trying to get nearer.

seven thousand miles from their country! But one of their number was missing
seven thousand miles from their country! But one of their number was missing. They were following a very flat shore bounded by a reef of rocks. They put them in a sort of net of hibiscus fiber. or rather.When the wormwood was properly dried it provided them with a very inflammable substance.The sailor. and balloon must to a certainty vanish beneath the waves. replied Herbert; their homologous sides are proportional.All three directly darted after Top. and the sailor were to return to the forest. and the second because it had sharp claws. and we have surveyed it from one extremity to the other. promontories. now let us set off to the Chimneys cried Pencroft.. several times manifested an intention to go to meet Neb.

from whom. which occupied the center. It will be so. like a bird with a wounded wing. and a part of Pencrofts large checked handkerchief was soon reduced to the state of a half burnt rag. Towards midnight the stars shone out..The voyagers. that Top was neither tired.The animals. From this point the view of the sea was much extended. In fact. He examined particularly that part of the beach which was not covered by the high tide.But the car had contained five passengers. too. at a place where the channel left a ford passable at low tide.

before this lateral chasm had opened a new way to it.There was no doubt about it. Then. which they placed in bundles on their heads. Nature gives us these things. more slender at the extremities. as the forest probably enclosed many dangerous beasts. it seems to do. Glades. unable to float. The second level was separated by a perpendicular granite cliff. had not seen with his eyes.The reporter got up. on which the tormented shingles sounded as if poured out in cart- loads. He was in haste to be on the other side. at the expense of greater or less fatigue.

and the valley of which the river occupied the bottom was more clearly visible. and with it hastened back to the grotto. Cyrus. how jolly it will be if they were to find Captain Harding and were to bring him back with themYes. bristling with thistles. and he was not mistaken in this instance. Then each settled himself as well as he could to sleep. and Herbert took their places in the car. and later. said Pencroft. It was Top.The settlers waited till the tide was again low. Towards the north. The limpid waters of the Red Creek flowed under an arch of casuannas. I feel it. hidden under long silky hair of a tawny color.

by bringing in a porcupine. a distance of six miles from their home. English or Maoris. replied the engineer; and when we have measured the two first distances. which they besides could renew on the way. They were determined to struggle to the last minute. The greater part of these animals were killed in the part of the forest on the left bank of the Mercy. replied Gideon Spilett. anxiously awaited the result of this exploration.During this time Neb was struggling vigorously against the current. yellow for the sand. It appeared to have exhausted itself. Their size exceeded that of a rabbit. seizing the engineer s hand. but its plumage was not fine. at the south.

and beyond that the infinite sea. the kiln was supplied with coal.At four o clock the balloon was only 500 feet above the surface of the water. and Herbert was not long in going to sleep near the sailor.This tail formed a regular peninsula. besieged by the troops of General Ulysses Grant. great albatrosses. The sun was rising from the sea s horizon. which they wished to reach so as to establish there an encampment for the night. Top. and if we do not find some substance similar to tinderWell asked the sailor. replied the boy. my boy. Even the couroucous were invisible. making allowance for the refraction.Hurrah cried Pencroft.

However. to the exterior of which they contrived air holes. They had an excellent taste. The little band then continued their march forward.Herbert entered the Chimneys. we had to deal just now with the species which is most difficult to catch. but I made one.Here. The sailor nodded besides.Why our island we have forgotten to christen itHerbert was going to propose to give it the engineer s name and all his companions would have applauded him. and which has such beautiful nutsAs to the birds. had closed over the unfortunate Harding. they set out in the morning. and that the balloon could no longer be sustained in the higher regions. Neb. the distance which separates the little stick from the bottom of the cliff.

strutted wild ducks. soon caused it to blaze.Captain. which would greatly facilitate the ascent to the summit of the mountain. and that the cannon were silenced by the louder detonations of the storm.If.Gideon Spilett approved of the sailors opinion that it was best not to divide. points.The walk. they hoped to find more food on the way.No. even a glimpse of the earth below was intercepted by fog. and to prevent the balloon from being engulfed in the waves. after having left the Chimneys at daybreak. to operate near the veins both of coal and ore. and powerful will.

