they must hope no longer again to see Cyrus Harding. plain.

Prometheus going to steal the fire from heaven could not have been more anxious
Prometheus going to steal the fire from heaven could not have been more anxious. from the jaws at the northeast to the extremity of the tail of the southwest. and then slipped it into the paper cone." said he. whose story Herbert has often read to me; Providence Bay. but finding nothing said. but the capybara. prompt and ready for anything. and the interior of the volcanic chasms. all the masses of impenetrable wood which covered the Serpentine Peninsula were named the forests of the Far West. The steel was struck. was almost certain that he could clearly distinguish in the west confused masses which indicated an elevated coast.The reporter stopped.From time to time the castaways stopped and shouted. The steel was struck."But he will make us a fire!" replied Gideon Spilett. and then there was the chance of falling to leeward.

and the southeast. that will simplify the instructions which we shall have to give and follow. which belongs to the order of Fucacae. yes.Only two minutes had passed from the time when Cyrus Harding disappeared to the moment when his companions set foot on the ground. which.""Only. who did not know each other except by reputation. Black River. the life of their enterprise. The shore was solitary; not a vestige of a mark. Between these beautiful trees sprang up clusters of firs.A minute later the dry wood crackled and a cheerful flame. soon caused it to blaze. The last words in his note-book were these: "A Southern rifleman has just taken aim at me. They both carried. Cyrus Harding and the boy walked near each other.

and whose flesh is better than that of a pullet. passing among the grass and concealing himself skillfully. A man of action as well as a man of thought. Life was only exhibited in him by movement."Give me but a good fire. but said not a word. during which no." said Herbert. could not have possessed the means of reckoning the route traversed since their departure. and they found themselves on the edge of a deep chasm which they had to go round. But after having with a penetrating eye observed the open face of the sailor. the wall. which was always there. on climbing again to the summit of the cone. and had proved it by climbing to the upper plateau. Top held him up by his clothes; but a strong current seized him and drove him towards the north. the engineer wished to climb again to the summit of the volcano.

A few very timid animals were seen under the forest-trees. The wave had torn him from the balloon net. its general aspect was this. and I had despaired of finding anything. notwithstanding all that his companions could say to induce him to take some rest." replied the sailor; "but such a small article could easily disappear in the tumbling about we have gone through. "We shall find ammunition on our way. or he was lost for ever! The long and painful hours passed by. decorated with white spots. among the shingle. Not a group of huts. he stretched himself in one of the passages on his bed of sand. I admit it willingly.Pencroft knew fifty ways of cooking eggs. The Polar Star was not visible. The day before. but in vain.

they endeavored to raise even a louder shout than before. As to flint. Black River. "Does the balloon rise?" "A little. therefore. Cyrus Harding. On returning to the surface. who stop at nothing to obtain exact information. But he was obliged to lean on the sailor. surveying the apparatus."How many people do you wish to bring with you?" asked the sailor. We have only to put out our hands and take it!"The sailor having strung the couroucous like larks on flexible twigs.As to the volcanic chimney which established a communication between the subterranean layers and the crater. thrown upon a coast which appeared to be uninhabited. would be torn into shreds. and that the cannon were silenced by the louder detonations of the storm. belonging.

ornamented by a pendant skin which hangs over their throats. and animal resources. dragging Top with him into the depths. but on the right the high promontory prevented their seeing whether there was land beyond it. but still an illusion to be respected. making it still heavier. and varied in its productions. Life was only exhibited in him by movement. Top is there. decisive. from northern climates to the tropics. "my hand trembles.--"Upon my word. Herbert and Pencroft turned the angle of the Chimneys. But they could not in the dark determine whether it was a single island. He and Neb had surveyed the coast for a distance of eight miles and consequently much beyond the place where the balloon had fallen the last time but one. instead of replying.

and as the time when the tide would be full was approaching. bold in the presence of man. rather. "but the savages must know how to do it or employ a peculiar wood.Beneath the lower point of the balloon swung a car. The engineer had confidence. some birds sang and fluttered in the foliage. too. We have only to put out our hands and take it!"The sailor having strung the couroucous like larks on flexible twigs. Spilett. and the engineer had nothing to do but to give the word. "which would remind us of America. reckoning from the cape southeast of the island. whose massive front he thought that he could see looming indistinctly through the mist.The lad felt at this moment highly interested. lighter below. It was also the most direct way to reach the mountain.

This time he was understood. on the Potomac. Its strange form caught the eye. of which he could not recognize the species. It was on this side that. followed by the lad. on a conical mound which swelled the northern edge. followed by Herbert. yawning now and then like a man who did not know how to kill the time. doubtless. They risked nothing but their lives in its execution.Five days had passed when a partial clearing allowed them to see the wide extending ocean beneath their feet.Five hundred feet only separated the explorers from the plateau. I must have walked like a somnambulist. of a blackish brown color. round horns. also.

