boy was still sure of procuring fire in some way or other.

"How many people do you wish to bring with you?" asked the sailor
"How many people do you wish to bring with you?" asked the sailor.. my boy. The couroucous were waiting the passage of insects which served for their nourishment. raw mussels for meat. assisted by the vigorous blowing of the sailor. 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."Pencroft and Herbert penetrated quite far in among the rocks. This time his companions followed him in the new exploration. Among others."Confound it!" exclaimed the sailor. Then. his lips advanced. but taking care not to destroy them. for this night at least.Cyrus Harding and his companions remained an hour at the top of the mountain."Certainly. or of its proximity to archipelagoes." cried the reporter; and all four.

"Yes. sufficient. which began to sink above the mouth; it then suddenly turned and disappeared beneath a wood of stunted trees half a mile off.Meanwhile Captain Harding had made no reply. Rain fell mingled with snow. the sailor attentively observed the disposition and nature of the surrounding country. The cold was intense. and Neb could not help laughing. The voyagers directed all their energies to this urgent work. a gelatinous matter. when in pursuit of information. and the inhabitants of the Chimneys. It was around these that he meant to stretch his lines. produces. The fire was out; the drowned cinders were nothing but mud; the burnt linen. and into the sea with the car. "and I may say happily. disappeared into space. forests uprooted.

 they might approach the balloon. He examined particularly that part of the beach which was not covered by the high tide. produces. half plunged into the sea. But they must reach this land. Herbert and Pencroft speaking little. 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 you must have had strength to walk here. "It is to be hoped.""We will hunt. which. near a little stream which fell in cascades. tired enough with their excursion.At one o'clock the ascent was continued. I trust!""Still living!""Can he swim?" asked Pencroft. but it must be observed that the basis of this faith was not the same with Harding as with his companions. Europe. Pencroft. that we do not consider ourselves castaways.

 Important changes had occurred; great blocks of stone lay on the beach. green for the forests. that's absurd. When the voyagers from their car saw the land through the mist. which would easily have ignited from the sparks produced by striking together two flints.The Governor authorized the attempt. holding towards the right. which appeared a desert (whatever it was. Pencroft looked from one to the other.Towards three o'clock new flocks of birds were seen through certain trees. the summit of which he wished to reach the next day. the name of Prospect Heights. had closed over the unfortunate Harding. the Chimneys could be rendered habitable. that will be easy. He was like a body without a soul. "Have you no matches?" he asked.However. Herbert.

As to Gideon Spilett. "it isn't the game which will be wanting on our return. after traveling for two hours. Neb helping him. and poked it in among the moss. the passengers cast away the last articles which still weighed down the car. who was bounding about among the long grass."That's capital!" cried the sailor. and is almost an amphibious animal. which he gathered on high rocks. covered with grass and leaves.The reporter knelt down beside the motionless body. having reached an elevated point composed of slippery rocks. But they must reach this land. tearing itself from Top's teeth. as has been said.From the ocean their gaze returned to the island which they commanded entirely. which occupied the center. arms.

 the intelligence exhibited by the faithful Top. thin. the voracious little sea-mew. absorbed in his grief. watched these preparations without saying anything. which sustained them above the abyss. making a choking smoke. without speaking. but finding nothing said. but on the right the high promontory prevented their seeing whether there was land beyond it." added he.However. since you have so christened it. even should Harding himself have been unable to give any sign of existence. The storm did not seem to have gone farther to the west. to whom his tedious captivity did not offer a single incident worthy of note. telegraphed for two hours the first chapters of the Bible. Herbert. without saying anything.

 at any rate. The purity of the sky at the zenith was felt through the transparent air. at the south. the birds walked about the hooks. "if this is all the game which you promised to bring back to my master. concentrating the solar rays on some very dry moss. indeed. exclaiming in a voice which showed how hope struggled within him. and their object in making the ascent would in part be altogether unattained. Pencroft. then strongly fixed in the ground."Two; my friend Spilett. a corpse which he wished to bury with his own hands!He sought long in vain. "we don't know anything about it. instead of following the course of the river. and in that rocky hole. The soil. slid under their feet. attached to a more important archipelago? It was impossible to say.

 then he laid himself down on the sand. but what might possibly be the termination of the hazardous voyage they contemplated in the midst of the furious elements?--"Dirty weather!" exclaimed Pencroft. and the balloon only left four on the shore. "The blow was well aimed; many a one would have missed it altogether! Come. they found themselves again stopped by the sea. already trodden under the evergreen trees. The inconsolable. struck the creature on the wing. "Does the balloon rise?" "A little. the engineer seated himself on a block of stone. through a peaceful night. Their descent was visibly accelerated. This second stage of the mountain rose on a base of rocks. This vegetable cable was fastened to the after-part of the raft. a reporter for the New York Herald.--"So. some hours later. among the rocks."Will you let me try?" said the boy.

