them some trouble; but nowhere did they observe the
mark of an ax on the trees, nor the ashes of a fire, nor the
impression of a human foot. On this they might probably
congratulate themselves, for on any land in the middle of the
Pacific the presence of man Avas perhaps more to be feared
than desired. Herbert and Pencroft speaking little, for the
difficulties of the way were great, advanced very slowly, and
after walking for an hour they had scarcely gone more than
a mile. As yet the hunt had not been successful. How-
ever some birds sang and fluttered in the foliage, and ap-
peared very timid, as if man had inspired them with an
instinctive fear. Amongst others, Herbert descried, in a
marshy part of the forest, a bird with a long pointed beak,
closely resembling the king-fisher, but its plumage was not
fine, though of a metallic brilliancy.
" That must be a jacamar," said Herbert, trying to get
nearer.
" This will be a good opportunity to taste jacamar," re-
plied the sailor, " if that fellow is in a humor to be roasted ! "
Just then, a stone cleverly thrown by the boy, struck the
creature on the wing, but the blow did not disable it, and the
jacamar ran off and disappeared in an instant.
" How clumsy I am ! " cried Herbert.
" No, no, my boy! " replied the sailor. "The blow was
well aimed; many a one would have missed it altogether!
Come, don't be vexed with yourself. We shall catch it an-
other day ! "
As the hunters advanced, the trees were found to be more
scattered, many being magnificent, but none boie eatable
fruit. Pencroft searched in vain for some of those precious
palm-trees which are employed in so many ways in domestic
life, and which have been found as far as the fortieth parallel
in the northern hemisphere, and to the thirty-fifth only in the
southern hemisphere. But this forest was only composed of
coni ferae, such as deodaras, already recognized by Herbert,
the Douglas pine, similar to those which grow on the north-
west coast of America, and splendid firs, measuring a hun-
dred and fifty feet in height.
At this moment a flock of birds, of a small size and pretty
INVENTORY OF THE CASTAWAYS 323
plumage, with long glancing tails, dispersed themselves
among the branches strewing their feathers, which covered
the ground as with fine down. Herbert picked up a few of
these feathers, and after having examined them :
" These are couroucous," said he.
"* I should prefer a moor-cock or guinea-fowl," replied
Pencroft, " still, if they are good to eat "
" They are good to eat, and also their flesh is very deli-
cate," replied Herbert. "Besides, if I don't mistake, it is
easy to approach and kill them with a stick."
The sailor and the lad, creeping amongst the grass, ar-
rived at the foot of a tree, w^iose lower branches were cov-
ered with little birds. The couroucous were waiting the
passage of insects which served for their nourishment.
Their feathery feet could be seen clasping the slender twigs
which supported them.
The hunters then rose, and using their sticks like scythes,
they mowed down whole rows of these couroucous, who
never thought of flying away, and stupidly allowed them-
selves to be knocked off. A hundred were already heaped
on the ground, before the others made up their minds
to fly.
" Well," said Pencroft, " here is game, which is quite
within the reach of hunters like us. We have only to put
out our hands and take it ! "
The sailor having strung the couroucous like larks on flex-
ible twigs, they then continued their exploration. The stream
here made a bend towards the south, but this detour was
probably not prolonged, for the river must have its source
in the mountain, and be supplied by the melting of the snow
which covered the sides of the central cone.
The particular object of their expedition was, as has been
said, to procure the greatest possible quantity of game for
the inhabitants of the Chimneys. It must be acknowledged
that as yet this object had not been attained. Sp the sailor
actively pursued his researches, though he exclaimed, when
some animal which he had not even time to recognize fled
into the long grass, " U only we had had the dog Top! "
But Top had disappeared at the same time as his master, and
had probablv perished with him.
Towards 'three o'clock new flocks of birds were seen
through certain trees, at whose aromatic berries they were
324 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
pecking, those of the juniper-tree among others. Suddenly
a loud trumpet call resounded through the forest. This
strange and sonorous call was produced by the ruffed grouse
or the " tetra," of the United States. They soon saw sev-
eral couples, whose plumage was rich chestnut brown mot-
tled with dark brown, and tail of the same color. Herbert
recognized the males by the two wing-like appendages raised
on the neck. Pencroft determined to get hold of at least
one of these gallinacese, which were as large as a fowl, and
whose flesh is better than that of a pullet. But it was diffi-
cult, for they would not allow themselves to be approached.
After several fruitless attempts, which resulted in nothing
but scaring the tetras, the sailor said to the lad :
" Decidedly, since we can't kill them on the wing, we must
try to take them with a line."
" Like a fish? " cried Herbert.
" Like a fish," replied the sailor quite seriously. Pencroft
had found amongst the grass half a dozen tetras' nests, each
having three or four eggs. He took great care not to touch
these nests, to which their proprietors would not fail to re-
turn. It was around these that he meant to stretch his lines,
not snares, but real fishing lines. He took Herbert to some
distance from the nests, and there prepared his singular ap-
paratus with all the care which a disciple of Izaak Walton
would have used. Herbert watched the work with great
interest, though rather doubting its success. The lines were
made of fine creepers, fastened one to the other, of the
length of fifteen or twenty feet. Thick, strong thorns, the
points bent back, which were supplied from a dwarf acacia
bush, were fastened to the ends of the creepers, by way of
hooks. Large red worms, which were crawling on the
ground, furnished bait.
This done, Pencroft, passing amongst the grass and con-
cealing himself skillfully, placed the end of his lines armed
with hooks near the tetras' nests ; then he returned, took the
other ends and hid with Herbert behind a large tree. There
they both waited patiently; though, it must be said, that
Herbert did not reckon much on the success of the inventive
Pencroft.
A whole half hour passed, but then, as the sailor had sur-
mised, several couple of tetras returned to their nests. They
walked along, pecking the ground, and not suspecting In any
INVENTORY OF THE CASTAWAYS ^:>
0-5
way the presence of the hunters, wlio, besides, hatl taken care
to place themselves to leeward of the gallinacea;.
The lad felt at this moment highly interested. He held
his breath, and Pencroft, his eyes staring, his mouth open,
his lips advanced, as if about to taste a piece of tetra, scarcely
breathed.
Meanwhile, the birds walked about among the hooks, with-
out taking any notice of them. Pencroft then gave little
tugs which moved the bait as if the worms had been still
alive.
The sailor undoubtedly felt much greater anxiety than
does the fisherman, for he does not see his prey coming
through the water. The jerks attracted the attention of the
gallinacese, and they attacked the hooks with their beaks.
Three voracious tetras sw-allowed at the same moment bait
and hook. Suddenly with a smart jerk, Pencroft '_' struck "
his line, and a flapping of wings show^ed that the birds were
taken.
" Hurrah ! " he cried, rushing towards the game, of which
he made himself master in an instant.
Herbert clapped his hands. It was the first time that he
had ever seen birds taken with a line, but the sailor modestly
confessed that it was not his first attempt, and that besides he
could not claim the merit of invention.
" And at any rate," added he, " situated as we are, we
must hope to hit upon many other contrivances."
The tetras were fastened by their claws, and Pencroft.
delighted at not having to appear before their companions
with empty hands, and observing that the dav had begun to
decline, judged it best to return to their dwelling.
The direction was indicated by the river, whose course
they had only to follow, and, towards six o'clock, tired
enough with their excursion, Herbert and Pencroft arrived
at the Chimneys.
CHAPTER Vn
THE LOST IS FOUND
Gideon Spilett was standing motionless on the .shore,
his arms crossed, gazing over the sea, the horizon of which
was lost towards the east in a thick black cloud which was
(t
«
326 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
spreading rapidly towards the zenith. The wind was al-
ready strong, and increased with the dechne of day. The
whole sky was of a threatening aspect, and the first symp-
toms of a violent storm were clearly visible.
Herbert entered the Chimneys, and Pencroft went to-
wards the reporter. The latter, deeply absorbed, did not
see him approach.
** We are going to have a dirty night, Mr. Spilett ! " said
the sailor : " Petrels delight in wind and rain."
The reporter turning, saw Pencroft, and his first words
were, " At what distance from the coast would you say the
car was, when the waves carried off our companion ? "
The sailor had not expected this question. He reflected
an instant and replied, " Two cables' lengths at the most."
"But what is a cable's length?" asked Gideon Spilett.
About a hundred and twenty fathoms, or 600 feet."
Then," said the reporter, " Cyrus Harding must have
disappeared twelve hundred feet at the most from the
shore?"
"About that," replied Pencroft.
"And his dog also?"
" Also."
" What astonishes me," rejoined the reporter, " while
admitting that our companion has perished, is that Top
has also met his death, and that neither the body of the dog
nor of his master has been cast on the shore! "
" It is not astonishing, with such a heavy sea," replied
the sailor. " Besides, it is possible that currents have car-
ried them farther down the coast."
" Then, it is your opinion that our friend has perished
in the waves? " again asked the reporter.
" That is my opinion."
" My own opinion," said Gideon Spilett, " with due def-
erence to your experience, Pencroft, is that in the double
fact of the absolute disappearance of Cyrus and Top. living
or dead, there is something unaccountable and unlikely."
" I wish I could think like you, Mr. Spilett," replied Pen-
croft; "unhappily, my mind is made up on this point."
Having said this, the sailor returned to the Chimneys. A
good fire crackled on the hearth. Herbert had just thrown
on an armful of dry wood, and the flame cast a bright light
into the darkest parts of the passage.
THE LOST IS FOUND 327
Pencroft immediately began to prepare the dinner. It
appeared best to introduce something sohd into the bill of
fare, for all needed to get up their strength. The strings
of couroucous were kept for the next day, but they plucked
a couple of tetras, which were soon spitted on a stick, and
roasting before a blazing lire.
'At seven in the evening Neb had not returned. The
prolonged absence of the negro made Pencroft very uneasy.
It was to be feared that he had met with an accident on
this unknown land, or that the unhappy fellow had been
driven to some act of despair. But Herbert drew very
different conclusions from his absence. According to him,
Neb's delay was caused by some new circumstance which
had induced him to prolong his search. Also, everything
new must be to the advantage of Cyrus Harding. Why
had Neb not returned unless hope still detained him?
Perhaps he had found some mark, a footstep, a trace which
had put him on the right path. Perhaps he was at this
moment on a certain track. Perhaps even he was near his
master.
Thus the lad reasoned. Thus he spoke. His compan-
ions let him talk. The reporter alone approved with a ges-
ture. But what Pencroft thought most probable was, that
Neb had pushed his researches on the shore farther than
the day before, and that he had not as yet had time to re-
turn,
Herbert, however, agitated by vague presentiments, sev-
eral times manifested an intention to go to meet Neb. But
Pencroft assured him that that would be a useless course,
that in the darkness and deplorable weather he could not
find any traces of Neb, and that it would be much better to
wait. If Neb had not made his appearance by the next
day, Pencroft would not hesitate to join him in his search.
Gideon Spilett approved of the sailor's opinion that it
was best not to divide, and Herbert was obliged to give up
his project; but two tears fell from his eyes. The reporter
could not refrain from embracing the generous hoy.
Bad weather now^ set in. A furious gale from the south-
east passed over the coast. The sea roared as it l)eat over
Ihe reef. Heavy rain was dashed by the storm into parti-
cles like dust. Ragged masses of vapor drove along the
beach, on which the tormented shingles sounded as if
528 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
poured out in cart-loads, while the sand raised by the wind
added as it were mineral dust to that which was liquid, and
rendered the united attack insupportable. Between the
river's mouth and the end of the cliff, eddies of wind
whirled, and gusts from this maelstrom lashed the water
which ran through the narrow valley. The smoke from
the fireplace was also driven back through the opening,
filling the passages and rendering them uninhabitable.
Therefore, as the tetras were cooked, Pencroft let the fire
die away, and only preserved a few embers buried under
the ashes.
At eight o'clock Neb had not appeared, but there was no
doubt that the frightful weather alone hindered his return,
and that he must have taken refuge in some cave, to await
the end of the storm or at least the return of day. As to
going to meet him, or attempting to find him, it was im-
possible.
The game constituted the only dish at supper; the meat
was excellent, and Pencroft and Herbert, whose long ex-
cursion had rendered them very hungry, devoured it with
infinite satisfaction.
Their meal concluded, each retired to the corner in which
he had rested the preceding night, and Herbert was not
long in going to sleep near the sailor, who had stretched
himself beside the fireplace.
Outside, as the night advanced, the tempest also in-
creased in strength, until it was equal to that which had
carried the prisoners from Richmond to this land in the
Pacific. The tempests which are frequent during the sea-
sons of the equinox, and which are so prolific in catas-
trophes, are above all terrible over this immense ocean,
which opposes no obstacle to their fury. No description
can give an idea of the terrific violence of the gale as it
beat upon the unprotected coast.
Happily the pile of rocks which formed the Chimneys
was solid. It was composed of enormous blocks of gran-
ite, a few of which, insecurely balanced, seemed to tremble
on their foundations, and Pencroft could feel rapid quiv-
erings under his head as it rested on the rock. But he re-
peated to himself, and rightly, that tliere was nothing to
fear, and that their retreat would not give way. However
he heard the noise of stones torn from the summit of the
THE LOST IS FOUND 329
plateau by the wind, falling down onto the beach. A few
even rolled onto the upper part of the Chimneys, or llcw
off in fragments when they were projected perpendicularly.
Twice the sailor rose and intrenched himself at the opening
of the passage, so as to take a look in safety at the outside.
But there was nothing to be feared from these showers,
which were not considerable, and he returned to his couch
before the fireplace, where the embers glowed beneath the
ashes.
Notwithstanding the fury of the hurricane, the uproar of
the tempest, the thunder, and the tunuilt, Herbert slept
profoundly. Sleep at last took possession of Pencroft,
whom a seafaring life had habituated to anything. Gideon
Spilett alone was kept awake by anxiety. He reproached
himself with not having accompanied Neb. It was evident
that he had not abandoned all hope. The presentiments
which had troubled Herbert did not cease to agitate him
also. His thoughts were concentrated on Neb. Why had
Neb not returned? He tossed about on his sandy couch,
scarcely giving a thought to the struggle of the elements.
Now and then, his eyes, heavy with fatigue, closed for an
instant, but some sudden thought reopened them almost
immediately.
Meanwhile the night advanced, and it was perhaps two
hours from morning, when Pencroft, then sound asleep,
was vigorously shaken.
"What's the matter?" he cried, rousing himself, and
collecting his ideas with the promptitude usual to seamen.
The reporter was leaning over him, and saying:
"Listen, Pencroft, listen!"
The sailor strained his ears, but could hear no noise
beyond those caused by the storm.
" It is the wind," said he.
" No," replied Gideon Spilett, listening again, " I thought
I heard "
"What?"
" The barking of a dog! "
"A dog! " cried Pencroft, springing up.
" Yes — barking "
"It's not possible!" replied the sailor. "And besides,
how, in the roaring of the storm "
" Stop — listen " said the reporter.
330 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
Pencroft listened more attentively, and really thought he
heard, during a lull, distant barking.
" Well ! " said the reporter, pressing the sailor's hand.
"Yes — yes!" replied Pencroft.
" It is Top ! It is Top ! " cried Herbert, who had just
awoke; and all three rushed towards the opening of the
Chimneys. They had great difficulty in getting out. The
wind drove them back. But at last they succeeded, and
could only remain standing by leaning against the rocks.
They looked about, but could not speak. The darkness
was intense. The sea, the sky, the land were all mingled
in one black mass. Not a speck of light was visible.
The reporter and his companions remained thus for a
few minutes, overwhelmed by the wind, drenched by the
rain, blinded by the sand.
Then, in a pause of the tumult, they again heard the
barking, v/hich they found must be at some distance.
It could only be Top! But was he alone or accompa-
nied.? He was most probably alone, for, if Neb had been
with him, he would have made his way more directly to-
wards the Chimneys. The sailor squeezed the reporter's
hand, for he could not make himself heard, in a way which
signified " Wait! " then he re-entered the passage.
An instant after he issued with a lighted fagot, which he
threw into the darkness, whistling shrilly.
It appeared as if this signal had been waited for; the
barking immediately came nearer, and soon a dog bounded
into the passage. Pencroft, Herbert, and Spilett, entered
after him.
An armful of dry wood was thrown on the embers.
The passage was lighted up with a bright flame.
" It is Top ! " cried Herbert.
It was indeed Top, a magnificent Anglo-Norman, who
derived from these two races crossed the swiftness of foot
and the acuteness of smell which are the pre-eminent quali-
ties of coursing dogs. It was the dog of the engineer
Cyrus Harding. But he was alone ! Neither Neb nor his
master accompanied him !
How was it that his instinct had guided him straight to
the Chimneys, which he did not know? It appeared inex-
plicable, above all. in the midst of this black night and in
such a tempest ! But what was still more inexplicable was,
THE LOST IS FOUND 331
that Top was neither tired, nor exhausted, nor even soiled
with mud or sand !— Herbert had drawn him towards him,
and was patting his head, the dog rubbing his neck against
the lad's hands.