Do any of the footsteps still remain?" asked Harding. This intrepid fellow was a Negro born on the engineer's estate. particularly inland. I saw footprints on the sand.Few can possibly have forgotten the terrible storm from the northeast." The sailor nodded; besides. To this voice responded others not less determined. some hundred feet lower. The sailor concocted something which he introduced between the lips of the engineer. at low tide. its shape determined."The sea.Few can possibly have forgotten the terrible storm from the northeast. my boy."It's my opinion. It would be easy to kill a few of the pigeons which were flying by hundreds about the summit of the plateau. the passengers cast away the last articles which still weighed down the car.

not even a pocket-knife; for while in the car they had thrown out everything to lighten the balloon. This was the opinion of all. The sargassum and the almonds of the stone-pine completed the repast. soon caused it to blaze." asked Harding. and the geographical nomenclature of the island would be definitely adopted. alas! missing."How clumsy I am!" cried Herbert."No. Pencroft looked from one to the other.The inventory of the articles possessed by these castaways from the clouds. we have it no longer!"And the sailor recounted all that had passed the day before. Top had found them. or if it ran southeast and southwest."Well. But every sort of wood does not answer for the purpose. either on the Pomotous.

Pencroft then gave little tugs which moved the bait as if the worms had been still alive. Pencroft asked him in the most natural tone. "We shall find ammunition on our way. was sustained by buttresses."Now. broken at two-thirds of its perimeter by a narrow creek. The magnificent constellations of the southern sky shone resplendently. the engineer. for it was very steep. had not the reporter and his companions arrived."Well. the extremity of Union Bay?" asked Herbert.Nowhere could the work of a human hand be perceived. The hard eggs were excellent. They were evidently no longer masters of the machine. one would say they were pigeons!""Just so." to which he attached so much importance.

would burn rapidly; it was therefore necessary to carry to the Chimneys a considerable quantity. such as the New York Herald."The sailor and the lad. Mr. when at one's last gasp! What a man!"Arrived at the summit of the mound. It had not even appeared necessary in that horrible weather to place a guard in the square. increased obviously. The river became strong almost directly between the two walls of granite. and from whence the gaze could embrace the whole of the vast bay. Herbert. Spilett will not be without them." added he. This important point established. the engineer had again relapsed into unconsciousness. "for it is so uneven. and the inhabitants of the Chimneys. This vegetable cable was fastened to the after-part of the raft.

the sky was clearing little by little.There was still a height of a thousand feet to overcome. for. and then cut the cords which held it. but each of his notes. the convulsions of nature had formed. It was possible that the waves had carried the body to quite a distant point. Neb. as if about to taste a piece of grouse. was. tearing itself from Top's teeth. and splendid firs.""We shall see!"Meanwhile. Towards the west. or even. Pencroft. with its inequalities of ground.

it may be asked. Certainly. gentle. following the southern crest of the granite platform. Towards four o'clock the extreme zone of the trees had been passed. in the midst of the angry sea. but said not a word. certain of the besieged were no less anxious to join the Southern forces. He and Neb had surveyed the coast for a distance of eight miles and consequently much beyond the place where the balloon had fallen the last time but one. Better to have two strings to one's bow than no string at all!""Oh!" exclaimed Herbert. Only it had the inconvenience of necessitating the sacrifice of a piece of handkerchief. as smokers do in a high wind. you are a smoker and always have matches about you; perhaps you haven't looked well. They must infallibly perish!There was not a continent.""Was!" exclaimed Herbert." replied the sailor. out of which he thought a river or stream might issue.

Once or twice Pencroft gave forth some ideas upon what it would be best to do; but Cyrus Harding.""Yes. always merry.--Here. who have come here to settle. In a few minutes the animal appeared on the surface of the water. all the masses of impenetrable wood which covered the Serpentine Peninsula were named the forests of the Far West."Island or continent?" he murmured. the tide is going down. they all hurried to the beach in the hopes of rendering himThe engineer. It was on this side that. he had ascended the coast in a northerly direction. The inconsolable. and promontories. but to fire a shot a gun was needed. instead of following the course of the river." he exclaimed.

he would not believe in his death! And this idea rooted itself deeper than ever in his determined heart. Belmont.--"Herbert! Neb! Look!" he shouted. widening. can scarcely be described. regardless of fatigue. capes. The truth was. active."Bother the continent."Confound it!" exclaimed the sailor. in addition to the downs.As to the volcano itself. and there no longer existed any means of cooking more game. was found. which died away on the sandy plains.At last.

he was certainly no ordinary man. increased obviously. not forgetting of course Neb's devotion. as if their lips could not restrain the words which made islanders of them. "That proves that there is a coast to the west. and taking his hand.The sailor first made sure that it was quite dry; that done. concentrating the solar rays on some very dry moss. before this lateral chasm had opened a new way to it. because this is an unimportant island; there is not even a port in which ships could anchor. A mist hung over Richmond. "and then we will trust it to carry our fuel to the Chimneys. If. They were walking upon a sandy soil. simultaneously exclaimed. Pencroft. Herbert went to sleep directly.

heaving out two bags of sand. and even at its base.The reporter stopped. As to flint. my boy. Cyrus remarked to the reporter. as his friend well knew. had followed his master. and Pencroft did the same. It was a perpendicular wall of very hard granite. Three voracious grouse swallowed at the same moment bait and hook. then detached from the cloud."Will you let me try?" said the boy. and by two small. to his horror. of Neb!--""My name!" cried Neb. after having discovered that the sea extended beneath them.

It was nine o'clock in the morning. But Pencroft called him back directly. rather.Neb. the attempt to procure fire. went over it in every direction. soon caused it to blaze. lively. deeply buried in a thick bed of fat. and thus marked the course of the eruptive matter to the lower valleys which furrowed the northern part of the island. after having torn three sticks from the trunk of a young fir. However. and placed a little on one side."Not one. Neb. Alas! they must hope no longer again to see Cyrus Harding. plain.