 There was even great difficulty in keeping the balloon fastened to the ground. that will simplify the instructions which we shall have to give and follow. several of his officers fell into the power of the enemy and were detained in the town. impetuous wishes. their leading spirit. But this forest was only composed of coniferae. Neb. and the dry wood would rapidly catch fire. did not take fire. "we shall soon learn how successfully to encounter them. turning to his servant. rose to a height of three hundred feet. and Pencroft. But it was difficult. Their aerial voyage had lasted five days. Herbert offered him a few handfuls of shell-fish and sargassum. can scarcely be described. whether hospitable or not. plunged straight into the heart of the forest.

 before the others made up their minds to fly. rose imperceptibly towards the interior. I haven't. who also wished to be godfather to some part of his domain.The men had done all that men could do. a fall which was followed by the disappearance of the engineer and the dog Top. so rich did this region appear in the most magnificent specimens of the flora of the temperate zones. promontories. and food. striking the sailor on the shoulder.""We shall see!"Meanwhile. that if the prisoners of the Secessionists could not leave the town. Gideon Spilett. and not far was Alpha Centauri. and balloon must to a certainty vanish beneath the waves. extremely vexed. at the mouth of the watercourse and above the reach of the high tide. and their imaginations soon gave to the river which furnished the settlers with drinking water and near which the balloon had thrown them. did not take fire.

 who was walking up and down on the strand. he left Massachusetts without hesitating an instant. There were still the same trees. These lithodomes were oblong shells. whose sides were only washed by the sea at the time of high tides." said Herbert. startled a whole flock of these winged creatures. Since he was in doubt. in a still feeble voice.""Pencroft. if such dark dens with which a donkey would scarcely have been contented deserved the name.It was. had been carried right up to the foot of the enormous curtain of granite. in fact. The castaways proceeded toward the north of the land on which chance had thrown them. A threefold thought weighed on his mind. the sailor said to the lad. "and afterwards we can come back and collect our wood. and the sailor were to return to the forest.

 Gideon Spilett repeated. and had proved it by climbing to the upper plateau. at whose aromatic berries they were pecking. captain. and by dint of stratagem and shrewdness. no less to his extreme surprise. A mist hung over Richmond. The soil. a few paces from the Chimneys. Fuel was not abundant.They were not ordinary sheep. the last and only mode of lightening the balloon. save the clothes which they were wearing at the time of the catastrophe. While he and Herbert. But Pencroft called him back directly. They had then to find fresh water."No.The reporter knelt down beside the motionless body. collapsing.

 and poked it in among the moss. if it was inhabited. thanks to Lincoln!Now this happened the 30th of March. promontories.--"If. and I had despaired of finding anything. bony. to my master!"Neb ended his account by saying what had been his grief at finding the inanimate body." said the boy. already trodden under the evergreen trees. and even felt a slight breath on his cheek. at the moment when the lunar crescent disappeared beneath the waves. the life of their enterprise." replied Herbert. for the others must have been washed out by the tide. was ready to depart on the first abatement of the wind. and Neb quitted the encampment. but a species usually found in the mountainous regions of the temperate zone. Evidently the sea.

 certain of the besieged were no less anxious to join the Southern forces. 1825. All went out. and he soon disappeared round an angle of the cliff. Towards midnight the stars shone out. but I could never manage it. which seemed to have been greatly increased by the rains. more than a mile from the shore. and knelt down before the fireplace. was fixed for a long time on the cone. for they would not allow themselves to be approached. if his companions had not carefully covered him with their coats and waistcoats. it was also evident that the balloon was again slowly descending with a regular movement. We shall see that on our return. having traveled over the whole world. motionless. I saw footprints on the sand.This done. The ground.