"li the dog is found, the master will be found also?"
said the reporter.
"God grant it!" responded Herbert. "Let us set off!
Top will guide us ! "
Pencroft did not make any objection. He felt that
Top's arrival contradicted his conjectures. "Come along
then! " said he.
Pencroft carefully covered the embers on the hearth.
He placed a few pieces of wood amongst them, so as to
keep the fire until their return. Then, preceded by the
dog, who seemed to invite them by short barks to come' with
him, and followed by the reporter and the boy. he dashed
out, after having put up in his handkerchief the remains of
the supper.
The storm was then in all its violence, and perhaps at its
height. Not a single ray of light from the moon pierced
through the clouds. To follow a straight course was diffi-
cult. It was best to rely on Top's instinct. Tiiey did so.
The reporter and Herbert walked behind the dog, and
the sailor brought up the rear. It was impossible to ex-
change a word. The rain was not very heavy, but the
wind was terrific.
However, one circumstance favored the seaman and his
two companions. The wind being southeast, consequently
blew on their backs. The clouds of sand, wiiich otherwise
would have been insupportable, from being received behind,
did not in consequence impede their progress. In short,
they sometimes went faster than they liked, and had some
difficulty in keeping their feet; but hope gave them strength,
for it was not at random that they made their way along
the shore. They had no doubt that Neb had found his
master, and that he had .sent them the faithful dog. But
was the engineer living, or had Neb only sent for his coin-
panions that they might render the last duties to the corpse
of the unfortunate Harding?
After having passed the precipice. Herbert, the reporter,
and Pencroft' prudently stepped aside to stop and take
breath. The turn of the rocks sheltered them from the
332 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
wind, and they could breathe after this walk or rather run
of a quarter of an hour.
They could now hear and reply to each other, and the
lad having pronounced the name of Cyrus Harding, Top
gave a few short barks, as much as to say that his master
was saved.
"Saved, isn't he?" repeated Herbert; "saved, Top?"
And the dog barked in reply.
They once more set out. The tide began to rise, and
urged by the wind it threatened to be unusually high, as it
was a spring tide. Great billows thundered against the
reef with such violence that they probably passed entirely
over the islet, then quite invisible. The mole no longer pro-
tected the coast, which was directly exposed to the attacks
of the open sea.
As soon as the sailor and his companions left the preci-
pice, the wind struck them again with renewed fury.
Though bent under the gale they walked very quickly, fol-
lowing Top, who did not hesitate as to what direction to
take.
They ascended towards the north, having on their right
an interminable extent of billows, which broke with a deaf-
ening noise, and on their left a dark country, the aspect of
which it was impossible to guess. But they felt that it was
comparatively flat, for the wind passed completely over
them, without being driven back as it was when it came in
contact with the cliff.
At four o'clock in the morning, they reckoned that they
had cleared about five miles. The clouds were slightly
raised, and the wind, though less damp, was very sharp
and cold. Insufficiently protected by their clothing, Pen-
croft, Herbert, and Spilett suffered cruelly, but not a com-
plaint escaped their lips. They were determined to follow
Top, wherever the intelligent animal wished to lead them.
Towards five o'clock day began to break. At the zenith,
where the fog was less thick, gray shades bordered the
clouds ; under an opaque belt, a luminous line clearly traced
the horizon. The crests of the billows were tipped with a
wild light, and the foam regained its whiteness. At the
same time on the left the hilly parts of the coast could be
seen, though very indistinctly.
At six o'clock day had broken. The clouds rapidly lifted.
THE LOST IS FOUND 333
The seaman and his companions were then about six miles
from the Chimneys. They were following a very flat
shore bounded by a reef of rocks, whose heads scarcely
emerged from the sea, for they were in deep water. On
the left, the country appeared to be one vast extent of
sandy downs, bristling with thistles. There was no cliff,
and the shore offered no resistance to the ocean but a chain
of irregular hillocks. Here and there grew two or three
trees, inclined towards the west, their branches projccling
in that direction. Quite behind, in the southwest, extended
the border of the forest.
At this moment, Top became very excited. He ran for-
ward, then returned, and seemed to entreat them to hasten
their steps. The dog then left the beach, and guided by
his wonderful instinct, without showing the least hesitation,
went straight in amongst the downs. They followed him.
The country appeared an absolute desert. Not a hving
creature was to be seen.
The downs, the extent of which was large, were com-
posed of hillocks and even of hills, very irregularly dis-
tributed. They resembled a Switzerland modeled in sand,
and only an amazing instinct could have possibly recog-
nized the way.
Five minutes after having left the beach, the reporter
and his two companions arrived at a sort of excavation,
hollowed out at the back of a high mound. There Top
stopped, and gave a loud, clear bark. Spilett, Herbert,
and Pencroft dashed into the cave.
Neb was there, kneeling beside a body extended on a
bed of grass
The body was that of the engineer, Cyrus Harding.
CHAPTER vnr
THE FIRST MYSTERY
Neb did not move. Pencroft only uttered one word.
" Living? "' he cried.
Neb did not replv. Spilett and the sailor turned pale.
Herbert clasped his hands, and remained motionless. The
poor negro, absorbed in his grief, evidently had neither
seen his companions nor heard the sailor speak.
334 DROPPliD FROM THE CLOUDS
The reporter knelt down beside the motionless body, and
placed his ear to the engineer's chest, having first torn open
his clothes. A minute — an age ! — passed, during which he
endeavored to catch the faintest throb of the heart.
Neb had raised himself a little and gazed without seeing.
Despair had completely changed his countenance. He
could scarcely be recognized, exhausted with fatigue, bro-
ken with grief. He believed his master was dead.
Gideon Spilett at last rose, after a long and attentive ex-
amination.
" He lives ! " said he.
Pencroft knelt in his turn beside the engineer; he also
heard a throbbing, and even felt a breath on his cheek.
Herbert at a word from the reporter ran out to look for
water. He found, a hundred feet off, a limpid stream,
which seemed to have been greatly increased by the rains,
and which filtered through the sand; but nothing in which
to put the water, not even a shell amongst the downs. The
lad was obliged to content himself with dipping his hand-
kerchief in the stream, and with it hastened back to the
grotto.
Happily the wet handkerchief was enough for Gideon
Spilett, who only wished to wet the engineer's lips. The
cold water produced an almost immediate effect. His
chest heaved and he seemed to try to speak.
" We will save him ! " exclaimed the reporter.
At thse words hope revived in Neb's heart. He un-
dressed his master to see if he was wounded; but not so
much as a bruise was to be found, either on the head, body,
or limbs, which was surprising, as he must have been
dashed against the rocks; even the hands were uninjured,
and it was difficult to explain how the engineer showed no
traces of the efforts which he must have made to get out of
reach of the breakers.
But the explanation would come later. When Cyrus
was able to speak he would say what had happened. For
the present the question was, how to recall him to life, and
it appeared likely that rubbing would bring this about; so
they set to work with the sailor's jersey.
The engineer, revived by this rude shampooing, moved
his arm slightly, and began to breathe more regularly.
He was sinking from exhaustion, and certainly, had not
THE FIRST MYSTERY 335
the reporter and his companions arrived, it would have
been all over with Cyrus Harding.
" You thought your master was dead, didn't you? " said
the seaman to Neb.
"Yes! quite dead!" replied Neb, "and if Top had not
found you, and brought you here, I should have buried my
master, and then have lain down on his grave to die! "
It had indeed been a narrow escape for Cyrus Harding!
Neb then recounted what had happened. The day be-
fore, after having left the Chimneys at daybreak, he had
ascended the coast in a northerly direction, and had
reached that part of the shore which he had already visited.
There, without any hope he acknowledged, Neb had
searched the beach, among the rocks, on the sand, for the
smallest trace to guide him. He examined particularly
that part of the beach w^hich was not covered by the high
tide, for near the sea the water would have obliterated all
marks. Neb did not expect to find his master living. It
iwas for a corpse that he searched, a corpse which he
wished to bury with his own hands!
He sought long in vain. This desert coast appeared
never to have been visited by a human creature. The
shells, those W'hich the sea had not reached, and which
might be met with by millions above high-water mark,
were untouched. Not a shell was broken.
Neb then resolved to walk along the beach for some
miles. It was possible that the waves had carried the body
to quite a distant point. When a corpse floats a little dis-
tance from a low shore, it rarely happens that the tide does
not throw it up, sooner or later. This Neb knew, and he
wished to see his master again for the last time.
" I went along the coast for another two miles, carefully
examining the beach, both at high and low water, and I
had despaired of finding anything, when yesterday, about
five in the evening, I saw footprints on the sand."
"Footprints?" exclaimed Pencroft.
"Yes!" replied Neb.
" Did these footprints begin at the water's edge? " asked
the reporter.
" No," replied Neb, " only above high-water mark, for
the others must have been washed out by the tide."
" Go on, Neb," said Spilett.
336 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
*' I went half crazy when I saw these footprints. They
were very clear and went towards the downs. I followed
them for a quarter of a mile, running, but taking care not
to destroy them. Five minutes after, as it was getting
dark, I heard the barking of a dog. It was Top, and Top
brought me here, to my master ! "
Neb ended his account by saying what had been his
grief at finding the inanimate body, in which he vainly
sought for the least sign of life. Now that he had found
him dead he longed for him to be alive. All his efforts
were useless ! Nothing remained to be done but to render
the last duties to the one whom he had loved so much!
Neb then thought of his companions. They, no doubt,
would wish to see the unfortunate man again. Top was
there. Could he not rely on the sagacity of the faithful
animal? Neb several times pronounced the name of the
reporter, the one among his companions whom Top knew
best. Then he pointed to the south, and the dog bounded
off in the direction indicated to him.
We have heard how, guided by an instinct which might
be looked upon almost as supernatural, Top had found
them.
Neb's companions had listened with great attention to
this account. It was unaccountable to them how Cyrus
Harding, after the efforts which he must have made to es-
cape from the waves by crossing the rocks, had not received
even a scratch. And what could not be explained either,
was how the engineer had managed to get to this cave in
the downs, more than a mile from the shore.
" So, Neb," said the reporter, " it was not you who
brought your master to this place."
" No, it was not I," replied the negro.
" It's very clear that the captain came here by himself,"
said Pencroft.
" It is clear in reality," observed Spilett, " but it is not
credible!"
The explanation of this fact could only be procured from
the engineer's own lips, and they must wait for that till
speech returned. Rubbing had re-established the circula-
tion of the blood. Cyrus Harding moved his arm again,
then his head, and a few incomprehensible words escaped
him.
V. V Verne
-.fanarn arfi griiaaigq eji '^ua ot ei JBril ,niJa irlllo rioiJKiiiniluD -irli ninn^DaB
T(d diiv/ ll .93j:lq aril ^o rhuoe aril .^rrnai isdlo rii ,io .bnfilai 9il) lo nsi
nariV/ * # » .Aoiy- arlj yd baca ed} no j?!Bo v^obfiria aril \o arifism
,biiB? "jrii no JlanJ ^riibiBH aui-^D ,9riioo beri inamom srii i;':^uorIt ari
■oJ nBjjgd 9ri ,briK? 'iril oJni vioula eci cijiil/f ,a§9q n'^boov/ afllil riJiw bns
.anoini.i'ii,: -J ^III .wobfirfa a'jJoiJaarfl lo arioiJonhnib '^viaa'^i m.- 'mIi JiKrri
— ^,Je:' iliiv/ iiohBi^qor sri) b9ri')JBv/ ,mirf ■^d
.< JeV
KNOWLEDGE MASTERING DIFFICULTIES
Herbert now understood how the engineer was going to proceed to
ascertain the culmination of the sun, that is to say its passing the merid-
ian of the island, or, in other terms, the south of the place. It was by-
means of the shadow cast on the sand bv the stick. * * * * When
he thought the moment had come, Cvrus Harding knelt on the sand,
and with little wooden pegs, which he stuck into the sand, he began to
mark the successive diminutions of the stick's shadow. His companions.
bending over him, watched the operation with extreme interest. —
Page 392.
VoLt.
THE FIRST MYSTERY t,:,7
Neb, who was bending over him, spoke, but the engineer
did not appear to hear, and his eyes remained closed.
Life was only exhibited in him by movement, his senses
had not as yet been restored.
Pencroft much regretted not having either fire, or the
means of procuring it, for he had, unfortunately, forgotten
to bring the burnt linen, which would easily have ignited
from the spark produced by striking together two flints.
As to the engineer's pockets, they were entirely empty, ex-
cept that of his waistcoat, Vv'hich contained his watch. It
was necessary to carry Harding to the Chimneys, and that
as soon as possible. This was the opinion of all.
Meanwhile, the care which was lavished on the engineer
brought him back to consciousness sooner than they could
have expected. The water with which they wetted his
lips revived him gradually. Pencroft also thought of mix-
ing with the water some moisture from the tetra's Qesh
>vhich he had brought. Herbert ran to the beach and re-
turned with tw'o large bivalve shells. The sailor concocted
something which he introduced between the lips of the en-
gineer, who eagerly drinking it opened his eyes.
Neb and the reporter were leaning over him.
" My master ! my master ! " cried Neb.
The engineer heard him. He recognized Xeb and
Spilett, then his other two companions, ,and his hand
slightly pressed theirs,
N few words again escaped him, which showed what
thoughts were, even then, troubling his brain. This time
he was understood. Undoubtedly they were the same
words he had before attempted to utter.
"Island or continent?" he murmured.
" Bother the continent," cried Pencroft hastily ; " there is
time enough to see about that, captain! we don't care for
anything, provided you are living."
The engineer nodded faintly, and appeared to sleep.
They respected this sleep, and the reporter began imme-
diately to make arrangements for transporting Harding to
a more comfortable place. Neb, Herbert, and Pencroft
left the cave and directed their steps towards a high mound
crowned with a few distorted trees. On the way the sailor
could not help repeating. "Island or continent! ^To think
of that, when at one's last gasp ! What a man ! "
338 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
Arrived at the summit of the mound, Pencroft and his
two companions set to work, with no other tools than their
hands, to despoil of its principal branches a rather sickly
tree, a sort of marine fir; with these branches they made
a litter, on which, covered with grass and leaves, they
could carry the engineer. This occupied them nearly forty
minutes, and it was ten o'clock when they returned to Cyrus
Harding, whom Spilett had not left.
The engineer was just awaking from the sleep, or rather
from the drowsiness, in which they had found him. The
color was returning to his cheeks, which till now had been
as pale as death. He raised himself a little, looked around
him, and appeared to ask where he was.
" Can you listen to me without fatigue, Cyrus ? " asked
the reporter.
" Yes," replied the engineer.
" It's my opinion," said the sailor, " that Captain Har-
ding will be able to listen to you still better, if he will have
some more tetra jelly, — for we have tetras, captain," added
he, presenting him with a little of this jelly, to which he
this time added some of the flesh.
Cyrus Harding ate a little of the tetra, and the rest was
divided among his companions, who found it but a meager
breakfast, for they were suffering extremely from the
pangs of hunger.
" Well ! " said the sailor, " there Is plenty of food at the
Chimneys, for you must know, captain, that down there, in
the south, we have a house, with rooms, beds, and fire-
place, and in the pantry, several dozen of birds, which our
Herbert calls couroucous. Your litter is ready, and as
soon as you feel strong enough we will carry you home."
" Thanks, my friend," replied the engineer ; *' wait an-
other hour or two, and then we will set out. And now
speak, Spilett.'*
The reporter then told him all that had occurred. He
recounted all the events with which C\'(rus was unac-
quainted, the last fall of the balloon, the landing on this
unknown land, which appeared a desert (whatever it was,
whether island or continent), the discovery of the Chim-
neys, the search for him, not forgetting of course Neb's de-
votion, the intelligence exhibited by the faithful Top, as
well as many other matters.
tt
THE FIRST MYSTERY 339
" But," asked Harding, in a still feeble voice, " vou did
not, then, pick me up on the beach? "
" No," replied the reporter.
" And did you not bring me to this cave ? "
" No."
At what distance is this cave from the sea? "
About a mile," replied Pencroft; "and if you are as-
tonished, captain, we are not less surprised ourselves at
seeing you in this place ! "
" Indeed," said the engineer, who was recovering grad-
ually, and who took great interest in these details, " indeed
it is very singular! "
" But," resumed the sailor, " can you tell us what hap-
pened after you were carried off by the sea? "
Cyrus Harding considered. He knew very little. The
wave had torn him from the balloon net. He sank at first
several fathoms. On returning to the surface, in the half
light, he felt a living creature struggling near him. It was
Top, who had sprung to his help. He saw nothing of the
balloon, which, lightened both of his weight and that of
the dog, had darted away like an arrow.
There he was, in the midst of the angry sea, at a dis-
tance which could not be less than half a mile from the
shore. He attempted to struggle against the billows by
swimming vigorously. Top held him up by his clothes;
but a strong current seized him and drove him towards the
north, and after half an hour of exertion, he sank, drag-
ging Top with him into the depths. From that moment, to
the moment in which he recovered to find himself in the
arms of his friends he remembered nothing.
