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diff --git a/old/7jrny10.zip b/old/7jrny10.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 256fcd8..0000000 --- a/old/7jrny10.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/8jrny10.zip b/old/8jrny10.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 80eb539..0000000 --- a/old/8jrny10.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/old-2025-03-17/3748-8.txt b/old/old-2025-03-17/3748-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 2bcdfb7..0000000 --- a/old/old-2025-03-17/3748-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,10166 +0,0 @@ -Project Gutenberg's A Journey to the Interior of the Earth, by Jules Verne - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: A Journey to the Interior of the Earth - -Author: Jules Verne - -Posting Date: December 3, 2010 [EBook #3748] -Release Date: February, 2003 -[Last updated: August 19, 2011] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A JOURNEY TO THE INTERIOR *** - - - - -Produced by Norman M. Wolcott. - - - - - - - - - A Journey into the Interior of the Earth - - by Jules Verne - - - -[Redactor's Note: The following version of Jules Verne's "Journey -into the Interior of the Earth" was published by Ward, Lock, &Co., -Ltd., London, in 1877. This version is believed to be the most -faithful rendition into English of this classic currently in the -public domain. The few notes of the translator are located near the -point where they are referenced. The Runic characters in Chapter III -are visible in the HTML version of the text. The character set is -ISO-8891-1, mainly the Windows character set. The translation is by -Frederick Amadeus Malleson. - -While the translation is fairly literal, and Malleson (a clergyman) -has taken pains with the scientific portions of the work and added -the chapter headings, he has made some unfortunate emendations mainly -concerning biblical references, and has added a few 'improvements' of -his own, which are detailed below: - -III. "_pertubata seu inordinata,_" as Euclid has it." - -XXX. cry, "Thalatta! thalatta!" the sea! the sea! The deeply indented -shore was lined with a breadth of fine shining sand, softly - -XXXII. hippopotamus. {as if the creator, pressed for time in the -first hours of the world, had assembled several animals into one.} -The colossal mastodon - -XXXII. I return to the scriptural periods or ages of the world, -conventionally called 'days,' long before the appearance of man when -the unfinished world was as yet unfitted for his support. {I return -to the biblical epochs of the creation, well in advance of the birth -of man, when the incomplete earth was not yet sufficient for him.} - -XXXVIII. (footnote), and which is illustrated in the negro -countenance and in the lowest savages. - -XXXIX. of the geologic period. {antediluvian} - -(These corrections have kindly been pointed out by Christian Sánchez -<chvsanchez@arnet.com.ar> of the Jules Verne Forum.)] - ----------------------------------------------------------------------- - - A JOURNEY - - INTO THE - - INTERIOR OF THE EARTH - - by - - Jules Verne - ----------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - -PREFACE - - -THE "Voyages Extraordinaires" of M. Jules Verne deserve to be made -widely known in English-speaking countries by means of carefully -prepared translations. Witty and ingenious adaptations of the -researches and discoveries of modern science to the popular taste, -which demands that these should be presented to ordinary readers in -the lighter form of cleverly mingled truth and fiction, these books -will assuredly be read with profit and delight, especially by English -youth. Certainly no writer before M. Jules Verne has been so happy in -weaving together in judicious combination severe scientific truth -with a charming exercise of playful imagination. - -Iceland, the starting point of the marvellous underground journey -imagined in this volume, is invested at the present time with a -painful interest in consequence of the disastrous eruptions last -Easter Day, which covered with lava and ashes the poor and scanty -vegetation upon which four thousand persons were partly dependent for -the means of subsistence. For a long time to come the natives of that -interesting island, who cleave to their desert home with all that -_amor patriae_ which is so much more easily understood than -explained, will look, and look not in vain, for the help of those on -whom fall the smiles of a kindlier sun in regions not torn by -earthquakes nor blasted and ravaged by volcanic fires. Will the -readers of this little book, who, are gifted with the means of -indulging in the luxury of extended beneficence, remember the -distress of their brethren in the far north, whom distance has not -barred from the claim of being counted our "neighbours"? And whatever -their humane feelings may prompt them to bestow will be gladly added -to the Mansion-House Iceland Relief Fund. - -In his desire to ascertain how far the picture of Iceland, drawn in -the work of Jules Verne is a correct one, the translator hopes in the -course of a mail or two to receive a communication from a leading man -of science in the island, which may furnish matter for additional -information in a future edition. - -The scientific portion of the French original is not without a few -errors, which the translator, with the kind assistance of Mr. Cameron -of H. M. Geological Survey, has ventured to point out and correct. It -is scarcely to be expected in a work in which the element of -amusement is intended to enter more largely than that of scientific -instruction, that any great degree of accuracy should be arrived at. -Yet the translator hopes that what trifling deviations from the text -or corrections in foot notes he is responsible for, will have done a -little towards the increased usefulness of the work. - -F. A. M. - -The Vicarage, - - Broughton-in-Furness - ----------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CONTENTS - - - I THE PROFESSOR AND HIS FAMILY - II A MYSTERY TO BE SOLVED AT ANY PRICE - III THE RUNIC WRITING EXERCISES THE PROFESSOR - IV THE ENEMY TO BE STARVED INTO SUBMISSION - V FAMINE, THEN VICTORY, FOLLOWED BY DISMAY - VI EXCITING DISCUSSIONS ABOUT AN UNPARALLELED EXERCISE - VII A WOMAN'S COURAGE - VIII SERIOUS PREPARATIONS FOR VERTICAL DESCENT - IX ICELAND, BUT WHAT NEXT? - X INTERESTING CONVERSATIONS WITH ICELANDIC SAVANTS - XI A GUIDE FOUND TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH - XII A BARREN LAND - XIII HOSPITALITY UNDER THE ARCTIC CIRCLE - XIV BUT ARCTICS CAN BE INHOSPITABLE, TOO - XV SNÆFFEL AT LAST - XVI BOLDLY DOWN THE CRATER - XVII VERTICAL DESCENT - XVIII THE WONDERS OF TERRESTIAL DEPTHS - XIX GEOLOGICAL STUDIES IN SITU - XX THE FIRST SIGNS OF DISTRESS - XXI COMPASSION FUSES THE PROFESSOR'S HEART - XXII TOTAL FAILURE OF WATER - XXIII WATER DISCOVERED - XXIV WELL SAID, OLD MOLE! CANST THOU WORK - IN THE GROUND SO FAST? - XXV DE PROFUNDIS - XXVI THE WORST PERIL OF ALL - XXVII LOST IN THE BOWELS OF THE EARTH - XXVIII THE RESCUE IN THE WHISPERING GALLERY - XXIX THALATTA! THALATTA! - XXX A NEW MARE INTERNUM - XXXI PREPARATIONS FOR A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY - XXXII WONDERS OF THE DEEP - XXXIII A BATTLE OF MONSTERS - XXXIV THE GREAT GEYSER - XXXV AN ELECTRIC STORM - XXXVI CALM PHILOSOPHIC DISCUSSIONS - XXXVII THE LIEDENBROCK MUSEUM OF GEOLOGY - XXXVIII THE PROFESSOR IN HIS CHAIR AGAIN - XXXIX FOREST SCENERY ILLUMINATED BY ELECTRICITY - XL PREPARATIONS FOR BLASTING A PASSAGE - TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH - XLI THE GREAT EXPLOSION AND THE RUSH DOWN BELOW - XLII HEADLONG SPEED UPWARD THROUGH THE HORRORS OF DARKNESS - XLIII SHOT OUT OF A VOLCANO AT LAST! - XLIV SUNNY LANDS IN THE BLUE MEDITERRANEAN - XLV ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL - ----------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - -A JOURNEY INTO THE INTERIOR OF THE EARTH - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -THE PROFESSOR AND HIS FAMILY - - -On the 24th of May, 1863, my uncle, Professor Liedenbrock, rushed -into his little house, No. 19 Königstrasse, one of the oldest streets -in the oldest portion of the city of Hamburg. - -Martha must have concluded that she was very much behindhand, for the -dinner had only just been put into the oven. - -"Well, now," said I to myself, "if that most impatient of men is -hungry, what a disturbance he will make!" - -"M. Liedenbrock so soon!" cried poor Martha in great alarm, half -opening the dining-room door. - -"Yes, Martha; but very likely the dinner is not half cooked, for it -is not two yet. Saint Michael's clock has only just struck half-past -one." - -"Then why has the master come home so soon?" - -"Perhaps he will tell us that himself." - -"Here he is, Monsieur Axel; I will run and hide myself while you -argue with him." - -And Martha retreated in safety into her own dominions. - -I was left alone. But how was it possible for a man of my undecided -turn of mind to argue successfully with so irascible a person as the -Professor? With this persuasion I was hurrying away to my own little -retreat upstairs, when the street door creaked upon its hinges; heavy -feet made the whole flight of stairs to shake; and the master of the -house, passing rapidly through the dining-room, threw himself in -haste into his own sanctum. - -But on his rapid way he had found time to fling his hazel stick into -a corner, his rough broadbrim upon the table, and these few emphatic -words at his nephew: - -"Axel, follow me!" - -I had scarcely had time to move when the Professor was again shouting -after me: - -"What! not come yet?" - -And I rushed into my redoubtable master's study. - -Otto Liedenbrock had no mischief in him, I willingly allow that; but -unless he very considerably changes as he grows older, at the end he -will be a most original character. - -He was professor at the Johannæum, and was delivering a series of -lectures on mineralogy, in the course of every one of which he broke -into a passion once or twice at least. Not at all that he was -over-anxious about the improvement of his class, or about the degree -of attention with which they listened to him, or the success which -might eventually crown his labours. Such little matters of detail -never troubled him much. His teaching was as the German philosophy -calls it, 'subjective'; it was to benefit himself, not others. He was -a learned egotist. He was a well of science, and the pulleys worked -uneasily when you wanted to draw anything out of it. In a word, he -was a learned miser. - -Germany has not a few professors of this sort. - -To his misfortune, my uncle was not gifted with a sufficiently rapid -utterance; not, to be sure, when he was talking at home, but -certainly in his public delivery; this is a want much to be deplored -in a speaker. The fact is, that during the course of his lectures at -the Johannæum, the Professor often came to a complete standstill; he -fought with wilful words that refused to pass his struggling lips, -such words as resist and distend the cheeks, and at last break out -into the unasked-for shape of a round and most unscientific oath: -then his fury would gradually abate. - -Now in mineralogy there are many half-Greek and half-Latin terms, -very hard to articulate, and which would be most trying to a poet's -measures. I don't wish to say a word against so respectable a -science, far be that from me. True, in the august presence of -rhombohedral crystals, retinasphaltic resins, gehlenites, Fassaites, -molybdenites, tungstates of manganese, and titanite of zirconium, -why, the most facile of tongues may make a slip now and then. - -It therefore happened that this venial fault of my uncle's came to be -pretty well understood in time, and an unfair advantage was taken of -it; the students laid wait for him in dangerous places, and when he -began to stumble, loud was the laughter, which is not in good taste, -not even in Germans. And if there was always a full audience to -honour the Liedenbrock courses, I should be sorry to conjecture how -many came to make merry at my uncle's expense. - -Nevertheless my good uncle was a man of deep learning--a fact I am -most anxious to assert and reassert. Sometimes he might irretrievably -injure a specimen by his too great ardour in handling it; but still -he united the genius of a true geologist with the keen eye of the -mineralogist. Armed with his hammer, his steel pointer, his magnetic -needles, his blowpipe, and his bottle of nitric acid, he was a -powerful man of science. He would refer any mineral to its proper -place among the six hundred [1] elementary substances now enumerated, -by its fracture, its appearance, its hardness, its fusibility, its -sonorousness, its smell, and its taste. - -The name of Liedenbrock was honourably mentioned in colleges and -learned societies. Humphry Davy, [2] Humboldt, Captain Sir John -Franklin, General Sabine, never failed to call upon him on their way -through Hamburg. Becquerel, Ebelman, Brewster, Dumas, Milne-Edwards, -Saint-Claire-Deville frequently consulted him upon the most difficult -problems in chemistry, a science which was indebted to him for -considerable discoveries, for in 1853 there had appeared at Leipzig -an imposing folio by Otto Liedenbrock, entitled, "A Treatise upon -Transcendental Chemistry," with plates; a work, however, which failed -to cover its expenses. - -To all these titles to honour let me add that my uncle was the -curator of the museum of mineralogy formed by M. Struve, the Russian -ambassador; a most valuable collection, the fame of which is European. - -Such was the gentleman who addressed me in that impetuous manner. -Fancy a tall, spare man, of an iron constitution, and with a fair -complexion which took off a good ten years from the fifty he must own -to. His restless eyes were in incessant motion behind his full-sized -spectacles. His long, thin nose was like a knife blade. Boys have -been heard to remark that that organ was magnetised and attracted -iron filings. But this was merely a mischievous report; it had no -attraction except for snuff, which it seemed to draw to itself in -great quantities. - -When I have added, to complete my portrait, that my uncle walked by -mathematical strides of a yard and a half, and that in walking he -kept his fists firmly closed, a sure sign of an irritable -temperament, I think I shall have said enough to disenchant any one -who should by mistake have coveted much of his company. - -He lived in his own little house in Königstrasse, a structure half -brick and half wood, with a gable cut into steps; it looked upon one -of those winding canals which intersect each other in the middle of -the ancient quarter of Hamburg, and which the great fire of 1842 had -fortunately spared. - -[1] Sixty-three. (Tr.) - -[2] As Sir Humphry Davy died in 1829, the translator must be pardoned -for pointing out here an anachronism, unless we are to assume that -the learned Professor's celebrity dawned in his earliest years. (Tr.) - -It is true that the old house stood slightly off the perpendicular, -and bulged out a little towards the street; its roof sloped a little -to one side, like the cap over the left ear of a Tugendbund student; -its lines wanted accuracy; but after all, it stood firm, thanks to an -old elm which buttressed it in front, and which often in spring sent -its young sprays through the window panes. - -My uncle was tolerably well off for a German professor. The house was -his own, and everything in it. The living contents were his -god-daughter Gräuben, a young Virlandaise of seventeen, Martha, and -myself. As his nephew and an orphan, I became his laboratory -assistant. - -I freely confess that I was exceedingly fond of geology and all its -kindred sciences; the blood of a mineralogist was in my veins, and in -the midst of my specimens I was always happy. - -In a word, a man might live happily enough in the little old house in -the Königstrasse, in spite of the restless impatience of its master, -for although he was a little too excitable--he was very fond of me. -But the man had no notion how to wait; nature herself was too slow -for him. In April, after he had planted in the terra-cotta pots -outside his window seedling plants of mignonette and convolvulus, he -would go and give them a little pull by their leaves to make them -grow faster. In dealing with such a strange individual there was -nothing for it but prompt obedience. I therefore rushed after him. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -A MYSTERY TO BE SOLVED AT ANY PRICE - - -That study of his was a museum, and nothing else. Specimens of -everything known in mineralogy lay there in their places in perfect -order, and correctly named, divided into inflammable, metallic, and -lithoid minerals. - -How well I knew all these bits of science! Many a time, instead of -enjoying the company of lads of my own age, I had preferred dusting -these graphites, anthracites, coals, lignites, and peats! And there -were bitumens, resins, organic salts, to be protected from the least -grain of dust; and metals, from iron to gold, metals whose current -value altogether disappeared in the presence of the republican -equality of scientific specimens; and stones too, enough to rebuild -entirely the house in Königstrasse, even with a handsome additional -room, which would have suited me admirably. - -But on entering this study now I thought of none of all these -wonders; my uncle alone filled my thoughts. He had thrown himself -into a velvet easy-chair, and was grasping between his hands a book -over which he bent, pondering with intense admiration. - -"Here's a remarkable book! What a wonderful book!" he was exclaiming. - -These ejaculations brought to my mind the fact that my uncle was -liable to occasional fits of bibliomania; but no old book had any -value in his eyes unless it had the virtue of being nowhere else to -be found, or, at any rate, of being illegible. - -"Well, now; don't you see it yet? Why I have got a priceless -treasure, that I found his morning, in rummaging in old Hevelius's -shop, the Jew." - -"Magnificent!" I replied, with a good imitation of enthusiasm. - -What was the good of all this fuss about an old quarto, bound in -rough calf, a yellow, faded volume, with a ragged seal depending from -it? - -But for all that there was no lull yet in the admiring exclamations -of the Professor. - -"See," he went on, both asking the questions and supplying the -answers. "Isn't it a beauty? Yes; splendid! Did you ever see such a -binding? Doesn't the book open easily? Yes; it stops open anywhere. -But does it shut equally well? Yes; for the binding and the leaves -are flush, all in a straight line, and no gaps or openings anywhere. -And look at its back, after seven hundred years. Why, Bozerian, -Closs, or Purgold might have been proud of such a binding!" - -While rapidly making these comments my uncle kept opening and -shutting the old tome. I really could do no less than ask a question -about its contents, although I did not feel the slightest interest. - -"And what is the title of this marvellous work?" I asked with an -affected eagerness which he must have been very blind not to see -through. - -"This work," replied my uncle, firing up with renewed enthusiasm, -"this work is the Heims Kringla of Snorre Turlleson, the most famous -Icelandic author of the twelfth century! It is the chronicle of the -Norwegian princes who ruled in Iceland." - -"Indeed;" I cried, keeping up wonderfully, "of course it is a German -translation?" - -"What!" sharply replied the Professor, "a translation! What should I -do with a translation? This _is_ the Icelandic original, in the -magnificent idiomatic vernacular, which is both rich and simple, and -admits of an infinite variety of grammatical combinations and verbal -modifications." - -"Like German." I happily ventured. - -"Yes," replied my uncle, shrugging his shoulders; "but, in addition -to all this, the Icelandic has three numbers like the Greek, and -irregular declensions of nouns proper like the Latin." - -"Ah!" said I, a little moved out of my indifference; "and is the type -good?" - -"Type! What do you mean by talking of type, wretched Axel? Type! Do -you take it for a printed book, you ignorant fool? It is a -manuscript, a Runic manuscript." - -"Runic?" - -"Yes. Do you want me to explain what that is?" - -"Of course not," I replied in the tone of an injured man. But my -uncle persevered, and told me, against my will, of many things I -cared nothing about. - -"Runic characters were in use in Iceland in former ages. They were -invented, it is said, by Odin himself. Look there, and wonder, -impious young man, and admire these letters, the invention of the -Scandinavian god!" - -Well, well! not knowing what to say, I was going to prostrate myself -before this wonderful book, a way of answering equally pleasing to -gods and kings, and which has the advantage of never giving them any -embarrassment, when a little incident happened to divert conversation -into another channel. - -This was the appearance of a dirty slip of parchment, which slipped -out of the volume and fell upon the floor. - -My uncle pounced upon this shred with incredible avidity. An old -document, enclosed an immemorial time within the folds of this old -book, had for him an immeasurable value. - -"What's this?" he cried. - -And he laid out upon the table a piece of parchment, five inches by -three, and along which were traced certain mysterious characters. - -Here is the exact facsimile. I think it important to let these -strange signs be publicly known, for they were the means of drawing -on Professor Liedenbrock and his nephew to undertake the most -wonderful expedition of the nineteenth century. - -[Runic glyphs occur here] - -The Professor mused a few moments over this series of characters; -then raising his spectacles he pronounced: - -"These are Runic letters; they are exactly like those of the -manuscript of Snorre Turlleson. But, what on earth is their meaning?" - -Runic letters appearing to my mind to be an invention of the learned -to mystify this poor world, I was not sorry to see my uncle suffering -the pangs of mystification. At least, so it seemed to me, judging -from his fingers, which were beginning to work with terrible energy. - -"It is certainly old Icelandic," he muttered between his teeth. - -And Professor Liedenbrock must have known, for he was acknowledged to -be quite a polyglot. Not that he could speak fluently in the two -thousand languages and twelve thousand dialects which are spoken on -the earth, but he knew at least his share of them. - -So he was going, in the presence of this difficulty, to give way to -all the impetuosity of his character, and I was preparing for a -violent outbreak, when two o'clock struck by the little timepiece -over the fireplace. - -At that moment our good housekeeper Martha opened the study door, -saying: - -"Dinner is ready!" - -I am afraid he sent that soup to where it would boil away to nothing, -and Martha took to her heels for safety. I followed her, and hardly -knowing how I got there I found myself seated in my usual place. - -I waited a few minutes. No Professor came. Never within my -remembrance had he missed the important ceremonial of dinner. And yet -what a good dinner it was! There was parsley soup, an omelette of ham -garnished with spiced sorrel, a fillet of veal with compote of -prunes; for dessert, crystallised fruit; the whole washed down with -sweet Moselle. - -All this my uncle was going to sacrifice to a bit of old parchment. -As an affectionate and attentive nephew I considered it my duty to -eat for him as well as for myself, which I did conscientiously. - -"I have never known such a thing," said Martha. "M. Liedenbrock is -not at table!" - -"Who could have believed it?" I said, with my mouth full. - -"Something serious is going to happen," said the servant, shaking her -head. - -My opinion was, that nothing more serious would happen than an awful -scene when my uncle should have discovered that his dinner was -devoured. I had come to the last of the fruit when a very loud voice -tore me away from the pleasures of my dessert. With one spring I -bounded out of the dining-room into the study. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -THE RUNIC WRITING EXERCISES THE PROFESSOR - - -"Undoubtedly it is Runic," said the Professor, bending his brows; -"but there is a secret in it, and I mean to discover the key." - -A violent gesture finished the sentence. - -"Sit there," he added, holding out his fist towards the table. "Sit -there, and write." - -I was seated in a trice. - -"Now I will dictate to you every letter of our alphabet which -corresponds with each of these Icelandic characters. We will see what -that will give us. But, by St. Michael, if you should dare to deceive -me--" - -The dictation commenced. I did my best. Every letter was given me one -after the other, with the following remarkable result: - - mm.rnlls esrevel seecIde - sgtssmf vnteief niedrke - kt,samn atrateS saodrrn - emtnaeI nvaect rrilSa - Atsaar .nvcrc ieaabs - ccrmi eevtVl frAntv - dt,iac oseibo KediiI - -[Redactor: In the original version the initial letter is an 'm' with -a superscore over it. It is my supposition that this is the -translator's way of writing 'mm' and I have replaced it accordingly, -since our typography does not allow such a character.] - -When this work was ended my uncle tore the paper from me and examined -it attentively for a long time. - -"What does it all mean?" he kept repeating mechanically. - -Upon my honour I could not have enlightened him. Besides he did not -ask me, and he went on talking to himself. - -"This is what is called a cryptogram, or cipher," he said, "in which -letters are purposely thrown in confusion, which if properly arranged -would reveal their sense. Only think that under this jargon there may -lie concealed the clue to some great discovery!" - -As for me, I was of opinion that there was nothing at all, in it; -though, of course, I took care not to say so. - -Then the Professor took the book and the parchment, and diligently -compared them together. - -"These two writings are not by the same hand," he said; "the cipher -is of later date than the book, an undoubted proof of which I see in -a moment. The first letter is a double m, a letter which is not to be -found in Turlleson's book, and which was only added to the alphabet -in the fourteenth century. Therefore there are two hundred years -between the manuscript and the document." - -I admitted that this was a strictly logical conclusion. - -"I am therefore led to imagine," continued my uncle, "that some -possessor of this book wrote these mysterious letters. But who was -that possessor? Is his name nowhere to be found in the manuscript?" - -My uncle raised his spectacles, took up a strong lens, and carefully -examined the blank pages of the book. On the front of the second, the -title-page, he noticed a sort of stain which looked like an ink blot. -But in looking at it very closely he thought he could distinguish -some half-effaced letters. My uncle at once fastened upon this as the -centre of interest, and he laboured at that blot, until by the help -of his microscope he ended by making out the following Runic -characters which he read without difficulty. - -"Arne Saknussemm!" he cried in triumph. "Why that is the name of -another Icelander, a savant of the sixteenth century, a celebrated -alchemist!" - -I gazed at my uncle with satisfactory admiration. - -"Those alchemists," he resumed, "Avicenna, Bacon, Lully, Paracelsus, -were the real and only savants of their time. They made discoveries -at which we are astonished. Has not this Saknussemm concealed under -his cryptogram some surprising invention? It is so; it must be so!" - -The Professor's imagination took fire at this hypothesis. - -"No doubt," I ventured to reply, "but what interest would he have in -thus hiding so marvellous a discovery?" - -"Why? Why? How can I tell? Did not Galileo do the same by Saturn? We -shall see. I will get at the secret of this document, and I will -neither sleep nor eat until I have found it out." - -My comment on this was a half-suppressed "Oh!" - -"Nor you either, Axel," he added. - -"The deuce!" said I to myself; "then it is lucky I have eaten two -dinners to-day!" - -"First of all we must find out the key to this cipher; that cannot be -difficult." - -At these words I quickly raised my head; but my uncle went on -soliloquising. - -"There's nothing easier. In this document there are a hundred and -thirty-two letters, viz., seventy-seven consonants and fifty-five -vowels. This is the proportion found in southern languages, whilst -northern tongues are much richer in consonants; therefore this is in -a southern language." - -These were very fair conclusions, I thought. - -"But what language is it?" - -Here I looked for a display of learning, but I met instead with -profound analysis. - -"This Saknussemm," he went on, "was a very well-informed man; now -since he was not writing in his own mother tongue, he would naturally -select that which was currently adopted by the choice spirits of the -sixteenth century; I mean Latin. If I am mistaken, I can but try -Spanish, French, Italian, Greek, or Hebrew. But the savants of the -sixteenth century generally wrote in Latin. I am therefore entitled -to pronounce this, à priori, to be Latin. It is Latin." - -I jumped up in my chair. My Latin memories rose in revolt against the -notion that these barbarous words could belong to the sweet language -of Virgil. - -"Yes, it is Latin," my uncle went on; "but it is Latin confused and -in disorder; "_pertubata seu inordinata,_" as Euclid has it." - -"Very well," thought I, "if you can bring order out of that -confusion, my dear uncle, you are a clever man." - -"Let us examine carefully," said he again, taking up the leaf upon -which I had written. "Here is a series of one hundred and thirty-two -letters in apparent disorder. There are words consisting of -consonants only, as _nrrlls;_ others, on the other hand, in which -vowels predominate, as for instance the fifth, _uneeief,_ or the last -but one, _oseibo_. Now this arrangement has evidently not been -premeditated; it has arisen mathematically in obedience to the -unknown law which has ruled in the succession of these letters. It -appears to me a certainty that the original sentence was written in a -proper manner, and afterwards distorted by a law which we have yet to -discover. Whoever possesses the key of this cipher will read it with -fluency. What is that key? Axel, have you got it?" - -I answered not a word, and for a very good reason. My eyes had fallen -upon a charming picture, suspended against the wall, the portrait of -Gräuben. My uncle's ward was at that time at Altona, staying with a -relation, and in her absence I was very downhearted; for I may -confess it to you now, the pretty Virlandaise and the professor's -nephew loved each other with a patience and a calmness entirely -German. We had become engaged unknown to my uncle, who was too much -taken up with geology to be able to enter into such feelings as ours. -Gräuben was a lovely blue-eyed blonde, rather given to gravity and -seriousness; but that did not prevent her from loving me very -sincerely. As for me, I adored her, if there is such a word in the -German language. Thus it happened that the picture of my pretty -Virlandaise threw me in a moment out of the world of realities into -that of memory and fancy. - -There looked down upon me the faithful companion of my labours and my -recreations. Every day she helped me to arrange my uncle's precious -specimens; she and I labelled them together. Mademoiselle Gräuben was -an accomplished mineralogist; she could have taught a few things to a -savant. She was fond of investigating abstruse scientific questions. -What pleasant hours we have spent in study; and how often I envied -the very stones which she handled with her charming fingers. - -Then, when our leisure hours came, we used to go out together and -turn into the shady avenues by the Alster, and went happily side by -side up to the old windmill, which forms such an improvement to the -landscape at the head of the lake. On the road we chatted hand in -hand; I told her amusing tales at which she laughed heartily. Then we -reached the banks of the Elbe, and after having bid good-bye to the -swan, sailing gracefully amidst the white water lilies, we returned -to the quay by the steamer. - -That is just where I was in my dream, when my uncle with a vehement -thump on the table dragged me back to the realities of life. - -"Come," said he, "the very first idea which would come into any one's -head to confuse the letters of a sentence would be to write the words -vertically instead of horizontally." - -"Indeed!" said I. - -"Now we must see what would be the effect of that, Axel; put down -upon this paper any sentence you like, only instead of arranging the -letters in the usual way, one after the other, place them in -succession in vertical columns, so as to group them together in five -or six vertical lines." - -I caught his meaning, and immediately produced the following literary -wonder: - - I y l o a u - l o l w r b - o u , n G e - v w m d r n - e e y e a ! - -"Good," said the professor, without reading them, "now set down those -words in a horizontal line." - -I obeyed, and with this result: - - Iyloau lolwrb ou,nGe vwmdrn eeyea! - -"Excellent!" said my uncle, taking the paper hastily out of my hands. -"This begins to look just like an ancient document: the vowels and -the consonants are grouped together in equal disorder; there are even -capitals in the middle of words, and commas too, just as in -Saknussemm's parchment." - -I considered these remarks very clever. - -"Now," said my uncle, looking straight at me, "to read the sentence -which you have just written, and with which I am wholly unacquainted, -I shall only have to take the first letter of each word, then the -second, the third, and so forth." - -And my uncle, to his great astonishment, and my much greater, read: - - "I love you well, my own dear Gräuben!" - -"Hallo!" cried the Professor. - -Yes, indeed, without knowing what I was about, like an awkward and -unlucky lover, I had compromised myself by writing this unfortunate -sentence. - -"Aha! you are in love with Gräuben?" he said, with the right look for -a guardian. - -"Yes; no!" I stammered. - -"You love Gräuben," he went on once or twice dreamily. "Well, let us -apply the process I have suggested to the document in question." - -My uncle, falling back into his absorbing contemplations, had already -forgotten my imprudent words. I merely say imprudent, for the great -mind of so learned a man of course had no place for love affairs, and -happily the grand business of the document gained me the victory. - -Just as the moment of the supreme experiment arrived the Professor's -eyes flashed right through his spectacles. There was a quivering in -his fingers as he grasped the old parchment. He was deeply moved. At -last he gave a preliminary cough, and with profound gravity, naming -in succession the first, then the second letter of each word, he -dictated me the following: - - mmessvnkaSenrA.icefdoK.segnittamvrtn - ecertserrette,rotaisadva,ednecsedsadne - lacartniiilvIsiratracSarbmvtabiledmek - meretarcsilvcoIsleffenSnI. - -I confess I felt considerably excited in coming to the end; these -letters named, one at a time, had carried no sense to my mind; I -therefore waited for the Professor with great pomp to unfold the -magnificent but hidden Latin of this mysterious phrase. - -But who could have foretold the result? A violent thump made the -furniture rattle, and spilt some ink, and my pen dropped from between -my fingers. - -"That's not it," cried my uncle, "there's no sense in it." - -Then darting out like a shot, bowling down stairs like an avalanche, -he rushed into the Königstrasse and fled. - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -THE ENEMY TO BE STARVED INTO SUBMISSION - - -"He is gone!" cried Martha, running out of her kitchen at the noise -of the violent slamming of doors. - -"Yes," I replied, "completely gone." - -"Well; and how about his dinner?" said the old servant. - -"He won't have any." - -"And his supper?" - -"He won't have any." - -"What?" cried Martha, with clasped hands. - -"No, my dear Martha, he will eat no more. No one in the house is to -eat anything at all. Uncle Liedenbrock is going to make us all fast -until he has succeeded in deciphering an undecipherable scrawl." - -"Oh, my dear! must we then all die of hunger?" - -I hardly dared to confess that, with so absolute a ruler as my uncle, -this fate was inevitable. - -The old servant, visibly moved, returned to the kitchen, moaning -piteously. - -When I was alone, I thought I would go and tell Gräuben all about it. -But how should I be able to escape from the house? The Professor -might return at any moment. And suppose he called me? And suppose he -tackled me again with this logomachy, which might vainly have been -set before ancient Oedipus. And if I did not obey his call, who could -answer for what might happen? - -The wisest course was to remain where I was. A mineralogist at -Besançon had just sent us a collection of siliceous nodules, which I -had to classify: so I set to work; I sorted, labelled, and arranged -in their own glass case all these hollow specimens, in the cavity of -each of which was a nest of little crystals. - -But this work did not succeed in absorbing all my attention. That old -document kept working in my brain. My head throbbed with excitement, -and I felt an undefined uneasiness. I was possessed with a -presentiment of coming evil. - -In an hour my nodules were all arranged upon successive shelves. Then -I dropped down into the old velvet armchair, my head thrown back and -my hands joined over it. I lighted my long crooked pipe, with a -painting on it of an idle-looking naiad; then I amused myself -watching the process of the conversion of the tobacco into carbon, -which was by slow degrees making my naiad into a negress. Now and -then I listened to hear whether a well-known step was on the stairs. -No. Where could my uncle be at that moment? I fancied him running -under the noble trees which line the road to Altona, gesticulating, -making shots with his cane, thrashing the long grass, cutting the -heads off the thistles, and disturbing the contemplative storks in -their peaceful solitude. - -Would he return in triumph or in discouragement? Which would get the -upper hand, he or the secret? I was thus asking myself questions, and -mechanically taking between my fingers the sheet of paper -mysteriously disfigured with the incomprehensible succession of -letters I had written down; and I repeated to myself "What does it -all mean?" - -I sought to group the letters so as to form words. Quite impossible! -When I put them together by twos, threes, fives or sixes, nothing -came of it but nonsense. To be sure the fourteenth, fifteenth and -sixteenth letters made the English word 'ice'; the eighty-third and -two following made 'sir'; and in the midst of the document, in the -second and third lines, I observed the words, "rots," "mutabile," -"ira," "net," "atra." - -"Come now," I thought, "these words seem to justify my uncle's view -about the language of the document. In the fourth line appeared the -word "luco", which means a sacred wood. It is true that in the third -line was the word "tabiled", which looked like Hebrew, and in the -last the purely French words "mer", "arc", "mere."" - -All this was enough to drive a poor fellow crazy. Four different -languages in this ridiculous sentence! What connection could there -possibly be between such words as ice, sir, anger, cruel, sacred -wood, changeable, mother, bow, and sea? The first and the last might -have something to do with each other; it was not at all surprising -that in a document written in Iceland there should be mention of a -sea of ice; but it was quite another thing to get to the end of this -cryptogram with so small a clue. So I was struggling with an -insurmountable difficulty; my brain got heated, my eyes watered over -that sheet of paper; its hundred and thirty-two letters seemed to -flutter and fly around me like those motes of mingled light and -darkness which float in the air around the head when the blood is -rushing upwards with undue violence. I was a prey to a kind of -hallucination; I was stifling; I wanted air. Unconsciously I fanned -myself with the bit of paper, the back and front of which -successively came before my eyes. What was my surprise when, in one -of those rapid revolutions, at the moment when the back was turned to -me I thought I caught sight of the Latin words "craterem," -"terrestre," and others. - -A sudden light burst in upon me; these hints alone gave me the first -glimpse of the truth; I had discovered the key to the cipher. To read -the document, it would not even be necessary to read it through the -paper. Such as it was, just such as it had been dictated to me, so it -might be spelt out with ease. All those ingenious professorial -combinations were coming right. He was right as to the arrangement of -the letters; he was right as to the language. He had been within a -hair's breadth of reading this Latin document from end to end; but -that hair's breadth, chance had given it to me! - -You may be sure I felt stirred up. My eyes were dim, I could scarcely -see. I had laid the paper upon the table. At a glance I could tell -the whole secret. - -At last I became more calm. I made a wise resolve to walk twice round -the room quietly and settle my nerves, and then I returned into the -deep gulf of the huge armchair. - -"Now I'll read it," I cried, after having well distended my lungs -with air. - -I leaned over the table; I laid my finger successively upon every -letter; and without a pause, without one moment's hesitation, I read -off the whole sentence aloud. - -Stupefaction! terror! I sat overwhelmed as if with a sudden deadly -blow. What! that which I read had actually, really been done! A -mortal man had had the audacity to penetrate! . . . - -"Ah!" I cried, springing up. "But no! no! My uncle shall never know -it. He would insist upon doing it too. He would want to know all -about it. Ropes could not hold him, such a determined geologist as he -is! He would start, he would, in spite of everything and everybody, -and he would take me with him, and we should never get back. No, -never! never!" - -My over-excitement was beyond all description. - -"No! no! it shall not be," I declared energetically; "and as it is in -my power to prevent the knowledge of it coming into the mind of my -tyrant, I will do it. By dint of turning this document round and -round, he too might discover the key. I will destroy it." - -There was a little fire left on the hearth. I seized not only the -paper but Saknussemm's parchment; with a feverish hand I was about to -fling it all upon the coals and utterly destroy and abolish this -dangerous secret, when the study door opened, and my uncle appeared. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -FAMINE, THEN VICTORY, FOLLOWED BY DISMAY - - -I had only just time to replace the unfortunate document upon the -table. - -Professor Liedenbrock seemed to be greatly abstracted. - -The ruling thought gave him no rest. Evidently he had gone deeply -into the matter, analytically and with profound scrutiny. He had -brought all the resources of his mind to bear upon it during his -walk, and he had come back to apply some new combination. - -He sat in his armchair, and pen in hand he began what looked very -much like algebraic formula: I followed with my eyes his trembling -hands, I took count of every movement. Might not some unhoped-for -result come of it? I trembled, too, very unnecessarily, since the -true key was in my hands, and no other would open the secret. - -For three long hours my uncle worked on without a word, without -lifting his head; rubbing out, beginning again, then rubbing out -again, and so on a hundred times. - -I knew very well that if he succeeded in setting down these letters -in every possible relative position, the sentence would come out. But -I knew also that twenty letters alone could form two quintillions, -four hundred and thirty-two quadrillions, nine hundred and two -trillions, eight billions, a hundred and seventy-six millions, six -hundred and forty thousand combinations. Now, here were a hundred and -thirty-two letters in this sentence, and these hundred and thirty-two -letters would give a number of different sentences, each made up of -at least a hundred and thirty-three figures, a number which passed -far beyond all calculation or conception. - -So I felt reassured as far as regarded this heroic method of solving -the difficulty. - -But time was passing away; night came on; the street noises ceased; -my uncle, bending over his task, noticed nothing, not even Martha -half opening the door; he heard not a sound, not even that excellent -woman saying: - -"Will not monsieur take any supper to-night?" - -And poor Martha had to go away unanswered. As for me, after long -resistance, I was overcome by sleep, and fell off at the end of the -sofa, while uncle Liedenbrock went on calculating and rubbing out his -calculations. - -When I awoke next morning that indefatigable worker was still at his -post. His red eyes, his pale complexion, his hair tangled between his -feverish fingers, the red spots on his cheeks, revealed his desperate -struggle with impossibilities, and the weariness of spirit, the -mental wrestlings he must have undergone all through that unhappy -night. - -To tell the plain truth, I pitied him. In spite of the reproaches -which I considered I had a right to lay upon him, a certain feeling -of compassion was beginning to gain upon me. The poor man was so -entirely taken up with his one idea that he had even forgotten how to -get angry. All the strength of his feelings was concentrated upon one -point alone; and as their usual vent was closed, it was to be feared -lest extreme tension should give rise to an explosion sooner or later. - -I might with a word have loosened the screw of the steel vice that -was crushing his brain; but that word I would not speak. - -Yet I was not an ill-natured fellow. Why was I dumb at such a crisis? -Why so insensible to my uncle's interests? - -"No, no," I repeated, "I shall not speak. He would insist upon going; -nothing on earth could stop him. His imagination is a volcano, and to -do that which other geologists have never done he would risk his -life. I will preserve silence. I will keep the secret which mere -chance has revealed to me. To discover it, would be to kill Professor -Liedenbrock! Let him find it out himself if he can. I will never have -it laid to my door that I led him to his destruction." - -Having formed this resolution, I folded my arms and waited. But I had -not reckoned upon one little incident which turned up a few hours -after. - -When our good Martha wanted to go to Market, she found the door -locked. The big key was gone. Who could have taken it out? Assuredly, -it was my uncle, when he returned the night before from his hurried -walk. - -Was this done on purpose? Or was it a mistake? Did he want to reduce -us by famine? This seemed like going rather too far! What! should -Martha and I be victims of a position of things in which we had not -the smallest interest? It was a fact that a few years before this, -whilst my uncle was working at his great classification of minerals, -he was forty-eight hours without eating, and all his household were -obliged to share in this scientific fast. As for me, what I remember -is, that I got severe cramps in my stomach, which hardly suited the -constitution of a hungry, growing lad. - -Now it appeared to me as if breakfast was going to be wanting, just -as supper had been the night before. Yet I resolved to be a hero, and -not to be conquered by the pangs of hunger. Martha took it very -seriously, and, poor woman, was very much distressed. As for me, the -impossibility of leaving the house distressed me a good deal more, -and for a very good reason. A caged lover's feelings may easily be -imagined. - -My uncle went on working, his imagination went off rambling into the -ideal world of combinations; he was far away from earth, and really -far away from earthly wants. - -About noon hunger began to stimulate me severely. Martha had, without -thinking any harm, cleared out the larder the night before, so that -now there was nothing left in the house. Still I held out; I made it -a point of honour. - -Two o'clock struck. This was becoming ridiculous; worse than that, -unbearable. I began to say to myself that I was exaggerating the -importance of the document; that my uncle would surely not believe in -it, that he would set it down as a mere puzzle; that if it came to -the worst, we should lay violent hands on him and keep him at home if -he thought on venturing on the expedition; that, after all, he might -himself discover the key of the cipher, and that then I should be -clear at the mere expense of my involuntary abstinence. - -These reasons seemed excellent to me, though on the night before I -should have rejected them with indignation; I even went so far as to -condemn myself for my absurdity in having waited so long, and I -finally resolved to let it all out. - -I was therefore meditating a proper introduction to the matter, so as -not to seem too abrupt, when the Professor jumped up, clapped on his -hat, and prepared to go out. - -Surely he was not going out, to shut us in again! no, never! - -"Uncle!" I cried. - -He seemed not to hear me. - -"Uncle Liedenbrock!" I cried, lifting up my voice. - -"Ay," he answered like a man suddenly waking. - -"Uncle, that key!" - -"What key? The door key?" - -"No, no!" I cried. "The key of the document." - -The Professor stared at me over his spectacles; no doubt he saw -something unusual in the expression of my countenance; for he laid -hold of my arm, and speechlessly questioned me with his eyes. Yes, -never was a question more forcibly put. - -I nodded my head up and down. - -He shook his pityingly, as if he was dealing with a lunatic. I gave a -more affirmative gesture. - -His eyes glistened and sparkled with live fire, his hand was shaken -threateningly. - -This mute conversation at such a momentous crisis would have riveted -the attention of the most indifferent. And the fact really was that I -dared not speak now, so intense was the excitement for fear lest my -uncle should smother me in his first joyful embraces. But he became -so urgent that I was at last compelled to answer. - -"Yes, that key, chance--" - -"What is that you are saying?" he shouted with indescribable emotion. - -"There, read that!" I said, presenting a sheet of paper on which I -had written. - -"But there is nothing in this," he answered, crumpling up the paper. - -"No, nothing until you proceed to read from the end to the beginning." - -I had not finished my sentence when the Professor broke out into a -cry, nay, a roar. A new revelation burst in upon him. He was -transformed! - -"Aha, clever Saknussemm!" he cried. "You had first written out your -sentence the wrong way." - -And darting upon the paper, with eyes bedimmed, and voice choked with -emotion, he read the whole document from the last letter to the first. - -It was conceived in the following terms: - - In Sneffels Joculis craterem quem delibat - Umbra Scartaris Julii intra calendas descende, - Audax viator, et terrestre centrum attinges. - Quod feci, Arne Saknussemm.[1] - -Which bad Latin may be translated thus: - -"Descend, bold traveller, into the crater of the jokul of Sneffels, -which the shadow of Scartaris touches before the kalends of July, and -you will attain the centre of the earth; which I have done, Arne -Saknussemm." - -In reading this, my uncle gave a spring as if he had touched a Leyden -jar. His audacity, his joy, and his convictions were magnificent to -behold. He came and he went; he seized his head between both his -hands; he pushed the chairs out of their places, he piled up his -books; incredible as it may seem, he rattled his precious nodules of -flints together; he sent a kick here, a thump there. At last his -nerves calmed down, and like a man exhausted by too lavish an -expenditure of vital power, he sank back exhausted into his armchair. - -"What o'clock is it?" he asked after a few moments of silence. - -"Three o'clock," I replied. - -"Is it really? The dinner-hour is past, and I did not know it. I am -half dead with hunger. Come on, and after dinner--" - -[1] In the cipher, _audax_ is written _avdas,_ and _quod_ and _quem,_ -_hod_ and _ken_. (Tr.) - -"Well?" - -"After dinner, pack up my trunk." - -"What?" I cried. - -"And yours!" replied the indefatigable Professor, entering the -dining-room. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -EXCITING DISCUSSIONS ABOUT AN UNPARALLELED ENTERPRISE - - -At these words a cold shiver ran through me. Yet I controlled myself; -I even resolved to put a good face upon it. Scientific arguments -alone could have any weight with Professor Liedenbrock. Now there -were good ones against the practicability of such a journey. -Penetrate to the centre of the earth! What nonsense! But I kept my -dialectic battery in reserve for a suitable opportunity, and I -interested myself in the prospect of my dinner, which was not yet -forthcoming. - -It is no use to tell of the rage and imprecations of my uncle before -the empty table. Explanations were given, Martha was set at liberty, -ran off to the market, and did her part so well that in an hour -afterwards my hunger was appeased, and I was able to return to the -contemplation of the gravity of the situation. - -During all dinner time my uncle was almost merry; he indulged in some -of those learned jokes which never do anybody any harm. Dessert over, -he beckoned me into his study. - -I obeyed; he sat at one end of his table, I at the other. - -"Axel," said he very mildly; "you are a very ingenious young man, you -have done me a splendid service, at a moment when, wearied out with -the struggle, I was going to abandon the contest. Where should I have -lost myself? None can tell. Never, my lad, shall I forget it; and you -shall have your share in the glory to which your discovery will lead." - -"Oh, come!" thought I, "he is in a good way. Now is the time for -discussing that same glory." - -"Before all things," my uncle resumed, "I enjoin you to preserve the -most inviolable secrecy: you understand? There are not a few in the -scientific world who envy my success, and many would be ready to -undertake this enterprise, to whom our return should be the first -news of it." - -"Do you really think there are many people bold enough?" said I. - -"Certainly; who would hesitate to acquire such renown? If that -document were divulged, a whole army of geologists would be ready to -rush into the footsteps of Arne Saknussemm." - -"I don't feel so very sure of that, uncle," I replied; "for we have -no proof of the authenticity of this document." - -"What! not of the book, inside which we have discovered it?" - -"Granted. I admit that Saknussemm may have written these lines. But -does it follow that he has really accomplished such a journey? And -may it not be that this old parchment is intended to mislead?" - -I almost regretted having uttered this last word, which dropped from -me in an unguarded moment. The Professor bent his shaggy brows, and I -feared I had seriously compromised my own safety. Happily no great -harm came of it. A smile flitted across the lip of my severe -companion, and he answered: - -"That is what we shall see." - -"Ah!" said I, rather put out. "But do let me exhaust all the possible -objections against this document." - -"Speak, my boy, don't be afraid. You are quite at liberty to express -your opinions. You are no longer my nephew only, but my colleague. -Pray go on." - -"Well, in the first place, I wish to ask what are this Jokul, this -Sneffels, and this Scartaris, names which I have never heard before?" - -"Nothing easier. I received not long ago a map from my friend, -Augustus Petermann, at Liepzig. Nothing could be more apropos. Take -down the third atlas in the second shelf in the large bookcase, -series Z, plate 4." - -I rose, and with the help of such precise instructions could not fail -to find the required atlas. My uncle opened it and said: - -"Here is one of the best maps of Iceland, that of Handersen, and I -believe this will solve the worst of our difficulties." - -I bent over the map. - -"You see this volcanic island," said the Professor; "observe that all -the volcanoes are called jokuls, a word which means glacier in -Icelandic, and under the high latitude of Iceland nearly all the -active volcanoes discharge through beds of ice. Hence this term of -jokul is applied to all the eruptive mountains in Iceland." - -"Very good," said I; "but what of Sneffels?" - -I was hoping that this question would be unanswerable; but I was -mistaken. My uncle replied: - -"Follow my finger along the west coast of Iceland. Do you see -Rejkiavik, the capital? You do. Well; ascend the innumerable fiords -that indent those sea-beaten shores, and stop at the sixty-fifth -degree of latitude. What do you see there?" - -"I see a peninsula looking like a thigh bone with the knee bone at -the end of it." - -"A very fair comparison, my lad. Now do you see anything upon that -knee bone?" - -"Yes; a mountain rising out of the sea." - -"Right. That is Snæfell." - -"That Snæfell?" - -"It is. It is a mountain five thousand feet high, one of the most -remarkable in the world, if its crater leads down to the centre of -the earth." - -"But that is impossible," I said shrugging my shoulders, and -disgusted at such a ridiculous supposition. - -"Impossible?" said the Professor severely; "and why, pray?" - -"Because this crater is evidently filled with lava and burning rocks, -and therefore--" - -"But suppose it is an extinct volcano?" - -"Extinct?" - -"Yes; the number of active volcanoes on the surface of the globe is -at the present time only about three hundred. But there is a very -much larger number of extinct ones. Now, Snæfell is one of these. -Since historic times there has been but one eruption of this -mountain, that of 1219; from that time it has quieted down more and -more, and now it is no longer reckoned among active volcanoes." - -To such positive statements I could make no reply. I therefore took -refuge in other dark passages of the document. - -"What is the meaning of this word Scartaris, and what have the -kalends of July to do with it?" - -My uncle took a few minutes to consider. For one short moment I felt -a ray of hope, speedily to be extinguished. For he soon answered thus: - -"What is darkness to you is light to me. This proves the ingenious -care with which Saknussemm guarded and defined his discovery. -Sneffels, or Snæfell, has several craters. It was therefore necessary -to point out which of these leads to the centre of the globe. What -did the Icelandic sage do? He observed that at the approach of the -kalends of July, that is to say in the last days of June, one of the -peaks, called Scartaris, flung its shadow down the mouth of that -particular crater, and he committed that fact to his document. Could -there possibly have been a more exact guide? As soon as we have -arrived at the summit of Snæfell we shall have no hesitation as to -the proper road to take." - -Decidedly, my uncle had answered every one of my objections. I saw -that his position on the old parchment was impregnable. I therefore -ceased to press him upon that part of the subject, and as above all -things he must be convinced, I passed on to scientific objections, -which in my opinion were far more serious. - -"Well, then," I said, "I am forced to admit that Saknussemm's -sentence is clear, and leaves no room for doubt. I will even allow -that the document bears every mark and evidence of authenticity. That -learned philosopher did get to the bottom of Sneffels, he has seen -the shadow of Scartaris touch the edge of the crater before the -kalends of July; he may even have heard the legendary stories told in -his day about that crater reaching to the centre of the world; but as -for reaching it himself, as for performing the journey, and -returning, if he ever went, I say no--he never, never did that." - -"Now for your reason?" said my uncle ironically. - -"All the theories of science demonstrate such a feat to be -impracticable." - -"The theories say that, do they?" replied the Professor in the tone -of a meek disciple. "Oh! unpleasant theories! How the theories will -hinder us, won't they?" - -I saw that he was only laughing at me; but I went on all the same. - -"Yes; it is perfectly well known that the internal temperature rises -one degree for every 70 feet in depth; now, admitting this proportion -to be constant, and the radius of the earth being fifteen hundred -leagues, there must be a temperature of 360,032 degrees at the centre -of the earth. Therefore, all the substances that compose the body of -this earth must exist there in a state of incandescent gas; for the -metals that most resist the action of heat, gold, and platinum, and -the hardest rocks, can never be either solid or liquid under such a -temperature. I have therefore good reason for asking if it is -possible to penetrate through such a medium." - -"So, Axel, it is the heat that troubles you?" - -"Of course it is. Were we to reach a depth of thirty miles we should -have arrived at the limit of the terrestrial crust, for there the -temperature will be more than 2372 degrees." - -"Are you afraid of being put into a state of fusion?" - -"I will leave you to decide that question," I answered rather -sullenly. "This is my decision," replied Professor Liedenbrock, -putting on one of his grandest airs. "Neither you nor anybody else -knows with any certainty what is going on in the interior of this -globe, since not the twelve thousandth part of its radius is known; -science is eminently perfectible; and every new theory is soon routed -by a newer. Was it not always believed until Fourier that the -temperature of the interplanetary spaces decreased perpetually? and -is it not known at the present time that the greatest cold of the -ethereal regions is never lower than 40 degrees below zero Fahr.? Why -should it not be the same with the internal heat? Why should it not, -at a certain depth, attain an impassable limit, instead of rising to -such a point as to fuse the most infusible metals?" - -As my uncle was now taking his stand upon hypotheses, of course, -there was nothing to be said. - -"Well, I will tell you that true savants, amongst them Poisson, have -demonstrated that if a heat of 360,000 degrees [1] existed in the -interior of the globe, the fiery gases arising from the fused matter -would acquire an elastic force which the crust of the earth would be -unable to resist, and that it would explode like the plates of a -bursting boiler." - -"That is Poisson's opinion, my uncle, nothing more." - -"Granted. But it is likewise the creed adopted by other distinguished -geologists, that the interior of the globe is neither gas nor water, -nor any of the heaviest minerals known, for in none of these cases -would the earth weigh what it does." - -"Oh, with figures you may prove anything!" - -"But is it the same with facts! Is it not known that the number of -volcanoes has diminished since the first days of creation? and if -there is central heat may we not thence conclude that it is in -process of diminution?" - -"My good uncle, if you will enter into the legion of speculation, I -can discuss the matter no longer." - -"But I have to tell you that the highest names have come to the -support of my views. Do you remember a visit paid to me by the -celebrated chemist, Humphry Davy, in 1825?" - -"Not at all, for I was not born until nineteen years afterwards." - -"Well, Humphry Davy did call upon me on his way through Hamburg. We -were long engaged in discussing, amongst other problems, the -hypothesis of the liquid structure of the terrestrial nucleus. We -were agreed that it could not be in a liquid state, for a reason -which science has never been able to confute." - -[1] The degrees of temperature are given by Jules Verne according to -the centigrade system, for which we will in each case substitute the -Fahrenheit measurement. (Tr.) - -"What is that reason?" I said, rather astonished. - -"Because this liquid mass would be subject, like the ocean, to the -lunar attraction, and therefore twice every day there would be -internal tides, which, upheaving the terrestrial crust, would cause -periodical earthquakes!" - -"Yet it is evident that the surface of the globe has been subject to -the action of fire," I replied, "and it is quite reasonable to -suppose that the external crust cooled down first, whilst the heat -took refuge down to the centre." - -"Quite a mistake," my uncle answered. "The earth has been heated by -combustion on its surface, that is all. Its surface was composed of a -great number of metals, such as potassium and sodium, which have the -peculiar property of igniting at the mere contact with air and water; -these metals kindled when the atmospheric vapours fell in rain upon -the soil; and by and by, when the waters penetrated into the fissures -of the crust of the earth, they broke out into fresh combustion with -explosions and eruptions. Such was the cause of the numerous -volcanoes at the origin of the earth." - -"Upon my word, this is a very clever hypothesis," I exclaimed, in -spite rather of myself. - -"And which Humphry Davy demonstrated to me by a simple experiment. He -formed a small ball of the metals which I have named, and which was a -very fair representation of our globe; whenever he caused a fine dew -of rain to fall upon its surface, it heaved up into little -monticules, it became oxydized and formed miniature mountains; a -crater broke open at one of its summits; the eruption took place, and -communicated to the whole of the ball such a heat that it could not -be held in the hand." - -In truth, I was beginning to be shaken by the Professor's arguments, -besides which he gave additional weight to them by his usual ardour -and fervent enthusiasm. - -"You see, Axel," he added, "the condition of the terrestrial nucleus -has given rise to various hypotheses among geologists; there is no -proof at all for this internal heat; my opinion is that there is no -such thing, it cannot be; besides we shall see for ourselves, and, -like Arne Saknussemm, we shall know exactly what to hold as truth -concerning this grand question." - -"Very well, we shall see," I replied, feeling myself carried off by -his contagious enthusiasm. "Yes, we shall see; that is, if it is -possible to see anything there." - -"And why not? May we not depend upon electric phenomena to give us -light? May we not even expect light from the atmosphere, the pressure -of which may render it luminous as we approach the centre?" - -"Yes, yes," said I; "that is possible, too." - -"It is certain," exclaimed my uncle in a tone of triumph. "But -silence, do you hear me? silence upon the whole subject; and let no -one get before us in this design of discovering the centre of the -earth." - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -A WOMAN'S COURAGE - - -Thus ended this memorable seance. That conversation threw me into a -fever. I came out of my uncle's study as if I had been stunned, and -as if there was not air enough in all the streets of Hamburg to put -me right again. I therefore made for the banks of the Elbe, where the -steamer lands her passengers, which forms the communication between -the city and the Hamburg railway. - -Was I convinced of the truth of what I had heard? Had I not bent -under the iron rule of the Professor Liedenbrock? Was I to believe -him in earnest in his intention to penetrate to the centre of this -massive globe? Had I been listening to the mad speculations of a -lunatic, or to the scientific conclusions of a lofty genius? Where -did truth stop? Where did error begin? - -I was all adrift amongst a thousand contradictory hypotheses, but I -could not lay hold of one. - -Yet I remembered that I had been convinced, although now my -enthusiasm was beginning to cool down; but I felt a desire to start -at once, and not to lose time and courage by calm reflection. I had -at that moment quite courage enough to strap my knapsack to my -shoulders and start. - -But I must confess that in another hour this unnatural excitement -abated, my nerves became unstrung, and from the depths of the abysses -of this earth I ascended to its surface again. - -"It is quite absurd!" I cried, "there is no sense about it. No -sensible young man should for a moment entertain such a proposal. The -whole thing is non-existent. I have had a bad night, I have been -dreaming of horrors." - -But I had followed the banks of the Elbe and passed the town. After -passing the port too, I had reached the Altona road. I was led by a -presentiment, soon to be realised; for shortly I espied my little -Gräuben bravely returning with her light step to Hamburg. - -"Gräuben!" I cried from afar off. - -The young girl stopped, rather frightened perhaps to hear her name -called after her on the high road. Ten yards more, and I had joined -her. - -"Axel!" she cried surprised. "What! have you come to meet me? Is this -why you are here, sir?" - -But when she had looked upon me, Gräuben could not fail to see the -uneasiness and distress of my mind. - -"What is the matter?" she said, holding out her hand. - -"What is the matter, Gräuben?" I cried. - -In a couple of minutes my pretty Virlandaise was fully informed of -the position of affairs. For a time she was silent. Did her heart -palpitate as mine did? I don't know about that, but I know that her -hand did not tremble in mine. We went on a hundred yards without -speaking. - -At last she said, "Axel!" - -"My dear Gräuben." - -"That will be a splendid journey!" - -I gave a bound at these words. - -"Yes, Axel, a journey worthy of the nephew of a savant; it is a good -thing for a man to be distinguished by some great enterprise." - -"What, Gräuben, won't you dissuade me from such an undertaking?" - -"No, my dear Axel, and I would willingly go with you, but that a poor -girl would only be in your way." - -"Is that quite true?" - -"It is true." - -Ah! women and young girls, how incomprehensible are your feminine -hearts! When you are not the timidest, you are the bravest of -creatures. Reason has nothing to do with your actions. What! did this -child encourage me in such an expedition! Would she not be afraid to -join it herself? And she was driving me to it, one whom she loved! - -I was disconcerted, and, if I must tell the whole truth, I was -ashamed. - -"Gräuben, we will see whether you will say the same thing to-morrow." - -"To-morrow, dear Axel, I will say what I say to-day." - -Gräuben and I, hand in hand, but in silence, pursued our way. The -emotions of that day were breaking my heart. - -After all, I thought, the kalends of July are a long way off, and -between this and then many things may take place which will cure my -uncle of his desire to travel underground. - -It was night when we arrived at the house in Königstrasse. I expected -to find all quiet there, my uncle in bed as was his custom, and -Martha giving her last touches with the feather brush. - -But I had not taken into account the Professor's impatience. I found -him shouting--and working himself up amidst a crowd of porters and -messengers who were all depositing various loads in the passage. Our -old servant was at her wits' end. - -"Come, Axel, come, you miserable wretch," my uncle cried from as far -off as he could see me. "Your boxes are not packed, and my papers are -not arranged; where's the key of my carpet bag? and what have you -done with my gaiters?" - -I stood thunderstruck. My voice failed. Scarcely could my lips utter -the words: - -"Are we really going?" - -"Of course, you unhappy boy! Could I have dreamed that you would have -gone out for a walk instead of hurrying your preparations forward?" - -"Are we to go?" I asked again, with sinking hopes. - -"Yes; the day after to-morrow, early." - -I could hear no more. I fled for refuge into my own little room. - -All hope was now at an end. My uncle had been all the morning making -purchases of a part of the tools and apparatus required for this -desperate undertaking. The passage was encumbered with rope ladders, -knotted cords, torches, flasks, grappling irons, alpenstocks, -pickaxes, iron shod sticks, enough to load ten men. - -I spent an awful night. Next morning I was called early. I had quite -decided I would not open the door. But how was I to resist the sweet -voice which was always music to my ears, saying, "My dear Axel?" - -I came out of my room. I thought my pale countenance and my red and -sleepless eyes would work upon Gräuben's sympathies and change her -mind. - -"Ah! my dear Axel," she said. "I see you are better. A night's rest -has done you good." - -"Done me good!" I exclaimed. - -I rushed to the glass. Well, in fact I did look better than I had -expected. I could hardly believe my own eyes. - -"Axel," she said, "I have had a long talk with my guardian. He is a -bold philosopher, a man of immense courage, and you must remember -that his blood flows in your veins. He has confided to me his plans, -his hopes, and why and how he hopes to attain his object. He will no -doubt succeed. My dear Axel, it is a grand thing to devote yourself -to science! What honour will fall upon Herr Liedenbrock, and so be -reflected upon his companion! When you return, Axel, you will be a -man, his equal, free to speak and to act independently, and free to ---" - -The dear girl only finished this sentence by blushing. Her words -revived me. Yet I refused to believe we should start. I drew Gräuben -into the Professor's study. - -"Uncle, is it true that we are to go?" - -"Why do you doubt?" - -"Well, I don't doubt," I said, not to vex him; "but, I ask, what need -is there to hurry?" - -"Time, time, flying with irreparable rapidity." - -"But it is only the 16th May, and until the end of June--" - -"What, you monument of ignorance! do you think you can get to Iceland -in a couple of days? If you had not deserted me like a fool I should -have taken you to the Copenhagen office, to Liffender & Co., and you -would have learned then that there is only one trip every month from -Copenhagen to Rejkiavik, on the 22nd." - -"Well?" - -"Well, if we waited for the 22nd June we should be too late to see -the shadow of Scartaris touch the crater of Sneffels. Therefore we -must get to Copenhagen as fast as we can to secure our passage. Go -and pack up." - -There was no reply to this. I went up to my room. Gräuben followed -me. She undertook to pack up all things necessary for my voyage. She -was no more moved than if I had been starting for a little trip to -Lübeck or Heligoland. Her little hands moved without haste. She -talked quietly. She supplied me with sensible reasons for our -expedition. She delighted me, and yet I was angry with her. Now and -then I felt I ought to break out into a passion, but she took no -notice and went on her way as methodically as ever. - -Finally the last strap was buckled; I came downstairs. All that day -the philosophical instrument makers and the electricians kept coming -and going. Martha was distracted. - -"Is master mad?" she asked. - -I nodded my head. - -"And is he going to take you with him?" - -I nodded again. - -"Where to?" - -I pointed with my finger downward. - -"Down into the cellar?" cried the old servant. - -"No," I said. "Lower down than that." - -Night came. But I knew nothing about the lapse of time. - -"To-morrow morning at six precisely," my uncle decreed "we start." - -At ten o'clock I fell upon my bed, a dead lump of inert matter. All -through the night terror had hold of me. I spent it dreaming of -abysses. I was a prey to delirium. I felt myself grasped by the -Professor's sinewy hand, dragged along, hurled down, shattered into -little bits. I dropped down unfathomable precipices with the -accelerating velocity of bodies falling through space. My life had -become an endless fall. I awoke at five with shattered nerves, -trembling and weary. I came downstairs. My uncle was at table, -devouring his breakfast. I stared at him with horror and disgust. But -dear Gräuben was there; so I said nothing, and could eat nothing. - -At half-past five there was a rattle of wheels outside. A large -carriage was there to take us to the Altona railway station. It was -soon piled up with my uncle's multifarious preparations. - -"Where's your box?" he cried. - -"It is ready," I replied, with faltering voice. - -"Then make haste down, or we shall lose the train." - -It was now manifestly impossible to maintain the struggle against -destiny. I went up again to my room, and rolling my portmanteaus -downstairs I darted after him. - -At that moment my uncle was solemnly investing Gräuben with the reins -of government. My pretty Virlandaise was as calm and collected as was -her wont. She kissed her guardian; but could not restrain a tear in -touching my cheek with her gentle lips. - -"Gräuben!" I murmured. - -"Go, my dear Axel, go! I am now your betrothed; and when you come -back I will be your wife." - -I pressed her in my arms and took my place in the carriage. Martha -and the young girl, standing at the door, waved their last farewell. -Then the horses, roused by the driver's whistling, darted off at a -gallop on the road to Altona. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -SERIOUS PREPARATIONS FOR VERTICAL DESCENT - - -Altona, which is but a suburb of Hamburg, is the terminus of the Kiel -railway, which was to carry us to the Belts. In twenty minutes we -were in Holstein. - -At half-past six the carriage stopped at the station; my uncle's -numerous packages, his voluminous _impedimenta,_ were unloaded, -removed, labelled, weighed, put into the luggage vans, and at seven -we were seated face to face in our compartment. The whistle sounded, -the engine started, we were off. - -Was I resigned? No, not yet. Yet the cool morning air and the scenes -on the road, rapidly changed by the swiftness of the train, drew me -away somewhat from my sad reflections. - -As for the Professor's reflections, they went far in advance of the -swiftest express. We were alone in the carriage, but we sat in -silence. My uncle examined all his pockets and his travelling bag -with the minutest care. I saw that he had not forgotten the smallest -matter of detail. - -Amongst other documents, a sheet of paper, carefully folded, bore the -heading of the Danish consulate with the signature of W. -Christiensen, consul at Hamburg and the Professor's friend. With this -we possessed the proper introductions to the Governor of Iceland. - -I also observed the famous document most carefully laid up in a -secret pocket in his portfolio. I bestowed a malediction upon it, and -then proceeded to examine the country. - -It was a very long succession of uninteresting loamy and fertile -flats, a very easy country for the construction of railways, and -propitious for the laying-down of these direct level lines so dear to -railway companies. - -I had no time to get tired of the monotony; for in three hours we -stopped at Kiel, close to the sea. - -The luggage being labelled for Copenhagen, we had no occasion to look -after it. Yet the Professor watched every article with jealous -vigilance, until all were safe on board. There they disappeared in -the hold. - -My uncle, notwithstanding his hurry, had so well calculated the -relations between the train and the steamer that we had a whole day -to spare. The steamer _Ellenora,_ did not start until night. Thence -sprang a feverish state of excitement in which the impatient -irascible traveller devoted to perdition the railway directors and -the steamboat companies and the governments which allowed such -intolerable slowness. I was obliged to act chorus to him when he -attacked the captain of the _Ellenora_ upon this subject. The captain -disposed of us summarily. - -At Kiel, as elsewhere, we must do something to while away the time. -What with walking on the verdant shores of the bay within which -nestles the little town, exploring the thick woods which make it look -like a nest embowered amongst thick foliage, admiring the villas, -each provided with a little bathing house, and moving about and -grumbling, at last ten o'clock came. - -The heavy coils of smoke from the _Ellenora's_ funnel unrolled in the -sky, the bridge shook with the quivering of the struggling steam; we -were on board, and owners for the time of two berths, one over the -other, in the only saloon cabin on board. - -At a quarter past the moorings were loosed and the throbbing steamer -pursued her way over the dark waters of the Great Belt. - -The night was dark; there was a sharp breeze and a rough sea, a few -lights appeared on shore through the thick darkness; later on, I -cannot tell when, a dazzling light from some lighthouse threw a -bright stream of fire along the waves; and this is all I can remember -of this first portion of our sail. - -At seven in the morning we landed at Korsor, a small town on the west -coast of Zealand. There we were transferred from the boat to another -line of railway, which took us by just as flat a country as the plain -of Holstein. - -Three hours' travelling brought us to the capital of Denmark. My -uncle had not shut his eyes all night. In his impatience I believe he -was trying to accelerate the train with his feet. - -At last he discerned a stretch of sea. - -"The Sound!" he cried. - -At our left was a huge building that looked like a hospital. - -"That's a lunatic asylum," said one of or travelling companions. - -Very good! thought I, just the place we want to end our days in; and -great as it is, that asylum is not big enough to contain all -Professor Liedenbrock's madness! - -At ten in the morning, at last, we set our feet in Copenhagen; the -luggage was put upon a carriage and taken with ourselves to the -Phoenix Hotel in Breda Gate. This took half an hour, for the station -is out of the town. Then my uncle, after a hasty toilet, dragged me -after him. The porter at the hotel could speak German and English; -but the Professor, as a polyglot, questioned him in good Danish, and -it was in the same language that that personage directed him to the -Museum of Northern Antiquities. - -The curator of this curious establishment, in which wonders are -gathered together out of which the ancient history of the country -might be reconstructed by means of its stone weapons, its cups and -its jewels, was a learned savant, the friend of the Danish consul at -Hamburg, Professor Thomsen. - -My uncle had a cordial letter of introduction to him. As a general -rule one savant greets another with coolness. But here the case was -different. M. Thomsen, like a good friend, gave the Professor -Liedenbrock a cordial greeting, and he even vouchsafed the same -kindness to his nephew. It is hardly necessary to say the secret was -sacredly kept from the excellent curator; we were simply -disinterested travellers visiting Iceland out of harmless curiosity. - -M. Thomsen placed his services at our disposal, and we visited the -quays with the object of finding out the next vessel to sail. - -I was yet in hopes that there would be no means of getting to -Iceland. But there was no such luck. A small Danish schooner, the -_Valkyria_, was to set sail for Rejkiavik on the 2nd of June. The -captain, M. Bjarne, was on board. His intending passenger was so -joyful that he almost squeezed his hands till they ached. That good -man was rather surprised at his energy. To him it seemed a very -simple thing to go to Iceland, as that was his business; but to my -uncle it was sublime. The worthy captain took advantage of his -enthusiasm to charge double fares; but we did not trouble ourselves -about mere trifles. . - -"You must be on board on Tuesday, at seven in the morning," said -Captain Bjarne, after having pocketed more dollars than were his due. - -Then we thanked M. Thomsen for his kindness, "and we returned to the -Phoenix Hotel. - -"It's all right, it's all right," my uncle repeated. "How fortunate -we are to have found this boat ready for sailing. Now let us have -some breakfast and go about the town." - -We went first to Kongens-nye-Torw, an irregular square in which are -two innocent-looking guns, which need not alarm any one. Close by, at -No. 5, there was a French "restaurant," kept by a cook of the name of -Vincent, where we had an ample breakfast for four marks each (2_s_. -4_d_.). - -Then I took a childish pleasure in exploring the city; my uncle let -me take him with me, but he took notice of nothing, neither the -insignificant king's palace, nor the pretty seventeenth century -bridge, which spans the canal before the museum, nor that immense -cenotaph of Thorwaldsen's, adorned with horrible mural painting, and -containing within it a collection of the sculptor's works, nor in a -fine park the toylike chateau of Rosenberg, nor the beautiful -renaissance edifice of the Exchange, nor its spire composed of the -twisted tails of four bronze dragons, nor the great windmill on the -ramparts, whose huge arms dilated in the sea breeze like the sails of -a ship. - -What delicious walks we should have had together, my pretty -Virlandaise and I, along the harbour where the two-deckers and the -frigate slept peaceably by the red roofing of the warehouse, by the -green banks of the strait, through the deep shades of the trees -amongst which the fort is half concealed, where the guns are -thrusting out their black throats between branches of alder and -willow. - -But, alas! Gräuben was far away; and I never hoped to see her again. - -But if my uncle felt no attraction towards these romantic scenes he -was very much struck with the aspect of a certain church spire -situated in the island of Amak, which forms the south-west quarter of -Copenhagen. - -I was ordered to direct my feet that way; I embarked on a small -steamer which plies on the canals, and in a few minutes she touched -the quay of the dockyard. - -After crossing a few narrow streets where some convicts, in trousers -half yellow and half grey, were at work under the orders of the -gangers, we arrived at the Vor Frelsers Kirk. There was nothing -remarkable about the church; but there was a reason why its tall -spire had attracted the Professor's attention. Starting from the top -of the tower, an external staircase wound around the spire, the -spirals circling up into the sky. - -"Let us get to the top," said my uncle. - -"I shall be dizzy," I said. - -"The more reason why we should go up; we must get used to it." - -"But--" - -"Come, I tell you; don't waste our time." - -I had to obey. A keeper who lived at the other end of the street -handed us the key, and the ascent began. - -My uncle went ahead with a light step. I followed him not without -alarm, for my head was very apt to feel dizzy; I possessed neither -the equilibrium of an eagle nor his fearless nature. - -As long as we were protected on the inside of the winding staircase -up the tower, all was well enough; but after toiling up a hundred and -fifty steps the fresh air came to salute my face, and we were on the -leads of the tower. There the aerial staircase began its gyrations, -only guarded by a thin iron rail, and the narrowing steps seemed to -ascend into infinite space! - -"Never shall I be able to do it," I said. - -"Don't be a coward; come up, sir"; said my uncle with the coldest -cruelty. - -I had to follow, clutching at every step. The keen air made me giddy; -I felt the spire rocking with every gust of wind; my knees began to -fail; soon I was crawling on my knees, then creeping on my stomach; I -closed my eyes; I seemed to be lost in space. - -At last I reached the apex, with the assistance of my uncle dragging -me up by the collar. - -"Look down!" he cried. "Look down well! You must take a lesson -in abysses." - -I opened my eyes. I saw houses squashed flat as if they had all -fallen down from the skies; a smoke fog seemed to drown them. Over my -head ragged clouds were drifting past, and by an optical inversion -they seemed stationary, while the steeple, the ball and I were all -spinning along with fantastic speed. Far away on one side was the -green country, on the other the sea sparkled, bathed in sunlight. The -Sound stretched away to Elsinore, dotted with a few white sails, like -sea-gulls' wings; and in the misty east and away to the north-east -lay outstretched the faintly-shadowed shores of Sweden. All this -immensity of space whirled and wavered, fluctuating beneath my eyes. - -But I was compelled to rise, to stand up, to look. My first lesson in -dizziness lasted an hour. When I got permission to come down and feel -the solid street pavements I was afflicted with severe lumbago. - -"To-morrow we will do it again," said the Professor. - -And it was so; for five days in succession, I was obliged to undergo -this anti-vertiginous exercise; and whether I would or not, I made -some improvement in the art of "lofty contemplations." - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -ICELAND! BUT WHAT NEXT? - - -The day for our departure arrived. The day before it our kind friend -M. Thomsen brought us letters of introduction to Count Trampe, the -Governor of Iceland, M. Picturssen, the bishop's suffragan, and M. -Finsen, mayor of Rejkiavik. My uncle expressed his gratitude by -tremendous compressions of both his hands. - -On the 2nd, at six in the evening, all our precious baggage being -safely on board the _Valkyria,_ the captain took us into a very -narrow cabin. - -"Is the wind favourable?" my uncle asked. - -"Excellent," replied Captain Bjarne; "a sou'-easter. We shall pass -down the Sound full speed, with all sails set." - -In a few minutes the schooner, under her mizen, brigantine, topsail, -and topgallant sail, loosed from her moorings and made full sail -through the straits. In an hour the capital of Denmark seemed to sink -below the distant waves, and the _Valkyria_ was skirting the coast by -Elsinore. In my nervous frame of mind I expected to see the ghost of -Hamlet wandering on the legendary castle terrace. - -"Sublime madman!" I said, "no doubt you would approve of our -expedition. Perhaps you would keep us company to the centre of the -globe, to find the solution of your eternal doubts." - -But there was no ghostly shape upon the ancient walls. Indeed, the -castle is much younger than the heroic prince of Denmark. It now -answers the purpose of a sumptuous lodge for the doorkeeper of the -straits of the Sound, before which every year there pass fifteen -thousand ships of all nations. - -The castle of Kronsberg soon disappeared in the mist, as well as the -tower of Helsingborg, built on the Swedish coast, and the schooner -passed lightly on her way urged by the breezes of the Cattegat. - -The _Valkyria_ was a splendid sailer, but on a sailing vessel you can -place no dependence. She was taking to Rejkiavik coal, household -goods, earthenware, woollen clothing, and a cargo of wheat. The crew -consisted of five men, all Danes. - -"How long will the passage take?" my uncle asked. - -"Ten days," the captain replied, "if we don't meet a nor'-wester in -passing the Faroes." - -"But are you not subject to considerable delays?" - -"No, M. Liedenbrock, don't be uneasy, we shall get there in very good -time." - -At evening the schooner doubled the Skaw at the northern point of -Denmark, in the night passed the Skager Rack, skirted Norway by Cape -Lindness, and entered the North Sea. - -In two days more we sighted the coast of Scotland near Peterhead, and -the _Valkyria_ turned her lead towards the Faroe Islands, passing -between the Orkneys and Shetlands. - -Soon the schooner encountered the great Atlantic swell; she had to -tack against the north wind, and reached the Faroes only with some -difficulty. On the 8th the captain made out Myganness, the -southernmost of these islands, and from that moment took a straight -course for Cape Portland, the most southerly point of Iceland. - -The passage was marked by nothing unusual. I bore the troubles of the -sea pretty well; my uncle, to his own intense disgust, and his -greater shame, was ill all through the voyage. - -He therefore was unable to converse with the captain about Snæfell, -the way to get to it, the facilities for transport, he was obliged to -put off these inquiries until his arrival, and spent all his time at -full length in his cabin, of which the timbers creaked and shook with -every pitch she took. It must be confessed he was not undeserving of -his punishment. - -On the 11th we reached Cape Portland. The clear open weather gave us -a good view of Myrdals jokul, which overhangs it. The cape is merely -a low hill with steep sides, standing lonely by the beach. - -The _Valkyria_ kept at some distance from the coast, taking a -westerly course amidst great shoals of whales and sharks. Soon we -came in sight of an enormous perforated rock, through which the sea -dashed furiously. The Westman islets seemed to rise out of the ocean -like a group of rocks in a liquid plain. From that time the schooner -took a wide berth and swept at a great distance round Cape -Rejkianess, which forms the western point of Iceland. - -The rough sea prevented my uncle from coming on deck to admire these -shattered and surf-beaten coasts. - -Forty-eight hours after, coming out of a storm which forced the -schooner to scud under bare poles, we sighted east of us the beacon -on Cape Skagen, where dangerous rocks extend far away seaward. An -Icelandic pilot came on board, and in three hours the _Valkyria_ -dropped her anchor before Rejkiavik, in Faxa Bay. - -The Professor at last emerged from his cabin, rather pale and -wretched-looking, but still full of enthusiasm, and with ardent -satisfaction shining in his eyes. - -The population of the town, wonderfully interested in the arrival of -a vessel from which every one expected something, formed in groups -upon the quay. - -My uncle left in haste his floating prison, or rather hospital. But -before quitting the deck of the schooner he dragged me forward, and -pointing with outstretched finger north of the bay at a distant -mountain terminating in a double peak, a pair of cones covered with -perpetual snow, he cried: - -"Snæfell! Snæfell!" - -Then recommending me, by an impressive gesture, to keep silence, he -went into the boat which awaited him. I followed, and presently we -were treading the soil of Iceland. - -The first man we saw was a good-looking fellow enough, in a general's -uniform. Yet he was not a general but a magistrate, the Governor of -the island, M. le Baron Trampe himself. The Professor was soon aware -of the presence he was in. He delivered him his letters from -Copenhagen, and then followed a short conversation in the Danish -language, the purport of which I was quite ignorant of, and for a -very good reason. But the result of this first conversation was, that -Baron Trampe placed himself entirely at the service of Professor -Liedenbrock. - -My uncle was just as courteously received by the mayor, M. Finsen, -whose appearance was as military, and disposition and office as -pacific, as the Governor's. - -As for the bishop's suffragan, M. Picturssen, he was at that moment -engaged on an episcopal visitation in the north. For the time we must -be resigned to wait for the honour of being presented to him. But M. -Fridrikssen, professor of natural sciences at the school of -Rejkiavik, was a delightful man, and his friendship became very -precious to me. This modest philosopher spoke only Danish and Latin. -He came to proffer me his good offices in the language of Horace, and -I felt that we were made to understand each other. In fact he was the -only person in Iceland with whom I could converse at all. - -This good-natured gentleman made over to us two of the three rooms -which his house contained, and we were soon installed in it with all -our luggage, the abundance of which rather astonished the good people -of Rejkiavik. - -"Well, Axel," said my uncle, "we are getting on, and now the worst is -over." - -"The worst!" I said, astonished. - -"To be sure, now we have nothing to do but go down." - -"Oh, if that is all, you are quite right; but after all, when we have -gone down, we shall have to get up again, I suppose?" - -"Oh I don't trouble myself about that. Come, there's no time to lose; -I am going to the library. Perhaps there is some manuscript of -Saknussemm's there, and I should be glad to consult it." - -"Well, while you are there I will go into the town. Won't you?" - -"Oh, that is very uninteresting to me. It is not what is upon this -island, but what is underneath, that interests me." - -I went out, and wandered wherever chance took me. - -It would not be easy to lose your way in Rejkiavik. I was therefore -under no necessity to inquire the road, which exposes one to mistakes -when the only medium of intercourse is gesture. - -The town extends along a low and marshy level, between two hills. An -immense bed of lava bounds it on one side, and falls gently towards -the sea. On the other extends the vast bay of Faxa, shut in at the -north by the enormous glacier of the Snæfell, and of which the -_Valkyria_ was for the time the only occupant. Usually the English -and French conservators of fisheries moor in this bay, but just then -they were cruising about the western coasts of the island. - -The longest of the only two streets that Rejkiavik possesses was -parallel with the beach. Here live the merchants and traders, in -wooden cabins made of red planks set horizontally; the other street, -running west, ends at the little lake between the house of the bishop -and other non-commercial people. - -I had soon explored these melancholy ways; here and there I got a -glimpse of faded turf, looking like a worn-out bit of carpet, or some -appearance of a kitchen garden, the sparse vegetables of which -(potatoes, cabbages, and lettuces), would have figured appropriately -upon a Lilliputian table. A few sickly wallflowers were trying to -enjoy the air and sunshine. - -About the middle of the tin-commercial street I found the public -cemetery, inclosed with a mud wall, and where there seemed plenty of -room. - -Then a few steps brought me to the Governor's house, a but compared -with the town hall of Hamburg, a palace in comparison with the cabins -of the Icelandic population. - -Between the little lake and the town the church is built in the -Protestant style, of calcined stones extracted out of the volcanoes -by their own labour and at their own expense; in high westerly winds -it was manifest that the red tiles of the roof would be scattered in -the air, to the great danger of the faithful worshippers. - -On a neighbouring hill I perceived the national school, where, as I -was informed later by our host, were taught Hebrew, English, French, -and Danish, four languages of which, with shame I confess it, I don't -know a single word; after an examination I should have had to stand -last of the forty scholars educated at this little college, and I -should have been held unworthy to sleep along with them in one of -those little double closets, where more delicate youths would have -died of suffocation the very first night. - -In three hours I had seen not only the town but its environs. The -general aspect was wonderfully dull. No trees, and scarcely any -vegetation. Everywhere bare rocks, signs of volcanic action. The -Icelandic huts are made of earth and turf, and the walls slope -inward; they rather resemble roofs placed on the ground. But then -these roofs are meadows of comparative fertility. Thanks to the -internal heat, the grass grows on them to some degree of perfection. -It is carefully mown in the hay season; if it were not, the horses -would come to pasture on these green abodes. - -In my excursion I met but few people. On returning to the main street -I found the greater part of the population busied in drying, salting, -and putting on board codfish, their chief export. The men looked like -robust but heavy, blond Germans with pensive eyes, conscious of being -far removed from their fellow creatures, poor exiles relegated to -this land of ice, poor creatures who should have been Esquimaux, -since nature had condemned them to live only just outside the arctic -circle! In vain did I try to detect a smile upon their lips; -sometimes by a spasmodic and involuntary contraction of the muscles -they seemed to laugh, but they never smiled. - -Their costume consisted of a coarse jacket of black woollen cloth -called in Scandinavian lands a 'vadmel,' a hat with a very broad -brim, trousers with a narrow edge of red, and a bit of leather rolled -round the foot for shoes. - -The women looked as sad and as resigned as the men; their faces were -agreeable but expressionless, and they wore gowns and petticoats of -dark 'vadmel'; as maidens, they wore over their braided hair a little -knitted brown cap; when married, they put around their heads a -coloured handkerchief, crowned with a peak of white linen. - -After a good walk I returned to M. Fridrikssen's house, where I found -my uncle already in his host's company. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -INTERESTING CONVERSATIONS WITH ICELANDIC SAVANTS - - -Dinner was ready. Professor Liedenbrock devoured his portion -voraciously, for his compulsory fast on board had converted his -stomach into a vast unfathomable gulf. There was nothing remarkable -in the meal itself; but the hospitality of our host, more Danish than -Icelandic, reminded me of the heroes of old. It was evident that we -were more at home than he was himself. - -The conversation was carried on in the vernacular tongue, which my -uncle mixed with German and M. Fridrikssen with Latin for my benefit. -It turned upon scientific questions as befits philosophers; but -Professor Liedenbrock was excessively reserved, and at every sentence -spoke to me with his eyes, enjoining the most absolute silence upon -our plans. - -In the first place M. Fridrikssen wanted to know what success my -uncle had had at the library. - -"Your library! why there is nothing but a few tattered books upon -almost deserted shelves." - -"Indeed!" replied M. Fridrikssen, "why we possess eight thousand -volumes, many of them valuable and scarce, works in the old -Scandinavian language, and we have all the novelties that Copenhagen -sends us every year." - -"Where do you keep your eight thousand volumes? For my part--" - -"Oh, M. Liedenbrock, they are all over the country. In this icy -region we are fond of study. There is not a farmer nor a fisherman -that cannot read and does not read. Our principle is, that books, -instead of growing mouldy behind an iron grating, should be worn out -under the eyes of many readers. Therefore, these volumes are passed -from one to another, read over and over, referred to again and again; -and it often happens that they find their way back to their shelves -only after an absence of a year or two." - -"And in the meantime," said my uncle rather spitefully, "strangers--" - -"Well, what would you have? Foreigners have their libraries at home, -and the first essential for labouring people is that they should be -educated. I repeat to you the love of reading runs in Icelandic -blood. In 1816 we founded a prosperous literary society; learned -strangers think themselves honoured in becoming members of it. It -publishes books which educate our fellow-countrymen, and do the -country great service. If you will consent to be a corresponding -member, Herr Liedenbrock, you will be giving us great pleasure." - -My uncle, who had already joined about a hundred learned societies, -accepted with a grace which evidently touched M. Fridrikssen. - -"Now," said he, "will you be kind enough to tell me what books you -hoped to find in our library and I may perhaps enable you to consult -them?" - -My uncle's eyes and mine met. He hesitated. This direct question went -to the root of the matter. But after a moment's reflection he decided -on speaking. - -"Monsieur Fridrikssen, I wished to know if amongst your ancient books -you possessed any of the works of Arne Saknussemm?" - -"Arne Saknussemm!" replied the Rejkiavik professor. "You mean that -learned sixteenth century savant, a naturalist, a chemist, and a -traveller?" - -"Just so!" - -"One of the glories of Icelandic literature and science?" - -"That's the man." - -"An illustrious man anywhere!" - -"Quite so." - -"And whose courage was equal to his genius!" - -"I see that you know him well." - -My uncle was bathed in delight at hearing his hero thus described. He -feasted his eyes upon M. Fridrikssen's face. - -"Well," he cried, "where are his works?" - -"His works, we have them not." - -"What--not in Iceland?" - -"They are neither in Iceland nor anywhere else." - -"Why is that?" - -"Because Arne Saknussemm was persecuted for heresy, and in 1573 his -books were burned by the hands of the common hangman." - -"Very good! Excellent!" cried my uncle, to the great scandal of the -professor of natural history. - -"What!" he cried. - -"Yes, yes; now it is all clear, now it is all unravelled; and I see -why Saknussemm, put into the Index Expurgatorius, and compelled to -hide the discoveries made by his genius, was obliged to bury in an -incomprehensible cryptogram the secret--" - -"What secret?" asked M. Fridrikssen, starting. - -"Oh, just a secret which--" my uncle stammered. - -"Have you some private document in your possession?" asked our host. - -"No; I was only supposing a case." - -"Oh, very well," answered M. Fridrikssen, who was kind enough not to -pursue the subject when he had noticed the embarrassment of his -friend. "I hope you will not leave our island until you have seen -some of its mineralogical wealth." - -"Certainly," replied my uncle; "but I am rather late; or have not -others been here before me?" - -"Yes, Herr Liedenbrock; the labours of MM. Olafsen and Povelsen, -pursued by order of the king, the researches of Troïl the scientific -mission of MM. Gaimard and Robert on the French corvette _La -Recherche,_ [1] and lately the observations of scientific men who -came in the _Reine Hortense,_ have added materially to our knowledge -of Iceland. But I assure you there is plenty left." - -"Do you think so?" said my uncle, pretending to look very modest, and -trying to hide the curiosity was flashing out of his eyes. - -"Oh, yes; how many mountains, glaciers, and volcanoes there are to -study, which are as yet but imperfectly known! Then, without going -any further, that mountain in the horizon. That is Snæfell." - -"Ah!" said my uncle, as coolly as he was able, "is that Snæfell?" - -"Yes; one of the most curious volcanoes, and the crater of which has -scarcely ever been visited." - -"Is it extinct?" - -"Oh, yes; more than five hundred years." - -"Well," replied my uncle, who was frantically locking his legs together -to keep himself from jumping up in the air, "that is where I mean to -begin my geological studies, there on that Seffel--Fessel--what do you -call it?" - -"Snæfell," replied the excellent M. Fridrikssen. - -This part of the conversation was in Latin; I had understood every -word of it, and I could hardly conceal my amusement at seeing my -uncle trying to keep down the excitement and satisfaction which were -brimming over in every limb and every feature. He tried hard to put -on an innocent little expression of simplicity; but it looked like a -diabolical grin. - -[1] _Recherche_ was sent out in 1835 by Admiral Duperré to learn the -fate of the lost expedition of M. de Blosseville in the _Lilloise_ -which has never been heard of. - -"Yes," said he, "your words decide me. We will try to scale that -Snæfell; perhaps even we may pursue our studies in its crater!" - -"I am very sorry," said M. Fridrikssen, "that my engagements will not -allow me to absent myself, or I would have accompanied you myself -with both pleasure and profit." - -"Oh, no, no!" replied my uncle with great animation, "we would not -disturb any one for the world, M. Fridrikssen. Still, I thank you -with all my heart: the company of such a talented man would have been -very serviceable, but the duties of your profession--" - -I am glad to think that our host, in the innocence of his Icelandic -soul, was blind to the transparent artifices of my uncle. - -"I very much approve of your beginning with that volcano, M. -Liedenbrock. You will gather a harvest of interesting observations. -But, tell me, how do you expect to get to the peninsula of Snæfell?" - -"By sea, crossing the bay. That's the most direct way." - -"No doubt; but it is impossible." - -"Why?" - -"Because we don't possess a single boat at Rejkiavik." - -"You don't mean to say so?" - -"You will have to go by land, following the shore. It will be longer, -but more interesting." - -"Very well, then; and now I shall have to see about a guide." - -"I have one to offer you." - -"A safe, intelligent man." - -"Yes; an inhabitant of that peninsula. He is an eider-down hunter, and -very clever. He speaks Danish perfectly." - -"When can I see him?" - -"To-morrow, if you like." - -"Why not to-day?" - -"Because he won't be here till to-morrow." - -"To-morrow, then," added my uncle with a sigh. - -This momentous conversation ended in a few minutes with warm -acknowledgments paid by the German to the Icelandic Professor. At -this dinner my uncle had just elicited important facts, amongst -others, the history of Saknussemm, the reason of the mysterious -document, that his host would not accompany him in his expedition, -and that the very next day a guide would be waiting upon him. - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - -A GUIDE FOUND TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH - - -In the evening I took a short walk on the beach and returned at night -to my plank-bed, where I slept soundly all night. - -When I awoke I heard my uncle talking at a great rate in the next -room. I immediately dressed and joined him. - -He was conversing in the Danish language with a tall man, of robust -build. This fine fellow must have been possessed of great strength. -His eyes, set in a large and ingenuous face, seemed to me very -intelligent; they were of a dreamy sea-blue. Long hair, which would -have been called red even in England, fell in long meshes upon his -broad shoulders. The movements of this native were lithe and supple; -but he made little use of his arms in speaking, like a man who knew -nothing or cared nothing about the language of gestures. His whole -appearance bespoke perfect calmness and self-possession, not -indolence but tranquillity. It was felt at once that he would be -beholden to nobody, that he worked for his own convenience, and that -nothing in this world could astonish or disturb his philosophic -calmness. - -I caught the shades of this Icelander's character by the way in which -he listened to the impassioned flow of words which fell from the -Professor. He stood with arms crossed, perfectly unmoved by my -uncle's incessant gesticulations. A negative was expressed by a slow -movement of the head from left to right, an affirmative by a slight -bend, so slight that his long hair scarcely moved. He carried economy -of motion even to parsimony. - -Certainly I should never have dreamt in looking at this man that he -was a hunter; he did not look likely to frighten his game, nor did he -seem as if he would even get near it. But the mystery was explained -when M. Fridrikssen informed me that this tranquil personage was only -a hunter of the eider duck, whose under plumage constitutes the chief -wealth of the island. This is the celebrated eider down, and it -requires no great rapidity of movement to get it. - -Early in summer the female, a very pretty bird, goes to build her -nest among the rocks of the fiords with which the coast is fringed. -After building the nest she feathers it with down plucked from her -own breast. Immediately the hunter, or rather the trader, comes and -robs the nest, and the female recommences her work. This goes on as -long as she has any down left. When she has stripped herself bare the -male takes his turn to pluck himself. But as the coarse and hard -plumage of the male has no commercial value, the hunter does not take -the trouble to rob the nest of this; the female therefore lays her -eggs in the spoils of her mate, the young are hatched, and next year -the harvest begins again. - -Now, as the eider duck does not select steep cliffs for her nest, but -rather the smooth terraced rocks which slope to the sea, the -Icelandic hunter might exercise his calling without any inconvenient -exertion. He was a farmer who was not obliged either to sow or reap -his harvest, but merely to gather it in. - -This grave, phlegmatic, and silent individual was called Hans Bjelke; -and he came recommended by M. Fridrikssen. He was our future guide. -His manners were a singular contrast with my uncle's. - -Nevertheless, they soon came to understand each other. Neither looked -at the amount of the payment: the one was ready to accept whatever -was offered; the other was ready to give whatever was demanded. Never -was bargain more readily concluded. - -The result of the treaty was, that Hans engaged on his part to -conduct us to the village of Stapi, on the south shore of the Snæfell -peninsula, at the very foot of the volcano. By land this would be -about twenty-two miles, to be done, said my uncle, in two days. - -But when he learnt that the Danish mile was 24,000 feet long, he was -obliged to modify his calculations and allow seven or eight days for -the march. - -Four horses were to be placed at our disposal--two to carry him and -me, two for the baggage. Hams, as was his custom, would go on foot. -He knew all that part of the coast perfectly, and promised to take us -the shortest way. - -His engagement was not to terminate with our arrival at Stapi; he was -to continue in my uncle's service for the whole period of his -scientific researches, for the remuneration of three rixdales a week -(about twelve shillings), but it was an express article of the -covenant that his wages should be counted out to him every Saturday -at six o'clock in the evening, which, according to him, was one -indispensable part of the engagement. - -The start was fixed for the 16th of June. My uncle wanted to pay the -hunter a portion in advance, but he refused with one word: - -"_Efter,_" said he. - -"After," said the Professor for my edification. - -The treaty concluded, Hans silently withdrew. - -"A famous fellow," cried my uncle; "but he little thinks of the -marvellous part he has to play in the future." - -"So he is to go with us as far as--" - -"As far as the centre of the earth, Axel." - -Forty-eight hours were left before our departure; to my great regret -I had to employ them in preparations; for all our ingenuity was -required to pack every article to the best advantage; instruments -here, arms there, tools in this package, provisions in that: four -sets of packages in all. - -The instruments were: - -1. An Eigel's centigrade thermometer, graduated up to 150 degrees -(302 degrees Fahr.), which seemed to me too much or too little. Too -much if the internal heat was to rise so high, for in this case we -should be baked, not enough to measure the temperature of springs or -any matter in a state of fusion. - -2. An aneroid barometer, to indicate extreme pressures of the -atmosphere. An ordinary barometer would not have answered the -purpose, as the pressure would increase during our descent to a point -which the mercurial barometer [1] would not register. - -3. A chronometer, made by Boissonnas, jun., of Geneva, accurately set -to the meridian of Hamburg. - -4. Two compasses, viz., a common compass and a dipping needle. - -5. A night glass. - -6. Two of Ruhmkorff's apparatus, which, by means of an electric -current, supplied a safe and handy portable light [2] - -The arms consisted of two of Purdy's rifles and two brace of pistols. -But what did we want arms for? We had neither savages nor wild beasts -to fear, I supposed. But my uncle seemed to believe in his arsenal as -in his instruments, and more especially in a considerable quantity of -gun cotton, which is unaffected by moisture, and the explosive force -of which exceeds that of gunpowder. - -[1] In M. Verne's book a 'manometer' is the instrument used, of which -very little is known. In a complete list of philosophical instruments -the translator cannot find the name. As he is assured by a first-rate -instrument maker, Chadburn, of Liverpool, that an aneroid can be -constructed to measure any depth, he has thought it best to furnish -the adventurous professor with this more familiar instrument. The -'manometer' is generally known as a pressure gauge.--TRANS. - -[2] Ruhmkorff's apparatus consists of a Bunsen pile worked with -bichromate of potash, which makes no smell; an induction coil carries -the electricity generated by the pile into communication with a -lantern of peculiar construction; in this lantern there is a spiral -glass tube from which the air has been excluded, and in which remains -only a residuum of carbonic acid gas or of nitrogen. When the -apparatus is put in action this gas becomes luminous, producing a -white steady light. The pile and coil are placed in a leathern bag -which the traveller carries over his shoulders; the lantern outside -of the bag throws sufficient light into deep darkness; it enables one -to venture without fear of explosions into the midst of the most -inflammable gases, and is not extinguished even in the deepest -waters. M. Ruhmkorff is a learned and most ingenious man of science; -his great discovery is his induction coil, which produces a powerful -stream of electricity. He obtained in 1864 the quinquennial prize of -50,000 franc reserved by the French government for the most ingenious -application of electricity. - -The tools comprised two pickaxes, two spades, a silk ropeladder, -three iron-tipped sticks, a hatchet, a hammer, a dozen wedges and -iron spikes, and a long knotted rope. Now this was a large load, for -the ladder was 300 feet long. - -And there were provisions too: this was not a large parcel, but it -was comforting to know that of essence of beef and biscuits there -were six months' consumption. Spirits were the only liquid, and of -water we took none; but we had flasks, and my uncle depended on -springs from which to fill them. Whatever objections I hazarded as to -their quality, temperature, and even absence, remained ineffectual. - -To complete the exact inventory of all our travelling accompaniments, -I must not forget a pocket medicine chest, containing blunt scissors, -splints for broken limbs, a piece of tape of unbleached linen, -bandages and compresses, lint, a lancet for bleeding, all dreadful -articles to take with one. Then there was a row of phials containing -dextrine, alcoholic ether, liquid acetate of lead, vinegar, and -ammonia drugs which afforded me no comfort. Finally, all the articles -needful to supply Ruhmkorff's apparatus. - -My uncle did not forget a supply of tobacco, coarse grained powder, -and amadou, nor a leathern belt in which he carried a sufficient -quantity of gold, silver, and paper money. Six pairs of boots and -shoes, made waterproof with a composition of indiarubber and naphtha, -were packed amongst the tools. - -"Clothed, shod, and equipped like this," said my uncle, "there is no -telling how far we may go." - -The 14th was wholly spent in arranging all our different articles. In -the evening we dined with Baron Tramps; the mayor of Rejkiavik, and -Dr. Hyaltalin, the first medical man of the place, being of the -party. M. Fridrikssen was not there. I learned afterwards that he and -the Governor disagreed upon some question of administration, and did -not speak to each other. I therefore knew not a single word of all -that was said at this semi-official dinner; but I could not help -noticing that my uncle talked the whole time. - -On the 15th our preparations were all made. Our host gave the -Professor very great pleasure by presenting him with a map of Iceland -far more complete than that of Hendersen. It was the map of M. Olaf -Nikolas Olsen, in the proportion of 1 to 480,000 of the actual size -of the island, and published by the Icelandic Literary Society. It -was a precious document for a mineralogist. - -Our last evening was spent in intimate conversation with M. -Fridrikssen, with whom I felt the liveliest sympathy; then, after the -talk, succeeded, for me, at any rate, a disturbed and restless night. - -At five in the morning I was awoke by the neighing and pawing of four -horses under my window. I dressed hastily and came down into the -street. Hans was finishing our packing, almost as it were without -moving a limb; and yet he did his work cleverly. My uncle made more -noise than execution, and the guide seemed to pay very little -attention to his energetic directions. - -At six o'clock our preparations were over. M. Fridrikssen shook hands -with us. My uncle thanked him heartily for his extreme kindness. I -constructed a few fine Latin sentences to express my cordial -farewell. Then we bestrode our steeds and with his last adieu M. -Fridrikssen treated me to a line of Virgil eminently applicable to -such uncertain wanderers as we were likely to be: - -"Et quacumque viam dedent fortuna sequamur." - -"Therever fortune clears a way, -Thither our ready footsteps stray." - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - -A BARREN LAND - - -We had started under a sky overcast but calm. There was no fear of -heat, none of disastrous rain. It was just the weather for tourists. - -The pleasure of riding on horseback over an unknown country made me -easy to be pleased at our first start. I threw myself wholly into the -pleasure of the trip, and enjoyed the feeling of freedom and -satisfied desire. I was beginning to take a real share in the -enterprise. - -"Besides," I said to myself, "where's the risk? Here we are -travelling all through a most interesting country! We are about to -climb a very remarkable mountain; at the worst we are going to -scramble down an extinct crater. It is evident that Saknussemm did -nothing more than this. As for a passage leading to the centre of the -globe, it is mere rubbish! perfectly impossible! Very well, then; let -us get all the good we can out of this expedition, and don't let us -haggle about the chances." - -This reasoning having settled my mind, we got out of Rejkiavik. - -Hans moved steadily on, keeping ahead of us at an even, smooth, and -rapid pace. The baggage horses followed him without giving any -trouble. Then came my uncle and myself, looking not so very -ill-mounted on our small but hardy animals. - -Iceland is one of the largest islands in Europe. Its surface is -14,000 square miles, and it contains but 16,000 inhabitants. -Geographers have divided it into four quarters, and we were crossing -diagonally the south-west quarter, called the 'Sudvester Fjordungr.' - -On leaving Rejkiavik Hans took us by the seashore. We passed lean -pastures which were trying very hard, but in vain, to look green; -yellow came out best. The rugged peaks of the trachyte rocks -presented faint outlines on the eastern horizon; at times a few -patches of snow, concentrating the vague light, glittered upon the -slopes of the distant mountains; certain peaks, boldly uprising, -passed through the grey clouds, and reappeared above the moving -mists, like breakers emerging in the heavens. - -Often these chains of barren rocks made a dip towards the sea, and -encroached upon the scanty pasturage: but there was always enough -room to pass. Besides, our horses instinctively chose the easiest -places without ever slackening their pace. My uncle was refused even -the satisfaction of stirring up his beast with whip or voice. He had -no excuse for being impatient. I could not help smiling to see so -tall a man on so small a pony, and as his long legs nearly touched -the ground he looked like a six-legged centaur. - -"Good horse! good horse!" he kept saying. "You will see, Axel, that -there is no more sagacious animal than the Icelandic horse. He is -stopped by neither snow, nor storm, nor impassable roads, nor rocks, -glaciers, or anything. He is courageous, sober, and surefooted. He -never makes a false step, never shies. If there is a river or fiord -to cross (and we shall meet with many) you will see him plunge in at -once, just as if he were amphibious, and gain the opposite bank. But -we must not hurry him; we must let him have his way, and we shall get -on at the rate of thirty miles a day." - -"We may; but how about our guide?" - -"Oh, never mind him. People like him get over the ground without a -thought. There is so little action in this man that he will never get -tired; and besides, if he wants it, he shall have my horse. I shall -get cramped if I don't have a little action. The arms are all right, -but the legs want exercise." - -We were advancing at a rapid pace. The country was already almost a -desert. Here and there was a lonely farm, called a boër built either -of wood, or of sods, or of pieces of lava, looking like a poor beggar -by the wayside. These ruinous huts seemed to solicit charity from -passers-by; and on very small provocation we should have given alms -for the relief of the poor inmates. In this country there were no -roads and paths, and the poor vegetation, however slow, would soon -efface the rare travellers' footsteps. - -Yet this part of the province, at a very small distance from the -capital, is reckoned among the inhabited and cultivated portions of -Iceland. What, then, must other tracts be, more desert than this -desert? In the first half mile we had not seen one farmer standing -before his cabin door, nor one shepherd tending a flock less wild -than himself, nothing but a few cows and sheep left to themselves. -What then would be those convulsed regions upon which we were -advancing, regions subject to the dire phenomena of eruptions, the -offspring of volcanic explosions and subterranean convulsions? - -We were to know them before long, but on consulting Olsen's map, I -saw that they would be avoided by winding along the seashore. In -fact, the great plutonic action is confined to the central portion of -the island; there, rocks of the trappean and volcanic class, -including trachyte, basalt, and tuffs and agglomerates associated -with streams of lava, have made this a land of supernatural horrors. -I had no idea of the spectacle which was awaiting us in the peninsula -of Snæfell, where these ruins of a fiery nature have formed a -frightful chaos. - -In two hours from Rejkiavik we arrived at the burgh of Gufunes, -called Aolkirkja, or principal church. There was nothing remarkable -here but a few houses, scarcely enough for a German hamlet. - -Hans stopped here half an hour. He shared with us our frugal -breakfast; answering my uncle's questions about the road and our -resting place that night with merely yes or no, except when he said -"Gardär." - -I consulted the map to see where Gardär was. I saw there was a small -town of that name on the banks of the Hvalfiord, four miles from -Rejkiavik. I showed it to my uncle. - -"Four miles only!" he exclaimed; "four miles out of twenty-eight. -What a nice little walk!" - -He was about to make an observation to the guide, who without -answering resumed his place at the head, and went on his way. - -Three hours later, still treading on the colourless grass of the -pasture land, we had to work round the Kolla fiord, a longer way but -an easier one than across that inlet. We soon entered into a -'pingstaoer' or parish called Ejulberg, from whose steeple twelve -o'clock would have struck, if Icelandic churches were rich enough to -possess clocks. But they are like the parishioners who have no -watches and do without. - -There our horses were baited; then taking the narrow path to left -between a chain of hills and the sea, they carried us to our next -stage, the aolkirkja of Brantär and one mile farther on, to Saurboër -'Annexia,' a chapel of ease built on the south shore of the Hvalfiord. - -It was now four o'clock, and we had gone four Icelandic miles, or -twenty-four English miles. - -In that place the fiord was at least three English miles wide; the -waves rolled with a rushing din upon the sharp-pointed rocks; this -inlet was confined between walls of rock, precipices crowned by sharp -peaks 2,000 feet high, and remarkable for the brown strata which -separated the beds of reddish tuff. However much I might respect the -intelligence of our quadrupeds, I hardly cared to put it to the test -by trusting myself to it on horseback across an arm of the sea. - -If they are as intelligent as they are said to be, I thought, they -won't try it. In any case, I will tax my intelligence to direct -theirs. - -But my uncle would not wait. He spurred on to the edge. His steed -lowered his head to examine the nearest waves and stopped. My uncle, -who had an instinct of his own, too, applied pressure, and was again -refused by the animal significantly shaking his head. Then followed -strong language, and the whip; but the brute answered these arguments -with kicks and endeavours to throw his rider. At last the clever -little pony, with a bend of his knees, started from under the -Professor's legs, and left him standing upon two boulders on the -shore just like the colossus of Rhodes. - -"Confounded brute!" cried the unhorsed horseman, suddenly degraded -into a pedestrian, just as ashamed as a cavalry officer degraded to a -foot soldier. - -"_Färja,_" said the guide, touching his shoulder. - -"What! a boat?" - -"_Der,_" replied Hans, pointing to one. - -"Yes," I cried; "there is a boat." - -"Why did not you say so then? Well, let us go on." - -"_Tidvatten,_" said the guide. - -"What is he saying?" - -"He says tide," said my uncle, translating the Danish word. - -"No doubt we must wait for the tide." - -"_Förbida,_" said my uncle. - -"_Ja,_" replied Hans. - -My uncle stamped with his foot, while the horses went on to the boat. - -I perfectly understood the necessity of abiding a particular moment -of the tide to undertake the crossing of the fiord, when, the sea -having reached its greatest height, it should be slack water. Then -the ebb and flow have no sensible effect, and the boat does not risk -being carried either to the bottom or out to sea. - -That favourable moment arrived only with six o'clock; when my uncle, -myself, the guide, two other passengers and the four horses, trusted -ourselves to a somewhat fragile raft. Accustomed as I was to the -swift and sure steamers on the Elbe, I found the oars of the rowers -rather a slow means of propulsion. It took us more than an hour to -cross the fiord; but the passage was effected without any mishap. - -In another half hour we had reached the aolkirkja of Gardär - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -HOSPITALITY UNDER THE ARCTIC CIRCLE - - -It ought to have been night-time, but under the 65th parallel there -was nothing surprising in the nocturnal polar light. In Iceland -during the months of June and July the sun does not set. - -But the temperature was much lower. I was cold and more hungry than -cold. Welcome was the sight of the boër which was hospitably opened -to receive us. - -It was a peasant's house, but in point of hospitality it was equal to -a king's. On our arrival the master came with outstretched hands, and -without more ceremony he beckoned us to follow him. - -To accompany him down the long, narrow, dark passage, would have been -impossible. Therefore, we followed, as he bid us. The building was -constructed of roughly squared timbers, with rooms on both sides, -four in number, all opening out into the one passage: these were the -kitchen, the weaving shop, the badstofa, or family sleeping-room, and -the visitors' room, which was the best of all. My uncle, whose height -had not been thought of in building the house, of course hit his head -several times against the beams that projected from the ceilings. - -We were introduced into our apartment, a large room with a floor of -earth stamped hard down, and lighted by a window, the panes of which -were formed of sheep's bladder, not admitting too much light. The -sleeping accommodation consisted of dry litter, thrown into two -wooden frames painted red, and ornamented with Icelandic sentences. I -was hardly expecting so much comfort; the only discomfort proceeded -from the strong odour of dried fish, hung meat, and sour milk, of -which my nose made bitter complaints. - -When we had laid aside our travelling wraps the voice of the host was -heard inviting us to the kitchen, the only room where a fire was -lighted even in the severest cold. - -My uncle lost no time in obeying the friendly call, nor was I slack -in following. - -The kitchen chimney was constructed on the ancient pattern; in the -middle of the room was a stone for a hearth, over it in the roof a -hole to let the smoke escape. The kitchen was also a dining-room. - -At our entrance the host, as if he had never seen us, greeted us with -the word "_Sællvertu,_" which means "be happy," and came and kissed -us on the cheek. - -After him his wife pronounced the same words, accompanied with the -same ceremonial; then the two placing their hands upon their hearts, -inclined profoundly before us. - -I hasten to inform the reader that this Icelandic lady was the mother -of nineteen children, all, big and little, swarming in the midst of -the dense wreaths of smoke with which the fire on the hearth filled -the chamber. Every moment I noticed a fair-haired and rather -melancholy face peeping out of the rolling volumes of smoke--they -were a perfect cluster of unwashed angels. - -My uncle and I treated this little tribe with kindness; and in a very -short time we each had three or four of these brats on our shoulders, -as many on our laps, and the rest between our knees. Those who could -speak kept repeating "_Sællvertu,_" in every conceivable tone; those -that could not speak made up for that want by shrill cries. - -This concert was brought to a close by the announcement of dinner. At -that moment our hunter returned, who had been seeing his horses -provided for; that is to say, he had economically let them loose in -the fields, where the poor beasts had to content themselves with the -scanty moss they could pull off the rocks and a few meagre sea weeds, -and the next day they would not fail to come of themselves and resume -the labours of the previous day. - -"_Sællvertu,_" said Hans. - -Then calmly, automatically, and dispassionately he kissed the host, -the hostess, and their nineteen children. - -This ceremony over, we sat at table, twenty-four in number, and -therefore one upon another. The luckiest had only two urchins upon -their knees. - -But silence reigned in all this little world at the arrival of the -soup, and the national taciturnity resumed its empire even over the -children. The host served out to us a soup made of lichen and by no -means unpleasant, then an immense piece of dried fish floating in -butter rancid with twenty years' keeping, and, therefore, according -to Icelandic gastronomy, much preferable to fresh butter. Along with -this, we had 'skye,' a sort of clotted milk, with biscuits, and a -liquid prepared from juniper berries; for beverage we had a thin milk -mixed with water, called in this country 'blanda.' It is not for me -to decide whether this diet is wholesome or not; all I can say is, -that I was desperately hungry, and that at dessert I swallowed to the -very last gulp of a thick broth made from buckwheat. - -As soon as the meal was over the children disappeared, and their -elders gathered round the peat fire, which also burnt such -miscellaneous fuel as briars, cow-dung, and fishbones. After this -little pinch of warmth the different groups retired to their -respective rooms. Our hostess hospitably offered us her assistance in -undressing, according to Icelandic usage; but on our gracefully -declining, she insisted no longer, and I was able at last to curl -myself up in my mossy bed. - -At five next morning we bade our host farewell, my uncle with -difficulty persuading him to accept a proper remuneration; and Hans -signalled the start. - -At a hundred yards from Gardär the soil began to change its aspect; -it became boggy and less favourable to progress. On our right the -chain of mountains was indefinitely prolonged like an immense system -of natural fortifications, of which we were following the -counter-scarp or lesser steep; often we were met by streams, which we -had to ford with great care, not to wet our packages. - -The desert became wider and more hideous; yet from time to time we -seemed to descry a human figure that fled at our approach, sometimes -a sharp turn would bring us suddenly within a short distance of one -of these spectres, and I was filled with loathing at the sight of a -huge deformed head, the skin shining and hairless, and repulsive -sores visible through the gaps in the poor creature's wretched rags. - -The unhappy being forbore to approach us and offer his misshapen -hand. He fled away, but not before Hans had saluted him with the -customary "_Sællvertu._" - -"_Spetelsk,_" said he. - -"A leper!" my uncle repeated. - -This word produced a repulsive effect. The horrible disease of -leprosy is too common in Iceland; it is not contagious, but -hereditary, and lepers are forbidden to marry. - -These apparitions were not cheerful, and did not throw any charm over -the less and less attractive landscapes. The last tufts of grass had -disappeared from beneath our feet. Not a tree was to be seen, unless -we except a few dwarf birches as low as brushwood. Not an animal but -a few wandering ponies that their owners would not feed. Sometimes we -could see a hawk balancing himself on his wings under the grey cloud, -and then darting away south with rapid flight. I felt melancholy -under this savage aspect of nature, and my thoughts went away to the -cheerful scenes I had left in the far south. - -We had to cross a few narrow fiords, and at last quite a wide gulf; -the tide, then high, allowed us to pass over without delay, and to -reach the hamlet of Alftanes, one mile beyond. - -That evening, after having forded two rivers full of trout and pike, -called Alfa and Heta, we were obliged to spend the night in a -deserted building worthy to be haunted by all the elfins of -Scandinavia. The ice king certainly held court here, and gave us all -night long samples of what he could do. - -No particular event marked the next day. Bogs, dead levels, -melancholy desert tracks, wherever we travelled. By nightfall we had -accomplished half our journey, and we lay at Krösolbt. - -On the 19th of June, for about a mile, that is an Icelandic mile, we -walked upon hardened lava; this ground is called in the country -'hraun'; the writhen surface presented the appearance of distorted, -twisted cables, sometimes stretched in length, sometimes contorted -together; an immense torrent, once liquid, now solid, ran from the -nearest mountains, now extinct volcanoes, but the ruins around -revealed the violence of the past eruptions. Yet here and there were -a few jets of steam from hot springs. - -We had no time to watch these phenomena; we had to proceed on our -way. Soon at the foot of the mountains the boggy land reappeared, -intersected by little lakes. Our route now lay westward; we had -turned the great bay of Faxa, and the twin peaks of Snæfell rose -white into the cloudy sky at the distance of at least five miles. - -The horses did their duty well, no difficulties stopped them in their -steady career. I was getting tired; but my uncle was as firm and -straight as he was at our first start. I could not help admiring his -persistency, as well as the hunter's, who treated our expedition like -a mere promenade. - -June 20. At six p.m. we reached Büdir, a village on the sea shore; -and the guide there claiming his due, my uncle settled with him. It -was Hans' own family, that is, his uncles and cousins, who gave us -hospitality; we were kindly received, and without taxing too much the -goodness of these folks, I would willingly have tarried here to -recruit after my fatigues. But my uncle, who wanted no recruiting, -would not hear of it, and the next morning we had to bestride our -beasts again. - -The soil told of the neighbourhood of the mountain, whose granite -foundations rose from the earth like the knotted roots of some huge -oak. We were rounding the immense base of the volcano. The Professor -hardly took his eyes off it. He tossed up his arms and seemed to defy -it, and to declare, "There stands the giant that I shall conquer." -After about four hours' walking the horses stopped of their own -accord at the door of the priest's house at Stapi. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -BUT ARCTICS CAN BE INHOSPITABLE, TOO - - -Stapi is a village consisting of about thirty huts, built of lava, at -the south side of the base of the volcano. It extends along the inner -edge of a small fiord, inclosed between basaltic walls of the -strangest construction. - -Basalt is a brownish rock of igneous origin. It assumes regular -forms, the arrangement of which is often very surprising. Here nature -had done her work geometrically, with square and compass and plummet. -Everywhere else her art consists alone in throwing down huge masses -together in disorder. You see cones imperfectly formed, irregular -pyramids, with a fantastic disarrangement of lines; but here, as if -to exhibit an example of regularity, though in advance of the very -earliest architects, she has created a severely simple order of -architecture, never surpassed either by the splendours of Babylon or -the wonders of Greece. - -I had heard of the Giant's Causeway in Ireland, and Fingal's Cave in -Staffa, one of the Hebrides; but I had never yet seen a basaltic -formation. - -At Stapi I beheld this phenomenon in all its beauty. - -The wall that confined the fiord, like all the coast of the -peninsula, was composed of a series of vertical columns thirty feet -high. These straight shafts, of fair proportions, supported an -architrave of horizontal slabs, the overhanging portion of which -formed a semi-arch over the sea. At intervals, under this natural -shelter, there spread out vaulted entrances in beautiful curves, into -which the waves came dashing with foam and spray. A few shafts of -basalt, torn from their hold by the fury of tempests, lay along the -soil like remains of an ancient temple, in ruins for ever fresh, and -over which centuries passed without leaving a trace of age upon them. - -This was our last stage upon the earth. Hans had exhibited great -intelligence, and it gave me some little comfort to think then that -he was not going to leave us. - -On arriving at the door of the rector's house, which was not -different from the others, I saw a man shoeing a horse, hammer in -hand, and with a leathern apron on. - -"_Sællvertu,_" said the hunter. - -"_God dag,_" said the blacksmith in good Danish. - -"_Kyrkoherde,_" said Hans, turning round to my uncle. - -"The rector," repeated the Professor. "It seems, Axel, that this good -man is the rector." - -Our guide in the meanwhile was making the 'kyrkoherde' aware of the -position of things; when the latter, suspending his labours for a -moment, uttered a sound no doubt understood between horses and -farriers, and immediately a tall and ugly hag appeared from the hut. -She must have been six feet at the least. I was in great alarm lest -she should treat me to the Icelandic kiss; but there was no occasion -to fear, nor did she do the honours at all too gracefully. - -The visitors' room seemed to me the worst in the whole cabin. It was -close, dirty, and evil smelling. But we had to be content. The rector -did not to go in for antique hospitality. Very far from it. Before -the day was over I saw that we had to do with a blacksmith, a -fisherman, a hunter, a joiner, but not at all with a minister of the -Gospel. To be sure, it was a week-day; perhaps on a Sunday he made -amends. - -I don't mean to say anything against these poor priests, who after -all are very wretched. They receive from the Danish Government a -ridiculously small pittance, and they get from the parish the fourth -part of the tithe, which does not come to sixty marks a year (about -£4). Hence the necessity to work for their livelihood; but after -fishing, hunting, and shoeing horses for any length of time, one soon -gets into the ways and manners of fishermen, hunters, and farriers, -and other rather rude and uncultivated people; and that evening I -found out that temperance was not among the virtues that -distinguished my host. - -My uncle soon discovered what sort of a man he had to do with; -instead of a good and learned man he found a rude and coarse peasant. -He therefore resolved to commence the grand expedition at once, and -to leave this inhospitable parsonage. He cared nothing about fatigue, -and resolved to spend some days upon the mountain. - -The preparations for our departure were therefore made the very day -after our arrival at Stapi. Hans hired the services of three -Icelanders to do the duty of the horses in the transport of the -burdens; but as soon as we had arrived at the crater these natives -were to turn back and leave us to our own devices. This was to be -clearly understood. - -My uncle now took the opportunity to explain to Hans that it was his -intention to explore the interior of the volcano to its farthest -limits. - -Hans merely nodded. There or elsewhere, down in the bowels of the -earth, or anywhere on the surface, all was alike to him. For my own -part the incidents of the journey had hitherto kept me amused, and -made me forgetful of coming evils; but now my fears again were -beginning to get the better of me. But what could I do? The place to -resist the Professor would have been Hamburg, not the foot of Snæfell. - -One thought, above all others, harassed and alarmed me; it was one -calculated to shake firmer nerves than mine. - -Now, thought I, here we are, about to climb Snæfell. Very good. We -will explore the crater. Very good, too, others have done as much -without dying for it. But that is not all. If there is a way to -penetrate into the very bowels of the island, if that ill-advised -Saknussemm has told a true tale, we shall lose our way amidst the -deep subterranean passages of this volcano. Now, there is no proof -that Snæfell is extinct. Who can assure us that an eruption is not -brewing at this very moment? Does it follow that because the monster -has slept since 1229 he must therefore never awake again? And if he -wakes up presently, where shall we be? - -It was worth while debating this question, and I did debate it. I -could not sleep for dreaming about eruptions. Now, the part of -ejected scoriae and ashes seemed to my mind a very rough one to act. - -So, at last, when I could hold out no longer, I resolved to lay the -case before my uncle, as prudently and as cautiously as possible, -just under the form of an almost impossible hypothesis. - -I went to him. I communicated my fears to him, and drew back a step -to give him room for the explosion which I knew must follow. But I -was mistaken. - -"I was thinking of that," he replied with great simplicity. - -What could those words mean?--Was he actually going to listen to -reason? Was he contemplating the abandonment of his plans? This was -too good to be true. - -After a few moments' silence, during which I dared not question him, -he resumed: - -"I was thinking of that. Ever since we arrived at Stapi I have been -occupied with the important question you have just opened, for we -must not be guilty of imprudence." - -"No, indeed!" I replied with forcible emphasis. - -"For six hundred years Snæfell has been dumb; but he may speak again. -Now, eruptions are always preceded by certain well-known phenomena. I -have therefore examined the natives, I have studied external -appearances, and I can assure you, Axel, that there will be no -eruption." - -At this positive affirmation I stood amazed and speechless. - -"You don't doubt my word?" said my uncle. "Well, follow me." - -I obeyed like an automaton. Coming out from the priest's house, the -Professor took a straight road, which, through an opening in the -basaltic wall, led away from the sea. We were soon in the open -country, if one may give that name to a vast extent of mounds of -volcanic products. This tract seemed crushed under a rain of enormous -ejected rocks of trap, basalt, granite, and all kinds of igneous -rocks. - -Here and there I could see puffs and jets of steam curling up into -the air, called in Icelandic 'reykir,' issuing from thermal springs, -and indicating by their motion the volcanic energy underneath. This -seemed to justify my fears: But I fell from the height of my new-born -hopes when my uncle said: - -"You see all these volumes of steam, Axel; well, they demonstrate -that we have nothing to fear from the fury of a volcanic eruption." - -"Am I to believe that?" I cried. - -"Understand this clearly," added the Professor. "At the approach of -an eruption these jets would redouble their activity, but disappear -altogether during the period of the eruption. For the elastic fluids, -being no longer under pressure, go off by way of the crater instead -of escaping by their usual passages through the fissures in the soil. -Therefore, if these vapours remain in their usual condition, if they -display no augmentation of force, and if you add to this the -observation that the wind and rain are not ceasing and being replaced -by a still and heavy atmosphere, then you may affirm that no eruption -is preparing." - -"But--" - -'No more; that is sufficient. When science has uttered her voice, let -babblers hold their peace.' - -I returned to the parsonage, very crestfallen. My uncle had beaten me -with the weapons of science. Still I had one hope left, and this was, -that when we had reached the bottom of the crater it would be -impossible, for want of a passage, to go deeper, in spite of all the -Saknussemm's in Iceland. - -I spent that whole night in one constant nightmare; in the heart of a -volcano, and from the deepest depths of the earth I saw myself tossed -up amongst the interplanetary spaces under the form of an eruptive -rock. - -The next day, June 23, Hans was awaiting us with his companions -carrying provisions, tools, and instruments; two iron pointed sticks, -two rifles, and two shot belts were for my uncle and myself. Hans, as -a cautious man, had added to our luggage a leathern bottle full of -water, which, with that in our flasks, would ensure us a supply of -water for eight days. - -It was nine in the morning. The priest and his tall Megæra were -awaiting us at the door. We supposed they were standing there to bid -us a kind farewell. But the farewell was put in the unexpected form -of a heavy bill, in which everything was charged, even to the very -air we breathed in the pastoral house, infected as it was. This -worthy couple were fleecing us just as a Swiss innkeeper might have -done, and estimated their imperfect hospitality at the highest price. - -My uncle paid without a remark: a man who is starting for the centre -of the earth need not be particular about a few rix dollars. - -This point being settled, Hans gave the signal, and we soon left -Stapi behind us. - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - -SNÆFELL AT LAST - - -Snæfell is 5,000 feet high. Its double cone forms the limit of a -trachytic belt which stands out distinctly in the mountain system of -the island. From our starting point we could see the two peaks boldly -projected against the dark grey sky; I could see an enormous cap of -snow coming low down upon the giant's brow. - -We walked in single file, headed by the hunter, who ascended by -narrow tracks, where two could not have gone abreast. There was -therefore no room for conversation. - -After we had passed the basaltic wall of the fiord of Stapi we passed -over a vegetable fibrous peat bog, left from the ancient vegetation -of this peninsula. The vast quantity of this unworked fuel would be -sufficient to warm the whole population of Iceland for a century; -this vast turbary measured in certain ravines had in many places a -depth of seventy feet, and presented layers of carbonized remains of -vegetation alternating with thinner layers of tufaceous pumice. - -As a true nephew of the Professor Liedenbrock, and in spite of my -dismal prospects, I could not help observing with interest the -mineralogical curiosities which lay about me as in a vast museum, and -I constructed for myself a complete geological account of Iceland. - -This most curious island has evidently been projected from the bottom -of the sea at a comparatively recent date. Possibly, it may still be -subject to gradual elevation. If this is the case, its origin may -well be attributed to subterranean fires. Therefore, in this case, -the theory of Sir Humphry Davy, Saknussemm's document, and my uncle's -theories would all go off in smoke. This hypothesis led me to examine -with more attention the appearance of the surface, and I soon arrived -at a conclusion as to the nature of the forces which presided at its -birth. - -Iceland, which is entirely devoid of alluvial soil, is wholly -composed of volcanic tufa, that is to say, an agglomeration of porous -rocks and stones. Before the volcanoes broke out it consisted of trap -rocks slowly upraised to the level of the sea by the action of -central forces. The internal fires had not yet forced their way -through. - -But at a later period a wide chasm formed diagonally from south-west -to north-east, through which was gradually forced out the trachyte -which was to form a mountain chain. No violence accompanied this -change; the matter thrown out was in vast quantities, and the liquid -material oozing out from the abysses of the earth slowly spread in -extensive plains or in hillocky masses. To this period belong the -felspar, syenites, and porphyries. - -But with the help of this outflow the thickness of the crust of the -island increased materially, and therefore also its powers of -resistance. It may easily be conceived what vast quantities of -elastic gases, what masses of molten matter accumulated beneath its -solid surface whilst no exit was practicable after the cooling of the -trachytic crust. Therefore a time would come when the elastic and -explosive forces of the imprisoned gases would upheave this ponderous -cover and drive out for themselves openings through tall chimneys. -Hence then the volcano would distend and lift up the crust, and then -burst through a crater suddenly formed at the summit or thinnest part -of the volcano. - -To the eruption succeeded other volcanic phenomena. Through the -outlets now made first escaped the ejected basalt of which the plain -we had just left presented such marvellous specimens. We were moving -over grey rocks of dense and massive formation, which in cooling had -formed into hexagonal prisms. Everywhere around us we saw truncated -cones, formerly so many fiery mouths. - -After the exhaustion of the basalt, the volcano, the power of which -grew by the extinction of the lesser craters, supplied an egress to -lava, ashes, and scoriae, of which I could see lengthened screes -streaming down the sides of the mountain like flowing hair. - -Such was the succession of phenomena which produced Iceland, all -arising from the action of internal fire; and to suppose that the -mass within did not still exist in a state of liquid incandescence -was absurd; and nothing could surpass the absurdity of fancying that -it was possible to reach the earth's centre. - -So I felt a little comforted as we advanced to the assault of Snæfell. - -The way was growing more and more arduous, the ascent steeper and -steeper; the loose fragments of rock trembled beneath us, and the -utmost care was needed to avoid dangerous falls. - -Hans went on as quietly as if he were on level ground; sometimes he -disappeared altogether behind the huge blocks, then a shrill whistle -would direct us on our way to him. Sometimes he would halt, pick up a -few bits of stone, build them up into a recognisable form, and thus -made landmarks to guide us in our way back. A very wise precaution in -itself, but, as things turned out, quite useless. - -Three hours' fatiguing march had only brought us to the base of the -mountain. There Hans bid us come to a halt, and a hasty breakfast was -served out. My uncle swallowed two mouthfuls at a time to get on -faster. But, whether he liked it or not, this was a rest as well as a -breakfast hour and he had to wait till it pleased our guide to move -on, which came to pass in an hour. The three Icelanders, just as -taciturn as their comrade the hunter, never spoke, and ate their -breakfasts in silence. - -We were now beginning to scale the steep sides of Snæfell. Its snowy -summit, by an optical illusion not unfrequent in mountains, seemed -close to us, and yet how many weary hours it took to reach it! The -stones, adhering by no soil or fibrous roots of vegetation, rolled -away from under our feet, and rushed down the precipice below with -the swiftness of an avalanche. - -At some places the flanks of the mountain formed an angle with the -horizon of at least 36 degrees; it was impossible to climb them, and -these stony cliffs had to be tacked round, not without great -difficulty. Then we helped each other with our sticks. - -I must admit that my uncle kept as close to me as he could; he never -lost sight of me, and in many straits his arm furnished me with a -powerful support. He himself seemed to possess an instinct for -equilibrium, for he never stumbled. The Icelanders, though burdened -with our loads, climbed with the agility of mountaineers. - -To judge by the distant appearance of the summit of Snæfell, it would -have seemed too steep to ascend on our side. Fortunately, after an -hour of fatigue and athletic exercises, in the midst of the vast -surface of snow presented by the hollow between the two peaks, a kind -of staircase appeared unexpectedly which greatly facilitated our -ascent. It was formed by one of those torrents of stones flung up by -the eruptions, called 'sting' by the Icelanders. If this torrent had -not been arrested in its fall by the formation of the sides of the -mountain, it would have gone on to the sea and formed more islands. - -Such as it was, it did us good service. The steepness increased, but -these stone steps allowed us to rise with facility, and even with -such rapidity that, having rested for a moment while my companions -continued their ascent, I perceived them already reduced by distance -to microscopic dimensions. - -At seven we had ascended the two thousand steps of this grand -staircase, and we had attained a bulge in the mountain, a kind of bed -on which rested the cone proper of the crater. - -Three thousand two hundred feet below us stretched the sea. We had -passed the limit of perpetual snow, which, on account of the moisture -of the climate, is at a greater elevation in Iceland than the high -latitude would give reason to suppose. The cold was excessively keen. -The wind was blowing violently. I was exhausted. The Professor saw -that my limbs were refusing to perform their office, and in spite of -his impatience he decided on stopping. He therefore spoke to the -hunter, who shook his head, saying: - -"_Ofvanför._" - -"It seems we must go higher," said my uncle. - -Then he asked Hans for his reason. - -"_Mistour,_" replied the guide. - -"_Ja Mistour,_" said one of the Icelanders in a tone of alarm. - -"What does that word mean?" I asked uneasily. - -"Look!" said my uncle. - -I looked down upon the plain. An immense column of pulverized pumice, -sand and dust was rising with a whirling circular motion like a -waterspout; the wind was lashing it on to that side of Snæfell where -we were holding on; this dense veil, hung across the sun, threw a -deep shadow over the mountain. If that huge revolving pillar sloped -down, it would involve us in its whirling eddies. This phenomenon, -which is not unfrequent when the wind blows from the glaciers, is -called in Icelandic 'mistour.' - -"_Hastigt! hastigt!_" cried our guide. - -Without knowing Danish I understood at once that we must follow Hans -at the top of our speed. He began to circle round the cone of the -crater, but in a diagonal direction so as to facilitate our progress. -Presently the dust storm fell upon the mountain, which quivered under -the shock; the loose stones, caught with the irresistible blasts of -wind, flew about in a perfect hail as in an eruption. Happily we were -on the opposite side, and sheltered from all harm. But for the -precaution of our guide, our mangled bodies, torn and pounded into -fragments, would have been carried afar like the ruins hurled along -by some unknown meteor. - -Yet Hans did not think it prudent to spend the night upon the sides -of the cone. We continued our zigzag climb. The fifteen hundred -remaining feet took us five hours to clear; the circuitous route, the -diagonal and the counter marches, must have measured at least three -leagues. I could stand it no longer. I was yielding to the effects of -hunger and cold. The rarefied air scarcely gave play to the action of -my lungs. - -At last, at eleven in the sunlight night, the summit of Snæfell was -reached, and before going in for shelter into the crater I had time -to observe the midnight sun, at his lowest point, gilding with his -pale rays the island that slept at my feet. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -BOLDLY DOWN THE CRATER - - -Supper was rapidly devoured, and the little company housed themselves -as best they could. The bed was hard, the shelter not very -substantial, and our position an anxious one, at five thousand feet -above the sea level. Yet I slept particularly well; it was one of the -best nights I had ever had, and I did not even dream. - -Next morning we awoke half frozen by the sharp keen air, but with the -light of a splendid sun. I rose from my granite bed and went out to -enjoy the magnificent spectacle that lay unrolled before me. - -I stood on the very summit of the southernmost of Snæfell's peaks. -The range of the eye extended over the whole island. By an optical -law which obtains at all great heights, the shores seemed raised and -the centre depressed. It seemed as if one of Helbesmer's raised maps -lay at my feet. I could see deep valleys intersecting each other in -every direction, precipices like low walls, lakes reduced to ponds, -rivers abbreviated into streams. On my right were numberless glaciers -and innumerable peaks, some plumed with feathery clouds of smoke. The -undulating surface of these endless mountains, crested with sheets of -snow, reminded one of a stormy sea. If I looked westward, there the -ocean lay spread out in all its magnificence, like a mere -continuation of those flock-like summits. The eye could hardly tell -where the snowy ridges ended and the foaming waves began. - -I was thus steeped in the marvellous ecstasy which all high summits -develop in the mind; and now without giddiness, for I was beginning -to be accustomed to these sublime aspects of nature. My dazzled eyes -were bathed in the bright flood of the solar rays. I was forgetting -where and who I was, to live the life of elves and sylphs, the -fanciful creation of Scandinavian superstitions. I felt intoxicated -with the sublime pleasure of lofty elevations without thinking of the -profound abysses into which I was shortly to be plunged. But I was -brought back to the realities of things by the arrival of Hans and -the Professor, who joined me on the summit. - -My uncle pointed out to me in the far west a light steam or mist, a -semblance of land, which bounded the distant horizon of waters. - -"Greenland!" said he. - -"Greenland?" I cried. - -"Yes; we are only thirty-five leagues from it; and during thaws the -white bears, borne by the ice fields from the north, are carried even -into Iceland. But never mind that. Here we are at the top of Snæfell -and here are two peaks, one north and one south. Hans will tell us -the name of that on which we are now standing." - -The question being put, Hans replied: - -"Scartaris." - -My uncle shot a triumphant glance at me. - -"Now for the crater!" he cried. - -The crater of Snæfell resembled an inverted cone, the opening of which -might be half a league in diameter. Its depth appeared to be about -two thousand feet. Imagine the aspect of such a reservoir, brim full -and running over with liquid fire amid the rolling thunder. The -bottom of the funnel was about 250 feet in circuit, so that the -gentle slope allowed its lower brim to be reached without much -difficulty. Involuntarily I compared the whole crater to an enormous -erected mortar, and the comparison put me in a terrible fright. - -"What madness," I thought, "to go down into a mortar, perhaps a -loaded mortar, to be shot up into the air at a moment's notice!" - -But I did not try to back out of it. Hans with perfect coolness -resumed the lead, and I followed him without a word. - -In order to facilitate the descent, Hans wound his way down the cone -by a spiral path. Our route lay amidst eruptive rocks, some of which, -shaken out of their loosened beds, rushed bounding down the abyss, -and in their fall awoke echoes remarkable for their loud and -well-defined sharpness. - -In certain parts of the cone there were glaciers. Here Hans advanced -only with extreme precaution, sounding his way with his iron-pointed -pole, to discover any crevasses in it. At particularly dubious -passages we were obliged to connect ourselves with each other by a -long cord, in order that any man who missed his footing might be held -up by his companions. This solid formation was prudent, but did not -remove all danger. - -Yet, notwithstanding the difficulties of the descent, down steeps -unknown to the guide, the journey was accomplished without accidents, -except the loss of a coil of rope, which escaped from the hands of an -Icelander, and took the shortest way to the bottom of the abyss. - -At mid-day we arrived. I raised my head and saw straight above me the -upper aperture of the cone, framing a bit of sky of very small -circumference, but almost perfectly round. Just upon the edge -appeared the snowy peak of Saris, standing out sharp and clear -against endless space. - -At the bottom of the crater were three chimneys, through which, in -its eruptions, Snæfell had driven forth fire and lava from its -central furnace. Each of these chimneys was a hundred feet in -diameter. They gaped before us right in our path. I had not the -courage to look down either of them. But Professor Liedenbrock had -hastily surveyed all three; he was panting, running from one to the -other, gesticulating, and uttering incoherent expressions. Hans and -his comrades, seated upon loose lava rocks, looked at him with as much -wonder as they knew how to express, and perhaps taking him for an -escaped lunatic. - -Suddenly my uncle uttered a cry. I thought his foot must have slipped -and that he had fallen down one of the holes. But, no; I saw him, -with arms outstretched and legs straddling wide apart, erect before a -granite rock that stood in the centre of the crater, just like a -pedestal made ready to receive a statue of Pluto. He stood like a man -stupefied, but the stupefaction soon gave way to delirious rapture. - -"Axel, Axel," he cried. "Come, come!" - -I ran. Hans and the Icelanders never stirred. - -"Look!" cried the Professor. - -And, sharing his astonishment, but I think not his joy, I read on the -western face of the block, in Runic characters, half mouldered away -with lapse of ages, this thrice-accursed name: - -[At this point a Runic text appears] - -"Arne Saknussemm!" replied my uncle. "Do you yet doubt?" - -I made no answer; and I returned in silence to my lava seat in a -state of utter speechless consternation. Here was crushing evidence. - -How long I remained plunged in agonizing reflections I cannot tell; -all that I know is, that on raising my head again, I saw only my -uncle and Hans at the bottom of the crater. The Icelanders had been -dismissed, and they were now descending the outer slopes of Snæfell -to return to Stapi. - -Hans slept peaceably at the foot of a rock, in a lava bed, where he -had found a suitable couch for himself; but my uncle was pacing -around the bottom of the crater like a wild beast in a cage. I had -neither the wish nor the strength to rise, and following the guide's -example I went off into an unhappy slumber, fancying I could hear -ominous noises or feel tremblings within the recesses of the mountain. - -Thus the first night in the crater passed away. - -The next morning, a grey, heavy, cloudy sky seemed to droop over the -summit of the cone. I did not know this first from the appearances of -nature, but I found it out by my uncle's impetuous wrath. - -I soon found out the cause, and hope dawned again in my heart. For -this reason. - -Of the three ways open before us, one had been taken by Saknussemm. -The indications of the learned Icelander hinted at in the cryptogram, -pointed to this fact that the shadow of Scartaris came to touch that -particular way during the latter days of the month of June. - -That sharp peak might hence be considered as the gnomon of a vast sun -dial, the shadow projected from which on a certain day would point -out the road to the centre of the earth. - -Now, no sun no shadow, and therefore no guide. Here was June 25. If -the sun was clouded for six days we must postpone our visit till next -year. - -My limited powers of description would fail, were I to attempt a -picture of the Professor's angry impatience. The day wore on, and no -shadow came to lay itself along the bottom of the crater. Hans did -not move from the spot he had selected; yet he must be asking himself -what were we waiting for, if he asked himself anything at all. My -uncle spoke not a word to me. His gaze, ever directed upwards, was -lost in the grey and misty space beyond. - -On the 26th nothing yet. Rain mingled with snow was falling all day -long. Hans built a hut of pieces of lava. I felt a malicious pleasure -in watching the thousand rills and cascades that came tumbling down -the sides of the cone, and the deafening continuous din awaked by -every stone against which they bounded. - -My uncle's rage knew no bounds. It was enough to irritate a meeker -man than he; for it was foundering almost within the port. - -But Heaven never sends unmixed grief, and for Professor Liedenbrock -there was a satisfaction in store proportioned to his desperate -anxieties. - -The next day the sky was again overcast; but on the 29th of June, the -last day but one of the month, with the change of the moon came a -change of weather. The sun poured a flood of light down the crater. -Every hillock, every rock and stone, every projecting surface, had -its share of the beaming torrent, and threw its shadow on the ground. -Amongst them all, Scartaris laid down his sharp-pointed angular -shadow which began to move slowly in the opposite direction to that -of the radiant orb. - -My uncle turned too, and followed it. - -At noon, being at its least extent, it came and softly fell upon the -edge of the middle chimney. - -"There it is! there it is!" shouted the Professor. - -"Now for the centre of the globe!" he added in Danish. - -I looked at Hans, to hear what he would say. - -"_Forüt!_" was his tranquil answer. - -"Forward!" replied my uncle. - -It was thirteen minutes past one. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -VERTICAL DESCENT - - -Now began our real journey. Hitherto our toil had overcome all -difficulties, now difficulties would spring up at every step. - -I had not yet ventured to look down the bottomless pit into which I -was about to take a plunge. The supreme hour had come. I might now -either share in the enterprise or refuse to move forward. But I was -ashamed to recoil in the presence of the hunter. Hans accepted the -enterprise with such calmness, such indifference, such perfect -disregard of any possible danger that I blushed at the idea of being -less brave than he. If I had been alone I might have once more tried -the effect of argument; but in the presence of the guide I held my -peace; my heart flew back to my sweet Virlandaise, and I approached -the central chimney. - -I have already mentioned that it was a hundred feet in diameter, and -three hundred feet round. I bent over a projecting rock and gazed -down. My hair stood on end with terror. The bewildering feeling of -vacuity laid hold upon me. I felt my centre of gravity shifting its -place, and giddiness mounting into my brain like drunkenness. There -is nothing more treacherous than this attraction down deep abysses. I -was just about to drop down, when a hand laid hold of me. It was that -of Hans. I suppose I had not taken as many lessons on gulf -exploration as I ought to have done in the Frelsers Kirk at -Copenhagen. - -But, however short was my examination of this well, I had taken some -account of its conformation. Its almost perpendicular walls were -bristling with innumerable projections which would facilitate the -descent. But if there was no want of steps, still there was no rail. -A rope fastened to the edge of the aperture might have helped us -down. But how were we to unfasten it, when arrived at the other end? - -My uncle employed a very simple expedient to obviate this difficulty. -He uncoiled a cord of the thickness of a finger, and four hundred -feet long; first he dropped half of it down, then he passed it round -a lava block that projected conveniently, and threw the other half -down the chimney. Each of us could then descend by holding with the -hand both halves of the rope, which would not be able to unroll -itself from its hold; when two hundred feet down, it would be easy to -get possession of the whole of the rope by letting one end go and -pulling down by the other. Then the exercise would go on again _ad -infinitum_. - -"Now," said my uncle, after having completed these preparations, "now -let us look to our loads. I will divide them into three lots; each of -us will strap one upon his back. I mean only fragile articles." - -Of course, we were not included under that head. - -"Hans," said he, "will take charge of the tools and a portion of the -provisions; you, Axel, will take another third of the provisions, and -the arms; and I will take the rest of the provisions and the delicate -instruments." - -"But," said I, "the clothes, and that mass of ladders and ropes, what -is to become of them?" - -"They will go down by themselves." - -"How so?" I asked. - -"You will see presently." - -My uncle was always willing to employ magnificent resources. Obeying -orders, Hans tied all the non-fragile articles in one bundle, corded -them firmly, and sent them bodily down the gulf before us. - -I listened to the dull thuds of the descending bale. My uncle, -leaning over the abyss, followed the descent of the luggage with a -satisfied nod, and only rose erect when he had quite lost sight of it. - -"Very well, now it is our turn." - -Now I ask any sensible man if it was possible to hear those words -without a shudder. - -The Professor fastened his package of instruments upon his shoulders; -Hans took the tools; I took the arms: and the descent commenced in -the following order; Hans, my uncle, and myself. It was effected in -profound silence, broken only by the descent of loosened stones down -the dark gulf. - -I dropped as it were, frantically clutching the double cord with one -hand and buttressing myself from the wall with the other by means of -my stick. One idea overpowered me almost, fear lest the rock should -give way from which I was hanging. This cord seemed a fragile thing -for three persons to be suspended from. I made as little use of it as -possible, performing wonderful feats of equilibrium upon the lava -projections which my foot seemed to catch hold of like a hand. - -When one of these slippery steps shook under the heavier form of -Hans, he said in his tranquil voice: - -"_Gif akt!_" - -"Attention!" repeated my uncle. - -In half an hour we were standing upon the surface of a rock jammed in -across the chimney from one side to the other. - -Hans pulled the rope by one of its ends, the other rose in the air; -after passing the higher rock it came down again, bringing with it a -rather dangerous shower of bits of stone and lava. - -Leaning over the edge of our narrow standing ground, I observed that -the bottom of the hole was still invisible. - -The same manoeuvre was repeated with the cord, and half an hour after -we had descended another two hundred feet. - -I don't suppose the maddest geologist under such circumstances would -have studied the nature of the rocks that we were passing. I am sure -I did trouble my head about them. Pliocene, miocene, eocene, -cretaceous, jurassic, triassic, permian, carboniferous, devonian, -silurian, or primitive was all one to me. But the Professor, no -doubt, was pursuing his observations or taking notes, for in one of -our halts he said to me: - -"The farther I go the more confidence I feel. The order of these -volcanic formations affords the strongest confirmation to the -theories of Davy. We are now among the primitive rocks, upon which -the chemical operations took place which are produced by the contact -of elementary bases of metals with water. I repudiate the notion of -central heat altogether. We shall see further proof of that very -soon." - -No variation, always the same conclusion. Of course, I was not -inclined to argue. My silence was taken for consent and the descent -went on. - -Another three hours, and I saw no bottom to the chimney yet. When I -lifted my head I perceived the gradual contraction of its aperture. -Its walls, by a gentle incline, were drawing closer to each other, -and it was beginning to grow darker. - -Still we kept descending. It seemed to me that the falling stones -were meeting with an earlier resistance, and that the concussion gave -a more abrupt and deadened sound. - -As I had taken care to keep an exact account of our manoeuvres with -the rope, which I knew that we had repeated fourteen times, each -descent occupying half an hour, the conclusion was easy that we had -been seven hours, plus fourteen quarters of rest, making ten hours -and a half. We had started at one, it must therefore now be eleven -o'clock; and the depth to which we had descended was fourteen times -200 feet, or 2,800 feet. - -At this moment I heard the voice of Hans. - -"Halt!" he cried. - -I stopped short just as I was going to place my feet upon my uncle's -head. - -"We are there," he cried. - -"Where?" said I, stepping near to him. - -"At the bottom of the perpendicular chimney," he answered. - -"Is there no way farther?" - -"Yes; there is a sort of passage which inclines to the right. We will -see about that to-morrow. Let us have our supper, and go to sleep." - -The darkness was not yet complete. The provision case was opened; we -refreshed ourselves, and went to sleep as well as we could upon a bed -of stones and lava fragments. - -When lying on my back, I opened my eyes and saw a bright sparkling -point of light at the extremity of the gigantic tube 3,000 feet long, -now a vast telescope. - -It was a star which, seen from this depth, had lost all -scintillation, and which by my computation should be 46; _Ursa -minor._ Then I fell fast asleep. - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - -THE WONDERS OF TERRESTRIAL DEPTHS - - -At eight in the morning a ray of daylight came to wake us up. The -thousand shining surfaces of lava on the walls received it on its -passage, and scattered it like a shower of sparks. - -There was light enough to distinguish surrounding objects. - -"Well, Axel, what do you say to it?" cried my uncle, rubbing his -hands. "Did you ever spend a quieter night in our little house at -Königsberg? No noise of cart wheels, no cries of basket women, no -boatmen shouting!" - -"No doubt it is very quiet at the bottom of this well, but there is -something alarming in the quietness itself." - -"Now come!" my uncle cried; "if you are frightened already, what will -you be by and by? We have not gone a single inch yet into the bowels -of the earth." - -"What do you mean?" - -"I mean that we have only reached the level of the island, long -vertical tube, which terminates at the mouth of the crater, has its -lower end only at the level of the sea." - -"Are you sure of that?" - -"Quite sure. Consult the barometer." - -In fact, the mercury, which had risen in the instrument as fast as we -descended, had stopped at twenty-nine inches. - -"You see," said the Professor, "we have now only the pressure of our -atmosphere, and I shall be glad when the aneroid takes the place of -the barometer." - -And in truth this instrument would become useless as soon as the -weight of the atmosphere should exceed the pressure ascertained at -the level of the sea. - -"But," I said, "is there not reason to fear that this ever-increasing -pressure will become at last very painful to bear?" - -"No; we shall descend at a slow rate, and our lungs will become -inured to a denser atmosphere. Aeronauts find the want of air as they -rise to high elevations, but we shall perhaps have too much: of the -two, this is what I should prefer. Don't let us lose a moment. Where -is the bundle we sent down before us?" - -I then remembered that we had searched for it in vain the evening -before. My uncle questioned Hans, who, after having examined -attentively with the eye of a huntsman, replied: - -"_Der huppe!