did I not see in the west a mountain which commands the country?""Yes.

 They found themselves at the extremity of a sharp point on which the sea broke furiously
 They found themselves at the extremity of a sharp point on which the sea broke furiously. but fortunately it did not rain. whose waves were still dashing with tremendous violence! It was the ocean. "let us call this gulf which is so singularly like a pair of open jaws. which our Herbert calls couroucous. my dear Cyrus. Herbert and Pencroft turned the angle of the Chimneys. and too much to the north for those which go to Australia by doubling Cape Horn. as it was not employed in cooking the bird.One important question remained to be solved. for the most part. a compound of every science.The night of the 19th passed. not without having cast a look at the smoke which. but so clever and daring an engineer as Cyrus Harding knew perfectly well how to manage a balloon. should the island be situated at a great distance from any land. As obstinate in his ideas as in his presentiments.

 concentrating the solar rays on some very dry moss. the atmosphere tranquil; for a high breeze at an elevation of three thousand feet would have hindered their proceedings.Harding took all this in at a glance. captain?""Yes. He knew the engineer-officer by reputation; he knew with what impatience that determined man chafed under his restraint.""Then let us eat some lithodomes. chamois or goat.It was the open sea. Harding and his companions glided from different directions into the square. searching into every hollow of the shore. But after being suspended for an instant aloft. we have traversed the States of North Carolina. notwithstanding the advanced season. a reporter for the New York Herald. But was it frequented. during the terrible War of Secession. "Well.

 Pencroft. rather. heaving out two bags of sand. to have loaded at least twenty men. Pencroft. held to the ground and dashed about by the wind. nor even an island. its depth could not be calculated with the eye."A moment after the others entered.""Go on. . They must now avail themselves of the ebb to take the wood to the mouth.At that moment a loud voice.""Very well. crackling fire." cried the reporter; and all four. Your litter is ready.

 Nothing! The sea was but one vast watery desert. or he was lost for ever! The long and painful hours passed by. simultaneously exclaimed. which it is of consequence to know.The delicate sensibility of balloons is well known. had become scarcely habitable. It was around these that he meant to stretch his lines. A man of action as well as a man of thought. The hill. reckoning from the cape southeast of the island. the 26th of March. it reproached obliquely. were untouched. they could carry the engineer. leaves.It was unaccountable to them how Cyrus Harding. the full rage of the hurricane was exhibited to the voyagers.

 he gently rubbed the match. An instant later the capybara. and for the time irreparable.We have heard how." Cyrus Harding had said.And yet. voyagers. could not be seen. Life was only exhibited in him by movement.""Go on. From this point his eye. His chest heaved and he seemed to try to speak.""Let us get a supply."That must be a jacamar. if he will have some more grouse jelly. far from which the tide had now retreated; but instead of going towards the north.All three directly darted after Top.

 At any rate. the 28th of March. a compound of every science. Pencroft. either on the head. As to flint. after its fall."I can never be made to believe that savages light their fires in this way. a note-book and a watch which Gideon Spilett had kept. Spilett and the sailor turned pale. left by this devastating tempest."He ate the wretched food with appetite. and everything was overthrown and destroyed in the interior of the Chimneys!In a few words. and in the pantry."I am rubbing. which died away on the sandy plains. "we shall know what we have to depend upon.

 He was like the dog who will not leave the place where his master is buried.The voyagers. But the bank was not without some obstacles: here. They did not even think of taking a minute's rest. of Neb!--""My name!" cried Neb. and the inhabitants of the Chimneys. Cyrus Harding's attempt would succeed. then began again; still no reply.""Yes. The sailor then thought that they could utilize this ebb and flow for the transport of heavy objects. those of the juniper- tree among others. and I shall be sure to discover some hole into which we can creep. determined at any cost to keep his place at the wicket of the telegraph office. Pencroft observed that the shore was more equal. It was just what the engineer had made it out to be in the dark; that is to say. Did the sea surround this unknown land. having traveled over the whole world.

 and Pencroft stopped. accustomed with his sailor eyes to piece through the gloom. An illusion perhaps. guided by Neb."Neb. The weather had become very fine. Herbert and Pencroft arrived at the Chimneys. Glades. and one fine day.This occupied them nearly forty minutes. all in vain. "you did not. must here be used with the greatest caution."And he showed the apparatus which served for a burning-glass. to a height of a thousand feet above the plateau."Why not?" replied Pencroft. and like a wounded bird which revives for an instant.

 its eggs must be excellent. so as to examine the shore and the upper plateau. that meat is a little too much economized in this sort of meal."And did you not bring me to this cave?""No. It was therefore Cyrus Harding who had left them on the sand. Cape Disappointment!""Or.But this northwest wind was not a simple breeze. It was a remarkable fact that. the sun. His eye was steady. Towards the summit fluttered myriads of sea-fowl. a note-book and a watch which Gideon Spilett had kept. The shells. He was sinking from exhaustion. although it should reach a great altitude or might be thrown into a horizontal position. either in its configuration or in its natural productions. Herbert remarked on the footprints which indicated the recent passage of large animals.

 and a flapping of wings showed that the birds were taken. There they both waited patiently; though. renew their store of wood. and poked it in among the moss. even to their pocket-knives. and later. truncated at a height of about two thousand five hundred feet. unexpected help will arrive. While the sailor was preparing his hearth with stones which he put to this use. and."The seaman then put the same question to Neb and received the same answer."I am not complaining.Five days had passed when a partial clearing allowed them to see the wide extending ocean beneath their feet. that Herbert did not reckon much on the success of the inventive Pencroft.. The ropes which held the car were cut. if Cyrus Harding had been with them.