" However," remarked Pencroft, " you must have been
thrown onto the beach, and you must have had strength
to walk here, since Neb found your footmarks ! "
*' Yes ... of course . . ." replied the engineer,
thoughtfully; "and you found no traces of human beings
on this coast? "
"Not a trace," replied the reporter; "besides, \i by
chance you had met with some deliverer there, just in the
nick of time, why should he have abandoned you after
having saved you from the waves? "
"You are 'right, my dear Spilett. Tell me. Neb."
added the engineer, turning to his servant, " it was not you
340 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
who . . . you can't have had a moment of uncon-
sciousness . . . during which . . . no, that's ab-
surd . . . Do any of the footsteps still remain?"
asked Harding.
"Yes, master," replied Neb; "here, at the entrance, at
the back of the mound, in a place sheltered from the rain
and wind. The storm has destroyed the others."
" Pencroft," said Cyrus Harding, " will you take my
shoe and see if it fits exactly to the footprints? "
The sailor did as the engineer requested. Whilst he
and Herbert, guided by Neb, went to the place where the
footprints were to be found, Cyrus remarked to the re-
porter, " It is a most extraordinary thing ! "
" Perfectly inexplicable ! " replied Gideon Spilett.
" But do not dwell upon it just now, my dear Spilett, we
will talk about it by-and-by."
A moment after the others entered. There was no doubt
about it. The engineer's shoe fitted exactly to the foot-
marks. It was therefore Harding who had left them on
the sand.
" Come," said he, " I must have experienced this un-
consciousness which I attributed to Neb. I must have
walked like a somnambulist, without any knowledge of
my steps, and Top must have guided me here, after having
dragged me from the waves . . . Come, Top!
Come, old dog ! "
The magnificent animal bounded barking to his master;
caresses were lavished on him. It was agreed that there
was no other way of accounting for the rescue of Cyrus
Harding, and that Top deserved all the honor of the affair.
Towards twelve o'clock, Pencroft having asked the en-
gineer if they could now remove him, Harding, instead of
replying, and by an effort which exhibited the most ener-
getic will, got up. But he was obliged to lean on the sailor,
or he would have fallen.
"Well done!" said Pencroft; "bring the captain's
litter."
The litter was brought; the transverse branches had
been covered with leaves and long grass. Harding was
laid on it, and Pencroft, having taken his place at one end
and Neb at the other, they started towards the coast.
There was a distance of eight miles to be accomplished;
THE FIRST MYSTERY 341
but, as they could not go fast, and it would perhaps be
necessary to stop frequently, they reckoned that il would
take at least six hours to reach the Chimneys. The wind
was still strong, but fortunately it did not rain. Although
lying down, the engineer, leaning on his elbow, observed
the coast, particularly inland. He did not speak, but he
gazed ; and, no doubt, the appearance of the country, with
its inequalities of ground, its forests, its various produc-
tions, were impressed on his mind.
However, after traveling for two hours, fatigue over-
came him, and he slept.
At half-past hve the little band arrived at the precipice,
and a short time after at the Chimneys.
They stopped, and the litter was placed on the sand;
Cyrus Harding was sleeping profoundly, and did not
awake.
Pencroft, to his extreme surprise, found that the terrible
storm had quite altered the aspect of the place. Important
changes had occurred; great blocks of stone lay on the
beach, which was also covered with a thick carpet of sea-
weed, algae, and wrack. Evidently the sea, passing over
the islet, had been carried right up to the foot of the enor-
mous curtain of granite. The soil in front of the cave had
been torn away by the violence of the w'aves. A horrid
presentiment flashed across Pencroft's mind. He rushed
into the passage, but returned almost immediately, and
stood motionless, staring at his companions. . . .
The fire was out; the drowned cinders were nothing but
mud; the burnt linen, which w^as to have served as tinder,
had disappeared! The sea had penetrated to the end of
the passages, and everything was overthrown and destroyed
in the interior of the Chimneys!
CHAPTER IX
ISLAND OR CONTINENT
In a few words, Gideon Spilctt. Herbert, and Xeb were
made acquainted with what had happened. This accident,
which appeared so very serious to Pencroft. produced dif-
ferent effects on the companions of the honest sailor.
Neb, in his delight at having found his master, did not
342 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
listen, or rather, did not care to trouble himself with what
Pencroft was saying.
Herbert shared in some degree the sailor's feelings.
As to the reporter, he simply replied :
" Upon my word, Pencroft, it's perfectly indifferent to
me!"
" But I repeat, that we haven't any fire ! "
"Pooh!"
" Nor any means of relighting it! "
" Nonsense ! "
" But I say, Mr. Spilett "
"Isn't Cyrus here?" replied the reporter.
" Is not our engineer alive ? He will soon find some
way of making fire for us! "
"With what?"
" With nothing."
What had Pencroft to say? He could say nothing, for
in the bottom of his heart he shared the confidence which
his companions had in Cyrus Harding. The engineer was
to them a microcosm, a compound of every science, a pos-
sessor of all human knowledge. It was better to be with
Cyrus in a desert island, than without him in the most
flourishing town in the United States. With him they
could want nothing; with him they would never despair.
If these brave men had been told that a volcanic eruption
would destroy the land, that this land would be engulfed
in the depths of the Pacific, they would have imperturbably
replied, "Cyrus is here!"
While in the palanquin, however, the engineer had again
relapsed into unconsciousness, which the jolting to which
he had been subjected during his journey had brought on,
so that they could not now appeal to his ingenuity. The
supper must necessarily be very meager. In fact, all the
tetras' flesh had been consumed, and there no longer existed
any means of cooking more game. Besides, the couroucous
which had been reserved had disappeared. They must
consider what was to be done.
First of all, Cyrus Harding was carried into the central
passage. There they managed to arrange for him a couch
of sea-weed which still remained almost dry. The deep
sleep which had overpowered him would no doubt be more
beneficial to him than any nourishment.
ISLAND OR CONTINENT 343
Night had closed in, and the temperature, which had
modified when the wind shifted to the northwest, again
became extremely cold. Also, the sea having destroyed
the partitions which Pencroft had put up in certain places
in the passages, the Chimneys, on account of the draughts,
had become scarcely habitable. The engineer's condition
would, therefore, have been bad enough, if his companions
had not carefully covered him with their coats and waist-
coats.
Supper, this evening, was of course composed of the
inevitable lithodomes, of which Herbert and Neb picked up
a plentiful supply on the beach. However, to these mol-
luscs, the lad added some edible sea-weed, which he gath-
ered on high rocks, whose sides were only washed by the
sea at the time of high tides. This sea-weed, which be-
longs to the order of Sucacse, of the genus Sargussum. pro-
duces, when dry, a gelatinous matter, rich and nutritious.
The reporter and his companions, after having eaten a
quantity of lithodomes, sucked the sargussum, of which
the taste was very tolerable. It is used in parts of the
East very considerably by the natives, " Never mind ! "
said the sailor, " the captain will help us soon." Mean-
while the cold became very severe, and unhappily they had
no means of defending themselves from it.
The sailor, extremely vexed, tried in all sorts of ways to
procure fire. Neb helped him in this work. He found
some dry moss, and by striking together two pebbles he
obtained some sparks, but the moss, not being inflammable
enough, did not take fire, for the sparks were really only
incandescent, and not at all of the same consistency as
those which are emitted from flint when struck in the same
manner. The experiment, therefore, did not succeed.
Pencroft, although he had no confidence in the proceed-
ing, then tried rubbing two pieces of dry wood together, as
savages do. Certainly, the movement which he and Neb
gave themselves, if they had been transformed into heat,
according to the new theory, would have been enough to
heat the boiler of a steamer! It came to nothing. The
bits of wood became hot, to be sure, but much less so than
the operators themselves.
After working an hour, Pencroft, who was in a complete
State of perspiration, threw down the pieces of wood in dis-
344 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
gust. " I can never be made to believe that savages light
their fires in this way, let them say what they will," he ex-
claimed. " I could sooner light my arms by rubbing them
against each other! "
The sailor was wrong to despise the proceeding. Savages
often kindle wood by means of rapid rubbing. But every
sort of wood does not answer for the purpose, and besides,
there is " the knack," following the usual expression, and
Pencroft had not " the knack."
Pencroft's ill humor did not last long. Herbert had taken
the bits of wood which he had thrown down, and w^as exert-
ing himself to rub them. The hardy sailor could not restrain
a burst of laughter on seeing the efforts of the lad to suc-
ceed where he had failed.
" Rub, my boy, rub ! " said he.
" I am rubbing," replied Herbert, laughing, " but I don't
pretend to do anything but warm myself instead of shiver-
ing, and soon I shall be as hot as you, my good Pencroft! "
This soon happened. However, they were obliged to
give up, for this night at least, the attempt to procure fire.
Gideon Spilett repeated, for the twentieth time, that Cyrus
Harding would not have been troubled for so small a diffi-
culty. And, in the meantime, he stretched himself in one
of the passages on his bed of sand. Herbert, Neb, and
Pencroft did the same, whilst Top slept at his master's feet.
Next day, the 28th of March, when the engineer awoke,
about eight in the morning, he saw his companions around
him watching his sleep, and, as on the day before, his first
w^ords were, " Island or continent? "
This was his uppermost thought.
"Well!" replied Pencroft, "we don't know anything
about it, captain ! "
"You don't know yet?"
" But we shall know," rejoined Pencroft, " when you have
guided us into the country."'
" I think I am able to try it," replied the engineer, who,
without much effort, rose and stood upright.
" That's capital ! " cried the sailor.
" I feel dreadfully weak," replied Harding. " Give me
something to eat, my friends, and it will soon go off. You
have fire, haven't you? "
This question was not immediately replied to. But, in a
ISLAND OR CONTINENT 345
few seconds — " Alas ! we have no fire," said Pencrof t, " or
rather, captain, we have it no longer ! "
And the sailor recounted all that had passed the day be-
fore. He amused the engineer by the history of the s'ingle
match, then his abortive attempt to procure fire in the sav-
ages' way.
" We shall consider," replied the engineer. " and if we do
not find some substance similar to tinder "
"Well?" asked the sailor.
" Well, we will make matches."
"Chemicals?"
"Chemicals!"
" It is not more difficult than that," cried the reporter,
striking the sailor on the shoulder.
The latter did not think it so simple, but he did not pro-
test. All went out. The weather had become very fine.
The sun was rising from the sea's horizon, and touched
with golden spangles the prismatic rugosities of the huge
precipice.
Having thrown a rapid glance around him, the engineer
seated himself on a block of stone. Herbert offered him a
few handfuls of shell-fish and sargussum. saying:
" It is all that we have, Captain Harding."
"Thanks, my boy," replied Harding; "it will do — for
this morning at least."
He ate the wretched food with appetite, and washed it
down with a little fresh water, drawn from the river in an
immense shell.
His companions looked at him without speaking. Then,
feeling somewhat refreshed, Cyrus Harding crossed his
arms, and said, " So, my friends, you do not know yet
whether fate has thrown us on an island, or on a conti-
nent?"
" No, captain," replied the boy.
"We shall know to-morrow," said the engineer; "till
then, there is nothing to be done."
" Yes," replied Pencroft.
"What?"
" Fire," said the sailor, who. also, had a fixed idea.
" We will make it, Pencroft," replied Harding.
" Whilst you were carrying me yesterday, did I not see in
the west a mountain which commands the country? "
346 DROPPED FROiA^ THE CLOUDS
Yes," replied Spilett, " a mountain which must be rather
<(
high "
" Well," replied the engineer, " we will climb to the sum-
mit to-morrow, and then we shall see if this land is an island
or a continent. Till then, I repeat, there is nothing to be
done."
"Yes, fire!" said the obstinate sailor again.
" But he will make us a fire ! " replied Gideon Spilett,
" only have a little patience, Pencroft! "
The seaman looked at Spilett in a way which seemed to
say, " If it depended upon you to do it, we wouldn't taste
roast meat very soon ; " but he was silent.
Meanwhile Captain Harding had made no reply. He
appeared to be very little troubled by the question of fire.
For a few minutes he remained absorbed in thought; then
again speaking:
" My friends," said he, " our situation is, perhaps, de-
plorable ; but, at any rate, it is very plain. Either we are on
a continent, and then, at the expense of greater or less fa-
tigue, we shall reach some inhabited place, or we are on an
island. In the latter case, if the island is inhabited, we will
try to get out of the scrape with the help of its inhabitants;
if it is desert, we will try to get out of the scrape by our-
selves."
" Certainly, nothing could be plainer," replied Pencroft.
" But, whether it is an island or a continent," asked
Gideon Spilett, *' whereabouts do you think, Cyrus, this
storm has thrown us? "
" I cannot say exactly," replied the engineer, " but I pre-
sume it is some land in the Pacific. In fact, when we left
Richmond, the wind was blowing from the northeast, and its
very violence proves that it could not have varied. If the
direction has been maintained from the northeast to the
southwest, we have traversed the States of North Carolina,
of South Carolina, of Georgia, the Gulf of Mexico, Mexico
itself, in its narrow part, then a part of the Pacific Ocean.
I cannot estimate the distance traversed by the balloon at
less than six to seven thousand miles, and, even supposing
that the wind had varied half a quarter, it must have brought
us either to the archipelago of Mendava, either on the Pomo-
tous, or even, if it had a greater strength than I suppose, to
the land of New Zealand. If the last hypothesis is correct.
ISLAND OR CONTINENT 347
it will be easy enough to get home again. English or T^Ia-
ories, we shall always find someone to whom we can speak.
If, on the contrary, this is the coast of a desert island in some
tiny archipelago, perhaps we shall be able to reconnoiter it
from the summit of that peak which overlooks the country,
and then we shall see how best to establish ourselves here as
if we are never to go away."
"Never?" cried the reporter. "You say 'Never,' my
dear Cyrus? "
" Better to put things at the worst at first," replied the
engineer, " and reserve the best for a surprise."
" Well said," remarked Pencroft. " It is to be hoped, too,
that this island, if it be one, is not situated just out of the
course of ships; that would be really unlucky! "
" We shall not know what we have to rely on until we
have first made the ascent of the mountain," replied the en-
gineer.
" But to-morrow, captain," asked Herbert, " shall you be
in a state to bear the fatigue of the ascent? "
" I hope so," replied the engineer, " provided you and Pen-
croft, my boy, show yourself to be quick and clever
hunters."
"Captain," said the sailor, "since you are speaking of
game, if, on my return, I was as certain of being able to
roast it as I am of bringing it back "
" Bring it back all the same, Pencroft," replied Harding.
It was then agreed that the engineer and the reporter were
to pass the day at the Chimneys, so as to examine the shore
and the upper plateau. Neb, Herbert, and the sailor, were
to return to the forest, renew their store of wood, and lay
violent hands on every creature, feathered or hairy, which
might come within their reach.
They set out accordingly about ten o'clock in the morning.
Herbert confident. Neb joyous, Pencroft murmuring
aside:
" If, on my return, I find a fire at the house, I shall be-
lieve that the thunder itself came to light it." All three
climbed the bank ; and arrived at the angle made by the river,
the sailor, stopping, said to his two companions :
" Shall we begin bv being hunters or woodmen? "
" Hunters," replied Herbert. " There is Top already in
quest."
348 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
" We will hunt, then," said the sailor, " and afterwards
we can come back and collect our wood."
This agreed to, Herbert, Neb, and Pencroft, after having
torn three sticks from the trunk of a young fir, followed
Top, who was bounding about amongst the long grass.
This time, the hunters, instead of following the course of
the river, plunged straight into the heart of the forest. There
were still the same trees, belonging, for the most part, to
the pine family. In certain places, less crowded, growing
in clumps, these pines exhibited considerable dimensions, and
appeared to indicate, by their development, that the country
was situated in a higher latitude than the engineer had sup-
posed. Glades, bristling with stumps worn away by time,
were covered with dry wood, which formed an inexhaustible
store of fuel. Then, the glade passed, the underwood
thickened again, and became almost impenetrable.
' It was difficult enough to find the way amongst the groups
of trees, without any beaten track. So the sailor from time
to time broke off branches which might be easily recognized.
But, perhaps, he was wrong not to follow the watercourse,
as he and Plerbert had done on their first excursion, for
after walking an hour not a creature had shown itself. Top,
running under the branches, only roused birds which could
not be approached. Even the couroucous were invisible,
and it was probable that the sailor would be obliged to re-
turn to the marshy part of the forest, in which he had so
happily performed his tetra fishing.
" Well, Pencroft," said Neb, in a slightly sarcastic tone,
" if this is all the game which you promised to bring back
to my master, it won't need a large fire to roast it ! "
" Have patience," replied the sailor, " it isn't the game
which will be wanting on our return."
" Have you not confidence in Captain Harding? "
" Yes."