_" - -"Up there." - -And so it was. The bundle had been caught by a projection a hundred -feet above us. Immediately the Icelander climbed up like a cat, and -in a few minutes the package was in our possession. - -"Now," said my uncle, "let us breakfast; but we must lay in a good -stock, for we don't know how long we may have to go on." - -The biscuit and extract of meat were washed down with a draught of -water mingled with a little gin. - -Breakfast over, my uncle drew from his pocket a small notebook, -intended for scientific observations. He consulted his instruments, -and recorded: - -"Monday, July 1. - -"Chronometer, 8.17 a.m.; barometer, 297 in.; thermometer, 6° (43° -F.). Direction, E.S.E." - -This last observation applied to the dark gallery, and was indicated -by the compass. - -"Now, Axel," cried the Professor with enthusiasm, "now we are really -going into the interior of the earth. At this precise moment the -journey commences." - -So saying, my uncle took in one hand Ruhmkorff's apparatus, which was -hanging from his neck; and with the other he formed an electric -communication with the coil in the lantern, and a sufficiently bright -light dispersed the darkness of the passage. - -Hans carried the other apparatus, which was also put into action. -This ingenious application of electricity would enable us to go on -for a long time by creating an artificial light even in the midst of -the most inflammable gases. - -"Now, march!" cried my uncle. - -Each shouldered his package. Hans drove before him the load of cords -and clothes; and, myself walking last, we entered the gallery. - -At the moment of becoming engulfed in this dark gallery, I raised my -head, and saw for the last time through the length of that vast tube -the sky of Iceland, which I was never to behold again. - -The lava, in the last eruption of 1229, had forced a passage through -this tunnel. It still lined the walls with a thick and glistening -coat. The electric light was here intensified a hundredfold by -reflection. - -The only difficulty in proceeding lay in not sliding too fast down an -incline of about forty-five degrees; happily certain asperities and a -few blisterings here and there formed steps, and we descended, -letting our baggage slip before us from the end of a long rope. - -But that which formed steps under our feet became stalactites -overhead. The lava, which was porous in many places, had formed a -surface covered with small rounded blisters; crystals of opaque -quartz, set with limpid tears of glass, and hanging like clustered -chandeliers from the vaulted roof, seemed as it were to kindle and -form a sudden illumination as we passed on our way. It seemed as if -the genii of the depths were lighting up their palace to receive -their terrestrial guests. - -"It is magnificent!" I cried spontaneously. "My uncle, what a sight! -Don't you admire those blending hues of lava, passing from reddish -brown to bright yellow by imperceptible shades? And these crystals -are just like globes of light." - -"Ali, you think so, do you, Axel, my boy? Well, you will see greater -splendours than these, I hope. Now let us march: march!" - -He had better have said slide, for we did nothing but drop down the -steep inclines. It was the facifs _descensus Averni_ of Virgil. The -compass, which I consulted frequently, gave our direction as -south-east with inflexible steadiness. This lava stream deviated -neither to the right nor to the left. - -Yet there was no sensible increase of temperature. This justified -Davy's theory, and more than once I consulted the thermometer with -surprise. Two hours after our departure it only marked 10° (50° -Fahr.), an increase of only 4°. This gave reason for believing that -our descent was more horizontal than vertical. As for the exact depth -reached, it was very easy to ascertain that; the Professor measured -accurately the angles of deviation and inclination on the road, but -he kept the results to himself. - -About eight in the evening he signalled to stop. Hans sat down at -once. The lamps were hung upon a projection in the lava; we were in a -sort of cavern where there was plenty of air. Certain puffs of air -reached us. What atmospheric disturbance was the cause of them? I -could not answer that question at the moment. Hunger and fatigue made -me incapable of reasoning. A descent of seven hours consecutively is -not made without considerable expenditure of strength. I was -exhausted. The order to 'halt' therefore gave me pleasure. Hans laid -our provisions upon a block of lava, and we ate with a good appetite. -But one thing troubled me, our supply of water was half consumed. My -uncle reckoned upon a fresh supply from subterranean sources, but -hitherto we had met with none. I could not help drawing his attention -to this circumstance. - -"Are you surprised at this want of springs?" he said. - -"More than that, I am anxious about it; we have only water enough for -five days." - -"Don't be uneasy, Axel, we shall find more than we want." - -"When?" - -"When we have left this bed of lava behind us. How could springs -break through such walls as these?" - -"But perhaps this passage runs to a very great depth. It seems to me -that we have made no great progress vertically." - -"Why do you suppose that?" - -"Because if we had gone deep into the crust of earth, we should have -encountered greater heat." - -"According to your system," said my uncle. "But what does the -thermometer say?" - -"Hardly fifteen degrees (59° Fahr), nine degrees only since our -departure." - -"Well, what is your conclusion?" - -"This is my conclusion. According to exact observations, the increase -of temperature in the interior of the globe advances at the rate of -one degree (1 4/5° Fahr.) for every hundred feet. But certain local -conditions may modify this rate. Thus at Yakoutsk in Siberia the -increase of a degree is ascertained to be reached every 36 feet. This -difference depends upon the heat-conducting power of the rocks. -Moreover, in the neighbourhood of an extinct volcano, through gneiss, -it has been observed that the increase of a degree is only attained -at every 125 feet. Let us therefore assume this last hypothesis as -the most suitable to our situation, and calculate." - -"Well, do calculate, my boy." - -"Nothing is easier," said I, putting down figures in my note book. -"Nine times a hundred and twenty-five feet gives a depth of eleven -hundred and twenty-five feet." - -"Very accurate indeed." - -"Well?" - -"By my observation we are at 10,000 feet below the level of the sea." - -"Is that possible?" - -"Yes, or figures are of no use." - -The Professor's calculations were quite correct. We had already -attained a depth of six thousand feet beyond that hitherto reached by -the foot of man, such as the mines of Kitz Bahl in Tyrol, and those -of Wuttembourg in Bohemia. - -The temperature, which ought to have been 81° (178° Fahr.) was -scarcely 15° (59° Fahr.). Here was cause for reflection. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. - -GEOLOGICAL STUDIES IN SITU - - -Next day, Tuesday, June 30, at 6 a.m., the descent began again. - -We were still following the gallery of lava, a real natural -staircase, and as gently sloping as those inclined planes which in -some old houses are still found instead of flights of steps. And so -we went on until 12.17, the, precise moment when we overtook Hans, -who had stopped. - -"Ah! here we are," exclaimed my uncle, "at the very end of the -chimney." - -I looked around me. We were standing at the intersection of two -roads, both dark and narrow. Which were we to take? This was a -difficulty. - -Still my uncle refused to admit an appearance of hesitation, either -before me or the guide; he pointed out the Eastern tunnel, and we -were soon all three in it. - -Besides there would have been interminable hesitation before this -choice of roads; for since there was no indication whatever to guide -our choice, we were obliged to trust to chance. - -The slope of this gallery was scarcely perceptible, and its sections -very unequal. Sometimes we passed a series of arches succeeding each -other like the majestic arcades of a gothic cathedral. Here the -architects of the middle ages might have found studies for every form -of the sacred art which sprang from the development of the pointed -arch. A mile farther we had to bow our heads under corniced elliptic -arches in the romanesque style; and massive pillars standing out from -the wall bent under the spring of the vault that rested heavily upon -them. In other places this magnificence gave way to narrow channels -between low structures which looked like beaver's huts, and we had to -creep along through extremely narrow passages. - -The heat was perfectly bearable. Involuntarily I began to think of -its heat when the lava thrown out by Snæfell was boiling and working -through this now silent road. I imagined the torrents of fire hurled -back at every angle in the gallery, and the accumulation of intensely -heated vapours in the midst of this confined channel. - -I only hope, thought I, that this so-called extinct volcano won't -take a fancy in his old age to begin his sports again! - -I abstained from communicating these fears to Professor Liedenbrock. He -would never have understood them at all. He had but one idea--forward! -He walked, he slid, he scrambled, he tumbled, with a persistency which -one could not but admire. - -By six in the evening, after a not very fatiguing walk, we had gone -two leagues south, but scarcely a quarter of a mile down. - -My uncle said it was time to go to sleep. We ate without talking, and -went to sleep without reflection. - -Our arrangements for the night were very simple; a railway rug each, -into which we rolled ourselves, was our sole covering. We had neither -cold nor intrusive visits to fear. Travellers who penetrate into the -wilds of central Africa, and into the pathless forests of the New -World, are obliged to watch over each other by night. But we enjoyed -absolute safety and utter seclusion; no savages or wild beasts -infested these silent depths. - -Next morning, we awoke fresh and in good spirits. The road was -resumed. As the day before, we followed the path of the lava. It was -impossible to tell what rocks we were passing: the tunnel, instead of -tending lower, approached more and more nearly to a horizontal -direction, I even fancied a slight rise. But about ten this upward -tendency became so evident, and therefore so fatiguing, that I was -obliged to slacken my pace. - -"Well, Axel?" demanded the Professor impatiently. - -"Well, I cannot stand it any longer," I replied. - -"What! after three hours' walk over such easy ground." - -"It may be easy, but it is tiring all the same." - -"What, when we have nothing to do but keep going down!" - -"Going up, if you please." - -"Going up!" said my uncle, with a shrug. - -"No doubt, for the last half-hour the inclines have gone the other -way, and at this rate we shall soon arrive upon the level soil of -Iceland." - -The Professor nodded slowly and uneasily like a man that declines to -be convinced. I tried to resume the conversation. He answered not a -word, and gave the signal for a start. I saw that his silence was -nothing but ill-humour. - -Still I had courageously shouldered my burden again, and was rapidly -following Hans, whom my uncle preceded. I was anxious not to be left -behind. My greatest care was not to lose sight of my companions. I -shuddered at the thought of being lost in the mazes of this vast -subterranean labyrinth. - -Besides, if the ascending road did become steeper, I was comforted -with the thought that it was bringing us nearer to the surface. There -was hope in this. Every step confirmed me in it, and I was rejoicing -at the thought of meeting my little Gräuben again. - -By mid-day there was a change in the appearance of this wall of the -gallery. I noticed it by a diminution of the amount of light -reflected from the sides; solid rock was appearing in the place of -the lava coating. The mass was composed of inclined and sometimes -vertical strata. We were passing through rocks of the transition or -silurian [1] system. - -"It is evident," I cried, "the marine deposits formed in the second -period, these shales, limestones, and sandstones. We are turning away -from the primary granite. We are just as if we were people of Hamburg -going to Lübeck by way of Hanover!" - -I had better have kept my observations to myself. But my geological -instinct was stronger than my prudence, and uncle Liedenbrock heard -my exclamation. - -"What's that you are saying?" he asked. - -"See," I said, pointing to the varied series of sandstones and -limestones, and the first indication of slate. - -"Well?" - -"We are at the period when the first plants and animals appeared." - -"Do you think so?" - -"Look close, and examine." - -I obliged the Professor to move his lamp over the walls of the -gallery. I expected some signs of astonishment; but he spoke not a -word, and went on. - -Had he understood me or not? Did he refuse to admit, out of self-love -as an uncle and a philosopher, that he had mistaken his way when he -chose the eastern tunnel? or was he determined to examine this -passage to its farthest extremity? It was evident that we had left -the lava path, and that this road could not possibly lead to the -extinct furnace of Snæfell. - -Yet I asked myself if I was not depending too much on this change in -the rock. Might I not myself be mistaken? Were we really crossing the -layers of rock which overlie the granite foundation? - -[1]The name given by Sir Roderick Murchison to a vast series of -fossiliferous strata, which lies between the non-fossiliferous slaty -schists below and the old red sandstone above. The system is well -developed in the region of Shropshire, etc., once inhabited by the -Silures under Caractacus, or Caradoc. (Tr.) - -If I am right, I thought, I must soon find some fossil remains of -primitive life; and then we must yield to evidence. I will look. - -I had not gone a hundred paces before incontestable proofs presented -themselves. It could not be otherwise, for in the Silurian age the -seas contained at least fifteen hundred vegetable and animal species. -My feet, which had become accustomed to the indurated lava floor, -suddenly rested upon a dust composed of the _debris_ of plants and -shells. In the walls were distinct impressions of fucoids and -lycopodites. - -Professor Liedenbrock could not be mistaken, I thought, and yet he -pushed on, with, I suppose, his eyes resolutely shut. - -This was only invincible obstinacy. I could hold out no longer. I -picked up a perfectly formed shell, which had belonged to an animal -not unlike the woodlouse: then, joining my uncle, I said: - -"Look at this!" - -"Very well," said he quietly, "it is the shell of a crustacean, of an -extinct species called a trilobite. Nothing more." - -"But don't you conclude--?" - -"Just what you conclude yourself. Yes; I do, perfectly. We have left -the granite and the lava. It is possible that I may be mistaken. But -I cannot be sure of that until I have reached the very end of this -gallery." - -"You are right in doing this, my uncle, and I should quite approve of -your determination, if there were not a danger threatening us nearer -and nearer." - -"What danger?" - -"The want of water." - -"Well, Axel, we will put ourselves upon rations." - - - - -CHAPTER XX. - -THE FIRST SIGNS OF DISTRESS - - -In fact, we had to ration ourselves. Our provision of water could not -last more than three days. I found that out for certain when -supper-time came. And, to our sorrow, we had little reason to expect -to find a spring in these transition beds. - -The whole of the next day the gallery opened before us its endless -arcades. We moved on almost without a word. Hans' silence seemed to -be infecting us. - -The road was now not ascending, at least not perceptibly. Sometimes, -even, it seemed to have a slight fall. But this tendency, which was -very trifling, could not do anything to reassure the Professor; for -there was no change in the beds, and the transitional characteristics -became more and more decided. - -The electric light was reflected in sparkling splendour from the -schist, limestone, and old red sandstone of the walls. It might have -been thought that we were passing through a section of Wales, of -which an ancient people gave its name to this system. Specimens of -magnificent marbles clothed the walls, some of a greyish agate -fantastically veined with white, others of rich crimson or yellow -dashed with splotches of red; then came dark cherry-coloured marbles -relieved by the lighter tints of limestone. - -The greater part of these bore impressions of primitive organisms. -Creation had evidently advanced since the day before. Instead of -rudimentary trilobites, I noticed remains of a more perfect order of -beings, amongst others ganoid fishes and some of those sauroids in -which palaeontologists have discovered the earliest reptile forms. -The Devonian seas were peopled by animals of these species, and -deposited them by thousands in the rocks of the newer formation. - -It was evident that we were ascending that scale of animal life in -which man fills the highest place. But Professor Liedenbrock seemed -not to notice it. - -He was awaiting one of two events, either the appearance of a -vertical well opening before his feet, down which our descent might -be resumed, or that of some obstacle which should effectually turn us -back on our own footsteps. But evening came and neither wish was -gratified. - -On Friday, after a night during which I felt pangs of thirst, our -little troop again plunged into the winding passages of the gallery. - -After ten hours' walking I observed a singular deadening of the -reflection of our lamps from the side walls. The marble, the schist, -the limestone, and the sandstone were giving way to a dark and -lustreless lining. At one moment, the tunnel becoming very narrow, I -leaned against the wall. - -When I removed my hand it was black. I looked nearer, and found we -were in a coal formation. - -"A coal mine!" I cried. - -"A mine without miners," my uncle replied. - -"Who knows?" I asked. - -"I know," the Professor pronounced decidedly, "I am certain that this -gallery driven through beds of coal was never pierced by the hand of -man. But whether it be the hand of nature or not does not matter. -Supper time is come; let us sup." - -Hans prepared some food. I scarcely ate, and I swallowed down the few -drops of water rationed out to me. One flask half full was all we had -left to slake the thirst of three men. - -After their meal my two companions laid themselves down upon their -rugs, and found in sleep a solace for their fatigue. But I could not -sleep, and I counted every hour until morning. - -On Saturday, at six, we started afresh. In twenty minutes we reached -a vast open space; I then knew that the hand of man had not hollowed -out this mine; the vaults would have been shored up, and, as it was, -they seemed to be held up by a miracle of equilibrium. - -This cavern was about a hundred feet wide and a hundred and fifty in -height. A large mass had been rent asunder by a subterranean -disturbance. Yielding to some vast power from below it had broken -asunder, leaving this great hollow into which human beings were now -penetrating for the first time. - -The whole history of the carboniferous period was written upon these -gloomy walls, and a geologist might with ease trace all its diverse -phases. The beds of coal were separated by strata of sandstone or -compact clays, and appeared crushed under the weight of overlying -strata. - -At the age of the world which preceded the secondary period, the -earth was clothed with immense vegetable forms, the product of the -double influence of tropical heat and constant moisture; a vapoury -atmosphere surrounded the earth, still veiling the direct rays of the -sun. - -Thence arises the conclusion that the high temperature then existing -was due to some other source than the heat of the sun. Perhaps even -the orb of day may not have been ready yet to play the splendid part -he now acts. There were no 'climates' as yet, and a torrid heat, -equal from pole to equator, was spread over the whole surface of the -globe. Whence this heat? Was it from the interior of the earth? - -Notwithstanding the theories of Professor Liedenbrock, a violent heat -did at that time brood within the body of the spheroid. Its action -was felt to the very last coats of the terrestrial crust; the plants, -unacquainted with the beneficent influences of the sun, yielded -neither flowers nor scent. But their roots drew vigorous life from -the burning soil of the early days of this planet. - -There were but few trees. Herbaceous plants alone existed. There were -tall grasses, ferns, lycopods, besides sigillaria, asterophyllites, -now scarce plants, but then the species might be counted by thousands. - -The coal measures owe their origin to this period of profuse -vegetation. The yet elastic and yielding crust of the earth obeyed -the fluid forces beneath. Thence innumerable fissures and -depressions. The plants, sunk underneath the waters, formed by -degrees into vast accumulated masses. - -Then came the chemical action of nature; in the depths of the seas -the vegetable accumulations first became peat; then, acted upon by -generated gases and the heat of fermentation, they underwent a -process of complete mineralization. - -Thus were formed those immense coalfields, which nevertheless, are -not inexhaustible, and which three centuries at the present -accelerated rate of consumption will exhaust unless the industrial -world will devise a remedy. - -These reflections came into my mind whilst I was contemplating the -mineral wealth stored up in this portion of the globe. These no -doubt, I thought, will never be discovered; the working of such deep -mines would involve too large an outlay, and where would be the use -as long as coal is yet spread far and wide near the surface? Such as -my eyes behold these virgin stores, such they will be when this world -comes to an end. - -But still we marched on, and I alone was forgetting the length of the -way by losing myself in the midst of geological contemplations. The -temperature remained what it had been during our passage through the -lava and schists. Only my sense of smell was forcibly affected by an -odour of protocarburet of hydrogen. I immediately recognised in this -gallery the presence of a considerable quantity of the dangerous gas -called by miners firedamp, the explosion of which has often -occasioned such dreadful catastrophes. - -Happily, our light was from Ruhmkorff's ingenious apparatus. If -unfortunately we had explored this gallery with torches, a terrible -explosion would have put an end to travelling and travellers at one -stroke. - -This excursion through the coal mine lasted till night. My uncle -scarcely could restrain his impatience at the horizontal road. The -darkness, always deep twenty yards before us, prevented us from -estimating the length of the gallery; and I was beginning to think it -must be endless, when suddenly at six o'clock a wall very -unexpectedly stood before us. Right or left, top or bottom, there was -no road farther; we were at the end of a blind alley. "Very well, -it's all right!" cried my uncle, "now, at any rate, we shall know -what we are about. We are not in Saknussemm's road, and all we have -to do is to go back. Let us take a night's rest, and in three days we -shall get to the fork in the road." "Yes," said I, "if we have any -strength left." "Why not?" "Because to-morrow we shall have no -water." "Nor courage either?" asked my uncle severely. I dared make -no answer. - - - - -CHAPTER XXI. - -COMPASSION FUSES THE PROFESSOR'S HEART - - -Next day we started early. We had to hasten forward. It was a three -days' march to the cross roads. - -I will not speak of the sufferings we endured in our return. My uncle -bore them with the angry impatience of a man obliged to own his -weakness; Hans with the resignation of his passive nature; I, I -confess, with complaints and expressions of despair. I had no spirit -to oppose this ill fortune. - -As I had foretold, the water failed entirely by the end of the first -day's retrograde march. Our fluid aliment was now nothing but gin; -but this infernal fluid burned my throat, and I could not even endure -the sight of it. I found the temperature and the air stifling. -Fatigue paralysed my limbs. More than once I dropped down motionless. -Then there was a halt; and my uncle and the Icelander did their best -to restore me. But I saw that the former was struggling painfully -against excessive fatigue and the tortures of thirst. - -At last, on Tuesday, July 8, we arrived on our hands and knees, and -half dead, at the junction of the two roads. There I dropped like a -lifeless lump, extended on the lava soil. It was ten in the morning. - -Hans and my uncle, clinging to the wall, tried to nibble a few bits -of biscuit. Long moans escaped from my swollen lips. - -After some time my uncle approached me and raised me in his arms. - -"Poor boy!" said he, in genuine tones of compassion. - -I was touched with these words, not being accustomed to see the -excitable Professor in a softened mood. I grasped his trembling hands -in mine. He let me hold them and looked at me. His eyes were -moistened. - -Then I saw him take the flask that was hanging at his side. To my -amazement he placed it on my lips. - -"Drink!" said he. - -Had I heard him? Was my uncle beside himself? I stared at, him -stupidly, and felt as if I could not understand him. - -"Drink!" he said again. - -And raising his flask he emptied it every drop between my lips. - -Oh! infinite pleasure! a slender sip of water came to moisten my -burning mouth. It was but one sip but it was enough to recall my -ebbing life. - -I thanked my uncle with clasped hands. - -"Yes," he said, "a draught of water; but it is the very last--you -hear!--the last. I had kept it as a precious treasure at the bottom -of my flask. Twenty times, nay, a hundred times, have I fought -against a frightful impulse to drink it off. But no, Axel, I kept it -for you." - -"My dear uncle," I said, whilst hot tears trickled down my face. - -"Yes, my poor boy, I knew that as soon as you arrived at these cross -roads you would drop half dead, and I kept my last drop of water to -reanimate you." - -"Thank you, thank you," I said. Although my thirst was only partially -quenched, yet some strength had returned. The muscles of my throat, -until then contracted, now relaxed again; and the inflammation of my -lips abated somewhat; and I was now able to speak. . - -"Let us see," I said, "we have now but one thing to do. We have no -water; we must go back." - -While I spoke my uncle avoided looking at me; he hung his head down; -his eyes avoided mine. - -"We must return," I exclaimed vehemently; "we must go back on our way -to Snæfell. May God give us strength to climb up the crater again!" - -"Return!" said my uncle, as if he was rather answering himself than -me. - -"Yes, return, without the loss of a minute." - -A long silence followed. - -"So then, Axel," replied the Professor ironically, "you have found no -courage or energy in these few drops of water?" - -"Courage?" - -"I see you just as feeble-minded as you were before, and still -expressing only despair!" - -What sort of a man was this I had to do with, and what schemes was he -now revolving in his fearless mind? - -"What! you won't go back?" - -"Should I renounce this expedition just when we have the fairest -chance of success! Never!" - -"Then must we resign ourselves to destruction?" - -"No, Axel, no; go back. Hans will go with you. Leave me to myself!" - -"Leave you here!" - -"Leave me, I tell you. I have undertaken this expedition. I will -carry it out to the end, and I will not return. Go, Axel, go!" - -My uncle was in high state of excitement. His voice, which had for a -moment been tender and gentle, had now become hard and threatening. -He was struggling with gloomy resolutions against impossibilities. I -would not leave him in this bottomless abyss, and on the other hand -the instinct of self-preservation prompted me to fly. - -The guide watched this scene with his usual phlegmatic unconcern. Yet -he understood perfectly well what was going on between his two -companions. The gestures themselves were sufficient to show that we -were each bent on taking a different road; but Hans seemed to take no -part in a question upon which depended his life. He was ready to -start at a given signal, or to stay, if his master so willed it. - -How I wished at this moment I could have made him understand me. My -words, my complaints, my sorrow would have had some influence over -that frigid nature. Those dangers which our guide could not -understand I could have demonstrated and proved to him. Together we -might have over-ruled the obstinate Professor; if it were needed, we -might perhaps have compelled him to regain the heights of Snæfell. - -I drew near to Hans. I placed my hand upon his. He made no movement. -My parted lips sufficiently revealed my sufferings. The Icelander -slowly moved his head, and calmly pointing to my uncle said: - -"Master." - -"Master!" I shouted; "you madman! no, he is not the master of our -life; we must fly, we must drag him. Do you hear me? Do you -understand?" - -I had seized Hans by the arm. I wished to oblige him to rise. I -strove with him. My uncle interposed. - -"Be calm, Axel! you will get nothing from that immovable servant. -Therefore, listen to my proposal." - -I crossed my arms, and confronted my uncle boldly. - -"The want of water," he said, "is the only obstacle in our way. In -this eastern gallery made up of lavas, schists, and coal, we have not -met with a single particle of moisture. Perhaps we shall be more -fortunate if we follow the western tunnel." - -I shook my head incredulously. - -"Hear me to the end," the Professor went on with a firm voice. -"Whilst you were lying there motionless, I went to examine the -conformation of that gallery. It penetrates directly downward, and in -a few hours it will bring us to the granite rocks. There we must meet -with abundant springs. The nature of the rock assures me of this, and -instinct agrees with logic to support my conviction. Now, this is my -proposal. When Columbus asked of his ships' crews for three days more -to discover a new world, those crews, disheartened and sick as they -were, recognised the justice of the claim, and he discovered America. -I am the Columbus of this nether world, and I only ask for one more -day. If in a single day I have not met with the water that we want, I -swear to you we will return to the surface of the earth." - -In spite of my irritation I was moved with these words, as well as -with the violence my uncle was doing to his own wishes in making so -hazardous a proposal. - -"Well," I said, "do as you will, and God reward your superhuman -energy. You have now but a few hours to tempt fortune. Let us start!" - - - - -CHAPTER XXII. - -TOTAL FAILURE OF WATER - - -This time the descent commenced by the new gallery. Hans walked first -as was his custom. - -We had not gone a hundred yards when the Professor, moving his -lantern along the walls, cried: - -"Here are primitive rocks. Now we are in the right way. Forward!" - -When in its early stages the earth was slowly cooling, its -contraction gave rise in its crust to disruptions, distortions, -fissures, and chasms. The passage through which we were moving was -such a fissure, through which at one time granite poured out in a -molten state. Its thousands of windings formed an inextricable -labyrinth through the primeval mass. - -As fast as we descended, the succession of beds forming the primitive -foundation came out with increasing distinctness. Geologists consider -this primitive matter to be the base of the mineral crust of the -earth, and have ascertained it to be composed of three different -formations, schist, gneiss, and mica schist, resting upon that -unchangeable foundation, the granite. - -Never had mineralogists found themselves in so marvellous a situation -to study nature in situ. What the boring machine, an insensible, -inert instrument, was unable to bring to the surface of the inner -structure of the globe, we were able to peruse with our own eyes and -handle with our own hands. - -Through the beds of schist, coloured with delicate shades of green, -ran in winding course threads of copper and manganese, with traces of -platinum and gold. I thought, what riches are here buried at an -unapproachable depth in the earth, hidden for ever from the covetous -eyes of the human race! These treasures have been buried at such a -profound depth by the convulsions of primeval times that they run no -chance of ever being molested by the pickaxe or the spade. - -To the schists succeeded gneiss, partially stratified, remarkable for -the parallelism and regularity of its lamina, then mica schists, laid -in large plates or flakes, revealing their lamellated structure by -the sparkle of the white shining mica. - -The light from our apparatus, reflected from the small facets of -quartz, shot sparkling rays at every angle, and I seemed to be moving -through a diamond, within which the quickly darting rays broke across -each other in a thousand flashing coruscations. - -About six o'clock this brilliant fete of illuminations underwent a -sensible abatement of splendour, then almost ceased. The walls -assumed a crystallised though sombre appearance; mica was more -closely mingled with the feldspar and quartz to form the proper rocky -foundations of the earth, which bears without distortion or crushing -the weight of the four terrestrial systems. We were immured within -prison walls of granite. - -It was eight in the evening. No signs of water had yet appeared. I -was suffering horribly. My uncle strode on. He refused to stop. He -was listening anxiously for the murmur of distant springs. But, no, -there was dead silence. - -And now my limbs were failing beneath me. I resisted pain and -torture, that I might not stop my uncle, which would have driven him -to despair, for the day was drawing near to its end, and it was his -last. - -At last I failed utterly; I uttered a cry and fell. - -"Come to me, I am dying." - -My uncle retraced his steps. He gazed upon me with his arms crossed; -then these muttered words passed his lips: - -"It's all over!" - -The last thing I saw was a fearful gesture of rage, and my eyes -closed. - -When I reopened them I saw my two companions motionless and rolled up -in their coverings. Were they asleep? As for me, I could not get one -moment's sleep. I was suffering too keenly, and what embittered my -thoughts was that there was no remedy. My uncle's last words echoed -painfully in my ears: "it's all over!" For in such a fearful state of -debility it was madness to think of ever reaching the upper world -again. - -We had above us a league and a half of terrestrial crust. The weight -of it seemed to be crushing down upon my shoulders. I felt weighed -down, and I exhausted myself with imaginary violent exertions to turn -round upon my granite couch. - -A few hours passed away. A deep silence reigned around us, the -silence of the grave. No sound could reach us through walls, the -thinnest of which were five miles thick. - -Yet in the midst of my stupefaction I seemed to be aware of a noise. -It was dark down the tunnel, but I seemed to see the Icelander -vanishing from our sight with the lamp in his hand. - -Why was he leaving us? Was Hans going to forsake us? My uncle was -fast asleep. I wanted to shout, but my voice died upon my parched and -swollen lips. The darkness became deeper, and the last sound died -away in the far distance. - -"Hans has abandoned us," I cried. "Hans! Hans!" - -But these words were only spoken within me. They went no farther. Yet -after the first moment of terror I felt ashamed of suspecting a man -of such extraordinary faithfulness. Instead of ascending he was -descending the gallery. An evil design would have taken him up not -down. This reflection restored me to calmness, and I turned to other -thoughts. None but some weighty motive could have induced so quiet a -man to forfeit his sleep. Was he on a journey of discovery? Had he -during the silence of the night caught a sound, a murmuring of -something in the distance, which had failed to affect my hearing? - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII. - -WATER DISCOVERED - - -For a whole hour I was trying to work out in my delirious brain the -reasons which might have influenced this seemingly tranquil huntsman. -The absurdest notions ran in utter confusion through my mind. I -thought madness was coming on! - -But at last a noise of footsteps was heard in the dark abyss. Hans -was approaching. A flickering light was beginning to glimmer on the -wall of our darksome prison; then it came out full at the mouth of -the gallery. Hans appeared. - -He drew close to my uncle, laid his hand upon his shoulder, and -gently woke him. My uncle rose up. - -"What is the matter?" he asked. - -"_Watten!_" replied the huntsman. - -No doubt under the inspiration of intense pain everybody becomes -endowed with the gift of divers tongues. I did not know a word of -Danish, yet instinctively I understood the word he had uttered. - -"Water! water!" I cried, clapping my hands and gesticulating like a -madman. - -"Water!" repeated my uncle. "Hvar?" he asked, in Icelandic. - -"_Nedat,_" replied Hans. - -"Where? Down below!" I understood it all. I seized the hunter's -hands, and pressed them while he looked on me without moving a muscle -of his countenance. - -The preparations for our departure were not long in making, and we -were soon on our way down a passage inclining two feet in seven. In -an hour we had gone a mile and a quarter, and descended two thousand -feet. - -Then I began to hear distinctly quite a new sound of something -running within the thickness of the granite wall, a kind of dull, -dead rumbling, like distant thunder. During the first part of our -walk, not meeting with the promised spring, I felt my agony -returning; but then my uncle acquainted me with the cause of the -strange noise. - -"Hans was not mistaken," he said. "What you hear is the rushing of a -torrent." - -"A torrent?" I exclaimed. - -"There can be no doubt; a subterranean river is flowing around us." - -We hurried forward in the greatest excitement. I was no longer -sensible of my fatigue. This murmuring of waters close at hand was -already refreshing me. It was audibly increasing. The torrent, after -having for some time flowed over our heads, was now running within -the left wall, roaring and rushing. Frequently I touched the wall, -hoping to feel some indications of moisture: But there was no hope -here. - -Yet another half hour, another half league was passed. - -Then it became clear that the hunter had gone no farther. Guided by -an instinct peculiar to mountaineers he had as it were felt this -torrent through the rock; but he had certainly seen none of the -precious liquid; he had drunk nothing himself. - -Soon it became evident that if we continued our walk we should widen -the distance between ourselves and the stream, the noise of which was -becoming fainter. - -We returned. Hans stopped where the torrent seemed closest. I sat -near the wall, while the waters were flowing past me at a distance of -two feet with extreme violence. But there was a thick granite wall -between us and the object of our desires. - -Without reflection, without asking if there were any means of -procuring the water, I gave way to a movement of despair. - -Hans glanced at me with, I thought, a smile of compassion. - -He rose and took the lamp. I followed him. He moved towards the wall. -I looked on. He applied his ear against the dry stone, and moved it -slowly to and fro, listening intently. I perceived at once that he -was examining to find the exact place where the torrent could be -heard the loudest. He met with that point on the left side of the -tunnel, at three feet from the ground. - -I was stirred up with excitement. I hardly dared guess what the -hunter was about to do. But I could not but understand, and applaud -and cheer him on, when I saw him lay hold of the pickaxe to make an -attack upon the rock. - -"We are saved!" I cried. - -"Yes," cried my uncle, almost frantic with excitement. "Hans is -right. Capital fellow! Who but he would have thought of it?" - -Yes; who but he? Such an expedient, however simple, would never have -entered into our minds. True, it seemed most hazardous to strike a -blow of the hammer in this part of the earth's structure. Suppose -some displacement should occur and crush us all! Suppose the torrent, -bursting through, should drown us in a sudden flood! There was -nothing vain in these fancies. But still no fears of falling rocks or -rushing floods could stay us now; and our thirst was so intense that, -to satisfy it, we would have dared the waves of the north Atlantic. - -Hans set about the task which my uncle and I together could not have -accomplished. If our impatience had armed our hands with power, we -should have shattered the rock into a thousand fragments. Not so -Hans. Full of self possession, he calmly wore his way through the -rock with a steady succession of light and skilful strokes, working -through an aperture six inches wide at the outside. I could hear a -louder noise of flowing waters, and I fancied I could feel the -delicious fluid refreshing my parched lips. - -The pick had soon penetrated two feet into the granite partition, and -our man had worked for above an hour. I was in an agony of -impatience. My uncle wanted to employ stronger measures, and I had -some difficulty in dissuading him; still he had just taken a pickaxe -in his hand, when a sudden hissing was heard, and a jet of water -spurted out with violence against the opposite wall. - -Hans, almost thrown off his feet by the violence of the shock, -uttered a cry of grief and disappointment, of which I soon under-. -stood the cause, when plunging my hands into the spouting torrent, I -withdrew them in haste, for the water was scalding hot. - -"The water is at the boiling point," I cried. - -"Well, never mind, let it cool," my uncle replied. - -The tunnel was filling with steam, whilst a stream was forming, which -by degrees wandered away into subterranean windings, and soon we had -the satisfaction of swallowing our first draught. - -Could anything be more delicious than the sensation that our burning -intolerable thirst was passing away, and leaving us to enjoy comfort -and pleasure? But where was this water from? No matter. It was water; -and though still warm, it brought life back to the dying. I kept -drinking without stopping, and almost without tasting. - -At last after a most delightful time of reviving energy, I cried, -"Why, this is a chalybeate spring!" - -"Nothing could be better for the digestion," said my uncle. "It is -highly impregnated with iron. It will be as good for us as going to -the Spa, or to Töplitz." - -"Well, it is delicious!" - -"Of course it is, water should be, found six miles underground. It -has an inky flavour, which is not at all unpleasant. What a capital -source of strength Hans has found for us here. We will call it after -his name." - -"Agreed," I cried. - -And Hansbach it was from that moment. - -Hans was none the prouder. After a moderate draught, he went quietly -into a corner to rest. - -"Now," I said, "we must not lose this water." - -"What is the use of troubling ourselves?" my uncle, replied. "I fancy -it will never fail." - -"Never mind, we cannot be sure; let us fill the water bottle and our -flasks, and then stop up the opening." - -My advice was followed so far as getting in a supply; but the -stopping up of the hole was not so easy to accomplish. It was in vain -that we took up fragments of granite, and stuffed them in with tow, -we only scalded our hands without succeeding. The pressure was too -great, and our efforts were fruitless. - -"It is quite plain," said I, "that the higher body of this water is -at a considerable elevation. The force of the jet shows that." - -"No doubt," answered my uncle. "If this column of water is 32,000 -feet high--that is, from the surface of the earth, it is equal to -the weight of a thousand atmospheres. But I have got an idea." - -"Well?" - -"Why should we trouble ourselves to stop the stream from coming out -at all?" - -"Because--" Well, I could not assign a reason. - -"When our flasks are empty, where shall we fill them again? Can we -tell that?" - -No; there was no certainty. - -"Well, let us allow the water to run on. It will flow down, and will -both guide and refresh us." - -"That is well planned," I cried. "With this stream for our guide, -there is no reason why we should not succeed in our undertaking." - -"Ah, my boy! you agree with me now," cried the Professor, laughing. - -"I agree with you most heartily." - -"Well, let us rest awhile; and then we will start again." - -I was forgetting that it was night. The chronometer soon informed me -of that fact; and in a very short time, refreshed and thankful, we -all three fell into a sound sleep. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV. - -WELL SAID, OLD MOLE! CANST THOU WORK I' THE GROUND SO FAST? - - -By the next day we had forgotten all our sufferings. At first, I was -wondering that I was no longer thirsty, and I was for asking for the -reason. The answer came in the murmuring of the stream at my feet. - -We breakfasted, and drank of this excellent chalybeate water. I felt -wonderfully stronger, and quite decided upon pushing on. Why should -not so firmly convinced a man as my uncle, furnished with so -industrious a guide as Hans, and accompanied by so determined a -nephew as myself, go on to final success? Such were the magnificent -plans which struggled for mastery within me. If it had been proposed -to me to return to the summit of Snæfell, I should have indignantly -declined. - -Most fortunately, all we had to do was to descend. - -"Let us start!" I cried, awakening by my shouts the echoes of the -vaulted hollows of the earth. - -On Thursday, at 8 a.m., we started afresh. The granite tunnel winding -from side to side, earned us past unexpected turns, and seemed almost -to form a labyrinth; but, on the whole, its direction seemed to be -south-easterly. My uncle never ceased to consult his compass, to keep -account of the ground gone over. - -The gallery dipped down a very little way from the horizontal, -scarcely more than two inches in a fathom, and the stream ran gently -murmuring at our feet. I compared it to a friendly genius guiding us -underground, and caressed with my hand the soft naiad, whose -comforting voice accompanied our steps. With my reviving spirits -these mythological notions seemed to come unbidden. - -As for my uncle, he was beginning to storm against the horizontal -road. He loved nothing better than a vertical path; but this way -seemed indefinitely prolonged, and instead of sliding along the -hypothenuse as we were now doing, he would willingly have dropped -down the terrestrial radius. But there was no help for it, and as -long as we were approaching the centre at all we felt that we must -not complain. - -From time to time, a steeper path appeared; our naiad then began to -tumble before us with a hoarser murmur, and we went down with her to -a greater depth. - -On the whole, that day and the next we made considerable way -horizontally, very little vertically. - -On Friday evening, the 10th of July, according to our calculations, -we were thirty leagues south-east of Rejkiavik, and at a depth of two -leagues and a half. - -At our feet there now opened a frightful abyss. My uncle, however, -was not to be daunted, and he clapped his hands at the steepness of -the descent. - -"This will take us a long way," he cried, "and without much -difficulty; for the projections in the rock form quite a staircase." - -The ropes were so fastened by Hans as to guard against accident, and -the descent commenced. I can hardly call it perilous, for I was -beginning to be familiar with this kind of exercise. - -This well, or abyss, was a narrow cleft in the mass of the granite, -called by geologists a 'fault,' and caused by the unequal cooling of -the globe of the earth. If it had at one time been a passage for -eruptive matter thrown out by Snæfell, I still could not understand -why no trace was left of its passage. We kept going down a kind of -winding staircase, which seemed almost to have been made by the hand -of man. - -Every quarter of an hour we were obliged to halt, to take a little -necessary repose and restore the action of our limbs. We then sat -down upon a fragment of rock, and we talked as we ate and drank from -the stream. - -Of course, down this fault the Hansbach fell in a cascade, and lost -some of its volume; but there was enough and to spare to slake our -thirst. Besides, when the incline became more gentle, it would of -course resume its peaceable course. At this moment it reminded me of -my worthy uncle, in his frequent fits of impatience and anger, while -below it ran with the calmness of the Icelandic hunter. - -On the 6th and 7th of July we kept following the spiral curves of -this singular well, penetrating in actual distance no more than two -leagues; but being carried to a depth of five leagues below the level -of the sea. But on the 8th, about noon, the fault took, towards the -south-east, a much gentler slope, one of about forty-five degrees. - -Then the road became monotonously easy. It could not be otherwise, -for there was no landscape to vary the stages of our journey. - -On Wednesday, the 15th, we were seven leagues underground, and had -travelled fifty leagues away from Snæfell. Although we were tired, -our health was perfect, and the medicine chest had not yet had -occasion to be opened. - -My uncle noted every hour the indications of the compass, the -chronometer, the aneroid, and the thermometer the very same which he -has published in his scientific report of our journey. It was -therefore not difficult to know exactly our whereabouts. When he told -me that we had gone fifty leagues horizontally, I could not repress -an exclamation of astonishment, at the thought that we had now long -left Iceland behind us. - -"What is the matter?" he cried. - -"I was reflecting that if your calculations are correct we are no -longer under Iceland." - -"Do you think so?" - -"I am not mistaken," I said, and examining the map, I added, "We have -passed Cape Portland, and those fifty leagues bring us under the wide -expanse of ocean." - -"Under the sea," my uncle repeated, rubbing his hands with delight. - -"Can it be?" I said. "Is the ocean spread above our heads?" - -"Of course, Axel. What can be more natural? At Newcastle are there -not coal mines extending far under the sea?" - -It was all very well for the Professor to call this so simple, but I -could not feel quite easy at the thought that the boundless ocean was -rolling over my head. And yet it really mattered very little whether -it was the plains and mountains that covered our heads, or the -Atlantic waves, as long as we were arched over by solid granite. And, -besides, I was getting used to this idea; for the tunnel, now running -straight, now winding as capriciously in its inclines as in its -turnings, but constantly preserving its south-easterly direction, and -always running deeper, was gradually carrying us to very great depths -indeed. - -Four days later, Saturday, the 18th of July, in the evening, we -arrived at a kind of vast grotto; and here my uncle paid Hans his -weekly wages, and it was settled that the next day, Sunday, should be -a day of rest. - - - - -CHAPTER XXV. - -DE PROFUNDIS - - -I therefore awoke next day relieved from the preoccupation of an -immediate start. Although we were in the very deepest of known -depths, there was something not unpleasant about it. And, besides, we -were beginning to get accustomed to this troglodyte [1] life. I no -longer thought of sun, moon, and stars, trees, houses, and towns, nor -of any of those terrestrial superfluities which are necessaries of -men who live upon the earth's surface. Being fossils, we looked upon -all those things as mere jokes. - -The grotto was an immense apartment. Along its granite floor ran our -faithful stream. At this distance from its spring the water was -scarcely tepid, and we drank of it with pleasure. - -After breakfast the Professor gave a few hours to the arrangement of -his daily notes. - -"First," said he, "I will make a calculation to ascertain our exact -position. I hope, after our return, to draw a map of our journey, -which will be in reality a vertical section of the globe, containing -the track of our expedition." - -"That will be curious, uncle; but are your observations sufficiently -accurate to enable you to do this correctly?" - -"Yes; I have everywhere observed the angles and the inclines. I am -sure there is no error. Let us see where we are now. Take your -compass, and note the direction." - -I looked, and replied carefully: - -[1] tpwgln, a hole; dnw, to creep into. The name of an Ethiopian -tribe who lived in caves and holes. ??????, a hole, and ???, to creep -into. - -"South-east by east." - -"Well," answered the Professor, after a rapid calculation, "I infer -that we have gone eighty-five leagues since we started." - -"Therefore we are under mid-Atlantic?" - -"To be sure we are." - -"And perhaps at this very moment there is a storm above, and ships -over our heads are being rudely tossed by the tempest." - -"Quite probable." - -"And whales are lashing the roof of our prison with their tails?" - -"It may be, Axel, but they won't shake us here. But let us go back to -our calculation. Here we are eighty-five leagues south-east of -Snæfell, and I reckon that we are at a depth of sixteen leagues." - -"Sixteen leagues?" I cried. - -"No doubt." - -"Why, this is the very limit assigned by science to the thickness of -the crust of the earth." - -"I don't deny it." - -"And here, according to the law of increasing temperature, there -ought to be a heat of 2,732° Fahr.!" - -"So there should, my lad." - -"And all this solid granite ought to be running in fusion." - -"You see that it is not so, and that, as so often happens, facts come -to overthrow theories." - -"I am obliged to agree; but, after all, it is surprising." - -"What does the thermometer say?" - -"Twenty-seven, six tenths (82° Fahr.)." - -"Therefore the savants are wrong by 2,705°, and the proportional -increase is a mistake. Therefore Humphry Davy was right, and I am not -wrong in following him. What do you say now?" - -"Nothing." - -In truth, I had a good deal to say. I gave way in no respect to -Davy's theory. I still held to the central heat, although I did not -feel its effects. I preferred to admit in truth, that this chimney of -an extinct volcano, lined with lavas, which are non-conductors of -heat, did not suffer the heat to pass through its walls. - -But without stopping to look up new arguments I simply took up our -situation such as it was. - -"Well, admitting all your calculations to be quite correct, you must -allow me to draw one rigid result therefrom." - -"What is it. Speak freely." - -"At the latitude of Iceland, where we now are, the radius of the -earth, the distance from the centre to the surface is about 1,583 -leagues; let us say in round numbers 1,600 leagues, or 4,800 miles. -Out of 1,600 leagues we have gone twelve!" - -"So you say." - -"And these twelve at a cost of 85 leagues diagonally?" - -"Exactly so." - -"In twenty days?" - -"Yes." - -"Now, sixteen leagues are the hundredth part of the earth's radius. -At this rate we shall be two thousand days, or nearly five years and -a half, in getting to the centre." - -No answer was vouchsafed to this rational conclusion. "Without -reckoning, too, that if a vertical depth of sixteen leagues can be -attained only by a diagonal descent of eighty-four, it follows that -we must go eight thousand miles in a south-easterly direction; so -that we shall emerge from some point in the earth's circumference -instead of getting to the centre!" - -"Confusion to all your figures, and all your hypotheses besides," -shouted my uncle in a sudden rage. "What is the basis of them all? -How do you know that this passage does not run straight to our -destination? Besides, there is a precedent. What one man has done, -another may do." - -"I hope so; but, still, I may be permitted--" - -"You shall have my leave to hold your tongue, Axel, but not to talk -in that irrational way." - -I could see the awful Professor bursting through my uncle's skin, and -I took timely warning. - -"Now look at your aneroid. What does that say?" - -"It says we are under considerable pressure." - -"Very good; so you see that by going gradually down, and getting -accustomed to the density of the atmosphere, we don't suffer at all." - -"Nothing, except a little pain in the ears." - -"That's nothing, and you may get rid of even that by quick breathing -whenever you feel the pain." - -"Exactly so," I said, determined not to say a word that might cross -my uncle's prejudices. "There is even positive pleasure in living in -this dense atmosphere. Have you observed how intense sound is down -here?" - -"No doubt it is. A deaf man would soon learn to hear perfectly." - -"But won't this density augment?" - -"Yes; according to a rather obscure law. It is well known that the -weight of bodies diminishes as fast as we descend. You know that it -is at the surface of the globe that weight is most sensibly felt, and -that at the centre there is no weight at all." - -"I am aware of that; but, tell me, will not air at last acquire the -density of water?" - -"Of course, under a pressure of seven hundred and ten atmospheres." - -"And how, lower down still?" - -"Lower down the density will still increase." - -"But how shall we go down then." - -"Why, we must fill our pockets with stones." - -"Well, indeed, my worthy uncle, you are never at a loss for an -answer." - -I dared venture no farther into the region of probabilities, for I -might presently have stumbled upon an impossibility, which would have -brought the Professor on the scene when he was not wanted. - -Still, it was evident that the air, under a pressure which might -reach that of thousands of atmospheres, would at last reach the solid -state, and then, even if our bodies could resist the strain, we -should be stopped, and no reasonings would be able to get us on any -farther. - -But I did not advance this argument. My uncle would have met it with -his inevitable Saknussemm, a precedent which possessed no weight with -me; for even if the journey of the learned Icelander were really -attested, there was one very simple answer, that in the sixteenth -century there was neither barometer or aneroid and therefore -Saknussemm could not tell how far he had gone. - -But I kept this objection to myself, and waited the course of events. - -The rest of the day was passed in calculations and in conversations. -I remained a steadfast adherent of the opinions of Professor -Liedenbrock, and I envied the stolid indifference of Hans, who, -without going into causes and effects, went on with his eyes shut -wherever his destiny guided him. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVI. - -THE WORST PERIL OF ALL - - -It must be confessed that hitherto things had not gone on so badly, -and that I had small reason to complain. If our difficulties became -no worse, we might hope to reach our end. And to what a height of -scientific glory we should then attain! I had become quite a -Liedenbrock in my reasonings; seriously I had. But would this state -of things last in the strange place we had come to? Perhaps it might. - -For several days steeper inclines, some even frightfully near to the -perpendicular, brought us deeper and deeper into the mass of the -interior of the earth. Some days we advanced nearer to the centre by -a league and a half, or nearly two leagues. These were perilous -descents, in which the skill and marvellous coolness of Hans were -invaluable to us. That unimpassioned Icelander devoted himself with -incomprehensible deliberation; and, thanks to him, we crossed many a -dangerous spot which we should never have cleared alone. - -But his habit of silence gained upon him day by day, and was -infecting us. External objects produce decided effects upon the -brain. A man shut up between four walls soon loses the power to -associate words and ideas together. How many prisoners in solitary -confinement become idiots, if not mad, for want of exercise for the -thinking faculty! - -During the fortnight following our last conversation, no incident -occurred worthy of being recorded. But I have good reason for -remembering one very serious event which took place at this time, and -of which I could scarcely now forget the smallest details. - -By the 7th of August our successive descents had brought us to a -depth of thirty leagues; that is, that for a space of thirty leagues -there were over our heads solid beds of rock, ocean, continents, and -towns. We must have been two hundred leagues from Iceland. - -On that day the tunnel went down a gentle slope. I was ahead of the -others. My uncle was carrying one of Ruhmkorff's lamps and I the -other. I was examining the beds of granite. - -Suddenly turning round I observed that I was alone. - -Well, well, I thought; I have been going too fast, or Hans and my -uncle have stopped on the way. Come, this won't do; I must join them. -Fortunately there is not much of an ascent. - -I retraced my steps. I walked for a quarter of an hour. I gazed into -the darkness. I shouted. No reply: my voice was lost in the midst of -the cavernous echoes which alone replied to my call. - -I began to feel uneasy. A shudder ran through me. - -"Calmly!" I said aloud to myself, "I am sure to find my companions -again. There are not two roads. I was too far ahead. I will return!" - -For half an hour I climbed up. I listened for a call, and in that -dense atmosphere a voice could reach very far. But there was a dreary -silence in all that long gallery. I stopped. I could not believe that -I was lost. I was only bewildered for a time, not lost. I was sure I -should find my way again. - -"Come," I repeated, "since there is but one road, and they are on it, -I must find them again. I have but to ascend still. Unless, indeed, -missing me, and supposing me to be behind, they too should have gone -back. But even in this case I have only to make the greater haste. I -shall find them, I am sure." - -I repeated these words in the fainter tones of a half-convinced man. -Besides, to associate even such simple ideas with words, and reason -with them, was a work of time. - -A doubt then seized upon me. Was I indeed in advance when we became -separated? Yes, to be sure I was. Hans was after me, preceding my -uncle. He had even stopped for a while to strap his baggage better -over his shoulders. I could remember this little incident. It was at -that very moment that I must have gone on. - -Besides, I thought, have not I a guarantee that I shall not lose my -way, a clue in the labyrinth, that cannot be broken, my faithful -stream? I have but to trace it back, and I must come upon them. - -This conclusion revived my spirits, and I resolved to resume my march -without loss of time. - -How I then blessed my uncle's foresight in preventing the hunter from -stopping up the hole in the granite. This beneficent spring, after -having satisfied our thirst on the road, would now be my guide among -the windings of the terrestrial crust. - -Before starting afresh I thought a wash would do me good. I stooped -to bathe my face in the Hansbach. - -To my stupefaction and utter dismay my feet trod only--the rough dry -granite. The stream was no longer at my feet. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVII. - -LOST IN THE BOWELS OF THE EARTH - - -To describe my despair would be impossible. No words could tell it. I -was buried alive, with the prospect before me of dying of hunger and -thirst. - -Mechanically I swept the ground with my hands. How dry and hard the -rock seemed to me! - -But how had I left the course of the stream? For it was a terrible -fact that it no longer ran at my side. Then I understood the reason -of that fearful, silence, when for the last time I listened to hear -if any sound from my companions could reach my ears. At the moment -when I left the right road I had not noticed the absence of the -stream. It is evident that at that moment a deviation had presented -itself before me, whilst the Hansbach, following the caprice of -another incline, had gone with my companions away into unknown depths. - -How was I to return? There was not a trace of their footsteps or of -my own, for the foot left no mark upon the granite floor. I racked my -brain for a solution of this impracticable problem. One word -described my position. Lost! - -Lost at an immeasurable depth! Thirty leagues of rock seemed to weigh -upon my shoulders with a dreadful pressure. I felt crushed. - -I tried to carry back my ideas to things on the surface of the earth. -I could scarcely succeed. Hamburg, the house in the Königstrasse, my -poor Gräuben, all that busy world underneath which I was wandering -about, was passing in rapid confusion before my terrified memory. I -could revive with vivid reality all the incidents of our voyage, -Iceland, M. Fridrikssen, Snæfell. I said to myself that if, in such a -position as I was now in, I was fool enough to cling to one glimpse -of hope, it would be madness, and that the best thing I could do was -to despair. - -What human power could restore me to the light of the sun by rending -asunder the huge arches of rock which united over my head, -buttressing each other with impregnable strength? Who could place my -feet on the right path, and bring me back to my company? - -"Oh, my uncle!" burst from my lips in the tone of despair. - -It was my only word of reproach, for I knew how much he must be -suffering in seeking me, wherever he might be. - -When I saw myself thus far removed from all earthly help I had -recourse to heavenly succour. The remembrance of my childhood, the -recollection of my mother, whom I had only known in my tender early -years, came back to me, and I knelt in prayer imploring for the -Divine help of which I was so little worthy. - -This return of trust in God's providence allayed the turbulence of my -fears, and I was enabled to concentrate upon my situation all the -force of my intelligence. - -I had three days' provisions with me and my flask was full. But I -could not remain alone for long. Should I go up or down? - -Up, of course; up continually. - -I must thus arrive at the point where I had left the stream, that -fatal turn in the road. With the stream at my feet, I might hope to -regain the summit of Snæfell. - -Why had I not thought of that sooner? Here was evidently a chance of -safety. The most pressing duty was to find out again the course of -the Hansbach. I rose, and leaning upon my iron-pointed stick I -ascended the gallery. The slope was rather steep. I walked on without -hope but without indecision, like a man who has made up his mind. - -For half an hour I met with no obstacle. I tried to recognise my way -by the form of the tunnel, by the projections of certain rocks, by -the disposition of the fractures. But no particular sign appeared, -and I soon saw that this gallery could not bring me back to the -turning point. It came to an abrupt end. I struck against an -impenetrable wall, and fell down upon the rock. - -Unspeakable despair then seized upon me. I lay overwhelmed, aghast! -My last hope was shattered against this granite wall. - -Lost in this labyrinth, whose windings crossed each other in all -directions, it was no use to think of flight any longer. Here I must -die the most dreadful of deaths. And, strange to say, the thought -came across me that when some day my petrified remains should be -found thirty leagues below the surface in the bowels of the earth, -the discovery might lead to grave scientific discussions. - -I tried to speak aloud, but hoarse sounds alone passed my dry lips. I -panted for breath. - -In the midst of my agony a new terror laid hold of me. In falling my -lamp had got wrong. I could not set it right, and its light was -paling and would soon disappear altogether. - -I gazed painfully upon the luminous current growing weaker and weaker -in the wire coil. A dim procession of moving shadows seemed slowly -unfolding down the darkening walls. I scarcely dared to shut my eyes -for one moment, for fear of losing the least glimmer of this precious -light. Every instant it seemed about to vanish and the dense -blackness to come rolling in palpably upon me. - -One last trembling glimmer shot feebly up. I watched it in trembling -and anxiety; I drank it in as if I could preserve it, concentrating -upon it the full power of my eyes, as upon the very last sensation of -light which they were ever to experience, and the next moment I lay -in the heavy gloom of deep, thick, unfathomable darkness. - -A terrible cry of anguish burst from me. Upon earth, in the midst of -the darkest night, light never abdicates its functions altogether. It -is still subtle and diffusive, but whatever little there may be, the -eye still catches that little. Here there was not an atom; the total -darkness made me totally blind. - -Then I began to lose my head. I arose with my arms stretched out -before me, attempting painfully to feel my way. I began to run -wildly, hurrying through the inextricable maze, still descending, -still running through the substance of the earth's thick crust, a -struggling denizen of geological 'faults,' crying, shouting, yelling, -soon bruised by contact with the jagged rock, falling and rising -again bleeding, trying to drink the blood which covered my face, and -even waiting for some rock to shatter my skull against. - -I shall never know whither my mad career took me. After the lapse of -some hours, no doubt exhausted, I fell like a lifeless lump at the -foot of the wall, and lost all consciousness. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVIII. - -THE RESCUE IN THE WHISPERING GALLERY - - -When I returned to partial life my face was wet with tears. How long -that state of insensibility had lasted I cannot say. I had no means -now of taking account of time. Never was solitude equal to this, -never had any living being been so utterly forsaken. - -After my fall I had lost a good deal of blood. I felt it flowing over -me. Ah! how happy I should have been could I have died, and if death -were not yet to be gone through. I would think no longer. I drove -away every idea, and, conquered by my grief, I rolled myself to the -foot of the opposite wall. - -Already I was feeling the approach of another faint, and was hoping -for complete annihilation, when a loud noise reached me. It was like -the distant rumble of continuous thunder, and I could hear its -sounding undulations rolling far away into the remote recesses of the -abyss. - -Whence could this noise proceed? It must be from some phenomenon -proceeding in the great depths amidst which I lay helpless. Was it an -explosion of gas? Was it the fall of some mighty pillar of the globe? - -I listened still. I wanted to know if the noise would be repeated. A -quarter of an hour passed away. Silence reigned in this gallery. I -could not hear even the beating of my heart. - -Suddenly my ear, resting by chance against the wall, caught, or -seemed to catch, certain vague, indescribable, distant, articulate -sounds, as of words. - -"This is a delusion," I thought. - -But it was not. Listening more attentively, I heard in reality a -murmuring of voices. But my weakness prevented me from understanding -what the voices said. Yet it was language, I was sure of it. - -For a moment I feared the words might be my own, brought back by the -echo. Perhaps I had been crying out unknown to myself. I closed my -lips firmly, and laid my ear against the wall again. - -"Yes, truly, some one is speaking; those are words!" - -Even a few feet from the wall I could hear distinctly. I succeeded in -catching uncertain, strange, undistinguishable words. They came as if -pronounced in low murmured whispers. The word '_forlorad_' was -several times repeated in a tone of sympathy and sorrow. - -"Help!" I cried with all my might. "Help!" - -I listened, I watched in the darkness for an answer, a cry, a mere -breath of sound, but nothing came. Some minutes passed. A whole world -of ideas had opened in my mind. I thought that my weakened voice -could never penetrate to my companions. - -"It is they," I repeated. "What other men can be thirty leagues under -ground?" - -I again began to listen. Passing my ear over the wall from one place -to another, I found the point where the voices seemed to be best -heard. The word '_forlorad_' again returned; then the rolling of -thunder which had roused me from my lethargy. - -"No," I said, "no; it is not through such a mass that a voice can be -heard. I am surrounded by granite walls, and the loudest explosion -could never be heard here! This noise comes along the gallery. There -must be here some remarkable exercise of acoustic laws!" - -I listened again, and this time, yes this time, I did distinctly hear -my name pronounced across the wide interval. - -It was my uncle's own voice! He was talking to the guide. And -'_forlorad_' is a Danish word. - -Then I understood it all. To make myself heard, I must speak along -this wall, which would conduct the sound of my voice just as wire -conducts electricity. - -But there was no time to lose. If my companions moved but a few steps -away, the acoustic phenomenon would cease. I therefore approached the -wall, and pronounced these words as clearly as possible: - -"Uncle Liedenbrock!" - -I waited with the deepest anxiety. Sound does not travel with great -velocity. Even increased density air has no effect upon its rate of -travelling; it merely augments its intensity. Seconds, which seemed -ages, passed away, and at last these words reached me: - -"Axel! Axel! is it you?" - -. . . . - -"Yes, yes," I replied. - -. . . . - -"My boy, where are you?" - -. . . . - -"Lost, in the deepest darkness." - -. . . . - -"Where is your lamp?" - -. . . . - -"It is out." - -. . . . - -"And the stream?" - -. . . . - -"Disappeared." - -. . . . - -"Axel, Axel, take courage!" - -. . . . - -"Wait! I am exhausted! I can't answer. Speak to me!" - -. . . . - -"Courage," resumed my uncle. "Don't speak. Listen to me. We have -looked for you up the gallery and down the gallery. Could not find -you. I wept for you, my poor boy. At last, supposing you were still -on the Hansbach, we fired our guns. Our voices are audible to each -other, but our hands cannot touch. But don't despair, Axel! It is a -great thing that we can hear each other." - -. . . . - -During this time I had been reflecting. A vague hope was returning to -my heart. There was one thing I must know to begin with. I placed my -lips close to the wall, saying: - -"My uncle!" - -. . . . - -"My boy!" came to me after a few seconds. - -. . . . - -"We must know how far we are apart." - -. . . . - -"That is easy." - -. . . . - -"You have your chronometer?" - -. . . - -"Yes." - -. . . . - -"Well, take it. Pronounce my name, noting exactly the second when you -speak. I will repeat it as soon as it shall come to me, and you will -observe the exact moment when you get my answer." - -"Yes; and half the time between my call and your answer will exactly -indicate that which my voice will take in coming to you." - -. . . . - -"Just so, my uncle." - -. . . . - -"Are you ready?" - -. . . . - -"Yes." - -. . . . . . - -"Now, attention. I am going to call your name." - -. . . . - -I put my ear to the wall, and as soon as the name 'Axel' came I -immediately replied "Axel," then waited. - -. . . . - -"Forty seconds," said my uncle. "Forty seconds between the two words; -so the sound takes twenty seconds in coming. Now, at the rate of -1,120 feet in a second, this is 22,400 feet, or four miles and a -quarter, nearly." - -. . . . - -"Four miles and a quarter!" I murmured. - -. . . . - -"It will soon be over, Axel." - -. . . . - -"Must I go up or down?" - -. . . . - -"Down--for this reason: We are in a vast chamber, with endless -galleries. Yours must lead into it, for it seems as if all the clefts -and fractures of the globe radiated round this vast cavern. So get -up, and begin walking. Walk on, drag yourself along, if necessary -slide down the steep places, and at the end you will find us ready to -receive you. Now begin moving." - -. . . . - -These words cheered me up. - -"Good bye, uncle." I cried. "I am going. There will be no more voices -heard when once I have started. So good bye!" - -. . . . - -"Good bye, Axel, _au revoir!_" - -. . . . - -These were the last words I heard. - -This wonderful underground conversation, carried on with a distance -of four miles and a quarter between us, concluded with these words of -hope. I thanked God from my heart, for it was He who had conducted me -through those vast solitudes to the point where, alone of all others -perhaps, the voices of my companions could have reached me. - -This acoustic effect is easily explained on scientific grounds. It -arose from the concave form of the gallery and the conducting power -of the rock. There are many examples of this propagation of sounds -which remain unheard in the intermediate space. I remember that a -similar phenomenon has been observed in many places; amongst others -on the internal surface of the gallery of the dome of St. Paul's in -London, and especially in the midst of the curious caverns among the -quarries near Syracuse, the most wonderful of which is called -Dionysius' Ear. - -These remembrances came into my mind, and I clearly saw that since my -uncle's voice really reached me, there could be no obstacle between -us. Following the direction by which the sound came, of course I -should arrive in his presence, if my strength did not fail me. - -I therefore rose; I rather dragged myself than walked. The slope was -rapid, and I slid down. - -Soon the swiftness of the descent increased horribly, and threatened -to become a fall. I no longer had the strength to stop myself. - -Suddenly there was no ground under me. I felt myself revolving in -air, striking and rebounding against the craggy projections of a -vertical gallery, quite a well; my head struck against a sharp corner -of the rock, and I became unconscious. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIX. - -THALATTA! THALATTA! - - -When I came to myself, I was stretched in half darkness, covered with -thick coats and blankets. My uncle was watching over me, to discover -the least sign of life. At my first sigh he took my hand; when I -opened my eyes he uttered a cry of joy. - -"He lives! he lives!" he cried. - -"Yes, I am still alive," I answered feebly. - -"My dear nephew," said my uncle, pressing me to his breast, "you are -saved." - -I was deeply touched with the tenderness of his manner as he uttered -these words, and still more with the care with which he watched over -me. But such trials were wanted to bring out the Professor's tenderer -qualities. - -At this moment Hans came, he saw my hand in my uncle's, and I may -safely say that there was joy in his countenance. - -"_God dag,_" said he. - -"How do you do, Hans? How are you? And now, uncle, tell me where we -are at the present moment?" - -"To-morrow, Axel, to-morrow. Now you are too faint and weak. I have -bandaged your head with compresses which must not be disturbed. Sleep -now, and to-morrow I will tell you all." - -"But do tell me what time it is, and what day." - -"It is Sunday, the 8th of August, and it is ten at night. You must -ask me no more questions until the 10th." - -In truth I was very weak, and my eyes involuntarily closed. I wanted -a good night's rest; and I therefore went off to sleep, with the -knowledge that I had been four long days alone in the heart of the -earth. - -Next morning, on awakening, I looked round me. My couch, made up of -all our travelling gear, was in a charming grotto, adorned with -splendid stalactites, and the soil of which was a fine sand. It was -half light. There was no torch, no lamp, yet certain mysterious -glimpses of light came from without through a narrow opening in the -grotto. I heard too a vague and indistinct noise, something like the -murmuring of waves breaking upon a shingly shore, and at times I -seemed to hear the whistling of wind. - -I wondered whether I was awake, whether I was dreaming, whether my brain, -crazed by my fall, was not affected by imaginary noises. Yet neither -eyes, nor ears could be so utterly deceived. - -It is a ray of daylight, I thought, sliding in through this cleft in -the rock! That is indeed the murmuring of waves! That is the rustling -noise of wind. Am I quite mistaken, or have we returned to the -surface of the earth? Has my uncle given up the expedition, or is it -happily terminated? - -I was asking myself these unanswerable questions when the Professor -entered. - -"Good morning, Axel," he cried cheerily. "I feel sure you are better." - -"Yes, I am indeed," said I, sitting up on my couch. - -"You can hardly fail to be better, for you have slept quietly. Hans -and I watched you by turns, and we have noticed you were evidently -recovering." - -"Indeed, I do feel a great deal better, and I will give you a proof -of that presently if you will let me have my breakfast." - -"You shall eat, lad. The fever has left you. Hans rubbed your wounds -with some ointment or other of which the Icelanders keep the secret, -and they have healed marvellously. Our hunter is a splendid fellow!" - -Whilst he went on talking, my uncle prepared a few provisions, which -I devoured eagerly, notwithstanding his advice to the contrary. All -the while I was overwhelming him with questions which he answered -readily. - -I then learnt that my providential fall had brought me exactly to the -extremity of an almost perpendicular shaft; and as I had landed in -the midst of an accompanying torrent of stones, the least of which -would have been enough to crush me, the conclusion was that a loose -portion of the rock had come down with me. This frightful conveyance -had thus carried me into the arms of my uncle, where I fell bruised, -bleeding, and insensible. - -"Truly it is wonderful that you have not been killed a hundred times -over. But, for the love of God, don't let us ever separate again, or -we many never see each other more." - -"Not separate! Is the journey not over, then?" I opened a pair of -astonished eyes, which immediately called for the question: - -"What is the matter, Axel?" - -"I have a question to ask you. You say that I am safe and sound?" - -"No doubt you are." - -"And all my limbs unbroken?" - -"Certainly." - -"And my head?" - -"Your head, except for a few bruises, is all right; and it is on your -shoulders, where it ought to be." - -"Well, I am afraid my brain is affected." - -"Your mind affected!" - -"Yes, I fear so. Are we again on the surface of the globe?" - -"No, certainly not." - -"Then I must be mad; for don't I see the light of day, and don't I -hear the wind blowing, and the sea breaking on the shore?" - -"Ah! is that all?" - -"Do tell me all about it." - -"I can't explain the inexplicable, but you will soon see and -understand that geology has not yet learnt all it has to learn." - -"Then let us go," I answered quickly. - -"No, Axel; the open air might be bad for you." - -"Open air?" - -"Yes; the wind is rather strong. You must not expose yourself." - -"But I assure you I am perfectly well." - -"A little patience, my nephew. A relapse might get us into trouble, -and we have no time to lose, for the voyage may be a long one." - -"The voyage!" - -"Yes, rest to-day, and to-morrow we will set sail." - -"Set sail!"--and I almost leaped up. - -What did it all mean? Had we a river, a lake, a sea to depend upon? -Was there a ship at our disposal in some underground harbour? - -My curiosity was highly excited, my uncle vainly tried to restrain -me. When he saw that my impatience was doing me harm, he yielded. - -I dressed in haste. For greater safety I wrapped myself in a blanket, -and came out of the grotto. - - - - -CHAPTER XXX. - -A NEW MARE INTERNUM - - -At first I could hardly see anything. My eyes, unaccustomed to the -light, quickly closed. When I was able to reopen them, I stood more -stupefied even than surprised. - -"The sea!" I cried. - -"Yes," my uncle replied, "the Liedenbrock Sea; and I don't suppose -any other discoverer will ever dispute my claim to name it after -myself as its first discoverer." - -A vast sheet of water, the commencement of a lake or an ocean, spread -far away beyond the range of the eye, reminding me forcibly of that -open sea which drew from Xenophon's ten thousand Greeks, after their -long retreat, the simultaneous cry, "Thalatta! thalatta!" the sea! -the sea! The deeply indented shore was lined with a breadth of fine -shining sand, softly lapped by the waves, and strewn with the small -shells which had been inhabited by the first of created beings. The -waves broke on this shore with the hollow echoing murmur peculiar to -vast inclosed spaces. A light foam flew over the waves before the -breath of a moderate breeze, and some of the spray fell upon my face. -On this slightly inclining shore, about a hundred fathoms from the -limit of the waves, came down the foot of a huge wall of vast cliffs, -which rose majestically to an enormous height. Some of these, -dividing the beach with their sharp spurs, formed capes and -promontories, worn away by the ceaseless action of the surf. Farther -on the eye discerned their massive outline sharply defined against -the hazy distant horizon. - -It was quite an ocean, with the irregular shores of earth, but desert -and frightfully wild in appearance. - -If my eyes were able to range afar over this great sea, it was -because a peculiar light brought to view every detail of it. It was -not the light of the sun, with his dazzling shafts of brightness and -the splendour of his rays; nor was it the pale and uncertain shimmer -of the moonbeams, the dim reflection of a nobler body of light. No; -the illuminating power of this light, its trembling diffusiveness, -its bright, clear whiteness, and its low temperature, showed that it -must be of electric origin. It was like an aurora borealis, a -continuous cosmical phenomenon, filling a cavern of sufficient extent -to contain an ocean. - -The vault that spanned the space above, the sky, if it could be -called so, seemed composed of vast plains of cloud, shifting and -variable vapours, which by their condensation must at certain times -fall in torrents of rain. I should have thought that under so -powerful a pressure of the atmosphere there could be no evaporation; -and yet, under a law unknown to me, there were broad tracts of vapour -suspended in the air. But then 'the weather was fine.' The play of -the electric light produced singular effects upon the upper strata of -cloud. Deep shadows reposed upon their lower wreaths; and often, -between two separated fields of cloud, there glided down a ray of -unspeakable lustre. But it was not solar light, and there was no -heat. The general effect was sad, supremely melancholy. Instead of -the shining firmament, spangled with its innumerable stars, shining -singly or in clusters, I felt that all these subdued and shaded -lights were ribbed in by vast walls of granite, which seemed to -overpower me with their weight, and that all this space, great as it -was, would not be enough for the march of the humblest of satellites. - -Then I remembered the theory of an English captain, who likened the -earth to a vast hollow sphere, in the interior of which the air -became luminous because of the vast pressure that weighed upon it; -while two stars, Pluto and Proserpine, rolled within upon the circuit -of their mysterious orbits. - -We were in reality shut up inside an immeasurable excavation. Its -width could not be estimated, since the shore ran widening as far as -eye could reach, nor could its length, for the dim horizon bounded -the new. As for its height, it must have been several leagues. Where -this vault rested upon its granite base no eye could tell; but there -was a cloud hanging far above, the height of which we estimated at -12,000 feet, a greater height than that of any terrestrial vapour, -and no doubt due to the great density of the air. - -The word cavern does not convey any idea of this immense space; words -of human tongue are inadequate to describe the discoveries of him who -ventures into the deep abysses of earth. - -Besides I could not tell upon what geological theory to account for -the existence of such an excavation. Had the cooling of the globe -produced it? I knew of celebrated caverns from the descriptions of -travellers, but had never heard of any of such dimensions as this. - -If the grotto of Guachara, in Colombia, visited by Humboldt, had not -given up the whole of the secret of its depth to the philosopher, who -investigated it to the depth of 2,500 feet, it probably did not -extend much farther. The immense mammoth cave in Kentucky is of -gigantic proportions, since its vaulted roof rises five hundred feet -[1] above the level of an unfathomable lake and travellers have -explored its ramifications to the extent of forty miles. But what -were these cavities compared to that in which I stood with wonder and -admiration, with its sky of luminous vapours, its bursts of electric -light, and a vast sea filling its bed? My imagination fell powerless -before such immensity. - -I gazed upon these wonders in silence. Words failed me to express my -feelings. I felt as if I was in some distant planet Uranus or -Neptune--and in the presence of phenomena of which my terrestrial -experience gave me no cognisance. For such novel sensations, new words -were wanted; and my imagination failed to supply them. I gazed, I -thought, I admired, with a stupefaction mingled with a certain amount of -fear. - -The unforeseen nature of this spectacle brought back the colour to my -cheeks. I was under a new course of treatment with the aid of -astonishment, and my convalescence was promoted by this novel system -of therapeutics; besides, the dense and breezy air invigorated me, -supplying more oxygen to my lungs. - -It will be easily conceived that after an imprisonment of forty seven -days in a narrow gallery it was the height of physical enjoyment to -breathe a moist air impregnated with saline particles. - -[1] One hundred and twenty. (Trans.) - -I was delighted to leave my dark grotto. My uncle, already familiar -with these wonders, had ceased to feel surprise. - -"You feel strong enough to walk a little way now?" he asked. - -"Yes, certainly; and nothing could be more delightful." - -"Well, take my arm, Axel, and let us follow the windings of the -shore." - -I eagerly accepted, and we began to coast along this new sea. On the -left huge pyramids of rock, piled one upon another, produced a -prodigious titanic effect. Down their sides flowed numberless -waterfalls, which went on their way in brawling but pellucid streams. -A few light vapours, leaping from rock to rock, denoted the place of -hot springs; and streams flowed softly down to the common basin, -gliding down the gentle slopes with a softer murmur. - -Amongst these streams I recognised our faithful travelling companion, -the Hansbach, coming to lose its little volume quietly in the mighty -sea, just as if it had done nothing else since the beginning of the -world. - -"We shall see it no more," I said, with a sigh. - -"What matters," replied the philosopher, "whether this or another -serves to guide us?" - -I thought him rather ungrateful. - -But at that moment my attention was drawn to an unexpected sight. At -a distance of five hundred paces, at the turn of a high promontory, -appeared a high, tufted, dense forest. It was composed of trees of -moderate height, formed like umbrellas, with exact geometrical -outlines. The currents of wind seemed to have had no effect upon -their shape, and in the midst of the windy blasts they stood unmoved -and firm, just like a clump of petrified cedars. - -I hastened forward. I could not give any name to these singular -creations. Were they some of the two hundred thousand species of -vegetables known hitherto, and did they claim a place of their own in -the lacustrine flora? No; when we arrived under their shade my -surprise turned into admiration. There stood before me productions of -earth, but of gigantic stature, which my uncle immediately named. - -"It is only a forest of mushrooms," said he. - -And he was right. Imagine the large development attained by these -plants, which prefer a warm, moist climate. I knew that the -_Lycopodon giganteum_ attains, according to Bulliard, a circumference -of eight or nine feet; but here were pale mushrooms, thirty to forty -feet high, and crowned with a cap of equal diameter. There they stood -in thousands. No light could penetrate between their huge cones, and -complete darkness reigned beneath those giants; they formed -settlements of domes placed in close array like the round, thatched -roofs of a central African city. - -Yet I wanted to penetrate farther underneath, though a chill fell -upon me as soon as I came under those cellular vaults. For half an -hour we wandered from side to side in the damp shades, and it was a -comfortable and pleasant change to arrive once more upon the sea -shore. - -But the subterranean vegetation was not confined to these fungi. -Farther on rose groups of tall trees of colourless foliage and easy -to recognise. They were lowly shrubs of earth, here attaining -gigantic size; lycopodiums, a hundred feet high; the huge sigillaria, -found in our coal mines; tree ferns, as tall as our fir-trees in -northern latitudes; lepidodendra, with cylindrical forked stems, -terminated by long leaves, and bristling with rough hairs like those -of the cactus. - -"Wonderful, magnificent, splendid!" cried my uncle. "Here is the -entire flora of the second period of the world--the transition -period. These, humble garden plants with us, were tall trees in the -early ages. Look, Axel, and admire it all. Never had botanist such a -feast as this!" - -"You are right, my uncle. Providence seems to have preserved in this -immense conservatory the antediluvian plants which the wisdom of -philosophers has so sagaciously put together again." - -"It is a conservatory, Axel; but is it not also a menagerie?" - -"Surely not a menagerie!" - -"Yes; no doubt of it. Look at that dust under your feet; see the -bones scattered on the ground." - -"So there are!" I cried; "bones of extinct animals." - -I had rushed upon these remains, formed of indestructible phosphates -of lime, and without hesitation I named these monstrous bones, which -lay scattered about like decayed trunks of trees. - -"Here is the lower jaw of a mastodon," [1] I said. "These are the -molar teeth of the deinotherium; this femur must have belonged to the -greatest of those beasts, the megatherium. It certainly is a -menagerie, for these remains were not brought here by a deluge. The -animals to which they belonged roamed on the shores of this -subterranean sea, under the shade of those arborescent trees. Here -are entire skeletons. And yet I cannot understand the appearance of -these quadrupeds in a granite cavern." - -[1] These animals belonged to a late geological period, the Pliocene, -just before the glacial epoch, and therefore could have no connection -with the carboniferous vegetation. (Trans.) - -"Why?" - -"Because animal life existed upon the earth only in the secondary -period, when a sediment of soil had been deposited by the rivers, and -taken the place of the incandescent rocks of the primitive period." - -"Well, Axel, there is a very simple answer to your objection that -this soil is alluvial." - -"What! at such a depth below the surface of the earth?" - -"No doubt; and there is a geological explanation of the fact. At a -certain period the earth consisted only of an elastic crust or bark, -alternately acted on by forces from above or below, according to the -laws of attraction and gravitation. Probably there were subsidences -of the outer crust, when a portion of the sedimentary deposits was -carried down sudden openings." - -"That may be," I replied; "but if there have been creatures now -extinct in these underground regions, why may not some of those -monsters be now roaming through these gloomy forests, or hidden -behind the steep crags?" - -And as this unpleasant notion got hold of me, I surveyed with anxious -scrutiny the open spaces before me; but no living creature appeared -upon the barren strand. - -I felt rather tired, and went to sit down at the end of a promontory, -at the foot of which the waves came and beat themselves into spray. -Thence my eye could sweep every part of the bay; within its extremity -a little harbour was formed between the pyramidal cliffs, where the -still waters slept untouched by the boisterous winds. A brig and two -or three schooners might have moored within it in safety. I almost -fancied I should presently see some ship issue from it, full sail, -and take to the open sea under the southern breeze. - -But this illusion lasted a very short time. We were the only living -creatures in this subterranean world. When the wind lulled, a deeper -silence than that of the deserts fell upon the arid, naked rocks, and -weighed upon the surface of the ocean. I then desired to pierce the -distant haze, and to rend asunder the mysterious curtain that hung -across the horizon. Anxious queries arose to my lips. Where did that -sea terminate? Where did it lead to? Should we ever know anything -about its opposite shores? - -My uncle made no doubt about it at all; I both desired and feared. - -After spending an hour in the contemplation of this marvellous -spectacle, we returned to the shore to regain the grotto, and I fell -asleep in the midst of the strangest thoughts. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXI. - -PREPARATIONS FOR A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY - - -The next morning I awoke feeling perfectly well. I thought a bathe -would do me good, and I went to plunge for a few minutes into the -waters of this mediterranean sea, for assuredly it better deserved -this name than any other sea. - -I came back to breakfast with a good appetite. Hans was a good -caterer for our little household; he had water and fire at his -disposal, so that he was able to vary our bill of fare now and then. -For dessert he gave us a few cups of coffee, and never was coffee so -delicious. - -"Now," said my uncle, "now is the time for high tide, and we must not -lose the opportunity to study this phenomenon." - -"What! the tide!" I cried. "Can the influence of the sun and moon be -felt down here?" - -"Why not? Are not all bodies subject throughout their mass to the -power of universal attraction? This mass of water cannot escape the -general law. And in spite of the heavy atmospheric pressure on the -surface, you will see it rise like the Atlantic itself." - -At the same moment we reached the sand on the shore, and the waves -were by slow degrees encroaching on the shore. - -"Here is the tide rising," I cried. - -"Yes, Axel; and judging by these ridges of foam, you may observe that -the sea will rise about twelve feet." - -"This is wonderful," I said. - -"No; it is quite natural." - -"You may say so, uncle; but to me it is most extraordinary, and I can -hardly believe my eyes. Who would ever have imagined, under this -terrestrial crust, an ocean with ebbing and flowing tides, with winds -and storms?" - -"Well," replied my uncle, "is there any scientific reason against it?" - -"No; I see none, as soon as the theory of central heat is given up." -"So then, thus far," he answered, "the theory of Sir Humphry Davy is -confirmed." - -"Evidently it is; and now there is no reason why there should not be -seas and continents in the interior of the earth." - -"No doubt," said my uncle; "and inhabited too." - -"To be sure," said I; "and why should not these waters yield to us -fishes of unknown species?" - -"At any rate," he replied, "we have not seen any yet." - -"Well, let us make some lines, and see if the bait will draw here as -it does in sublunary regions." - -"We will try, Axel, for we must penetrate all secrets of these newly -discovered regions." - -"But where are we, uncle? for I have not yet asked you that question, -and your instruments must be able to furnish the answer." - -"Horizontally, three hundred and fifty leagues from Iceland." - -"So much as that?" - -"I am sure of not being a mile out of my reckoning." - -"And does the compass still show south-east?" - -"Yes; with a westerly deviation of nineteen degrees forty-five -minutes, just as above ground. As for its dip, a curious fact is -coming to light, which I have observed carefully: that the needle, -instead of dipping towards the pole as in the northern hemisphere, on -the contrary, rises from it." - -"Would you then conclude," I said, "that the magnetic pole is -somewhere between the surface of the globe and the point where we -are?" - -"Exactly so; and it is likely enough that if we were to reach the -spot beneath the polar regions, about that seventy-first degree where -Sir James Ross has discovered the magnetic pole to be situated, we -should see the needle point straight up. Therefore that mysterious -centre of attraction is at no great depth." - -I remarked: "It is so; and here is a fact which science has scarcely -suspected." - -"Science, my lad, has been built upon many errors; but they are -errors which it was good to fall into, for they led to the truth." - -"What depth have we now reached?" - -"We are thirty-five leagues below the surface." - -"So," I said, examining the map, "the Highlands of Scotland are over -our heads, and the Grampians are raising their rugged summits above -us." - -"Yes," answered the Professor laughing. "It is rather a heavy weight -to bear, but a solid arch spans over our heads. The great Architect -has built it of the best materials; and never could man have given it -so wide a stretch. What are the finest arches of bridges and the -arcades of cathedrals, compared with this far reaching vault, with a -radius of three leagues, beneath which a wide and tempest-tossed -ocean may flow at its ease?" - -"Oh, I am not afraid that it will fall down upon my head. But now -what are your plans? Are you not thinking of returning to the surface -now?" - -"Return! no, indeed! We will continue our journey, everything having -gone on well so far." - -"But how are we to get down below this liquid surface?" - -"Oh, I am not going to dive head foremost. But if all oceans are -properly speaking but lakes, since they are encompassed by land, of -course this internal sea will be surrounded by a coast of granite, -and on the opposite shores we shall find fresh passages opening." - -"How long do you suppose this sea to be?" - -"Thirty or forty leagues; so that we have no time to lose, and we -shall set sail to-morrow." - -I looked about for a ship. - -"Set sail, shall we? But I should like to see my boat first." - -"It will not be a boat at all, but a good, well-made raft." - -"Why," I said, "a raft would be just as hard to make as a boat, and I -don't see--" - -"I know you don't see; but you might hear if you would listen. Don't -you hear the hammer at work? Hans is already busy at it." - -"What, has he already felled the trees?" - -"Oh, the trees were already down. Come, and you will see for -yourself." - -After half an hour's walking, on the other side of the promontory -which formed the little natural harbour, I perceived Hans at work. In -a few more steps I was at his side. To my great surprise a -half-finished raft was already lying on the sand, made of a peculiar -kind of wood, and a great number of planks, straight and bent, and of -frames, were covering the ground, enough almost for a little fleet. - -"Uncle, what wood is this?" I cried. - -"It is fir, pine, or birch, and other northern coniferae, mineralised -by the action of the sea. It is called surturbrand, a variety of -brown coal or lignite, found chiefly in Iceland." - -"But surely, then, like other fossil wood, it must be as hard as -stone, and cannot float?" - -"Sometimes that may happen; some of these woods become true -anthracites; but others, such as this, have only gone through the -first stage of fossil transformation. Just look," added my uncle, -throwing into the sea one of those precious waifs. - -The bit of wood, after disappearing, returned to the surface and -oscillated to and fro with the waves. - -"Are you convinced?" said my uncle. - -"I am quite convinced, although it is incredible!" - -By next evening, thanks to the industry and skill of our guide, the -raft was made. It was ten feet by five; the planks of surturbrand, -braced strongly together with cords, presented an even surface, and -when launched this improvised vessel floated easily upon the waves of -the Liedenbrock Sea. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXII. - -WONDERS OF THE DEEP - - -On the 13th of August we awoke early. We were now to begin to adopt a -mode of travelling both more expeditious and less fatiguing than -hitherto. - -A mast was made of two poles spliced together, a yard was made of a -third, a blanket borrowed from our coverings made a tolerable sail. -There was no want of cordage for the rigging, and everything was well -and firmly made. - -The provisions, the baggage, the instruments, the guns, and a good -quantity of fresh water from the rocks around, all found their proper -places on board; and at six the Professor gave the signal to embark. -Hans had fitted up a rudder to steer his vessel. He took the tiller, -and unmoored; the sail was set, and we were soon afloat. At the -moment of leaving the harbour, my uncle, who was tenaciously fond of -naming his new discoveries, wanted to give it a name, and proposed -mine amongst others. - -"But I have a better to propose," I said: "Grauben. Let it be called -Port Gräuben; it will look very well upon the map." - -"Port Gräuben let it be then." - -And so the cherished remembrance of my Virlandaise became associated -with our adventurous expedition. - -The wind was from the north-west. We went with it at a high rate of -speed. The dense atmosphere acted with great force and impelled us -swiftly on. - -In an hour my uncle had been able to estimate our progress. At this -rate, he said, we shall make thirty leagues in twenty-four hours, and -we shall soon come in sight of the opposite shore. - -I made no answer, but went and sat forward. The northern shore was -already beginning to dip under the horizon. The eastern and western -strands spread wide as if to bid us farewell. Before our eyes lay far -and wide a vast sea; shadows of great clouds swept heavily over its -silver-grey surface; the glistening bluish rays of electric light, -here and there reflected by the dancing drops of spray, shot out -little sheaves of light from the track we left in our rear. Soon we -entirely lost sight of land; no object was left for the eye to judge -by, and but for the frothy track of the raft, I might have thought we -were standing still. - -About twelve, immense shoals of seaweeds came in sight. I was aware -of the great powers of vegetation that characterise these plants, -which grow at a depth of twelve thousand feet, reproduce themselves -under a pressure of four hundred atmospheres, and sometimes form -barriers strong enough to impede the course of a ship. But never, I -think, were such seaweeds as those which we saw floating in immense -waving lines upon the sea of Liedenbrock. - -Our raft skirted the whole length of the fuci, three or four thousand -feet long, undulating like vast serpents beyond the reach of sight; I -found some amusement in tracing these endless waves, always thinking -I should come to the end of them, and for hours my patience was vying -with my surprise. - -What natural force could have produced such plants, and what must -have been the appearance of the earth in the first ages of its -formation, when, under the action of heat and moisture, the vegetable -kingdom alone was developing on its surface? - -Evening came, and, as on the previous day, I perceived no change in -the luminous condition of the air. It was a constant condition, the -permanency of which might be relied upon. - -After supper I laid myself down at the foot of the mast, and fell -asleep in the midst of fantastic reveries. - -Hans, keeping fast by the helm, let the raft run on, which, after -all, needed no steering, the wind blowing directly aft. - -Since our departure from Port Gräuben, Professor Liedenbrock had -entrusted the log to my care; I was to register every observation, -make entries of interesting phenomena, the direction of the wind, the -rate of sailing, the way we made--in a word, every particular of our -singular voyage. - -I shall therefore reproduce here these daily notes, written, so to -speak, as the course of events directed, in order to furnish an exact -narrative of our passage. - -_Friday, August 14_.--Wind steady, N.W. The raft makes rapid way in -a direct line. Coast thirty leagues to leeward. Nothing in sight -before us. Intensity of light the same. Weather fine; that is to say, -that the clouds are flying high, are light, and bathed in a white -atmosphere resembling silver in a state of fusion. Therm. 89° Fahr. - -At noon Hans prepared a hook at the end of a line. He baited it with -a small piece of meat and flung it into the sea. For two hours -nothing was caught. Are these waters, then, bare of inhabitants? No, -there's a pull at the line. Hans draws it in and brings out a -struggling fish. - -"A sturgeon," I cried; "a small sturgeon." - -The Professor eyes the creature attentively, and his opinion differs -from mine. - -The head of this fish was flat, but rounded in front, and the -anterior part of its body was plated with bony, angular scales; it -had no teeth, its pectoral fins were large, and of tail there was -none. The animal belonged to the same order as the sturgeon, but -differed from that fish in many essential particulars. After a short -examination my uncle pronounced his opinion. - -"This fish belongs to an extinct family, of which only fossil traces -are found in the devonian formations." - -"What!" I cried. "Have we taken alive an inhabitant of the seas of -primitive ages?" - -"Yes; and you will observe that these fossil fishes have no identity -with any living species. To have in one's possession a living -specimen is a happy event for a naturalist." - -"But to what family does it belong?" - -"It is of the order of ganoids, of the family of the cephalaspidae; -and a species of pterichthys. But this one displays a peculiarity -confined to all fishes that inhabit subterranean waters. It is blind, -and not only blind, but actually has no eyes at all." - -I looked: nothing could be more certain. But supposing it might be a -solitary case, we baited afresh, and threw out our line. Surely this -ocean is well peopled with fish, for in another couple of hours we -took a large quantity of pterichthydes, as well as of others -belonging to the extinct family of the dipterides, but of which my -uncle could not tell the species; none had organs of sight. This -unhoped-for catch recruited our stock of provisions. - -Thus it is evident that this sea contains none but species known to -us in their fossil state, in which fishes as well as reptiles are the -less perfectly and completely organised the farther back their date -of creation. - -Perhaps we may yet meet with some of those saurians which science has -reconstructed out of a bit of bone or cartilage. I took up the -telescope and scanned the whole horizon, and found it everywhere a -desert sea. We are far away removed from the shores. - -I gaze upward in the air. Why should not some of the strange birds -restored by the immortal Cuvier again flap their 'sail-broad vans' in -this dense and heavy atmosphere? There are sufficient fish for their -support. I survey the whole space that stretches overhead; it is as -desert as the shore was. - -Still my imagination carried me away amongst the wonderful -speculations of palæontology. Though awake I fell into a dream. I -thought I could see floating on the surface of the waters enormous -chelonia, pre-adamite tortoises, resembling floating islands. Over the -dimly lighted strand there trod the huge mammals of the first ages of -the world, the leptotherium (slender beast), found in the caverns of -Brazil; the merycotherium (ruminating beast), found in the 'drift' of -iceclad Siberia. Farther on, the pachydermatous lophiodon (crested -toothed), a gigantic tapir, hides behind the rocks to dispute its -prey with the anoplotherium (unarmed beast), a strange creature, -which seemed a compound of horse, rhinoceros, camel, and -hippopotamus. The colossal mastodon (nipple-toothed) twists and -untwists his trunk, and brays and pounds with his huge tusks the -fragments of rock that cover the shore; whilst the megatherium (huge -beast), buttressed upon his enormous hinder paws, grubs in the soil, -awaking the sonorous echoes of the granite rocks with his tremendous -roarings. Higher up, the protopitheca--the first monkey that -appeared on the globe--is climbing up the steep ascents. Higher yet, -the pterodactyle (wing-fingered) darts in irregular zigzags to and -fro in the heavy air. In the uppermost regions of the air immense -birds, more powerful than the cassowary, and larger than the ostrich, -spread their vast breadth of wings and strike with their heads the -granite vault that bounds the sky. - -All this fossil world rises to life again in my vivid imagination. I -return to the scriptural periods or ages of the world, conventionally -called 'days,' long before the appearance of man, when the unfinished -world was as yet unfitted for his support. Then my dream backed even -farther still into the ages before the creation of living beings. The -mammals disappear, then the birds vanish, then the reptiles of the -secondary period, and finally the fish, the crustaceans, molluscs, -and articulated beings. Then the zoophytes of the transition period -also return to nothing. I am the only living thing in the world: all -life is concentrated in my beating heart alone. There are no more -seasons; climates are no more; the heat of the globe continually -increases and neutralises that of the sun. Vegetation becomes -accelerated. I glide like a shade amongst arborescent ferns, treading -with unsteady feet the coloured marls and the particoloured clays; I -lean for support against the trunks of immense conifers; I lie in the -shade of sphenophylla (wedge-leaved), asterophylla (star-leaved), and -lycopods, a hundred feet high. - -Ages seem no more than days! I am passed, against my will, in -retrograde order, through the long series of terrestrial changes. -Plants disappear; granite rocks soften; intense heat converts solid -bodies into thick fluids; the waters again cover the face of the -earth; they boil, they rise in whirling eddies of steam; white and -ghastly mists wrap round the shifting forms of the earth, which by -imperceptible degrees dissolves into a gaseous mass, glowing fiery -red and white, as large and as shining as the sun. - -And I myself am floating with wild caprice in the midst of this -nebulous mass of fourteen hundred thousand times the volume of the -earth into which it will one day be condensed, and carried forward -amongst the planetary bodies. My body is no longer firm and -terrestrial; it is resolved into its constituent atoms, subtilised, -volatilised. Sublimed into imponderable vapour, I mingle and am lost -in the endless foods of those vast globular volumes of vaporous -mists, which roll upon their flaming orbits through infinite space. - -But is it not a dream? Whither is it carrying me? My feverish hand -has vainly attempted to describe upon paper its strange and wonderful -details. I have forgotten everything that surrounds me. The -Professor, the guide, the raft--are all gone out of my ken. An -illusion has laid hold upon me. - -"What is the matter?" my uncle breaks in. - -My staring eyes are fixed vacantly upon him. - -"Take care, Axel, or you will fall overboard." - -At that moment I felt the sinewy hand of Hans seizing me vigorously. -But for him, carried away by my dream, I should have thrown myself -into the sea. - -"Is he mad?" cried the Professor. - -"What is it all about?" at last I cried, returning to myself. - -"Do you feel ill?" my uncle asked. - -"No; but I have had a strange hallucination; it is over now. Is all -going on right?" - -"Yes, it is a fair wind and a fine sea; we are sailing rapidly along, -and if I am not out in my reckoning, we shall soon land." - -At these words I rose and gazed round upon the horizon, still -everywhere bounded by clouds alone. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIII. - -A BATTLE OF MONSTERS - - -_Saturday, August 15_.--The sea unbroken all round. No land in -sight. The horizon seems extremely distant. - -My head is still stupefied with the vivid reality of my dream. - -My uncle has had no dreams, but he is out of temper. He examines the -horizon all round with his glass, and folds his arms with the air of -an injured man. - -I remark that Professor Liedenbrock has a tendency to relapse into an -impatient mood, and I make a note of it in my log. All my danger and -sufferings were needed to strike a spark of human feeling out of -him; but now that I am well his nature has resumed its sway. And yet, -what cause was there for anger? Is not the voyage prospering as -favourably as possible under the circumstances? Is not the raft -spinning along with marvellous speed? - -"-You seem anxious, my uncle," I said, seeing him continually with -his glass to his eye. - -"Anxious! No, not at all." - -"Impatient, then?" - -"One might be, with less reason than now." - -"Yet we are going very fast." - -"What does that signify? I am not complaining that the rate is slow, -but that the sea is so wide." - -I then remembered that the Professor, before starting, had estimated -the length of this underground sea at thirty leagues. Now we had made -three times the distance, yet still the southern coast was not in -sight. - -"We are not descending as we ought to be," the Professor declares. -"We are losing time, and the fact is, I have not come all this way to -take a little sail upon a pond on a raft." - -He called this sea a pond, and our long voyage, taking a little sail! - -"But," I remarked, "since we have followed the road that Saknussemm -has shown us--" - -"That is just the question. Have we followed that road? Did -Saknussemm meet this sheet of water? Did he cross it? Has not the -stream that we followed led us altogether astray?" - -"At any rate we cannot feel sorry to have come so far. This prospect -is magnificent, and--" - -"But I don't care for prospects. I came with an object, and I mean to -attain it. Therefore don't talk to me about views and prospects." - -I take this as my answer, and I leave the Professor to bite his lips -with impatience. At six in the evening Hans asks for his wages, and -his three rix dollars are counted out to him. - -_Sunday, August 16. _--Nothing new. Weather unchanged. The wind -freshens. On awaking, my first thought was to observe the intensity -of the light. I was possessed with an apprehension lest the electric -light should grow dim, or fail altogether. But there seemed no reason -to fear. The shadow of the raft was clearly outlined upon the surface -of the waves. - -Truly this sea is of infinite width. It must be as wide as the -Mediterranean or the Atlantic--and why not? - -My uncle took soundings several times. He tied the heaviest of our -pickaxes to a long rope which he let down two hundred fathoms. No -bottom yet; and we had some difficulty in hauling up our plummet. - -But when the pick was shipped again, Hans pointed out on its surface -deep prints as if it had been violently compressed between two hard -bodies. - -I looked at the hunter. - -"_Tänder,_" said he. - -I could not understand him, and turned to my uncle who was entirely -absorbed in his calculations. I had rather not disturb him while he -is quiet. I return to the Icelander. He by a snapping motion of his -jaws conveys his ideas to me. - -"Teeth!" I cried, considering the iron bar with more attention. - -Yes, indeed, those are the marks of teeth imprinted upon the metal! -The jaws which they arm must be possessed of amazing strength. Is -there some monster beneath us belonging to the extinct races, more -voracious than the shark, more fearful in vastness than the whale? I -could not take my eyes off this indented iron bar. Surely will my -last night's dream be realised? - -These thoughts agitated me all day, and my imagination scarcely -calmed down after several hours' sleep. - -_Monday, August 17.--_ I am trying to recall the peculiar instincts -of the monsters of the pre-adamite world, who, coming next in -succession after the molluscs, the crustaceans and le fishes, -preceded the animals of mammalian race upon the earth. The world then -belonged to reptiles. Those monsters held the mastery in the seas of -the secondary period. They possessed a perfect organisation, gigantic -proportions, prodigious strength. The saurians of our day, the -alligators and the crocodiles, are but feeble reproductions of their -forefathers of primitive ages. - -I shudder as I recall these monsters to my remembrance. No human eye -has ever beheld them living. They burdened this earth a thousand ages -before man appeared, but their fossil remains, found in the -argillaceous limestone called by the English the lias, have enabled -their colossal structure to be perfectly built up again and -anatomically ascertained. - -I saw at the Hamburg museum the skeleton of one of these creatures -thirty feet in length. Am I then fated--I, a denizen of earth--to -be placed face to face with these representatives of long extinct -families? No; surely it cannot be! Yet the deep marks of conical -teeth upon the iron pick are certainly those of the crocodile. - -My eyes are fearfully bent upon the sea. I dread to see one of these -monsters darting forth from its submarine caverns. I suppose -Professor Liedenbrock was of my opinion too, and even shared my -fears, for after having examined the pick, his eyes traversed the -ocean from side to side. What a very bad notion that was of his, I -thought to myself, to take soundings just here! He has disturbed some -monstrous beast in its remote den, and if we are not attacked on our -voyage-- - -I look at our guns and see that they are all right. My uncle notices -it, and looks on approvingly. - -Already widely disturbed regions on the surface of the water indicate -some commotion below. The danger is approaching. We must be on the -look out. - -_Tuesday, August 18. _--Evening came, or rather the time came when -sleep weighs down the weary eyelids, for there is no night here, and -the ceaseless light wearies the eyes with its persistency just as if -we were sailing under an arctic sun. Hans was at the helm. During his -watch I slept. - -Two hours afterwards a terrible shock awoke me. The raft was heaved -up on a watery mountain and pitched down again, at a distance of -twenty fathoms. - -"What is the matter?" shouted my uncle. "Have we struck land?" - -Hans pointed with his finger at a dark mass six hundred yards away, -rising and falling alternately with heavy plunges. I looked and cried: - -"It is an enormous porpoise." - -"Yes," replied my uncle, "and there is a sea lizard of vast size." - -"And farther on a monstrous crocodile. Look at its vast jaws and its -rows of teeth! It is diving down!" - -"There's a whale, a whale!" cried the Professor. "I can see its great -fins. See how he is throwing out air and water through his blowers." - -And in fact two liquid columns were rising to a considerable height -above the sea. We stood amazed, thunderstruck, at the presence of -such a herd of marine monsters. They were of supernatural dimensions; -the smallest of them would have crunched our raft, crew and all, at -one snap of its huge jaws. - -Hans wants to tack to get away from this dangerous neighbourhood; but -he sees on the other hand enemies not less terrible; a tortoise forty -feet long, and a serpent of thirty, lifting its fearful head and -gleaming eyes above the flood. - -Flight was out of the question now. The reptiles rose; they wheeled -around our little raft with a rapidity greater than that of express -trains. They described around us gradually narrowing circles. I took -up my rifle. But what could a ball do against the scaly armour with -which these enormous beasts were clad? - -We stood dumb with fear. They approach us close: on one side the -crocodile, on the other the serpent. The remainder of the sea -monsters have disappeared. I prepare to fire. Hans stops me by a -gesture. The two monsters pass within a hundred and fifty yards of -the raft, and hurl themselves the one upon the other, with a fury -which prevents them from seeing us. - -At three hundred yards from us the battle was fought. We could -distinctly observe the two monsters engaged in deadly conflict. But -it now seems to me as if the other animals were taking part in the -fray--the porpoise, the whale, the lizard, the tortoise. Every -moment I seem to see one or other of them. I point them to the -Icelander. He shakes his head negatively. - -"_Tva,_" says he. - -"What two? Does he mean that there are only two animals?" - -"He is right," said my uncle, whose glass has never left his eye. - -"Surely you must be mistaken," I cried. - -"No: the first of those monsters has a porpoise's snout, a lizard's -head, a crocodile's teeth; and hence our mistake. It is the -ichthyosaurus (the fish lizard), the most terrible of the ancient -monsters of the deep." - -"And the other?" - -"The other is a plesiosaurus (almost lizard), a serpent, armoured -with the carapace and the paddles of a turtle; he is the dreadful -enemy of the other." - -Hans had spoken truly. Two monsters only were creating all this -commotion; and before my eyes are two reptiles of the primitive -world. I can distinguish the eye of the ichthyosaurus glowing like a -red-hot coal, and as large as a man's head. Nature has endowed it -with an optical apparatus of extreme power, and capable of resisting -the pressure of the great volume of water in the depths it inhabits. -It has been appropriately called the saurian whale, for it has both -the swiftness and the rapid movements of this monster of our own day. -This one is not less than a hundred feet long, and I can judge of its -size when it sweeps over the waters the vertical coils of its tail. -Its jaw is enormous, and according to naturalists it is armed with no -less than one hundred and eighty-two teeth. - -The plesiosaurus, a serpent with a cylindrical body and a short tail, -has four flappers or paddles to act like oars. Its body is entirely -covered with a thick armour of scales, and its neck, as flexible as a -swan's, rises thirty feet above the waves. - -Those huge creatures attacked each other with the greatest animosity. -They heaved around them liquid mountains, which rolled even to our -raft and rocked it perilously. Twenty times we were near capsizing. -Hissings of prodigious force are heard. The two beasts are fast -locked together; I cannot distinguish the one from the other. The -probable rage of the conqueror inspires us with intense fear. - -One hour, two hours, pass away. The struggle continues with unabated -ferocity. The combatants alternately approach and recede from our -raft. We remain motionless, ready to fire. Suddenly the ichthyosaurus -and the plesiosaurus disappear below, leaving a whirlpool eddying in -the water. Several minutes pass by while the fight goes on under -water. - -All at once an enormous head is darted up, the head of the -plesiosaurus. The monster is wounded to death. I no longer see his -scaly armour. Only his long neck shoots up, drops again, coils and -uncoils, droops, lashes the waters like a gigantic whip, and writhes -like a worm that you tread on. The water is splashed for a long way -around. The spray almost blinds us. But soon the reptile's agony -draws to an end; its movements become fainter, its contortions cease -to be so violent, and the long serpentine form lies a lifeless log on -the labouring deep. - -As for the ichthyosaurus--has he returned to his submarine cavern? -or will he reappear on the surface of the sea? - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIV. - -THE GREAT GEYSER - - -_Wednesday, August 19_.--Fortunately the wind blows violently, and -has enabled us to flee from the scene of the late terrible struggle. -Hans keeps at his post at the helm. My uncle, whom the absorbing -incidents of the combat had drawn away from his contemplations, began -again to look impatiently around him. - -The voyage resumes its uniform tenor, which I don't care to break -with a repetition of such events as yesterday's. - -Thursday, Aug. 20.--Wind N.N.E., unsteady and fitful. Temperature -high. Rate three and a half leagues an hour. - -About noon a distant noise is heard. I note the fact without being -able to explain it. It is a continuous roar. - -"In the distance," says the Professor, "there is a rock or islet, -against which the sea is breaking." - -Hans climbs up the mast, but sees no breakers. The ocean' is smooth -and unbroken to its farthest limit. - -Three hours pass away. The roarings seem to proceed from a very -distant waterfall. - -I remark upon this to my uncle, who replies doubtfully: "Yes, I am -convinced that I am right." Are we, then, speeding forward to some -cataract which will cast us down an abyss? This method of getting on -may please the Professor, because it is vertical; but for my part I -prefer the more ordinary modes of horizontal progression. - -At any rate, some leagues to the windward there must be some noisy -phenomenon, for now the roarings are heard with increasing loudness. -Do they proceed from the sky or the ocean? - -I look up to the atmospheric vapours, and try to fathom their depths. -The sky is calm and motionless. The clouds have reached the utmost -limit of the lofty vault, and there lie still bathed in the bright -glare of the electric light. It is not there that we must seek for -the cause of this phenomenon. Then I examine the horizon, which is -unbroken and clear of all mist. There is no change in its aspect. But -if this noise arises from a fall, a cataract, if all this ocean flows -away headlong into a lower basin yet, if that deafening roar is -produced by a mass of falling water, the current must needs -accelerate, and its increasing speed will give me the measure of the -peril that threatens us. I consult the current: there is none. I -throw an empty bottle into the sea: it lies still. - -About four Hans rises, lays hold of the mast, climbs to its top. -Thence his eye sweeps a large area of sea, and it is fixed upon a -point. His countenance exhibits no surprise, but his eye is immovably -steady. - -"He sees something," says my uncle. - -"I believe he does." - -Hans comes down, then stretches his arm to the south, saying: - -"_Dere nere!_" - -"Down there?" repeated my uncle. - -Then, seizing his glass, he gazes attentively for a minute, which -seems to me an age. - -"Yes, yes!" he cried. "I see a vast inverted cone rising from the -surface." - -"Is it another sea beast?" - -"Perhaps it is." - -"Then let us steer farther westward, for we know something of the -danger of coming across monsters of that sort." - -"Let us go straight on," replied my uncle. - -I appealed to Hans. He maintained his course inflexibly. - -Yet, if at our present distance from the animal, a distance of twelve -leagues at the least, the column of water driven through its blowers -may be distinctly seen, it must needs be of vast size. The commonest -prudence would counsel immediate flight; but we did not come so far -to be prudent. - -Imprudently, therefore, we pursue our way. The nearer we approach, -the higher mounts the jet of water. What monster can possibly fill -itself with such a quantity of water, and spurt it up so continuously? - -At eight in the evening we are not two leagues distant from it. Its -body--dusky, enormous, hillocky--lies spread upon the sea like an -islet. Is it illusion or fear? Its length seems to me a couple of -thousand yards. What can be this cetacean, which neither Cuvier nor -Blumenbach knew anything about? It lies motionless, as if asleep; the -sea seems unable to move it in the least; it is the waves that -undulate upon its sides. The column of water thrown up to a height of -five hundred feet falls in rain with a deafening uproar. And here are -we scudding like lunatics before the wind, to get near to a monster -that a hundred whales a day would not satisfy! - -Terror seizes upon me. I refuse to go further. I will cut the -halliards if necessary! I am in open mutiny against the Professor, -who vouchsafes no answer. - -Suddenly Hans rises, and pointing with his finger at the menacing -object, he says: - -"_Holm._" - -"An island!" cries my uncle. - -"That's not an island!" I cried sceptically. - -"It's nothing else," shouted the Professor, with a loud laugh. - -"But that column of water?" - -"_Geyser,_" said Hans. - -"No doubt it is a geyser, like those in Iceland." - -At first I protest against being so widely mistaken as to have taken -an island for a marine monster. But the evidence is against me, and I -have to confess my error. It is nothing worse than a natural -phenomenon. - -As we approach nearer the dimensions of the liquid column become -magnificent. The islet resembles, with a most deceiving likeness, an -enormous cetacean, whose head dominates the waves at a height of -twenty yards. The geyser, a word meaning 'fury,' rises majestically -from its extremity. Deep and heavy explosions are heard from time to -time, when the enormous jet, possessed with more furious violence, -shakes its plumy crest, and springs with a bound till it reaches the -lowest stratum of the clouds. It stands alone. No steam vents, no hot -springs surround it, and all the volcanic power of the region is -concentrated here. Sparks of electric fire mingle with the dazzling -sheaf of lighted fluid, every drop of which refracts the prismatic -colours. - -"Let us land," said the Professor. - -"But we must carefully avoid this waterspout, which would sink our -raft in a moment." - -Hans, steering with his usual skill, brought us to the other -extremity of the islet. - -I leaped up on the rock; my uncle lightly followed, while our hunter -remained at his post, like a man too wise ever to be astonished. - -We walked upon granite mingled with siliceous tufa. The soil shivers -and shakes under our feet, like the sides of an overheated boiler -filled with steam struggling to get loose. We come in sight of a -small central basin, out of which the geyser springs. I plunge a -register thermometer into the boiling water. It marks an intense heat -of 325°, which is far above the boiling point; therefore this water -issues from an ardent furnace, which is not at all in harmony with -Professor Liedenbrock's theories. I cannot help making the remark. - -"Well," he replied, "how does that make against my doctrine?" - -"Oh, nothing at all," I said, seeing that I was going in opposition -to immovable obstinacy. - -Still I am constrained to confess that hitherto we have been -wonderfully favoured, and that for some reason unknown to myself we -have accomplished our journey under singularly favourable conditions -of temperature. But it seems manifest to me that some day we shall -reach a region where the central heat attains its highest limits, and -goes beyond a point that can be registered by our thermometers. - -"That is what we shall see." So says the Professor, who, having named -this volcanic islet after his nephew, gives the signal to embark -again. - -For some minutes I am still contemplating the geyser. I notice that -it throws up its column of water with variable force: sometimes -sending it to a great height, then again to a lower, which I -attribute to the variable pressure of the steam accumulated in its -reservoir. - -At last we leave the island, rounding away past the low rocks on its -southern shore. Hans has taken advantage of the halt to refit his -rudder. - -But before going any farther I make a few observations, to calculate -the distance we have gone over, and note them in my journal. We have -crossed two hundred and seventy leagues of sea since leaving Port -Gräuben; and we are six hundred and twenty leagues from Iceland, -under England. [1] - -[1] This distance carries the travellers as far as under the Pyrenees -if the league measures three miles. (Trans.) - - - - -CHAPTER XXXV. - -AN ELECTRIC STORM - - -_Friday, August 21_.--On the morrow the magnificent geyser has -disappeared. The wind has risen, and has rapidly carried us away from -Axel Island. The roarings become lost in the distance. - -The weather--if we may use that term--will change before long. The -atmosphere is charged with vapours, pervaded with the electricity -generated by the evaporation of saline waters. The clouds are sinking -lower, and assume an olive hue. The electric light can scarcely -penetrate through the dense curtain which has dropped over the -theatre on which the battle of the elements is about to be waged. - -I feel peculiar sensations, like many creatures on earth at the -approach of violent atmospheric changes. The heavily voluted cumulus -clouds lower gloomily and threateningly; they wear that implacable -look which I have sometimes noticed at the outbreak of a great storm. -The air is heavy; the sea is calm. - -In the distance the clouds resemble great bales of cotton, piled up -in picturesque disorder. By degrees they dilate, and gain in huge -size what they lose in number. Such is their ponderous weight that -they cannot rise from the horizon; but, obeying an impulse from -higher currents, their dense consistency slowly yields. The gloom -upon them deepens; and they soon present to our view a ponderous mass -of almost level surface. From time to time a fleecy tuft of mist, -with yet some gleaming light left upon it, drops down upon the dense -floor of grey, and loses itself in the opaque and impenetrable mass. - -The atmosphere is evidently charged and surcharged with electricity. -My whole body is saturated; my hair bristles just as when you stand -upon an insulated stool under the action of an electrical machine. It -seems to me as if my companions, the moment they touched me, would -receive a severe shock like that from an electric eel. - -At ten in the morning the symptoms of storm become aggravated. The -wind never lulls but to acquire increased strength; the vast bank of -heavy clouds is a huge reservoir of fearful windy gusts and rushing -storms. - -I am loth to believe these atmospheric menaces, and yet I cannot help -muttering: - -"Here's some very bad weather coming on." - -The Professor made no answer. His temper is awful, to judge from the -working of his features, as he sees this vast length of ocean -unrolling before him to an indefinite extent. He can only spare time -to shrug his shoulders viciously. - -"There's a heavy storm coming on," I cried, pointing towards the -horizon. "Those clouds seem as if they were going to crush the sea." - -A deep silence falls on all around. The lately roaring winds are -hushed into a dead calm; nature seems to breathe no more, and to be -sinking into the stillness of death. On the mast already I see the -light play of a lambent St. Elmo's fire; the outstretched sail -catches not a breath of wind, and hangs like a sheet of lead. The -rudder stands motionless in a sluggish, waveless sea. But if we have -now ceased to advance why do we yet leave that sail loose, which at -the first shock of the tempest may capsize us in a moment? - -"Let us reef the sail and cut the mast down!" I cried. "That will be -safest." - -"No, no! Never!" shouted my impetuous uncle. "Never! Let the wind -catch us if it will! What I want is to get the least glimpse of rock -or shore, even if our raft should be smashed into shivers!" - -The words were hardly out of his mouth when a sudden change took -place in the southern sky. The piled-up vapours condense into water; -and the air, put into violent action to supply the vacuum left by the -condensation of the mists, rouses itself into a whirlwind. It rushes -on from the farthest recesses of the vast cavern. The darkness -deepens; scarcely can I jot down a few hurried notes. The helm makes -a bound. My uncle falls full length; I creep close to him. He has -laid a firm hold upon a rope, and appears to watch with grim -satisfaction this awful display of elemental strife. - -Hans stirs not. His long hair blown by the pelting storm, and laid -flat across his immovable countenance, makes him a strange figure; -for the end of each lock of loose flowing hair is tipped with little -luminous radiations. This frightful mask of electric sparks suggests -to me, even in this dizzy excitement, a comparison with pre-adamite -man, the contemporary of the ichthyosaurus and the megatherium. [1] - -[1] Rather of the mammoth and the mastodon. (Trans.) - -The mast yet holds firm. The sail stretches tight like a bubble ready -to burst. The raft flies at a rate that I cannot reckon, but not so -fast as the foaming clouds of spray which it dashes from side to side -in its headlong speed. - -"The sail! the sail!" I cry, motioning to lower it. - -"No!" replies my uncle. - -"_Nej!_" repeats Hans, leisurely shaking his head. - -But now the rain forms a rushing cataract in front of that horizon -toward which we are running with such maddening speed. But before it -has reached us the rain cloud parts asunder, the sea boils, and the -electric fires are brought into violent action by a mighty chemical -power that descends from the higher regions. The most vivid flashes -of lightning are mingled with the violent crash of continuous -thunder. Ceaseless fiery arrows dart in and out amongst the flying -thunder-clouds; the vaporous mass soon glows with incandescent heat; -hailstones rattle fiercely down, and as they dash upon our iron tools -they too emit gleams and flashes of lurid light. The heaving waves -resemble fiery volcanic hills, each belching forth its own interior -flames, and every crest is plumed with dancing fire. My eyes fail -under the dazzling light, my ears are stunned with the incessant -crash of thunder. I must be bound to the mast, which bows like a reed -before the mighty strength of the storm. - -(Here my notes become vague and indistinct. I have only been able to -find a few which I seem to have jotted down almost unconsciously. But -their very brevity and their obscurity reveal the intensity of the -excitement which dominated me, and describe the actual position even -better than my memory could do.) - -Sunday, 23.--Where are we? Driven forward with a swiftness that -cannot be measured. - -The night was fearful; no abatement of the storm. The din and uproar -are incessant; our ears are bleeding; to exchange a word is -impossible. - -The lightning flashes with intense brilliancy, and never seems to -cease for a moment. Zigzag streams of bluish white fire dash down -upon the sea and rebound, and then take an upward flight till they -strike the granite vault that overarches our heads. Suppose that -solid roof should crumble down upon our heads! Other flashes with -incessant play cross their vivid fires, while others again roll -themselves into balls of living fire which explode like bombshells, -but the music of which scarcely-adds to the din of the battle strife -that almost deprives us of our senses of hearing and sight; the limit -of intense loudness has been passed within which the human ear can -distinguish one sound from another. If all the powder magazines in -the world were to explode at once, we should hear no more than we do -now. - -From the under surface of the clouds there are continual emissions of -lurid light; electric matter is in continual evolution from their -component molecules; the gaseous elements of the air need to be -slaked with moisture; for innumerable columns of water rush upwards -into the air and fall back again in white foam. - -Whither are we flying? My uncle lies full length across the raft. - -The heat increases. I refer to the thermometer; it indicates . . . -(the figure is obliterated). - -_Monday, August 24._--Will there be an end to it? Is the atmospheric -condition, having once reached this density, to become final? - -We are prostrated and worn out with fatigue. But Hans is as usual. -The raft bears on still to the south-east. We have made two hundred -leagues since we left Axel Island. - -At noon the violence of the storm redoubles. We are obliged to secure -as fast as possible every article that belongs to our cargo. Each of -us is lashed to some part of the raft. The waves rise above our heads. - -For three days we have never been able to make each other hear a -word. Our mouths open, our lips move, but not a word can be heard. We -cannot even make ourselves heard by approaching our mouth close to -the ear. - -My uncle has drawn nearer to me. He has uttered a few words. They -seem to be 'We are lost'; but I am not sure. - -At last I write down the words: "Let us lower the sail." - -He nods his consent. - -Scarcely has he lifted his head again before a ball of fire has -bounded over the waves and lighted on board our raft. Mast and sail -flew up in an instant together, and I saw them carried up to -prodigious height, resembling in appearance a pterodactyle, one of -those strong birds of the infant world. - -We lay there, our blood running cold with unspeakable terror. The -fireball, half of it white, half azure blue, and the size of a -ten-inch shell, moved slowly about the raft, but revolving on its own -axis with astonishing velocity, as if whipped round by the force of -the whirlwind. Here it comes, there it glides, now it is up the -ragged stump of the mast, thence it lightly leaps on the provision -bag, descends with a light bound, and just skims the powder magazine. -Horrible! we shall be blown up; but no, the dazzling disk of -mysterious light nimbly leaps aside; it approaches Hans, who fixes -his blue eye upon it steadily; it threatens the head of my uncle, who -falls upon his knees with his head down to avoid it. And now my turn -comes; pale and trembling under the blinding splendour and the -melting heat, it drops at my feet, spinning silently round upon the -deck; I try to move my foot away, but cannot. - -A suffocating smell of nitrogen fills the air, it enters the throat, -it fills the lungs. We suffer stifling pains. - -Why am I unable to move my foot? Is it riveted to the planks? Alas! -the fall upon our fated raft of this electric globe has magnetised -every iron article on board. The instruments, the tools, our guns, -are clashing and clanking violently in their collisions with each -other; the nails of my boots cling tenaciously to a plate of iron let -into the timbers, and I cannot draw my foot away from the spot. At -last by a violent effort I release myself at the instant when the -ball in its gyrations was about to seize upon it, and carry me off my -feet .... - -Ah! what a flood of intense and dazzling light! the globe has burst, -and we are deluged with tongues of fire! - -Then all the light disappears. I could just see my uncle at full -length on the raft, and Hans still at his helm and spitting fire -under the action of the electricity which has saturated him. - -But where are we going to? Where? - -* * * * - -_Tuesday, August 25._--I recover from a long swoon. The storm -continues to roar and rage; the lightnings dash hither and thither, -like broods of fiery serpents filling all the air. Are we still under -the sea? Yes, we are borne at incalculable speed. We have been -carried under England, under the channel, under France, perhaps under -the whole of Europe. - -* * * * - -A fresh noise is heard! Surely it is the sea breaking upon the rocks! -But then . . . . - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVI. - -CALM PHILOSOPHIC DISCUSSIONS - - -Here I end what I may call my log, happily saved from the wreck, and -I resume my narrative as before. - -What happened when the raft was dashed upon the rocks is more than I -can tell. I felt myself hurled into the waves; and if I escaped from -death, and if my body was not torn over the sharp edges of the rocks, -it was because the powerful arm of Hans came to my rescue. - -The brave Icelander carried me out of the reach of the waves, over a -burning sand where I found myself by the side of my uncle. - -Then he returned to the rocks, against which the furious waves were -beating, to save what he could. I was unable to speak. I was -shattered with fatigue and excitement; I wanted a whole hour to -recover even a little. - -But a deluge of rain was still falling, though with that violence -which generally denotes the near cessation of a storm. A few -overhanging rocks afforded us some shelter from the storm. Hans -prepared some food, which I could not touch; and each of us, -exhausted with three sleepless nights, fell into a broken and painful -sleep. - -The next day the weather was splendid. The sky and the sea had sunk -into sudden repose. Every trace of the awful storm had disappeared. -The exhilarating voice of the Professor fell upon my ears as I awoke; -he was ominously cheerful. - -"Well, my boy," he cried, "have you slept well?" - -Would not any one have thought that we were still in our cheerful -little house on the Königstrasse and that I was only just coming down -to breakfast, and that I was to be married to Gräuben that day? - -Alas! if the tempest had but sent the raft a little more east, we -should have passed under Germany, under my beloved town of Hamburg, -under the very street where dwelt all that I loved most in the world. -Then only forty leagues would have separated us! But they were forty -leagues perpendicular of solid granite wall, and in reality we were a -thousand leagues asunder! - -All these painful reflections rapidly crossed my mind before I could -answer my uncle's question. - -"Well, now," he repeated, "won't you tell me how you have slept?" - -"Oh, very well," I said. "I am only a little knocked up, but I shall -soon be better." - -"Oh," says my uncle, "that's nothing to signify. You are only a -little bit tired." - -"But you, uncle, you seem in very good spirits this morning." - -"Delighted, my boy, delighted. We have got there." - -"To our journey's end?" - -"No; but we have got to the end of that endless sea. Now we shall go -by land, and really begin to go down! down! down!" - -"But, my dear uncle, do let me ask you one question." - -"Of course, Axel." - -"How about returning?" - -"Returning? Why, you are talking about the return before the arrival." - -"No, I only want to know how that is to be managed." - -"In the simplest way possible. When we have reached the centre of the -globe, either we shall find some new way to get back, or we shall -come back like decent folks the way we came. I feel pleased at the -thought that it is sure not to be shut against us." - -"But then we shall have to refit the raft." - -"Of course." - -"Then, as to provisions, have we enough to last?" - -"Yes; to be sure we have. Hans is a clever fellow, and I am sure he -must have saved a large part of our cargo. But still let us go and -make sure." - -We left this grotto which lay open to every wind. At the same time I -cherished a trembling hope which was a fear as well. It seemed to me -impossible that the terrible wreck of the raft should not have -destroyed everything on board. On my arrival on the shore I found -Hans surrounded by an assemblage of articles all arranged in good -order. My uncle shook hands with him with a lively gratitude. This -man, with almost superhuman devotion, had been at work all the while -that we were asleep, and had saved the most precious of the articles -at the risk of his life. - -Not that we had suffered no losses. For instance, our firearms; but -we might do without them. Our stock of powder had remained uninjured -after having risked blowing up during the storm. - -"Well," cried the Professor, "as we have no guns we cannot hunt, -that's all." - -"Yes, but how about the instruments?" - -"Here is the aneroid, the most useful of all, and for which I would -have given all the others. By means of it I can calculate the depth -and know when we have reached the centre; without it we might very -likely go beyond, and come out at the antipodes!" - -Such high spirits as these were rather too strong. - -"But where is the compass? I asked. - -"Here it is, upon this rock, in perfect condition, as well as the -thermometers and the chronometer. The hunter is a splendid fellow." - -There was no denying it. We had all our instruments. As for tools and -appliances, there they all lay on the ground--ladders, ropes, picks, -spades, etc. - -Still there was the question of provisions to be settled, and I -asked--"How are we off for provisions?" - -The boxes containing these were in a line upon the shore, in a -perfect state of preservation; for the most part the sea had spared -them, and what with biscuits, salt meat, spirits, and salt fish, we -might reckon on four months' supply. - -"Four months!" cried the Professor. "We have time to go and to -return; and with what is left I will give a grand dinner to my -friends at the Johannæum." - -I ought by this time to have been quite accustomed to my uncle's -ways; yet there was always something fresh about him to astonish me. - -"Now," said he, "we will replenish our supply of water with the rain -which the storm has left in all these granite basins; therefore we -shall have no reason to fear anything from thirst. As for the raft, I -will recommend Hans to do his best to repair it, although I don't -expect it will be of any further use to us." - -"How so?" I cried. - -"An idea of my own, my lad. I don't think we shall come out by the -way that we went in." - -I stared at the Professor with a good deal of mistrust. I asked, was -he not touched in the brain? And yet there was method in his madness. - -"And now let us go to breakfast," said he. - -I followed him to a headland, after he had given his instructions to -the hunter. There preserved meat, biscuit, and tea made us an -excellent meal, one of the best I ever remember. Hunger, the fresh -air, the calm quiet weather, after the commotions we had gone -through, all contributed to give me a good appetite. - -Whilst breakfasting I took the opportunity to put to my uncle the -question where we were now. - -"That seems to me," I said, "rather difficult to make out." - -"Yes, it is difficult," he said, "to calculate exactly; perhaps even -impossible, since during these three stormy days I have been unable -to keep any account of the rate or direction of the raft; but still -we may get an approximation." - -"The last observation," I remarked, "was made on the island, when the -geyser was--" - -"You mean Axel Island. Don't decline the honour of having given your -name to the first island ever discovered in the central parts of the -globe." - -"Well," said I, "let it be Axel Island. Then we had cleared two -hundred and seventy leagues of sea, and we were six hundred leagues -from Iceland." - -"Very well," answered my uncle; "let us start from that point and -count four days' storm, during which our rate cannot have been less -than eighty leagues in the twenty-four hours." - -"That is right; and this would make three hundred leagues more." - -"Yes, and the Liedenbrock sea would be six hundred leagues from shore -to shore. Surely, Axel, it may vie in size with the Mediterranean -itself." - -"Especially," I replied, "if it happens that we have only crossed it -in its narrowest part. And it is a curious circumstance," I added, -"that if my computations are right, and we are nine hundred leagues -from Rejkiavik, we have now the Mediterranean above our head." - -"That is a good long way, my friend. But whether we are under Turkey -or the Atlantic depends very much upon the question in what direction -we have been moving. Perhaps we have deviated." - -"No, I think not. Our course has been the same all along, and I -believe this shore is south-east of Port Gräuben." - -"Well," replied my uncle, "we may easily ascertain this by consulting -the compass. Let us go and see what it says." - -The Professor moved towards the rock upon which Hans had laid down -the instruments. He was gay and full of spirits; he rubbed his hands, -he studied his attitudes. I followed him, curious to know if I was -right in my estimate. As soon as we had arrived at the rock my uncle -took the compass, laid it horizontally, and questioned the needle, -which, after a few oscillations, presently assumed a fixed position. -My uncle looked, and looked, and looked again. He rubbed his eyes, -and then turned to me thunderstruck with some unexpected discovery. - -"What is the matter?" I asked. - -He motioned to me to look. An exclamation of astonishment burst from -me. The north pole of the needle was turned to what we supposed to be -the south. It pointed to the shore instead of to the open sea! I -shook the box, examined it again, it was in perfect condition. In -whatever position I placed the box the needle pertinaciously returned -to this unexpected quarter. Therefore there seemed no reason to doubt -that during the storm there had been a sudden change of wind -unperceived by us, which had brought our raft back to the shore which -we thought we had left so long a distance behind us. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVII. - -THE LIEDENBROCK MUSEUM OF GEOLOGY - - -How shall I describe the strange series of passions which in -succession shook the breast of Professor Liedenbrock? First -stupefaction, then incredulity, lastly a downright burst of rage. -Never had I seen the man so put out of countenance and so disturbed. -The fatigues of our passage across, the dangers met, had all to be -begun over again. We had gone backwards instead of forwards! - -But my uncle rapidly recovered himself. - -"Aha! will fate play tricks upon me? Will the elements lay plots -against me? Shall fire, air, and water make a combined attack against -me? Well, they shall know what a determined man can do. I will not -yield. I will not stir a single foot backwards, and it will be seen -whether man or nature is to have the upper hand!" - -Erect upon the rock, angry and threatening, Otto Liedenbrock was a -rather grotesque fierce parody upon the fierce Achilles defying the -lightning. But I thought it my duty to interpose and attempt to lay -some restraint upon this unmeasured fanaticism. - -"Just listen to me," I said firmly. "Ambition must have a limit -somewhere; we cannot perform impossibilities; we are not at all fit -for another sea voyage; who would dream of undertaking a voyage of -five hundred leagues upon a heap of rotten planks, with a blanket in -rags for a sail, a stick for a mast, and fierce winds in our teeth? -We cannot steer; we shall be buffeted by the tempests, and we should -be fools and madmen to attempt to cross a second time." - -I was able to develop this series of unanswerable reasons for ten -minutes without interruption; not that the Professor was paying any -respectful attention to his nephew's arguments, but because he was -deaf to all my eloquence. - -"To the raft!" he shouted. - -Such was his only reply. It was no use for me to entreat, supplicate, -get angry, or do anything else in the way of opposition; it would -only have been opposing a will harder than the granite rock. - -Hans was finishing the repairs of the raft. One would have thought -that this strange being was guessing at my uncle's intentions. With a -few more pieces of surturbrand he had refitted our vessel. A sail -already hung from the new mast, and the wind was playing in its -waving folds. - -The Professor said a few words to the guide, and immediately he put -everything on board and arranged every necessary for our departure. -The air was clear--and the north-west wind blew steadily. - -What could I do? Could I stand against the two? It was impossible? If -Hans had but taken my side! But no, it was not to be. The Icelander -seemed to have renounced all will of his own and made a vow to forget -and deny himself. I could get nothing out of a servant so feudalised, -as it were, to his master. My only course was to proceed. - -I was therefore going with as much resignation as I could find to -resume my accustomed place on the raft, when my uncle laid his hand -upon my shoulder. - -"We shall not sail until to-morrow," he said. - -I made a movement intended to express resignation. - -"I must neglect nothing," he said; "and since my fate has driven me -on this part of the coast, I will not leave it until I have examined -it." - -To understand what followed, it must be borne in mind that, through -circumstances hereafter to be explained, we were not really where the -Professor supposed we were. In fact we were not upon the north shore -of the sea. - -"Now let us start upon fresh discoveries," I said. - -And leaving Hans to his work we started off together. The space -between the water and the foot of the cliffs was considerable. It -took half an hour to bring us to the wall of rock. We trampled under -our feet numberless shells of all the forms and sizes which existed -in the earliest ages of the world. I also saw immense carapaces more -than fifteen feet in diameter. They had been the coverings of those -gigantic glyptodons or armadilloes of the pleiocene period, of which -the modern tortoise is but a miniature representative. [1] The soil -was besides this scattered with stony fragments, boulders rounded by -water action, and ridged up in successive lines. I was therefore led -to the conclusion that at one time the sea must have covered the -ground on which we were treading. On the loose and scattered rocks, -now out of the reach of the highest tides, the waves had left -manifest traces of their power to wear their way in the hardest stone. - -This might up to a certain point explain the existence of an ocean -forty leagues beneath the surface of the globe. But in my opinion -this liquid mass would be lost by degrees farther and farther within -the interior of the earth, and it certainly had its origin in the -waters of the ocean overhead, which had made their way hither through -some fissure. Yet it must be believed that that fissure is now -closed, and that all this cavern or immense reservoir was filled in a -very short time. Perhaps even this water, subjected to the fierce -action of central heat, had partly been resolved into vapour. This -would explain the existence of those clouds suspended over our heads -and the development of that electricity which raised such tempests -within the bowels of the earth. - -This theory of the phenomena we had witnessed seemed satisfactory to -me; for however great and stupendous the phenomena of nature, fixed -physical laws will or may always explain them. - -We were therefore walking upon sedimentary soil, the deposits of the -waters of former ages. The Professor was carefully examining every -little fissure in the rocks. Wherever he saw a hole he always wanted -to know the depth of it. To him this was important. - -We had traversed the shores of the Liedenbrock sea for a mile when we -observed a sudden change in the appearance of the soil. It seemed -upset, contorted, and convulsed by a violent upheaval of the lower -strata. In many places depressions or elevations gave witness to some -tremendous power effecting the dislocation of strata. - -[1] The glyptodon and armadillo are mammalian; the tortoise is a -chelonian, a reptile, distinct classes of the animal kingdom; -therefore the latter cannot be a representative of the former. -(Trans.) - -We moved with difficulty across these granite fissures and chasms -mingled with silex, crystals of quartz, and alluvial deposits, when a -field, nay, more than a field, a vast plain, of bleached bones lay -spread before us. It seemed like an immense cemetery, where the -remains of twenty ages mingled their dust together. Huge mounds of -bony fragments rose stage after stage in the distance. They undulated -away to the limits of the horizon, and melted in the distance in a -faint haze. There within three square miles were accumulated the -materials for a complete history of the animal life of ages, a -history scarcely outlined in the too recent strata of the inhabited -world. - -But an impatient curiosity impelled our steps; crackling and -rattling, our feet were trampling on the remains of prehistoric -animals and interesting fossils, the possession of which is a matter -of rivalry and contention between the museums of great cities. A -thousand Cuviers could never have reconstructed the organic remains -deposited in this magnificent and unparalleled collection. - -I stood amazed. My uncle had uplifted his long arms to the vault -which was our sky; his mouth gaping wide, his eyes flashing behind -his shining spectacles, his head balancing with an up-and-down -motion, his whole attitude denoted unlimited astonishment. Here he -stood facing an immense collection of scattered leptotheria, -mericotheria, lophiodia, anoplotheria, megatheria, mastodons, -protopithecæ, pterodactyles, and all sorts of extinct monsters here -assembled together for his special satisfaction. Fancy an -enthusiastic bibliomaniac suddenly brought into the midst of the -famous Alexandrian library burnt by Omar and restored by a miracle -from its ashes! just such a crazed enthusiast was my uncle, Professor -Liedenbrock. - -But more was to come, when, with a rush through clouds of bone dust, -he laid his hand upon a bare skull, and cried with a voice trembling -with excitement: - -"Axel! Axel! a human head!" - -"A human skull?" I cried, no less astonished. - -"Yes, nephew. Aha! M. Milne-Edwards! Ah! M. de Quatrefages, how I -wish you were standing here at the side of Otto Liedenbrock!" - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVIII. - -THE PROFESSOR IN HIS CHAIR AGAIN - - -To understand this apostrophe of my uncle's, made to absent French -savants, it will be necessary to allude to an event of high -importance in a palæontological point of view, which had occurred a -little while before our departure. - -On the 28th of March, 1863, some excavators working under the -direction of M. Boucher de Perthes, in the stone quarries of Moulin -Quignon, near Abbeville, in the department of Somme, found a human -jawbone fourteen feet beneath the surface. It was the first fossil of -this nature that had ever been brought to light. Not far distant were -found stone hatchets and flint arrow-heads stained and encased by -lapse of time with a uniform coat of rust. - -The noise of this discovery was very great, not in France alone, but in -England and in Germany. Several savants of the French Institute, and -amongst them MM. Milne-Edwards and de Quatrefages, saw at once the -importance of this discovery, proved to demonstration the genuineness of -the bone in question, and became the most ardent defendants in what the -English called this 'trial of a jawbone.' To the geologists of the -United Kingdom, who believed in the certainty of the fact--Messrs. -Falconer, Busk, Carpenter, and others--scientific Germans were soon -joined, and amongst them the forwardest, the most fiery, and the most -enthusiastic, was my uncle Liedenbrock. - -Therefore the genuineness of a fossil human relic of the quaternary -period seemed to be incontestably proved and admitted. - -It is true that this theory met with a most obstinate opponent in M. -Elie de Beaumont. This high authority maintained that the soil of -Moulin Quignon was not diluvial at all, but was of much more recent -formation; and, agreeing in that with Cuvier, he refused to admit -that the human species could be contemporary with the animals of the -quaternary period. My uncle Liedenbrock, along with the great body of -the geologists, had maintained his ground, disputed, and argued, -until M. Elie de Beaumont stood almost alone in his opinion. - -We knew all these details, but we were not aware that since our -departure the question had advanced to farther stages. Other similar -maxillaries, though belonging to individuals of various types and -different nations, were found in the loose grey soil of certain -grottoes in France, Switzerland, and Belgium, as well as weapons, -tools, earthen utensils, bones of children and adults. The existence -therefore of man in the quaternary period seemed to become daily more -certain. - -Nor was this all. Fresh discoveries of remains in the pleiocene -formation had emboldened other geologists to refer back the human -species to a higher antiquity still. It is true that these remains -were not human bones, but objects bearing the traces of his -handiwork, such as fossil leg-bones of animals, sculptured and carved -evidently by the hand of man. - -Thus, at one bound, the record of the existence of man receded far -back into the history of the ages past; he was a predecessor of the -mastodon; he was a contemporary of the southern elephant; he lived a -hundred thousand years ago, when, according to geologists, the -pleiocene formation was in progress. - -Such then was the state of palæontological science, and what we knew -of it was sufficient to explain our behaviour in the presence of this -stupendous Golgotha. Any one may now understand the frenzied -excitement of my uncle, when, twenty yards farther on, he found -himself face to face with a primitive man! - -It was a perfectly recognisable human body. Had some particular soil, -like that of the cemetery St. Michel, at Bordeaux, preserved it thus -for so many ages? It might be so. But this dried corpse, with its -parchment-like skin drawn tightly over the bony frame, the limbs -still preserving their shape, sound teeth, abundant hair, and finger -and toe nails of frightful length, this desiccated mummy startled us -by appearing just as it had lived countless ages ago. I stood mute -before this apparition of remote antiquity. My uncle, usually so -garrulous, was struck dumb likewise. We raised the body. We stood it -up against a rock. It seemed to stare at us out of its empty orbits. -We sounded with our knuckles his hollow frame. - -After some moments' silence the Professor was himself again. Otto -Liedenbrock, yielding to his nature, forgot all the circumstances of -our eventful journey, forgot where we were standing, forgot the -vaulted cavern which contained us. No doubt he was in mind back again -in his Johannæum, holding forth to his pupils, for he assumed his -learned air; and addressing himself to an imaginary audience, he -proceeded thus: - -"Gentlemen, I have the honour to introduce to you a man of the -quaternary or post-tertiary system. Eminent geologists have denied -his existence, others no less eminent have affirmed it. The St. -Thomases of palæontology, if they were here, might now touch him with -their fingers, and would be obliged to acknowledge their error. I am -quite aware that science has to be on its guard with discoveries of -this kind. I know what capital enterprising individuals like Barnum -have made out of fossil men. I have heard the tale of the kneepan of -Ajax, the pretended body of Orestes claimed to have been found by the -Spartans, and of the body of Asterius, ten cubits long, of which -Pausanias speaks. I have read the reports of the skeleton of Trapani, -found in the fourteenth century, and which was at the time identified -as that of Polyphemus; and the history of the giant unearthed in the -sixteenth century near Palermo. You know as well as I do, gentlemen, -the analysis made at Lucerne in 1577 of those huge bones which the -celebrated Dr. Felix Plater affirmed to be those of a giant nineteen -feet high. I have gone through the treatises of Cassanion, and all -those memoirs, pamphlets, answers, and rejoinders published -respecting the skeleton of Teutobochus, the invader of Gaul, dug out -of a sandpit in the Dauphiné, in 1613. In the eighteenth century I -would have stood up for Scheuchzer's pre-adamite man against Peter -Campet. I have perused a writing, entitled Gigan--" - -Here my uncle's unfortunate infirmity met him--that of being unable -in public to pronounce hard words. - -"The pamphlet entitled Gigan--" - -He could get no further. - -"Giganteo--" - -It was not to be done. The unlucky word would not come out. At the -Johannæum there would have been a laugh. - -"Gigantosteologie," at last the Professor burst out, between two -words which I shall not record here. - -Then rushing on with renewed vigour, and with great animation: - -"Yes, gentlemen, I know all these things, and more. I know that -Cuvier and Blumenbach have recognised in these bones nothing more -remarkable than the bones of the mammoth and other mammals of the -post-tertiary period. But in the presence of this specimen to doubt -would be to insult science. There stands the body! You may see it, -touch it. It is not a mere skeleton; it is an entire body, preserved -for a purely anthropological end and purpose." - -I was good enough not to contradict this startling assertion. - -"If I could only wash it in a solution of sulphuric acid," pursued my -uncle, "I should be able to clear it from all the earthy particles -and the shells which are incrusted about it. But I do not possess -that valuable solvent. Yet, such as it is, the body shall tell us its -own wonderful story." - -Here the Professor laid hold of the fossil skeleton, and handled it -with the skill of a dexterous showman. - -"You see," he said, "that it is not six feet long, and that we are -still separated by a long interval from the pretended race of giants. -As for the family to which it belongs, it is evidently Caucasian. It -is the white race, our own. The skull of this fossil is a regular -oval, or rather ovoid. It exhibits no prominent cheekbones, no -projecting jaws. It presents no appearance of that prognathism which -diminishes the facial angle. [1] Measure that angle. It is nearly -ninety degrees. But I will go further in my deductions, and I will -affirm that this specimen of the human family is of the Japhetic -race, which has since spread from the Indies to the Atlantic. Don't -smile, gentlemen." - -Nobody was smiling; but the learned Professor was frequently -disturbed by the broad smiles provoked by his learned eccentricities. - -"Yes," he pursued with animation, "this is a fossil man, the -contemporary of the mastodons whose remains fill this amphitheatre. -But if you ask me how he came there, how those strata on which he lay -slipped down into this enormous hollow in the globe, I confess I -cannot answer that question. No doubt in the post-tertiary period -considerable commotions were still disturbing the crust of the earth. -The long-continued cooling of the globe produced chasms, fissures, -clefts, and faults, into which, very probably, portions of the upper -earth may have fallen. I make no rash assertions; but there is the -man surrounded by his own works, by hatchets, by flint arrow-heads, -which are the characteristics of the stone age. And unless he came -here, like myself, as a tourist on a visit and as a pioneer of -science, I can entertain no doubt of the authenticity of his remote -origin." - -[1] The facial angle is formed by two lines, one touching the brow -and the front teeth, the other from the orifice of the ear to the -lower line of the nostrils. The greater this angle, the higher -intelligence denoted by the formation of the skull. Prognathism is -that projection of the jaw-bones which sharpens or lessons this -angle, and which is illustrated in the negro countenance and in the -lowest savages. - -The Professor ceased to speak, and the audience broke out into loud -and unanimous applause. For of course my uncle was right, and wiser -men than his nephew would have had some trouble to refute his -statements. - -Another remarkable thing. This fossil body was not the only one in -this immense catacomb. We came upon other bodies at every step -amongst this mortal dust, and my uncle might select the most curious -of these specimens to demolish the incredulity of sceptics. - -In fact it was a wonderful spectacle, that of these generations of -men and animals commingled in a common cemetery. Then one very -serious question arose presently which we scarcely dared to suggest. -Had all those creatures slided through a great fissure in the crust -of the earth, down to the shores of the Liedenbrock sea, when they -were dead and turning to dust, or had they lived and grown and died -here in this subterranean world under a false sky, just like -inhabitants of the upper earth? Until the present time we had seen -alive only marine monsters and fishes. Might not some living man, -some native of the abyss, be yet a wanderer below on this desert -strand? - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIX. - -FOREST SCENERY ILLUMINATED BY ELECTRICITY - - -For another half hour we trod upon a pavement of bones. We pushed on, -impelled by our burning curiosity. What other marvels did this cavern -contain? What new treasures lay here for science to unfold? I was -prepared for any surprise, my imagination was ready for any -astonishment however astounding. - -We had long lost sight of the sea shore behind the hills of bones. -The rash Professor, careless of losing his way, hurried me forward. -We advanced in silence, bathed in luminous electric fluid. By some -phenomenon which I am unable to explain, it lighted up all sides of -every object equally. Such was its diffusiveness, there being no -central point from which the light emanated, that shadows no longer -existed. You might have thought yourself under the rays of a vertical -sun in a tropical region at noonday and the height of summer. No -vapour was visible. The rocks, the distant mountains, a few isolated -clumps of forest trees in the distance, presented a weird and -wonderful aspect under these totally new conditions of a universal -diffusion of light. We were like Hoffmann's shadowless man. - -After walking a mile we reached the outskirts of a vast forest, but -not one of those forests of fungi which bordered Port Gräuben. - -Here was the vegetation of the tertiary period in its fullest blaze -of magnificence. Tall palms, belonging to species no longer living, -splendid palmacites, firs, yews, cypress trees, thujas, -representatives of the conifers, were linked together by a tangled -network of long climbing plants. A soft carpet of moss and hepaticas -luxuriously clothed the soil. A few sparkling streams ran almost in -silence under what would have been the shade of the trees, but that -there was no shadow. On their banks grew tree-ferns similar to those -we grow in hothouses. But a remarkable feature was the total absence -of colour in all those trees, shrubs, and plants, growing without the -life-giving heat and light of the sun. Everything seemed mixed-up and -confounded in one uniform silver grey or light brown tint like that -of fading and faded leaves. Not a green leaf anywhere, and the -flowers--which were abundant enough in the tertiary period, which -first gave birth to flowers--looked like brown-paper flowers, -without colour or scent. - -My uncle Liedenbrock ventured to penetrate under this colossal grove. -I followed him, not without fear. Since nature had here provided -vegetable nourishment, why should not the terrible mammals be there -too? I perceived in the broad clearings left by fallen trees, decayed -with age, leguminose plants, acerineæ, rubiceæ and many other eatable -shrubs, dear to ruminant animals at every period. Then I observed, -mingled together in confusion, trees of countries far apart on the -surface of the globe. The oak and the palm were growing side by side, -the Australian eucalyptus leaned against the Norwegian pine, the -birch-tree of the north mingled its foliage with New Zealand kauris. -It was enough to distract the most ingenious classifier of -terrestrial botany. - -Suddenly I halted. I drew back my uncle. - -The diffused light revealed the smallest object in the dense and -distant thickets. I had thought I saw--no! I did see, with my own -eyes, vast colossal forms moving amongst the trees. They were -gigantic animals; it was a herd of mastodons--not fossil remains, -but living and resembling those the bones of which were found in the -marshes of Ohio in 1801. I saw those huge elephants whose long, -flexible trunks were grouting and turning up the soil under the trees -like a legion of serpents. I could hear the crashing noise of their -long ivory tusks boring into the old decaying trunks. The boughs -cracked, and the leaves torn away by cartloads went down the -cavernous throats of the vast brutes. - -So, then, the dream in which I had had a vision of the prehistoric -world, of the tertiary and post-tertiary periods, was now realised. -And there we were alone, in the bowels of the earth, at the mercy of -its wild inhabitants! - -My uncle was gazing with intense and eager interest. - -"Come on!" said he, seizing my arm. "Forward! forward!" - -"No, I will not!" I cried. "We have no firearms. What could we do in the -midst of a herd of these four-footed giants? Come away, uncle--come! No -human being may with safety dare the anger of these monstrous beasts." - -"No human creature?" replied my uncle in a lower voice. "You are -wrong, Axel. Look, look down there! I fancy I see a living creature -similar to ourselves: it is a man!" - -I looked, shaking my head incredulously. But though at first I was -unbelieving I had to yield to the evidence of my senses. - -In fact, at a distance of a quarter of a mile, leaning against the -trunk of a gigantic kauri, stood a human being, the Proteus of those -subterranean regions, a new son of Neptune, watching this countless -herd of mastodons. - -Immanis pecoris custos, immanior ipse. [1] - -[1] "The shepherd of gigantic herds, and huger still himself." - -Yes, truly, huger still himself. It was no longer a fossil being like -him whose dried remains we had easily lifted up in the field of -bones; it was a giant, able to control those monsters. In stature he -was at least twelve feet high. His head, huge and unshapely as a -buffalo's, was half hidden in the thick and tangled growth of his -unkempt hair. It most resembled the mane of the primitive elephant. -In his hand he wielded with ease an enormous bough, a staff worthy of -this shepherd of the geologic period. - -We stood petrified and speechless with amazement. But he might see -us! We must fly! - -"Come, do come!" I said to my uncle, who for once allowed himself to -be persuaded. - -In another quarter of an hour our nimble heels had carried us beyond -the reach of this horrible monster. - -And yet, now that I can reflect quietly, now that my spirit has grown -calm again, now that months have slipped by since this strange and -supernatural meeting, what am I to think? what am I to believe? I -must conclude that it was impossible that our senses had been -deceived, that our eyes did not see what we supposed they saw. No -human being lives in this subterranean world; no generation of men -dwells in those inferior caverns of the globe, unknown to and -unconnected with the inhabitants of its surface. It is absurd to -believe it! - -I had rather admit that it may have been some animal whose structure -resembled the human, some ape or baboon of the early geological ages, -some protopitheca, or some mesopitheca, some early or middle ape like -that discovered by Mr. Lartet in the bone cave of Sansau. But this -creature surpassed in stature all the measurements known in modern -palæontology. But that a man, a living man, and therefore whole -generations doubtless besides, should be buried there in the bowels -of the earth, is impossible. - -However, we had left behind us the luminous forest, dumb with -astonishment, overwhelmed and struck down with a terror which -amounted to stupefaction. We kept running on for fear the horrible -monster might be on our track. It was a flight, a fall, like that -fearful pulling and dragging which is peculiar to nightmare. -Instinctively we got back to the Liedenbrock sea, and I cannot say -into what vagaries my mind would not have carried me but for a -circumstance which brought me back to practical matters. - -Although I was certain that we were now treading upon a soil not -hitherto touched by our feet, I often perceived groups of rocks which -reminded me of those about Port Gräuben. Besides, this seemed to -confirm the indications of the needle, and to show that we had -against our will returned to the north of the Liedenbrock sea. -Occasionally we felt quite convinced. Brooks and waterfalls were -tumbling everywhere from the projections in the rocks. I thought I -recognised the bed of surturbrand, our faithful Hansbach, and the -grotto in which I had recovered life and consciousness. Then a few -paces farther on, the arrangement of the cliffs, the appearance of an -unrecognised stream, or the strange outline of a rock, came to throw -me again into doubt. - -I communicated my doubts to my uncle. Like myself, he hesitated; he -could recognise nothing again amidst this monotonous scene. - -"Evidently," said I, "we have not landed again at our original -starting point, but the storm has carried us a little higher, and if -we follow the shore we shall find Port Gräuben." - -"If that is the case it will be useless to continue our exploration, -and we had better return to our raft. But, Axel, are you not -mistaken?" - -"It is difficult to speak decidedly, uncle, for all these rocks are -so very much alike. Yet I think I recognise the promontory at the -foot of which Hans constructed our launch. We must be very near the -little port, if indeed this is not it," I added, examining a creek -which I thought I recognised. - -"No, Axel, we should at least find our own traces and I see nothing--" - -"But I do see," I cried, darting upon an object lying on the sand. - -And I showed my uncle a rusty dagger which I had just picked up. - -"Come," said he, "had you this weapon with you?" - -"I! No, certainly! But you, perhaps--" - -"Not that I am aware," said the Professor. "I have never had this -object in my possession." - -"Well, this is strange!" - -"No, Axel, it is very simple. The Icelanders often wear arms of this -kind. This must have belonged to Hans, and he has lost it." - -I shook my head. Hans had never had an object like this in his -possession. - -"Did it not belong to some pre-adamite warrior?" I cried, "to some -living man, contemporary with the huge cattle-driver? But no. This is -not a relic of the stone age. It is not even of the iron age. This -blade is steel--" - -My uncle stopped me abruptly on my way to a dissertation which would -have taken me a long way, and said coolly: - -"Be calm, Axel, and reasonable. This dagger belongs to the sixteenth -century; it is a poniard, such as gentlemen carried in their belts to -give the coup _de grace._ Its origin is Spanish. It was never either -yours, or mine, or the hunter's, nor did it belong to any of those -human beings who may or may not inhabit this inner world. See, it was -never jagged like this by cutting men's throats; its blade is coated -with a rust neither a day, nor a year, nor a hundred years old." - -The Professor was getting excited according to his wont, and was -allowing his imagination to run away with him. - -"Axel, we are on the way towards the grand discovery. This blade has -been left on the strand for from one to three hundred years, and has -blunted its edge upon the rocks that fringe this subterranean sea!" - -"But it has not come alone. It has not twisted itself out of shape; -some one has been here before us! - -"Yes--a man has." - -"And who was that man?" - -"A man who has engraved his name somewhere with that dagger. That man -wanted once more to mark the way to the centre of the earth. Let us -look about: look about!" - -And, wonderfully interested, we peered all along the high wall, -peeping into every fissure which might open out into a gallery. - -And so we arrived at a place where the shore was much narrowed. Here -the sea came to lap the foot of the steep cliff, leaving a passage no -wider than a couple of yards. Between two boldly projecting rocks -appeared the mouth of a dark tunnel. - -There, upon a granite slab, appeared two mysterious graven letters, -half eaten away by time. They were the initials of the bold and -daring traveller: - -[Runic initials appear here] - -"A. S.," shouted my uncle. "Arne Saknussemm! Arne Saknussemm -everywhere!" - - - - -CHAPTER XL. - -PREPARATIONS FOR BLASTING A PASSAGE TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH - - -Since the start upon this marvellous pilgrimage I had been through so -many astonishments that I might well be excused for thinking myself -well hardened against any further surprise. Yet at the sight of these -two letters, engraved on this spot three hundred years ago, I stood -aghast in dumb amazement. Not only were the initials of the learned -alchemist visible upon the living rock, but there lay the iron point -with which the letters had been engraved. I could no longer doubt of -the existence of that wonderful traveller and of the fact of his -unparalleled journey, without the most glaring incredulity. - -Whilst these reflections were occupying me, Professor Liedenbrock had -launched into a somewhat rhapsodical eulogium, of which Arne -Saknussemm was, of course, the hero. - -"Thou marvellous genius!" he cried, "thou hast not forgotten one -indication which might serve to lay open to mortals the road through -the terrestrial crust; and thy fellow-creatures may even now, after -the lapse of three centuries, again trace thy footsteps through these -deep and darksome ways. You reserved the contemplation of these -wonders for other eyes besides your own. Your name, graven from stage -to stage, leads the bold follower of your footsteps to the very -centre of our planet's core, and there again we shall find your own -name written with your own hand. I too will inscribe my name upon -this dark granite page. But for ever henceforth let this cape that -advances into the sea discovered by yourself be known by your own -illustrious name--Cape Saknussemm." - -Such were the glowing words of panegyric which fell upon my attentive -ear, and I could not resist the sentiment of enthusiasm with which I -too was infected. The fire of zeal kindled afresh in me. I forgot -everything. I dismissed from my mind the past perils of the journey, -the future danger of our return. That which another had done I -supposed we might also do, and nothing that was not superhuman -appeared impossible to me. - -"Forward! forward!" I cried. - -I was already darting down the gloomy tunnel when the Professor -stopped me; he, the man of impulse, counselled patience and coolness. - -"Let us first return to Hans," he said, "and bring the raft to this -spot." - -I obeyed, not without dissatisfaction, and passed out rapidly among -the rocks on the shore. - -I said: "Uncle, do you know it seems to me that circumstances have -wonderfully befriended us hitherto?" - -"You think so, Axel?" - -"No doubt; even the tempest has put us on the right way. Blessings on -that storm! It has brought us back to this coast from which fine -weather would have carried us far away. Suppose we had touched with -our prow (the prow of a rudder!) the southern shore of the -Liedenbrock sea, what would have become of us? We should never have -seen the name of Saknussemm, and we should at this moment be -imprisoned on a rockbound, impassable coast." - -"Yes, Axel, it is providential that whilst supposing we were steering -south we should have just got back north at Cape Saknussemm. I must -say that this is astonishing, and that I feel I have no way to -explain it." - -"What does that signify, uncle? Our business is not to explain facts, -but to use them!" - -"Certainly; but--" - -"Well, uncle, we are going to resume the northern route, and to pass -under the north countries of Europe--under Sweden, Russia, Siberia: -who knows where?