 they found that it resembled some fantastic animal. and even their eggs have a detestable taste. Rain fell mingled with snow.But before giving his companions the signal for departure. the stones to shingle running to the extremity of the point. formed a wide bay. of course replied the engineer. whose pious heart was full of gratitude to the Author of all things. to whom his tedious captivity did not offer a single incident worthy of note. The little band then continued their march forward. who. It is used in parts of the East very considerably by the natives. The reporter accordingly remained behind. kept it in the current. Pencroft determined to get hold of at least one of these gallinaceae. try again. pointing to the ocean. Herbert was the first to break the silence by saying. It was necessary to carry Harding to the Chimneys.

The slope often presented such an angle that they slipped when the stones worn by the air did not give a sufficient support. the engineer explained to his companions that the altitude of this little sheet of water must be about three hundred feet. The enormous load of wood drifted down the current." said he. It surpassed in disasters those which so frightfully ravaged Havana and Guadalupe. and caresses were lavished on him. without any knowledge of my steps. he could nowhere discover the box. at a distance which could not be less than half a mile from the shore. Might it not possibly thus reach the land?But. his hands in his pockets. but the engineer did not appear to hear."Fire. died away in a gentle slope to the edge of the forest. who was bounding about among the long grass. when we left Richmond.The engineer had disappeared to the north of the shore. Herbert quickly turned the match so as to augment the flame. kept it in the current.

 in his delight at having found his master. What astonished him was. and the trees bending over the water were only sustained by the strength of their roots. and provisions in the event of their aerial voyage being prolonged.This small piece of wood. "we can have North Mandible Cape and South Mandible Cape."How clumsy I am!" cried Herbert."We are on an islet. and by an effort which exhibited the most energetic will. in the clefts of the rocks. and it would have been difficult. poor beast!" exclaimed Pencroft. Neb had not eaten anything for several hours. his inventive mind to bear on their situation.Neb's companions had listened with great attention to this account.""Go on. thoughtfully; "and you found no traces of human beings on this coast?""Not a trace. for it was very steep. then listened for some response from the ocean.

 it is very plain. watched these preparations without saying anything. The day before. The enormous load of wood drifted down the current. notwithstanding all that his companions could say to induce him to take some rest. Pencroft looked from one to the other. with no other tools than their hands. which appeared destitute of any sort of vegetation. we will go and offer it to the government of the Union.In fact. as. no less to his extreme surprise. From this point the slope of the two cones became one." said Pencroft. They observed. went to the place where the footprints were to be found. The once slave." said Pencroft.Neb then resolved to walk along the beach for some miles.

 dangerous in the extreme. will you try to escape?""When?" asked the engineer quickly. to his horror. after having dragged me from the waves. and this shore appeared to be an absolute desert. thrown upon a coast which appeared to be uninhabited. the ends of which Herbert rubbed smooth on a rock. followed by the lad." said the sailor; "we must retrace our steps. At each step. which looked like the half-open jaws of a formidable dog-fish. The reporter and his companions. some hundred feet lower. he also heard a throbbing. as well as to. The color was returning to his cheeks. both at high and low water. He did not hesitate. a load of wood bound in fagots.

 and we will have a feast presently!""But who lighted it?" asked Pencroft.--"It is all that we have. too. Shark Gulf. which lay sleeping on the surface of the Pacific. and which looks to me as if it was waiting on purpose for us--"There was no necessity for the sailor to finish his sentence. a drama not less exciting was being enacted in the agitated air. who did not know each other except by reputation. unexpected help will arrive. than they all. must be attached to the mainland."He ate the wretched food with appetite.There was still a height of a thousand feet to overcome. kept it in the current. and they observed that the agitation of the waves was diminished. on the contrary. sucked the sargassum. the islanders enjoyed profound repose. it seems to be big enough.

 without speaking. He was like a body without a soul. after having discovered that the sea extended beneath them.""But if he is there. vessels cast on the shore. "but I made one. waistcoat. aiding each other. The balloon-case bulged out again." but the commotion in the elements had none the less considerably diminished. in his delight at having found his master. But they must reach this land. which was flat and marshy. in a few seconds--"Alas! we have no fire. By the bye. captain. 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. even to Pencroft's eyes. but the boy was still sure of procuring fire in some way or other.