" But you don't believe that he will make fire? "
" I shall believe it when the wood is blazing in the fire-
place."
" It will blaze, since my master has said so."
"We shall see!"
Meanwhile, the sun had not reached the highest point in
its course above the horizon. The exploration, therefore,
continued, and was usefully marked by a discovery which
ISLAND OR CONTINENT 349
Herbert made of a tree whose fruit was edible. This was
the stone-pine, which produces an excellent almond, very
much esteemed in the temperate regions of America and
Europe. These almonds were in a perfect state of matur-
ity, and Herbert described them to his companions, who
feasted on them.
" Come," said Pencroft, " sea-weed by way of bread, raw
mussels for meat, and almonds for dessert, that's certainly
a good dinner for those who have not a single match in tlieir
pocket!"
^^ We mustn't complain," said Herbert.
" I am not complaining, my boy," replied Pencroft, " only
I repeat, that meat is a little too much economized in this
sort of meal."
" Top has found something ! " cried Neb, who ran towards
a thicket, in the midst of which the dog had disappeared,
barking. With Top's barking were mingled curious grunt-
mgs.
The sailor and Herbert had followed Neb. If there was
game there this was not the time to discuss how it was to be
cooked, but rather, how they were to get hold of it.
The hunters had scarcely entered the bushes when they
saw Top engaged in a struggle with an animal which he
was holding by the ear. This quadruped was a sort of pig
nearly two feet and a half long, of a blackish brown color,
lighter below, having hard scanty hair; its toes, then strongly
fixed in the ground, seemed to be united by a membrane.
Herbert recognized in this animal the capybara, that is to
say, one of the largest members of the numerous rodent
order.
Meanwhile, the capybara did not struggle against the dog.
It stupidly rolled its e3'es, deeply buried in a thick bed of
fat. Perhaps it saw men for the first time.
However, Neb having tightened his grasp on his stick, was
just going to fell the pig, when the latter, tearing itself from
Top's teeth, by which it was only held by the tip of its ear,
uttered a vigorous grunt, rushed upon Herbert, almost over-
threw him, and disappeared in the wood.
" The rascal ! " cried Pencroft.
All three directly darted after Top, but at the moment
when they joined him the animal had disappeared under the
waters of a large pond shaded by venerable pines.
350 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
Neb, Herbert, and Pencroft stopped, motionless. Top
plunged into the water, but the capybara, hidden at the bot-
tom of the pond, did not appear.
" Let us wait," said the boy, " for he will soon come to
the surface to breathe."
" Won't he drown? " asked Neb.
" No," replied Herbert, " since he has webbed feet, and is
almost an amphibious animal. But watch him."
Top remained in the water. Pencroft and his two com-
panions went to different parts of the bank, so as to cut off
the retreat of the capybara, which the dog was looking for
beneath the water.
Herbert was not mistaken. In a few minutes the animal
appeared on the surface of the water. Top was upon it in a
bound, and kept it from plunging again. An instant later
the capybara, dragged to the bank, was killed by a blow
from Neb's stick.
" Hurrah! " cried Pencroft, who was always ready with
this cry of triumph.
" Give me but a good fire, and this pig shall be gnawed
to the bones ! "
Pencroft hoisted the capybara on his shoulders, and judg-
ing by the height of the sun that it was about two o'clock,
he gave the signal to return.
Top's instinct was useful to the hunters, who, thanks to
the intelligent animal, were enabled to discover the road
by which they had come. Half an hour later they arrived
at the river.
Pencroft soon made a raft of wood, as he had done be-
fore, though if there was no fire it would be a useless task,
and the raft following the current, they returned towards
the Chimneys.
But the sailor had not gone fifty paces when he stopped,
and again uttering a tremendous hurrah, pointed towards
the angle of the cliff, " Herbert ! Neb ! Look ! " he shouted.
Smoke was escaping and curling up amongst the rocks.
CHAPTER X
CLIMBING THE VOLCANO
In a few minutes the three hunters were before a crackling
fire. The captain and the reporter were there. Pencroft
looked from one to the other without saying a word.
" There it is, my brave fellow," cried the reporter. '' Fire,
real fire, which will roast this splendid pig perfectly, and we
will have a feast presently! "
" But who lighted it? " asked Pencroft.
"The sun!"
Gideon Spilett was quite right in his reply. It was the
sun which had furnished the heat which so astonished Pen-
croft. The sailor could scarcely believe his eyes, and he was
so amazed that he did not think of questioning the engineer
" Had you a burning-glass, sir? " asked Herbert.
" No, my boy," replied Harding, " but I made one."
And he showed the apparatus which served for a burning-
glass. It Vv'as simply two glasses which he had taken from
his own and the reporter's watches. Having filled them
with water and rendered their edges adhesive by means of
little clay, he thus fabricated a regular burning-glass, which,
concentrating the solar rays on some very dry moss, soon
caused it to blaze.
The sailor considered the apparatus ; then he gazed at the
engineer without saying a word, only a look plainly ex-
pressed his opinion that if Cyrus Harding was not a ma-
gician, he was certainly no ordinary man. At last speech
returned to him, and he cried, " Note that, Mr. Spilett, note
that down on your paper ! "
" It is noted," replied the reporter.
Then, Neb helping him, the seaman arranged the spit,
and the capybara, properly cleaned, was soon roasting like a
sucking-pig before a clear, crackling fire.
The Chimneys had again become more habitable, not only
because the passages were warmed by the fire, but because
the partitions of wood and mud had been re-established.
It was evident that the engineer and his companions had
employed their dav well. Cyrus Harding had almost en-
tirely recovered his strength, and had proved it by climbing
to the upper plateau. From this point his eye. accustomed
to estimate heights and distances, was fixed for a long tune
on the cone, the summit of which he wished to reach the
351
352 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
next day. The mountain, situated about six miles to the
northwest, appeared to him to measure 3,500 feet above the
level of the sea. Consequently the gaze of an observer
posted on its summit would extend over a radius of at least
fifty miles. Therefore it was probable that Harding could
easily solve the question of " island or continent," to which
he attached so much importance.
They supped capitally. The flesh of the capybara was de-
clared excellent. The sargussum and the almonds of the
stone-pine completed their repast, during v/hich the engineer
spoke little. He was preoccupied with projects for the next
day.
Once or twice Pencroft gave forth some ideas upon what
it would be best to do; but Cyrus Harding, who was evi-
dently of a methodical mind, only shook his head without
uttering a word.
" To-morrow," he repeated, " we shall know what we
have to depend upon, and we will act accordingly."
The meal ended, fresh armfuls of wood were thrown on
the fire, and the inhabitants of the Chimneys, including the
faithful Top, were soon buried in a deep sleep. No inci-
dent disturbed this peaceful night, and the next day, the
29th of March, fresh and active they awoke, ready to under-
take the excursion which must determine their fate.
All was ready for the start. The remains of the cap3'bara
would be enough to sustain them all for at least twenty-four
hours. Besides, they hoped to find more food on the way.
As the glasses had been returned to the w^atches of the en-
gineer and reporter, Pencroft burned a little linen to serve
as tinder. As to flint, that would not be wanting in these
regions of Plutonic origin. It was half past seven in the
morning when the explorers, armed with sticks, left the
Chimneys. Following Pencroft's advice, it appeared best to
take the road already traversed through the forest, and to
return by another route. It was also the most direct way
to reach the mountain. They turned the south angle and
followed the left bank of the river, which was abandoned
at the point where it formed an elbow towards the south-
west. The path, already trodden under the evergreen trees,
was found, and at nine o'clock Cyrus Harding and his com-
panions had reached the border of the forest. The ground,
till then, very little undulated, boggy at first, dry and sandy
V. V Verne
CLIMBING THE VOLCANO 353
afterwards, had a gentle slope, which ascended from the
shore towards the interior of the country. A few very timid
animals were seen under the forest trees. Top quickly
started them, but his master soon called him back, for tb.e
time had not come to commence hunting ; that would be at-
tended to later. The engineer was not a man who would
allow himself to be diverted from his fixed idea. It might
even have been said that he did not observe the country at
all, either in its configuration or in its natural productions,
his great aim being to climb the mountain before him, and
therefore straight towards it he went. At ten o'clock a halt
of a few minutes was made. On leaving the forest, the
mountain system of the country appeared before the ex-
plorers. The mountain was composed of two cones; the
first, truncated at a height of about two thousand five hun-
dred feet, was sustained by buttresses, which appeared to
branch out like the talons of an immense claw set on the
ground. Between these were narrow valleys, bristling with
trees, the last clumps of which rose to the top of the lowest
cone. There appeared to be less vegetation on that side of
the mountain which was exposed to the northeast, and deep
fissures could be seen which they had no doubt were water-
courses.
On the first cone rested a second, slightly rounded, and
placed a little on one side, like a great round hat cocked
over the ear. A Scotchman would have said, " His bonnet
was a thocht ajee." It appeared formed of bare earth, hciO
and there pierced by reddish rocks.
They wished to reach the second cone, and proceeding
along the ridge of the spurs seemed to be the best way by
.which to gain it.
" We are on volcanic ground," Cyrus Harding had said,
and his companions following him began to ascend by de-
grees on the back of a spur, which, by a winding and conse-
quently more accessible path, joined the first plateau.
The ground had evidently been convulsed by subterra-
nean force. Here and there stray blocks, numerous debris
of basalt and pumice-stone, were met with. In isolated
groups rose fir trees, which, some hundred feet lower, at the
bottom of the narrow gorges, formed massive shades almost
impenetrable to the sun's rays.
During this first part of the ascent, Herbert remarked on
354 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
the footprints which indicated the recent passage of large
animals.
" Perhaps these beasts will not let us pass by willingly,"
said Pencroft.
" Well," replied the reporter, who had already hunted the
tiger in India, and the lion in Africa, " we shall soon learn
how successfully to encounter them. But in the meantime
we must be upon our guard ! "
They ascended but slowly.
The distance increased by detours and obstacles which
could not be surmounted directly, was long. Sometimes,
too, the ground suddenly fell, and they found themselves on
the edge of a deep chasm which they had to go round. Thus,
in retracing their steps so as to find some practicable path,
much time was employed and fatigue undergone for noth-
ing. At twelve o'clock, when the small band of adventurers
halted for breakfast at the foot of a large group of firs, near
a little stream which fell in cascades, they found themselves
still half way from the first plateau, which most probably
they would not reach till nightfall. From this point the
view of the sea was much extended, but on the right the high
promontory prevented their seeing whether there was land
beyond it. On the left, the sight extended several miles to
the north; but, on the northwest, at the point occupied by
the explorers, it was cut short by the ridge of a fantastically
shaped spur, which formed a powerful support of the cen-
tral cone.
At one o'clock the ascent was continued. They slanted
more towards the southwest and again entered amongst
thick bushes. There under the shade of the trees fluttered
several couple of gallinaceae belonging to the pheasant spe-
cies. They were tragopans, ornamented by a pendant skin
which hangs over their throats, and by two small, round
horns planted behind the eyes. Among these birds, which
were about the size of a fowl, the female was uniformly
brown, whilst the male was gorgeous in his red plumage,
decorated with white spots. Gideon Spilett, with a stone
cleverly and vigorously thrown, killed one of these trago-
pans, on which Pencroft, made hungry by the fresh air, had
cast greedy eyes.
After leaving the region of bushes, the party, assisted by
resting on each other's shoulders, climbed for about a hun-
CLIMBING THE VOLCANO 355
dred feet up a steep acclivity and reached a level place, with
very few trees, where the soil appared volcanic. It was
ncessary to ascend by zigzags to make the slope more easy,
for it was very steep, and the footing being exceedingly
precarious required the greatest caution. Neb and Herbert
took the lead, Pencroft the rear, the captain and the reporter
between them. The animals which frequented these heights
— and there were numerous traces of them — must necessarily
belong to those races of sure foot and supple spine, chamois
or goat. Several were seen, but this was not the name Pen-
croft gave them, for all of a sudden:
" Sheep ! " he shouted.
All stopped about fifty feet from half a dozen animals of
a large size, with strong horns bent back and flattened
towards the point, with a wooly fleece, hidden under long
silky hair of a tawny color.
They were not ordinary sheep, but a species usually found
In the mountainous regions of the temperate zone, to which
Herbert gave the name of musmon.
" Have they legs and chops? " asked the sailor.
" Yes," replied Herbert.
" Well, then, they are sheep! " said Pencroft.
The animals, motionless among the blocks of basalt, gazed
with an astonished eye, as if they saw human bipeds for the
first time. Then, their fears suddenly aroused, they disap-
peared, bounding over the rocks.
" Good-by, till we meet again!" cried Pencroft, as he
watched them, in such a comical tone that Cyrus Hardmg,
Gideon Spilett, Herbert, and Neb could not help laughing.
The ascent was continued. Here and there were traces
of lava. Sulphur springs sometimes stopped their way, and
they had to go round them. In some places the sulphur
had formed crystals among other substances, such as whit-
ish cinders which were made of an infinity of little felspar
crvstals
In approaching the first plateau formed by the truncat-
ing of the lower cone, the difficulties of the ascent were very
great Towards four o'clock the extreme zone of the trees
had been passed. There only remained here and there a few
twisted, stunted pines, which must have had a hard life m
resisting at this altitude the high winds from the open sea.
Happily for the engineer and his companions the weather
356 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
was beautiful, the atmosphere tranquil; for a high breeze
at an elevation of three thousand feet would have hindered
their proceedings. The purity of the sky at the zenith was
felt through the transparent air. A perfect calm reigned
around them. They could not see the sun, then hid by the
vast screen of the upper cone, which masked the half-horizon
of the west, and whose enormous shadow stretching to the
shore increased as the radiant luminary sank in its diurnal
course. Vapors — mist rather than clouds — ^began to appear
in the east, and assume all the prismatic colors under the in-
fluence of the solar rays.
Five hundred feet only separated the explorers from the
plateau, which they wished to reach so as to establish there
an encampment for the night, but these five hundred feet
were increased to more than two miles by the zigzags which
they had to describe. The soil, as it were, slid under their
feet. The slope often presented such an angle that they
slipped when the stones worn by the air did not give a suf-
ficient support. Evening came on by degrees, and it was al-
most night when Cyrus Harding and his companions, much
fatigued by an ascent of seven hours, arrived at the plateau
of the first cone. It was then necessary to prepare an en-
campment, and to restore their strength by eating first and
sleeping afterv^-ards. This second stage of the mountain
rose on a base of rocks, among which it would be easy to
find a retreat. Fuel was not abundant. However, a fire
could be made by means of the moss and dry brushwood,
which covered certain parts of the plateau. Whilst the
sailor was preparing his hearth with stones which he put to
this use. Neb and Herbert occupied themselves with getting
a supply of fuel. They soon returned with a load of brush-
wood. The steel was struck, the burnt linen caught the
sparks of flint, and, under Neb's breath, a crackling fire
showed itself in a few minutes under the shelter of the rocks.
Their object in lighting a fire was only to enable them to
withstand the cold temperature of the night, as it was not
employed in cooking the bird, which Neb kept for the next
day. The remains of the capybara and some dozens of the
stone-pine almonds formed their supper. It was not half-
past six when all was finished.
Cyrus Harding then thought of exploring in the half-light
the large circular layer which supported the upper cone of
CLIMBING THE VOLCAiNO 357
the mountain. Before taking any rest, he wished to know
if it was possible to get round the base of tlie cone in the
case of its sides being too steep and its summit being inac-
cessible. This question preoccupied him, for it was possible
that from the w'ay the hat inchned. that is to say, towards
the north, the plateau was not practicable. Also, if the sum-
mit of the mountain could not be reached on one side, and if,
on the other, they could not get round the base of the cone,
it would be impossible to survey the western part of the
country, and their object in making the ascent would be un-
attained.
The engineer, accordingly, regardless of fatigue, leaving
Pencroft and Neb to arrange the beds, and Gideon Spilett
to note the incidents of the day, began to follow the edge
of the plateau, going towards the north. Herbert accom-
panied him.
The night was beautiful and still, the darkness was not
yet deep. Cyrus Harding and the boy walked near each
other, w^ithout speaking. In some places the plateau opened
before them, and they passed without hindrance. In others,
obstructed by rocks, there was only a narrow path, in which
two persons could not walk abreast. After a walk of twenty
minutes, Cyrus Harding and Herbert were obliged to stop.
From this point the slope of the two cones became one. No
shoulder here separated the two parts of the mountain. The
slope, being inclined almost seventy degrees, the path became
impracticable.
But if the engineer and the boy were obliged to give up
thoughts of following a circular direction, in return an op-
portunity was given for ascending the cone.
In fact, before them opened a deep hollow. It was the
rugged mouth of the crater, by which the eruptive liquid
matter had escaped at the periods when the volcano was still
in activity. Hardened lava and crusted scoria formed a sort
of natural staircase of large steps, which would greatly fa-
cilitate the ascent to the summit of the mountain. Harding
took all this in at a glance, and without hesitating, followed
by the lad, he entered the enormous chasm in the midst of an
increasing obscurity.