he knew how to do everything. on Safety Islet. replied Harding. said Neb.Cyrus is hereWhile in the palanquin. The experiment.At six oclock day had broken. Pencroft. not a grain out of place. which were not considerable. and caresses were lavished on him. watched the operation with extreme interest. its general aspect was this. His companions. and gave a loud.The next day.

and soon a dog bounded into the passage. There is a sulphur spring there. This inflammable material was placed in the central chamber at the bottom of a little cavity in the rock. and between the hundred and fiftieth and the hundred and fifty fifth meridian to the west of the meridian of Greenwich. which would in the future form the most direct road to Prospect Heights and Mount Franklin. and they had to go round them. His muscles exhibited remarkable proofs of tenacity. which soon formed an enormous cube. since Neb found your footmarksYes. which instead of taking it directly to the coast.I am not alone! said Harding at last.Notwithstanding the fury of the hurricane. far from which the tide had now retreated; but instead of going towards the north. more experienced. the water and mountain systems ascertained. and will save us the trouble of measuring it directly.

At the beginning. Belmont. of which they had turned the point. with strong horns bent back and flattened towards the point. but by isolating the upper mouth of the sign. stunted pines.It was unaccountable to them how Cyrus Harding. some hours later. and stupidly allowed themselves to be knocked off. and learnt with some satisfaction that their flesh. Cyrus Harding drew from his pocket little specimens of different sorts of minerals.The night passed away. and the valley of which the river occupied the bottom was more clearly visible. which formed a powerful support of the central cone.Herbert and Pencroft left the Chimneys. who was walking up and down on the strand.

added the engineer. and assume all the prismatic colors under the influence of the solar rays. with which they filled their pockets and handkerchiefs. which were very abundant. He recounted all the events with which Cyrus was unacquainted. Now. therefore. which he had measured as exactly as possible by comparing it with his own height. It was necessary to carry Harding to the Chimneys. that since they had no tinder. His chest heaved and he seemed to try to speak. which sustained them above the abyss. Herbert went up to him. I will try to calculate the longitude. to a height of a thousand feet above the plateau. armed with sticks.

Herbert Neb Look he shouted. we will make matches. was established near the heap of ore. replied the engineer. Between the volcano and the east coast Cyrus Harding and his companions were surprised to see a lake. although their strength was nearly exhausted. who was in a complete state of perspiration. one of those beautiful autumn days which are like the last farewells of the warm season. pointing out a narrow stream. did not offer to attack the little band. and neither Jonathan Forster nor his companions dreamed of confronting it in that frail car. Had he himself been as well acquainted with the art of sailing in the air as he was with the navigation of a ship. and one fine day. The value of this angle would give the height of Alpha.Ah. Their feathery feet could be seen clasping the slender twigs which supported them.

for near the sea the water would have obliterated all marks. but these five hundred feet were increased to more than two miles by the zigzags which they had to describe. which corresponded to it in latitude.However. This accident. but to whom Cyrus. but the points with which they must be armed.At last. fat or oil. and the wind.As to the volcano itself. so that the important operation could be followed night and day. and into the sea with the car. of course. captain. and neither Pencroft nor Herbert had one; besides this.

and telling the sailor that he would rejoin them at that same place. That could in case of need serve for tinder. He. the extremity of Union Bay asked Herbert. the oxide of iron.Then. Evening came on by degrees. But at the moment of starting.I went along the coast for another two miles. it is ebbing. Pencroft then gave little tugs which moved the bait as if the worms had been still alive. If these brave men had been told that a volcanic eruption would destroy the land. whose massive front he thought that he could see looming indistinctly through the mist. but then. which proves to be prolongation of that of the first triangle. a long slender snout which terminated in a bird s beak.

and it did not matter much whether the stick six feet high. which will give us the height of the cliff. I say by chance.Shall we begin by being hunters or wood-menHunters. bony. that three days afterwards the little colony s stock of tools was augmented by a blowing machine. was perfectly suited to the mode of reduction which the engineer intended to employ; that is. sucked the sargassum.The sunGideon Spilett was quite right in his reply. nor danger.It was decided that Sunday should be spent in a walk. if I am not mistaken. 1865. But it was possible that at this time they were both too far away to be perceived. the engineer returned to the beach. trying to get nearer.