--instead of burrowing under the deserts of Africa, -or perhaps the waves of the Atlantic; and that is all I want to know." - -"Yes, Axel, you are right. It is all for the best, since we have left -that weary, horizontal sea, which led us nowhere. Now we shall go -down, down, down! Do you know that it is now only 1,500 leagues to -the centre of the globe?" - -"Is that all?" I cried. "Why, that's nothing. Let us start: march!" - -All this crazy talk was going on still when we met the hunter. -Everything was made ready for our instant departure. Every bit of -cordage was put on board. We took our places, and with our sail set, -Hans steered us along the coast to Cape Saknussemm. - -The wind was unfavourable to a species of launch not calculated for -shallow water. In many places we were obliged to push ourselves along -with iron-pointed sticks. Often the sunken rocks just beneath the -surface obliged us to deviate from our straight course. At last, -after three hours' sailing, about six in the evening we reached a -place suitable for our landing. I jumped ashore, followed by my uncle -and the Icelander. This short passage had not served to cool my -ardour. On the contrary, I even proposed to burn 'our ship,' to -prevent the possibility of return; but my uncle would not consent to -that. I thought him singularly lukewarm. - -"At least," I said, "don't let us lose a minute." - -"Yes, yes, lad," he replied; "but first let us examine this new -gallery, to see if we shall require our ladders." - -My uncle put his Ruhmkorff's apparatus in action; the raft moored to -the shore was left alone; the mouth of the tunnel was not twenty -yards from us; and our party, with myself at the head, made for it -without a moment's delay. - -The aperture, which was almost round, was about five feet in -diameter; the dark passage was cut out in the live rock and lined -with a coat of the eruptive matter which formerly issued from it; the -interior was level with the ground outside, so that we were able to -enter without difficulty. We were following a horizontal plane, when, -only six paces in, our progress was interrupted by an enormous block -just across our way. - -"Accursed rock!" I cried in a passion, finding myself suddenly -confronted by an impassable obstacle. - -Right and left we searched in vain for a way, up and down, side to -side; there was no getting any farther. I felt fearfully -disappointed, and I would not admit that the obstacle was final. I -stopped, I looked underneath the block: no opening. Above: granite -still. Hans passed his lamp over every portion of the barrier in -vain. We must give up all hope of passing it. - -I sat down in despair. My uncle strode from side to side in the -narrow passage. - -"But how was it with Saknussemm?" I cried. - -"Yes," said my uncle, "was he stopped by this stone barrier?" - -"No, no," I replied with animation. "This fragment of rock has been -shaken down by some shock or convulsion, or by one of those magnetic -storms which agitate these regions, and has blocked up the passage -which lay open to him. Many years have elapsed since the return of -Saknussemm to the surface and the fall of this huge fragment. Is it -not evident that this gallery was once the way open to the course of -the lava, and that at that time there must have been a free passage? -See here are recent fissures grooving and channelling the granite -roof. This roof itself is formed of fragments of rock carried down, -of enormous stones, as if by some giant's hand; but at one time the -expulsive force was greater than usual, and this block, like the -falling keystone of a ruined arch, has slipped down to the ground and -blocked up the way. It is only an accidental obstruction, not met by -Saknussemm, and if we don't destroy it we shall be unworthy to reach -the centre of the earth." - -Such was my sentence! The soul of the Professor had passed into me. -The genius of discovery possessed me wholly. I forgot the past, I -scorned the future. I gave not a thought to the things of the surface -of this globe into which I had dived; its cities and its sunny -plains, Hamburg and the Königstrasse, even poor Gräuben, who must -have given us up for lost, all were for the time dismissed from the -pages of my memory. - -"Well," cried my uncle, "let us make a way with our pickaxes." - -"Too hard for the pickaxe." - -"Well, then, the spade." - -"That would take us too long." - -"What, then?" - -"Why gunpowder, to be sure! Let us mine the obstacle and blow it up." - -"Oh, yes, it is only a bit of rock to blast!" - -"Hans, to work!" cried my uncle. - -The Icelander returned to the raft and soon came back with an iron -bar which he made use of to bore a hole for the charge. This was no -easy work. A hole was to be made large enough to hold fifty pounds of -guncotton, whose expansive force is four times that of gunpowder. - -I was terribly excited. Whilst Hans was at work I was actively -helping my uncle to prepare a slow match of wetted powder encased in -linen. - -"This will do it," I said. - -"It will," replied my uncle. - -By midnight our mining preparations were over; the charge was rammed -into the hole, and the slow match uncoiled along the gallery showed -its end outside the opening. - -A spark would now develop the whole of our preparations into activity. - -"To-morrow," said the Professor. - -I had to be resigned and to wait six long hours. - - - - -CHAPTER XLI. - -THE GREAT EXPLOSION AND THE RUSH DOWN BELOW - - -The next day, Thursday, August 27, is a well-remembered date in our -subterranean journey. It never returns to my memory without sending -through me a shudder of horror and a palpitation of the heart. From -that hour we had no further occasion for the exercise of reason, or -judgment, or skill, or contrivance. We were henceforth to be hurled -along, the playthings of the fierce elements of the deep. - -At six we were afoot. The moment drew near to clear a way by blasting -through the opposing mass of granite. - -I begged for the honour of lighting the fuse. This duty done, I was -to join my companions on the raft, which had not yet been unloaded; -we should then push off as far as we could and avoid the dangers -arising from the explosion, the effects of which were not likely to -be confined to the rock itself. - -The fuse was calculated to burn ten minutes before setting fire to -the mine. I therefore had sufficient time to get away to the raft. - -I prepared to fulfil my task with some anxiety. - -After a hasty meal, my uncle and the hunter embarked whilst I -remained on shore. I was supplied with a lighted lantern to set fire -to the fuse. "Now go," said my uncle, "and return immediately to us." -"Don't be uneasy," I replied. "I will not play by the way." I -immediately proceeded to the mouth of the tunnel. I opened my -lantern. I laid hold of the end of the match. The Professor stood, -chronometer in hand. "Ready?" he cried. - -"Ay." - -"Fire!" - -I instantly plunged the end of the fuse into the lantern. It -spluttered and flamed, and I ran at the top of my speed to the raft. - -"Come on board quickly, and let us push off." - -Hans, with a vigorous thrust, sent us from the shore. The raft shot -twenty fathoms out to sea. - -It was a moment of intense excitement. The Professor was watching the -hand of the chronometer. - -"Five minutes more!" he said. "Four! Three!" - -My pulse beat half-seconds. - -"Two! One! Down, granite rocks; down with you." - -What took place at that moment? I believe I did not hear the dull -roar of the explosion. But the rocks suddenly assumed a new -arrangement: they rent asunder like a curtain. I saw a bottomless pit -open on the shore. The sea, lashed into sudden fury, rose up in an -enormous billow, on the ridge of which the unhappy raft was uplifted -bodily in the air with all its crew and cargo. - -We all three fell down flat. In less than a second we were in deep, -unfathomable darkness. Then I felt as if not only myself but the raft -also had no support beneath. I thought it was sinking; but it was not -so. I wanted to speak to my uncle, but the roaring of the waves -prevented him from hearing even the sound of my voice. - -In spite of darkness, noise, astonishment, and terror, I then -understood what had taken place. - -On the other side of the blown-up rock was an abyss. The explosion -had caused a kind of earthquake in this fissured and abysmal region; -a great gulf had opened; and the sea, now changed into a torrent, was -hurrying us along into it. - -I gave myself up for lost. - -An hour passed away--two hours, perhaps--I cannot tell. We clutched -each other fast, to save ourselves from being thrown off the raft. We -felt violent shocks whenever we were borne heavily against the craggy -projections. Yet these shocks were not very frequent, from which I -concluded that the gully was widening. It was no doubt the same road -that Saknussemm had taken; but instead of walking peaceably down it, -as he had done, we were carrying a whole sea along with us. - -These ideas, it will be understood, presented themselves to my mind -in a vague and undetermined form. I had difficulty in associating any -ideas together during this headlong race, which seemed like a -vertical descent. To judge by the air which was whistling past me and -made a whizzing in my ears, we were moving faster than the fastest -express trains. To light a torch under these' conditions would have -been impossible; and our last electric apparatus had been shattered -by the force of the explosion. - -I was therefore much surprised to see a clear light shining near me. -It lighted up the calm and unmoved countenance of Hans. The skilful -huntsman had succeeded in lighting the lantern; and although it -flickered so much as to threaten to go out, it threw a fitful light -across the awful darkness. - -I was right in my supposition. It was a wide gallery. The dim light -could not show us both its walls at once. The fall of the waters -which were carrying us away exceeded that of the swiftest rapids in -American rivers. Its surface seemed composed of a sheaf of arrows -hurled with inconceivable force; I cannot convey my impressions by a -better comparison. The raft, occasionally seized by an eddy, spun -round as it still flew along. When it approached the walls of the -gallery I threw on them the light of the lantern, and I could judge -somewhat of the velocity of our speed by noticing how the jagged -projections of the rocks spun into endless ribbons and bands, so that -we seemed confined within a network of shifting lines. I supposed we -were running at the rate of thirty leagues an hour. - -My uncle and I gazed on each other with haggard eyes, clinging to the -stump of the mast, which had snapped asunder at the first shock of -our great catastrophe. We kept our backs to the wind, not to be -stifled by the rapidity of a movement which no human power could -check. - -Hours passed away. No change in our situation; but a discovery came -to complicate matters and make them worse. - -In seeking to put our cargo into somewhat better order, I found that -the greater part of the articles embarked had disappeared at the -moment of the explosion, when the sea broke in upon us with such -violence. I wanted to know exactly what we had saved, and with the -lantern in my hand I began my examination. Of our instruments none -were saved but the compass and the chronometer; our stock of ropes -and ladders was reduced to the bit of cord rolled round the stump of -the mast! Not a spade, not a pickaxe, not a hammer was left us; and, -irreparable disaster! we had only one day's provisions left. - -I searched every nook and corner, every crack and cranny in the raft. -There was nothing. Our provisions were reduced to one bit of salt -meat and a few biscuits. - -I stared at our failing supplies stupidly. I refused to take in the -gravity of our loss. And yet what was the use of troubling myself. If -we had had provisions enough for months, how could we get out of the -abyss into which we were being hurled by an irresistible torrent? Why -should we fear the horrors of famine, when death was swooping down -upon us in a multitude of other forms? Would there be time left to -die of starvation? - -Yet by an inexplicable play of the imagination I forgot my present -dangers, to contemplate the threatening future. Was there any chance -of escaping from the fury of this impetuous torrent, and of returning -to the surface of the globe? I could not form the slightest -conjecture how or when. But one chance in a thousand, or ten -thousand, is still a chance; whilst death from starvation would leave -us not the smallest hope in the world. - -The thought came into my mind to declare the whole truth to my uncle, -to show him the dreadful straits to which we were reduced, and to -calculate how long we might yet expect to live. But I had the courage -to preserve silence. I wished to leave him cool and self-possessed. - -At that moment the light from our lantern began to sink by little and -little, and then went out entirely. The wick had burnt itself out. -Black night reigned again; and there was no hope left of being able -to dissipate the palpable darkness. We had yet a torch left, but we -could not have kept it alight. Then, like a child, I closed my eyes -firmly, not to see the darkness. - -After a considerable lapse of time our speed redoubled. I could -perceive it by the sharpness of the currents that blew past my face. -The descent became steeper. I believe we were no longer sliding, but -falling down. I had an impression that we were dropping vertically. -My uncle's hand, and the vigorous arm of Hans, held me fast. - -Suddenly, after a space of time that I could not measure, I felt a -shock. The raft had not struck against any hard resistance, but had -suddenly been checked in its fall. A waterspout, an immense liquid -column, was beating upon the surface of the waters. I was -suffocating! I was drowning! - -But this sudden flood was not of long duration. In a few seconds I -found myself in the air again, which I inhaled with all the force of -my lungs. My uncle and Hans were still holding me fast by the arms; -and the raft was still carrying us. - - - -CHAPTER XLII. - -HEADLONG SPEED UPWARD THROUGH THE HORRORS OF DARKNESS - - -It might have been, as I guessed, about ten at night. The first of my -senses which came into play after this last bout was that of hearing. -All at once I could hear; and it was a real exercise of the sense of -hearing. I could hear the silence in the gallery after the din which -for hours had stunned me. At last these words of my uncle's came to -me like a vague murmuring: - -"We are going up." - -"What do you mean?" I cried. - -"Yes, we are going up--up!" - -I stretched out my arm. I touched the wall, and drew back my hand -bleeding. We were ascending with extreme rapidity. - -"The torch! The torch!" cried the Professor. - -Not without difficulty Hans succeeded in lighting the torch; and the -flame, preserving its upward tendency, threw enough light to show us -what kind of a place we were in. - -"Just as I thought," said the Professor "We are in a tunnel not -four-and-twenty feet in diameter. The water had reached the bottom of -the gulf. It is now rising to its level, and carrying us with it." - -"Where to?" - -"I cannot tell; but we must be ready for anything. We are mounting at -a speed which seems to me of fourteen feet in a second, or ten miles -an hour. At this rate we shall get on." - -"Yes, if nothing stops us; if this well has an aperture. But suppose -it to be stopped. If the air is condensed by the pressure of this -column of water we shall be crushed." - -"Axel," replied the Professor with perfect coolness, "our situation -is almost desperate; but there are some chances of deliverance, and -it is these that I am considering. If at every instant we may perish, -so at every instant we may be saved. Let us then be prepared to seize -upon the smallest advantage." - -"But what shall we do now?" - -"Recruit our strength by eating." - -At these words I fixed a haggard eye upon my uncle. That which I had -been so unwilling to confess at last had to be told. - -"Eat, did you say?" - -"Yes, at once." - -The Professor added a few words in Danish, but Hans shook his head -mournfully. - -"What!" cried my uncle. "Have we lost our provisions?" - -"Yes; here is all we have left; one bit of salt meat for the three." - -My uncle stared at me as if he could not understand. - -"Well," said I, "do you think we have any chance of being saved?" - -My question was unanswered. - -An hour passed away. I began to feel the pangs of a violent hunger. -My companions were suffering too, and not one of us dared touch this -wretched remnant of our goodly store. - -But now we were mounting up with excessive speed. Sometimes the air -would cut our breath short, as is experienced by aeronauts ascending -too rapidly. But whilst they suffer from cold in proportion to their -rise, we were beginning to feel a contrary effect. The heat was -increasing in a manner to cause us the most fearful anxiety, and -certainly the temperature was at this moment at the height of 100° -Fahr. - -What could be the meaning of such a change? Up to this time facts had -supported the theories of Davy and of Liedenbrock; until now -particular conditions of non-conducting rocks, electricity and -magnetism, had tempered the laws of nature, giving us only a -moderately warm climate, for the theory of a central fire remained in -my estimation the only one that was true and explicable. Were we then -turning back to where the phenomena of central heat ruled in all -their rigour and would reduce the most refractory rocks to the state -of a molten liquid? I feared this, and said to the Professor: - -"If we are neither drowned, nor shattered to pieces, nor starved to -death, there is still the chance that we may be burned alive and -reduced to ashes." - -At this he shrugged his shoulders and returned to his thoughts. - -Another hour passed, and, except some slight increase in the -temperature, nothing new had happened. - -"Come," said he, "we must determine upon something." - -"Determine on what?" said I. - -"Yes, we must recruit our strength by carefully rationing ourselves, -and so prolong our existence by a few hours. But we shall be reduced -to very great weakness at last." - -"And our last hour is not far off." - -"Well, if there is a chance of safety, if a moment for active -exertion presents itself, where should we find the required strength -if we allowed ourselves to be enfeebled by hunger?" - -"Well, uncle, when this bit of meat has been devoured what shall we -have left?" - -"Nothing, Axel, nothing at all. But will it do you any more good to -devour it with your eyes than with your teeth? Your reasoning has in -it neither sense nor energy." - -"Then don't you despair?" I cried irritably. - -"No, certainly not," was the Professor's firm reply. - -"What! do you think there is any chance of safety left?" - -"Yes, I do; as long as the heart beats, as long as body and soul keep -together, I cannot admit that any creature endowed with a will has -need to despair of life." - -Resolute words these! The man who could speak so, under such -circumstances, was of no ordinary type. - -"Finally, what do you mean to do?" I asked. - -"Eat what is left to the last crumb, and recruit our fading strength. -This meal will be our last, perhaps: so let it be! But at any rate we -shall once more be men, and not exhausted, empty bags." - -"Well, let us consume it then," I cried. - -My uncle took the piece of meat and the few biscuits which had -escaped from the general destruction. He divided them into three -equal portions and gave one to each. This made about a pound of -nourishment for each. The Professor ate his greedily, with a kind of -feverish rage. I ate without pleasure, almost with disgust; Hans -quietly, moderately, masticating his small mouthfuls without any -noise, and relishing them with the calmness of a man above all -anxiety about the future. By diligent search he had found a flask of -Hollands; he offered it to us each in turn, and this generous -beverage cheered us up slightly. - -"_Forträfflig,_" said Hans, drinking in his turn. - -"Excellent," replied my uncle. - -A glimpse of hope had returned, although without cause. But our last -meal was over, and it was now five in the morning. - -Man is so constituted that health is a purely negative state. Hunger -once satisfied, it is difficult for a man to imagine the horrors of -starvation; they cannot be understood without being felt. - -Therefore it was that after our long fast these few mouthfuls of meat -and biscuit made us triumph over our past agonies. - -But as soon as the meal was done, we each of us fell deep into -thought. What was Hans thinking of--that man of the far West, but -who seemed ruled by the fatalist doctrines of the East? - -As for me, my thoughts were made up of remembrances, and they carried -me up to the surface of the globe of which I ought never to have -taken leave. The house in the Königstrasse, my poor dear Gräuben, -that kind soul Martha, flitted like visions before my eyes, and in -the dismal moanings which from time to time reached my ears I thought -I could distinguish the roar of the traffic of the great cities upon -earth. - -My uncle still had his eye upon his work. Torch in hand, he tried to -gather some idea of our situation from the observation of the strata. -This calculation could, at best, be but a vague approximation; but a -learned man is always a philosopher when he succeeds in remaining -cool, and assuredly Professor Liedenbrock possessed this quality to a -surprising degree. - -I could hear him murmuring geological terms. I could understand them, -and in spite of myself I felt interested in this last geological -study. - -"Eruptive granite," he was saying. "We are still in the primitive -period. But we are going up, up, higher still. Who can tell?" - -Ah! who can tell? With his hand he was examining the perpendicular -wall, and in a few more minutes he continued: - -"This is gneiss! here is mica schist! Ah! presently we shall come to -the transition period, and then--" - -What did the Professor mean? Could he be trying to measure the -thickness of the crust of the earth that lay between us and the world -above? Had he any means of making this calculation? No, he had not -the aneroid, and no guessing could supply its place. - -Still the temperature kept rising, and I felt myself steeped in a -broiling atmosphere. I could only compare it to the heat of a furnace -at the moment when the molten metal is running into the mould. -Gradually we had been obliged to throw aside our coats and -waistcoats, the lightest covering became uncomfortable and even -painful. - -"Are we rising into a fiery furnace?" I cried at one moment when the -heat was redoubling. - -"No," replied my uncle, "that is impossible--quite impossible!" - -"Yet," I answered, feeling the wall, "this well is burning hot." - -At the same moment, touching the water, I had to withdraw my hand in -haste. - -"The water is scalding," I cried. - -This time the Professor's only answer was an angry gesture. - -Then an unconquerable terror seized upon me, from which I could no -longer get free. I felt that a catastrophe was approaching before -which the boldest spirit must quail. A dim, vague notion laid hold of -my mind, but which was fast hardening into certainty. I tried to -repel it, but it would return. I dared not express it in plain terms. -Yet a few involuntary observations confirmed me in my view. By the -flickering light of the torch I could distinguish contortions in the -granite beds; a phenomenon was unfolding in which electricity would -play the principal part; then this unbearable heat, this boiling -water! I consulted the compass. - -The compass had lost its properties! it had ceased to act properly! - - - -CHAPTER XLIII. - -SHOT OUT OF A VOLCANO AT LAST! - - -Yes: our compass was no longer a guide; the needle flew from pole to -pole with a kind of frenzied impulse; it ran round the dial, and spun -hither and thither as if it were giddy or intoxicated. - -I knew quite well that according to the best received theories the -mineral covering of the globe is never at absolute rest; the changes -brought about by the chemical decomposition of its component parts, -the agitation caused by great liquid torrents, and the magnetic -currents, are continually tending to disturb it--even when living -beings upon its surface may fancy that all is quiet below. A -phenomenon of this kind would not have greatly alarmed me, or at any -rate it would not have given rise to dreadful apprehensions. - -But other facts, other circumstances, of a peculiar nature, came to -reveal to me by degrees the true state of the case. There came -incessant and continuous explosions. I could only compare them to the -loud rattle of a long train of chariots driven at full speed over the -stones, or a roar of unintermitting thunder. - -Then the disordered compass, thrown out of gear by the electric -currents, confirmed me in a growing conviction. The mineral crust of -the globe threatened to burst up, the granite foundations to come -together with a crash, the fissure through which we were helplessly -driven would be filled up, the void would be full of crushed -fragments of rock, and we poor wretched mortals were to be buried and -annihilated in this dreadful consummation. - -"My uncle," I cried, "we are lost now, utterly lost!" - -"What are you in a fright about now?" was the calm rejoinder. "What -is the matter with you?" - -"The matter? Look at those quaking walls! look at those shivering -rocks. Don't you feel the burning heat? Don't you see how the water -boils and bubbles? Are you blind to the dense vapours and steam -growing thicker and denser every minute? See this agitated compass -needle. It is an earthquake that is threatening us." - -My undaunted uncle calmly shook his head. - -"Do you think," said he, "an earthquake is coming?" - -"I do." - -"Well, I think you are mistaken." - -"What! don't you recognise the symptoms?" - -"Of an earthquake? no! I am looking out for something better." - -"What can you mean? Explain?" - -"It is an eruption, Axel." - -"An eruption! Do you mean to affirm that we are running up the shaft -of a volcano?" - -"I believe we are," said the indomitable Professor with an air of -perfect self-possession; "and it is the best thing that could -possibly happen to us under our circumstances." - -The best thing! Was my uncle stark mad? What did the man mean? and -what was the use of saying facetious things at a time like this? - -"What!" I shouted. "Are we being taken up in an eruption? Our fate -has flung us here among burning lavas, molten rocks, boiling waters, -and all kinds of volcanic matter; we are going to be pitched out, -expelled, tossed up, vomited, spit out high into the air, along with -fragments of rock, showers of ashes and scoria, in the midst of a -towering rush of smoke and flames; and it is the best thing that -could happen to us!" - -"Yes," replied the Professor, eyeing me over his spectacles, "I don't -see any other way of reaching the surface of the earth." - -I pass rapidly over the thousand ideas which passed through my mind. -My uncle was right, undoubtedly right; and never had he seemed to me -more daring and more confirmed in his notions than at this moment -when he was calmly contemplating the chances of being shot out of a -volcano! - -In the meantime up we went; the night passed away in continual -ascent; the din and uproar around us became more and more -intensified; I was stifled and stunned; I thought my last hour was -approaching; and yet imagination is such a strong thing that even in -this supreme hour I was occupied with strange and almost childish -speculations. But I was the victim, not the master, of my own -thoughts. - -It was very evident that we were being hurried upward upon the crest -of a wave of eruption; beneath our raft were boiling waters, and -under these the more sluggish lava was working its way up in a heated -mass, together with shoals of fragments of rock which, when they -arrived at the crater, would be dispersed in all directions high and -low. We were imprisoned in the shaft or chimney of some volcano. -There was no room to doubt of that. - -But this time, instead of Snæfell, an extinct volcano, we were inside -one in full activity. I wondered, therefore, where could this -mountain be, and in what part of the world we were to be shot out. - -I made no doubt but that it would be in some northern region. Before -its disorders set in, the needle had never deviated from that -direction. From Cape Saknussemm we had been carried due north for -hundreds of leagues. Were we under Iceland again? Were we destined to -be thrown up out of Hecla, or by which of the seven other fiery -craters in that island? Within a radius of five hundred leagues to -the west I remembered under this parallel of latitude only the -imperfectly known volcanoes of the north-east coast of America. To -the east there was only one in the 80th degree of north latitude, the -Esk in Jan Mayen Island, not far from Spitzbergen! Certainly there -was no lack of craters, and there were some capacious enough to throw -out a whole army! But I wanted to know which of them was to serve us -for an exit from the inner world. - -Towards morning the ascending movement became accelerated. If the -heat increased, instead of diminishing, as we approached nearer to -the surface of the globe, this effect was due to local causes alone, -and those volcanic. The manner of our locomotion left no doubt in my -mind. An enormous force, a force of hundreds of atmospheres, -generated by the extreme pressure of confined vapours, was driving us -irresistibly forward. But to what numberless dangers it exposed us! - -Soon lurid lights began to penetrate the vertical gallery which -widened as we went up. Right and left I could see deep channels, like -huge tunnels, out of which escaped dense volumes of smoke; tongues of -fire lapped the walls, which crackled and sputtered under the intense -heat. - -"See, see, my uncle!" I cried. - -"Well, those are only sulphureous flames and vapours, which one must -expect to see in an eruption. They are quite natural." - -"But suppose they should wrap us round." - -"But they won't wrap us round." - -"But we shall be stifled." - -"We shall not be stifled at all. The gallery is widening, and if it -becomes necessary, we shall abandon the raft, and creep into a -crevice." - -"But the water--the rising water?" - -"There is no more water, Axel; only a lava paste, which is bearing us -up on its surface to the top of the crater." - -The liquid column had indeed disappeared, to give place to dense and -still boiling eruptive matter of all kinds. The temperature was -becoming unbearable. A thermometer exposed to this atmosphere would -have marked 150°. The perspiration streamed from my body. But for the -rapidity of our ascent we should have been suffocated. - -But the Professor gave up his idea of abandoning the raft, and it was -well he did. However roughly joined together, those planks afforded -us a firmer support than we could have found anywhere else. - -About eight in the morning a new incident occurred. The upward -movement ceased. The raft lay motionless. - -"What is this?" I asked, shaken by this sudden stoppage as if by a -shock. - -"It is a halt," replied my uncle. - -"Is the eruption checked?" I asked. - -"I hope not." - -I rose, and tried to look around me. Perhaps the raft itself, stopped -in its course by a projection, was staying the volcanic torrent. If -this were the case we should have to release it as soon as possible. - -But it was not so. The blast of ashes, scorix, and rubbish had ceased -to rise. - -"Has the eruption stopped?" I cried. - -"Ah!" said my uncle between his clenched teeth, "you are afraid. But -don't alarm yourself--this lull cannot last long. It has lasted now -five minutes, and in a short time we shall resume our journey to the -mouth of the crater." - -As he spoke, the Professor continued to consult his chronometer, and -he was again right in his prognostications. The raft was soon hurried -and driven forward with a rapid but irregular movement, which lasted -about ten minutes, and then stopped again. - -"Very good," said my uncle; "in ten minutes more we shall be off -again, for our present business lies with an intermittent volcano. It -gives us time now and then to take breath." - -This was perfectly true. When the ten minutes were over we started -off again with renewed and increased speed. We were obliged to lay -fast hold of the planks of the raft, not to be thrown off. Then again -the paroxysm was over. - -I have since reflected upon this singular phenomenon without being -able to explain it. At any rate it was clear that we were not in the -main shaft of the volcano, but in a lateral gallery where there were -felt recurrent tunes of reaction. - -How often this operation was repeated I cannot say. All I know is, -that at each fresh impulse we were hurled forward with a greatly -increased force, and we seemed as if we were mere projectiles. During -the short halts we were stifled with the heat; whilst we were being -projected forward the hot air almost stopped my breath. I thought for -a moment how delightful it would be to find myself carried suddenly -into the arctic regions, with a cold 30° below the freezing point. My -overheated brain conjured up visions of white plains of cool snow, -where I might roll and allay my feverish heat. Little by little my -brain, weakened by so many constantly repeated shocks, seemed to be -giving way altogether. But for the strong arm of Hans I should more -than once have had my head broken against the granite roof of our -burning dungeon. - -I have therefore no exact recollection of what took place during the -following hours. I have a confused impression left of continuous -explosions, loud detonations, a general shaking of the rocks all -around us, and of a spinning movement with which our raft was once -whirled helplessly round. It rocked upon the lava torrent, amidst a -dense fall of ashes. Snorting flames darted their fiery tongues at -us. There were wild, fierce puffs of stormy wind from below, -resembling the blasts of vast iron furnaces blowing all at one time; -and I caught a glimpse of the figure of Hans lighted up by the fire; -and all the feeling I had left was just what I imagine must be the -feeling of an unhappy criminal doomed to be blown away alive from the -mouth of a cannon, just before the trigger is pulled, and the flying -limbs and rags of flesh and skin fill the quivering air and spatter -the blood-stained ground. - - - -CHAPTER XLIV. - -SUNNY LANDS IN THE BLUE MEDITERRANEAN - - -When I opened my eyes again I felt myself grasped by the belt with -the strong hand of our guide. With the other arm he supported my -uncle. I was not seriously hurt, but I was shaken and bruised and -battered all over. I found myself lying on the sloping side of a -mountain only two yards from a gaping gulf, which would have -swallowed me up had I leaned at all that way. Hans had saved me from -death whilst I lay rolling on the edge of the crater. - -"Where are we?" asked my uncle irascibly, as if he felt much injured -by being landed upon the earth again. - -The hunter shook his head in token of complete ignorance. - -"Is it Iceland?" I asked. - -"_Nej,_" replied Hans. - -"What! Not Iceland?" cried the Professor. - -"Hans must be mistaken," I said, raising myself up. - -This was our final surprise after all the astonishing events of our -wonderful journey. I expected to see a white cone covered with the -eternal snow of ages rising from the midst of the barren deserts of -the icy north, faintly lighted with the pale rays of the arctic sun, -far away in the highest latitudes known; but contrary to all our -expectations, my uncle, the Icelander, and myself were sitting -half-way down a mountain baked under the burning rays of a southern -sun, which was blistering us with the heat, and blinding us with the -fierce light of his nearly vertical rays. - -I could not believe my own eyes; but the heated air and the sensation -of burning left me no room for doubt. We had come out of the crater -half naked, and the radiant orb to which we had been strangers for -two months was lavishing upon us out of his blazing splendours more -of his light and heat than we were able to receive with comfort. - -When my eyes had become accustomed to the bright light to which they -had been so long strangers, I began to use them to set my imagination -right. At least I would have it to be Spitzbergen, and I was in no -humour to give up this notion. - -The Professor was the first to speak, and said: - -"Well, this is not much like Iceland." - -"But is it Jan Mayen?" I asked. - -"Nor that either," he answered. "This is no northern mountain; here -are no granite peaks capped with snow. Look, Axel, look!" - -Above our heads, at a height of five hundred feet or more, we saw the -crater of a volcano, through which, at intervals of fifteen minutes -or so, there issued with loud explosions lofty columns of fire, -mingled with pumice stones, ashes, and flowing lava. I could feel the -heaving of the mountain, which seemed to breathe like a huge whale, -and puff out fire and wind from its vast blowholes. Beneath, down a -pretty steep declivity, ran streams of lava for eight or nine hundred -feet, giving the mountain a height of about 1,300 or 1,400 feet. But -the base of the mountain was hidden in a perfect bower of rich -verdure, amongst which I was able to distinguish the olive, the fig, -and vines, covered with their luscious purple bunches. - -I was forced to confess that there was nothing arctic here. - -When the eye passed beyond these green surroundings it rested on a -wide, blue expanse of sea or lake, which appeared to enclose this -enchanting island, within a compass of only a few leagues. Eastward -lay a pretty little white seaport town or village, with a few houses -scattered around it, and in the harbour of which a few vessels of -peculiar rig were gently swayed by the softly swelling waves. Beyond -it, groups of islets rose from the smooth, blue waters, but in such -numbers that they seemed to dot the sea like a shoal. To the west -distant coasts lined the dim horizon, on some rose blue mountains of -smooth, undulating forms; on a more distant coast arose a prodigious -cone crowned on its summit with a snowy plume of white cloud. To the -northward lay spread a vast sheet of water, sparkling and dancing -under the hot, bright rays, the uniformity broken here and there by -the topmast of a gallant ship appearing above the horizon, or a -swelling sail moving slowly before the wind. - -This unforeseen spectacle was most charming to eyes long used to -underground darkness. - -"Where are we? Where are we?" I asked faintly. - -Hans closed his eyes with lazy indifference. What did it matter to -him? My uncle looked round with dumb surprise. - -"Well, whatever mountain this may be," he said at last, "it is very -hot here. The explosions are going on still, and I don't think it -would look well to have come out by an eruption, and then to get our -heads broken by bits of falling rock. Let us get down. Then we shall -know better what we are about. Besides, I am starving, and parching -with thirst." - -Decidedly the Professor was not given to contemplation. For my part, -I could for another hour or two have forgotten my hunger and my -fatigue to enjoy the lovely scene before me; but I had to follow my -companions. - -The slope of the volcano was in many places of great steepness. We -slid down screes of ashes, carefully avoiding the lava streams which -glided sluggishly by us like fiery serpents. As we went I chattered -and asked all sorts of questions as to our whereabouts, for I was too -much excited not to talk a great deal. - -"We are in Asia," I cried, "on the coasts of India, in the Malay -Islands, or in Oceania. We have passed through half the globe, and -come out nearly at the antipodes." - -"But the compass?" said my uncle. - -"Ay, the compass!" I said, greatly puzzled. "According to the compass -we have gone northward." - -"Has it lied?" - -"Surely not. Could it lie?" - -"Unless, indeed, this is the North Pole!" - -"Oh, no, it is not the Pole; but--" - -Well, here was something that baffled us completely. I could not tell -what to say. - -But now we were coming into that delightful greenery, and I was -suffering greatly from hunger and thirst. Happily, after two hours' -walking, a charming country lay open before us, covered with olive -trees, pomegranate trees, and delicious vines, all of which seemed to -belong to anybody who pleased to claim them. Besides, in our state of -destitution and famine we were not likely to be particular. Oh, the -inexpressible pleasure of pressing those cool, sweet fruits to our -lips, and eating grapes by mouthfuls off the rich, full bunches! Not -far off, in the grass, under the delicious shade of the trees, I -discovered a spring of fresh, cool water, in which we luxuriously -bathed our faces, hands, and feet. - -Whilst we were thus enjoying the sweets of repose a child appeared -out of a grove of olive trees. - -"Ah!" I cried, "here is an inhabitant of this happy land!" - -It was but a poor boy, miserably ill-clad, a sufferer from poverty, -and our aspect seemed to alarm him a great deal; in fact, only half -clothed, with ragged hair and beards, we were a suspicious-looking -party; and if the people of the country knew anything about thieves, -we were very likely to frighten them. - -Just as the poor little wretch was going to take to his heels, Hans -caught hold of him, and brought him to us, kicking and struggling. - -My uncle began to encourage him as well as he could, and said to him -in good German: - -"_Was heiszt diesen Berg, mein Knablein? Sage mir geschwind!_" - -("What is this mountain called, my little friend?") - -The child made no answer. - -"Very well," said my uncle. "I infer that we are not in Germany." - -He put the same question in English. - -We got no forwarder. I was a good deal puzzled. - -"Is the child dumb?" cried the Professor, who, proud of his knowledge -of many languages, now tried French: "_Comment appellet-on cette -montagne, mon enfant?_" - -Silence still. - -"Now let us try Italian," said my uncle; and he said: - -"_Dove noi siamo?_" - -"Yes, where are we?" I impatiently repeated. - -But there was no answer still. - -"Will you speak when you are told?" exclaimed my uncle, shaking the -urchin by the ears. "_Come si noma questa isola?_" - -"STROMBOLI," replied the little herdboy, slipping out of Hans' hands, -and scudding into the plain across the olive trees. - -We were hardly thinking of that. Stromboli! What an effect this -unexpected name produced upon my mind! We were in the midst of the -Mediterranean Sea, on an island of the Æolian archipelago, in the -ancient Strongyle, where Æolus kept the winds and the storms chained -up, to be let loose at his will. And those distant blue mountains in -the east were the mountains of Calabria. And that threatening volcano -far away in the south was the fierce Etna. - -"Stromboli, Stromboli!" I repeated. - -My uncle kept time to my exclamations with hands and feet, as well as -with words. We seemed to be chanting in chorus! - -What a journey we had accomplished! How marvellous! Having entered by -one volcano, we had issued out of another more than two thousand -miles from Snæfell and from that barren, far-away Iceland! The -strange chances of our expedition had carried us into the heart of -the fairest region in the world. We had exchanged the bleak regions -of perpetual snow and of impenetrable barriers of ice for those of -brightness and 'the rich hues of all glorious things.' We had left -over our heads the murky sky and cold fogs of the frigid zone to -revel under the azure sky of Italy! - -After our delicious repast of fruits and cold, clear water we set off -again to reach the port of Stromboli. It would not have been wise to -tell how we came there. The superstitious Italians would have set us -down for fire-devils vomited out of hell; so we presented ourselves -in the humble guise of shipwrecked mariners. It was not so glorious, -but it was safer. - -On my way I could hear my uncle murmuring: "But the compass! that -compass! It pointed due north. How are we to explain that fact?" - -"My opinion is," I replied disdainfully, "that it is best not to -explain it. That is the easiest way to shelve the difficulty." - -"Indeed, sir! The occupant of a professorial chair at the Johannæum -unable to explain the reason of a cosmical phenomenon! Why, it would -be simply disgraceful!" - -And as he spoke, my uncle, half undressed, in rags, a perfect -scarecrow, with his leathern belt around him, settling his spectacles -upon his nose and looking learned and imposing, was himself again, -the terrible German professor of mineralogy. - -One hour after we had left the grove of olives, we arrived at the -little port of San Vicenzo, where Hans claimed his thirteen week's -wages, which was counted out to him with a hearty shaking of hands -all round. - -At that moment, if he did not share our natural emotion, at least his -countenance expanded in a manner very unusual with him, and while -with the ends of his fingers he lightly pressed our hands, I believe -he smiled. - - - -CHAPTER XLV. - -ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL - - -Such is the conclusion of a history which I cannot expect everybody -to believe, for some people will believe nothing against the -testimony of their own experience. However, I am indifferent to their -incredulity, and they may believe as much or as little as they please. - -The Stromboliotes received us kindly as shipwrecked mariners. They -gave us food and clothing. After waiting forty-eight hours, on the 31 -st of August, a small craft took us to Messina, where a few days' -rest completely removed the effect of our fatigues. - -On Friday, September the 4th, we embarked on the steamer Volturno, -employed by the French Messageries Imperiales, and in three days more -we were at Marseilles, having no care on our minds except that -abominable deceitful compass, which we had mislaid somewhere and -could not now examine; but its inexplicable behaviour exercised my -mind fearfully. On the 9th of September, in the evening, we arrived -at Hamburg. - -I cannot describe to you the astonishment of Martha or the joy of -Gräuben. - -"Now you are a hero, Axel," said to me my blushing _fiancée,_ my -betrothed, "you will not leave me again!" - -I looked tenderly upon her, and she smiled through her tears. - -How can I describe the extraordinary sensation produced by the return -of Professor Liedenbrock? Thanks to Martha's ineradicable tattling, -the news that the Professor had gone to discover a way to the centre -of the earth had spread over the whole civilised world. People -refused to believe it, and when they saw him they would not believe -him any the more. Still, the appearance of Hans, and sundry pieces of -intelligence derived from Iceland, tended to shake the confidence of -the unbelievers. - -Then my uncle became a great man, and I was now the nephew of a great -man--which is not a privilege to be despised. - -Hamburg gave a grand fete in our honour. A public audience was given -to the Professor at the Johannæum, at which he told all about our -expedition, with only one omission, the unexplained and inexplicable -behaviour of our compass. On the same day, with much state, he -deposited in the archives of the city the now famous document of -Saknussemm, and expressed his regret that circumstances over which he -had no control had prevented him from following to the very centre of -the earth the track of the learned Icelander. He was modest -notwithstanding his glory, and he was all the more famous for his -humility. - -So much honour could not but excite envy. There were those who envied -him his fame; and as his theories, resting upon known facts, were in -opposition to the systems of science upon the question of the central -fire, he sustained with his pen and by his voice remarkable -discussions with the learned of every country. - -For my part I cannot agree with his theory of gradual cooling: in -spite of what I have seen and felt, I believe, and always shall -believe, in the central heat. But I admit that certain circumstances -not yet sufficiently understood may tend to modify in places the -action of natural phenomena. - -While these questions were being debated with great animation, my -uncle met with a real sorrow. Our faithful Hans, in spite of our -entreaties, had left Hamburg; the man to whom we owed all our success -and our lives too would not suffer us to reward him as we could have -wished. He was seized with the mal de pays, a complaint for which we -have not even a name in English. - -"_Farval,_" said he one day; and with that simple word he left us and -sailed for Rejkiavik, which he reached in safety. - -We were strongly attached to our brave eider-down hunter; though far -away in the remotest north, he will never be forgotten by those whose -lives he protected, and certainly I shall not fail to endeavour to -see him once more before I die. - -To conclude, I have to add that this 'Journey into the Interior of -the Earth' created a wonderful sensation in the world. It was -translated into all civilised languages. The leading newspapers -extracted the most interesting passages, which were commented upon, -picked to pieces, discussed, attacked, and defended with equal -enthusiasm and determination, both by believers and sceptics. Rare -privilege! my uncle enjoyed during his lifetime the glory he had -deservedly won; and he may even boast the distinguished honour of an -offer from Mr. Barnum, to exhibit him on most advantageous terms in -all the principal cities in the United States! - -But there was one 'dead fly' amidst all this glory and honour; one -fact, one incident, of the journey remained a mystery. Now to a man -eminent for his learning, an unexplained phenomenon is an unbearable -hardship. Well! it was yet reserved for my uncle to be completely -happy. - -One day, while arranging a collection of minerals in his cabinet, I -noticed in a corner this unhappy compass, which we had long lost -sight of; I opened it, and began to watch it. - -It had been in that corner for six months, little mindful of the -trouble it was giving. - -Suddenly, to my intense astonishment, I noticed a strange fact, and I -uttered a cry of surprise. - -"What is the matter?" my uncle asked. - -"That compass!" - -"Well?" - -"See, its poles are reversed!" - -"Reversed?" - -"Yes, they point the wrong way." - -My uncle looked, he compared, and the house shook with his triumphant -leap of exultation. - -A light broke in upon his spirit and mine. - -"See there," he cried, as soon as he was able to speak. "After our -arrival at Cape Saknussemm the north pole of the needle of this -confounded compass began to point south instead of north." - -"Evidently!" - -"Here, then, is the explanation of our mistake. But what phenomenon -could have caused this reversal of the poles?" - -"The reason is evident, uncle." - -"Tell me, then, Axel." - -"During the electric storm on the Liedenbrock sea, that ball of fire, -which magnetised all the iron on board, reversed the poles of our -magnet!" - -"Aha! aha!" shouted the Professor with a loud laugh. "So it was just -an electric joke!" - -From that day forth the Professor was the most glorious of savants, -and I was the happiest of men; for my pretty Virlandaise, resigning -her place as ward, took her position in the old house on the -Königstrasse in the double capacity of niece to my uncle and wife to -a certain happy youth. What is the need of adding that the -illustrious Otto Liedenbrock, corresponding member of all the -scientific, geographical, and mineralogical societies of all the -civilised world, was now her uncle and mine? - - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of A Journey to the Interior of the Earth, by -Jules Verne - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A JOURNEY TO THE INTERIOR *** - -***** This file should be named 3748-8.txt or 3748-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/3/7/4/3748/ - -Produced by Norman M. Wolcott. - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: A Journey to the Interior of the Earth - -Author: Jules Verne - -Posting Date: December 3, 2010 [EBook #3748] -Release Date: February, 2003 -[Last updated: August 19, 2011] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A JOURNEY TO THE INTERIOR *** - - - - -Produced by Norman M. Wolcott. - - - - - - - - - A Journey into the Interior of the Earth - - by Jules Verne - - - -[Redactor's Note: The following version of Jules Verne's "Journey -into the Interior of the Earth" was published by Ward, Lock, &Co., -Ltd., London, in 1877. This version is believed to be the most -faithful rendition into English of this classic currently in the -public domain. The few notes of the translator are located near the -point where they are referenced. The Runic characters in Chapter III -are visible in the HTML version of the text. The character set is -ISO-8891-1, mainly the Windows character set. The translation is by -Frederick Amadeus Malleson. - -While the translation is fairly literal, and Malleson (a clergyman) -has taken pains with the scientific portions of the work and added -the chapter headings, he has made some unfortunate emendations mainly -concerning biblical references, and has added a few 'improvements' of -his own, which are detailed below: - -III. "_pertubata seu inordinata,_" as Euclid has it." - -XXX. cry, "Thalatta! thalatta!" the sea! the sea! The deeply indented -shore was lined with a breadth of fine shining sand, softly - -XXXII. hippopotamus. {as if the creator, pressed for time in the -first hours of the world, had assembled several animals into one.} -The colossal mastodon - -XXXII. I return to the scriptural periods or ages of the world, -conventionally called 'days,' long before the appearance of man when -the unfinished world was as yet unfitted for his support. {I return -to the biblical epochs of the creation, well in advance of the birth -of man, when the incomplete earth was not yet sufficient for him.} - -XXXVIII. (footnote), and which is illustrated in the negro -countenance and in the lowest savages. - -XXXIX. of the geologic period. {antediluvian} - -(These corrections have kindly been pointed out by Christian Sanchez -<chvsanchez@arnet.com.ar> of the Jules Verne Forum.)] - ----------------------------------------------------------------------- - - A JOURNEY - - INTO THE - - INTERIOR OF THE EARTH - - by - - Jules Verne - ----------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - -PREFACE - - -THE "Voyages Extraordinaires" of M. Jules Verne deserve to be made -widely known in English-speaking countries by means of carefully -prepared translations. Witty and ingenious adaptations of the -researches and discoveries of modern science to the popular taste, -which demands that these should be presented to ordinary readers in -the lighter form of cleverly mingled truth and fiction, these books -will assuredly be read with profit and delight, especially by English -youth. Certainly no writer before M. Jules Verne has been so happy in -weaving together in judicious combination severe scientific truth -with a charming exercise of playful imagination. - -Iceland, the starting point of the marvellous underground journey -imagined in this volume, is invested at the present time with a -painful interest in consequence of the disastrous eruptions last -Easter Day, which covered with lava and ashes the poor and scanty -vegetation upon which four thousand persons were partly dependent for -the means of subsistence. For a long time to come the natives of that -interesting island, who cleave to their desert home with all that -_amor patriae_ which is so much more easily understood than -explained, will look, and look not in vain, for the help of those on -whom fall the smiles of a kindlier sun in regions not torn by -earthquakes nor blasted and ravaged by volcanic fires. Will the -readers of this little book, who, are gifted with the means of -indulging in the luxury of extended beneficence, remember the -distress of their brethren in the far north, whom distance has not -barred from the claim of being counted our "neighbours"? And whatever -their humane feelings may prompt them to bestow will be gladly added -to the Mansion-House Iceland Relief Fund. - -In his desire to ascertain how far the picture of Iceland, drawn in -the work of Jules Verne is a correct one, the translator hopes in the -course of a mail or two to receive a communication from a leading man -of science in the island, which may furnish matter for additional -information in a future edition. - -The scientific portion of the French original is not without a few -errors, which the translator, with the kind assistance of Mr. Cameron -of H. M. Geological Survey, has ventured to point out and correct. It -is scarcely to be expected in a work in which the element of -amusement is intended to enter more largely than that of scientific -instruction, that any great degree of accuracy should be arrived at. -Yet the translator hopes that what trifling deviations from the text -or corrections in foot notes he is responsible for, will have done a -little towards the increased usefulness of the work. - -F. A. M. - -The Vicarage, - - Broughton-in-Furness - ----------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CONTENTS - - - I THE PROFESSOR AND HIS FAMILY - II A MYSTERY TO BE SOLVED AT ANY PRICE - III THE RUNIC WRITING EXERCISES THE PROFESSOR - IV THE ENEMY TO BE STARVED INTO SUBMISSION - V FAMINE, THEN VICTORY, FOLLOWED BY DISMAY - VI EXCITING DISCUSSIONS ABOUT AN UNPARALLELED EXERCISE - VII A WOMAN'S COURAGE - VIII SERIOUS PREPARATIONS FOR VERTICAL DESCENT - IX ICELAND, BUT WHAT NEXT? - X INTERESTING CONVERSATIONS WITH ICELANDIC SAVANTS - XI A GUIDE FOUND TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH - XII A BARREN LAND - XIII HOSPITALITY UNDER THE ARCTIC CIRCLE - XIV BUT ARCTICS CAN BE INHOSPITABLE, TOO - XV SNAEFFEL AT LAST - XVI BOLDLY DOWN THE CRATER - XVII VERTICAL DESCENT - XVIII THE WONDERS OF TERRESTIAL DEPTHS - XIX GEOLOGICAL STUDIES IN SITU - XX THE FIRST SIGNS OF DISTRESS - XXI COMPASSION FUSES THE PROFESSOR'S HEART - XXII TOTAL FAILURE OF WATER - XXIII WATER DISCOVERED - XXIV WELL SAID, OLD MOLE! CANST THOU WORK - IN THE GROUND SO FAST? - XXV DE PROFUNDIS - XXVI THE WORST PERIL OF ALL - XXVII LOST IN THE BOWELS OF THE EARTH - XXVIII THE RESCUE IN THE WHISPERING GALLERY - XXIX THALATTA! THALATTA! - XXX A NEW MARE INTERNUM - XXXI PREPARATIONS FOR A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY - XXXII WONDERS OF THE DEEP - XXXIII A BATTLE OF MONSTERS - XXXIV THE GREAT GEYSER - XXXV AN ELECTRIC STORM - XXXVI CALM PHILOSOPHIC DISCUSSIONS - XXXVII THE LIEDENBROCK MUSEUM OF GEOLOGY - XXXVIII THE PROFESSOR IN HIS CHAIR AGAIN - XXXIX FOREST SCENERY ILLUMINATED BY ELECTRICITY - XL PREPARATIONS FOR BLASTING A PASSAGE - TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH - XLI THE GREAT EXPLOSION AND THE RUSH DOWN BELOW - XLII HEADLONG SPEED UPWARD THROUGH THE HORRORS OF DARKNESS - XLIII SHOT OUT OF A VOLCANO AT LAST! - XLIV SUNNY LANDS IN THE BLUE MEDITERRANEAN - XLV ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL - ----------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - -A JOURNEY INTO THE INTERIOR OF THE EARTH - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -THE PROFESSOR AND HIS FAMILY - - -On the 24th of May, 1863, my uncle, Professor Liedenbrock, rushed -into his little house, No. 19 Koenigstrasse, one of the oldest streets -in the oldest portion of the city of Hamburg. - -Martha must have concluded that she was very much behindhand, for the -dinner had only just been put into the oven. - -"Well, now," said I to myself, "if that most impatient of men is -hungry, what a disturbance he will make!" - -"M. Liedenbrock so soon!" cried poor Martha in great alarm, half -opening the dining-room door. - -"Yes, Martha; but very likely the dinner is not half cooked, for it -is not two yet. Saint Michael's clock has only just struck half-past -one." - -"Then why has the master come home so soon?" - -"Perhaps he will tell us that himself." - -"Here he is, Monsieur Axel; I will run and hide myself while you -argue with him." - -And Martha retreated in safety into her own dominions. - -I was left alone. But how was it possible for a man of my undecided -turn of mind to argue successfully with so irascible a person as the -Professor? With this persuasion I was hurrying away to my own little -retreat upstairs, when the street door creaked upon its hinges; heavy -feet made the whole flight of stairs to shake; and the master of the -house, passing rapidly through the dining-room, threw himself in -haste into his own sanctum. - -But on his rapid way he had found time to fling his hazel stick into -a corner, his rough broadbrim upon the table, and these few emphatic -words at his nephew: - -"Axel, follow me!" - -I had scarcely had time to move when the Professor was again shouting -after me: - -"What! not come yet?" - -And I rushed into my redoubtable master's study. - -Otto Liedenbrock had no mischief in him, I willingly allow that; but -unless he very considerably changes as he grows older, at the end he -will be a most original character. - -He was professor at the Johannaeum, and was delivering a series of -lectures on mineralogy, in the course of every one of which he broke -into a passion once or twice at least. Not at all that he was -over-anxious about the improvement of his class, or about the degree -of attention with which they listened to him, or the success which -might eventually crown his labours. Such little matters of detail -never troubled him much. His teaching was as the German philosophy -calls it, 'subjective'; it was to benefit himself, not others. He was -a learned egotist. He was a well of science, and the pulleys worked -uneasily when you wanted to draw anything out of it. In a word, he -was a learned miser. - -Germany has not a few professors of this sort. - -To his misfortune, my uncle was not gifted with a sufficiently rapid -utterance; not, to be sure, when he was talking at home, but -certainly in his public delivery; this is a want much to be deplored -in a speaker. The fact is, that during the course of his lectures at -the Johannaeum, the Professor often came to a complete standstill; he -fought with wilful words that refused to pass his struggling lips, -such words as resist and distend the cheeks, and at last break out -into the unasked-for shape of a round and most unscientific oath: -then his fury would gradually abate. - -Now in mineralogy there are many half-Greek and half-Latin terms, -very hard to articulate, and which would be most trying to a poet's -measures. I don't wish to say a word against so respectable a -science, far be that from me. True, in the august presence of -rhombohedral crystals, retinasphaltic resins, gehlenites, Fassaites, -molybdenites, tungstates of manganese, and titanite of zirconium, -why, the most facile of tongues may make a slip now and then. - -It therefore happened that this venial fault of my uncle's came to be -pretty well understood in time, and an unfair advantage was taken of -it; the students laid wait for him in dangerous places, and when he -began to stumble, loud was the laughter, which is not in good taste, -not even in Germans. And if there was always a full audience to -honour the Liedenbrock courses, I should be sorry to conjecture how -many came to make merry at my uncle's expense. - -Nevertheless my good uncle was a man of deep learning--a fact I am -most anxious to assert and reassert. Sometimes he might irretrievably -injure a specimen by his too great ardour in handling it; but still -he united the genius of a true geologist with the keen eye of the -mineralogist. Armed with his hammer, his steel pointer, his magnetic -needles, his blowpipe, and his bottle of nitric acid, he was a -powerful man of science. He would refer any mineral to its proper -place among the six hundred [1] elementary substances now enumerated, -by its fracture, its appearance, its hardness, its fusibility, its -sonorousness, its smell, and its taste. - -The name of Liedenbrock was honourably mentioned in colleges and -learned societies. Humphry Davy, [2] Humboldt, Captain Sir John -Franklin, General Sabine, never failed to call upon him on their way -through Hamburg. Becquerel, Ebelman, Brewster, Dumas, Milne-Edwards, -Saint-Claire-Deville frequently consulted him upon the most difficult -problems in chemistry, a science which was indebted to him for -considerable discoveries, for in 1853 there had appeared at Leipzig -an imposing folio by Otto Liedenbrock, entitled, "A Treatise upon -Transcendental Chemistry," with plates; a work, however, which failed -to cover its expenses. - -To all these titles to honour let me add that my uncle was the -curator of the museum of mineralogy formed by M. Struve, the Russian -ambassador; a most valuable collection, the fame of which is European. - -Such was the gentleman who addressed me in that impetuous manner. -Fancy a tall, spare man, of an iron constitution, and with a fair -complexion which took off a good ten years from the fifty he must own -to. His restless eyes were in incessant motion behind his full-sized -spectacles. His long, thin nose was like a knife blade. Boys have -been heard to remark that that organ was magnetised and attracted -iron filings. But this was merely a mischievous report; it had no -attraction except for snuff, which it seemed to draw to itself in -great quantities. - -When I have added, to complete my portrait, that my uncle walked by -mathematical strides of a yard and a half, and that in walking he -kept his fists firmly closed, a sure sign of an irritable -temperament, I think I shall have said enough to disenchant any one -who should by mistake have coveted much of his company. - -He lived in his own little house in Koenigstrasse, a structure half -brick and half wood, with a gable cut into steps; it looked upon one -of those winding canals which intersect each other in the middle of -the ancient quarter of Hamburg, and which the great fire of 1842 had -fortunately spared. - -[1] Sixty-three. (Tr.) - -[2] As Sir Humphry Davy died in 1829, the translator must be pardoned -for pointing out here an anachronism, unless we are to assume that -the learned Professor's celebrity dawned in his earliest years. (Tr.) - -It is true that the old house stood slightly off the perpendicular, -and bulged out a little towards the street; its roof sloped a little -to one side, like the cap over the left ear of a Tugendbund student; -its lines wanted accuracy; but after all, it stood firm, thanks to an -old elm which buttressed it in front, and which often in spring sent -its young sprays through the window panes. - -My uncle was tolerably well off for a German professor. The house was -his own, and everything in it. The living contents were his -god-daughter Graeuben, a young Virlandaise of seventeen, Martha, and -myself. As his nephew and an orphan, I became his laboratory -assistant. - -I freely confess that I was exceedingly fond of geology and all its -kindred sciences; the blood of a mineralogist was in my veins, and in -the midst of my specimens I was always happy. - -In a word, a man might live happily enough in the little old house in -the Koenigstrasse, in spite of the restless impatience of its master, -for although he was a little too excitable--he was very fond of me. -But the man had no notion how to wait; nature herself was too slow -for him. In April, after he had planted in the terra-cotta pots -outside his window seedling plants of mignonette and convolvulus, he -would go and give them a little pull by their leaves to make them -grow faster. In dealing with such a strange individual there was -nothing for it but prompt obedience. I therefore rushed after him. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -A MYSTERY TO BE SOLVED AT ANY PRICE - - -That study of his was a museum, and nothing else. Specimens of -everything known in mineralogy lay there in their places in perfect -order, and correctly named, divided into inflammable, metallic, and -lithoid minerals. - -How well I knew all these bits of science! Many a time, instead of -enjoying the company of lads of my own age, I had preferred dusting -these graphites, anthracites, coals, lignites, and peats! And there -were bitumens, resins, organic salts, to be protected from the least -grain of dust; and metals, from iron to gold, metals whose current -value altogether disappeared in the presence of the republican -equality of scientific specimens; and stones too, enough to rebuild -entirely the house in Koenigstrasse, even with a handsome additional -room, which would have suited me admirably. - -But on entering this study now I thought of none of all these -wonders; my uncle alone filled my thoughts. He had thrown himself -into a velvet easy-chair, and was grasping between his hands a book -over which he bent, pondering with intense admiration. - -"Here's a remarkable book! What a wonderful book!" he was exclaiming. - -These ejaculations brought to my mind the fact that my uncle was -liable to occasional fits of bibliomania; but no old book had any -value in his eyes unless it had the virtue of being nowhere else to -be found, or, at any rate, of being illegible. - -"Well, now; don't you see it yet? Why I have got a priceless -treasure, that I found his morning, in rummaging in old Hevelius's -shop, the Jew." - -"Magnificent!" I replied, with a good imitation of enthusiasm. - -What was the good of all this fuss about an old quarto, bound in -rough calf, a yellow, faded volume, with a ragged seal depending from -it? - -But for all that there was no lull yet in the admiring exclamations -of the Professor. - -"See," he went on, both asking the questions and supplying the -answers. "Isn't it a beauty? Yes; splendid! Did you ever see such a -binding? Doesn't the book open easily? Yes; it stops open anywhere. -But does it shut equally well? Yes; for the binding and the leaves -are flush, all in a straight line, and no gaps or openings anywhere. -And look at its back, after seven hundred years. Why, Bozerian, -Closs, or Purgold might have been proud of such a binding!" - -While rapidly making these comments my uncle kept opening and -shutting the old tome. I really could do no less than ask a question -about its contents, although I did not feel the slightest interest. - -"And what is the title of this marvellous work?" I asked with an -affected eagerness which he must have been very blind not to see -through. - -"This work," replied my uncle, firing up with renewed enthusiasm, -"this work is the Heims Kringla of Snorre Turlleson, the most famous -Icelandic author of the twelfth century! It is the chronicle of the -Norwegian princes who ruled in Iceland." - -"Indeed;" I cried, keeping up wonderfully, "of course it is a German -translation?" - -"What!" sharply replied the Professor, "a translation! What should I -do with a translation? This _is_ the Icelandic original, in the -magnificent idiomatic vernacular, which is both rich and simple, and -admits of an infinite variety of grammatical combinations and verbal -modifications." - -"Like German." I happily ventured. - -"Yes," replied my uncle, shrugging his shoulders; "but, in addition -to all this, the Icelandic has three numbers like the Greek, and -irregular declensions of nouns proper like the Latin." - -"Ah!" said I, a little moved out of my indifference; "and is the type -good?" - -"Type! What do you mean by talking of type, wretched Axel? Type! Do -you take it for a printed book, you ignorant fool? It is a -manuscript, a Runic manuscript." - -"Runic?" - -"Yes. Do you want me to explain what that is?" - -"Of course not," I replied in the tone of an injured man. But my -uncle persevered, and told me, against my will, of many things I -cared nothing about. - -"Runic characters were in use in Iceland in former ages. They were -invented, it is said, by Odin himself. Look there, and wonder, -impious young man, and admire these letters, the invention of the -Scandinavian god!" - -Well, well! not knowing what to say, I was going to prostrate myself -before this wonderful book, a way of answering equally pleasing to -gods and kings, and which has the advantage of never giving them any -embarrassment, when a little incident happened to divert conversation -into another channel. - -This was the appearance of a dirty slip of parchment, which slipped -out of the volume and fell upon the floor. - -My uncle pounced upon this shred with incredible avidity. An old -document, enclosed an immemorial time within the folds of this old -book, had for him an immeasurable value. - -"What's this?" he cried. - -And he laid out upon the table a piece of parchment, five inches by -three, and along which were traced certain mysterious characters. - -Here is the exact facsimile. I think it important to let these -strange signs be publicly known, for they were the means of drawing -on Professor Liedenbrock and his nephew to undertake the most -wonderful expedition of the nineteenth century. - -[Runic glyphs occur here] - -The Professor mused a few moments over this series of characters; -then raising his spectacles he pronounced: - -"These are Runic letters; they are exactly like those of the -manuscript of Snorre Turlleson. But, what on earth is their meaning?" - -Runic letters appearing to my mind to be an invention of the learned -to mystify this poor world, I was not sorry to see my uncle suffering -the pangs of mystification. At least, so it seemed to me, judging -from his fingers, which were beginning to work with terrible energy. - -"It is certainly old Icelandic," he muttered between his teeth. - -And Professor Liedenbrock must have known, for he was acknowledged to -be quite a polyglot. Not that he could speak fluently in the two -thousand languages and twelve thousand dialects which are spoken on -the earth, but he knew at least his share of them. - -So he was going, in the presence of this difficulty, to give way to -all the impetuosity of his character, and I was preparing for a -violent outbreak, when two o'clock struck by the little timepiece -over the fireplace. - -At that moment our good housekeeper Martha opened the study door, -saying: - -"Dinner is ready!" - -I am afraid he sent that soup to where it would boil away to nothing, -and Martha took to her heels for safety. I followed her, and hardly -knowing how I got there I found myself seated in my usual place. - -I waited a few minutes. No Professor came. Never within my -remembrance had he missed the important ceremonial of dinner. And yet -what a good dinner it was! There was parsley soup, an omelette of ham -garnished with spiced sorrel, a fillet of veal with compote of -prunes; for dessert, crystallised fruit; the whole washed down with -sweet Moselle. - -All this my uncle was going to sacrifice to a bit of old parchment. -As an affectionate and attentive nephew I considered it my duty to -eat for him as well as for myself, which I did conscientiously. - -"I have never known such a thing," said Martha. "M. Liedenbrock is -not at table!" - -"Who could have believed it?" I said, with my mouth full. - -"Something serious is going to happen," said the servant, shaking her -head. - -My opinion was, that nothing more serious would happen than an awful -scene when my uncle should have discovered that his dinner was -devoured. I had come to the last of the fruit when a very loud voice -tore me away from the pleasures of my dessert. With one spring I -bounded out of the dining-room into the study. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -THE RUNIC WRITING EXERCISES THE PROFESSOR - - -"Undoubtedly it is Runic," said the Professor, bending his brows; -"but there is a secret in it, and I mean to discover the key." - -A violent gesture finished the sentence. - -"Sit there," he added, holding out his fist towards the table. "Sit -there, and write." - -I was seated in a trice. - -"Now I will dictate to you every letter of our alphabet which -corresponds with each of these Icelandic characters. We will see what -that will give us. But, by St. Michael, if you should dare to deceive -me--" - -The dictation commenced. I did my best. Every letter was given me one -after the other, with the following remarkable result: - - mm.rnlls esrevel seecIde - sgtssmf vnteief niedrke - kt,samn atrateS saodrrn - emtnaeI nvaect rrilSa - Atsaar .nvcrc ieaabs - ccrmi eevtVl frAntv - dt,iac oseibo KediiI - -[Redactor: In the original version the initial letter is an 'm' with -a superscore over it. It is my supposition that this is the -translator's way of writing 'mm' and I have replaced it accordingly, -since our typography does not allow such a character.] - -When this work was ended my uncle tore the paper from me and examined -it attentively for a long time. - -"What does it all mean?" he kept repeating mechanically. - -Upon my honour I could not have enlightened him. Besides he did not -ask me, and he went on talking to himself. - -"This is what is called a cryptogram, or cipher," he said, "in which -letters are purposely thrown in confusion, which if properly arranged -would reveal their sense. Only think that under this jargon there may -lie concealed the clue to some great discovery!" - -As for me, I was of opinion that there was nothing at all, in it; -though, of course, I took care not to say so. - -Then the Professor took the book and the parchment, and diligently -compared them together. - -"These two writings are not by the same hand," he said; "the cipher -is of later date than the book, an undoubted proof of which I see in -a moment. The first letter is a double m, a letter which is not to be -found in Turlleson's book, and which was only added to the alphabet -in the fourteenth century. Therefore there are two hundred years -between the manuscript and the document." - -I admitted that this was a strictly logical conclusion. - -"I am therefore led to imagine," continued my uncle, "that some -possessor of this book wrote these mysterious letters. But who was -that possessor? Is his name nowhere to be found in the manuscript?" - -My uncle raised his spectacles, took up a strong lens, and carefully -examined the blank pages of the book. On the front of the second, the -title-page, he noticed a sort of stain which looked like an ink blot. -But in looking at it very closely he thought he could distinguish -some half-effaced letters. My uncle at once fastened upon this as the -centre of interest, and he laboured at that blot, until by the help -of his microscope he ended by making out the following Runic -characters which he read without difficulty. - -"Arne Saknussemm!" he cried in triumph. "Why that is the name of -another Icelander, a savant of the sixteenth century, a celebrated -alchemist!" - -I gazed at my uncle with satisfactory admiration. - -"Those alchemists," he resumed, "Avicenna, Bacon, Lully, Paracelsus, -were the real and only savants of their time. They made discoveries -at which we are astonished. Has not this Saknussemm concealed under -his cryptogram some surprising invention? It is so; it must be so!" - -The Professor's imagination took fire at this hypothesis. - -"No doubt," I ventured to reply, "but what interest would he have in -thus hiding so marvellous a discovery?" - -"Why? Why? How can I tell? Did not Galileo do the same by Saturn? We -shall see. I will get at the secret of this document, and I will -neither sleep nor eat until I have found it out." - -My comment on this was a half-suppressed "Oh!" - -"Nor you either, Axel," he added. - -"The deuce!" said I to myself; "then it is lucky I have eaten two -dinners to-day!" - -"First of all we must find out the key to this cipher; that cannot be -difficult." - -At these words I quickly raised my head; but my uncle went on -soliloquising. - -"There's nothing easier. In this document there are a hundred and -thirty-two letters, viz., seventy-seven consonants and fifty-five -vowels. This is the proportion found in southern languages, whilst -northern tongues are much richer in consonants; therefore this is in -a southern language." - -These were very fair conclusions, I thought. - -"But what language is it?" - -Here I looked for a display of learning, but I met instead with -profound analysis. - -"This Saknussemm," he went on, "was a very well-informed man; now -since he was not writing in his own mother tongue, he would naturally -select that which was currently adopted by the choice spirits of the -sixteenth century; I mean Latin. If I am mistaken, I can but try -Spanish, French, Italian, Greek, or Hebrew. But the savants of the -sixteenth century generally wrote in Latin. I am therefore entitled -to pronounce this, a priori, to be Latin. It is Latin." - -I jumped up in my chair. My Latin memories rose in revolt against the -notion that these barbarous words could belong to the sweet language -of Virgil. - -"Yes, it is Latin," my uncle went on; "but it is Latin confused and -in disorder; "_pertubata seu inordinata,_" as Euclid has it." - -"Very well," thought I, "if you can bring order out of that -confusion, my dear uncle, you are a clever man." - -"Let us examine carefully," said he again, taking up the leaf upon -which I had written. "Here is a series of one hundred and thirty-two -letters in apparent disorder. There are words consisting of -consonants only, as _nrrlls;_ others, on the other hand, in which -vowels predominate, as for instance the fifth, _uneeief,_ or the last -but one, _oseibo_. Now this arrangement has evidently not been -premeditated; it has arisen mathematically in obedience to the -unknown law which has ruled in the succession of these letters. It -appears to me a certainty that the original sentence was written in a -proper manner, and afterwards distorted by a law which we have yet to -discover. Whoever possesses the key of this cipher will read it with -fluency. What is that key? Axel, have you got it?" - -I answered not a word, and for a very good reason. My eyes had fallen -upon a charming picture, suspended against the wall, the portrait of -Graeuben. My uncle's ward was at that time at Altona, staying with a -relation, and in her absence I was very downhearted; for I may -confess it to you now, the pretty Virlandaise and the professor's -nephew loved each other with a patience and a calmness entirely -German. We had become engaged unknown to my uncle, who was too much -taken up with geology to be able to enter into such feelings as ours. -Graeuben was a lovely blue-eyed blonde, rather given to gravity and -seriousness; but that did not prevent her from loving me very -sincerely. As for me, I adored her, if there is such a word in the -German language. Thus it happened that the picture of my pretty -Virlandaise threw me in a moment out of the world of realities into -that of memory and fancy. - -There looked down upon me the faithful companion of my labours and my -recreations. Every day she helped me to arrange my uncle's precious -specimens; she and I labelled them together. Mademoiselle Graeuben was -an accomplished mineralogist; she could have taught a few things to a -savant. She was fond of investigating abstruse scientific questions. -What pleasant hours we have spent in study; and how often I envied -the very stones which she handled with her charming fingers. - -Then, when our leisure hours came, we used to go out together and -turn into the shady avenues by the Alster, and went happily side by -side up to the old windmill, which forms such an improvement to the -landscape at the head of the lake. On the road we chatted hand in -hand; I told her amusing tales at which she laughed heartily. Then we -reached the banks of the Elbe, and after having bid good-bye to the -swan, sailing gracefully amidst the white water lilies, we returned -to the quay by the steamer. - -That is just where I was in my dream, when my uncle with a vehement -thump on the table dragged me back to the realities of life. - -"Come," said he, "the very first idea which would come into any one's -head to confuse the letters of a sentence would be to write the words -vertically instead of horizontally." - -"Indeed!" said I. - -"Now we must see what would be the effect of that, Axel; put down -upon this paper any sentence you like, only instead of arranging the -letters in the usual way, one after the other, place them in -succession in vertical columns, so as to group them together in five -or six vertical lines." - -I caught his meaning, and immediately produced the following literary -wonder: - - I y l o a u - l o l w r b - o u , n G e - v w m d r n - e e y e a ! - -"Good," said the professor, without reading them, "now set down those -words in a horizontal line." - -I obeyed, and with this result: - - Iyloau lolwrb ou,nGe vwmdrn eeyea! - -"Excellent!" said my uncle, taking the paper hastily out of my hands. -"This begins to look just like an ancient document: the vowels and -the consonants are grouped together in equal disorder; there are even -capitals in the middle of words, and commas too, just as in -Saknussemm's parchment." - -I considered these remarks very clever. - -"Now," said my uncle, looking straight at me, "to read the sentence -which you have just written, and with which I am wholly unacquainted, -I shall only have to take the first letter of each word, then the -second, the third, and so forth." - -And my uncle, to his great astonishment, and my much greater, read: - - "I love you well, my own dear Graeuben!" - -"Hallo!" cried the Professor. - -Yes, indeed, without knowing what I was about, like an awkward and -unlucky lover, I had compromised myself by writing this unfortunate -sentence. - -"Aha! you are in love with Graeuben?" he said, with the right look for -a guardian. - -"Yes; no!" I stammered. - -"You love Graeuben," he went on once or twice dreamily. "Well, let us -apply the process I have suggested to the document in question." - -My uncle, falling back into his absorbing contemplations, had already -forgotten my imprudent words. I merely say imprudent, for the great -mind of so learned a man of course had no place for love affairs, and -happily the grand business of the document gained me the victory. - -Just as the moment of the supreme experiment arrived the Professor's -eyes flashed right through his spectacles. There was a quivering in -his fingers as he grasped the old parchment. He was deeply moved. At -last he gave a preliminary cough, and with profound gravity, naming -in succession the first, then the second letter of each word, he -dictated me the following: - - mmessvnkaSenrA.icefdoK.segnittamvrtn - ecertserrette,rotaisadva,ednecsedsadne - lacartniiilvIsiratracSarbmvtabiledmek - meretarcsilvcoIsleffenSnI. - -I confess I felt considerably excited in coming to the end; these -letters named, one at a time, had carried no sense to my mind; I -therefore waited for the Professor with great pomp to unfold the -magnificent but hidden Latin of this mysterious phrase. - -But who could have foretold the result? A violent thump made the -furniture rattle, and spilt some ink, and my pen dropped from between -my fingers. - -"That's not it," cried my uncle, "there's no sense in it." - -Then darting out like a shot, bowling down stairs like an avalanche, -he rushed into the Koenigstrasse and fled. - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -THE ENEMY TO BE STARVED INTO SUBMISSION - - -"He is gone!" cried Martha, running out of her kitchen at the noise -of the violent slamming of doors. - -"Yes," I replied, "completely gone." - -"Well; and how about his dinner?" said the old servant. - -"He won't have any." - -"And his supper?" - -"He won't have any." - -"What?" cried Martha, with clasped hands. - -"No, my dear Martha, he will eat no more. No one in the house is to -eat anything at all. Uncle Liedenbrock is going to make us all fast -until he has succeeded in deciphering an undecipherable scrawl." - -"Oh, my dear! must we then all die of hunger?" - -I hardly dared to confess that, with so absolute a ruler as my uncle, -this fate was inevitable. - -The old servant, visibly moved, returned to the kitchen, moaning -piteously. - -When I was alone, I thought I would go and tell Graeuben all about it. -But how should I be able to escape from the house? The Professor -might return at any moment. And suppose he called me? And suppose he -tackled me again with this logomachy, which might vainly have been -set before ancient Oedipus. And if I did not obey his call, who could -answer for what might happen? - -The wisest course was to remain where I was. A mineralogist at -Besancon had just sent us a collection of siliceous nodules, which I -had to classify: so I set to work; I sorted, labelled, and arranged -in their own glass case all these hollow specimens, in the cavity of -each of which was a nest of little crystals. - -But this work did not succeed in absorbing all my attention. That old -document kept working in my brain. My head throbbed with excitement, -and I felt an undefined uneasiness. I was possessed with a -presentiment of coming evil. - -In an hour my nodules were all arranged upon successive shelves. Then -I dropped down into the old velvet armchair, my head thrown back and -my hands joined over it. I lighted my long crooked pipe, with a -painting on it of an idle-looking naiad; then I amused myself -watching the process of the conversion of the tobacco into carbon, -which was by slow degrees making my naiad into a negress. Now and -then I listened to hear whether a well-known step was on the stairs. -No. Where could my uncle be at that moment? I fancied him running -under the noble trees which line the road to Altona, gesticulating, -making shots with his cane, thrashing the long grass, cutting the -heads off the thistles, and disturbing the contemplative storks in -their peaceful solitude. - -Would he return in triumph or in discouragement? Which would get the -upper hand, he or the secret? I was thus asking myself questions, and -mechanically taking between my fingers the sheet of paper -mysteriously disfigured with the incomprehensible succession of -letters I had written down; and I repeated to myself "What does it -all mean?" - -I sought to group the letters so as to form words. Quite impossible! -When I put them together by twos, threes, fives or sixes, nothing -came of it but nonsense. To be sure the fourteenth, fifteenth and -sixteenth letters made the English word 'ice'; the eighty-third and -two following made 'sir'; and in the midst of the document, in the -second and third lines, I observed the words, "rots," "mutabile," -"ira," "net," "atra." - -"Come now," I thought, "these words seem to justify my uncle's view -about the language of the document. In the fourth line appeared the -word "luco", which means a sacred wood. It is true that in the third -line was the word "tabiled", which looked like Hebrew, and in the -last the purely French words "mer", "arc", "mere."" - -All this was enough to drive a poor fellow crazy. Four different -languages in this ridiculous sentence! What connection could there -possibly be between such words as ice, sir, anger, cruel, sacred -wood, changeable, mother, bow, and sea? The first and the last might -have something to do with each other; it was not at all surprising -that in a document written in Iceland there should be mention of a -sea of ice; but it was quite another thing to get to the end of this -cryptogram with so small a clue. So I was struggling with an -insurmountable difficulty; my brain got heated, my eyes watered over -that sheet of paper; its hundred and thirty-two letters seemed to -flutter and fly around me like those motes of mingled light and -darkness which float in the air around the head when the blood is -rushing upwards with undue violence. I was a prey to a kind of -hallucination; I was stifling; I wanted air. Unconsciously I fanned -myself with the bit of paper, the back and front of which -successively came before my eyes. What was my surprise when, in one -of those rapid revolutions, at the moment when the back was turned to -me I thought I caught sight of the Latin words "craterem," -"terrestre," and others. - -A sudden light burst in upon me; these hints alone gave me the first -glimpse of the truth; I had discovered the key to the cipher. To read -the document, it would not even be necessary to read it through the -paper. Such as it was, just such as it had been dictated to me, so it -might be spelt out with ease. All those ingenious professorial -combinations were coming right. He was right as to the arrangement of -the letters; he was right as to the language. He had been within a -hair's breadth of reading this Latin document from end to end; but -that hair's breadth, chance had given it to me! - -You may be sure I felt stirred up. My eyes were dim, I could scarcely -see. I had laid the paper upon the table. At a glance I could tell -the whole secret. - -At last I became more calm. I made a wise resolve to walk twice round -the room quietly and settle my nerves, and then I returned into the -deep gulf of the huge armchair. - -"Now I'll read it," I cried, after having well distended my lungs -with air. - -I leaned over the table; I laid my finger successively upon every -letter; and without a pause, without one moment's hesitation, I read -off the whole sentence aloud. - -Stupefaction! terror! I sat overwhelmed as if with a sudden deadly -blow. What! that which I read had actually, really been done! A -mortal man had had the audacity to penetrate! . . . - -"Ah!" I cried, springing up. "But no! no! My uncle shall never know -it. He would insist upon doing it too. He would want to know all -about it. Ropes could not hold him, such a determined geologist as he -is! He would start, he would, in spite of everything and everybody, -and he would take me with him, and we should never get back. No, -never! never!" - -My over-excitement was beyond all description. - -"No! no! it shall not be," I declared energetically; "and as it is in -my power to prevent the knowledge of it coming into the mind of my -tyrant, I will do it. By dint of turning this document round and -round, he too might discover the key. I will destroy it." - -There was a little fire left on the hearth. I seized not only the -paper but Saknussemm's parchment; with a feverish hand I was about to -fling it all upon the coals and utterly destroy and abolish this -dangerous secret, when the study door opened, and my uncle appeared. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -FAMINE, THEN VICTORY, FOLLOWED BY DISMAY - - -I had only just time to replace the unfortunate document upon the -table. - -Professor Liedenbrock seemed to be greatly abstracted. - -The ruling thought gave him no rest. Evidently he had gone deeply -into the matter, analytically and with profound scrutiny. He had -brought all the resources of his mind to bear upon it during his -walk, and he had come back to apply some new combination. - -He sat in his armchair, and pen in hand he began what looked very -much like algebraic formula: I followed with my eyes his trembling -hands, I took count of every movement. Might not some unhoped-for -result come of it? I trembled, too, very unnecessarily, since the -true key was in my hands, and no other would open the secret. - -For three long hours my uncle worked on without a word, without -lifting his head; rubbing out, beginning again, then rubbing out -again, and so on a hundred times. - -I knew very well that if he succeeded in setting down these letters -in every possible relative position, the sentence would come out. But -I knew also that twenty letters alone could form two quintillions, -four hundred and thirty-two quadrillions, nine hundred and two -trillions, eight billions, a hundred and seventy-six millions, six -hundred and forty thousand combinations. Now, here were a hundred and -thirty-two letters in this sentence, and these hundred and thirty-two -letters would give a number of different sentences, each made up of -at least a hundred and thirty-three figures, a number which passed -far beyond all calculation or conception. - -So I felt reassured as far as regarded this heroic method of solving -the difficulty. - -But time was passing away; night came on; the street noises ceased; -my uncle, bending over his task, noticed nothing, not even Martha -half opening the door; he heard not a sound, not even that excellent -woman saying: - -"Will not monsieur take any supper to-night?" - -And poor Martha had to go away unanswered. As for me, after long -resistance, I was overcome by sleep, and fell off at the end of the -sofa, while uncle Liedenbrock went on calculating and rubbing out his -calculations. - -When I awoke next morning that indefatigable worker was still at his -post. His red eyes, his pale complexion, his hair tangled between his -feverish fingers, the red spots on his cheeks, revealed his desperate -struggle with impossibilities, and the weariness of spirit, the -mental wrestlings he must have undergone all through that unhappy -night. - -To tell the plain truth, I pitied him. In spite of the reproaches -which I considered I had a right to lay upon him, a certain feeling -of compassion was beginning to gain upon me. The poor man was so -entirely taken up with his one idea that he had even forgotten how to -get angry. All the strength of his feelings was concentrated upon one -point alone; and as their usual vent was closed, it was to be feared -lest extreme tension should give rise to an explosion sooner or later. - -I might with a word have loosened the screw of the steel vice that -was crushing his brain; but that word I would not speak. - -Yet I was not an ill-natured fellow. Why was I dumb at such a crisis? -Why so insensible to my uncle's interests? - -"No, no," I repeated, "I shall not speak. He would insist upon going; -nothing on earth could stop him. His imagination is a volcano, and to -do that which other geologists have never done he would risk his -life. I will preserve silence. I will keep the secret which mere -chance has revealed to me. To discover it, would be to kill Professor -Liedenbrock! Let him find it out himself if he can. I will never have -it laid to my door that I led him to his destruction." - -Having formed this resolution, I folded my arms and waited. But I had -not reckoned upon one little incident which turned up a few hours -after. - -When our good Martha wanted to go to Market, she found the door -locked. The big key was gone. Who could have taken it out? Assuredly, -it was my uncle, when he returned the night before from his hurried -walk. - -Was this done on purpose? Or was it a mistake? Did he want to reduce -us by famine? This seemed like going rather too far! What! should -Martha and I be victims of a position of things in which we had not -the smallest interest? It was a fact that a few years before this, -whilst my uncle was working at his great classification of minerals, -he was forty-eight hours without eating, and all his household were -obliged to share in this scientific fast. As for me, what I remember -is, that I got severe cramps in my stomach, which hardly suited the -constitution of a hungry, growing lad. - -Now it appeared to me as if breakfast was going to be wanting, just -as supper had been the night before. Yet I resolved to be a hero, and -not to be conquered by the pangs of hunger. Martha took it very -seriously, and, poor woman, was very much distressed. As for me, the -impossibility of leaving the house distressed me a good deal more, -and for a very good reason. A caged lover's feelings may easily be -imagined. - -My uncle went on working, his imagination went off rambling into the -ideal world of combinations; he was far away from earth, and really -far away from earthly wants. - -About noon hunger began to stimulate me severely. Martha had, without -thinking any harm, cleared out the larder the night before, so that -now there was nothing left in the house. Still I held out; I made it -a point of honour. - -Two o'clock struck. This was becoming ridiculous; worse than that, -unbearable. I began to say to myself that I was exaggerating the -importance of the document; that my uncle would surely not believe in -it, that he would set it down as a mere puzzle; that if it came to -the worst, we should lay violent hands on him and keep him at home if -he thought on venturing on the expedition; that, after all, he might -himself discover the key of the cipher, and that then I should be -clear at the mere expense of my involuntary abstinence. - -These reasons seemed excellent to me, though on the night before I -should have rejected them with indignation; I even went so far as to -condemn myself for my absurdity in having waited so long, and I -finally resolved to let it all out. - -I was therefore meditating a proper introduction to the matter, so as -not to seem too abrupt, when the Professor jumped up, clapped on his -hat, and prepared to go out. - -Surely he was not going out, to shut us in again! no, never! - -"Uncle!" I cried. - -He seemed not to hear me. - -"Uncle Liedenbrock!" I cried, lifting up my voice. - -"Ay," he answered like a man suddenly waking. - -"Uncle, that key!" - -"What key? The door key?" - -"No, no!" I cried. "The key of the document." - -The Professor stared at me over his spectacles; no doubt he saw -something unusual in the expression of my countenance; for he laid -hold of my arm, and speechlessly questioned me with his eyes. Yes, -never was a question more forcibly put. - -I nodded my head up and down. - -He shook his pityingly, as if he was dealing with a lunatic. I gave a -more affirmative gesture. - -His eyes glistened and sparkled with live fire, his hand was shaken -threateningly. - -This mute conversation at such a momentous crisis would have riveted -the attention of the most indifferent. And the fact really was that I -dared not speak now, so intense was the excitement for fear lest my -uncle should smother me in his first joyful embraces. But he became -so urgent that I was at last compelled to answer. - -"Yes, that key, chance--" - -"What is that you are saying?" he shouted with indescribable emotion. - -"There, read that!" I said, presenting a sheet of paper on which I -had written. - -"But there is nothing in this," he answered, crumpling up the paper. - -"No, nothing until you proceed to read from the end to the beginning." - -I had not finished my sentence when the Professor broke out into a -cry, nay, a roar. A new revelation burst in upon him. He was -transformed! - -"Aha, clever Saknussemm!" he cried. "You had first written out your -sentence the wrong way." - -And darting upon the paper, with eyes bedimmed, and voice choked with -emotion, he read the whole document from the last letter to the first. - -It was conceived in the following terms: - - In Sneffels Joculis craterem quem delibat - Umbra Scartaris Julii intra calendas descende, - Audax viator, et terrestre centrum attinges. - Quod feci, Arne Saknussemm.[1] - -Which bad Latin may be translated thus: - -"Descend, bold traveller, into the crater of the jokul of Sneffels, -which the shadow of Scartaris touches before the kalends of July, and -you will attain the centre of the earth; which I have done, Arne -Saknussemm." - -In reading this, my uncle gave a spring as if he had touched a Leyden -jar. His audacity, his joy, and his convictions were magnificent to -behold. He came and he went; he seized his head between both his -hands; he pushed the chairs out of their places, he piled up his -books; incredible as it may seem, he rattled his precious nodules of -flints together; he sent a kick here, a thump there. At last his -nerves calmed down, and like a man exhausted by too lavish an -expenditure of vital power, he sank back exhausted into his armchair. - -"What o'clock is it?" he asked after a few moments of silence. - -"Three o'clock," I replied. - -"Is it really? The dinner-hour is past, and I did not know it. I am -half dead with hunger. Come on, and after dinner--" - -[1] In the cipher, _audax_ is written _avdas,_ and _quod_ and _quem,_ -_hod_ and _ken_. (Tr.) - -"Well?" - -"After dinner, pack up my trunk." - -"What?" I cried. - -"And yours!" replied the indefatigable Professor, entering the -dining-room. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -EXCITING DISCUSSIONS ABOUT AN UNPARALLELED ENTERPRISE - - -At these words a cold shiver ran through me. Yet I controlled myself; -I even resolved to put a good face upon it. Scientific arguments -alone could have any weight with Professor Liedenbrock. Now there -were good ones against the practicability of such a journey. -Penetrate to the centre of the earth! What nonsense! But I kept my -dialectic battery in reserve for a suitable opportunity, and I -interested myself in the prospect of my dinner, which was not yet -forthcoming. - -It is no use to tell of the rage and imprecations of my uncle before -the empty table. Explanations were given, Martha was set at liberty, -ran off to the market, and did her part so well that in an hour -afterwards my hunger was appeased, and I was able to return to the -contemplation of the gravity of the situation. - -During all dinner time my uncle was almost merry; he indulged in some -of those learned jokes which never do anybody any harm. Dessert over, -he beckoned me into his study. - -I obeyed; he sat at one end of his table, I at the other. - -"Axel," said he very mildly; "you are a very ingenious young man, you -have done me a splendid service, at a moment when, wearied out with -the struggle, I was going to abandon the contest. Where should I have -lost myself? None can tell. Never, my lad, shall I forget it; and you -shall have your share in the glory to which your discovery will lead." - -"Oh, come!" thought I, "he is in a good way. Now is the time for -discussing that same glory." - -"Before all things," my uncle resumed, "I enjoin you to preserve the -most inviolable secrecy: you understand? There are not a few in the -scientific world who envy my success, and many would be ready to -undertake this enterprise, to whom our return should be the first -news of it." - -"Do you really think there are many people bold enough?" said I. - -"Certainly; who would hesitate to acquire such renown? If that -document were divulged, a whole army of geologists would be ready to -rush into the footsteps of Arne Saknussemm." - -"I don't feel so very sure of that, uncle," I replied; "for we have -no proof of the authenticity of this document." - -"What! not of the book, inside which we have discovered it?" - -"Granted. I admit that Saknussemm may have written these lines. But -does it follow that he has really accomplished such a journey? And -may it not be that this old parchment is intended to mislead?" - -I almost regretted having uttered this last word, which dropped from -me in an unguarded moment. The Professor bent his shaggy brows, and I -feared I had seriously compromised my own safety. Happily no great -harm came of it. A smile flitted across the lip of my severe -companion, and he answered: - -"That is what we shall see." - -"Ah!" said I, rather put out. "But do let me exhaust all the possible -objections against this document." - -"Speak, my boy, don't be afraid. You are quite at liberty to express -your opinions. You are no longer my nephew only, but my colleague. -Pray go on." - -"Well, in the first place, I wish to ask what are this Jokul, this -Sneffels, and this Scartaris, names which I have never heard before?" - -"Nothing easier. I received not long ago a map from my friend, -Augustus Petermann, at Liepzig. Nothing could be more apropos. Take -down the third atlas in the second shelf in the large bookcase, -series Z, plate 4." - -I rose, and with the help of such precise instructions could not fail -to find the required atlas. My uncle opened it and said: - -"Here is one of the best maps of Iceland, that of Handersen, and I -believe this will solve the worst of our difficulties." - -I bent over the map. - -"You see this volcanic island," said the Professor; "observe that all -the volcanoes are called jokuls, a word which means glacier in -Icelandic, and under the high latitude of Iceland nearly all the -active volcanoes discharge through beds of ice. Hence this term of -jokul is applied to all the eruptive mountains in Iceland." - -"Very good," said I; "but what of Sneffels?" - -I was hoping that this question would be unanswerable; but I was -mistaken. My uncle replied: - -"Follow my finger along the west coast of Iceland. Do you see -Rejkiavik, the capital? You do. Well; ascend the innumerable fiords -that indent those sea-beaten shores, and stop at the sixty-fifth -degree of latitude. What do you see there?" - -"I see a peninsula looking like a thigh bone with the knee bone at -the end of it." - -"A very fair comparison, my lad. Now do you see anything upon that -knee bone?" - -"Yes; a mountain rising out of the sea." - -"Right. That is Snaefell." - -"That Snaefell?" - -"It is. It is a mountain five thousand feet high, one of the most -remarkable in the world, if its crater leads down to the centre of -the earth." - -"But that is impossible," I said shrugging my shoulders, and -disgusted at such a ridiculous supposition. - -"Impossible?" said the Professor severely; "and why, pray?" - -"Because this crater is evidently filled with lava and burning rocks, -and therefore--" - -"But suppose it is an extinct volcano?" - -"Extinct?" - -"Yes; the number of active volcanoes on the surface of the globe is -at the present time only about three hundred. But there is a very -much larger number of extinct ones. Now, Snaefell is one of these. -Since historic times there has been but one eruption of this -mountain, that of 1219; from that time it has quieted down more and -more, and now it is no longer reckoned among active volcanoes." - -To such positive statements I could make no reply. I therefore took -refuge in other dark passages of the document. - -"What is the meaning of this word Scartaris, and what have the -kalends of July to do with it?" - -My uncle took a few minutes to consider. For one short moment I felt -a ray of hope, speedily to be extinguished. For he soon answered thus: - -"What is darkness to you is light to me. This proves the ingenious -care with which Saknussemm guarded and defined his discovery. -Sneffels, or Snaefell, has several craters. It was therefore necessary -to point out which of these leads to the centre of the globe. What -did the Icelandic sage do? He observed that at the approach of the -kalends of July, that is to say in the last days of June, one of the -peaks, called Scartaris, flung its shadow down the mouth of that -particular crater, and he committed that fact to his document. Could -there possibly have been a more exact guide? As soon as we have -arrived at the summit of Snaefell we shall have no hesitation as to -the proper road to take." - -Decidedly, my uncle had answered every one of my objections. I saw -that his position on the old parchment was impregnable. I therefore -ceased to press him upon that part of the subject, and as above all -things he must be convinced, I passed on to scientific objections, -which in my opinion were far more serious. - -"Well, then," I said, "I am forced to admit that Saknussemm's -sentence is clear, and leaves no room for doubt. I will even allow -that the document bears every mark and evidence of authenticity. That -learned philosopher did get to the bottom of Sneffels, he has seen -the shadow of Scartaris touch the edge of the crater before the -kalends of July; he may even have heard the legendary stories told in -his day about that crater reaching to the centre of the world; but as -for reaching it himself, as for performing the journey, and -returning, if he ever went, I say no--he never, never did that." - -"Now for your reason?" said my uncle ironically. - -"All the theories of science demonstrate such a feat to be -impracticable." - -"The theories say that, do they?" replied the Professor in the tone -of a meek disciple. "Oh! unpleasant theories! How the theories will -hinder us, won't they?" - -I saw that he was only laughing at me; but I went on all the same. - -"Yes; it is perfectly well known that the internal temperature rises -one degree for every 70 feet in depth; now, admitting this proportion -to be constant, and the radius of the earth being fifteen hundred -leagues, there must be a temperature of 360,032 degrees at the centre -of the earth. Therefore, all the substances that compose the body of -this earth must exist there in a state of incandescent gas; for the -metals that most resist the action of heat, gold, and platinum, and -the hardest rocks, can never be either solid or liquid under such a -temperature. I have therefore good reason for asking if it is -possible to penetrate through such a medium." - -"So, Axel, it is the heat that troubles you?" - -"Of course it is. Were we to reach a depth of thirty miles we should -have arrived at the limit of the terrestrial crust, for there the -temperature will be more than 2372 degrees." - -"Are you afraid of being put into a state of fusion?" - -"I will leave you to decide that question," I answered rather -sullenly. "This is my decision," replied Professor Liedenbrock, -putting on one of his grandest airs. "Neither you nor anybody else -knows with any certainty what is going on in the interior of this -globe, since not the twelve thousandth part of its radius is known; -science is eminently perfectible; and every new theory is soon routed -by a newer. Was it not always believed until Fourier that the -temperature of the interplanetary spaces decreased perpetually? and -is it not known at the present time that the greatest cold of the -ethereal regions is never lower than 40 degrees below zero Fahr.? Why -should it not be the same with the internal heat? Why should it not, -at a certain depth, attain an impassable limit, instead of rising to -such a point as to fuse the most infusible metals?" - -As my uncle was now taking his stand upon hypotheses, of course, -there was nothing to be said. - -"Well, I will tell you that true savants, amongst them Poisson, have -demonstrated that if a heat of 360,000 degrees [1] existed in the -interior of the globe, the fiery gases arising from the fused matter -would acquire an elastic force which the crust of the earth would be -unable to resist, and that it would explode like the plates of a -bursting boiler." - -"That is Poisson's opinion, my uncle, nothing more." - -"Granted. But it is likewise the creed adopted by other distinguished -geologists, that the interior of the globe is neither gas nor water, -nor any of the heaviest minerals known, for in none of these cases -would the earth weigh what it does." - -"Oh, with figures you may prove anything!" - -"But is it the same with facts! Is it not known that the number of -volcanoes has diminished since the first days of creation? and if -there is central heat may we not thence conclude that it is in -process of diminution?" - -"My good uncle, if you will enter into the legion of speculation, I -can discuss the matter no longer." - -"But I have to tell you that the highest names have come to the -support of my views. Do you remember a visit paid to me by the -celebrated chemist, Humphry Davy, in 1825?" - -"Not at all, for I was not born until nineteen years afterwards." - -"Well, Humphry Davy did call upon me on his way through Hamburg. We -were long engaged in discussing, amongst other problems, the -hypothesis of the liquid structure of the terrestrial nucleus. We -were agreed that it could not be in a liquid state, for a reason -which science has never been able to confute." - -[1] The degrees of temperature are given by Jules Verne according to -the centigrade system, for which we will in each case substitute the -Fahrenheit measurement. (Tr.) - -"What is that reason?" I said, rather astonished. - -"Because this liquid mass would be subject, like the ocean, to the -lunar attraction, and therefore twice every day there would be -internal tides, which, upheaving the terrestrial crust, would cause -periodical earthquakes!" - -"Yet it is evident that the surface of the globe has been subject to -the action of fire," I replied, "and it is quite reasonable to -suppose that the external crust cooled down first, whilst the heat -took refuge down to the centre." - -"Quite a mistake," my uncle answered. "The earth has been heated by -combustion on its surface, that is all. Its surface was composed of a -great number of metals, such as potassium and sodium, which have the -peculiar property of igniting at the mere contact with air and water; -these metals kindled when the atmospheric vapours fell in rain upon -the soil; and by and by, when the waters penetrated into the fissures -of the crust of the earth, they broke out into fresh combustion with -explosions and eruptions. Such was the cause of the numerous -volcanoes at the origin of the earth." - -"Upon my word, this is a very clever hypothesis," I exclaimed, in -spite rather of myself. - -"And which Humphry Davy demonstrated to me by a simple experiment. He -formed a small ball of the metals which I have named, and which was a -very fair representation of our globe; whenever he caused a fine dew -of rain to fall upon its surface, it heaved up into little -monticules, it became oxydized and formed miniature mountains; a -crater broke open at one of its summits; the eruption took place, and -communicated to the whole of the ball such a heat that it could not -be held in the hand." - -In truth, I was beginning to be shaken by the Professor's arguments, -besides which he gave additional weight to them by his usual ardour -and fervent enthusiasm. - -"You see, Axel," he added, "the condition of the terrestrial nucleus -has given rise to various hypotheses among geologists; there is no -proof at all for this internal heat; my opinion is that there is no -such thing, it cannot be; besides we shall see for ourselves, and, -like Arne Saknussemm, we shall know exactly what to hold as truth -concerning this grand question." - -"Very well, we shall see," I replied, feeling myself carried off by -his contagious enthusiasm. "Yes, we shall see; that is, if it is -possible to see anything there." - -"And why not? May we not depend upon electric phenomena to give us -light? May we not even expect light from the atmosphere, the pressure -of which may render it luminous as we approach the centre?" - -"Yes, yes," said I; "that is possible, too." - -"It is certain," exclaimed my uncle in a tone of triumph. "But -silence, do you hear me? silence upon the whole subject; and let no -one get before us in this design of discovering the centre of the -earth." - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -A WOMAN'S COURAGE - - -Thus ended this memorable seance. That conversation threw me into a -fever. I came out of my uncle's study as if I had been stunned, and -as if there was not air enough in all the streets of Hamburg to put -me right again. I therefore made for the banks of the Elbe, where the -steamer lands her passengers, which forms the communication between -the city and the Hamburg railway. - -Was I convinced of the truth of what I had heard? Had I not bent -under the iron rule of the Professor Liedenbrock? Was I to believe -him in earnest in his intention to penetrate to the centre of this -massive globe? Had I been listening to the mad speculations of a -lunatic, or to the scientific conclusions of a lofty genius? Where -did truth stop? Where did error begin? - -I was all adrift amongst a thousand contradictory hypotheses, but I -could not lay hold of one. - -Yet I remembered that I had been convinced, although now my -enthusiasm was beginning to cool down; but I felt a desire to start -at once, and not to lose time and courage by calm reflection. I had -at that moment quite courage enough to strap my knapsack to my -shoulders and start. - -But I must confess that in another hour this unnatural excitement -abated, my nerves became unstrung, and from the depths of the abysses -of this earth I ascended to its surface again. - -"It is quite absurd!" I cried, "there is no sense about it. No -sensible young man should for a moment entertain such a proposal. The -whole thing is non-existent. I have had a bad night, I have been -dreaming of horrors." - -But I had followed the banks of the Elbe and passed the town. After -passing the port too, I had reached the Altona road. I was led by a -presentiment, soon to be realised; for shortly I espied my little -Graeuben bravely returning with her light step to Hamburg. - -"Graeuben!" I cried from afar off. - -The young girl stopped, rather frightened perhaps to hear her name -called after her on the high road. Ten yards more, and I had joined -her. - -"Axel!" she cried surprised. "What! have you come to meet me? Is this -why you are here, sir?" - -But when she had looked upon me, Graeuben could not fail to see the -uneasiness and distress of my mind. - -"What is the matter?" she said, holding out her hand. - -"What is the matter, Graeuben?" I cried. - -In a couple of minutes my pretty Virlandaise was fully informed of -the position of affairs. For a time she was silent. Did her heart -palpitate as mine did? I don't know about that, but I know that her -hand did not tremble in mine. We went on a hundred yards without -speaking. - -At last she said, "Axel!" - -"My dear Graeuben." - -"That will be a splendid journey!" - -I gave a bound at these words. - -"Yes, Axel, a journey worthy of the nephew of a savant; it is a good -thing for a man to be distinguished by some great enterprise." - -"What, Graeuben, won't you dissuade me from such an undertaking?" - -"No, my dear Axel, and I would willingly go with you, but that a poor -girl would only be in your way." - -"Is that quite true?" - -"It is true." - -Ah! women and young girls, how incomprehensible are your feminine -hearts! When you are not the timidest, you are the bravest of -creatures. Reason has nothing to do with your actions. What! did this -child encourage me in such an expedition! Would she not be afraid to -join it herself? And she was driving me to it, one whom she loved! - -I was disconcerted, and, if I must tell the whole truth, I was -ashamed. - -"Graeuben, we will see whether you will say the same thing to-morrow." - -"To-morrow, dear Axel, I will say what I say to-day." - -Graeuben and I, hand in hand, but in silence, pursued our way. The -emotions of that day were breaking my heart. - -After all, I thought, the kalends of July are a long way off, and -between this and then many things may take place which will cure my -uncle of his desire to travel underground. - -It was night when we arrived at the house in Koenigstrasse. I expected -to find all quiet there, my uncle in bed as was his custom, and -Martha giving her last touches with the feather brush. - -But I had not taken into account the Professor's impatience. I found -him shouting--and working himself up amidst a crowd of porters and -messengers who were all depositing various loads in the passage. Our -old servant was at her wits' end. - -"Come, Axel, come, you miserable wretch," my uncle cried from as far -off as he could see me. "Your boxes are not packed, and my papers are -not arranged; where's the key of my carpet bag? and what have you -done with my gaiters?" - -I stood thunderstruck. My voice failed. Scarcely could my lips utter -the words: - -"Are we really going?" - -"Of course, you unhappy boy! Could I have dreamed that you would have -gone out for a walk instead of hurrying your preparations forward?" - -"Are we to go?" I asked again, with sinking hopes. - -"Yes; the day after to-morrow, early." - -I could hear no more. I fled for refuge into my own little room. - -All hope was now at an end. My uncle had been all the morning making -purchases of a part of the tools and apparatus required for this -desperate undertaking. The passage was encumbered with rope ladders, -knotted cords, torches, flasks, grappling irons, alpenstocks, -pickaxes, iron shod sticks, enough to load ten men. - -I spent an awful night. Next morning I was called early. I had quite -decided I would not open the door. But how was I to resist the sweet -voice which was always music to my ears, saying, "My dear Axel?" - -I came out of my room. I thought my pale countenance and my red and -sleepless eyes would work upon Graeuben's sympathies and change her -mind. - -"Ah! my dear Axel," she said. "I see you are better. A night's rest -has done you good." - -"Done me good!" I exclaimed. - -I rushed to the glass. Well, in fact I did look better than I had -expected. I could hardly believe my own eyes. - -"Axel," she said, "I have had a long talk with my guardian. He is a -bold philosopher, a man of immense courage, and you must remember -that his blood flows in your veins. He has confided to me his plans, -his hopes, and why and how he hopes to attain his object. He will no -doubt succeed. My dear Axel, it is a grand thing to devote yourself -to science! What honour will fall upon Herr Liedenbrock, and so be -reflected upon his companion! When you return, Axel, you will be a -man, his equal, free to speak and to act independently, and free to ---" - -The dear girl only finished this sentence by blushing. Her words -revived me. Yet I refused to believe we should start. I drew Graeuben -into the Professor's study. - -"Uncle, is it true that we are to go?" - -"Why do you doubt?" - -"Well, I don't doubt," I said, not to vex him; "but, I ask, what need -is there to hurry?" - -"Time, time, flying with irreparable rapidity." - -"But it is only the 16th May, and until the end of June--" - -"What, you monument of ignorance! do you think you can get to Iceland -in a couple of days? If you had not deserted me like a fool I should -have taken you to the Copenhagen office, to Liffender & Co., and you -would have learned then that there is only one trip every month from -Copenhagen to Rejkiavik, on the 22nd." - -"Well?" - -"Well, if we waited for the 22nd June we should be too late to see -the shadow of Scartaris touch the crater of Sneffels. Therefore we -must get to Copenhagen as fast as we can to secure our passage. Go -and pack up." - -There was no reply to this. I went up to my room. Graeuben followed -me. She undertook to pack up all things necessary for my voyage. She -was no more moved than if I had been starting for a little trip to -Luebeck or Heligoland. Her little hands moved without haste. She -talked quietly. She supplied me with sensible reasons for our -expedition. She delighted me, and yet I was angry with her. Now and -then I felt I ought to break out into a passion, but she took no -notice and went on her way as methodically as ever. - -Finally the last strap was buckled; I came downstairs. All that day -the philosophical instrument makers and the electricians kept coming -and going. Martha was distracted. - -"Is master mad?" she asked. - -I nodded my head. - -"And is he going to take you with him?" - -I nodded again. - -"Where to?" - -I pointed with my finger downward. - -"Down into the cellar?" cried the old servant. - -"No," I said. "Lower down than that." - -Night came. But I knew nothing about the lapse of time. - -"To-morrow morning at six precisely," my uncle decreed "we start." - -At ten o'clock I fell upon my bed, a dead lump of inert matter. All -through the night terror had hold of me. I spent it dreaming of -abysses. I was a prey to delirium. I felt myself grasped by the -Professor's sinewy hand, dragged along, hurled down, shattered into -little bits. I dropped down unfathomable precipices with the -accelerating velocity of bodies falling through space. My life had -become an endless fall. I awoke at five with shattered nerves, -trembling and weary. I came downstairs. My uncle was at table, -devouring his breakfast. I stared at him with horror and disgust. But -dear Graeuben was there; so I said nothing, and could eat nothing. - -At half-past five there was a rattle of wheels outside. A large -carriage was there to take us to the Altona railway station. It was -soon piled up with my uncle's multifarious preparations. - -"Where's your box?" he cried. - -"It is ready," I replied, with faltering voice. - -"Then make haste down, or we shall lose the train." - -It was now manifestly impossible to maintain the struggle against -destiny. I went up again to my room, and rolling my portmanteaus -downstairs I darted after him. - -At that moment my uncle was solemnly investing Graeuben with the reins -of government. My pretty Virlandaise was as calm and collected as was -her wont. She kissed her guardian; but could not restrain a tear in -touching my cheek with her gentle lips. - -"Graeuben!" I murmured. - -"Go, my dear Axel, go! I am now your betrothed; and when you come -back I will be your wife." - -I pressed her in my arms and took my place in the carriage. Martha -and the young girl, standing at the door, waved their last farewell. -Then the horses, roused by the driver's whistling, darted off at a -gallop on the road to Altona. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -SERIOUS PREPARATIONS FOR VERTICAL DESCENT - - -Altona, which is but a suburb of Hamburg, is the terminus of the Kiel -railway, which was to carry us to the Belts. In twenty minutes we -were in Holstein. - -At half-past six the carriage stopped at the station; my uncle's -numerous packages, his voluminous _impedimenta,_ were unloaded, -removed, labelled, weighed, put into the luggage vans, and at seven -we were seated face to face in our compartment. The whistle sounded, -the engine started, we were off. - -Was I resigned? No, not yet. Yet the cool morning air and the scenes -on the road, rapidly changed by the swiftness of the train, drew me -away somewhat from my sad reflections. - -As for the Professor's reflections, they went far in advance of the -swiftest express. We were alone in the carriage, but we sat in -silence. My uncle examined all his pockets and his travelling bag -with the minutest care. I saw that he had not forgotten the smallest -matter of detail. - -Amongst other documents, a sheet of paper, carefully folded, bore the -heading of the Danish consulate with the signature of W. -Christiensen, consul at Hamburg and the Professor's friend. With this -we possessed the proper introductions to the Governor of Iceland. - -I also observed the famous document most carefully laid up in a -secret pocket in his portfolio. I bestowed a malediction upon it, and -then proceeded to examine the country. - -It was a very long succession of uninteresting loamy and fertile -flats, a very easy country for the construction of railways, and -propitious for the laying-down of these direct level lines so dear to -railway companies. - -I had no time to get tired of the monotony; for in three hours we -stopped at Kiel, close to the sea. - -The luggage being labelled for Copenhagen, we had no occasion to look -after it. Yet the Professor watched every article with jealous -vigilance, until all were safe on board. There they disappeared in -the hold. - -My uncle, notwithstanding his hurry, had so well calculated the -relations between the train and the steamer that we had a whole day -to spare. The steamer _Ellenora,_ did not start until night. Thence -sprang a feverish state of excitement in which the impatient -irascible traveller devoted to perdition the railway directors and -the steamboat companies and the governments which allowed such -intolerable slowness. I was obliged to act chorus to him when he -attacked the captain of the _Ellenora_ upon this subject. The captain -disposed of us summarily. - -At Kiel, as elsewhere, we must do something to while away the time. -What with walking on the verdant shores of the bay within which -nestles the little town, exploring the thick woods which make it look -like a nest embowered amongst thick foliage, admiring the villas, -each provided with a little bathing house, and moving about and -grumbling, at last ten o'clock came. - -The heavy coils of smoke from the _Ellenora's_ funnel unrolled in the -sky, the bridge shook with the quivering of the struggling steam; we -were on board, and owners for the time of two berths, one over the -other, in the only saloon cabin on board. - -At a quarter past the moorings were loosed and the throbbing steamer -pursued her way over the dark waters of the Great Belt. - -The night was dark; there was a sharp breeze and a rough sea, a few -lights appeared on shore through the thick darkness; later on, I -cannot tell when, a dazzling light from some lighthouse threw a -bright stream of fire along the waves; and this is all I can remember -of this first portion of our sail. - -At seven in the morning we landed at Korsor, a small town on the west -coast of Zealand. There we were transferred from the boat to another -line of railway, which took us by just as flat a country as the plain -of Holstein. - -Three hours' travelling brought us to the capital of Denmark. My -uncle had not shut his eyes all night. In his impatience I believe he -was trying to accelerate the train with his feet. - -At last he discerned a stretch of sea. - -"The Sound!" he cried. - -At our left was a huge building that looked like a hospital. - -"That's a lunatic asylum," said one of or travelling companions. - -Very good! thought I, just the place we want to end our days in; and -great as it is, that asylum is not big enough to contain all -Professor Liedenbrock's madness! - -At ten in the morning, at last, we set our feet in Copenhagen; the -luggage was put upon a carriage and taken with ourselves to the -Phoenix Hotel in Breda Gate. This took half an hour, for the station -is out of the town. Then my uncle, after a hasty toilet, dragged me -after him. The porter at the hotel could speak German and English; -but the Professor, as a polyglot, questioned him in good Danish, and -it was in the same language that that personage directed him to the -Museum of Northern Antiquities. - -The curator of this curious establishment, in which wonders are -gathered together out of which the ancient history of the country -might be reconstructed by means of its stone weapons, its cups and -its jewels, was a learned savant, the friend of the Danish consul at -Hamburg, Professor Thomsen. - -My uncle had a cordial letter of introduction to him. As a general -rule one savant greets another with coolness. But here the case was -different. M. Thomsen, like a good friend, gave the Professor -Liedenbrock a cordial greeting, and he even vouchsafed the same -kindness to his nephew. It is hardly necessary to say the secret was -sacredly kept from the excellent curator; we were simply -disinterested travellers visiting Iceland out of harmless curiosity. - -M. Thomsen placed his services at our disposal, and we visited the -quays with the object of finding out the next vessel to sail. - -I was yet in hopes that there would be no means of getting to -Iceland. But there was no such luck. A small Danish schooner, the -_Valkyria_, was to set sail for Rejkiavik on the 2nd of June. The -captain, M. Bjarne, was on board. His intending passenger was so -joyful that he almost squeezed his hands till they ached. That good -man was rather surprised at his energy. To him it seemed a very -simple thing to go to Iceland, as that was his business; but to my -uncle it was sublime. The worthy captain took advantage of his -enthusiasm to charge double fares; but we did not trouble ourselves -about mere trifles. . - -"You must be on board on Tuesday, at seven in the morning," said -Captain Bjarne, after having pocketed more dollars than were his due. - -Then we thanked M. Thomsen for his kindness, "and we returned to the -Phoenix Hotel. - -"It's all right, it's all right," my uncle repeated. "How fortunate -we are to have found this boat ready for sailing. Now let us have -some breakfast and go about the town." - -We went first to Kongens-nye-Torw, an irregular square in which are -two innocent-looking guns, which need not alarm any one. Close by, at -No. 5, there was a French "restaurant," kept by a cook of the name of -Vincent, where we had an ample breakfast for four marks each (2_s_. -4_d_.). - -Then I took a childish pleasure in exploring the city; my uncle let -me take him with me, but he took notice of nothing, neither the -insignificant king's palace, nor the pretty seventeenth century -bridge, which spans the canal before the museum, nor that immense -cenotaph of Thorwaldsen's, adorned with horrible mural painting, and -containing within it a collection of the sculptor's works, nor in a -fine park the toylike chateau of Rosenberg, nor the beautiful -renaissance edifice of the Exchange, nor its spire composed of the -twisted tails of four bronze dragons, nor the great windmill on the -ramparts, whose huge arms dilated in the sea breeze like the sails of -a ship. - -What delicious walks we should have had together, my pretty -Virlandaise and I, along the harbour where the two-deckers and the -frigate slept peaceably by the red roofing of the warehouse, by the -green banks of the strait, through the deep shades of the trees -amongst which the fort is half concealed, where the guns are -thrusting out their black throats between branches of alder and -willow. - -But, alas! Graeuben was far away; and I never hoped to see her again. - -But if my uncle felt no attraction towards these romantic scenes he -was very much struck with the aspect of a certain church spire -situated in the island of Amak, which forms the south-west quarter of -Copenhagen. - -I was ordered to direct my feet that way; I embarked on a small -steamer which plies on the canals, and in a few minutes she touched -the quay of the dockyard. - -After crossing a few narrow streets where some convicts, in trousers -half yellow and half grey, were at work under the orders of the -gangers, we arrived at the Vor Frelsers Kirk. There was nothing -remarkable about the church; but there was a reason why its tall -spire had attracted the Professor's attention. Starting from the top -of the tower, an external staircase wound around the spire, the -spirals circling up into the sky. - -"Let us get to the top," said my uncle. - -"I shall be dizzy," I said. - -"The more reason why we should go up; we must get used to it." - -"But--" - -"Come, I tell you; don't waste our time." - -I had to obey. A keeper who lived at the other end of the street -handed us the key, and the ascent began. - -My uncle went ahead with a light step. I followed him not without -alarm, for my head was very apt to feel dizzy; I possessed neither -the equilibrium of an eagle nor his fearless nature. - -As long as we were protected on the inside of the winding staircase -up the tower, all was well enough; but after toiling up a hundred and -fifty steps the fresh air came to salute my face, and we were on the -leads of the tower. There the aerial staircase began its gyrations, -only guarded by a thin iron rail, and the narrowing steps seemed to -ascend into infinite space! - -"Never shall I be able to do it," I said. - -"Don't be a coward; come up, sir"; said my uncle with the coldest -cruelty. - -I had to follow, clutching at every step. The keen air made me giddy; -I felt the spire rocking with every gust of wind; my knees began to -fail; soon I was crawling on my knees, then creeping on my stomach; I -closed my eyes; I seemed to be lost in space. - -At last I reached the apex, with the assistance of my uncle dragging -me up by the collar. - -"Look down!" he cried. "Look down well! You must take a lesson -in abysses." - -I opened my eyes. I saw houses squashed flat as if they had all -fallen down from the skies; a smoke fog seemed to drown them. Over my -head ragged clouds were drifting past, and by an optical inversion -they seemed stationary, while the steeple, the ball and I were all -spinning along with fantastic speed. Far away on one side was the -green country, on the other the sea sparkled, bathed in sunlight. The -Sound stretched away to Elsinore, dotted with a few white sails, like -sea-gulls' wings; and in the misty east and away to the north-east -lay outstretched the faintly-shadowed shores of Sweden. All this -immensity of space whirled and wavered, fluctuating beneath my eyes. - -But I was compelled to rise, to stand up, to look. My first lesson in -dizziness lasted an hour. When I got permission to come down and feel -the solid street pavements I was afflicted with severe lumbago. - -"To-morrow we will do it again," said the Professor. - -And it was so; for five days in succession, I was obliged to undergo -this anti-vertiginous exercise; and whether I would or not, I made -some improvement in the art of "lofty contemplations." - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -ICELAND! BUT WHAT NEXT? - - -The day for our departure arrived. The day before it our kind friend -M. Thomsen brought us letters of introduction to Count Trampe, the -Governor of Iceland, M. Picturssen, the bishop's suffragan, and M. -Finsen, mayor of Rejkiavik. My uncle expressed his gratitude by -tremendous compressions of both his hands. - -On the 2nd, at six in the evening, all our precious baggage being -safely on board the _Valkyria,_ the captain took us into a very -narrow cabin. - -"Is the wind favourable?" my uncle asked. - -"Excellent," replied Captain Bjarne; "a sou'-easter. We shall pass -down the Sound full speed, with all sails set." - -In a few minutes the schooner, under her mizen, brigantine, topsail, -and topgallant sail, loosed from her moorings and made full sail -through the straits. In an hour the capital of Denmark seemed to sink -below the distant waves, and the _Valkyria_ was skirting the coast by -Elsinore. In my nervous frame of mind I expected to see the ghost of -Hamlet wandering on the legendary castle terrace. - -"Sublime madman!" I said, "no doubt you would approve of our -expedition. Perhaps you would keep us company to the centre of the -globe, to find the solution of your eternal doubts." - -But there was no ghostly shape upon the ancient walls. Indeed, the -castle is much younger than the heroic prince of Denmark. It now -answers the purpose of a sumptuous lodge for the doorkeeper of the -straits of the Sound, before which every year there pass fifteen -thousand ships of all nations. - -The castle of Kronsberg soon disappeared in the mist, as well as the -tower of Helsingborg, built on the Swedish coast, and the schooner -passed lightly on her way urged by the breezes of the Cattegat. - -The _Valkyria_ was a splendid sailer, but on a sailing vessel you can -place no dependence. She was taking to Rejkiavik coal, household -goods, earthenware, woollen clothing, and a cargo of wheat. The crew -consisted of five men, all Danes. - -"How long will the passage take?" my uncle asked. - -"Ten days," the captain replied, "if we don't meet a nor'-wester in -passing the Faroes." - -"But are you not subject to considerable delays?" - -"No, M. Liedenbrock, don't be uneasy, we shall get there in very good -time." - -At evening the schooner doubled the Skaw at the northern point of -Denmark, in the night passed the Skager Rack, skirted Norway by Cape -Lindness, and entered the North Sea. - -In two days more we sighted the coast of Scotland near Peterhead, and -the _Valkyria_ turned her lead towards the Faroe Islands, passing -between the Orkneys and Shetlands. - -Soon the schooner encountered the great Atlantic swell; she had to -tack against the north wind, and reached the Faroes only with some -difficulty. On the 8th the captain made out Myganness, the -southernmost of these islands, and from that moment took a straight -course for Cape Portland, the most southerly point of Iceland. - -The passage was marked by nothing unusual. I bore the troubles of the -sea pretty well; my uncle, to his own intense disgust, and his -greater shame, was ill all through the voyage. - -He therefore was unable to converse with the captain about Snaefell, -the way to get to it, the facilities for transport, he was obliged to -put off these inquiries until his arrival, and spent all his time at -full length in his cabin, of which the timbers creaked and shook with -every pitch she took. It must be confessed he was not undeserving of -his punishment. - -On the 11th we reached Cape Portland. The clear open weather gave us -a good view of Myrdals jokul, which overhangs it. The cape is merely -a low hill with steep sides, standing lonely by the beach. - -The _Valkyria_ kept at some distance from the coast, taking a -westerly course amidst great shoals of whales and sharks. Soon we -came in sight of an enormous perforated rock, through which the sea -dashed furiously. The Westman islets seemed to rise out of the ocean -like a group of rocks in a liquid plain. From that time the schooner -took a wide berth and swept at a great distance round Cape -Rejkianess, which forms the western point of Iceland. - -The rough sea prevented my uncle from coming on deck to admire these -shattered and surf-beaten coasts. - -Forty-eight hours after, coming out of a storm which forced the -schooner to scud under bare poles, we sighted east of us the beacon -on Cape Skagen, where dangerous rocks extend far away seaward. An -Icelandic pilot came on board, and in three hours the _Valkyria_ -dropped her anchor before Rejkiavik, in Faxa Bay. - -The Professor at last emerged from his cabin, rather pale and -wretched-looking, but still full of enthusiasm, and with ardent -satisfaction shining in his eyes. - -The population of the town, wonderfully interested in the arrival of -a vessel from which every one expected something, formed in groups -upon the quay. - -My uncle left in haste his floating prison, or rather hospital. But -before quitting the deck of the schooner he dragged me forward, and -pointing with outstretched finger north of the bay at a distant -mountain terminating in a double peak, a pair of cones covered with -perpetual snow, he cried: - -"Snaefell! Snaefell!" - -Then recommending me, by an impressive gesture, to keep silence, he -went into the boat which awaited him. I followed, and presently we -were treading the soil of Iceland. - -The first man we saw was a good-looking fellow enough, in a general's -uniform. Yet he was not a general but a magistrate, the Governor of -the island, M. le Baron Trampe himself. The Professor was soon aware -of the presence he was in. He delivered him his letters from -Copenhagen, and then followed a short conversation in the Danish -language, the purport of which I was quite ignorant of, and for a -very good reason. But the result of this first conversation was, that -Baron Trampe placed himself entirely at the service of Professor -Liedenbrock. - -My uncle was just as courteously received by the mayor, M. Finsen, -whose appearance was as military, and disposition and office as -pacific, as the Governor's. - -As for the bishop's suffragan, M. Picturssen, he was at that moment -engaged on an episcopal visitation in the north. For the time we must -be resigned to wait for the honour of being presented to him. But M. -Fridrikssen, professor of natural sciences at the school of -Rejkiavik, was a delightful man, and his friendship became very -precious to me. This modest philosopher spoke only Danish and Latin. -He came to proffer me his good offices in the language of Horace, and -I felt that we were made to understand each other. In fact he was the -only person in Iceland with whom I could converse at all. - -This good-natured gentleman made over to us two of the three rooms -which his house contained, and we were soon installed in it with all -our luggage, the abundance of which rather astonished the good people -of Rejkiavik. - -"Well, Axel," said my uncle, "we are getting on, and now the worst is -over." - -"The worst!" I said, astonished. - -"To be sure, now we have nothing to do but go down." - -"Oh, if that is all, you are quite right; but after all, when we have -gone down, we shall have to get up again, I suppose?" - -"Oh I don't trouble myself about that. Come, there's no time to lose; -I am going to the library. Perhaps there is some manuscript of -Saknussemm's there, and I should be glad to consult it." - -"Well, while you are there I will go into the town. Won't you?" - -"Oh, that is very uninteresting to me. It is not what is upon this -island, but what is underneath, that interests me." - -I went out, and wandered wherever chance took me. - -It would not be easy to lose your way in Rejkiavik. I was therefore -under no necessity to inquire the road, which exposes one to mistakes -when the only medium of intercourse is gesture. - -The town extends along a low and marshy level, between two hills. An -immense bed of lava bounds it on one side, and falls gently towards -the sea. On the other extends the vast bay of Faxa, shut in at the -north by the enormous glacier of the Snaefell, and of which the -_Valkyria_ was for the time the only occupant. Usually the English -and French conservators of fisheries moor in this bay, but just then -they were cruising about the western coasts of the island. - -The longest of the only two streets that Rejkiavik possesses was -parallel with the beach. Here live the merchants and traders, in -wooden cabins made of red planks set horizontally; the other street, -running west, ends at the little lake between the house of the bishop -and other non-commercial people. - -I had soon explored these melancholy ways; here and there I got a -glimpse of faded turf, looking like a worn-out bit of carpet, or some -appearance of a kitchen garden, the sparse vegetables of which -(potatoes, cabbages, and lettuces), would have figured appropriately -upon a Lilliputian table. A few sickly wallflowers were trying to -enjoy the air and sunshine. - -About the middle of the tin-commercial street I found the public -cemetery, inclosed with a mud wall, and where there seemed plenty of -room. - -Then a few steps brought me to the Governor's house, a but compared -with the town hall of Hamburg, a palace in comparison with the cabins -of the Icelandic population. - -Between the little lake and the town the church is built in the -Protestant style, of calcined stones extracted out of the volcanoes -by their own labour and at their own expense; in high westerly winds -it was manifest that the red tiles of the roof would be scattered in -the air, to the great danger of the faithful worshippers. - -On a neighbouring hill I perceived the national school, where, as I -was informed later by our host, were taught Hebrew, English, French, -and Danish, four languages of which, with shame I confess it, I don't -know a single word; after an examination I should have had to stand -last of the forty scholars educated at this little college, and I -should have been held unworthy to sleep along with them in one of -those little double closets, where more delicate youths would have -died of suffocation the very first night. - -In three hours I had seen not only the town but its environs. The -general aspect was wonderfully dull. No trees, and scarcely any -vegetation. Everywhere bare rocks, signs of volcanic action. The -Icelandic huts are made of earth and turf, and the walls slope -inward; they rather resemble roofs placed on the ground. But then -these roofs are meadows of comparative fertility. Thanks to the -internal heat, the grass grows on them to some degree of perfection. -It is carefully mown in the hay season; if it were not, the horses -would come to pasture on these green abodes. - -In my excursion I met but few people. On returning to the main street -I found the greater part of the population busied in drying, salting, -and putting on board codfish, their chief export. The men looked like -robust but heavy, blond Germans with pensive eyes, conscious of being -far removed from their fellow creatures, poor exiles relegated to -this land of ice, poor creatures who should have been Esquimaux, -since nature had condemned them to live only just outside the arctic -circle! In vain did I try to detect a smile upon their lips; -sometimes by a spasmodic and involuntary contraction of the muscles -they seemed to laugh, but they never smiled. - -Their costume consisted of a coarse jacket of black woollen cloth -called in Scandinavian lands a 'vadmel,' a hat with a very broad -brim, trousers with a narrow edge of red, and a bit of leather rolled -round the foot for shoes. - -The women looked as sad and as resigned as the men; their faces were -agreeable but expressionless, and they wore gowns and petticoats of -dark 'vadmel'; as maidens, they wore over their braided hair a little -knitted brown cap; when married, they put around their heads a -coloured handkerchief, crowned with a peak of white linen. - -After a good walk I returned to M. Fridrikssen's house, where I found -my uncle already in his host's company. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -INTERESTING CONVERSATIONS WITH ICELANDIC SAVANTS - - -Dinner was ready. Professor Liedenbrock devoured his portion -voraciously, for his compulsory fast on board had converted his -stomach into a vast unfathomable gulf. There was nothing remarkable -in the meal itself; but the hospitality of our host, more Danish than -Icelandic, reminded me of the heroes of old. It was evident that we -were more at home than he was himself. - -The conversation was carried on in the vernacular tongue, which my -uncle mixed with German and M. Fridrikssen with Latin for my benefit. -It turned upon scientific questions as befits philosophers; but -Professor Liedenbrock was excessively reserved, and at every sentence -spoke to me with his eyes, enjoining the most absolute silence upon -our plans. - -In the first place M. Fridrikssen wanted to know what success my -uncle had had at the library. - -"Your library! why there is nothing but a few tattered books upon -almost deserted shelves." - -"Indeed!" replied M. Fridrikssen, "why we possess eight thousand -volumes, many of them valuable and scarce, works in the old -Scandinavian language, and we have all the novelties that Copenhagen -sends us every year." - -"Where do you keep your eight thousand volumes? For my part--" - -"Oh, M. Liedenbrock, they are all over the country. In this icy -region we are fond of study. There is not a farmer nor a fisherman -that cannot read and does not read. Our principle is, that books, -instead of growing mouldy behind an iron grating, should be worn out -under the eyes of many readers. Therefore, these volumes are passed -from one to another, read over and over, referred to again and again; -and it often happens that they find their way back to their shelves -only after an absence of a year or two." - -"And in the meantime," said my uncle rather spitefully, "strangers--" - -"Well, what would you have? Foreigners have their libraries at home, -and the first essential for labouring people is that they should be -educated. I repeat to you the love of reading runs in Icelandic -blood. In 1816 we founded a prosperous literary society; learned -strangers think themselves honoured in becoming members of it. It -publishes books which educate our fellow-countrymen, and do the -country great service. If you will consent to be a corresponding -member, Herr Liedenbrock, you will be giving us great pleasure." - -My uncle, who had already joined about a hundred learned societies, -accepted with a grace which evidently touched M. Fridrikssen. - -"Now," said he, "will you be kind enough to tell me what books you -hoped to find in our library and I may perhaps enable you to consult -them?" - -My uncle's eyes and mine met. He hesitated. This direct question went -to the root of the matter. But after a moment's reflection he decided -on speaking. - -"Monsieur Fridrikssen, I wished to know if amongst your ancient books -you possessed any of the works of Arne Saknussemm?" - -"Arne Saknussemm!" replied the Rejkiavik professor. "You mean that -learned sixteenth century savant, a naturalist, a chemist, and a -traveller?" - -"Just so!" - -"One of the glories of Icelandic literature and science?" - -"That's the man." - -"An illustrious man anywhere!" - -"Quite so." - -"And whose courage was equal to his genius!" - -"I see that you know him well." - -My uncle was bathed in delight at hearing his hero thus described. He -feasted his eyes upon M. Fridrikssen's face. - -"Well," he cried, "where are his works?" - -"His works, we have them not." - -"What--not in Iceland?" - -"They are neither in Iceland nor anywhere else." - -"Why is that?" - -"Because Arne Saknussemm was persecuted for heresy, and in 1573 his -books were burned by the hands of the common hangman." - -"Very good! Excellent!" cried my uncle, to the great scandal of the -professor of natural history. - -"What!" he cried. - -"Yes, yes; now it is all clear, now it is all unravelled; and I see -why Saknussemm, put into the Index Expurgatorius, and compelled to -hide the discoveries made by his genius, was obliged to bury in an -incomprehensible cryptogram the secret--" - -"What secret?" asked M. Fridrikssen, starting. - -"Oh, just a secret which--" my uncle stammered. - -"Have you some private document in your possession?" asked our host. - -"No; I was only supposing a case." - -"Oh, very well," answered M. Fridrikssen, who was kind enough not to -pursue the subject when he had noticed the embarrassment of his -friend. "I hope you will not leave our island until you have seen -some of its mineralogical wealth." - -"Certainly," replied my uncle; "but I am rather late; or have not -others been here before me?" - -"Yes, Herr Liedenbrock; the labours of MM. Olafsen and Povelsen, -pursued by order of the king, the researches of Troil the scientific -mission of MM. Gaimard and Robert on the French corvette _La -Recherche,_ [1] and lately the observations of scientific men who -came in the _Reine Hortense,_ have added materially to our knowledge -of Iceland. But I assure you there is plenty left." - -"Do you think so?" said my uncle, pretending to look very modest, and -trying to hide the curiosity was flashing out of his eyes. - -"Oh, yes; how many mountains, glaciers, and volcanoes there are to -study, which are as yet but imperfectly known! Then, without going -any further, that mountain in the horizon. That is Snaefell." - -"Ah!" said my uncle, as coolly as he was able, "is that Snaefell?" - -"Yes; one of the most curious volcanoes, and the crater of which has -scarcely ever been visited." - -"Is it extinct?" - -"Oh, yes; more than five hundred years." - -"Well," replied my uncle, who was frantically locking his legs together -to keep himself from jumping up in the air, "that is where I mean to -begin my geological studies, there on that Seffel--Fessel--what do you -call it?" - -"Snaefell," replied the excellent M. Fridrikssen. - -This part of the conversation was in Latin; I had understood every -word of it, and I could hardly conceal my amusement at seeing my -uncle trying to keep down the excitement and satisfaction which were -brimming over in every limb and every feature. He tried hard to put -on an innocent little expression of simplicity; but it looked like a -diabolical grin. - -[1] _Recherche_ was sent out in 1835 by Admiral Duperre to learn the -fate of the lost expedition of M. de Blosseville in the _Lilloise_ -which has never been heard of. - -"Yes," said he, "your words decide me. We will try to scale that -Snaefell; perhaps even we may pursue our studies in its crater!" - -"I am very sorry," said M. Fridrikssen, "that my engagements will not -allow me to absent myself, or I would have accompanied you myself -with both pleasure and profit." - -"Oh, no, no!" replied my uncle with great animation, "we would not -disturb any one for the world, M. Fridrikssen. Still, I thank you -with all my heart: the company of such a talented man would have been -very serviceable, but the duties of your profession--" - -I am glad to think that our host, in the innocence of his Icelandic -soul, was blind to the transparent artifices of my uncle. - -"I very much approve of your beginning with that volcano, M. -Liedenbrock. You will gather a harvest of interesting observations. -But, tell me, how do you expect to get to the peninsula of Snaefell?" - -"By sea, crossing the bay. That's the most direct way." - -"No doubt; but it is impossible." - -"Why?" - -"Because we don't possess a single boat at Rejkiavik." - -"You don't mean to say so?" - -"You will have to go by land, following the shore. It will be longer, -but more interesting." - -"Very well, then; and now I shall have to see about a guide." - -"I have one to offer you." - -"A safe, intelligent man." - -"Yes; an inhabitant of that peninsula. He is an eider-down hunter, and -very clever. He speaks Danish perfectly." - -"When can I see him?" - -"To-morrow, if you like." - -"Why not to-day?" - -"Because he won't be here till to-morrow." - -"To-morrow, then," added my uncle with a sigh. - -This momentous conversation ended in a few minutes with warm -acknowledgments paid by the German to the Icelandic Professor. At -this dinner my uncle had just elicited important facts, amongst -others, the history of Saknussemm, the reason of the mysterious -document, that his host would not accompany him in his expedition, -and that the very next day a guide would be waiting upon him. - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - -A GUIDE FOUND TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH - - -In the evening I took a short walk on the beach and returned at night -to my plank-bed, where I slept soundly all night. - -When I awoke I heard my uncle talking at a great rate in the next -room. I immediately dressed and joined him. - -He was conversing in the Danish language with a tall man, of robust -build. This fine fellow must have been possessed of great strength. -His eyes, set in a large and ingenuous face, seemed to me very -intelligent; they were of a dreamy sea-blue. Long hair, which would -have been called red even in England, fell in long meshes upon his -broad shoulders. The movements of this native were lithe and supple; -but he made little use of his arms in speaking, like a man who knew -nothing or cared nothing about the language of gestures. His whole -appearance bespoke perfect calmness and self-possession, not -indolence but tranquillity. It was felt at once that he would be -beholden to nobody, that he worked for his own convenience, and that -nothing in this world could astonish or disturb his philosophic -calmness. - -I caught the shades of this Icelander's character by the way in which -he listened to the impassioned flow of words which fell from the -Professor. He stood with arms crossed, perfectly unmoved by my -uncle's incessant gesticulations. A negative was expressed by a slow -movement of the head from left to right, an affirmative by a slight -bend, so slight that his long hair scarcely moved. He carried economy -of motion even to parsimony. - -Certainly I should never have dreamt in looking at this man that he -was a hunter; he did not look likely to frighten his game, nor did he -seem as if he would even get near it. But the mystery was explained -when M. Fridrikssen informed me that this tranquil personage was only -a hunter of the eider duck, whose under plumage constitutes the chief -wealth of the island. This is the celebrated eider down, and it -requires no great rapidity of movement to get it. - -Early in summer the female, a very pretty bird, goes to build her -nest among the rocks of the fiords with which the coast is fringed. -After building the nest she feathers it with down plucked from her -own breast. Immediately the hunter, or rather the trader, comes and -robs the nest, and the female recommences her work. This goes on as -long as she has any down left. When she has stripped herself bare the -male takes his turn to pluck himself. But as the coarse and hard -plumage of the male has no commercial value, the hunter does not take -the trouble to rob the nest of this; the female therefore lays her -eggs in the spoils of her mate, the young are hatched, and next year -the harvest begins again. - -Now, as the eider duck does not select steep cliffs for her nest, but -rather the smooth terraced rocks which slope to the sea, the -Icelandic hunter might exercise his calling without any inconvenient -exertion. He was a farmer who was not obliged either to sow or reap -his harvest, but merely to gather it in. - -This grave, phlegmatic, and silent individual was called Hans Bjelke; -and he came recommended by M. Fridrikssen. He was our future guide. -His manners were a singular contrast with my uncle's. - -Nevertheless, they soon came to understand each other. Neither looked -at the amount of the payment: the one was ready to accept whatever -was offered; the other was ready to give whatever was demanded. Never -was bargain more readily concluded. - -The result of the treaty was, that Hans engaged on his part to -conduct us to the village of Stapi, on the south shore of the Snaefell -peninsula, at the very foot of the volcano. By land this would be -about twenty-two miles, to be done, said my uncle, in two days. - -But when he learnt that the Danish mile was 24,000 feet long, he was -obliged to modify his calculations and allow seven or eight days for -the march. - -Four horses were to be placed at our disposal--two to carry him and -me, two for the baggage. Hams, as was his custom, would go on foot. -He knew all that part of the coast perfectly, and promised to take us -the shortest way. - -His engagement was not to terminate with our arrival at Stapi; he was -to continue in my uncle's service for the whole period of his -scientific researches, for the remuneration of three rixdales a week -(about twelve shillings), but it was an express article of the -covenant that his wages should be counted out to him every Saturday -at six o'clock in the evening, which, according to him, was one -indispensable part of the engagement. - -The start was fixed for the 16th of June. My uncle wanted to pay the -hunter a portion in advance, but he refused with one word: - -"_Efter,_" said he. - -"After," said the Professor for my edification. - -The treaty concluded, Hans silently withdrew. - -"A famous fellow," cried my uncle; "but he little thinks of the -marvellous part he has to play in the future." - -"So he is to go with us as far as--" - -"As far as the centre of the earth, Axel." - -Forty-eight hours were left before our departure; to my great regret -I had to employ them in preparations; for all our ingenuity was -required to pack every article to the best advantage; instruments -here, arms there, tools in this package, provisions in that: four -sets of packages in all. - -The instruments were: - -1. An Eigel's centigrade thermometer, graduated up to 150 degrees -(302 degrees Fahr.), which seemed to me too much or too little. Too -much if the internal heat was to rise so high, for in this case we -should be baked, not enough to measure the temperature of springs or -any matter in a state of fusion. - -2. An aneroid barometer, to indicate extreme pressures of the -atmosphere. An ordinary barometer would not have answered the -purpose, as the pressure would increase during our descent to a point -which the mercurial barometer [1] would not register. - -3. A chronometer, made by Boissonnas, jun., of Geneva, accurately set -to the meridian of Hamburg. - -4. Two compasses, viz., a common compass and a dipping needle. - -5. A night glass. - -6. Two of Ruhmkorff's apparatus, which, by means of an electric -current, supplied a safe and handy portable light [2] - -The arms consisted of two of Purdy's rifles and two brace of pistols. -But what did we want arms for? We had neither savages nor wild beasts -to fear, I supposed. But my uncle seemed to believe in his arsenal as -in his instruments, and more especially in a considerable quantity of -gun cotton, which is unaffected by moisture, and the explosive force -of which exceeds that of gunpowder. - -[1] In M. Verne's book a 'manometer' is the instrument used, of which -very little is known. In a complete list of philosophical instruments -the translator cannot find the name. As he is assured by a first-rate -instrument maker, Chadburn, of Liverpool, that an aneroid can be -constructed to measure any depth, he has thought it best to furnish -the adventurous professor with this more familiar instrument. The -'manometer' is generally known as a pressure gauge.