There was still a height of a thousand feet to overcome.
Would the interior acclivities of the crater be practicable?
It would soon be seen. The persevering engineer resolved
358 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
to continue his ascent until he was stopped. Happily these
acclivities wound up the interior of the volcano and favored
their ascent.
As to the volcano itself, it could not be doubted that it
was completely extinct. No smoke escaped from its sides ;
not a flame could be seen in the dark hollows ; not a roar, not
a mutter, no trembling even issued from this black well,
which perhaps reached far into the bowels of the earth. The
atmosphere inside the crater was filled with no sulphurous
vapor. It was more than the sleep of a volcano; it was its
complete extinction. Cyrus Harding's attempt would suc-
ceed.
Little by little, Herbert and he, climbing up the sides of
the interior, saw the crater widen above their heads. The
radius of this circular portion of the sky, framed by the edge
of the cone, increased obviously. At each step, as it were,
that the explorers made, fresh stars entered the field of their
vision. The magnificent constellations of the southern sky
shone resplendently. At the zenith glittered the splendid
Antares in the Scorpion, and not far the B in the Centaur,
which is believed to be the nearest star to the terrestrial globe.
Then, as the crater widened, appeared Fomalhaut of the
Fish^ the Southern Triangle, and lastly, nearly at the Ant-
arctic Pole, the glittering Southern Cross, which replaces the
Polar Star of the Northern Hemisphere.
It was nearly eight o'clock when Cyrus Harding and Her-
bert set foot on the highest ridge of the mountain at the
summit of the cone. It was then perfectly dark, and their
gaze could not extend over a radius of two miles. Did the
sea surround this unknown land, or was it connected in the
west with some continent of the Pacific. It could not yet be
made out. Towards the west, a cloudy belt, clearly visible
at the horizon, increased the gloom, and the eye could not
discover if the sky and water were blended together in the
same circular line.
But at one point of the horizon a vague light suddenly ap-
peared, which descended slowly in proportion as the cloud
mounted to the zenith.
It was the slender crescent moon, already almost disap-
pearing ; but its light was sufficient to show clearly the hori-
zontal line, then detached from the cloud, and the engineer
could see its reflection trembling for an instant on a liquid
CLIMBING THE VOLCANO 359
surface. Cyrus Harding seized the lad's hand, and in a
grave voice :
" An island ! " said he, at the moment when the lunar
crescent disappeared beneath the waves.
CHAPTER XI
LINCOLN ISLAND
Half an hour later Cyrus Harding and Herbert had re-
turned to the encampment. The engineer merely told his
companions that the land upon which fate had thrown them
was an island, and that the next day they would consult.
Then each settled himself as well as he could to sleep, and in
that rocky hole, at a height of two thousand five hundred
feet above the level of the sea, through a peaceful night, the
Islanders enjoyed profound repose.
The next day, the 30th of March, after a hasty break-
fast, which consisted solely of the roasted tragopan, the en-
gineer wished to climb again to the summit of the volcano,
so as more attentively to survey the island upon which he
and his companions were imprisoned for life perhaps, should
the island be situated at a great distance from any land, or
if it was out of the course of vessels w'hich visited the archi-
pelagos of the Pacific Ocean. This time his companions
followed him in the new exploration. They also wished
to see the island, on the productions of which they must de-
pend for the supply of all their wants.
It w^as about seven o'clock in the morning when Cyrus
Harding, Herbert, Pencroft, Gideon Spilett, and Neb quit-
ted the encampment. No one appeared to be anxious about
their situation. They had faith in themselves, doubtless,
but it must be observed that the basis of this faith was not
the same with Harding as with his companions. The en-
gineer had confidence, because he felt capable of extortmg
from this wild country everything necessary for the life of
himself and his companions; the latter feared nothmg. just
because Cyrus Harding was with them. Pencroft especially,
since the incident of the relighted fire, would not have
despaired for an instant, even if he was on a bare rock, if
the engineer was with him on the rock.
" Pshaw! " said he, " we left Richmond without permis-
36o DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
sion from the authorities! It will be hard if we don't man-
age to get away some day or other from a place where
certainly no one will detain us ! "
Cyrus Harding followed the same road as the evening
before. They went round the cone by the plateau which
formed the shoulder, to the mouth of the enormous chasm.
The weather was magnificent. The sun rose in a pure sky
and flooded with his rays all the eastern side of the moun-
tain.
The crater was reached. It was just what the engineer
had made it out to be in the dark ; that is to say, a vast fun-
nel which extended, widening, to a height of a thousand
feet above the plateau. Below the chasm, large thick
streaks of lava wound over the sides of the mountain, and
thus marked the course of the eruptive matter to the
lower valleys which furrowed the northern part of the
island.
The interior of the crater, whose inclination did not ex-
ceed thirty-five to forty degrees, presented no difficulties
nor obstacles to the ascent. Traces of very ancient lava
:were noticed, which probably had overflowed the summit
of the cone, before this lateral chasm had opened a new
way to it.
As to the volcanic chimney which established a communi-
cation between the subterranean layers and the crater, its
depth could not be calculated with the eye, for it was lost
in obscurity. But there was no doubt as to the complete
extinction of the volcano.
Before eight o'clock Harding and his companions were
iassembled at the summit of the crater, on a conical mound
[which swelled the northern edge.
"The sea, the sea everywhere!" they cried, as if their
lips could not restrain the words which made islanders of
them.
The sea, indeed, formed an immense circular sheet of
water all around them ! Perhaps, on climbing again to the
summit of the cone, Cyrus Harding had had a hope of
discovering some coast, some island shore, which he had
not been able to perceive in the dark the evening before.
But nothing appeared on the farthest verge of the horizon,
that is to say, over a radius of more than fifty miles. No
land in sight. Not a sail. Over all this immense space the
LINCOLN ISLAND
361
ocean alone was visible— the island occupied the center
of a circumference which appeared to be infinite.
The engineer and his companions, mute and motionless,
surveyed for some minutes every point of the ocean, ex-
amining it to its most extreme limits. Even Pencroft.'who
possessed a marvelous power of sight, saw nothing'; and
certainly if there had been land at the horizon, if it ap-
peared only as an indistinct vapor, the sailor would un-
doubtedly have found it out, for nature had placed regular
telescopes under his eyebrows.
From the ocean their gaze returned to the island which
they commanded entirely, and the first question was put
by Gideon Spilett in these terms, " About what size is this
island?"
Truly, it did not appear large in the midst of the im-
mense ocean. Cyrus Harding reflected a few minutes ; he
attentively observed the perimeter of the island, taking into
consideration the height at which he was placed ; then :
" My friends," said he, " I do not think I am mistaken in
giving to the shore of the island a circumference of more
than a hundred miles."
" And consequently an area ? "
** That is difficult to estimate," replied the engineer, " for
it is so uneven."
If Cyrus Harding was not mistaken in his calculation,
the island had almost the extent of Malta or Zante. in the
Mediterranean, but it was at the same time much more
irregular and less rich in capes, promontories, points, bays,
or creeks. Its strange form caught the eye. and when
Gideon Spilett, on the engineer's advice, had drawn the
outline, they found that it resembled some fantastic animal,
a monstrous leviathan, which lay sleeping on the surface of
the Pacific.
This was in fact the exact shape of the island, which it is
of consequence to know, and a tolerably correct map of it
was immediately drawn by the reporter.
The east part of the shore, where the castaways had
landed, formed a wide bay, terminated by a sharp cape,
which had been concealed by a high point from Pencroft
on his first exploration. At the northeast two other capes
closed the bay, and between them ran a narrow gulf, which
looked like the half-open jaws of a formidable dog-fish.
362 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
From the northeast to the southwest the coast was
rounded, like the flattened cranium of an animal, rising
again, forming a sort of protuberance which did not give
any particular shape to this part of the island, of which the
center was occupied by the volcano.
From this point the shore ran pretty regularly north and
south, broken at two-thirds of its perimeter by a narrow
creek, from which it ended in a long tail, similar to the
caudal appendage of a gigantic alligator.
This tail formed a regular peninsula, which stretched
more than thirty miles into the sea, reckoning from the
cape southeast of the island, already mentioned; it curled
round, making an open roadstead, which marked out the
lower shore of this strangely-formed land.
At the narrowest part, that is to say between the Chim-
neys and the creek on the western shore, which corre-
sponded to it in latitude, the island only measured ten miles ;
but its greatest length, from the jaws at the northeast to
the extremity of the tail on the southwest, was not less than
thirty miles.
As to the interior of the island, its general aspect was
this, — very woody throughout the southern part from the
mountain to the shore, and arid and sandy in the northern
part. Between the volcano and the east coast Cyrus Har-
ding and his companions were surprised to see a lake, bor-
dered with green trees, the existence of which they had
not suspected. Seen from this height, the lake appeared
to be on the same level as the ocean, but, on reflection, the
engineer explained to his companions that the altitude of
this little sheet of water must be about three hundred feet,
because the plateau, which was its basin, was but a pro-
longation of the coast.
" Is it a freshwater lake?" asked Pencroft.
" Certainly," replied the engineer, *' for it must be fed by
the water which flows from the mountain."
" I see a little river which runs into it," said Herbert,
pointing out a narrow stream, which evidently took its
source somewhere in the west.
"Yes," said Harding; "and since this stream feeds the
lake, most probably on the side near the sea there is an
outlet by which the surplus water escapes. We shall see
that on our return."
LINCOLN ISLAND 363
This little winding watercourse and the river already
mentioned constituted the water-system, at least such as it
was displayed to the eyes of the explorers. However, it
was possible that under the masses of trees which covered
two-thirds of the island, forming an immense forest, other
rivers ran towards the sea. It might even be inferred that
such was the case, so rich did this region appear in the
most magnificent specimens of the flora of the temperate
zones. There was no indication of running water in the
north, though perhaps there might be stagnant water
among the marshes in the northeast; but that was all, in
addition to the downs, sand, and aridity which contrasted
so strongly with the luxuriant vegetation of the rest of the
island.
The volcano did not occupy the central part; it rose, on
the contrary, in the northwestern region, and seemed to
mark the boundary of the two zones. At the southwest,
at the south, and the southeast, the first part of the spurs
were hidden under masses of verdure. At the north, on
the contrary, one could follow their ramifications, which
died away on the sandy plains. It was on this side that,
at the time when the mountain was in a state of eruption,
the discharge had worn away a passage, and a large heap
of lava had spread to the narrow jaw which formed the
northeastern gulf.
Cyrus Harding and his companions remained an hour
at the top of the mountain. The island was di_splayed_ un-
der their eyes, like a plan in relief with different tints,
green for the forests, yellow for the sand, blue for the wa-
ter. They viewed it in its toufe-ensemblc, nothing remained
concealed but the ground hidden by verdure, the hollows of
the valleys, and the interior of the volcanic chasms.
One important question remained to be solved, and the
answer would have a great effect upon the future of the
castaways. Was the island inhabited?
It was the reporter who put this question, to which after
the close examination they had just made, the answer
seemed to be in the negative.
Nowhere could the work of a human hand be perceived.
Not a n-roup of huts, not a solitary cabin, not a fishery on
the shol-e No smoke curling in the air betrayed the pres-
ence of man. It is true, a distance of nearly thirty miles
364 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
separated the observers from the extreme points, that is,
of the tail which extended to the southwest, and it would
have been difficult, even to Pencroft's eyes, to discover a
habitation there. Neither could the curtain of verdure,
which covered three-quarters of the island, be raised to see
if it did not shelter some straggling village. But in gen-
eral the islanders live on the shores of the narrow spaces
which emerge above the waters of the Pacific, and this
shore appeared to be an absolute desert.
Until a more complete exploration, it might be admitted
that the island was uninhabited. But was it frequented, at
least occasionally, by the natives of neighboring islands?
It was difficult to reply to this question. No land appeared
within a radius of fifty miles. But fifty miles could be
easily crossed, either by Malay proas or by the large Poly-
nesian canoes. Everything depended on the position of
the island, of its isolation in the Pacific, or of its proximity
to archipelagos. Would Cyrus Harding be able to find
out their latitude and longitude without any instruments?
It would be difficult. In the doubt, it was best to take
precautions against a possible descent of neighboring
natives.
The exploration of the island was finished, its shape de-
termined, its features made out, its extent calculated, the
water and mountain systems ascertained. The disposition
of the forests and plains had been marked in a general way
on the reporter's plan. They had now only to descend the
mountain slopes again, and explore the soil, in the triple
point of view, of its mineral, vegetable, and animal re-
sources.
But before giving his companions the signal for depar-
ture, Harding said to them in a calm, grave voice :
" Here, my friends, is the small corner of land upon
which the hand of the Almighty has thrown us. We are
going to live here; a long time, perhaps. Perliaps, too,
unexpected help will arrive, if some ship passes by chance.
I say by chance, because this is an unimportant island ;
there is not even a port in which ships could anchor, and it
is to be feared that it is situated out of the route usually fol-
lowed, that is to say, too much to the south for the ships
which frequent the archipelagos of the Pacific, and too
much to the north for those which go to Australia by
LINCOLN ISLAND 365
doubling Cape Horn. I wish to hide nothing of our posi-
tion from you "
" And you are right, my dear Cyrus," rephed the reporter,
with animation. " You have to deal with men. They have
confidence in you, and you can depend upon them. Is it
not so, my friends? "
" I will obey you in everything, captain," said Herbert.
"My master always, and everywhere!" cried Xcb.
"As for me," said the sailor, " if I ever grumble at work,
my name's not Jack Pencroft, and if you like, captain, we
will make a little America of this island! We will build
towns, we wall establish railways, start telegraphs, and one
fine day, when it is quite changed, quite put in order and
quite civilized, we will go and offer it to the government of
the Union. Only, I ask one thing."
" What is that? " said the reporter.
" It is, that we do not consider ourselves castaways, but
colonists, who have come here to settle." Harding could
not help smiling, and the sailor's idea w^as adopted. He
then thanked his companions, and added, that he would
rely on their energy and on the aid of Heaven.
" Well, now let us set off to the Chimneys! " cried Pen-
croft.
" One minute, my friends," said the engineer. "Itseems
to me it would be a good thing to give a name to this island,
as well as to the capes, promontories, and watercourses,
which we can see."
"Very good," said the reporter. "In the future, that
will simplify the instructions which we shall have to give
and follow."
" Indeed," said the sailor, " already it is somethmg to be
able to say where one is going, and where one has come
from. At least, it looks like somewhere."
" The Chimneys, for example," said Herbert.
" Exactly ! " replied Pencroft. " That name was the most
convenient, and it came to me quite of myself. Shall we
keep the name as the Chimneys for our first encampment,
captain?" „
" Yes, Pencroft, since you have so christened it.
" Good ' as for the others, that will be easy," returned
the sailor, who was in high spirits. "Let us give them
names, as the Robinsons did, whose story Herbert has
366 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
often read to me; Providence Bay, Whale Point, Cape Dis-
appointment ! "
" Or, rather, the names of Captain Harding," said Her-
bert, " of Mr. Spilett, of Neb ! "
" My name ! " cried Neb, showing his sparkHng white
teeth.
" Why not? " repHed Pencroft. " Port Neb, that would
do very well ! And Cape Gideon-
«
I should prefer borrowing names from our country,
said the reporter, " which would remind us of America."
"Yes, for the principal ones," then said Cyrus Harding;
" for those of the bays and seas, I admit it willingly. We
might give to that vast bay on the east the name of Union
Bay, for example ; to that large hollow on the south, Wash-
ington Bay; to the mountain upon which we are standing,
that of Mount Franklin ; to that lake which is extended under
our eyes, that of Lake Grant; nothing could be better, my
friends. These names will recall our country, and those of
the great citizens who have honored it; but for the rivers,
gulfs, capes, and promontories, which we perceive from the
top of this mountain, rather let us choose names which will
recall their particular shape. They will impress themselves
better on our memory, and at the same time will be more
practical. The shape of the island is so strange that we
shall not be troubled to imagine what it resembles. As to
the streams which we do not know as yet, in different parts
of the forest which we shall explore later, the creeks which
afterwards will be discovered, we can christen them as we
find them. What do you think, my friends? "
The engineer's proposal was unanimously agreed to by his
companions. The island was spread out under their eyes
like a map, and they had only to give names to all its angles
and points. Gideon Spilett would write them down, and
the geographical nomenclature of the island would be
definitely adopted.
First of all, they named the two bays and the mountain..
Union Bay, Washington Bay, and Mount Franklin, as the
engineer had suggested.
" Now," said the reporter, " to this peninsula at the south-
west of the island, I propose to give the name of Serpentine
Peninsula, and that of Reptile End to the bent tail which
terminates it, for it is just like a reptile's tail."
LINCOLN ISLAND 367
Adopted," said the engineer.
"Now," said Herbert, pointing to the other extremity of
the island, "let us call this gulf which is so singularly like
a pair of open jaws. Shark Gulf."