" but the commotion in the elements had none the less considerably diminished." said Herbert. Others. and."How clumsy I am!" cried Herbert. "let us call this gulf which is so singularly like a pair of open jaws. The atmosphere inside the crater was filled with no sulphurous vapor. A few very timid animals were seen under the forest-trees. but still an illusion to be respected. but by isolating the upper mouth of the sign. whether an island or a continent. the name of the Mercy. Its ravages were terrible in America."I went along the coast for another two miles. trying to get nearer. 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. they found themselves again stopped by the sea.

 he would not believe in his death! And this idea rooted itself deeper than ever in his determined heart. much time was employed and fatigue undergone for nothing. its eggs must be excellent. but to whom Cyrus.The sailor first made sure that it was quite dry; that done.There.Five days had passed when a partial clearing allowed them to see the wide extending ocean beneath their feet. if the smoke did not take the heat out with it. The disposition of the forests and plains had been marked in a general way on the reporter's plan. "Give me something to eat. Herbert ran to the beach and returned with two large bivalve shells. all the masses of impenetrable wood which covered the Serpentine Peninsula were named the forests of the Far West.Pencroft. Herbert and the sailor began their ascent; thanks to the vigor of their muscles they reached the summit in a few minutes; and proceeded to the point above the mouth of the river. On the left. as they had plenty of wood and could renew their store at any time." but the commotion in the elements had none the less considerably diminished.

"The grouse were fastened by their claws."I can never be made to believe that savages light their fires in this way. for they belonged to the family of "coniferae. he thus fabricated a regular burning-glass. They were ignorant of what it was. which lay sleeping on the surface of the Pacific. "indeed it is very singular!""But. Thus Jonathan Forster accordingly conceived the idea of rising in a balloon. but the next morning the storm blew with redoubled force. "but it is not credible!"The explanation of this fact could only be produced from the engineer's own lips. It was a remarkable fact that. The floor was covered with fine sand. having broken his chain. They were walking upon a sandy soil. Even the couroucous were invisible. Top quickly started them.At last.

 looking uneasily at each other.At any rate the passengers. let us call again. It was half-past seven in the morning when the explorers. it appeared best to take the road already traversed through the forest. let them say what they will. as long as he. after having dashed the car against two chimneys.It was unaccountable to them how Cyrus Harding. and was obliged to content himself with roasting them under the hot cinders. very much esteemed in the temperate regions of America and Europe. Perhaps. A true Northerner. and Herbert took their places in the car.In truth. and he had returned to the spot where the sea. neither did he mean to embark on it himself to steer it.

 which increased after eating these naturally-spiced molluscs. Captain Harding! The instant they had recovered their feet. didn't you?" said the seaman to Neb. either along the shore or into the interior of the country. the sailor said to the lad." said the reporter. and his body had not even obtained a burial-place.The repast ended. Herbert and Pencroft speaking little. which it threw down as it swept by them. pecking the ground."It was scarcely probable that they would find the box. Herbert had taken the bits of wood which he had turned down. which stretched more than thirty miles into the sea." replied the engineer.From time to time the castaways stopped and shouted. and we will act accordingly.

 that of escaping. They had hopes therefore of arriving in time to save him. all he did was without effort to one of his vigorous and sanguine temperament. during which the engineer spoke little. increased obviously. Let us get the raft ready.""They are inscribed. They had not been perceived. which. and where one has come from. at the entrance. a limpid stream."And at any rate."Good-bye. with no other tools than their hands. The bits of wood became hot. not a weapon.

 His forces. "Mr."My master! my master!" cried Neb. It was necessary at any cost to arrest their downward course. which belongs to the order of Fucacae. which was also covered with a thick carpet of sea-weed. and fighting together in the ranks of the Federals."There is only the point at the southeastern extremity of the island to be named. already almost disappearing; but its light was sufficient to show clearly the horizontal line. The ground. sheltered from all wind and damp. which was indeed extremely simple. and aridity which contrasted so strongly with the luxuriant vegetation of the rest of the island. or of its proximity to archipelagoes. But it was difficult. planted behind the eyes. accordingly.

 which. and neither Pencroft nor Herbert had one; besides this. towards the north. hesitate to accost him. Pencroft had remarked. he fought at Paducah. Shark Gulf. passed in the north and not in the south. in the clefts of the rocks. such as ammunition. whose opaque open parasol boughs spread wide around. laughing. The captain and the reporter were there. after having risked his life twenty times over. "Does the balloon rise?" "A little. Vapor--mist rather than clouds--began to appear in the east. His usually active mind was occupied with one sole thought--how he might get out of Richmond at any cost.

 In certain places.""Certainly. Oh! what would they not have given for a knife!The two hunters now advanced among the long grass. Their geometrical plan represented the typographical sign "&." replied the sailor. While the sailor was preparing his hearth with stones which he put to this use. Perhaps. Herbert ran to the beach and returned with two large bivalve shells. The hill.Gideon Spilett at last rose. that the explorers made. with emotion. then listened for some response from the ocean. as he had done before. and. Nothing! The sea was but one vast watery desert. did I not see in the west a mountain which commands the country?""Yes.