--TRANS. - -[2] Ruhmkorff's apparatus consists of a Bunsen pile worked with -bichromate of potash, which makes no smell; an induction coil carries -the electricity generated by the pile into communication with a -lantern of peculiar construction; in this lantern there is a spiral -glass tube from which the air has been excluded, and in which remains -only a residuum of carbonic acid gas or of nitrogen. When the -apparatus is put in action this gas becomes luminous, producing a -white steady light. The pile and coil are placed in a leathern bag -which the traveller carries over his shoulders; the lantern outside -of the bag throws sufficient light into deep darkness; it enables one -to venture without fear of explosions into the midst of the most -inflammable gases, and is not extinguished even in the deepest -waters. M. Ruhmkorff is a learned and most ingenious man of science; -his great discovery is his induction coil, which produces a powerful -stream of electricity. He obtained in 1864 the quinquennial prize of -50,000 franc reserved by the French government for the most ingenious -application of electricity. - -The tools comprised two pickaxes, two spades, a silk ropeladder, -three iron-tipped sticks, a hatchet, a hammer, a dozen wedges and -iron spikes, and a long knotted rope. Now this was a large load, for -the ladder was 300 feet long. - -And there were provisions too: this was not a large parcel, but it -was comforting to know that of essence of beef and biscuits there -were six months' consumption. Spirits were the only liquid, and of -water we took none; but we had flasks, and my uncle depended on -springs from which to fill them. Whatever objections I hazarded as to -their quality, temperature, and even absence, remained ineffectual. - -To complete the exact inventory of all our travelling accompaniments, -I must not forget a pocket medicine chest, containing blunt scissors, -splints for broken limbs, a piece of tape of unbleached linen, -bandages and compresses, lint, a lancet for bleeding, all dreadful -articles to take with one. Then there was a row of phials containing -dextrine, alcoholic ether, liquid acetate of lead, vinegar, and -ammonia drugs which afforded me no comfort. Finally, all the articles -needful to supply Ruhmkorff's apparatus. - -My uncle did not forget a supply of tobacco, coarse grained powder, -and amadou, nor a leathern belt in which he carried a sufficient -quantity of gold, silver, and paper money. Six pairs of boots and -shoes, made waterproof with a composition of indiarubber and naphtha, -were packed amongst the tools. - -"Clothed, shod, and equipped like this," said my uncle, "there is no -telling how far we may go." - -The 14th was wholly spent in arranging all our different articles. In -the evening we dined with Baron Tramps; the mayor of Rejkiavik, and -Dr. Hyaltalin, the first medical man of the place, being of the -party. M. Fridrikssen was not there. I learned afterwards that he and -the Governor disagreed upon some question of administration, and did -not speak to each other. I therefore knew not a single word of all -that was said at this semi-official dinner; but I could not help -noticing that my uncle talked the whole time. - -On the 15th our preparations were all made. Our host gave the -Professor very great pleasure by presenting him with a map of Iceland -far more complete than that of Hendersen. It was the map of M. Olaf -Nikolas Olsen, in the proportion of 1 to 480,000 of the actual size -of the island, and published by the Icelandic Literary Society. It -was a precious document for a mineralogist. - -Our last evening was spent in intimate conversation with M. -Fridrikssen, with whom I felt the liveliest sympathy; then, after the -talk, succeeded, for me, at any rate, a disturbed and restless night. - -At five in the morning I was awoke by the neighing and pawing of four -horses under my window. I dressed hastily and came down into the -street. Hans was finishing our packing, almost as it were without -moving a limb; and yet he did his work cleverly. My uncle made more -noise than execution, and the guide seemed to pay very little -attention to his energetic directions. - -At six o'clock our preparations were over. M. Fridrikssen shook hands -with us. My uncle thanked him heartily for his extreme kindness. I -constructed a few fine Latin sentences to express my cordial -farewell. Then we bestrode our steeds and with his last adieu M. -Fridrikssen treated me to a line of Virgil eminently applicable to -such uncertain wanderers as we were likely to be: - -"Et quacumque viam dedent fortuna sequamur." - -"Therever fortune clears a way, -Thither our ready footsteps stray." - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - -A BARREN LAND - - -We had started under a sky overcast but calm. There was no fear of -heat, none of disastrous rain. It was just the weather for tourists. - -The pleasure of riding on horseback over an unknown country made me -easy to be pleased at our first start. I threw myself wholly into the -pleasure of the trip, and enjoyed the feeling of freedom and -satisfied desire. I was beginning to take a real share in the -enterprise. - -"Besides," I said to myself, "where's the risk? Here we are -travelling all through a most interesting country! We are about to -climb a very remarkable mountain; at the worst we are going to -scramble down an extinct crater. It is evident that Saknussemm did -nothing more than this. As for a passage leading to the centre of the -globe, it is mere rubbish! perfectly impossible! Very well, then; let -us get all the good we can out of this expedition, and don't let us -haggle about the chances." - -This reasoning having settled my mind, we got out of Rejkiavik. - -Hans moved steadily on, keeping ahead of us at an even, smooth, and -rapid pace. The baggage horses followed him without giving any -trouble. Then came my uncle and myself, looking not so very -ill-mounted on our small but hardy animals. - -Iceland is one of the largest islands in Europe. Its surface is -14,000 square miles, and it contains but 16,000 inhabitants. -Geographers have divided it into four quarters, and we were crossing -diagonally the south-west quarter, called the 'Sudvester Fjordungr.' - -On leaving Rejkiavik Hans took us by the seashore. We passed lean -pastures which were trying very hard, but in vain, to look green; -yellow came out best. The rugged peaks of the trachyte rocks -presented faint outlines on the eastern horizon; at times a few -patches of snow, concentrating the vague light, glittered upon the -slopes of the distant mountains; certain peaks, boldly uprising, -passed through the grey clouds, and reappeared above the moving -mists, like breakers emerging in the heavens. - -Often these chains of barren rocks made a dip towards the sea, and -encroached upon the scanty pasturage: but there was always enough -room to pass. Besides, our horses instinctively chose the easiest -places without ever slackening their pace. My uncle was refused even -the satisfaction of stirring up his beast with whip or voice. He had -no excuse for being impatient. I could not help smiling to see so -tall a man on so small a pony, and as his long legs nearly touched -the ground he looked like a six-legged centaur. - -"Good horse! good horse!" he kept saying. "You will see, Axel, that -there is no more sagacious animal than the Icelandic horse. He is -stopped by neither snow, nor storm, nor impassable roads, nor rocks, -glaciers, or anything. He is courageous, sober, and surefooted. He -never makes a false step, never shies. If there is a river or fiord -to cross (and we shall meet with many) you will see him plunge in at -once, just as if he were amphibious, and gain the opposite bank. But -we must not hurry him; we must let him have his way, and we shall get -on at the rate of thirty miles a day." - -"We may; but how about our guide?" - -"Oh, never mind him. People like him get over the ground without a -thought. There is so little action in this man that he will never get -tired; and besides, if he wants it, he shall have my horse. I shall -get cramped if I don't have a little action. The arms are all right, -but the legs want exercise." - -We were advancing at a rapid pace. The country was already almost a -desert. Here and there was a lonely farm, called a boer built either -of wood, or of sods, or of pieces of lava, looking like a poor beggar -by the wayside. These ruinous huts seemed to solicit charity from -passers-by; and on very small provocation we should have given alms -for the relief of the poor inmates. In this country there were no -roads and paths, and the poor vegetation, however slow, would soon -efface the rare travellers' footsteps. - -Yet this part of the province, at a very small distance from the -capital, is reckoned among the inhabited and cultivated portions of -Iceland. What, then, must other tracts be, more desert than this -desert? In the first half mile we had not seen one farmer standing -before his cabin door, nor one shepherd tending a flock less wild -than himself, nothing but a few cows and sheep left to themselves. -What then would be those convulsed regions upon which we were -advancing, regions subject to the dire phenomena of eruptions, the -offspring of volcanic explosions and subterranean convulsions? - -We were to know them before long, but on consulting Olsen's map, I -saw that they would be avoided by winding along the seashore. In -fact, the great plutonic action is confined to the central portion of -the island; there, rocks of the trappean and volcanic class, -including trachyte, basalt, and tuffs and agglomerates associated -with streams of lava, have made this a land of supernatural horrors. -I had no idea of the spectacle which was awaiting us in the peninsula -of Snaefell, where these ruins of a fiery nature have formed a -frightful chaos. - -In two hours from Rejkiavik we arrived at the burgh of Gufunes, -called Aolkirkja, or principal church. There was nothing remarkable -here but a few houses, scarcely enough for a German hamlet. - -Hans stopped here half an hour. He shared with us our frugal -breakfast; answering my uncle's questions about the road and our -resting place that night with merely yes or no, except when he said -"Gardaer." - -I consulted the map to see where Gardaer was. I saw there was a small -town of that name on the banks of the Hvalfiord, four miles from -Rejkiavik. I showed it to my uncle. - -"Four miles only!" he exclaimed; "four miles out of twenty-eight. -What a nice little walk!" - -He was about to make an observation to the guide, who without -answering resumed his place at the head, and went on his way. - -Three hours later, still treading on the colourless grass of the -pasture land, we had to work round the Kolla fiord, a longer way but -an easier one than across that inlet. We soon entered into a -'pingstaoer' or parish called Ejulberg, from whose steeple twelve -o'clock would have struck, if Icelandic churches were rich enough to -possess clocks. But they are like the parishioners who have no -watches and do without. - -There our horses were baited; then taking the narrow path to left -between a chain of hills and the sea, they carried us to our next -stage, the aolkirkja of Brantaer and one mile farther on, to Saurboer -'Annexia,' a chapel of ease built on the south shore of the Hvalfiord. - -It was now four o'clock, and we had gone four Icelandic miles, or -twenty-four English miles. - -In that place the fiord was at least three English miles wide; the -waves rolled with a rushing din upon the sharp-pointed rocks; this -inlet was confined between walls of rock, precipices crowned by sharp -peaks 2,000 feet high, and remarkable for the brown strata which -separated the beds of reddish tuff. However much I might respect the -intelligence of our quadrupeds, I hardly cared to put it to the test -by trusting myself to it on horseback across an arm of the sea. - -If they are as intelligent as they are said to be, I thought, they -won't try it. In any case, I will tax my intelligence to direct -theirs. - -But my uncle would not wait. He spurred on to the edge. His steed -lowered his head to examine the nearest waves and stopped. My uncle, -who had an instinct of his own, too, applied pressure, and was again -refused by the animal significantly shaking his head. Then followed -strong language, and the whip; but the brute answered these arguments -with kicks and endeavours to throw his rider. At last the clever -little pony, with a bend of his knees, started from under the -Professor's legs, and left him standing upon two boulders on the -shore just like the colossus of Rhodes. - -"Confounded brute!" cried the unhorsed horseman, suddenly degraded -into a pedestrian, just as ashamed as a cavalry officer degraded to a -foot soldier. - -"_Faerja,_" said the guide, touching his shoulder. - -"What! a boat?" - -"_Der,_" replied Hans, pointing to one. - -"Yes," I cried; "there is a boat." - -"Why did not you say so then? Well, let us go on." - -"_Tidvatten,_" said the guide. - -"What is he saying?" - -"He says tide," said my uncle, translating the Danish word. - -"No doubt we must wait for the tide." - -"_Foerbida,_" said my uncle. - -"_Ja,_" replied Hans. - -My uncle stamped with his foot, while the horses went on to the boat. - -I perfectly understood the necessity of abiding a particular moment -of the tide to undertake the crossing of the fiord, when, the sea -having reached its greatest height, it should be slack water. Then -the ebb and flow have no sensible effect, and the boat does not risk -being carried either to the bottom or out to sea. - -That favourable moment arrived only with six o'clock; when my uncle, -myself, the guide, two other passengers and the four horses, trusted -ourselves to a somewhat fragile raft. Accustomed as I was to the -swift and sure steamers on the Elbe, I found the oars of the rowers -rather a slow means of propulsion. It took us more than an hour to -cross the fiord; but the passage was effected without any mishap. - -In another half hour we had reached the aolkirkja of Gardaer - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -HOSPITALITY UNDER THE ARCTIC CIRCLE - - -It ought to have been night-time, but under the 65th parallel there -was nothing surprising in the nocturnal polar light. In Iceland -during the months of June and July the sun does not set. - -But the temperature was much lower. I was cold and more hungry than -cold. Welcome was the sight of the boer which was hospitably opened -to receive us. - -It was a peasant's house, but in point of hospitality it was equal to -a king's. On our arrival the master came with outstretched hands, and -without more ceremony he beckoned us to follow him. - -To accompany him down the long, narrow, dark passage, would have been -impossible. Therefore, we followed, as he bid us. The building was -constructed of roughly squared timbers, with rooms on both sides, -four in number, all opening out into the one passage: these were the -kitchen, the weaving shop, the badstofa, or family sleeping-room, and -the visitors' room, which was the best of all. My uncle, whose height -had not been thought of in building the house, of course hit his head -several times against the beams that projected from the ceilings. - -We were introduced into our apartment, a large room with a floor of -earth stamped hard down, and lighted by a window, the panes of which -were formed of sheep's bladder, not admitting too much light. The -sleeping accommodation consisted of dry litter, thrown into two -wooden frames painted red, and ornamented with Icelandic sentences. I -was hardly expecting so much comfort; the only discomfort proceeded -from the strong odour of dried fish, hung meat, and sour milk, of -which my nose made bitter complaints. - -When we had laid aside our travelling wraps the voice of the host was -heard inviting us to the kitchen, the only room where a fire was -lighted even in the severest cold. - -My uncle lost no time in obeying the friendly call, nor was I slack -in following. - -The kitchen chimney was constructed on the ancient pattern; in the -middle of the room was a stone for a hearth, over it in the roof a -hole to let the smoke escape. The kitchen was also a dining-room. - -At our entrance the host, as if he had never seen us, greeted us with -the word "_Saellvertu,_" which means "be happy," and came and kissed -us on the cheek. - -After him his wife pronounced the same words, accompanied with the -same ceremonial; then the two placing their hands upon their hearts, -inclined profoundly before us. - -I hasten to inform the reader that this Icelandic lady was the mother -of nineteen children, all, big and little, swarming in the midst of -the dense wreaths of smoke with which the fire on the hearth filled -the chamber. Every moment I noticed a fair-haired and rather -melancholy face peeping out of the rolling volumes of smoke--they -were a perfect cluster of unwashed angels. - -My uncle and I treated this little tribe with kindness; and in a very -short time we each had three or four of these brats on our shoulders, -as many on our laps, and the rest between our knees. Those who could -speak kept repeating "_Saellvertu,_" in every conceivable tone; those -that could not speak made up for that want by shrill cries. - -This concert was brought to a close by the announcement of dinner. At -that moment our hunter returned, who had been seeing his horses -provided for; that is to say, he had economically let them loose in -the fields, where the poor beasts had to content themselves with the -scanty moss they could pull off the rocks and a few meagre sea weeds, -and the next day they would not fail to come of themselves and resume -the labours of the previous day. - -"_Saellvertu,_" said Hans. - -Then calmly, automatically, and dispassionately he kissed the host, -the hostess, and their nineteen children. - -This ceremony over, we sat at table, twenty-four in number, and -therefore one upon another. The luckiest had only two urchins upon -their knees. - -But silence reigned in all this little world at the arrival of the -soup, and the national taciturnity resumed its empire even over the -children. The host served out to us a soup made of lichen and by no -means unpleasant, then an immense piece of dried fish floating in -butter rancid with twenty years' keeping, and, therefore, according -to Icelandic gastronomy, much preferable to fresh butter. Along with -this, we had 'skye,' a sort of clotted milk, with biscuits, and a -liquid prepared from juniper berries; for beverage we had a thin milk -mixed with water, called in this country 'blanda.' It is not for me -to decide whether this diet is wholesome or not; all I can say is, -that I was desperately hungry, and that at dessert I swallowed to the -very last gulp of a thick broth made from buckwheat. - -As soon as the meal was over the children disappeared, and their -elders gathered round the peat fire, which also burnt such -miscellaneous fuel as briars, cow-dung, and fishbones. After this -little pinch of warmth the different groups retired to their -respective rooms. Our hostess hospitably offered us her assistance in -undressing, according to Icelandic usage; but on our gracefully -declining, she insisted no longer, and I was able at last to curl -myself up in my mossy bed. - -At five next morning we bade our host farewell, my uncle with -difficulty persuading him to accept a proper remuneration; and Hans -signalled the start. - -At a hundred yards from Gardaer the soil began to change its aspect; -it became boggy and less favourable to progress. On our right the -chain of mountains was indefinitely prolonged like an immense system -of natural fortifications, of which we were following the -counter-scarp or lesser steep; often we were met by streams, which we -had to ford with great care, not to wet our packages. - -The desert became wider and more hideous; yet from time to time we -seemed to descry a human figure that fled at our approach, sometimes -a sharp turn would bring us suddenly within a short distance of one -of these spectres, and I was filled with loathing at the sight of a -huge deformed head, the skin shining and hairless, and repulsive -sores visible through the gaps in the poor creature's wretched rags. - -The unhappy being forbore to approach us and offer his misshapen -hand. He fled away, but not before Hans had saluted him with the -customary "_Saellvertu._" - -"_Spetelsk,_" said he. - -"A leper!" my uncle repeated. - -This word produced a repulsive effect. The horrible disease of -leprosy is too common in Iceland; it is not contagious, but -hereditary, and lepers are forbidden to marry. - -These apparitions were not cheerful, and did not throw any charm over -the less and less attractive landscapes. The last tufts of grass had -disappeared from beneath our feet. Not a tree was to be seen, unless -we except a few dwarf birches as low as brushwood. Not an animal but -a few wandering ponies that their owners would not feed. Sometimes we -could see a hawk balancing himself on his wings under the grey cloud, -and then darting away south with rapid flight. I felt melancholy -under this savage aspect of nature, and my thoughts went away to the -cheerful scenes I had left in the far south. - -We had to cross a few narrow fiords, and at last quite a wide gulf; -the tide, then high, allowed us to pass over without delay, and to -reach the hamlet of Alftanes, one mile beyond. - -That evening, after having forded two rivers full of trout and pike, -called Alfa and Heta, we were obliged to spend the night in a -deserted building worthy to be haunted by all the elfins of -Scandinavia. The ice king certainly held court here, and gave us all -night long samples of what he could do. - -No particular event marked the next day. Bogs, dead levels, -melancholy desert tracks, wherever we travelled. By nightfall we had -accomplished half our journey, and we lay at Kroesolbt. - -On the 19th of June, for about a mile, that is an Icelandic mile, we -walked upon hardened lava; this ground is called in the country -'hraun'; the writhen surface presented the appearance of distorted, -twisted cables, sometimes stretched in length, sometimes contorted -together; an immense torrent, once liquid, now solid, ran from the -nearest mountains, now extinct volcanoes, but the ruins around -revealed the violence of the past eruptions. Yet here and there were -a few jets of steam from hot springs. - -We had no time to watch these phenomena; we had to proceed on our -way. Soon at the foot of the mountains the boggy land reappeared, -intersected by little lakes. Our route now lay westward; we had -turned the great bay of Faxa, and the twin peaks of Snaefell rose -white into the cloudy sky at the distance of at least five miles. - -The horses did their duty well, no difficulties stopped them in their -steady career. I was getting tired; but my uncle was as firm and -straight as he was at our first start. I could not help admiring his -persistency, as well as the hunter's, who treated our expedition like -a mere promenade. - -June 20. At six p.m. we reached Buedir, a village on the sea shore; -and the guide there claiming his due, my uncle settled with him. It -was Hans' own family, that is, his uncles and cousins, who gave us -hospitality; we were kindly received, and without taxing too much the -goodness of these folks, I would willingly have tarried here to -recruit after my fatigues. But my uncle, who wanted no recruiting, -would not hear of it, and the next morning we had to bestride our -beasts again. - -The soil told of the neighbourhood of the mountain, whose granite -foundations rose from the earth like the knotted roots of some huge -oak. We were rounding the immense base of the volcano. The Professor -hardly took his eyes off it. He tossed up his arms and seemed to defy -it, and to declare, "There stands the giant that I shall conquer." -After about four hours' walking the horses stopped of their own -accord at the door of the priest's house at Stapi. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -BUT ARCTICS CAN BE INHOSPITABLE, TOO - - -Stapi is a village consisting of about thirty huts, built of lava, at -the south side of the base of the volcano. It extends along the inner -edge of a small fiord, inclosed between basaltic walls of the -strangest construction. - -Basalt is a brownish rock of igneous origin. It assumes regular -forms, the arrangement of which is often very surprising. Here nature -had done her work geometrically, with square and compass and plummet. -Everywhere else her art consists alone in throwing down huge masses -together in disorder. You see cones imperfectly formed, irregular -pyramids, with a fantastic disarrangement of lines; but here, as if -to exhibit an example of regularity, though in advance of the very -earliest architects, she has created a severely simple order of -architecture, never surpassed either by the splendours of Babylon or -the wonders of Greece. - -I had heard of the Giant's Causeway in Ireland, and Fingal's Cave in -Staffa, one of the Hebrides; but I had never yet seen a basaltic -formation. - -At Stapi I beheld this phenomenon in all its beauty. - -The wall that confined the fiord, like all the coast of the -peninsula, was composed of a series of vertical columns thirty feet -high. These straight shafts, of fair proportions, supported an -architrave of horizontal slabs, the overhanging portion of which -formed a semi-arch over the sea. At intervals, under this natural -shelter, there spread out vaulted entrances in beautiful curves, into -which the waves came dashing with foam and spray. A few shafts of -basalt, torn from their hold by the fury of tempests, lay along the -soil like remains of an ancient temple, in ruins for ever fresh, and -over which centuries passed without leaving a trace of age upon them. - -This was our last stage upon the earth. Hans had exhibited great -intelligence, and it gave me some little comfort to think then that -he was not going to leave us. - -On arriving at the door of the rector's house, which was not -different from the others, I saw a man shoeing a horse, hammer in -hand, and with a leathern apron on. - -"_Saellvertu,_" said the hunter. - -"_God dag,_" said the blacksmith in good Danish. - -"_Kyrkoherde,_" said Hans, turning round to my uncle. - -"The rector," repeated the Professor. "It seems, Axel, that this good -man is the rector." - -Our guide in the meanwhile was making the 'kyrkoherde' aware of the -position of things; when the latter, suspending his labours for a -moment, uttered a sound no doubt understood between horses and -farriers, and immediately a tall and ugly hag appeared from the hut. -She must have been six feet at the least. I was in great alarm lest -she should treat me to the Icelandic kiss; but there was no occasion -to fear, nor did she do the honours at all too gracefully. - -The visitors' room seemed to me the worst in the whole cabin. It was -close, dirty, and evil smelling. But we had to be content. The rector -did not to go in for antique hospitality. Very far from it. Before -the day was over I saw that we had to do with a blacksmith, a -fisherman, a hunter, a joiner, but not at all with a minister of the -Gospel. To be sure, it was a week-day; perhaps on a Sunday he made -amends. - -I don't mean to say anything against these poor priests, who after -all are very wretched. They receive from the Danish Government a -ridiculously small pittance, and they get from the parish the fourth -part of the tithe, which does not come to sixty marks a year (about -L4). Hence the necessity to work for their livelihood; but after -fishing, hunting, and shoeing horses for any length of time, one soon -gets into the ways and manners of fishermen, hunters, and farriers, -and other rather rude and uncultivated people; and that evening I -found out that temperance was not among the virtues that -distinguished my host. - -My uncle soon discovered what sort of a man he had to do with; -instead of a good and learned man he found a rude and coarse peasant. -He therefore resolved to commence the grand expedition at once, and -to leave this inhospitable parsonage. He cared nothing about fatigue, -and resolved to spend some days upon the mountain. - -The preparations for our departure were therefore made the very day -after our arrival at Stapi. Hans hired the services of three -Icelanders to do the duty of the horses in the transport of the -burdens; but as soon as we had arrived at the crater these natives -were to turn back and leave us to our own devices. This was to be -clearly understood. - -My uncle now took the opportunity to explain to Hans that it was his -intention to explore the interior of the volcano to its farthest -limits. - -Hans merely nodded. There or elsewhere, down in the bowels of the -earth, or anywhere on the surface, all was alike to him. For my own -part the incidents of the journey had hitherto kept me amused, and -made me forgetful of coming evils; but now my fears again were -beginning to get the better of me. But what could I do? The place to -resist the Professor would have been Hamburg, not the foot of Snaefell. - -One thought, above all others, harassed and alarmed me; it was one -calculated to shake firmer nerves than mine. - -Now, thought I, here we are, about to climb Snaefell. Very good. We -will explore the crater. Very good, too, others have done as much -without dying for it. But that is not all. If there is a way to -penetrate into the very bowels of the island, if that ill-advised -Saknussemm has told a true tale, we shall lose our way amidst the -deep subterranean passages of this volcano. Now, there is no proof -that Snaefell is extinct. Who can assure us that an eruption is not -brewing at this very moment? Does it follow that because the monster -has slept since 1229 he must therefore never awake again? And if he -wakes up presently, where shall we be? - -It was worth while debating this question, and I did debate it. I -could not sleep for dreaming about eruptions. Now, the part of -ejected scoriae and ashes seemed to my mind a very rough one to act. - -So, at last, when I could hold out no longer, I resolved to lay the -case before my uncle, as prudently and as cautiously as possible, -just under the form of an almost impossible hypothesis. - -I went to him. I communicated my fears to him, and drew back a step -to give him room for the explosion which I knew must follow. But I -was mistaken. - -"I was thinking of that," he replied with great simplicity. - -What could those words mean?--Was he actually going to listen to -reason? Was he contemplating the abandonment of his plans? This was -too good to be true. - -After a few moments' silence, during which I dared not question him, -he resumed: - -"I was thinking of that. Ever since we arrived at Stapi I have been -occupied with the important question you have just opened, for we -must not be guilty of imprudence." - -"No, indeed!" I replied with forcible emphasis. - -"For six hundred years Snaefell has been dumb; but he may speak again. -Now, eruptions are always preceded by certain well-known phenomena. I -have therefore examined the natives, I have studied external -appearances, and I can assure you, Axel, that there will be no -eruption." - -At this positive affirmation I stood amazed and speechless. - -"You don't doubt my word?" said my uncle. "Well, follow me." - -I obeyed like an automaton. Coming out from the priest's house, the -Professor took a straight road, which, through an opening in the -basaltic wall, led away from the sea. We were soon in the open -country, if one may give that name to a vast extent of mounds of -volcanic products. This tract seemed crushed under a rain of enormous -ejected rocks of trap, basalt, granite, and all kinds of igneous -rocks. - -Here and there I could see puffs and jets of steam curling up into -the air, called in Icelandic 'reykir,' issuing from thermal springs, -and indicating by their motion the volcanic energy underneath. This -seemed to justify my fears: But I fell from the height of my new-born -hopes when my uncle said: - -"You see all these volumes of steam, Axel; well, they demonstrate -that we have nothing to fear from the fury of a volcanic eruption." - -"Am I to believe that?" I cried. - -"Understand this clearly," added the Professor. "At the approach of -an eruption these jets would redouble their activity, but disappear -altogether during the period of the eruption. For the elastic fluids, -being no longer under pressure, go off by way of the crater instead -of escaping by their usual passages through the fissures in the soil. -Therefore, if these vapours remain in their usual condition, if they -display no augmentation of force, and if you add to this the -observation that the wind and rain are not ceasing and being replaced -by a still and heavy atmosphere, then you may affirm that no eruption -is preparing." - -"But--" - -'No more; that is sufficient. When science has uttered her voice, let -babblers hold their peace.' - -I returned to the parsonage, very crestfallen. My uncle had beaten me -with the weapons of science. Still I had one hope left, and this was, -that when we had reached the bottom of the crater it would be -impossible, for want of a passage, to go deeper, in spite of all the -Saknussemm's in Iceland. - -I spent that whole night in one constant nightmare; in the heart of a -volcano, and from the deepest depths of the earth I saw myself tossed -up amongst the interplanetary spaces under the form of an eruptive -rock. - -The next day, June 23, Hans was awaiting us with his companions -carrying provisions, tools, and instruments; two iron pointed sticks, -two rifles, and two shot belts were for my uncle and myself. Hans, as -a cautious man, had added to our luggage a leathern bottle full of -water, which, with that in our flasks, would ensure us a supply of -water for eight days. - -It was nine in the morning. The priest and his tall Megaera were -awaiting us at the door. We supposed they were standing there to bid -us a kind farewell. But the farewell was put in the unexpected form -of a heavy bill, in which everything was charged, even to the very -air we breathed in the pastoral house, infected as it was. This -worthy couple were fleecing us just as a Swiss innkeeper might have -done, and estimated their imperfect hospitality at the highest price. - -My uncle paid without a remark: a man who is starting for the centre -of the earth need not be particular about a few rix dollars. - -This point being settled, Hans gave the signal, and we soon left -Stapi behind us. - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - -SNAEFELL AT LAST - - -Snaefell is 5,000 feet high. Its double cone forms the limit of a -trachytic belt which stands out distinctly in the mountain system of -the island. From our starting point we could see the two peaks boldly -projected against the dark grey sky; I could see an enormous cap of -snow coming low down upon the giant's brow. - -We walked in single file, headed by the hunter, who ascended by -narrow tracks, where two could not have gone abreast. There was -therefore no room for conversation. - -After we had passed the basaltic wall of the fiord of Stapi we passed -over a vegetable fibrous peat bog, left from the ancient vegetation -of this peninsula. The vast quantity of this unworked fuel would be -sufficient to warm the whole population of Iceland for a century; -this vast turbary measured in certain ravines had in many places a -depth of seventy feet, and presented layers of carbonized remains of -vegetation alternating with thinner layers of tufaceous pumice. - -As a true nephew of the Professor Liedenbrock, and in spite of my -dismal prospects, I could not help observing with interest the -mineralogical curiosities which lay about me as in a vast museum, and -I constructed for myself a complete geological account of Iceland. - -This most curious island has evidently been projected from the bottom -of the sea at a comparatively recent date. Possibly, it may still be -subject to gradual elevation. If this is the case, its origin may -well be attributed to subterranean fires. Therefore, in this case, -the theory of Sir Humphry Davy, Saknussemm's document, and my uncle's -theories would all go off in smoke. This hypothesis led me to examine -with more attention the appearance of the surface, and I soon arrived -at a conclusion as to the nature of the forces which presided at its -birth. - -Iceland, which is entirely devoid of alluvial soil, is wholly -composed of volcanic tufa, that is to say, an agglomeration of porous -rocks and stones. Before the volcanoes broke out it consisted of trap -rocks slowly upraised to the level of the sea by the action of -central forces. The internal fires had not yet forced their way -through. - -But at a later period a wide chasm formed diagonally from south-west -to north-east, through which was gradually forced out the trachyte -which was to form a mountain chain. No violence accompanied this -change; the matter thrown out was in vast quantities, and the liquid -material oozing out from the abysses of the earth slowly spread in -extensive plains or in hillocky masses. To this period belong the -felspar, syenites, and porphyries. - -But with the help of this outflow the thickness of the crust of the -island increased materially, and therefore also its powers of -resistance. It may easily be conceived what vast quantities of -elastic gases, what masses of molten matter accumulated beneath its -solid surface whilst no exit was practicable after the cooling of the -trachytic crust. Therefore a time would come when the elastic and -explosive forces of the imprisoned gases would upheave this ponderous -cover and drive out for themselves openings through tall chimneys. -Hence then the volcano would distend and lift up the crust, and then -burst through a crater suddenly formed at the summit or thinnest part -of the volcano. - -To the eruption succeeded other volcanic phenomena. Through the -outlets now made first escaped the ejected basalt of which the plain -we had just left presented such marvellous specimens. We were moving -over grey rocks of dense and massive formation, which in cooling had -formed into hexagonal prisms. Everywhere around us we saw truncated -cones, formerly so many fiery mouths. - -After the exhaustion of the basalt, the volcano, the power of which -grew by the extinction of the lesser craters, supplied an egress to -lava, ashes, and scoriae, of which I could see lengthened screes -streaming down the sides of the mountain like flowing hair. - -Such was the succession of phenomena which produced Iceland, all -arising from the action of internal fire; and to suppose that the -mass within did not still exist in a state of liquid incandescence -was absurd; and nothing could surpass the absurdity of fancying that -it was possible to reach the earth's centre. - -So I felt a little comforted as we advanced to the assault of Snaefell. - -The way was growing more and more arduous, the ascent steeper and -steeper; the loose fragments of rock trembled beneath us, and the -utmost care was needed to avoid dangerous falls. - -Hans went on as quietly as if he were on level ground; sometimes he -disappeared altogether behind the huge blocks, then a shrill whistle -would direct us on our way to him. Sometimes he would halt, pick up a -few bits of stone, build them up into a recognisable form, and thus -made landmarks to guide us in our way back. A very wise precaution in -itself, but, as things turned out, quite useless. - -Three hours' fatiguing march had only brought us to the base of the -mountain. There Hans bid us come to a halt, and a hasty breakfast was -served out. My uncle swallowed two mouthfuls at a time to get on -faster. But, whether he liked it or not, this was a rest as well as a -breakfast hour and he had to wait till it pleased our guide to move -on, which came to pass in an hour. The three Icelanders, just as -taciturn as their comrade the hunter, never spoke, and ate their -breakfasts in silence. - -We were now beginning to scale the steep sides of Snaefell. Its snowy -summit, by an optical illusion not unfrequent in mountains, seemed -close to us, and yet how many weary hours it took to reach it! The -stones, adhering by no soil or fibrous roots of vegetation, rolled -away from under our feet, and rushed down the precipice below with -the swiftness of an avalanche. - -At some places the flanks of the mountain formed an angle with the -horizon of at least 36 degrees; it was impossible to climb them, and -these stony cliffs had to be tacked round, not without great -difficulty. Then we helped each other with our sticks. - -I must admit that my uncle kept as close to me as he could; he never -lost sight of me, and in many straits his arm furnished me with a -powerful support. He himself seemed to possess an instinct for -equilibrium, for he never stumbled. The Icelanders, though burdened -with our loads, climbed with the agility of mountaineers. - -To judge by the distant appearance of the summit of Snaefell, it would -have seemed too steep to ascend on our side. Fortunately, after an -hour of fatigue and athletic exercises, in the midst of the vast -surface of snow presented by the hollow between the two peaks, a kind -of staircase appeared unexpectedly which greatly facilitated our -ascent. It was formed by one of those torrents of stones flung up by -the eruptions, called 'sting' by the Icelanders. If this torrent had -not been arrested in its fall by the formation of the sides of the -mountain, it would have gone on to the sea and formed more islands. - -Such as it was, it did us good service. The steepness increased, but -these stone steps allowed us to rise with facility, and even with -such rapidity that, having rested for a moment while my companions -continued their ascent, I perceived them already reduced by distance -to microscopic dimensions. - -At seven we had ascended the two thousand steps of this grand -staircase, and we had attained a bulge in the mountain, a kind of bed -on which rested the cone proper of the crater. - -Three thousand two hundred feet below us stretched the sea. We had -passed the limit of perpetual snow, which, on account of the moisture -of the climate, is at a greater elevation in Iceland than the high -latitude would give reason to suppose. The cold was excessively keen. -The wind was blowing violently. I was exhausted. The Professor saw -that my limbs were refusing to perform their office, and in spite of -his impatience he decided on stopping. He therefore spoke to the -hunter, who shook his head, saying: - -"_Ofvanfoer._" - -"It seems we must go higher," said my uncle. - -Then he asked Hans for his reason. - -"_Mistour,_" replied the guide. - -"_Ja Mistour,_" said one of the Icelanders in a tone of alarm. - -"What does that word mean?" I asked uneasily. - -"Look!" said my uncle. - -I looked down upon the plain. An immense column of pulverized pumice, -sand and dust was rising with a whirling circular motion like a -waterspout; the wind was lashing it on to that side of Snaefell where -we were holding on; this dense veil, hung across the sun, threw a -deep shadow over the mountain. If that huge revolving pillar sloped -down, it would involve us in its whirling eddies. This phenomenon, -which is not unfrequent when the wind blows from the glaciers, is -called in Icelandic 'mistour.' - -"_Hastigt! hastigt!_" cried our guide. - -Without knowing Danish I understood at once that we must follow Hans -at the top of our speed. He began to circle round the cone of the -crater, but in a diagonal direction so as to facilitate our progress. -Presently the dust storm fell upon the mountain, which quivered under -the shock; the loose stones, caught with the irresistible blasts of -wind, flew about in a perfect hail as in an eruption. Happily we were -on the opposite side, and sheltered from all harm. But for the -precaution of our guide, our mangled bodies, torn and pounded into -fragments, would have been carried afar like the ruins hurled along -by some unknown meteor. - -Yet Hans did not think it prudent to spend the night upon the sides -of the cone. We continued our zigzag climb. The fifteen hundred -remaining feet took us five hours to clear; the circuitous route, the -diagonal and the counter marches, must have measured at least three -leagues. I could stand it no longer. I was yielding to the effects of -hunger and cold. The rarefied air scarcely gave play to the action of -my lungs. - -At last, at eleven in the sunlight night, the summit of Snaefell was -reached, and before going in for shelter into the crater I had time -to observe the midnight sun, at his lowest point, gilding with his -pale rays the island that slept at my feet. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -BOLDLY DOWN THE CRATER - - -Supper was rapidly devoured, and the little company housed themselves -as best they could. The bed was hard, the shelter not very -substantial, and our position an anxious one, at five thousand feet -above the sea level. Yet I slept particularly well; it was one of the -best nights I had ever had, and I did not even dream. - -Next morning we awoke half frozen by the sharp keen air, but with the -light of a splendid sun. I rose from my granite bed and went out to -enjoy the magnificent spectacle that lay unrolled before me. - -I stood on the very summit of the southernmost of Snaefell's peaks. -The range of the eye extended over the whole island. By an optical -law which obtains at all great heights, the shores seemed raised and -the centre depressed. It seemed as if one of Helbesmer's raised maps -lay at my feet. I could see deep valleys intersecting each other in -every direction, precipices like low walls, lakes reduced to ponds, -rivers abbreviated into streams. On my right were numberless glaciers -and innumerable peaks, some plumed with feathery clouds of smoke. The -undulating surface of these endless mountains, crested with sheets of -snow, reminded one of a stormy sea. If I looked westward, there the -ocean lay spread out in all its magnificence, like a mere -continuation of those flock-like summits. The eye could hardly tell -where the snowy ridges ended and the foaming waves began. - -I was thus steeped in the marvellous ecstasy which all high summits -develop in the mind; and now without giddiness, for I was beginning -to be accustomed to these sublime aspects of nature. My dazzled eyes -were bathed in the bright flood of the solar rays. I was forgetting -where and who I was, to live the life of elves and sylphs, the -fanciful creation of Scandinavian superstitions. I felt intoxicated -with the sublime pleasure of lofty elevations without thinking of the -profound abysses into which I was shortly to be plunged. But I was -brought back to the realities of things by the arrival of Hans and -the Professor, who joined me on the summit. - -My uncle pointed out to me in the far west a light steam or mist, a -semblance of land, which bounded the distant horizon of waters. - -"Greenland!" said he. - -"Greenland?" I cried. - -"Yes; we are only thirty-five leagues from it; and during thaws the -white bears, borne by the ice fields from the north, are carried even -into Iceland. But never mind that. Here we are at the top of Snaefell -and here are two peaks, one north and one south. Hans will tell us -the name of that on which we are now standing." - -The question being put, Hans replied: - -"Scartaris." - -My uncle shot a triumphant glance at me. - -"Now for the crater!" he cried. - -The crater of Snaefell resembled an inverted cone, the opening of which -might be half a league in diameter. Its depth appeared to be about -two thousand feet. Imagine the aspect of such a reservoir, brim full -and running over with liquid fire amid the rolling thunder. The -bottom of the funnel was about 250 feet in circuit, so that the -gentle slope allowed its lower brim to be reached without much -difficulty. Involuntarily I compared the whole crater to an enormous -erected mortar, and the comparison put me in a terrible fright. - -"What madness," I thought, "to go down into a mortar, perhaps a -loaded mortar, to be shot up into the air at a moment's notice!" - -But I did not try to back out of it. Hans with perfect coolness -resumed the lead, and I followed him without a word. - -In order to facilitate the descent, Hans wound his way down the cone -by a spiral path. Our route lay amidst eruptive rocks, some of which, -shaken out of their loosened beds, rushed bounding down the abyss, -and in their fall awoke echoes remarkable for their loud and -well-defined sharpness. - -In certain parts of the cone there were glaciers. Here Hans advanced -only with extreme precaution, sounding his way with his iron-pointed -pole, to discover any crevasses in it. At particularly dubious -passages we were obliged to connect ourselves with each other by a -long cord, in order that any man who missed his footing might be held -up by his companions. This solid formation was prudent, but did not -remove all danger. - -Yet, notwithstanding the difficulties of the descent, down steeps -unknown to the guide, the journey was accomplished without accidents, -except the loss of a coil of rope, which escaped from the hands of an -Icelander, and took the shortest way to the bottom of the abyss. - -At mid-day we arrived. I raised my head and saw straight above me the -upper aperture of the cone, framing a bit of sky of very small -circumference, but almost perfectly round. Just upon the edge -appeared the snowy peak of Saris, standing out sharp and clear -against endless space. - -At the bottom of the crater were three chimneys, through which, in -its eruptions, Snaefell had driven forth fire and lava from its -central furnace. Each of these chimneys was a hundred feet in -diameter. They gaped before us right in our path. I had not the -courage to look down either of them. But Professor Liedenbrock had -hastily surveyed all three; he was panting, running from one to the -other, gesticulating, and uttering incoherent expressions. Hans and -his comrades, seated upon loose lava rocks, looked at him with as much -wonder as they knew how to express, and perhaps taking him for an -escaped lunatic. - -Suddenly my uncle uttered a cry. I thought his foot must have slipped -and that he had fallen down one of the holes. But, no; I saw him, -with arms outstretched and legs straddling wide apart, erect before a -granite rock that stood in the centre of the crater, just like a -pedestal made ready to receive a statue of Pluto. He stood like a man -stupefied, but the stupefaction soon gave way to delirious rapture. - -"Axel, Axel," he cried. "Come, come!" - -I ran. Hans and the Icelanders never stirred. - -"Look!" cried the Professor. - -And, sharing his astonishment, but I think not his joy, I read on the -western face of the block, in Runic characters, half mouldered away -with lapse of ages, this thrice-accursed name: - -[At this point a Runic text appears] - -"Arne Saknussemm!" replied my uncle. "Do you yet doubt?" - -I made no answer; and I returned in silence to my lava seat in a -state of utter speechless consternation. Here was crushing evidence. - -How long I remained plunged in agonizing reflections I cannot tell; -all that I know is, that on raising my head again, I saw only my -uncle and Hans at the bottom of the crater. The Icelanders had been -dismissed, and they were now descending the outer slopes of Snaefell -to return to Stapi. - -Hans slept peaceably at the foot of a rock, in a lava bed, where he -had found a suitable couch for himself; but my uncle was pacing -around the bottom of the crater like a wild beast in a cage. I had -neither the wish nor the strength to rise, and following the guide's -example I went off into an unhappy slumber, fancying I could hear -ominous noises or feel tremblings within the recesses of the mountain. - -Thus the first night in the crater passed away. - -The next morning, a grey, heavy, cloudy sky seemed to droop over the -summit of the cone. I did not know this first from the appearances of -nature, but I found it out by my uncle's impetuous wrath. - -I soon found out the cause, and hope dawned again in my heart. For -this reason. - -Of the three ways open before us, one had been taken by Saknussemm. -The indications of the learned Icelander hinted at in the cryptogram, -pointed to this fact that the shadow of Scartaris came to touch that -particular way during the latter days of the month of June. - -That sharp peak might hence be considered as the gnomon of a vast sun -dial, the shadow projected from which on a certain day would point -out the road to the centre of the earth. - -Now, no sun no shadow, and therefore no guide. Here was June 25. If -the sun was clouded for six days we must postpone our visit till next -year. - -My limited powers of description would fail, were I to attempt a -picture of the Professor's angry impatience. The day wore on, and no -shadow came to lay itself along the bottom of the crater. Hans did -not move from the spot he had selected; yet he must be asking himself -what were we waiting for, if he asked himself anything at all. My -uncle spoke not a word to me. His gaze, ever directed upwards, was -lost in the grey and misty space beyond. - -On the 26th nothing yet. Rain mingled with snow was falling all day -long. Hans built a hut of pieces of lava. I felt a malicious pleasure -in watching the thousand rills and cascades that came tumbling down -the sides of the cone, and the deafening continuous din awaked by -every stone against which they bounded. - -My uncle's rage knew no bounds. It was enough to irritate a meeker -man than he; for it was foundering almost within the port. - -But Heaven never sends unmixed grief, and for Professor Liedenbrock -there was a satisfaction in store proportioned to his desperate -anxieties. - -The next day the sky was again overcast; but on the 29th of June, the -last day but one of the month, with the change of the moon came a -change of weather. The sun poured a flood of light down the crater. -Every hillock, every rock and stone, every projecting surface, had -its share of the beaming torrent, and threw its shadow on the ground. -Amongst them all, Scartaris laid down his sharp-pointed angular -shadow which began to move slowly in the opposite direction to that -of the radiant orb. - -My uncle turned too, and followed it. - -At noon, being at its least extent, it came and softly fell upon the -edge of the middle chimney. - -"There it is! there it is!" shouted the Professor. - -"Now for the centre of the globe!" he added in Danish. - -I looked at Hans, to hear what he would say. - -"_Foruet!_" was his tranquil answer. - -"Forward!" replied my uncle. - -It was thirteen minutes past one. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -VERTICAL DESCENT - - -Now began our real journey. Hitherto our toil had overcome all -difficulties, now difficulties would spring up at every step. - -I had not yet ventured to look down the bottomless pit into which I -was about to take a plunge. The supreme hour had come. I might now -either share in the enterprise or refuse to move forward. But I was -ashamed to recoil in the presence of the hunter. Hans accepted the -enterprise with such calmness, such indifference, such perfect -disregard of any possible danger that I blushed at the idea of being -less brave than he. If I had been alone I might have once more tried -the effect of argument; but in the presence of the guide I held my -peace; my heart flew back to my sweet Virlandaise, and I approached -the central chimney. - -I have already mentioned that it was a hundred feet in diameter, and -three hundred feet round. I bent over a projecting rock and gazed -down. My hair stood on end with terror. The bewildering feeling of -vacuity laid hold upon me. I felt my centre of gravity shifting its -place, and giddiness mounting into my brain like drunkenness. There -is nothing more treacherous than this attraction down deep abysses. I -was just about to drop down, when a hand laid hold of me. It was that -of Hans. I suppose I had not taken as many lessons on gulf -exploration as I ought to have done in the Frelsers Kirk at -Copenhagen. - -But, however short was my examination of this well, I had taken some -account of its conformation. Its almost perpendicular walls were -bristling with innumerable projections which would facilitate the -descent. But if there was no want of steps, still there was no rail. -A rope fastened to the edge of the aperture might have helped us -down. But how were we to unfasten it, when arrived at the other end? - -My uncle employed a very simple expedient to obviate this difficulty. -He uncoiled a cord of the thickness of a finger, and four hundred -feet long; first he dropped half of it down, then he passed it round -a lava block that projected conveniently, and threw the other half -down the chimney. Each of us could then descend by holding with the -hand both halves of the rope, which would not be able to unroll -itself from its hold; when two hundred feet down, it would be easy to -get possession of the whole of the rope by letting one end go and -pulling down by the other. Then the exercise would go on again _ad -infinitum_. - -"Now," said my uncle, after having completed these preparations, "now -let us look to our loads. I will divide them into three lots; each of -us will strap one upon his back. I mean only fragile articles." - -Of course, we were not included under that head. - -"Hans," said he, "will take charge of the tools and a portion of the -provisions; you, Axel, will take another third of the provisions, and -the arms; and I will take the rest of the provisions and the delicate -instruments." - -"But," said I, "the clothes, and that mass of ladders and ropes, what -is to become of them?" - -"They will go down by themselves." - -"How so?" I asked. - -"You will see presently." - -My uncle was always willing to employ magnificent resources. Obeying -orders, Hans tied all the non-fragile articles in one bundle, corded -them firmly, and sent them bodily down the gulf before us. - -I listened to the dull thuds of the descending bale. My uncle, -leaning over the abyss, followed the descent of the luggage with a -satisfied nod, and only rose erect when he had quite lost sight of it. - -"Very well, now it is our turn." - -Now I ask any sensible man if it was possible to hear those words -without a shudder. - -The Professor fastened his package of instruments upon his shoulders; -Hans took the tools; I took the arms: and the descent commenced in -the following order; Hans, my uncle, and myself. It was effected in -profound silence, broken only by the descent of loosened stones down -the dark gulf. - -I dropped as it were, frantically clutching the double cord with one -hand and buttressing myself from the wall with the other by means of -my stick. One idea overpowered me almost, fear lest the rock should -give way from which I was hanging. This cord seemed a fragile thing -for three persons to be suspended from. I made as little use of it as -possible, performing wonderful feats of equilibrium upon the lava -projections which my foot seemed to catch hold of like a hand. - -When one of these slippery steps shook under the heavier form of -Hans, he said in his tranquil voice: - -"_Gif akt!_" - -"Attention!" repeated my uncle. - -In half an hour we were standing upon the surface of a rock jammed in -across the chimney from one side to the other. - -Hans pulled the rope by one of its ends, the other rose in the air; -after passing the higher rock it came down again, bringing with it a -rather dangerous shower of bits of stone and lava. - -Leaning over the edge of our narrow standing ground, I observed that -the bottom of the hole was still invisible. - -The same manoeuvre was repeated with the cord, and half an hour after -we had descended another two hundred feet. - -I don't suppose the maddest geologist under such circumstances would -have studied the nature of the rocks that we were passing. I am sure -I did trouble my head about them. Pliocene, miocene, eocene, -cretaceous, jurassic, triassic, permian, carboniferous, devonian, -silurian, or primitive was all one to me. But the Professor, no -doubt, was pursuing his observations or taking notes, for in one of -our halts he said to me: - -"The farther I go the more confidence I feel. The order of these -volcanic formations affords the strongest confirmation to the -theories of Davy. We are now among the primitive rocks, upon which -the chemical operations took place which are produced by the contact -of elementary bases of metals with water. I repudiate the notion of -central heat altogether. We shall see further proof of that very -soon." - -No variation, always the same conclusion. Of course, I was not -inclined to argue. My silence was taken for consent and the descent -went on. - -Another three hours, and I saw no bottom to the chimney yet. When I -lifted my head I perceived the gradual contraction of its aperture. -Its walls, by a gentle incline, were drawing closer to each other, -and it was beginning to grow darker. - -Still we kept descending. It seemed to me that the falling stones -were meeting with an earlier resistance, and that the concussion gave -a more abrupt and deadened sound. - -As I had taken care to keep an exact account of our manoeuvres with -the rope, which I knew that we had repeated fourteen times, each -descent occupying half an hour, the conclusion was easy that we had -been seven hours, plus fourteen quarters of rest, making ten hours -and a half. We had started at one, it must therefore now be eleven -o'clock; and the depth to which we had descended was fourteen times -200 feet, or 2,800 feet. - -At this moment I heard the voice of Hans. - -"Halt!" he cried. - -I stopped short just as I was going to place my feet upon my uncle's -head. - -"We are there," he cried. - -"Where?" said I, stepping near to him. - -"At the bottom of the perpendicular chimney," he answered. - -"Is there no way farther?" - -"Yes; there is a sort of passage which inclines to the right. We will -see about that to-morrow. Let us have our supper, and go to sleep." - -The darkness was not yet complete. The provision case was opened; we -refreshed ourselves, and went to sleep as well as we could upon a bed -of stones and lava fragments. - -When lying on my back, I opened my eyes and saw a bright sparkling -point of light at the extremity of the gigantic tube 3,000 feet long, -now a vast telescope. - -It was a star which, seen from this depth, had lost all -scintillation, and which by my computation should be 46; _Ursa -minor._ Then I fell fast asleep. - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - -THE WONDERS OF TERRESTRIAL DEPTHS - - -At eight in the morning a ray of daylight came to wake us up. The -thousand shining surfaces of lava on the walls received it on its -passage, and scattered it like a shower of sparks. - -There was light enough to distinguish surrounding objects. - -"Well, Axel, what do you say to it?" cried my uncle, rubbing his -hands. "Did you ever spend a quieter night in our little house at -Koenigsberg? No noise of cart wheels, no cries of basket women, no -boatmen shouting!" - -"No doubt it is very quiet at the bottom of this well, but there is -something alarming in the quietness itself." - -"Now come!" my uncle cried; "if you are frightened already, what will -you be by and by? We have not gone a single inch yet into the bowels -of the earth." - -"What do you mean?" - -"I mean that we have only reached the level of the island, long -vertical tube, which terminates at the mouth of the crater, has its -lower end only at the level of the sea." - -"Are you sure of that?" - -"Quite sure. Consult the barometer." - -In fact, the mercury, which had risen in the instrument as fast as we -descended, had stopped at twenty-nine inches. - -"You see," said the Professor, "we have now only the pressure of our -atmosphere, and I shall be glad when the aneroid takes the place of -the barometer." - -And in truth this instrument would become useless as soon as the -weight of the atmosphere should exceed the pressure ascertained at -the level of the sea. - -"But," I said, "is there not reason to fear that this ever-increasing -pressure will become at last very painful to bear?" - -"No; we shall descend at a slow rate, and our lungs will become -inured to a denser atmosphere. Aeronauts find the want of air as they -rise to high elevations, but we shall perhaps have too much: of the -two, this is what I should prefer. Don't let us lose a moment. Where -is the bundle we sent down before us?" - -I then remembered that we had searched for it in vain the evening -before. My uncle questioned Hans, who, after having examined -attentively with the eye of a huntsman, replied: - -"_Der huppe!_" - -"Up there." - -And so it was. The bundle had been caught by a projection a hundred -feet above us. Immediately the Icelander climbed up like a cat, and -in a few minutes the package was in our possession. - -"Now," said my uncle, "let us breakfast; but we must lay in a good -stock, for we don't know how long we may have to go on." - -The biscuit and extract of meat were washed down with a draught of -water mingled with a little gin. - -Breakfast over, my uncle drew from his pocket a small notebook, -intended for scientific observations. He consulted his instruments, -and recorded: - -"Monday, July 1. - -"Chronometer, 8.17 a.m.; barometer, 297 in.; thermometer, 6 deg. (43 deg. -F.). Direction, E.S.E." - -This last observation applied to the dark gallery, and was indicated -by the compass. - -"Now, Axel," cried the Professor with enthusiasm, "now we are really -going into the interior of the earth. At this precise moment the -journey commences." - -So saying, my uncle took in one hand Ruhmkorff's apparatus, which was -hanging from his neck; and with the other he formed an electric -communication with the coil in the lantern, and a sufficiently bright -light dispersed the darkness of the passage. - -Hans carried the other apparatus, which was also put into action. -This ingenious application of electricity would enable us to go on -for a long time by creating an artificial light even in the midst of -the most inflammable gases. - -"Now, march!" cried my uncle. - -Each shouldered his package. Hans drove before him the load of cords -and clothes; and, myself walking last, we entered the gallery. - -At the moment of becoming engulfed in this dark gallery, I raised my -head, and saw for the last time through the length of that vast tube -the sky of Iceland, which I was never to behold again. - -The lava, in the last eruption of 1229, had forced a passage through -this tunnel. It still lined the walls with a thick and glistening -coat. The electric light was here intensified a hundredfold by -reflection. - -The only difficulty in proceeding lay in not sliding too fast down an -incline of about forty-five degrees; happily certain asperities and a -few blisterings here and there formed steps, and we descended, -letting our baggage slip before us from the end of a long rope. - -But that which formed steps under our feet became stalactites -overhead. The lava, which was porous in many places, had formed a -surface covered with small rounded blisters; crystals of opaque -quartz, set with limpid tears of glass, and hanging like clustered -chandeliers from the vaulted roof, seemed as it were to kindle and -form a sudden illumination as we passed on our way. It seemed as if -the genii of the depths were lighting up their palace to receive -their terrestrial guests. - -"It is magnificent!" I cried spontaneously. "My uncle, what a sight! -Don't you admire those blending hues of lava, passing from reddish -brown to bright yellow by imperceptible shades? And these crystals -are just like globes of light." - -"Ali, you think so, do you, Axel, my boy? Well, you will see greater -splendours than these, I hope. Now let us march: march!" - -He had better have said slide, for we did nothing but drop down the -steep inclines. It was the facifs _descensus Averni_ of Virgil. The -compass, which I consulted frequently, gave our direction as -south-east with inflexible steadiness. This lava stream deviated -neither to the right nor to the left. - -Yet there was no sensible increase of temperature. This justified -Davy's theory, and more than once I consulted the thermometer with -surprise. Two hours after our departure it only marked 10 deg. (50 deg. -Fahr.), an increase of only 4 deg.. This gave reason for believing that -our descent was more horizontal than vertical. As for the exact depth -reached, it was very easy to ascertain that; the Professor measured -accurately the angles of deviation and inclination on the road, but -he kept the results to himself. - -About eight in the evening he signalled to stop. Hans sat down at -once. The lamps were hung upon a projection in the lava; we were in a -sort of cavern where there was plenty of air. Certain puffs of air -reached us. What atmospheric disturbance was the cause of them? I -could not answer that question at the moment. Hunger and fatigue made -me incapable of reasoning. A descent of seven hours consecutively is -not made without considerable expenditure of strength. I was -exhausted. The order to 'halt' therefore gave me pleasure. Hans laid -our provisions upon a block of lava, and we ate with a good appetite. -But one thing troubled me, our supply of water was half consumed. My -uncle reckoned upon a fresh supply from subterranean sources, but -hitherto we had met with none. I could not help drawing his attention -to this circumstance. - -"Are you surprised at this want of springs?" he said. - -"More than that, I am anxious about it; we have only water enough for -five days." - -"Don't be uneasy, Axel, we shall find more than we want." - -"When?" - -"When we have left this bed of lava behind us. How could springs -break through such walls as these?" - -"But perhaps this passage runs to a very great depth. It seems to me -that we have made no great progress vertically." - -"Why do you suppose that?" - -"Because if we had gone deep into the crust of earth, we should have -encountered greater heat." - -"According to your system," said my uncle. "But what does the -thermometer say?" - -"Hardly fifteen degrees (59 deg. Fahr), nine degrees only since our -departure." - -"Well, what is your conclusion?" - -"This is my conclusion. According to exact observations, the increase -of temperature in the interior of the globe advances at the rate of -one degree (1 4/5 deg. Fahr.) for every hundred feet. But certain local -conditions may modify this rate. Thus at Yakoutsk in Siberia the -increase of a degree is ascertained to be reached every 36 feet. This -difference depends upon the heat-conducting power of the rocks. -Moreover, in the neighbourhood of an extinct volcano, through gneiss, -it has been observed that the increase of a degree is only attained -at every 125 feet. Let us therefore assume this last hypothesis as -the most suitable to our situation, and calculate." - -"Well, do calculate, my boy." - -"Nothing is easier," said I, putting down figures in my note book. -"Nine times a hundred and twenty-five feet gives a depth of eleven -hundred and twenty-five feet." - -"Very accurate indeed." - -"Well?" - -"By my observation we are at 10,000 feet below the level of the sea." - -"Is that possible?" - -"Yes, or figures are of no use." - -The Professor's calculations were quite correct. We had already -attained a depth of six thousand feet beyond that hitherto reached by -the foot of man, such as the mines of Kitz Bahl in Tyrol, and those -of Wuttembourg in Bohemia. - -The temperature, which ought to have been 81 deg. (178 deg. Fahr.) was -scarcely 15 deg. (59 deg. Fahr.). Here was cause for reflection. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. - -GEOLOGICAL STUDIES IN SITU - - -Next day, Tuesday, June 30, at 6 a.m., the descent began again. - -We were still following the gallery of lava, a real natural -staircase, and as gently sloping as those inclined planes which in -some old houses are still found instead of flights of steps. And so -we went on until 12.17, the, precise moment when we overtook Hans, -who had stopped. - -"Ah! here we are," exclaimed my uncle, "at the very end of the -chimney." - -I looked around me. We were standing at the intersection of two -roads, both dark and narrow. Which were we to take? This was a -difficulty. - -Still my uncle refused to admit an appearance of hesitation, either -before me or the guide; he pointed out the Eastern tunnel, and we -were soon all three in it. - -Besides there would have been interminable hesitation before this -choice of roads; for since there was no indication whatever to guide -our choice, we were obliged to trust to chance. - -The slope of this gallery was scarcely perceptible, and its sections -very unequal. Sometimes we passed a series of arches succeeding each -other like the majestic arcades of a gothic cathedral. Here the -architects of the middle ages might have found studies for every form -of the sacred art which sprang from the development of the pointed -arch. A mile farther we had to bow our heads under corniced elliptic -arches in the romanesque style; and massive pillars standing out from -the wall bent under the spring of the vault that rested heavily upon -them. In other places this magnificence gave way to narrow channels -between low structures which looked like beaver's huts, and we had to -creep along through extremely narrow passages. - -The heat was perfectly bearable. Involuntarily I began to think of -its heat when the lava thrown out by Snaefell was boiling and working -through this now silent road. I imagined the torrents of fire hurled -back at every angle in the gallery, and the accumulation of intensely -heated vapours in the midst of this confined channel. - -I only hope, thought I, that this so-called extinct volcano won't -take a fancy in his old age to begin his sports again! - -I abstained from communicating these fears to Professor Liedenbrock. He -would never have understood them at all. He had but one idea--forward! -He walked, he slid, he scrambled, he tumbled, with a persistency which -one could not but admire. - -By six in the evening, after a not very fatiguing walk, we had gone -two leagues south, but scarcely a quarter of a mile down. - -My uncle said it was time to go to sleep. We ate without talking, and -went to sleep without reflection. - -Our arrangements for the night were very simple; a railway rug each, -into which we rolled ourselves, was our sole covering. We had neither -cold nor intrusive visits to fear. Travellers who penetrate into the -wilds of central Africa, and into the pathless forests of the New -World, are obliged to watch over each other by night. But we enjoyed -absolute safety and utter seclusion; no savages or wild beasts -infested these silent depths. - -Next morning, we awoke fresh and in good spirits. The road was -resumed. As the day before, we followed the path of the lava. It was -impossible to tell what rocks we were passing: the tunnel, instead of -tending lower, approached more and more nearly to a horizontal -direction, I even fancied a slight rise. But about ten this upward -tendency became so evident, and therefore so fatiguing, that I was -obliged to slacken my pace. - -"Well, Axel?" demanded the Professor impatiently. - -"Well, I cannot stand it any longer," I replied. - -"What! after three hours' walk over such easy ground." - -"It may be easy, but it is tiring all the same." - -"What, when we have nothing to do but keep going down!" - -"Going up, if you please." - -"Going up!" said my uncle, with a shrug. - -"No doubt, for the last half-hour the inclines have gone the other -way, and at this rate we shall soon arrive upon the level soil of -Iceland." - -The Professor nodded slowly and uneasily like a man that declines to -be convinced. I tried to resume the conversation. He answered not a -word, and gave the signal for a start. I saw that his silence was -nothing but ill-humour. - -Still I had courageously shouldered my burden again, and was rapidly -following Hans, whom my uncle preceded. I was anxious not to be left -behind. My greatest care was not to lose sight of my companions. I -shuddered at the thought of being lost in the mazes of this vast -subterranean labyrinth. - -Besides, if the ascending road did become steeper, I was comforted -with the thought that it was bringing us nearer to the surface. There -was hope in this. Every step confirmed me in it, and I was rejoicing -at the thought of meeting my little Graeuben again. - -By mid-day there was a change in the appearance of this wall of the -gallery. I noticed it by a diminution of the amount of light -reflected from the sides; solid rock was appearing in the place of -the lava coating. The mass was composed of inclined and sometimes -vertical strata. We were passing through rocks of the transition or -silurian [1] system. - -"It is evident," I cried, "the marine deposits formed in the second -period, these shales, limestones, and sandstones. We are turning away -from the primary granite. We are just as if we were people of Hamburg -going to Luebeck by way of Hanover!" - -I had better have kept my observations to myself. But my geological -instinct was stronger than my prudence, and uncle Liedenbrock heard -my exclamation. - -"What's that you are saying?" he asked. - -"See," I said, pointing to the varied series of sandstones and -limestones, and the first indication of slate. - -"Well?" - -"We are at the period when the first plants and animals appeared." - -"Do you think so?" - -"Look close, and examine." - -I obliged the Professor to move his lamp over the walls of the -gallery. I expected some signs of astonishment; but he spoke not a -word, and went on. - -Had he understood me or not? Did he refuse to admit, out of self-love -as an uncle and a philosopher, that he had mistaken his way when he -chose the eastern tunnel? or was he determined to examine this -passage to its farthest extremity? It was evident that we had left -the lava path, and that this road could not possibly lead to the -extinct furnace of Snaefell. - -Yet I asked myself if I was not depending too much on this change in -the rock. Might I not myself be mistaken? Were we really crossing the -layers of rock which overlie the granite foundation? - -[1]The name given by Sir Roderick Murchison to a vast series of -fossiliferous strata, which lies between the non-fossiliferous slaty -schists below and the old red sandstone above. The system is well -developed in the region of Shropshire, etc., once inhabited by the -Silures under Caractacus, or Caradoc. (Tr.) - -If I am right, I thought, I must soon find some fossil remains of -primitive life; and then we must yield to evidence. I will look. - -I had not gone a hundred paces before incontestable proofs presented -themselves. It could not be otherwise, for in the Silurian age the -seas contained at least fifteen hundred vegetable and animal species. -My feet, which had become accustomed to the indurated lava floor, -suddenly rested upon a dust composed of the _debris_ of plants and -shells. In the walls were distinct impressions of fucoids and -lycopodites. - -Professor Liedenbrock could not be mistaken, I thought, and yet he -pushed on, with, I suppose, his eyes resolutely shut. - -This was only invincible obstinacy. I could hold out no longer. I -picked up a perfectly formed shell, which had belonged to an animal -not unlike the woodlouse: then, joining my uncle, I said: - -"Look at this!" - -"Very well," said he quietly, "it is the shell of a crustacean, of an -extinct species called a trilobite. Nothing more." - -"But don't you conclude--?" - -"Just what you conclude yourself. Yes; I do, perfectly. We have left -the granite and the lava. It is possible that I may be mistaken. But -I cannot be sure of that until I have reached the very end of this -gallery." - -"You are right in doing this, my uncle, and I should quite approve of -your determination, if there were not a danger threatening us nearer -and nearer." - -"What danger?" - -"The want of water." - -"Well, Axel, we will put ourselves upon rations." - - - - -CHAPTER XX. - -THE FIRST SIGNS OF DISTRESS - - -In fact, we had to ration ourselves. Our provision of water could not -last more than three days. I found that out for certain when -supper-time came. And, to our sorrow, we had little reason to expect -to find a spring in these transition beds. - -The whole of the next day the gallery opened before us its endless -arcades. We moved on almost without a word. Hans' silence seemed to -be infecting us. - -The road was now not ascending, at least not perceptibly. Sometimes, -even, it seemed to have a slight fall. But this tendency, which was -very trifling, could not do anything to reassure the Professor; for -there was no change in the beds, and the transitional characteristics -became more and more decided. - -The electric light was reflected in sparkling splendour from the -schist, limestone, and old red sandstone of the walls. It might have -been thought that we were passing through a section of Wales, of -which an ancient people gave its name to this system. Specimens of -magnificent marbles clothed the walls, some of a greyish agate -fantastically veined with white, others of rich crimson or yellow -dashed with splotches of red; then came dark cherry-coloured marbles -relieved by the lighter tints of limestone. - -The greater part of these bore impressions of primitive organisms. -Creation had evidently advanced since the day before. Instead of -rudimentary trilobites, I noticed remains of a more perfect order of -beings, amongst others ganoid fishes and some of those sauroids in -which palaeontologists have discovered the earliest reptile forms. -The Devonian seas were peopled by animals of these species, and -deposited them by thousands in the rocks of the newer formation. - -It was evident that we were ascending that scale of animal life in -which man fills the highest place. But Professor Liedenbrock seemed -not to notice it. - -He was awaiting one of two events, either the appearance of a -vertical well opening before his feet, down which our descent might -be resumed, or that of some obstacle which should effectually turn us -back on our own footsteps. But evening came and neither wish was -gratified. - -On Friday, after a night during which I felt pangs of thirst, our -little troop again plunged into the winding passages of the gallery. - -After ten hours' walking I observed a singular deadening of the -reflection of our lamps from the side walls. The marble, the schist, -the limestone, and the sandstone were giving way to a dark and -lustreless lining. At one moment, the tunnel becoming very narrow, I -leaned against the wall. - -When I removed my hand it was black. I looked nearer, and found we -were in a coal formation. - -"A coal mine!" I cried. - -"A mine without miners," my uncle replied. - -"Who knows?" I asked. - -"I know," the Professor pronounced decidedly, "I am certain that this -gallery driven through beds of coal was never pierced by the hand of -man. But whether it be the hand of nature or not does not matter. -Supper time is come; let us sup." - -Hans prepared some food. I scarcely ate, and I swallowed down the few -drops of water rationed out to me. One flask half full was all we had -left to slake the thirst of three men. - -After their meal my two companions laid themselves down upon their -rugs, and found in sleep a solace for their fatigue. But I could not -sleep, and I counted every hour until morning. - -On Saturday, at six, we started afresh. In twenty minutes we reached -a vast open space; I then knew that the hand of man had not hollowed -out this mine; the vaults would have been shored up, and, as it was, -they seemed to be held up by a miracle of equilibrium. - -This cavern was about a hundred feet wide and a hundred and fifty in -height. A large mass had been rent asunder by a subterranean -disturbance. Yielding to some vast power from below it had broken -asunder, leaving this great hollow into which human beings were now -penetrating for the first time. - -The whole history of the carboniferous period was written upon these -gloomy walls, and a geologist might with ease trace all its diverse -phases. The beds of coal were separated by strata of sandstone or -compact clays, and appeared crushed under the weight of overlying -strata. - -At the age of the world which preceded the secondary period, the -earth was clothed with immense vegetable forms, the product of the -double influence of tropical heat and constant moisture; a vapoury -atmosphere surrounded the earth, still veiling the direct rays of the -sun. - -Thence arises the conclusion that the high temperature then existing -was due to some other source than the heat of the sun. Perhaps even -the orb of day may not have been ready yet to play the splendid part -he now acts. There were no 'climates' as yet, and a torrid heat, -equal from pole to equator, was spread over the whole surface of the -globe. Whence this heat? Was it from the interior of the earth? - -Notwithstanding the theories of Professor Liedenbrock, a violent heat -did at that time brood within the body of the spheroid. Its action -was felt to the very last coats of the terrestrial crust; the plants, -unacquainted with the beneficent influences of the sun, yielded -neither flowers nor scent. But their roots drew vigorous life from -the burning soil of the early days of this planet. - -There were but few trees. Herbaceous plants alone existed. There were -tall grasses, ferns, lycopods, besides sigillaria, asterophyllites, -now scarce plants, but then the species might be counted by thousands. - -The coal measures owe their origin to this period of profuse -vegetation. The yet elastic and yielding crust of the earth obeyed -the fluid forces beneath. Thence innumerable fissures and -depressions. The plants, sunk underneath the waters, formed by -degrees into vast accumulated masses. - -Then came the chemical action of nature; in the depths of the seas -the vegetable accumulations first became peat; then, acted upon by -generated gases and the heat of fermentation, they underwent a -process of complete mineralization. - -Thus were formed those immense coalfields, which nevertheless, are -not inexhaustible, and which three centuries at the present -accelerated rate of consumption will exhaust unless the industrial -world will devise a remedy. - -These reflections came into my mind whilst I was contemplating the -mineral wealth stored up in this portion of the globe. These no -doubt, I thought, will never be discovered; the working of such deep -mines would involve too large an outlay, and where would be the use -as long as coal is yet spread far and wide near the surface? Such as -my eyes behold these virgin stores, such they will be when this world -comes to an end. - -But still we marched on, and I alone was forgetting the length of the -way by losing myself in the midst of geological contemplations. The -temperature remained what it had been during our passage through the -lava and schists. Only my sense of smell was forcibly affected by an -odour of protocarburet of hydrogen. I immediately recognised in this -gallery the presence of a considerable quantity of the dangerous gas -called by miners firedamp, the explosion of which has often -occasioned such dreadful catastrophes. - -Happily, our light was from Ruhmkorff's ingenious apparatus. If -unfortunately we had explored this gallery with torches, a terrible -explosion would have put an end to travelling and travellers at one -stroke. - -This excursion through the coal mine lasted till night. My uncle -scarcely could restrain his impatience at the horizontal road. The -darkness, always deep twenty yards before us, prevented us from -estimating the length of the gallery; and I was beginning to think it -must be endless, when suddenly at six o'clock a wall very -unexpectedly stood before us. Right or left, top or bottom, there was -no road farther; we were at the end of a blind alley. "Very well, -it's all right!" cried my uncle, "now, at any rate, we shall know -what we are about. We are not in Saknussemm's road, and all we have -to do is to go back. Let us take a night's rest, and in three days we -shall get to the fork in the road." "Yes," said I, "if we have any -strength left." "Why not?" "Because to-morrow we shall have no -water." "Nor courage either?" asked my uncle severely. I dared make -no answer. - - - - -CHAPTER XXI. - -COMPASSION FUSES THE PROFESSOR'S HEART - - -Next day we started early. We had to hasten forward. It was a three -days' march to the cross roads. - -I will not speak of the sufferings we endured in our return. My uncle -bore them with the angry impatience of a man obliged to own his -weakness; Hans with the resignation of his passive nature; I, I -confess, with complaints and expressions of despair. I had no spirit -to oppose this ill fortune. - -As I had foretold, the water failed entirely by the end of the first -day's retrograde march. Our fluid aliment was now nothing but gin; -but this infernal fluid burned my throat, and I could not even endure -the sight of it. I found the temperature and the air stifling. -Fatigue paralysed my limbs. More than once I dropped down motionless. -Then there was a halt; and my uncle and the Icelander did their best -to restore me. But I saw that the former was struggling painfully -against excessive fatigue and the tortures of thirst. - -At last, on Tuesday, July 8, we arrived on our hands and knees, and -half dead, at the junction of the two roads. There I dropped like a -lifeless lump, extended on the lava soil. It was ten in the morning. - -Hans and my uncle, clinging to the wall, tried to nibble a few bits -of biscuit. Long moans escaped from my swollen lips. - -After some time my uncle approached me and raised me in his arms. - -"Poor boy!" said he, in genuine tones of compassion. - -I was touched with these words, not being accustomed to see the -excitable Professor in a softened mood. I grasped his trembling hands -in mine. He let me hold them and looked at me. His eyes were -moistened. - -Then I saw him take the flask that was hanging at his side. To my -amazement he placed it on my lips. - -"Drink!" said he. - -Had I heard him? Was my uncle beside himself? I stared at, him -stupidly, and felt as if I could not understand him. - -"Drink!" he said again. - -And raising his flask he emptied it every drop between my lips. - -Oh! infinite pleasure! a slender sip of water came to moisten my -burning mouth. It was but one sip but it was enough to recall my -ebbing life. - -I thanked my uncle with clasped hands. - -"Yes," he said, "a draught of water; but it is the very last--you -hear!--the last. I had kept it as a precious treasure at the bottom -of my flask. Twenty times, nay, a hundred times, have I fought -against a frightful impulse to drink it off. But no, Axel, I kept it -for you." - -"My dear uncle," I said, whilst hot tears trickled down my face. - -"Yes, my poor boy, I knew that as soon as you arrived at these cross -roads you would drop half dead, and I kept my last drop of water to -reanimate you." - -"Thank you, thank you," I said. Although my thirst was only partially -quenched, yet some strength had returned. The muscles of my throat, -until then contracted, now relaxed again; and the inflammation of my -lips abated somewhat; and I was now able to speak. . - -"Let us see," I said, "we have now but one thing to do. We have no -water; we must go back." - -While I spoke my uncle avoided looking at me; he hung his head down; -his eyes avoided mine. - -"We must return," I exclaimed vehemently; "we must go back on our way -to Snaefell. May God give us strength to climb up the crater again!" - -"Return!" said my uncle, as if he was rather answering himself than -me. - -"Yes, return, without the loss of a minute." - -A long silence followed. - -"So then, Axel," replied the Professor ironically, "you have found no -courage or energy in these few drops of water?" - -"Courage?" - -"I see you just as feeble-minded as you were before, and still -expressing only despair!" - -What sort of a man was this I had to do with, and what schemes was he -now revolving in his fearless mind? - -"What! you won't go back?" - -"Should I renounce this expedition just when we have the fairest -chance of success! Never!" - -"Then must we resign ourselves to destruction?" - -"No, Axel, no; go back. Hans will go with you. Leave me to myself!" - -"Leave you here!" - -"Leave me, I tell you. I have undertaken this expedition. I will -carry it out to the end, and I will not return. Go, Axel, go!" - -My uncle was in high state of excitement. His voice, which had for a -moment been tender and gentle, had now become hard and threatening. -He was struggling with gloomy resolutions against impossibilities. I -would not leave him in this bottomless abyss, and on the other hand -the instinct of self-preservation prompted me to fly. - -The guide watched this scene with his usual phlegmatic unconcern. Yet -he understood perfectly well what was going on between his two -companions. The gestures themselves were sufficient to show that we -were each bent on taking a different road; but Hans seemed to take no -part in a question upon which depended his life. He was ready to -start at a given signal, or to stay, if his master so willed it. - -How I wished at this moment I could have made him understand me. My -words, my complaints, my sorrow would have had some influence over -that frigid nature. Those dangers which our guide could not -understand I could have demonstrated and proved to him. Together we -might have over-ruled the obstinate Professor; if it were needed, we -might perhaps have compelled him to regain the heights of Snaefell. - -I drew near to Hans. I placed my hand upon his. He made no movement. -My parted lips sufficiently revealed my sufferings. The Icelander -slowly moved his head, and calmly pointing to my uncle said: - -"Master." - -"Master!" I shouted; "you madman! no, he is not the master of our -life; we must fly, we must drag him. Do you hear me? Do you -understand?" - -I had seized Hans by the arm. I wished to oblige him to rise. I -strove with him. My uncle interposed. - -"Be calm, Axel! you will get nothing from that immovable servant. -Therefore, listen to my proposal." - -I crossed my arms, and confronted my uncle boldly. - -"The want of water," he said, "is the only obstacle in our way. In -this eastern gallery made up of lavas, schists, and coal, we have not -met with a single particle of moisture. Perhaps we shall be more -fortunate if we follow the western tunnel." - -I shook my head incredulously. - -"Hear me to the end," the Professor went on with a firm voice. -"Whilst you were lying there motionless, I went to examine the -conformation of that gallery. It penetrates directly downward, and in -a few hours it will bring us to the granite rocks. There we must meet -with abundant springs. The nature of the rock assures me of this, and -instinct agrees with logic to support my conviction. Now, this is my -proposal. When Columbus asked of his ships' crews for three days more -to discover a new world, those crews, disheartened and sick as they -were, recognised the justice of the claim, and he discovered America. -I am the Columbus of this nether world, and I only ask for one more -day. If in a single day I have not met with the water that we want, I -swear to you we will return to the surface of the earth." - -In spite of my irritation I was moved with these words, as well as -with the violence my uncle was doing to his own wishes in making so -hazardous a proposal. - -"Well," I said, "do as you will, and God reward your superhuman -energy. You have now but a few hours to tempt fortune. Let us start!" - - - - -CHAPTER XXII. - -TOTAL FAILURE OF WATER - - -This time the descent commenced by the new gallery. Hans walked first -as was his custom. - -We had not gone a hundred yards when the Professor, moving his -lantern along the walls, cried: - -"Here are primitive rocks. Now we are in the right way. Forward!" - -When in its early stages the earth was slowly cooling, its -contraction gave rise in its crust to disruptions, distortions, -fissures, and chasms. The passage through which we were moving was -such a fissure, through which at one time granite poured out in a -molten state. Its thousands of windings formed an inextricable -labyrinth through the primeval mass. - -As fast as we descended, the succession of beds forming the primitive -foundation came out with increasing distinctness. Geologists consider -this primitive matter to be the base of the mineral crust of the -earth, and have ascertained it to be composed of three different -formations, schist, gneiss, and mica schist, resting upon that -unchangeable foundation, the granite. - -Never had mineralogists found themselves in so marvellous a situation -to study nature in situ. What the boring machine, an insensible, -inert instrument, was unable to bring to the surface of the inner -structure of the globe, we were able to peruse with our own eyes and -handle with our own hands. - -Through the beds of schist, coloured with delicate shades of green, -ran in winding course threads of copper and manganese, with traces of -platinum and gold. I thought, what riches are here buried at an -unapproachable depth in the earth, hidden for ever from the covetous -eyes of the human race! These treasures have been buried at such a -profound depth by the convulsions of primeval times that they run no -chance of ever being molested by the pickaxe or the spade. - -To the schists succeeded gneiss, partially stratified, remarkable for -the parallelism and regularity of its lamina, then mica schists, laid -in large plates or flakes, revealing their lamellated structure by -the sparkle of the white shining mica. - -The light from our apparatus, reflected from the small facets of -quartz, shot sparkling rays at every angle, and I seemed to be moving -through a diamond, within which the quickly darting rays broke across -each other in a thousand flashing coruscations. - -About six o'clock this brilliant fete of illuminations underwent a -sensible abatement of splendour, then almost ceased. The walls -assumed a crystallised though sombre appearance; mica was more -closely mingled with the feldspar and quartz to form the proper rocky -foundations of the earth, which bears without distortion or crushing -the weight of the four terrestrial systems. We were immured within -prison walls of granite. - -It was eight in the evening. No signs of water had yet appeared. I -was suffering horribly. My uncle strode on. He refused to stop. He -was listening anxiously for the murmur of distant springs. But, no, -there was dead silence. - -And now my limbs were failing beneath me. I resisted pain and -torture, that I might not stop my uncle, which would have driven him -to despair, for the day was drawing near to its end, and it was his -last. - -At last I failed utterly; I uttered a cry and fell. - -"Come to me, I am dying." - -My uncle retraced his steps. He gazed upon me with his arms crossed; -then these muttered words passed his lips: - -"It's all over!" - -The last thing I saw was a fearful gesture of rage, and my eyes -closed. - -When I reopened them I saw my two companions motionless and rolled up -in their coverings. Were they asleep? As for me, I could not get one -moment's sleep. I was suffering too keenly, and what embittered my -thoughts was that there was no remedy. My uncle's last words echoed -painfully in my ears: "it's all over!" For in such a fearful state of -debility it was madness to think of ever reaching the upper world -again. - -We had above us a league and a half of terrestrial crust. The weight -of it seemed to be crushing down upon my shoulders. I felt weighed -down, and I exhausted myself with imaginary violent exertions to turn -round upon my granite couch. - -A few hours passed away. A deep silence reigned around us, the -silence of the grave. No sound could reach us through walls, the -thinnest of which were five miles thick. - -Yet in the midst of my stupefaction I seemed to be aware of a noise. -It was dark down the tunnel, but I seemed to see the Icelander -vanishing from our sight with the lamp in his hand. - -Why was he leaving us? Was Hans going to forsake us? My uncle was -fast asleep. I wanted to shout, but my voice died upon my parched and -swollen lips. The darkness became deeper, and the last sound died -away in the far distance. - -"Hans has abandoned us," I cried. "Hans! Hans!" - -But these words were only spoken within me. They went no farther. Yet -after the first moment of terror I felt ashamed of suspecting a man -of such extraordinary faithfulness. Instead of ascending he was -descending the gallery. An evil design would have taken him up not -down. This reflection restored me to calmness, and I turned to other -thoughts. None but some weighty motive could have induced so quiet a -man to forfeit his sleep. Was he on a journey of discovery? Had he -during the silence of the night caught a sound, a murmuring of -something in the distance, which had failed to affect my hearing? - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII. - -WATER DISCOVERED - - -For a whole hour I was trying to work out in my delirious brain the -reasons which might have influenced this seemingly tranquil huntsman. -The absurdest notions ran in utter confusion through my mind. I -thought madness was coming on! - -But at last a noise of footsteps was heard in the dark abyss. Hans -was approaching. A flickering light was beginning to glimmer on the -wall of our darksome prison; then it came out full at the mouth of -the gallery. Hans appeared. - -He drew close to my uncle, laid his hand upon his shoulder, and -gently woke him. My uncle rose up. - -"What is the matter?" he asked. - -"_Watten!