"Capital!" cried Pencroft, "and we can complete the
resemblance by naming the two parts of the jaws Mandible
Cape."
" But there are two capes," observed the reporter.
" Well," replied Pencroft, " we can have North Mandible
Cape and South Mandible Cape."
" They are inscribed," said Spilett.
"There is only the point at the southeastern extremity of
the island to be named," said Pencroft.
" That is, the extremity of Union Bay? " asked Herbert.
" Claw Cape," cried Neb directly, who also wished to be
godfather to some part of his domain.
In truth, Neb had found an excellent name, for this cape
was very like the powerful claw of the fantastic animal which
this singularly-shaped island represented.
Pencroft was delighted at the turn things had taken, and
their imaginations soon gave to the river which furnished the
settlers with drinking water and near which the balloon had
thrown them, the name of the Mercy, in true gratitude to
Providence. To the islet upon which the castaways had first
landed, the name of Safety Island; to the plateau which
crowned the high granite precipice above the Chimneys, and
from whence the gaze could embrace the whole of tlie vast
bay, the name of Prospect Heights.
Lastly, all the masses of impenetrable wood which covered
the Serpentine Peninsula were named the forests of the Far
West.
The nomenclature of the visible and known parts of the
island was thus finished, and later, they would complete it
as they made fresh discoveries.
As to the points of the compass, the engineer had roughly
fixed them by the height and position of the sun. which placed
Union Bay and Prospect Heights to the east. Rut the next
day, by taking the exact hour of the rising and setting of the
sun, and by marking its position between this rising and
setting, he reckoned to fix the north of the island exactly, for,
in consequence of its situation in the southern hemisphere,
the sun, at the precise moment gf its culmination, passed in
368 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
the north and not in the south, as, in its apparent movement,
it seems to do, to those places situated in the northern hem-
isphere.
Everything was finished, and the settlers had only to de-
scend Mount Franklin to return to the Chimneys, when Pen-
croft cried out, " Well ! we are preciously stupid ! "
" Why ? " asked Gideon Spilett, who had closed his note-
book and risen to depart.
" Why ! our island ! we have forgotten to christen it ! "
Herbert was going to propose to give it the engineer's
name, and all his companions would have applauded him,
when Cyrus Harding said simply :
" Let us give it the name of a great citizen, my friends;
of him who now struggles to defend the unity of the Amer-
ican Republic ! Let us call it Lincoln Island ! "
The engineer's proposal was replied to by three hurrahs.
And that evening, before sleeping, the new colonists
talked of their absent country; they spoke of the terrible
war which stained it with blood ; they could not doubt that
the South would soon be subdued, and that the cause of the
North, the cause of justice, would triumph, thanks to Grant,
thanks to Lincoln !
This happened the 30th of March, 1865. They little knew;
that sixteen days afterwards a frightful crime would be com-
mitted in Washington, and that on Good Friday Abraham
Lincoln would fall by the hand of a fanatic.
CHAPTER Xn
WHAT NATURE GAVE
They now began the descent of the mountain. Climbing
down the crater, they went round the cone and reached
their encampment of the previous night. Pencroft thought
it must be lunch-time, and the watches of the reporter and
engineer were therefore consulted to find out what hour it
might be.
That of Gideon Spilett had been preserved from the sea-
water, as he had been thrown at once on the sand out of
reach of the waves. It was an instrument of excellent
quality, a perfect pocket chronometer, which the reporter had
not forgotten to wind up carefully every day.
Y. V Verne
WHAT NATURE GAVE 369
As to the engineer's watch, it, of course, had stopped
during the time which he had passed on the downs.
The engineer now wound it up, and ascertaining by the
height of the sun that it must be about eleven o'clock in the
morning, he put his watch at that hour.
Gideon Spilett was about to do the same, when the engi-
neer, stopping his hand, said :
" No, my dear Spilett, wait. You have kept the Rich-
mond time, have you not? "
" Yes, Cyrus."
" Consequentl}^ your watch is set by the meridian of that
town, which is almost that of Washington ? "
" Undoubtedly."
" Very well, keep it thus. Content yourself with wind-
ing it up very exactly, but do not touch the hands. This
may be of use to us."
" What will be the good of that? " thought the sailor.
They ate, and so heartily, that the store of game and
almonds was totally exhausted. But Pencroft was not at
all uneasy, they would supply themselves on the way. Top,
whose share had been very much to his taste, would know
how to find some fresh game among the brushwood. More-
over, the sailor thought of simply asking the engineer to
manufacture some powder and one or two fowling-pieces;
he supposed there would be no difficulty in that.
On leaving the plateau, the captain proposed to his com-
panions to return to the Chimneys by a new way. He
wished to reconnoiter Lake Grant, so magnificently framed
in trees. They therefore followed the crest of one of the
spurs, beneath which the creek that supplied the lake prob-
ably had its source. In talking, the settlers already em-
ployed the names which they had just chosen, wliich
singularly facilitated the exchange of their ideas. Herbert
and Pencroft — the one young and the other very boyish —
were enchanted, and whilst walking, the sailor said. " Hey,
Herbert ! how capital it sounds ! It will be impossible to lose
ourselves, my boy, since, whether we follow the way to
Lake Grant, or whether we join the Mercy through the
woods of the Far West, we shall be certain to arrive at Pros-
pect Heights, and, consequently, at Union Bay ! "
It had been agreed, that without forming a compact band,
the settlers should not stray away from one another. It was
370 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
very certain that the thick forests of the island were in-
habited by dangerous animals, and it was prudent to be on
their guard. In general, Pencroft, Herbert, and Neb,
walked first, preceded by Top, who poked his nose into every
bush. The reporter and the engineer went together, Gideon
Spilett ready to note every incident, the engineer silent for
the most part, and only stepping aside to pick up sometimes
one thing, sometimes another, a mineral or vegetable sub-
stance, which he put into his pocket without making any
remark.
" What can he be picking up? " muttered Pencroft. " I
have looked in vain for anything that's worth the trouble
of stooping for."
Towards ten o'clock the little band descended the last
declivities of Mount Franklin. As yet the ground was
scantily strewn with bushes and trees. They were walking
over yellowish calcinated earth, forming a plain of nearly a
mile long, which extended to the edge of the wood. Great
blocks of basalt strewed the plain, very confused in some
places. However, there were here no traces of lava, which
was spread more particularly over the northern slopes.
Cyrus Harding expected to reach, without incident, the
course of the creek, which he supposed flowed under the
trees at the border of the plain, when he saw Herbert
running hastily back, whilst Neb and the sailor were hid-
ing behind the rocks.
"What's the matter, my boy?" asked Spilett.
" Smoke," replied Herbert. " We have seen smoke
amongst the rocks, a hundred paces from us."
"Men in this place?" cried the reporter.
" We must avoid showing ourselves before knowing
with whom we have to deal," replied Cyrus Harding. " I
trust that there are no natives on this island ; I dread them
more than anything else. Where is Top?"
" Top is on before."
"And he doesn't bark? "
" No."
" That is strange. However, we must try to call him
back."
In a few moments, the engineer, Gideon Spilett, and
Herbert had rejoined their two companions, and like them,
they kept out of sight behind the heaps of basalt. Thence
WHAT NATURE GAVE 371
they clearly saw smoke of a yellowish color rising in the
air.
Top was recalled by a slight whistle from his master,
and the latter, signing to his companions to wait for him,
glided away among the rocks. The colonists, motionless,
anxiously awaited the result of this exploration, when a
shout from the engineer made them hasten forward.
They soon joined him, and were at once struck with a dis-
agreeable odor which impregnated the atmosphere.
The odor, easily recognized, was enough for the engi-
neer to guess what the smoke was which at first, not with-
out cause, had startled him. " This fire," said he, " or
rather, this smoke, is produced by nature alone. There is
a sulphur spring there, which will effectually cure all our
sore throats."
"Captain!" cried Pencroft. "What a pity that I
haven't got a cold ! "
The settlers then directed their steps towards the place
from which the smoke escaped. They there saw a sul-
phur spring which flowed abundantly between the rocks,
and its waters discharged a strong sulphuric acid odor,
after having absorbed the oxygen of the air.
Cyrus Harding, dipping in his hand, felt the water oily
to the touch. He tasted it and found it rather sweet. As
to its temperature, that he estimated at ninety-five degrees
Fahrenheit. Herbert having asked on what he based this
calculation :
" It's quite simple, my boy," said he, " for, in plunging
my hand into the water, I felt no sensation either of heat
or cold. Therefore it has the same temperature as the
human body, which Is about ninety-five degrees."
The sulphur spring not being of any actual use to the
settlers, they proceeded towards tlie thick border of the
forest, which began some hundred paces off.
There, as they had conjectured, the waters of the stream
flowed clear and limpid between high banks of red earth,
the color of which betrayed the presence of oxide of iron.
From this color, the name of Red Creek was immediately
given to the watercourse.
It was only a large stream, deep and clear, formed of
the mountain water, which, half river, half torrent, here
rippling peacefully over the sand, there chafing against
372 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
the rocks or dashing down in a cascade, ran towards the
lake, over a distance of a mile and a half, its breadth
yarying from thirty to forty feet. Its waters were sweet,
and it was supposed that those of the lake were so also.
A fortunate circumstance, in the event of their finding on
its borders a more suitable dwelling for them than the
Chimneys.
As to the trees, which some hundred feet downwards
shaded the banks of the creek, they belonged, for the most
part, to the species which abound in the temperate zone of
America and Tasmania, and no longer to those coni ferae
observed in that portion of the island already explored to
some miles from Prospect Heights. At this time of the
year, at the commencement of the month of April, which
represents the month of October, in this hemisphere, that
is, the beginning of autumn, they were still in full leaf.
They consisted principally of casuarinas and eucalypti,
some of which next year would yield a sweet manna,
similar to the manna of the East. Clumps of Australian
cedars rose on the sloping banks, which were also covered
with the high grass called " tussac " in New Holland ; but
the cocoa-nut, so abundant in the archipelagos of the
Pacific, seemed to be wanting in the island, the latitude,
doubtless, being too low.
".What a pity!" said Herbert, "such a useful tree, and
it has such beautiful nuts! "
As to the birds, they swarmed among the scanty branches
of the eucalypti and casuarinas, which did not hinder the
display of their wings. Black, white, or gray cockatoos,
paroquets, with plumage of all colors, kingfishers of a
sparkling green and crowned with red, blue lories, and
yarious other birds, appeared on all sides, as through a
prism, fluttering about and producing a deafening clamor.
Suddenly, a strange concert of discordant voices resounded
in the midst of a thicket. The settlers heard successively
the song of birds, the cry of quadrupeds, and a sort of
clacking which they might have believed to have escaped
ifrom the lips of a native. Neb and Herbert rushed to-
wards the bush, forgetting even the most elementary prin-
ciples of prudence. Happily, they found there, neither a
formidable wild beast nor a dangerous native, but merely
half a dozen mocking and singing birds, known as moun-
.WHAT NATURE GAVE 373
tain pheasants. A few skillful blows from a stick soon
put an end to their concert, and procured excellent food
for the evening's dinner.
Herbert also discovered some magnificent pigeons with
bronzed wings, some superbly crested, others draped in
green, like their congeners at Port-Macquarie; but it was
impossible to reach them, or the crows and magpies which
flew away in flocks. A charge of small shot would have
made great slaughter amongst these birds, but the hunters
rwere still limited to sticks and stones, and tliese primitive
weapons proved very insufficient.
Their insufficiency was still more clearly shown when a
troop of quadrupeds, jumping, bounding, making leaps of
thirty feet, regular flying mammiferre, fled over the
thickets, so quickly and at such a height, that one would
have thought that they passed from one tree to another
like squirrels.
" Kangaroos ! " cried Herbert.
"Arc they good to eat?" asked Pencroft.
" Stewed," replied the reporter, " their flesh is equal to
the best venison! "
Gideon Spilett had not' finished this exciting sentence
when the sailor, followed by Neb and Herbert, darted on
the kangaroo's track. Cyrus Harding called them back in
vain. But it was in vain too for the hunters to pursue
such agile game, which went bounding away like balls.
After a chase of five minutes, they lost their breath, and
at the same time all sight of the creatures, which disap-
peared in the wood. Top was not more successful than
his masters.
" Captain," said Pencroft, when the engineer and the
reporter had rejoined them, " Captain, you see quite well
we can't get on unless we make a few guns. Will tliat be
possible? "
" Perhaps," replied the engineer, " but we will begin by
first manufacturing some bows and arrows, and I don't
doubt that you will become as clever in the use of them
as the Australian hunters."
"Bows and arrows!" said Pencroft scornfully.
" That's all very well for children ! "
" Don't be proud, friend Pencroft," replied the reporter.
"Bows and arrows were sufficient for centuries to stain
374 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
the eartli with blood. Powder is but a thing of yesterday,
and war is as old as the human race — unhappily ! "
" Faith, that's true, Mr. Spilett," replied the salior, " and
I always speak too quickly. You must excuse me ! "
Meanwhile, Herbert, constant to his favorite science.
Natural History, reverted to the kangaroos, saying, " Be-
sides, we had to deal just now with the species most diffi-
cult to catch. They were giants with long gray fur; but if
I am not mistaken, there exist black and red kangaroos,
rock kangaroos, and rat kangaroos, which are more easy
to get hold of. It is reckoned that there are about a dozen
species "
" Herbert," replied the sailor sententiously, " there is
bnly one species of kangaroo to me, that is ' kangaroo on
the spit,' and it's just the one we haven't got this evening! "
They could not help laughing at Pencroft's new classifi-
cation. The honest sailor did not hide his regret at being
reduced for dinner to the pheasants, but fortune once more
showed itself obliging to him. In fact, Top, who felt that
his interest was concerned, ferreted everywhere with an in-
stinct doubled by a ferocious appetite. It was even prob-
able that if some piece of game did fall into his clutches,
none would be left for the hunters, if Top was hunting on
his own account; but Neb watched him, and he did well.
Toward three o'clock the dog disappeared in the brush-
wood, and gruntings showed that he was engaged in a
struggle with some animal. Neb rushed after him, and
soon saw Top eagerly devouring a quadruped, which ten
seconds later would have been past recognizing in Top's
stomach. But fortunately the dog had fallen upon a
brood, and besides the victim he was devouring, two other
rodents — the animals in question belonged to that order-
lay strangled on the turf.
Neb reappeared triumphantly holding one of the rodents
in each hand. Their size exceeded that of a rabbit, their
hair was yellow, mingled with greenish spots, and they had
the merest rudiments of tails.
The citizens of the Union were at no loss for the right
name of these rodents. They were maras, a sort of agouti,
a little larger than their congeners of tropical countries,
regular American rabbits, with long ears, jaws armed on
each side with five molars, which distinguish the agouti.
WHAT NATURE GAVE 375
"Hurrah!" cried Pencroft, "the roast has arrived! and
now we can go home."
The walk, interrupted for an instant, was resumed. The
limpid_ waters of Red Creek flowed under an arch of
casuarinas, banksias, and huge gum-trees. Superb hlacs
rose to a height of twenty feet. Other giant bushes, un-
known to the young naturahst, bent over the stream, which
could be heard murmuring beneath the bowers of verdure.
Meanwhile the stream grew much wider, so that Cyrus
Harding judged they would soon reach its mouth.' In
fact, on emerging from beneath a thick clump of beautiful
trees, it appeared all at once.
The explorers had arrived on the western shore of Lake
Grant. The place was well worth looking at. This ex-
tent of water, of a circumference of nearly seven miles
and an area of two hundred and fifty acres, reposed in a
border of diversified trees. Towards the east, through a
curtain of verdure, picturesquely raised in some places,
sparkled an horizon of sea. The lake was curved at the
north, which contrasted with the sharp outline of its lower
part. Numerous aquatic birds frequented the shores of
this little Ontario, in which the thousand isles of its Amer-
ican namesake were represented by a rock which emerged
from its surface, some hundred feet from the southern
shore. There lived in harmony several couples of king-
fishers perched on a stone, grave, motionless, watching for
fish. Then, darting down, they plunged in witli a sharp
cry, and reappeared with their prey in their beaks. On the
shores and on the islets, strutted wild ducks, pelicans,
water-hens, red-beaks, philedons, furnished with a tongue
like a brush, and one or two specimens of the splendid
menura, the tail of which expands gracefully like a lyre.
As to the water of the lake, it was sweet, limpid, rather
dark, and from certain bubblings, and the concentric circles
which crossed each other on the surface, it could not be
doubted that it abounded in fish.
"This lake is really beautiful!" said Gideon Spilctt.
" We could live on its borders ! "
"We will live there!" replied Harding.
The settlers, wishing to return to the Chimneys by the
shortest way, descended towards the angle formed on t!ie
south by the junction of the lake's bank. It was not with-
376 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
out difficulty that they broke a path through the thickets
and brushwood which had never been put aside by the
hand of man, and they thus went towards the shore, so as
to arrive at the north of Prospect Heights. Two miles
were cleared in this direction, and then, after they had
passed the last curtain of trees, appeared the plateau, car-
peted with thick turf, and beyond that the infinite sea.
To return to the Chimneys, it was enough to cross the
plateau obliquely for the space of a mile, and then to
descend to the elbow formed by the first detour of the
Mercy. But the engineer desired to know how and where
the overplus of the water from the lake escaped, and the
exploration was prolonged under the trees for a mile and a
half towards the north. It was most probable that an
overfall existed somewhere, and doubtless through a cleft
in the granite. This lake w^as only, in short, an immense
center basin, which was filled by degrees by the creek, and
its waters must necessarily pass to the sea by some fall.
H it was so, the engineer thought that it might perhaps be
possible to utilize this fall and borrow its power, actually
lost without profit to anyone. They continued then to fol-
low the shores of Lake Grant by climbing the plateau; but,
after having gone a mile in this direction, Cyrus Harding
had not been able to discover the overfall, which, however,
must exist somewhere.
It was then half-past four. To prepare for dinner it
was necessary that the settlers should return to their dwell-
ing. The little band retraced their steps, therefore, and
by the left bank of the Mercy arrived at the Chimneys.
The fire was lighted, and Neb and Pencroft, on whom
the functions of cooks naturally devolved, to the one in his
quality of negro, to the other in that of sailor, quickly pre-
pared some broiled agouti, to which they did great justice.
The repast at length terminated. When each one was
about to give himself up to sleep, Cyrus Harding drew
from his pocket little specimens of different sorts of min-
erals, and said, " My friends, this is iron mineral, this a
pyrite, this is clay, this is lime, and this is coal. Nature
gives us these things. It is our business to make a right
use of them. To-morrow we will commence operations."
CHAPTER XIII
WHAT MAN MADE
" Well, Captain, where are we going to begin ? " asked
Pencroft next morning of the engineer.
" At the beginning," rephed Cjriis Harding.
In fact, the settlers were compelled to begin "at the
very beginning." They did not possess even the tools
necessary for making tools, and they were not even in the
condition^ of nature, who, " having time, husbands her
strength." They had not time, since they had to provide
for the immediate wants of their existence, and though,
profiting by acquired experience, they had nothing to in-
vent, still they had everything to make: their iron and
their steel were as yet only in the state of minerals, their
earthenware in the state of clay, their linen and their
clothes in the state of textile material.
It must be said, however, that the settlers were " men "
in the complete and higher sense of the word. The engi-
neer Harding could not have been seconded by more in-
telligent companions, nor with more devotion and zeal.
He had tried them. He knew their abilities.
Gideon Spilett, a talented reporter, having learned ever}'-
thing so as to be able to speak of everything, would con-
tribute largely with his head and hands to the colonization
of the island. He would not draw back from any task : a
determined sportsman, he would make a business of what
till then had only been a pleasure to him.
Herbert, a gallant boy, already well informed in the
natural sciences, would render great service to the com-
mon cause.
Neb was devotion personified. Clever, intelligent, inde-
fatigable, robust, with iron health, he knew a little about
forge work, and could not fail to be very useful in the
colony.
As to Pencroft, he had sailed every sea, a carpenter in
the dockyards at Brooklyn, assistant tailor in the vessels
of the state, gardener, cultivator, during his holidays, and
like all seamen, fit for anything, he knew how to do every-
thing.
It would have been hard to unite five men, better fitted
to struggle against fate, more certain to triumph over it.
"At the beginning," Cyrus Harding had said. Now
377
378 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
this beginning of which the engineer spoke was the con-
struction of an apparatus which would serve to transform
the natural substances. The part which heat plays in these
transformations is known. Now fuel, wood or coal, was
ready for immediate use, an oven must be built to use it.
"What is this oven for?" asked Pencroft.
" To make the pottery which we need," replied Plarding.
" And of what shall we make the oven? "
" With bricks."
"And the bricks?"
" With clay. Let us start, my friends. To save
trouble, we will establish our manufactory at the place of
production. Neb will bring provisions, and there will be
no lack of fire to cook the food."
"No," replied the reporter; "but if there is a lack of
food, for want of instruments for the chase? "
"Ah, if we only had a knife!" cried the sailor.
"Well?" asked Cyrus Harding.
" Well ! I would soon make a bow and arrows, and then
there would be plenty of game in the larder ! "
"Yes, a knife, a sharp blade" — said the engineer, as if
he was speaking to himself.
At this moment his eyes fell upon Top, who was run-
ning about on the shore. Suddenly Harding's face became
animated. "Top, here?" said he.
The dog came at his master's call. The latter took
Top's head between his hands, and unfastening the collar
which the animal wore round his neck, he broke it in two,
saying:
"There are two knives, Pencroft ! "
Two hurrahs from the sailor was the reply. Top's col-
lar was made of a thin piece of tempered steel. They had
only to sharpen it on a piece of sandstone, then to raise
the edge on a finer stone. Now sandstone was abundant
on the beach ; and two hours after, the stock of tools in the
colony consisted of two sharp blades, which were easily
fixed in solid handles.
The production of these their first tools was hailed as a
triumph. It was indeed a valuable result of their labor,
and a very opportune one. They set out. Cyrus Harding
proposed that they should return to the western shore of
the lake, where the day before he had noticed the clayey
WHAT MAN MADE 379
ground of whicH he possessed a specimen. THey therefore
followed the bank of the Mercy, traversed Prospect
Heights, and after a walk of five miles or more they
reached a glade situated two hundred feet from Lake
Grant.
On the way Herbert discovered a tree, the branches of
which the Indians of South America employ for making
their bows. It was the crejimba, of the palm family,
which does not bear edible fruit. Long straight branches
were cut, the leaves stripped off; it was shaped, stronger
in the middle, more slender at the extremities, and nothing
remained to be done but to find a plant fit to make the
bow-string. This was the " hibiscus heterophyllus," which
furnishes fibers of such remarkable tenacity that they have
been compared to the tendons of animals. Pencroft thus
obtained bows of tolerable strength, for which he only
wanted arrows. These were easily made with straight
stifiP branches, without knots, but the points with which
they must be armed, that is to say, a substance to serve in
lieu of iron, could not be met with so easily. But Pen-
croft said, that having done his part of the work, he would
trust chance to do the rest.
The settlers arrived on the ground which had been dis-
covered the day before. Being composed of the sort of
clay which is used for making bricks and tiles, it was
very useful for the work in question. There was no great
difficulty in it. It was enough to scour the clay with sand,
then to mould the bricks and bake them by the heat of a
wood fire.
Generally bricks are fonned in moulds, but the engmeer
contented himself with making them by hand. All that
day and the day following were employed in this work^
The clay, soaked in water, was mixed by the feet and
hands of the manipulators, and then divided mto pieces
of equal size. A practiced workman can make, without
a machine, about ten thousand bricks in twelve hours : but
in their two days' work the five brickmakers on Lincoln
Island had not made more than three thousand, which
were ranged near each other, until the time when then-
complete ' desiccation would permit them to be used in
building the oven, that is to say, in three or four days
It was on the 2nd of April that Hardmg lr.id employed
38o DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
himself in fixing the orientation of the island, or, in other
words, the precise spot where the sun rose. The day be-
fore he had noted exactly the hour when the sun disap-
peared beneath the horizon, making allowance for the re-
fraction. This morning he noted, no less exactly, the hour
at which it reappeared. Between this setting and rising
twelve hours forty-four minutes passed. Then, six hours,
twenty-two minutes after its rising, the sun on this day
would exactly pass the meridian, and the point of the sky
which it occupied at this moment would be the north.
At the said hour, Cyrus marked this point, and putting
in a line with the sun two trees which would serve him for
marks, he thus obtained an invariable meridian for his
ulterior operations.
The settlers employed the two days before the oven was
built in collecting fuel. Branches were cut in the glade,
and they picked up all the fallen wood under the trees.
They were also able to hunt with greater success, since
Pencroft now possessed some dozen arrows armed with
sharp points. It was Top who had furnished these points,
by bringing in a porcupine, rather inferior eating, but of
great value, thanks to the quills with which it bristled.
These quills were fixed firmly at the ends of the arrows,
the flight of which was made more certain by some
cockatoos' feathers. The reporter and Herbert soon be-
came very skillful archers. Game of all sorts in conse-
quence abounded at the Chimneys, capybaras, pigeons,
agoutis, grouse, etc. The greater part of these animals
were killed in the part of the forest on the left bank of
the Mercy, to which they gave the name of Jacamar Wood,
in remembrance of the bird which Pencroft and Herbert
had pursued when on their first exploration.
This game was eaten fresh, but they preserved some
capybara hams, by smoking them above a fire of green
wood, after having perfumed them with sweet-smelling
leaves. This food, though very strengthening, was al-
ways roast upon roast, and the party would have been
delighted to hear some soup bubbling on the hearth; but
they must wait till a pot could be made, and, consequently,
till the oven was built.
During their excursions, which were not extended far
from the brick-field, the hunters discerned the recent pas-
WHAT MAN MADE 381
sage of animals of large size, armed with powerful claws;
but they could not recognize the species. Cyrus Harding
advised them to be very careful, as the forest probably
enclosed many dangerous beasts. Indeed, Gideon Spilett
and Herbert one day saw an animal which resembled a
Jaguar. Happily the creature did not attack them, or they
might not have escaped without a severe wound. As soon
as he could get a regular weapon, that is to say, one of the
guns which Pencroft begged for, Gideon Spilett resolved
to make desperate war against the ferocious beasts, and
exterminate them from the island.
The Chimneys during these days was not made more
comfortable; for the engineer hoped to discover, or build if
necessary, a more convenient dw^elling. They contented
themselves with spreading moss and dry leaves on the sand
of the passages, and on these primitive couches the tired
workers slept soundly.
They also reckoned the days they had passed on Lincoln
Island, and from that time kept a regular account. The
5th of April, which was Wednesday, was twelve days from
the time when the wind had blow^n the castaways to this
shore.
On the 6tH of April, at daybreak, the settlers were col-
lected in the glade, at the place where they were going to
perform the operation of baking the bricks. Naturally
this had to be in the open air, and not in a kiln, or rather,
the agglomeration of bricks made an enormous kiln, which
would bake itself. The fuel, made of well-prepared
fagots, was laid on the ground and surrounded with sev-
eral rows of dried bricks, which soon formed an enormous
cube, to the exterior of which they contrived air-holes.
The work lasted all day, and it was not till the evening
that they set fire to the fagots. No one slept that night,
all watching carefully to keep up the fire.
The operation lasted forty-eight hours, and succeeded
perfectly. It was then necessary to leave the smoking
mass to cool, and during this time Neb and Pencroft.
guided by Cyrus Harding, brought, on a hurdle made of
interlaced branches, loads of carbonate of lime and com-
mon stones, which were very abundant, to the north of the
lake. These stones, when decomposed by heat, made a
very strong quicklime, at least as pure as if it had been
382 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
produced by the calcination of chalk or marble. Mixed
with sand the lime made excellent mortar. The result of
these different works was, that, on the 9th of April, the
engineer had at his disposal a quantity of prepared lime
and some thousands of bricks.
Without losing an instant, they began the construction
of a kiln to bake the pottery, which was indispensable for
their domestic use. They succeeded without much diffi-
culty. Five days after, the kiln was supplied with coal,
which the engineer had discovered lying open to the sky
towards the mouth of the Red Creek, and the first smoke
escaped from the chimney twenty feet high. The glade
was transformed into a manufactory, and Pencroft was not
far wrong in believing that from this kiln would issue all
the products of modern industry.
What the settlers first manufactured was a common pot-
tery in which to cook their food. The chief material was
clay, to which Harding added a little lime and quartz.
This paste made regular " pipe-clay," with which they
manufactured bowls, cups moulded on stones of a proper
size, great jars and pots to hold water, etc. The shape of
these objects was clumsy and defective, but after they had
been baked in a high temperature, the kitchen of the
Chimneys was provided with a number of utensils, as
precious to the settlers as the most beautifully enamelled
china. We must mention here that Pencroft, desirous to
know if the clay thus prepared was worthy of its name of
pipe-clay, made some large pipes, which he thought charm-
ing but for which, alas! he had no tobacco, and that was a
great privation to Pencroft. " But tobacco will come, like
everything else!" he repeated, in a burst of absolute con-
fidence.
This work lasted till the 15th of April, and the time was
well employed. The settlers, having become potters, made
nothing but pottery. When it suited Cyrus Harding to
change them into smiths, they would become smiths. But
the next day being Sunday, and also Easter Sunday, all
agreed to sanctify the day by rest. These Americans were
religious men, scrupulous observers of the precepts of the
Bible, and their situation could not but develop sentiments
of confidence towards the Author of all things.
On the evening of April 15 they returned to the Chim-
WHAT MAN MADE 383
neys, carrying with them the pottery, the furnace being ex-
tinguished until they could put it to a new use. Their
return was marked by a fortunate incident; the engineer
discovered a substance which replaced tinder. It is known
that a spongy, velvety flesh is procured from a certain
mushroom of the genus polyporous. Properly prepared,
it is extremely inflammable, especially when it has been
previously saturated with gunpowder, or boiled in a solu-
tion of nitrate or chlorate of potash. But, till then, they
had not found any of these polypores or even any of tlie
morels which could replace them. On this day, tlie engi-
neer, seeing a plant belonging to the wormwood genus, the
principal species of which are absinthe, balm-mint, tar-
ragon, etc., gathered several tufts, and, presenting them to
the sailor, said, " Here, Pencroft, this will please you."
Pencroft looked attentively at the plant, covered with
long silky hair, the leaves being clothed with soft down.
"What's that, captain?" asked Pencroft. "Is it to-
bacco?"
" No," replied Harding, " it is wormwood ; Chinese
wormwood to the learned, but to us it will be tinder." _
When the wormwood was properly dried it provided
them with a very inflammable substance, especially after-
wards when the engineer had impregnated it with nitrate of
potash, of which the island possessed several beds, and
which is in truth saltpeter.
The colonists had a good supper that night. Neb pre-
pared some agouti soup, a smoked capybara ham, to which
was added the boiled tubercules of the " caladium macro-
rhizum," an herbaceous plant of the arum family. They
had an excellent taste, and were very nutritious, being
something similar to the substance which is sold m Eng-
land under the name of "Portland sago;" they were also
a good substitute for bread, which the settlers m Lnicoln
Island did not yet possess.
When supper was finished, Harding and his companions
went to take the air on the beach. It was eiglit o'clock in
the evening; the night was magnificent. Ihe moon
which had been full five days before, had not yet risen, but
the horizon was already silvered by those soft, pale shades
which might be called the dawn of the moon. At the
southern zenith glittered the circumpolar constellations,
384 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
and above all the Southern Cross, which some days before
the engineer had greeted on the summit of Mount
Franklin.
Cyrus Harding gazed for some time at this splendid
constellation, which has at its summit and at its base two
stars of the first magnitude, at its left arm a star of the
second, and at its right arm a star of the third magnitude.
Then, after some minutes' thought, " Herbert," he asked
of the lad, " is not this the 15th of April? "
** Yes, captain," replied Herbert.
" Well, if I am not mistaken, to-morrow will be one of
the four days in the year in which the real time is identical
with average time; that is to say, my boy, that to-morrow,
to within some seconds, the sun will pass the meridian just
at mid-day by the clocks. If the weather is fine I think
that I shall obtain the longitude of the island within an ap-
proximation of some degrees."
"Without instruments, without sextant?" asked Gideon
Spilett.
" Yes," replied Harding. " Also, since the night is
clear, I will try, this very evening, to obtain our latitude
by calculating the height of the Southern Cross, that is,
from the southern pole above the horizon. You under-
stand, my friends, that before undertaking the work of in-
stallation in earnest it is not enough to have found out
that this land is an island; we must, as nearly as possible,
know at what distance it is situated, either from the Amer-
ican continent or Australia, or from the principal archipel-
agos of the Pacific."
*' In fact," said the reporter, " instead of building a
house it would be more important to build a boat, if by
chance we are not over a hundred miles from an inhabited
coast."
"That is why," returned Harding, "I shall try this
evening to calculate the latitude of Lincoln Island, and to-
morrow, at mid-day, I will also try to calculate the longi-
tude."
If the engineer had possessed a sextant, an apparatus
which measures the angular distance of objects with great
precision, there would have been no difficulty in the opera-
tion. This evening by the height of the pole, the next day
by the passing of the sun at the meridian, he would obtain
V. V Verne
WHAT MAN MADE 385
the position of the island. But as they had not one he
would have to supply the deficiency.
Harding entered the Chimneys. By the light of the fire
he cut two little flat rulers, which he joined together at
one end so as to form a pair of compasses, whose legs
could separate or come together. The fastening was fixed
with a strong acacia thorn which was found in the wood
pile. This instrument finished, the engineer returned to
the beach, but as it was necessary to take the height of the
pole from above a clear horizon, that is, a sea horizon, and
as Claw Cape hid the southern horizon, he was obliged to
look for a more suitable station. The best would evidently
have been the shore exposed directly to the south ; but the
Mercy would have to be crossed, and that was a difficulty.
Harding resolved, in consequence, to make his observation
from Prospect Heights, taking into consideration its height
above the level of the sea — a height which he intended to
calculate next day by a simple process of elementary
geometry.
The settlers, therefore, went to the plateau, ascending
the left bank of the Mercy, and placed themselves on the
edge which looked northwest and southeast, that is, above
the curiously-shaped rocks which bordered the river.
This part of the plateau commanded the heights of the
left bank, which sloped away to the extremity of Claw
Cape, and to the southern side of the island. No obstacle
intercepted their gaze, which swept the horizon in a semi-
circle from the cape to Reptile End. To the south the
horizon, lighted by the first rays of the moon, was very
clearly defined against the sky.
At this moment the Southern Cross presented itself to
the observer in an inverted position, the star Alpha mark-
ing its base, which is nearer to the southern pole.
This constellation is not situated as near to the antarctic
pole as the Polar Star is to the arctic pole. The star Alpha
is about twenty-seven degrees from it, but Cyrus Harding
knew this and made allowance for it in his calculation He
took care also to observe the moment when it passed t.ie
meridian below the pole, which would simplify the opera-
tion. , , i x1 ^
Cyrus Harding pointed one leg of the compasses to the
sea horizon, the other to Alpha, and the space between the
386 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
two legs gave him the angular distance which separated
Alpha from the horizon. In order to fix the angle ob-
tained, he fastened with thorns the two pieces of wood on
a third placed transversely, so that their separation should
be properly maintained. That done, there was only the
angle to calculate by bringing back the observation to the
level of the sea, taking into consideration the depression
of the horizon, which would necessitate measuring the
height of the cliff. The value of this angle would give the
height of Alpha, and consequently that of the pole above
the horizon, that is to say, the latitude of the island, since
the latitude of a point of the globe is always equal to the
height of the pole above the horizon of this point.
The calculations were left for the next day, and at ten
o'clock everyone was sleeping soundly.
CHAPTER XIV
A PROBLEM IN TRIANGLES
The next day, the i6th of April, and Easter Sunday,
the settlers issued from the Chimneys at daybreak, and
proceeded to wash their linen. The engineer intended to
manufacture soap as soon as he could procure the neces-
sary materials — soda or potash, fat or oil. The important
question of renewing their wardrobe would be treated of
in the proper time and place At any rate their clothes
would last at least six months longer, for they were strong,
and could resist the wear of manual labor. But all would
depend on the situation of the island with regard to in-
habited land. This would be settled to-day if the weather
permitted.
The sun rising above a clear horizon, announced a
magnificent day, one of those beautiful autumn days which
are like the last farewells of the warm season. It was now
necessary to complete the observations of the evening be-
fore by measuring the height of the cliff above the level of
the sea.
" Shall you not need an instrument similar to the one
which you used yesterday? " said Herbert to the engineer.
" No, my boy," replied the latter, " we are going to pro-
ceed differently, but in as precise a way."
A PROBLEM IN TRIANGLES 387
Herbert, wishing to learn everything he could, followed
the engineer to the beach. Pencroft, Neb, and tlie reporter
remained behind and occupied themselves in different
ways.
Cyrus Harding had provided himself with a straight
stick, twelve feet long, which he had measured as exactly
as possible by comparing it with his own height, which he
knew to a hair. Herbert carried a plumb-line which Hard-
ing had given him, that is to say, a simple stone fast-
ened to the end of a flexible fiber. Having reached a spot
about twenty feet from the edge of the beach, and nearly
five hundred feet from the cliff, which rose perpendicu-
larly, Harding thrust the pole two feet into the sand, and
wedging it up carefully, he managed by means of the
plumb-line to erect it perpendicularly with the plane of the
horizon.
That done, he retired the necessary distance, when, lying
on the sand, his eye glanced at the same time at the' top
of the pole and the crest of the cliff. He carefully marked
the place with a little stick. Then addressing Herbert,
"Do you know the first principles of geometry?" he
asked.
" Slightly, captain," replied Herbert, who did not wish
to put himself forward.
" You remember what are the properties of two similar
triangles?"
"Yes," replied Herbert; "their homologous sides are
proportional."
" Well, my boy, I have just constructed two similar
right-angled triangles; the first, the smallest, has for its
sides the perpendicular pole, the distance which separates
the little stick from the foot of the pole, and my visual ray
for hypothenuse; the second has for its sides the perpen-
dicular cliff, the height of which we wish to measure, the
distance which separates the little stick from the bottom of
the cliff, and my visual ray also forms its hypothenuse,
which is the prolongation of that of the first triangle."
" Ah, captain, I understand ! " cried Herbert. " As the
distance from the stick to the pole is to the distance from
the stick to the base of the cliff, so is the height of the pole
to the height of the cliff."
"Just so, Herbert," replied the engineer; "and when
388 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
we have measured the two first distances, knowing the
height of the pole, we shall only have a sum in proportion
to do, which will give us the height of the cliff, and will
save us the trouble of measuring it directly."
The two horizontal distances were found out by means
of the pole, whose length above the sand was exactly ten
feet. The first distance was fifteen feet between the stick
and the place where the pole was thrust into the sand. The
second distance between the stick and the bottom of the
cliff was five hundred feet.
These measurements finished, Cyrus Harding and the
lad returned to the Chimneys. The engineer then took a
flat stone which he had brought back from one of his pre-
vious excursions, a sort of slate, on which it was easy to
trace figures with a sharp shell. He then developed the
following proportions: 15 : 500: : lo: .^r. From which it
was proved that the granite cliff measured 333 feet in
height.
Cyrus Harding then took the instrument which he had
made the evening before, the space between its two legs
giving the angular distance between the star Alpha and the
horizon. He measured, very exactly, the opening of this
angle on a circumference which he divided into 360 equal
parts. Now, this angle, by adding to it the twenty-seven
degrees which separated Alpha from the antarctic pole,
and by reducing to the level of the sea the height of the
cliff on which the observation had been made, was found
to be fifty-three degrees. These fifty-three degrees being
subtracted from ninety degrees — the distance from the pole
to the equator — there remained thirty-seven degrees.
Cyrus Harding concluded, therefore, that Lincoln Island
was situated on the thirty-seventh degree of southern lati-
tude, or taking into consideration through the imperfec-
tion of the performance, an error of five degrees, that it
must be situated between the thirty-fifth and the fortieth
parallel.
There was only the longitude to be obtained, and the
position of the island would be determined. The engineer
hoped to attempt this the same day, at twelve o'clock, at
which moment the sun would pass the meridian.
It was decided that Sunday should be spent in a walk,
or rather an exploring expedition, to that side of the island
A PROBLEM IN TRIANGLES 389
between the north of the lake and Shark Gulf, and if there
was time they would push their discoveries to the norihern
side of Cape South Mandible. They would breakfast on
the downs, and not return till evening.
At half-past eight the little band was following the edge
of the channel. On the other side, on Safety Islet, numer-
ous birds were gravely strutting. They were divers, easily
recognized by their cry, which much resembles the braying
of a donkey. Pencroft only considered them in an eatable
point of view, and learnt with some satisfaction that their
flesh, though blackish, is not bad food.
Great amphibious creatures could also be seen crawling
on the sand; seals, doubtless, who appeared to have chosen
the islet for a place of refuge. It was impossible to think
of those animals in an alimentary point of view, for their
oily flesh is detestable; however, Cyrus Harding observed
them attentively, and without making known his idea, he
announced to his companions that very soon they would
pay a visit to the islet. The beach was strewn with innu-
merable shells, some of which would have rejoiced the
heart of a conchologist ; there were, among others, the
phasianella, the terebratula, etc. But what would be of
more use, was the discovery, by Neb, at low tide, of a
large oyster-bed, among the rocks, nearly five miles from
the Chimneys.
" Neb will not have lost his day," cried Pencroft. looking
at the spacious oyster-bed.
" It is really a fortunate discovery," said the reporter.
" and as it is said that each oyster produces yearly from
fifty to sixty thousand eggs, we shall have an inexhaustible
supply there."
" Only I believe that the oyster is not very nourishmg,"
said Herbert.
"No," replied Harding. "The oyster contains very
little nitrogen, and if a man lived exclusively on them, he
would have to eat not less than fifteen to sixteen dozen a
day."
"Capital!" replied Pencroft. "We might swallow
dozens and dozens without exhausting the bed. Shall we
take some for breakfast?" And without waiting for a
reply to his proposal, knowing that it would be approved
of, the sailor and Neb detached a quantity of the molluscs.
390 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
They put them in a sort of net of hibiscus fiber, which Neb
had manufactured, and which already contained food; they
then continued to climb the coast between the downs and
the sea.
From time to time Harding consulted his watch, so as to
be prepared in time for the solar observation, which had to
be made exactly at mid-day.
Ail that part of the island was very barren as far as the
point which closed Union Bay, and which had received the
name of Cape South Mandible. Nothing could be seen
there but sand and shells, mingled with debris of lava. A
few sea-birds frequented this desolate coast, gulls, great al-
batrosses, as well as wild duck, for which Pencroft had a
great fancy. He tried to knock some over with an arrow,
but without result, for they seldom perched, and he could
not hit them on the wing.
This led the sailor to repeat to the engineer, " You see,
captain, so long as we have no fowling-pieces, we shall get
nothing ! "
" Doubtless, Pencroft," said the reporter, " but it depends
on you. Procure us some iron for the barrels, steel for the
hammers, saltpeter, coal, and sulphur for powder, mercury
and nitric acid for the fulminate, and lead for the shot, and
the captain will make us first-rate guns."
" Oh ! " replied the engineer, " we might, no doubt, find
all these substances on the island, but a gun is a delicate in-
strument, and needs very particular tools. However, we
shall see later! "
" Why," cried Pencroft, " were we obliged to throw over-
board all the weapons we had with us in the car, all our im-
plements, even our pocket-knives? "
" But if we had not thrown them away, Pencroft, the
balloon would have thrown us to the bottom of the sea! "
said Herbert.
" What you say is true, my boy," replied the sailor.
Then passing to another idea, " Think," said he, " how as-
tounded Jonathan Forster and his companions must have
been when, next morning, they found the place empty, and
the machine flowm away ! "
" I am utterly indifferent about knowing what they may
have thought," said the reporter.
" It was all my idea, that ! " said Pencroft.
A PROBLEM IN TRIANGLES 391
"A splendid idea, Pencroft!" replied Gideon Spilett,
laughing, " and which has placed us where we are."
*' I would rather be here than in the hands of the South-
erners," cried the sailor, " especially since the captain has
been kind enough to come and join us again."
"So would I, truly 1" replied the reporter. "Besides,
what do we want? Nothing."
"If that is not — everything!" replied Pencroft, laugh-
ing, and shrugging his shoulders. " But, some day or other
we shall find means of going away! "
" Sooner, perhaps, than you imagine, my friends," re-
marked the engineer, " if Lincoln Island is but a medium
distance from an inhabited island, or from a continent.
We shall know in an hour. I have not a map of the Pacific,
but my memory has preserved a very clear recollection of
its southern part. The latitude which I obtained yesterday
placed New Zealand to the west of Lincoln Island, and the
coast of Chili to the east. But between these two countries,
there is a distance of at least six thousand miles. It has,
therefore, to be determined what point in this great space
the island occupies, and this the longitude will give us pres-
ently, with a sufficient approximation, I hope."
" Is not the archipelago of tlie Austral Islands the nearest
point to us in latitude? " asked Herbert.
"Yes," replied the engineer, "but the distance which
separates us from it is more than twelve hundred miles."
"And that way?" asked Neb, who followed the con-
versation with extreme interest, pointing to the south.
" That way, nothing," replied Pencroft.
" Nothing, indeed," added the engineer.
" Well, Cyrus," asked the reporter, " if Lincoln's Island
is not more than two or three hundred miles from New
Zealand or Chili ? "
"Well," rephed the engineer, "instead of buildmg a
house we will build a boat, and Master Pencroft shall be
put in command-
" Well then," cried the sailor, " I am quite readv to be
captain— as soon as you can make a craft that's able to keep
" We shall do it, if it is necessary, replied Harding.
But whilst these men, who really hesitated at nothing.
were talking, the hour approached at which the observation
392 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
was to be made. What Cyrus Harding was to do to as-
certain the passage of the sun at the meridian without an
instrument of any sort, Herbert could not guess.
The observers were then about six miles from the Chim-
neys, not far from that part of the downs in which the engi-
neer had been found after his enigmatical preservation.
They halted at this place and prepared for lunch, for it
was half-past eleven. Herbert went for some fresh water
from a stream which ran near, and brought it back in a jug
which Neb had provided.
During these preparations Harding arranged everything
for his astronomical observation. He chose a clear place
on the shore, which the ebbing tide had left perfectly level.
This bed of fine sand was as smooth as ice, not a grain out
of place. It was of little importance whether it was hori-
zontal or not, and it did not matter much whether the stick,
six feet high, which was planted there, rose perpendicularly.
On the contrary, the engineer inclined it towards the south,
that is to say, in the direction of the coast opposite to
the sun, for it must not be forgotten that the settlers in
Lincoln Island, as the island was situated in the southern
hemisphere, saw the radiant planet describe its diurnal arc
above the northern, and not above the southern horizon.
Herbert now understood how the engineer was going to
proceed to ascertain the culmination of the sun, that is to
say its passing the meridian of the island or, in other
terms, the south of the place. It was by means of the
shadow cast on the sand by the stick, a way which, for
want of an instrument, would give him a suitable approach
to the result which he wished to obtain.
In fact, the moment when this shadow would reach its
minimum of length would be exactly twelve o'clock, and it
would be enough to watch the extremity of the shadow, so
as to ascertain the instant when, after having successively
diminished, it began to lengthen. By inclining his stick to
the side opposite to the sun, Cyrus Harding made the
shadow longer, and consequently its modifications would
be more easily ascertained. In fact, the longer the needle
of a dial is, the more easily can the movement of its point
be followed. The shadow of the stick was nothing but the
needle of a dial.
When he thought the moment had come, Cyrus Harding
A PROBLEM IN TRIANGLES 393
knelt on the sand, and with little wooden pegs, which he
stuck into the sand, he began to mark the successive dimi-
nutions of the stick's shadow. His companions, bending
over him, watched the operation with extreme interest.
The reporter held his chronometer in his hand, ready to
tell the hour which it marked when the shadow would be
at its shortest. Moreover, as Cyrus Harding was working
on the 1 6th of April, the day on which the true and the
average time are identical, the hour given by Gideon Spilett
would be the true hour then at Washington, which would
simplify the calculation. Meanwhile as the sun slowly ad-
vanced, the shadow slowly diminished, and when it ap-
peared to Cyrus Harding that it was beginning to increase,
he asked, " What o'clock is it? "
*' One minute past five," replied Gideon Spilett directly.
They had now only to calculate the operation. Nothing
could be easier. It could be seen that there existed, in
round numbers, a difference of five hours between the
meridian of Washington and that of Lincoln Island, that
13 to say, it was mid-day in Lincoln Island when it was
already five o'clock in the evening in Washington. Now
the sun, in its apparent movement round the earth, traverses
one degree in four minutes, or fifteen degrees one hour.
Fifteen degrees multiplied by five hours give seventy-five
degrees.
Then, since Washington is ']']'' 3' 11", as much as to say
seventy-seven degrees counted from the meridian of Green-
wich — which the Americans take for their starting-point
for longitudes concurrently with the English — it followed
that the island must be situated seventy-seven and seventy-
five degrees west of the meridian of Greenwich, that is to
say, on the hundred and fifty-second degree of west longi-
tude.
Cyrus Harding announced this result to his companions,
and taking into consideration errors of observation, as he
had done for the latitude, he believed he could positively
affirm that the position of Lincoln Island was between the
thirty-fifth and the fortieth parallel, and between the hun-
dred and fiftieth and the hundred and fifty-fifth meridian
observation was, it may be seen, of five degrees on both
The possible fault which he attributed to errors in the
sides, which, at sixty miles to a degree, would give an error
394 DROPPED FROM THE CLOUDS
of three hundred miles in latitude and longitude for the
exact position.
But this error would not influence the determination
which it was necessary to take. It was very evident that
Lincoln Island was at such a distance from every country
or island that it would be too hazardous to attempt to
reach one in a frail boat.
In fact this calculation placed it at least twelve hundred
miles from Tahiti and the islands of the Austral archipel-
ago, more than eighteen hundred miles from New Zealand,
and more than four thousand five hundred miles from the
American coast!
And when Cyrus Harding consulted his memory, he
could not remember in any way that such an island occupied,
in that part of the Pacific, the situation assigned to Lincoln
Island.
TO BE CONTINUED IN VOLUME VI
A PROBLEM IN TRIANGLES
395
V. ^>
LINCOLN ISLAND
MAR 1 5 19/8
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