_" replied the huntsman. - -No doubt under the inspiration of intense pain everybody becomes -endowed with the gift of divers tongues. I did not know a word of -Danish, yet instinctively I understood the word he had uttered. - -"Water! water!" I cried, clapping my hands and gesticulating like a -madman. - -"Water!" repeated my uncle. "Hvar?" he asked, in Icelandic. - -"_Nedat,_" replied Hans. - -"Where? Down below!" I understood it all. I seized the hunter's -hands, and pressed them while he looked on me without moving a muscle -of his countenance. - -The preparations for our departure were not long in making, and we -were soon on our way down a passage inclining two feet in seven. In -an hour we had gone a mile and a quarter, and descended two thousand -feet. - -Then I began to hear distinctly quite a new sound of something -running within the thickness of the granite wall, a kind of dull, -dead rumbling, like distant thunder. During the first part of our -walk, not meeting with the promised spring, I felt my agony -returning; but then my uncle acquainted me with the cause of the -strange noise. - -"Hans was not mistaken," he said. "What you hear is the rushing of a -torrent." - -"A torrent?" I exclaimed. - -"There can be no doubt; a subterranean river is flowing around us." - -We hurried forward in the greatest excitement. I was no longer -sensible of my fatigue. This murmuring of waters close at hand was -already refreshing me. It was audibly increasing. The torrent, after -having for some time flowed over our heads, was now running within -the left wall, roaring and rushing. Frequently I touched the wall, -hoping to feel some indications of moisture: But there was no hope -here. - -Yet another half hour, another half league was passed. - -Then it became clear that the hunter had gone no farther. Guided by -an instinct peculiar to mountaineers he had as it were felt this -torrent through the rock; but he had certainly seen none of the -precious liquid; he had drunk nothing himself. - -Soon it became evident that if we continued our walk we should widen -the distance between ourselves and the stream, the noise of which was -becoming fainter. - -We returned. Hans stopped where the torrent seemed closest. I sat -near the wall, while the waters were flowing past me at a distance of -two feet with extreme violence. But there was a thick granite wall -between us and the object of our desires. - -Without reflection, without asking if there were any means of -procuring the water, I gave way to a movement of despair. - -Hans glanced at me with, I thought, a smile of compassion. - -He rose and took the lamp. I followed him. He moved towards the wall. -I looked on. He applied his ear against the dry stone, and moved it -slowly to and fro, listening intently. I perceived at once that he -was examining to find the exact place where the torrent could be -heard the loudest. He met with that point on the left side of the -tunnel, at three feet from the ground. - -I was stirred up with excitement. I hardly dared guess what the -hunter was about to do. But I could not but understand, and applaud -and cheer him on, when I saw him lay hold of the pickaxe to make an -attack upon the rock. - -"We are saved!" I cried. - -"Yes," cried my uncle, almost frantic with excitement. "Hans is -right. Capital fellow! Who but he would have thought of it?" - -Yes; who but he? Such an expedient, however simple, would never have -entered into our minds. True, it seemed most hazardous to strike a -blow of the hammer in this part of the earth's structure. Suppose -some displacement should occur and crush us all! Suppose the torrent, -bursting through, should drown us in a sudden flood! There was -nothing vain in these fancies. But still no fears of falling rocks or -rushing floods could stay us now; and our thirst was so intense that, -to satisfy it, we would have dared the waves of the north Atlantic. - -Hans set about the task which my uncle and I together could not have -accomplished. If our impatience had armed our hands with power, we -should have shattered the rock into a thousand fragments. Not so -Hans. Full of self possession, he calmly wore his way through the -rock with a steady succession of light and skilful strokes, working -through an aperture six inches wide at the outside. I could hear a -louder noise of flowing waters, and I fancied I could feel the -delicious fluid refreshing my parched lips. - -The pick had soon penetrated two feet into the granite partition, and -our man had worked for above an hour. I was in an agony of -impatience. My uncle wanted to employ stronger measures, and I had -some difficulty in dissuading him; still he had just taken a pickaxe -in his hand, when a sudden hissing was heard, and a jet of water -spurted out with violence against the opposite wall. - -Hans, almost thrown off his feet by the violence of the shock, -uttered a cry of grief and disappointment, of which I soon under-. -stood the cause, when plunging my hands into the spouting torrent, I -withdrew them in haste, for the water was scalding hot. - -"The water is at the boiling point," I cried. - -"Well, never mind, let it cool," my uncle replied. - -The tunnel was filling with steam, whilst a stream was forming, which -by degrees wandered away into subterranean windings, and soon we had -the satisfaction of swallowing our first draught. - -Could anything be more delicious than the sensation that our burning -intolerable thirst was passing away, and leaving us to enjoy comfort -and pleasure? But where was this water from? No matter. It was water; -and though still warm, it brought life back to the dying. I kept -drinking without stopping, and almost without tasting. - -At last after a most delightful time of reviving energy, I cried, -"Why, this is a chalybeate spring!" - -"Nothing could be better for the digestion," said my uncle. "It is -highly impregnated with iron. It will be as good for us as going to -the Spa, or to Toeplitz." - -"Well, it is delicious!" - -"Of course it is, water should be, found six miles underground. It -has an inky flavour, which is not at all unpleasant. What a capital -source of strength Hans has found for us here. We will call it after -his name." - -"Agreed," I cried. - -And Hansbach it was from that moment. - -Hans was none the prouder. After a moderate draught, he went quietly -into a corner to rest. - -"Now," I said, "we must not lose this water." - -"What is the use of troubling ourselves?" my uncle, replied. "I fancy -it will never fail." - -"Never mind, we cannot be sure; let us fill the water bottle and our -flasks, and then stop up the opening." - -My advice was followed so far as getting in a supply; but the -stopping up of the hole was not so easy to accomplish. It was in vain -that we took up fragments of granite, and stuffed them in with tow, -we only scalded our hands without succeeding. The pressure was too -great, and our efforts were fruitless. - -"It is quite plain," said I, "that the higher body of this water is -at a considerable elevation. The force of the jet shows that." - -"No doubt," answered my uncle. "If this column of water is 32,000 -feet high--that is, from the surface of the earth, it is equal to -the weight of a thousand atmospheres. But I have got an idea." - -"Well?" - -"Why should we trouble ourselves to stop the stream from coming out -at all?" - -"Because--" Well, I could not assign a reason. - -"When our flasks are empty, where shall we fill them again? Can we -tell that?" - -No; there was no certainty. - -"Well, let us allow the water to run on. It will flow down, and will -both guide and refresh us." - -"That is well planned," I cried. "With this stream for our guide, -there is no reason why we should not succeed in our undertaking." - -"Ah, my boy! you agree with me now," cried the Professor, laughing. - -"I agree with you most heartily." - -"Well, let us rest awhile; and then we will start again." - -I was forgetting that it was night. The chronometer soon informed me -of that fact; and in a very short time, refreshed and thankful, we -all three fell into a sound sleep. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV. - -WELL SAID, OLD MOLE! CANST THOU WORK I' THE GROUND SO FAST? - - -By the next day we had forgotten all our sufferings. At first, I was -wondering that I was no longer thirsty, and I was for asking for the -reason. The answer came in the murmuring of the stream at my feet. - -We breakfasted, and drank of this excellent chalybeate water. I felt -wonderfully stronger, and quite decided upon pushing on. Why should -not so firmly convinced a man as my uncle, furnished with so -industrious a guide as Hans, and accompanied by so determined a -nephew as myself, go on to final success? Such were the magnificent -plans which struggled for mastery within me. If it had been proposed -to me to return to the summit of Snaefell, I should have indignantly -declined. - -Most fortunately, all we had to do was to descend. - -"Let us start!" I cried, awakening by my shouts the echoes of the -vaulted hollows of the earth. - -On Thursday, at 8 a.m., we started afresh. The granite tunnel winding -from side to side, earned us past unexpected turns, and seemed almost -to form a labyrinth; but, on the whole, its direction seemed to be -south-easterly. My uncle never ceased to consult his compass, to keep -account of the ground gone over. - -The gallery dipped down a very little way from the horizontal, -scarcely more than two inches in a fathom, and the stream ran gently -murmuring at our feet. I compared it to a friendly genius guiding us -underground, and caressed with my hand the soft naiad, whose -comforting voice accompanied our steps. With my reviving spirits -these mythological notions seemed to come unbidden. - -As for my uncle, he was beginning to storm against the horizontal -road. He loved nothing better than a vertical path; but this way -seemed indefinitely prolonged, and instead of sliding along the -hypothenuse as we were now doing, he would willingly have dropped -down the terrestrial radius. But there was no help for it, and as -long as we were approaching the centre at all we felt that we must -not complain. - -From time to time, a steeper path appeared; our naiad then began to -tumble before us with a hoarser murmur, and we went down with her to -a greater depth. - -On the whole, that day and the next we made considerable way -horizontally, very little vertically. - -On Friday evening, the 10th of July, according to our calculations, -we were thirty leagues south-east of Rejkiavik, and at a depth of two -leagues and a half. - -At our feet there now opened a frightful abyss. My uncle, however, -was not to be daunted, and he clapped his hands at the steepness of -the descent. - -"This will take us a long way," he cried, "and without much -difficulty; for the projections in the rock form quite a staircase." - -The ropes were so fastened by Hans as to guard against accident, and -the descent commenced. I can hardly call it perilous, for I was -beginning to be familiar with this kind of exercise. - -This well, or abyss, was a narrow cleft in the mass of the granite, -called by geologists a 'fault,' and caused by the unequal cooling of -the globe of the earth. If it had at one time been a passage for -eruptive matter thrown out by Snaefell, I still could not understand -why no trace was left of its passage. We kept going down a kind of -winding staircase, which seemed almost to have been made by the hand -of man. - -Every quarter of an hour we were obliged to halt, to take a little -necessary repose and restore the action of our limbs. We then sat -down upon a fragment of rock, and we talked as we ate and drank from -the stream. - -Of course, down this fault the Hansbach fell in a cascade, and lost -some of its volume; but there was enough and to spare to slake our -thirst. Besides, when the incline became more gentle, it would of -course resume its peaceable course. At this moment it reminded me of -my worthy uncle, in his frequent fits of impatience and anger, while -below it ran with the calmness of the Icelandic hunter. - -On the 6th and 7th of July we kept following the spiral curves of -this singular well, penetrating in actual distance no more than two -leagues; but being carried to a depth of five leagues below the level -of the sea. But on the 8th, about noon, the fault took, towards the -south-east, a much gentler slope, one of about forty-five degrees. - -Then the road became monotonously easy. It could not be otherwise, -for there was no landscape to vary the stages of our journey. - -On Wednesday, the 15th, we were seven leagues underground, and had -travelled fifty leagues away from Snaefell. Although we were tired, -our health was perfect, and the medicine chest had not yet had -occasion to be opened. - -My uncle noted every hour the indications of the compass, the -chronometer, the aneroid, and the thermometer the very same which he -has published in his scientific report of our journey. It was -therefore not difficult to know exactly our whereabouts. When he told -me that we had gone fifty leagues horizontally, I could not repress -an exclamation of astonishment, at the thought that we had now long -left Iceland behind us. - -"What is the matter?" he cried. - -"I was reflecting that if your calculations are correct we are no -longer under Iceland." - -"Do you think so?" - -"I am not mistaken," I said, and examining the map, I added, "We have -passed Cape Portland, and those fifty leagues bring us under the wide -expanse of ocean." - -"Under the sea," my uncle repeated, rubbing his hands with delight. - -"Can it be?" I said. "Is the ocean spread above our heads?" - -"Of course, Axel. What can be more natural? At Newcastle are there -not coal mines extending far under the sea?" - -It was all very well for the Professor to call this so simple, but I -could not feel quite easy at the thought that the boundless ocean was -rolling over my head. And yet it really mattered very little whether -it was the plains and mountains that covered our heads, or the -Atlantic waves, as long as we were arched over by solid granite. And, -besides, I was getting used to this idea; for the tunnel, now running -straight, now winding as capriciously in its inclines as in its -turnings, but constantly preserving its south-easterly direction, and -always running deeper, was gradually carrying us to very great depths -indeed. - -Four days later, Saturday, the 18th of July, in the evening, we -arrived at a kind of vast grotto; and here my uncle paid Hans his -weekly wages, and it was settled that the next day, Sunday, should be -a day of rest. - - - - -CHAPTER XXV. - -DE PROFUNDIS - - -I therefore awoke next day relieved from the preoccupation of an -immediate start. Although we were in the very deepest of known -depths, there was something not unpleasant about it. And, besides, we -were beginning to get accustomed to this troglodyte [1] life. I no -longer thought of sun, moon, and stars, trees, houses, and towns, nor -of any of those terrestrial superfluities which are necessaries of -men who live upon the earth's surface. Being fossils, we looked upon -all those things as mere jokes. - -The grotto was an immense apartment. Along its granite floor ran our -faithful stream. At this distance from its spring the water was -scarcely tepid, and we drank of it with pleasure. - -After breakfast the Professor gave a few hours to the arrangement of -his daily notes. - -"First," said he, "I will make a calculation to ascertain our exact -position. I hope, after our return, to draw a map of our journey, -which will be in reality a vertical section of the globe, containing -the track of our expedition." - -"That will be curious, uncle; but are your observations sufficiently -accurate to enable you to do this correctly?" - -"Yes; I have everywhere observed the angles and the inclines. I am -sure there is no error. Let us see where we are now. Take your -compass, and note the direction." - -I looked, and replied carefully: - -[1] tpwgln, a hole; dnw, to creep into. The name of an Ethiopian -tribe who lived in caves and holes. ??????, a hole, and ???, to creep -into. - -"South-east by east." - -"Well," answered the Professor, after a rapid calculation, "I infer -that we have gone eighty-five leagues since we started." - -"Therefore we are under mid-Atlantic?" - -"To be sure we are." - -"And perhaps at this very moment there is a storm above, and ships -over our heads are being rudely tossed by the tempest." - -"Quite probable." - -"And whales are lashing the roof of our prison with their tails?" - -"It may be, Axel, but they won't shake us here. But let us go back to -our calculation. Here we are eighty-five leagues south-east of -Snaefell, and I reckon that we are at a depth of sixteen leagues." - -"Sixteen leagues?" I cried. - -"No doubt." - -"Why, this is the very limit assigned by science to the thickness of -the crust of the earth." - -"I don't deny it." - -"And here, according to the law of increasing temperature, there -ought to be a heat of 2,732 deg. Fahr.!" - -"So there should, my lad." - -"And all this solid granite ought to be running in fusion." - -"You see that it is not so, and that, as so often happens, facts come -to overthrow theories." - -"I am obliged to agree; but, after all, it is surprising." - -"What does the thermometer say?" - -"Twenty-seven, six tenths (82 deg. Fahr.)." - -"Therefore the savants are wrong by 2,705 deg., and the proportional -increase is a mistake. Therefore Humphry Davy was right, and I am not -wrong in following him. What do you say now?" - -"Nothing." - -In truth, I had a good deal to say. I gave way in no respect to -Davy's theory. I still held to the central heat, although I did not -feel its effects. I preferred to admit in truth, that this chimney of -an extinct volcano, lined with lavas, which are non-conductors of -heat, did not suffer the heat to pass through its walls. - -But without stopping to look up new arguments I simply took up our -situation such as it was. - -"Well, admitting all your calculations to be quite correct, you must -allow me to draw one rigid result therefrom." - -"What is it. Speak freely." - -"At the latitude of Iceland, where we now are, the radius of the -earth, the distance from the centre to the surface is about 1,583 -leagues; let us say in round numbers 1,600 leagues, or 4,800 miles. -Out of 1,600 leagues we have gone twelve!" - -"So you say." - -"And these twelve at a cost of 85 leagues diagonally?" - -"Exactly so." - -"In twenty days?" - -"Yes." - -"Now, sixteen leagues are the hundredth part of the earth's radius. -At this rate we shall be two thousand days, or nearly five years and -a half, in getting to the centre." - -No answer was vouchsafed to this rational conclusion. "Without -reckoning, too, that if a vertical depth of sixteen leagues can be -attained only by a diagonal descent of eighty-four, it follows that -we must go eight thousand miles in a south-easterly direction; so -that we shall emerge from some point in the earth's circumference -instead of getting to the centre!" - -"Confusion to all your figures, and all your hypotheses besides," -shouted my uncle in a sudden rage. "What is the basis of them all? -How do you know that this passage does not run straight to our -destination? Besides, there is a precedent. What one man has done, -another may do." - -"I hope so; but, still, I may be permitted--" - -"You shall have my leave to hold your tongue, Axel, but not to talk -in that irrational way." - -I could see the awful Professor bursting through my uncle's skin, and -I took timely warning. - -"Now look at your aneroid. What does that say?" - -"It says we are under considerable pressure." - -"Very good; so you see that by going gradually down, and getting -accustomed to the density of the atmosphere, we don't suffer at all." - -"Nothing, except a little pain in the ears." - -"That's nothing, and you may get rid of even that by quick breathing -whenever you feel the pain." - -"Exactly so," I said, determined not to say a word that might cross -my uncle's prejudices. "There is even positive pleasure in living in -this dense atmosphere. Have you observed how intense sound is down -here?" - -"No doubt it is. A deaf man would soon learn to hear perfectly." - -"But won't this density augment?" - -"Yes; according to a rather obscure law. It is well known that the -weight of bodies diminishes as fast as we descend. You know that it -is at the surface of the globe that weight is most sensibly felt, and -that at the centre there is no weight at all." - -"I am aware of that; but, tell me, will not air at last acquire the -density of water?" - -"Of course, under a pressure of seven hundred and ten atmospheres." - -"And how, lower down still?" - -"Lower down the density will still increase." - -"But how shall we go down then." - -"Why, we must fill our pockets with stones." - -"Well, indeed, my worthy uncle, you are never at a loss for an -answer." - -I dared venture no farther into the region of probabilities, for I -might presently have stumbled upon an impossibility, which would have -brought the Professor on the scene when he was not wanted. - -Still, it was evident that the air, under a pressure which might -reach that of thousands of atmospheres, would at last reach the solid -state, and then, even if our bodies could resist the strain, we -should be stopped, and no reasonings would be able to get us on any -farther. - -But I did not advance this argument. My uncle would have met it with -his inevitable Saknussemm, a precedent which possessed no weight with -me; for even if the journey of the learned Icelander were really -attested, there was one very simple answer, that in the sixteenth -century there was neither barometer or aneroid and therefore -Saknussemm could not tell how far he had gone. - -But I kept this objection to myself, and waited the course of events. - -The rest of the day was passed in calculations and in conversations. -I remained a steadfast adherent of the opinions of Professor -Liedenbrock, and I envied the stolid indifference of Hans, who, -without going into causes and effects, went on with his eyes shut -wherever his destiny guided him. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVI. - -THE WORST PERIL OF ALL - - -It must be confessed that hitherto things had not gone on so badly, -and that I had small reason to complain. If our difficulties became -no worse, we might hope to reach our end. And to what a height of -scientific glory we should then attain! I had become quite a -Liedenbrock in my reasonings; seriously I had. But would this state -of things last in the strange place we had come to? Perhaps it might. - -For several days steeper inclines, some even frightfully near to the -perpendicular, brought us deeper and deeper into the mass of the -interior of the earth. Some days we advanced nearer to the centre by -a league and a half, or nearly two leagues. These were perilous -descents, in which the skill and marvellous coolness of Hans were -invaluable to us. That unimpassioned Icelander devoted himself with -incomprehensible deliberation; and, thanks to him, we crossed many a -dangerous spot which we should never have cleared alone. - -But his habit of silence gained upon him day by day, and was -infecting us. External objects produce decided effects upon the -brain. A man shut up between four walls soon loses the power to -associate words and ideas together. How many prisoners in solitary -confinement become idiots, if not mad, for want of exercise for the -thinking faculty! - -During the fortnight following our last conversation, no incident -occurred worthy of being recorded. But I have good reason for -remembering one very serious event which took place at this time, and -of which I could scarcely now forget the smallest details. - -By the 7th of August our successive descents had brought us to a -depth of thirty leagues; that is, that for a space of thirty leagues -there were over our heads solid beds of rock, ocean, continents, and -towns. We must have been two hundred leagues from Iceland. - -On that day the tunnel went down a gentle slope. I was ahead of the -others. My uncle was carrying one of Ruhmkorff's lamps and I the -other. I was examining the beds of granite. - -Suddenly turning round I observed that I was alone. - -Well, well, I thought; I have been going too fast, or Hans and my -uncle have stopped on the way. Come, this won't do; I must join them. -Fortunately there is not much of an ascent. - -I retraced my steps. I walked for a quarter of an hour. I gazed into -the darkness. I shouted. No reply: my voice was lost in the midst of -the cavernous echoes which alone replied to my call. - -I began to feel uneasy. A shudder ran through me. - -"Calmly!" I said aloud to myself, "I am sure to find my companions -again. There are not two roads. I was too far ahead. I will return!" - -For half an hour I climbed up. I listened for a call, and in that -dense atmosphere a voice could reach very far. But there was a dreary -silence in all that long gallery. I stopped. I could not believe that -I was lost. I was only bewildered for a time, not lost. I was sure I -should find my way again. - -"Come," I repeated, "since there is but one road, and they are on it, -I must find them again. I have but to ascend still. Unless, indeed, -missing me, and supposing me to be behind, they too should have gone -back. But even in this case I have only to make the greater haste. I -shall find them, I am sure." - -I repeated these words in the fainter tones of a half-convinced man. -Besides, to associate even such simple ideas with words, and reason -with them, was a work of time. - -A doubt then seized upon me. Was I indeed in advance when we became -separated? Yes, to be sure I was. Hans was after me, preceding my -uncle. He had even stopped for a while to strap his baggage better -over his shoulders. I could remember this little incident. It was at -that very moment that I must have gone on. - -Besides, I thought, have not I a guarantee that I shall not lose my -way, a clue in the labyrinth, that cannot be broken, my faithful -stream? I have but to trace it back, and I must come upon them. - -This conclusion revived my spirits, and I resolved to resume my march -without loss of time. - -How I then blessed my uncle's foresight in preventing the hunter from -stopping up the hole in the granite. This beneficent spring, after -having satisfied our thirst on the road, would now be my guide among -the windings of the terrestrial crust. - -Before starting afresh I thought a wash would do me good. I stooped -to bathe my face in the Hansbach. - -To my stupefaction and utter dismay my feet trod only--the rough dry -granite. The stream was no longer at my feet. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVII. - -LOST IN THE BOWELS OF THE EARTH - - -To describe my despair would be impossible. No words could tell it. I -was buried alive, with the prospect before me of dying of hunger and -thirst. - -Mechanically I swept the ground with my hands. How dry and hard the -rock seemed to me! - -But how had I left the course of the stream? For it was a terrible -fact that it no longer ran at my side. Then I understood the reason -of that fearful, silence, when for the last time I listened to hear -if any sound from my companions could reach my ears. At the moment -when I left the right road I had not noticed the absence of the -stream. It is evident that at that moment a deviation had presented -itself before me, whilst the Hansbach, following the caprice of -another incline, had gone with my companions away into unknown depths. - -How was I to return? There was not a trace of their footsteps or of -my own, for the foot left no mark upon the granite floor. I racked my -brain for a solution of this impracticable problem. One word -described my position. Lost! - -Lost at an immeasurable depth! Thirty leagues of rock seemed to weigh -upon my shoulders with a dreadful pressure. I felt crushed. - -I tried to carry back my ideas to things on the surface of the earth. -I could scarcely succeed. Hamburg, the house in the Koenigstrasse, my -poor Graeuben, all that busy world underneath which I was wandering -about, was passing in rapid confusion before my terrified memory. I -could revive with vivid reality all the incidents of our voyage, -Iceland, M. Fridrikssen, Snaefell. I said to myself that if, in such a -position as I was now in, I was fool enough to cling to one glimpse -of hope, it would be madness, and that the best thing I could do was -to despair. - -What human power could restore me to the light of the sun by rending -asunder the huge arches of rock which united over my head, -buttressing each other with impregnable strength? Who could place my -feet on the right path, and bring me back to my company? - -"Oh, my uncle!" burst from my lips in the tone of despair. - -It was my only word of reproach, for I knew how much he must be -suffering in seeking me, wherever he might be. - -When I saw myself thus far removed from all earthly help I had -recourse to heavenly succour. The remembrance of my childhood, the -recollection of my mother, whom I had only known in my tender early -years, came back to me, and I knelt in prayer imploring for the -Divine help of which I was so little worthy. - -This return of trust in God's providence allayed the turbulence of my -fears, and I was enabled to concentrate upon my situation all the -force of my intelligence. - -I had three days' provisions with me and my flask was full. But I -could not remain alone for long. Should I go up or down? - -Up, of course; up continually. - -I must thus arrive at the point where I had left the stream, that -fatal turn in the road. With the stream at my feet, I might hope to -regain the summit of Snaefell. - -Why had I not thought of that sooner? Here was evidently a chance of -safety. The most pressing duty was to find out again the course of -the Hansbach. I rose, and leaning upon my iron-pointed stick I -ascended the gallery. The slope was rather steep. I walked on without -hope but without indecision, like a man who has made up his mind. - -For half an hour I met with no obstacle. I tried to recognise my way -by the form of the tunnel, by the projections of certain rocks, by -the disposition of the fractures. But no particular sign appeared, -and I soon saw that this gallery could not bring me back to the -turning point. It came to an abrupt end. I struck against an -impenetrable wall, and fell down upon the rock. - -Unspeakable despair then seized upon me. I lay overwhelmed, aghast! -My last hope was shattered against this granite wall. - -Lost in this labyrinth, whose windings crossed each other in all -directions, it was no use to think of flight any longer. Here I must -die the most dreadful of deaths. And, strange to say, the thought -came across me that when some day my petrified remains should be -found thirty leagues below the surface in the bowels of the earth, -the discovery might lead to grave scientific discussions. - -I tried to speak aloud, but hoarse sounds alone passed my dry lips. I -panted for breath. - -In the midst of my agony a new terror laid hold of me. In falling my -lamp had got wrong. I could not set it right, and its light was -paling and would soon disappear altogether. - -I gazed painfully upon the luminous current growing weaker and weaker -in the wire coil. A dim procession of moving shadows seemed slowly -unfolding down the darkening walls. I scarcely dared to shut my eyes -for one moment, for fear of losing the least glimmer of this precious -light. Every instant it seemed about to vanish and the dense -blackness to come rolling in palpably upon me. - -One last trembling glimmer shot feebly up. I watched it in trembling -and anxiety; I drank it in as if I could preserve it, concentrating -upon it the full power of my eyes, as upon the very last sensation of -light which they were ever to experience, and the next moment I lay -in the heavy gloom of deep, thick, unfathomable darkness. - -A terrible cry of anguish burst from me. Upon earth, in the midst of -the darkest night, light never abdicates its functions altogether. It -is still subtle and diffusive, but whatever little there may be, the -eye still catches that little. Here there was not an atom; the total -darkness made me totally blind. - -Then I began to lose my head. I arose with my arms stretched out -before me, attempting painfully to feel my way. I began to run -wildly, hurrying through the inextricable maze, still descending, -still running through the substance of the earth's thick crust, a -struggling denizen of geological 'faults,' crying, shouting, yelling, -soon bruised by contact with the jagged rock, falling and rising -again bleeding, trying to drink the blood which covered my face, and -even waiting for some rock to shatter my skull against. - -I shall never know whither my mad career took me. After the lapse of -some hours, no doubt exhausted, I fell like a lifeless lump at the -foot of the wall, and lost all consciousness. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVIII. - -THE RESCUE IN THE WHISPERING GALLERY - - -When I returned to partial life my face was wet with tears. How long -that state of insensibility had lasted I cannot say. I had no means -now of taking account of time. Never was solitude equal to this, -never had any living being been so utterly forsaken. - -After my fall I had lost a good deal of blood. I felt it flowing over -me. Ah! how happy I should have been could I have died, and if death -were not yet to be gone through. I would think no longer. I drove -away every idea, and, conquered by my grief, I rolled myself to the -foot of the opposite wall. - -Already I was feeling the approach of another faint, and was hoping -for complete annihilation, when a loud noise reached me. It was like -the distant rumble of continuous thunder, and I could hear its -sounding undulations rolling far away into the remote recesses of the -abyss. - -Whence could this noise proceed? It must be from some phenomenon -proceeding in the great depths amidst which I lay helpless. Was it an -explosion of gas? Was it the fall of some mighty pillar of the globe? - -I listened still. I wanted to know if the noise would be repeated. A -quarter of an hour passed away. Silence reigned in this gallery. I -could not hear even the beating of my heart. - -Suddenly my ear, resting by chance against the wall, caught, or -seemed to catch, certain vague, indescribable, distant, articulate -sounds, as of words. - -"This is a delusion," I thought. - -But it was not. Listening more attentively, I heard in reality a -murmuring of voices. But my weakness prevented me from understanding -what the voices said. Yet it was language, I was sure of it. - -For a moment I feared the words might be my own, brought back by the -echo. Perhaps I had been crying out unknown to myself. I closed my -lips firmly, and laid my ear against the wall again. - -"Yes, truly, some one is speaking; those are words!" - -Even a few feet from the wall I could hear distinctly. I succeeded in -catching uncertain, strange, undistinguishable words. They came as if -pronounced in low murmured whispers. The word '_forlorad_' was -several times repeated in a tone of sympathy and sorrow. - -"Help!" I cried with all my might. "Help!" - -I listened, I watched in the darkness for an answer, a cry, a mere -breath of sound, but nothing came. Some minutes passed. A whole world -of ideas had opened in my mind. I thought that my weakened voice -could never penetrate to my companions. - -"It is they," I repeated. "What other men can be thirty leagues under -ground?" - -I again began to listen. Passing my ear over the wall from one place -to another, I found the point where the voices seemed to be best -heard. The word '_forlorad_' again returned; then the rolling of -thunder which had roused me from my lethargy. - -"No," I said, "no; it is not through such a mass that a voice can be -heard. I am surrounded by granite walls, and the loudest explosion -could never be heard here! This noise comes along the gallery. There -must be here some remarkable exercise of acoustic laws!" - -I listened again, and this time, yes this time, I did distinctly hear -my name pronounced across the wide interval. - -It was my uncle's own voice! He was talking to the guide. And -'_forlorad_' is a Danish word. - -Then I understood it all. To make myself heard, I must speak along -this wall, which would conduct the sound of my voice just as wire -conducts electricity. - -But there was no time to lose. If my companions moved but a few steps -away, the acoustic phenomenon would cease. I therefore approached the -wall, and pronounced these words as clearly as possible: - -"Uncle Liedenbrock!" - -I waited with the deepest anxiety. Sound does not travel with great -velocity. Even increased density air has no effect upon its rate of -travelling; it merely augments its intensity. Seconds, which seemed -ages, passed away, and at last these words reached me: - -"Axel! Axel! is it you?" - -. . . . - -"Yes, yes," I replied. - -. . . . - -"My boy, where are you?" - -. . . . - -"Lost, in the deepest darkness." - -. . . . - -"Where is your lamp?" - -. . . . - -"It is out." - -. . . . - -"And the stream?" - -. . . . - -"Disappeared." - -. . . . - -"Axel, Axel, take courage!" - -. . . . - -"Wait! I am exhausted! I can't answer. Speak to me!" - -. . . . - -"Courage," resumed my uncle. "Don't speak. Listen to me. We have -looked for you up the gallery and down the gallery. Could not find -you. I wept for you, my poor boy. At last, supposing you were still -on the Hansbach, we fired our guns. Our voices are audible to each -other, but our hands cannot touch. But don't despair, Axel! It is a -great thing that we can hear each other." - -. . . . - -During this time I had been reflecting. A vague hope was returning to -my heart. There was one thing I must know to begin with. I placed my -lips close to the wall, saying: - -"My uncle!" - -. . . . - -"My boy!" came to me after a few seconds. - -. . . . - -"We must know how far we are apart." - -. . . . - -"That is easy." - -. . . . - -"You have your chronometer?" - -. . . - -"Yes." - -. . . . - -"Well, take it. Pronounce my name, noting exactly the second when you -speak. I will repeat it as soon as it shall come to me, and you will -observe the exact moment when you get my answer." - -"Yes; and half the time between my call and your answer will exactly -indicate that which my voice will take in coming to you." - -. . . . - -"Just so, my uncle." - -. . . . - -"Are you ready?" - -. . . . - -"Yes." - -. . . . . . - -"Now, attention. I am going to call your name." - -. . . . - -I put my ear to the wall, and as soon as the name 'Axel' came I -immediately replied "Axel," then waited. - -. . . . - -"Forty seconds," said my uncle. "Forty seconds between the two words; -so the sound takes twenty seconds in coming. Now, at the rate of -1,120 feet in a second, this is 22,400 feet, or four miles and a -quarter, nearly." - -. . . . - -"Four miles and a quarter!" I murmured. - -. . . . - -"It will soon be over, Axel." - -. . . . - -"Must I go up or down?" - -. . . . - -"Down--for this reason: We are in a vast chamber, with endless -galleries. Yours must lead into it, for it seems as if all the clefts -and fractures of the globe radiated round this vast cavern. So get -up, and begin walking. Walk on, drag yourself along, if necessary -slide down the steep places, and at the end you will find us ready to -receive you. Now begin moving." - -. . . . - -These words cheered me up. - -"Good bye, uncle." I cried. "I am going. There will be no more voices -heard when once I have started. So good bye!" - -. . . . - -"Good bye, Axel, _au revoir!_" - -. . . . - -These were the last words I heard. - -This wonderful underground conversation, carried on with a distance -of four miles and a quarter between us, concluded with these words of -hope. I thanked God from my heart, for it was He who had conducted me -through those vast solitudes to the point where, alone of all others -perhaps, the voices of my companions could have reached me. - -This acoustic effect is easily explained on scientific grounds. It -arose from the concave form of the gallery and the conducting power -of the rock. There are many examples of this propagation of sounds -which remain unheard in the intermediate space. I remember that a -similar phenomenon has been observed in many places; amongst others -on the internal surface of the gallery of the dome of St. Paul's in -London, and especially in the midst of the curious caverns among the -quarries near Syracuse, the most wonderful of which is called -Dionysius' Ear. - -These remembrances came into my mind, and I clearly saw that since my -uncle's voice really reached me, there could be no obstacle between -us. Following the direction by which the sound came, of course I -should arrive in his presence, if my strength did not fail me. - -I therefore rose; I rather dragged myself than walked. The slope was -rapid, and I slid down. - -Soon the swiftness of the descent increased horribly, and threatened -to become a fall. I no longer had the strength to stop myself. - -Suddenly there was no ground under me. I felt myself revolving in -air, striking and rebounding against the craggy projections of a -vertical gallery, quite a well; my head struck against a sharp corner -of the rock, and I became unconscious. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIX. - -THALATTA! THALATTA! - - -When I came to myself, I was stretched in half darkness, covered with -thick coats and blankets. My uncle was watching over me, to discover -the least sign of life. At my first sigh he took my hand; when I -opened my eyes he uttered a cry of joy. - -"He lives! he lives!" he cried. - -"Yes, I am still alive," I answered feebly. - -"My dear nephew," said my uncle, pressing me to his breast, "you are -saved." - -I was deeply touched with the tenderness of his manner as he uttered -these words, and still more with the care with which he watched over -me. But such trials were wanted to bring out the Professor's tenderer -qualities. - -At this moment Hans came, he saw my hand in my uncle's, and I may -safely say that there was joy in his countenance. - -"_God dag,_" said he. - -"How do you do, Hans? How are you? And now, uncle, tell me where we -are at the present moment?" - -"To-morrow, Axel, to-morrow. Now you are too faint and weak. I have -bandaged your head with compresses which must not be disturbed. Sleep -now, and to-morrow I will tell you all." - -"But do tell me what time it is, and what day." - -"It is Sunday, the 8th of August, and it is ten at night. You must -ask me no more questions until the 10th." - -In truth I was very weak, and my eyes involuntarily closed. I wanted -a good night's rest; and I therefore went off to sleep, with the -knowledge that I had been four long days alone in the heart of the -earth. - -Next morning, on awakening, I looked round me. My couch, made up of -all our travelling gear, was in a charming grotto, adorned with -splendid stalactites, and the soil of which was a fine sand. It was -half light. There was no torch, no lamp, yet certain mysterious -glimpses of light came from without through a narrow opening in the -grotto. I heard too a vague and indistinct noise, something like the -murmuring of waves breaking upon a shingly shore, and at times I -seemed to hear the whistling of wind. - -I wondered whether I was awake, whether I was dreaming, whether my brain, -crazed by my fall, was not affected by imaginary noises. Yet neither -eyes, nor ears could be so utterly deceived. - -It is a ray of daylight, I thought, sliding in through this cleft in -the rock! That is indeed the murmuring of waves! That is the rustling -noise of wind. Am I quite mistaken, or have we returned to the -surface of the earth? Has my uncle given up the expedition, or is it -happily terminated? - -I was asking myself these unanswerable questions when the Professor -entered. - -"Good morning, Axel," he cried cheerily. "I feel sure you are better." - -"Yes, I am indeed," said I, sitting up on my couch. - -"You can hardly fail to be better, for you have slept quietly. Hans -and I watched you by turns, and we have noticed you were evidently -recovering." - -"Indeed, I do feel a great deal better, and I will give you a proof -of that presently if you will let me have my breakfast." - -"You shall eat, lad. The fever has left you. Hans rubbed your wounds -with some ointment or other of which the Icelanders keep the secret, -and they have healed marvellously. Our hunter is a splendid fellow!" - -Whilst he went on talking, my uncle prepared a few provisions, which -I devoured eagerly, notwithstanding his advice to the contrary. All -the while I was overwhelming him with questions which he answered -readily. - -I then learnt that my providential fall had brought me exactly to the -extremity of an almost perpendicular shaft; and as I had landed in -the midst of an accompanying torrent of stones, the least of which -would have been enough to crush me, the conclusion was that a loose -portion of the rock had come down with me. This frightful conveyance -had thus carried me into the arms of my uncle, where I fell bruised, -bleeding, and insensible. - -"Truly it is wonderful that you have not been killed a hundred times -over. But, for the love of God, don't let us ever separate again, or -we many never see each other more." - -"Not separate! Is the journey not over, then?" I opened a pair of -astonished eyes, which immediately called for the question: - -"What is the matter, Axel?" - -"I have a question to ask you. You say that I am safe and sound?" - -"No doubt you are." - -"And all my limbs unbroken?" - -"Certainly." - -"And my head?" - -"Your head, except for a few bruises, is all right; and it is on your -shoulders, where it ought to be." - -"Well, I am afraid my brain is affected." - -"Your mind affected!" - -"Yes, I fear so. Are we again on the surface of the globe?" - -"No, certainly not." - -"Then I must be mad; for don't I see the light of day, and don't I -hear the wind blowing, and the sea breaking on the shore?" - -"Ah! is that all?" - -"Do tell me all about it." - -"I can't explain the inexplicable, but you will soon see and -understand that geology has not yet learnt all it has to learn." - -"Then let us go," I answered quickly. - -"No, Axel; the open air might be bad for you." - -"Open air?" - -"Yes; the wind is rather strong. You must not expose yourself." - -"But I assure you I am perfectly well." - -"A little patience, my nephew. A relapse might get us into trouble, -and we have no time to lose, for the voyage may be a long one." - -"The voyage!" - -"Yes, rest to-day, and to-morrow we will set sail." - -"Set sail!"--and I almost leaped up. - -What did it all mean? Had we a river, a lake, a sea to depend upon? -Was there a ship at our disposal in some underground harbour? - -My curiosity was highly excited, my uncle vainly tried to restrain -me. When he saw that my impatience was doing me harm, he yielded. - -I dressed in haste. For greater safety I wrapped myself in a blanket, -and came out of the grotto. - - - - -CHAPTER XXX. - -A NEW MARE INTERNUM - - -At first I could hardly see anything. My eyes, unaccustomed to the -light, quickly closed. When I was able to reopen them, I stood more -stupefied even than surprised. - -"The sea!" I cried. - -"Yes," my uncle replied, "the Liedenbrock Sea; and I don't suppose -any other discoverer will ever dispute my claim to name it after -myself as its first discoverer." - -A vast sheet of water, the commencement of a lake or an ocean, spread -far away beyond the range of the eye, reminding me forcibly of that -open sea which drew from Xenophon's ten thousand Greeks, after their -long retreat, the simultaneous cry, "Thalatta! thalatta!" the sea! -the sea! The deeply indented shore was lined with a breadth of fine -shining sand, softly lapped by the waves, and strewn with the small -shells which had been inhabited by the first of created beings. The -waves broke on this shore with the hollow echoing murmur peculiar to -vast inclosed spaces. A light foam flew over the waves before the -breath of a moderate breeze, and some of the spray fell upon my face. -On this slightly inclining shore, about a hundred fathoms from the -limit of the waves, came down the foot of a huge wall of vast cliffs, -which rose majestically to an enormous height. Some of these, -dividing the beach with their sharp spurs, formed capes and -promontories, worn away by the ceaseless action of the surf. Farther -on the eye discerned their massive outline sharply defined against -the hazy distant horizon. - -It was quite an ocean, with the irregular shores of earth, but desert -and frightfully wild in appearance. - -If my eyes were able to range afar over this great sea, it was -because a peculiar light brought to view every detail of it. It was -not the light of the sun, with his dazzling shafts of brightness and -the splendour of his rays; nor was it the pale and uncertain shimmer -of the moonbeams, the dim reflection of a nobler body of light. No; -the illuminating power of this light, its trembling diffusiveness, -its bright, clear whiteness, and its low temperature, showed that it -must be of electric origin. It was like an aurora borealis, a -continuous cosmical phenomenon, filling a cavern of sufficient extent -to contain an ocean. - -The vault that spanned the space above, the sky, if it could be -called so, seemed composed of vast plains of cloud, shifting and -variable vapours, which by their condensation must at certain times -fall in torrents of rain. I should have thought that under so -powerful a pressure of the atmosphere there could be no evaporation; -and yet, under a law unknown to me, there were broad tracts of vapour -suspended in the air. But then 'the weather was fine.' The play of -the electric light produced singular effects upon the upper strata of -cloud. Deep shadows reposed upon their lower wreaths; and often, -between two separated fields of cloud, there glided down a ray of -unspeakable lustre. But it was not solar light, and there was no -heat. The general effect was sad, supremely melancholy. Instead of -the shining firmament, spangled with its innumerable stars, shining -singly or in clusters, I felt that all these subdued and shaded -lights were ribbed in by vast walls of granite, which seemed to -overpower me with their weight, and that all this space, great as it -was, would not be enough for the march of the humblest of satellites. - -Then I remembered the theory of an English captain, who likened the -earth to a vast hollow sphere, in the interior of which the air -became luminous because of the vast pressure that weighed upon it; -while two stars, Pluto and Proserpine, rolled within upon the circuit -of their mysterious orbits. - -We were in reality shut up inside an immeasurable excavation. Its -width could not be estimated, since the shore ran widening as far as -eye could reach, nor could its length, for the dim horizon bounded -the new. As for its height, it must have been several leagues. Where -this vault rested upon its granite base no eye could tell; but there -was a cloud hanging far above, the height of which we estimated at -12,000 feet, a greater height than that of any terrestrial vapour, -and no doubt due to the great density of the air. - -The word cavern does not convey any idea of this immense space; words -of human tongue are inadequate to describe the discoveries of him who -ventures into the deep abysses of earth. - -Besides I could not tell upon what geological theory to account for -the existence of such an excavation. Had the cooling of the globe -produced it? I knew of celebrated caverns from the descriptions of -travellers, but had never heard of any of such dimensions as this. - -If the grotto of Guachara, in Colombia, visited by Humboldt, had not -given up the whole of the secret of its depth to the philosopher, who -investigated it to the depth of 2,500 feet, it probably did not -extend much farther. The immense mammoth cave in Kentucky is of -gigantic proportions, since its vaulted roof rises five hundred feet -[1] above the level of an unfathomable lake and travellers have -explored its ramifications to the extent of forty miles. But what -were these cavities compared to that in which I stood with wonder and -admiration, with its sky of luminous vapours, its bursts of electric -light, and a vast sea filling its bed? My imagination fell powerless -before such immensity. - -I gazed upon these wonders in silence. Words failed me to express my -feelings. I felt as if I was in some distant planet Uranus or -Neptune--and in the presence of phenomena of which my terrestrial -experience gave me no cognisance. For such novel sensations, new words -were wanted; and my imagination failed to supply them. I gazed, I -thought, I admired, with a stupefaction mingled with a certain amount of -fear. - -The unforeseen nature of this spectacle brought back the colour to my -cheeks. I was under a new course of treatment with the aid of -astonishment, and my convalescence was promoted by this novel system -of therapeutics; besides, the dense and breezy air invigorated me, -supplying more oxygen to my lungs. - -It will be easily conceived that after an imprisonment of forty seven -days in a narrow gallery it was the height of physical enjoyment to -breathe a moist air impregnated with saline particles. - -[1] One hundred and twenty. (Trans.) - -I was delighted to leave my dark grotto. My uncle, already familiar -with these wonders, had ceased to feel surprise. - -"You feel strong enough to walk a little way now?" he asked. - -"Yes, certainly; and nothing could be more delightful." - -"Well, take my arm, Axel, and let us follow the windings of the -shore." - -I eagerly accepted, and we began to coast along this new sea. On the -left huge pyramids of rock, piled one upon another, produced a -prodigious titanic effect. Down their sides flowed numberless -waterfalls, which went on their way in brawling but pellucid streams. -A few light vapours, leaping from rock to rock, denoted the place of -hot springs; and streams flowed softly down to the common basin, -gliding down the gentle slopes with a softer murmur. - -Amongst these streams I recognised our faithful travelling companion, -the Hansbach, coming to lose its little volume quietly in the mighty -sea, just as if it had done nothing else since the beginning of the -world. - -"We shall see it no more," I said, with a sigh. - -"What matters," replied the philosopher, "whether this or another -serves to guide us?" - -I thought him rather ungrateful. - -But at that moment my attention was drawn to an unexpected sight. At -a distance of five hundred paces, at the turn of a high promontory, -appeared a high, tufted, dense forest. It was composed of trees of -moderate height, formed like umbrellas, with exact geometrical -outlines. The currents of wind seemed to have had no effect upon -their shape, and in the midst of the windy blasts they stood unmoved -and firm, just like a clump of petrified cedars. - -I hastened forward. I could not give any name to these singular -creations. Were they some of the two hundred thousand species of -vegetables known hitherto, and did they claim a place of their own in -the lacustrine flora? No; when we arrived under their shade my -surprise turned into admiration. There stood before me productions of -earth, but of gigantic stature, which my uncle immediately named. - -"It is only a forest of mushrooms," said he. - -And he was right. Imagine the large development attained by these -plants, which prefer a warm, moist climate. I knew that the -_Lycopodon giganteum_ attains, according to Bulliard, a circumference -of eight or nine feet; but here were pale mushrooms, thirty to forty -feet high, and crowned with a cap of equal diameter. There they stood -in thousands. No light could penetrate between their huge cones, and -complete darkness reigned beneath those giants; they formed -settlements of domes placed in close array like the round, thatched -roofs of a central African city. - -Yet I wanted to penetrate farther underneath, though a chill fell -upon me as soon as I came under those cellular vaults. For half an -hour we wandered from side to side in the damp shades, and it was a -comfortable and pleasant change to arrive once more upon the sea -shore. - -But the subterranean vegetation was not confined to these fungi. -Farther on rose groups of tall trees of colourless foliage and easy -to recognise. They were lowly shrubs of earth, here attaining -gigantic size; lycopodiums, a hundred feet high; the huge sigillaria, -found in our coal mines; tree ferns, as tall as our fir-trees in -northern latitudes; lepidodendra, with cylindrical forked stems, -terminated by long leaves, and bristling with rough hairs like those -of the cactus. - -"Wonderful, magnificent, splendid!" cried my uncle. "Here is the -entire flora of the second period of the world--the transition -period. These, humble garden plants with us, were tall trees in the -early ages. Look, Axel, and admire it all. Never had botanist such a -feast as this!" - -"You are right, my uncle. Providence seems to have preserved in this -immense conservatory the antediluvian plants which the wisdom of -philosophers has so sagaciously put together again." - -"It is a conservatory, Axel; but is it not also a menagerie?" - -"Surely not a menagerie!" - -"Yes; no doubt of it. Look at that dust under your feet; see the -bones scattered on the ground." - -"So there are!" I cried; "bones of extinct animals." - -I had rushed upon these remains, formed of indestructible phosphates -of lime, and without hesitation I named these monstrous bones, which -lay scattered about like decayed trunks of trees. - -"Here is the lower jaw of a mastodon," [1] I said. "These are the -molar teeth of the deinotherium; this femur must have belonged to the -greatest of those beasts, the megatherium. It certainly is a -menagerie, for these remains were not brought here by a deluge. The -animals to which they belonged roamed on the shores of this -subterranean sea, under the shade of those arborescent trees. Here -are entire skeletons. And yet I cannot understand the appearance of -these quadrupeds in a granite cavern." - -[1] These animals belonged to a late geological period, the Pliocene, -just before the glacial epoch, and therefore could have no connection -with the carboniferous vegetation. (Trans.) - -"Why?" - -"Because animal life existed upon the earth only in the secondary -period, when a sediment of soil had been deposited by the rivers, and -taken the place of the incandescent rocks of the primitive period." - -"Well, Axel, there is a very simple answer to your objection that -this soil is alluvial." - -"What! at such a depth below the surface of the earth?" - -"No doubt; and there is a geological explanation of the fact. At a -certain period the earth consisted only of an elastic crust or bark, -alternately acted on by forces from above or below, according to the -laws of attraction and gravitation. Probably there were subsidences -of the outer crust, when a portion of the sedimentary deposits was -carried down sudden openings." - -"That may be," I replied; "but if there have been creatures now -extinct in these underground regions, why may not some of those -monsters be now roaming through these gloomy forests, or hidden -behind the steep crags?" - -And as this unpleasant notion got hold of me, I surveyed with anxious -scrutiny the open spaces before me; but no living creature appeared -upon the barren strand. - -I felt rather tired, and went to sit down at the end of a promontory, -at the foot of which the waves came and beat themselves into spray. -Thence my eye could sweep every part of the bay; within its extremity -a little harbour was formed between the pyramidal cliffs, where the -still waters slept untouched by the boisterous winds. A brig and two -or three schooners might have moored within it in safety. I almost -fancied I should presently see some ship issue from it, full sail, -and take to the open sea under the southern breeze. - -But this illusion lasted a very short time. We were the only living -creatures in this subterranean world. When the wind lulled, a deeper -silence than that of the deserts fell upon the arid, naked rocks, and -weighed upon the surface of the ocean. I then desired to pierce the -distant haze, and to rend asunder the mysterious curtain that hung -across the horizon. Anxious queries arose to my lips. Where did that -sea terminate? Where did it lead to? Should we ever know anything -about its opposite shores? - -My uncle made no doubt about it at all; I both desired and feared. - -After spending an hour in the contemplation of this marvellous -spectacle, we returned to the shore to regain the grotto, and I fell -asleep in the midst of the strangest thoughts. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXI. - -PREPARATIONS FOR A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY - - -The next morning I awoke feeling perfectly well. I thought a bathe -would do me good, and I went to plunge for a few minutes into the -waters of this mediterranean sea, for assuredly it better deserved -this name than any other sea. - -I came back to breakfast with a good appetite. Hans was a good -caterer for our little household; he had water and fire at his -disposal, so that he was able to vary our bill of fare now and then. -For dessert he gave us a few cups of coffee, and never was coffee so -delicious. - -"Now," said my uncle, "now is the time for high tide, and we must not -lose the opportunity to study this phenomenon." - -"What! the tide!" I cried. "Can the influence of the sun and moon be -felt down here?" - -"Why not? Are not all bodies subject throughout their mass to the -power of universal attraction? This mass of water cannot escape the -general law. And in spite of the heavy atmospheric pressure on the -surface, you will see it rise like the Atlantic itself." - -At the same moment we reached the sand on the shore, and the waves -were by slow degrees encroaching on the shore. - -"Here is the tide rising," I cried. - -"Yes, Axel; and judging by these ridges of foam, you may observe that -the sea will rise about twelve feet." - -"This is wonderful," I said. - -"No; it is quite natural." - -"You may say so, uncle; but to me it is most extraordinary, and I can -hardly believe my eyes. Who would ever have imagined, under this -terrestrial crust, an ocean with ebbing and flowing tides, with winds -and storms?" - -"Well," replied my uncle, "is there any scientific reason against it?" - -"No; I see none, as soon as the theory of central heat is given up." -"So then, thus far," he answered, "the theory of Sir Humphry Davy is -confirmed." - -"Evidently it is; and now there is no reason why there should not be -seas and continents in the interior of the earth." - -"No doubt," said my uncle; "and inhabited too." - -"To be sure," said I; "and why should not these waters yield to us -fishes of unknown species?" - -"At any rate," he replied, "we have not seen any yet." - -"Well, let us make some lines, and see if the bait will draw here as -it does in sublunary regions." - -"We will try, Axel, for we must penetrate all secrets of these newly -discovered regions." - -"But where are we, uncle? for I have not yet asked you that question, -and your instruments must be able to furnish the answer." - -"Horizontally, three hundred and fifty leagues from Iceland." - -"So much as that?" - -"I am sure of not being a mile out of my reckoning." - -"And does the compass still show south-east?" - -"Yes; with a westerly deviation of nineteen degrees forty-five -minutes, just as above ground. As for its dip, a curious fact is -coming to light, which I have observed carefully: that the needle, -instead of dipping towards the pole as in the northern hemisphere, on -the contrary, rises from it." - -"Would you then conclude," I said, "that the magnetic pole is -somewhere between the surface of the globe and the point where we -are?" - -"Exactly so; and it is likely enough that if we were to reach the -spot beneath the polar regions, about that seventy-first degree where -Sir James Ross has discovered the magnetic pole to be situated, we -should see the needle point straight up. Therefore that mysterious -centre of attraction is at no great depth." - -I remarked: "It is so; and here is a fact which science has scarcely -suspected." - -"Science, my lad, has been built upon many errors; but they are -errors which it was good to fall into, for they led to the truth." - -"What depth have we now reached?" - -"We are thirty-five leagues below the surface." - -"So," I said, examining the map, "the Highlands of Scotland are over -our heads, and the Grampians are raising their rugged summits above -us." - -"Yes," answered the Professor laughing. "It is rather a heavy weight -to bear, but a solid arch spans over our heads. The great Architect -has built it of the best materials; and never could man have given it -so wide a stretch. What are the finest arches of bridges and the -arcades of cathedrals, compared with this far reaching vault, with a -radius of three leagues, beneath which a wide and tempest-tossed -ocean may flow at its ease?" - -"Oh, I am not afraid that it will fall down upon my head. But now -what are your plans? Are you not thinking of returning to the surface -now?" - -"Return! no, indeed! We will continue our journey, everything having -gone on well so far." - -"But how are we to get down below this liquid surface?" - -"Oh, I am not going to dive head foremost. But if all oceans are -properly speaking but lakes, since they are encompassed by land, of -course this internal sea will be surrounded by a coast of granite, -and on the opposite shores we shall find fresh passages opening." - -"How long do you suppose this sea to be?" - -"Thirty or forty leagues; so that we have no time to lose, and we -shall set sail to-morrow." - -I looked about for a ship. - -"Set sail, shall we? But I should like to see my boat first." - -"It will not be a boat at all, but a good, well-made raft." - -"Why," I said, "a raft would be just as hard to make as a boat, and I -don't see--" - -"I know you don't see; but you might hear if you would listen. Don't -you hear the hammer at work? Hans is already busy at it." - -"What, has he already felled the trees?" - -"Oh, the trees were already down. Come, and you will see for -yourself." - -After half an hour's walking, on the other side of the promontory -which formed the little natural harbour, I perceived Hans at work. In -a few more steps I was at his side. To my great surprise a -half-finished raft was already lying on the sand, made of a peculiar -kind of wood, and a great number of planks, straight and bent, and of -frames, were covering the ground, enough almost for a little fleet. - -"Uncle, what wood is this?" I cried. - -"It is fir, pine, or birch, and other northern coniferae, mineralised -by the action of the sea. It is called surturbrand, a variety of -brown coal or lignite, found chiefly in Iceland." - -"But surely, then, like other fossil wood, it must be as hard as -stone, and cannot float?" - -"Sometimes that may happen; some of these woods become true -anthracites; but others, such as this, have only gone through the -first stage of fossil transformation. Just look," added my uncle, -throwing into the sea one of those precious waifs. - -The bit of wood, after disappearing, returned to the surface and -oscillated to and fro with the waves. - -"Are you convinced?" said my uncle. - -"I am quite convinced, although it is incredible!" - -By next evening, thanks to the industry and skill of our guide, the -raft was made. It was ten feet by five; the planks of surturbrand, -braced strongly together with cords, presented an even surface, and -when launched this improvised vessel floated easily upon the waves of -the Liedenbrock Sea. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXII. - -WONDERS OF THE DEEP - - -On the 13th of August we awoke early. We were now to begin to adopt a -mode of travelling both more expeditious and less fatiguing than -hitherto. - -A mast was made of two poles spliced together, a yard was made of a -third, a blanket borrowed from our coverings made a tolerable sail. -There was no want of cordage for the rigging, and everything was well -and firmly made. - -The provisions, the baggage, the instruments, the guns, and a good -quantity of fresh water from the rocks around, all found their proper -places on board; and at six the Professor gave the signal to embark. -Hans had fitted up a rudder to steer his vessel. He took the tiller, -and unmoored; the sail was set, and we were soon afloat. At the -moment of leaving the harbour, my uncle, who was tenaciously fond of -naming his new discoveries, wanted to give it a name, and proposed -mine amongst others. - -"But I have a better to propose," I said: "Grauben. Let it be called -Port Graeuben; it will look very well upon the map." - -"Port Graeuben let it be then." - -And so the cherished remembrance of my Virlandaise became associated -with our adventurous expedition. - -The wind was from the north-west. We went with it at a high rate of -speed. The dense atmosphere acted with great force and impelled us -swiftly on. - -In an hour my uncle had been able to estimate our progress. At this -rate, he said, we shall make thirty leagues in twenty-four hours, and -we shall soon come in sight of the opposite shore. - -I made no answer, but went and sat forward. The northern shore was -already beginning to dip under the horizon. The eastern and western -strands spread wide as if to bid us farewell. Before our eyes lay far -and wide a vast sea; shadows of great clouds swept heavily over its -silver-grey surface; the glistening bluish rays of electric light, -here and there reflected by the dancing drops of spray, shot out -little sheaves of light from the track we left in our rear. Soon we -entirely lost sight of land; no object was left for the eye to judge -by, and but for the frothy track of the raft, I might have thought we -were standing still. - -About twelve, immense shoals of seaweeds came in sight. I was aware -of the great powers of vegetation that characterise these plants, -which grow at a depth of twelve thousand feet, reproduce themselves -under a pressure of four hundred atmospheres, and sometimes form -barriers strong enough to impede the course of a ship. But never, I -think, were such seaweeds as those which we saw floating in immense -waving lines upon the sea of Liedenbrock. - -Our raft skirted the whole length of the fuci, three or four thousand -feet long, undulating like vast serpents beyond the reach of sight; I -found some amusement in tracing these endless waves, always thinking -I should come to the end of them, and for hours my patience was vying -with my surprise. - -What natural force could have produced such plants, and what must -have been the appearance of the earth in the first ages of its -formation, when, under the action of heat and moisture, the vegetable -kingdom alone was developing on its surface? - -Evening came, and, as on the previous day, I perceived no change in -the luminous condition of the air. It was a constant condition, the -permanency of which might be relied upon. - -After supper I laid myself down at the foot of the mast, and fell -asleep in the midst of fantastic reveries. - -Hans, keeping fast by the helm, let the raft run on, which, after -all, needed no steering, the wind blowing directly aft. - -Since our departure from Port Graeuben, Professor Liedenbrock had -entrusted the log to my care; I was to register every observation, -make entries of interesting phenomena, the direction of the wind, the -rate of sailing, the way we made--in a word, every particular of our -singular voyage. - -I shall therefore reproduce here these daily notes, written, so to -speak, as the course of events directed, in order to furnish an exact -narrative of our passage. - -_Friday, August 14_.--Wind steady, N.W. The raft makes rapid way in -a direct line. Coast thirty leagues to leeward. Nothing in sight -before us. Intensity of light the same. Weather fine; that is to say, -that the clouds are flying high, are light, and bathed in a white -atmosphere resembling silver in a state of fusion. Therm. 89 deg. Fahr. - -At noon Hans prepared a hook at the end of a line. He baited it with -a small piece of meat and flung it into the sea. For two hours -nothing was caught. Are these waters, then, bare of inhabitants? No, -there's a pull at the line. Hans draws it in and brings out a -struggling fish. - -"A sturgeon," I cried; "a small sturgeon." - -The Professor eyes the creature attentively, and his opinion differs -from mine. - -The head of this fish was flat, but rounded in front, and the -anterior part of its body was plated with bony, angular scales; it -had no teeth, its pectoral fins were large, and of tail there was -none. The animal belonged to the same order as the sturgeon, but -differed from that fish in many essential particulars. After a short -examination my uncle pronounced his opinion. - -"This fish belongs to an extinct family, of which only fossil traces -are found in the devonian formations." - -"What!" I cried. "Have we taken alive an inhabitant of the seas of -primitive ages?" - -"Yes; and you will observe that these fossil fishes have no identity -with any living species. To have in one's possession a living -specimen is a happy event for a naturalist." - -"But to what family does it belong?" - -"It is of the order of ganoids, of the family of the cephalaspidae; -and a species of pterichthys. But this one displays a peculiarity -confined to all fishes that inhabit subterranean waters. It is blind, -and not only blind, but actually has no eyes at all." - -I looked: nothing could be more certain. But supposing it might be a -solitary case, we baited afresh, and threw out our line. Surely this -ocean is well peopled with fish, for in another couple of hours we -took a large quantity of pterichthydes, as well as of others -belonging to the extinct family of the dipterides, but of which my -uncle could not tell the species; none had organs of sight. This -unhoped-for catch recruited our stock of provisions. - -Thus it is evident that this sea contains none but species known to -us in their fossil state, in which fishes as well as reptiles are the -less perfectly and completely organised the farther back their date -of creation. - -Perhaps we may yet meet with some of those saurians which science has -reconstructed out of a bit of bone or cartilage. I took up the -telescope and scanned the whole horizon, and found it everywhere a -desert sea. We are far away removed from the shores. - -I gaze upward in the air. Why should not some of the strange birds -restored by the immortal Cuvier again flap their 'sail-broad vans' in -this dense and heavy atmosphere? There are sufficient fish for their -support. I survey the whole space that stretches overhead; it is as -desert as the shore was. - -Still my imagination carried me away amongst the wonderful -speculations of palaeontology. Though awake I fell into a dream. I -thought I could see floating on the surface of the waters enormous -chelonia, pre-adamite tortoises, resembling floating islands. Over the -dimly lighted strand there trod the huge mammals of the first ages of -the world, the leptotherium (slender beast), found in the caverns of -Brazil; the merycotherium (ruminating beast), found in the 'drift' of -iceclad Siberia. Farther on, the pachydermatous lophiodon (crested -toothed), a gigantic tapir, hides behind the rocks to dispute its -prey with the anoplotherium (unarmed beast), a strange creature, -which seemed a compound of horse, rhinoceros, camel, and -hippopotamus. The colossal mastodon (nipple-toothed) twists and -untwists his trunk, and brays and pounds with his huge tusks the -fragments of rock that cover the shore; whilst the megatherium (huge -beast), buttressed upon his enormous hinder paws, grubs in the soil, -awaking the sonorous echoes of the granite rocks with his tremendous -roarings. Higher up, the protopitheca--the first monkey that -appeared on the globe--is climbing up the steep ascents. Higher yet, -the pterodactyle (wing-fingered) darts in irregular zigzags to and -fro in the heavy air. In the uppermost regions of the air immense -birds, more powerful than the cassowary, and larger than the ostrich, -spread their vast breadth of wings and strike with their heads the -granite vault that bounds the sky. - -All this fossil world rises to life again in my vivid imagination. I -return to the scriptural periods or ages of the world, conventionally -called 'days,' long before the appearance of man, when the unfinished -world was as yet unfitted for his support. Then my dream backed even -farther still into the ages before the creation of living beings. The -mammals disappear, then the birds vanish, then the reptiles of the -secondary period, and finally the fish, the crustaceans, molluscs, -and articulated beings. Then the zoophytes of the transition period -also return to nothing. I am the only living thing in the world: all -life is concentrated in my beating heart alone. There are no more -seasons; climates are no more; the heat of the globe continually -increases and neutralises that of the sun. Vegetation becomes -accelerated. I glide like a shade amongst arborescent ferns, treading -with unsteady feet the coloured marls and the particoloured clays; I -lean for support against the trunks of immense conifers; I lie in the -shade of sphenophylla (wedge-leaved), asterophylla (star-leaved), and -lycopods, a hundred feet high. - -Ages seem no more than days! I am passed, against my will, in -retrograde order, through the long series of terrestrial changes. -Plants disappear; granite rocks soften; intense heat converts solid -bodies into thick fluids; the waters again cover the face of the -earth; they boil, they rise in whirling eddies of steam; white and -ghastly mists wrap round the shifting forms of the earth, which by -imperceptible degrees dissolves into a gaseous mass, glowing fiery -red and white, as large and as shining as the sun. - -And I myself am floating with wild caprice in the midst of this -nebulous mass of fourteen hundred thousand times the volume of the -earth into which it will one day be condensed, and carried forward -amongst the planetary bodies. My body is no longer firm and -terrestrial; it is resolved into its constituent atoms, subtilised, -volatilised. Sublimed into imponderable vapour, I mingle and am lost -in the endless foods of those vast globular volumes of vaporous -mists, which roll upon their flaming orbits through infinite space. - -But is it not a dream? Whither is it carrying me? My feverish hand -has vainly attempted to describe upon paper its strange and wonderful -details. I have forgotten everything that surrounds me. The -Professor, the guide, the raft--are all gone out of my ken. An -illusion has laid hold upon me. - -"What is the matter?" my uncle breaks in. - -My staring eyes are fixed vacantly upon him. - -"Take care, Axel, or you will fall overboard." - -At that moment I felt the sinewy hand of Hans seizing me vigorously. -But for him, carried away by my dream, I should have thrown myself -into the sea. - -"Is he mad?" cried the Professor. - -"What is it all about?" at last I cried, returning to myself. - -"Do you feel ill?" my uncle asked. - -"No; but I have had a strange hallucination; it is over now. Is all -going on right?" - -"Yes, it is a fair wind and a fine sea; we are sailing rapidly along, -and if I am not out in my reckoning, we shall soon land." - -At these words I rose and gazed round upon the horizon, still -everywhere bounded by clouds alone. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIII. - -A BATTLE OF MONSTERS - - -_Saturday, August 15_.--The sea unbroken all round. No land in -sight. The horizon seems extremely distant. - -My head is still stupefied with the vivid reality of my dream. - -My uncle has had no dreams, but he is out of temper. He examines the -horizon all round with his glass, and folds his arms with the air of -an injured man. - -I remark that Professor Liedenbrock has a tendency to relapse into an -impatient mood, and I make a note of it in my log. All my danger and -sufferings were needed to strike a spark of human feeling out of -him; but now that I am well his nature has resumed its sway. And yet, -what cause was there for anger? Is not the voyage prospering as -favourably as possible under the circumstances? Is not the raft -spinning along with marvellous speed? - -"-You seem anxious, my uncle," I said, seeing him continually with -his glass to his eye. - -"Anxious! No, not at all." - -"Impatient, then?" - -"One might be, with less reason than now." - -"Yet we are going very fast." - -"What does that signify? I am not complaining that the rate is slow, -but that the sea is so wide." - -I then remembered that the Professor, before starting, had estimated -the length of this underground sea at thirty leagues. Now we had made -three times the distance, yet still the southern coast was not in -sight. - -"We are not descending as we ought to be," the Professor declares. -"We are losing time, and the fact is, I have not come all this way to -take a little sail upon a pond on a raft." - -He called this sea a pond, and our long voyage, taking a little sail! - -"But," I remarked, "since we have followed the road that Saknussemm -has shown us--" - -"That is just the question. Have we followed that road? Did -Saknussemm meet this sheet of water? Did he cross it? Has not the -stream that we followed led us altogether astray?" - -"At any rate we cannot feel sorry to have come so far. This prospect -is magnificent, and--" - -"But I don't care for prospects. I came with an object, and I mean to -attain it. Therefore don't talk to me about views and prospects." - -I take this as my answer, and I leave the Professor to bite his lips -with impatience. At six in the evening Hans asks for his wages, and -his three rix dollars are counted out to him. - -_Sunday, August 16. _--Nothing new. Weather unchanged. The wind -freshens. On awaking, my first thought was to observe the intensity -of the light. I was possessed with an apprehension lest the electric -light should grow dim, or fail altogether. But there seemed no reason -to fear. The shadow of the raft was clearly outlined upon the surface -of the waves. - -Truly this sea is of infinite width. It must be as wide as the -Mediterranean or the Atlantic--and why not? - -My uncle took soundings several times. He tied the heaviest of our -pickaxes to a long rope which he let down two hundred fathoms. No -bottom yet; and we had some difficulty in hauling up our plummet. - -But when the pick was shipped again, Hans pointed out on its surface -deep prints as if it had been violently compressed between two hard -bodies. - -I looked at the hunter. - -"_Taender,_" said he. - -I could not understand him, and turned to my uncle who was entirely -absorbed in his calculations. I had rather not disturb him while he -is quiet. I return to the Icelander. He by a snapping motion of his -jaws conveys his ideas to me. - -"Teeth!" I cried, considering the iron bar with more attention. - -Yes, indeed, those are the marks of teeth imprinted upon the metal! -The jaws which they arm must be possessed of amazing strength. Is -there some monster beneath us belonging to the extinct races, more -voracious than the shark, more fearful in vastness than the whale? I -could not take my eyes off this indented iron bar. Surely will my -last night's dream be realised? - -These thoughts agitated me all day, and my imagination scarcely -calmed down after several hours' sleep. - -_Monday, August 17.--_ I am trying to recall the peculiar instincts -of the monsters of the pre-adamite world, who, coming next in -succession after the molluscs, the crustaceans and le fishes, -preceded the animals of mammalian race upon the earth. The world then -belonged to reptiles. Those monsters held the mastery in the seas of -the secondary period. They possessed a perfect organisation, gigantic -proportions, prodigious strength. The saurians of our day, the -alligators and the crocodiles, are but feeble reproductions of their -forefathers of primitive ages. - -I shudder as I recall these monsters to my remembrance. No human eye -has ever beheld them living. They burdened this earth a thousand ages -before man appeared, but their fossil remains, found in the -argillaceous limestone called by the English the lias, have enabled -their colossal structure to be perfectly built up again and -anatomically ascertained. - -I saw at the Hamburg museum the skeleton of one of these creatures -thirty feet in length. Am I then fated--I, a denizen of earth--to -be placed face to face with these representatives of long extinct -families? No; surely it cannot be! Yet the deep marks of conical -teeth upon the iron pick are certainly those of the crocodile. - -My eyes are fearfully bent upon the sea. I dread to see one of these -monsters darting forth from its submarine caverns. I suppose -Professor Liedenbrock was of my opinion too, and even shared my -fears, for after having examined the pick, his eyes traversed the -ocean from side to side. What a very bad notion that was of his, I -thought to myself, to take soundings just here! He has disturbed some -monstrous beast in its remote den, and if we are not attacked on our -voyage-- - -I look at our guns and see that they are all right. My uncle notices -it, and looks on approvingly. - -Already widely disturbed regions on the surface of the water indicate -some commotion below. The danger is approaching. We must be on the -look out. - -_Tuesday, August 18. _--Evening came, or rather the time came when -sleep weighs down the weary eyelids, for there is no night here, and -the ceaseless light wearies the eyes with its persistency just as if -we were sailing under an arctic sun. Hans was at the helm. During his -watch I slept. - -Two hours afterwards a terrible shock awoke me. The raft was heaved -up on a watery mountain and pitched down again, at a distance of -twenty fathoms. - -"What is the matter?" shouted my uncle. "Have we struck land?" - -Hans pointed with his finger at a dark mass six hundred yards away, -rising and falling alternately with heavy plunges. I looked and cried: - -"It is an enormous porpoise." - -"Yes," replied my uncle, "and there is a sea lizard of vast size." - -"And farther on a monstrous crocodile. Look at its vast jaws and its -rows of teeth! It is diving down!" - -"There's a whale, a whale!" cried the Professor. "I can see its great -fins. See how he is throwing out air and water through his blowers." - -And in fact two liquid columns were rising to a considerable height -above the sea. We stood amazed, thunderstruck, at the presence of -such a herd of marine monsters. They were of supernatural dimensions; -the smallest of them would have crunched our raft, crew and all, at -one snap of its huge jaws. - -Hans wants to tack to get away from this dangerous neighbourhood; but -he sees on the other hand enemies not less terrible; a tortoise forty -feet long, and a serpent of thirty, lifting its fearful head and -gleaming eyes above the flood. - -Flight was out of the question now. The reptiles rose; they wheeled -around our little raft with a rapidity greater than that of express -trains. They described around us gradually narrowing circles. I took -up my rifle. But what could a ball do against the scaly armour with -which these enormous beasts were clad? - -We stood dumb with fear. They approach us close: on one side the -crocodile, on the other the serpent. The remainder of the sea -monsters have disappeared. I prepare to fire. Hans stops me by a -gesture. The two monsters pass within a hundred and fifty yards of -the raft, and hurl themselves the one upon the other, with a fury -which prevents them from seeing us. - -At three hundred yards from us the battle was fought. We could -distinctly observe the two monsters engaged in deadly conflict. But -it now seems to me as if the other animals were taking part in the -fray--the porpoise, the whale, the lizard, the tortoise. Every -moment I seem to see one or other of them. I point them to the -Icelander. He shakes his head negatively. - -"_Tva,_" says he. - -"What two? Does he mean that there are only two animals?" - -"He is right," said my uncle, whose glass has never left his eye. - -"Surely you must be mistaken," I cried. - -"No: the first of those monsters has a porpoise's snout, a lizard's -head, a crocodile's teeth; and hence our mistake. It is the -ichthyosaurus (the fish lizard), the most terrible of the ancient -monsters of the deep." - -"And the other?" - -"The other is a plesiosaurus (almost lizard), a serpent, armoured -with the carapace and the paddles of a turtle; he is the dreadful -enemy of the other." - -Hans had spoken truly. Two monsters only were creating all this -commotion; and before my eyes are two reptiles of the primitive -world. I can distinguish the eye of the ichthyosaurus glowing like a -red-hot coal, and as large as a man's head. Nature has endowed it -with an optical apparatus of extreme power, and capable of resisting -the pressure of the great volume of water in the depths it inhabits. -It has been appropriately called the saurian whale, for it has both -the swiftness and the rapid movements of this monster of our own day. -This one is not less than a hundred feet long, and I can judge of its -size when it sweeps over the waters the vertical coils of its tail. -Its jaw is enormous, and according to naturalists it is armed with no -less than one hundred and eighty-two teeth. - -The plesiosaurus, a serpent with a cylindrical body and a short tail, -has four flappers or paddles to act like oars. Its body is entirely -covered with a thick armour of scales, and its neck, as flexible as a -swan's, rises thirty feet above the waves. - -Those huge creatures attacked each other with the greatest animosity. -They heaved around them liquid mountains, which rolled even to our -raft and rocked it perilously. Twenty times we were near capsizing. -Hissings of prodigious force are heard. The two beasts are fast -locked together; I cannot distinguish the one from the other. The -probable rage of the conqueror inspires us with intense fear. - -One hour, two hours, pass away. The struggle continues with unabated -ferocity. The combatants alternately approach and recede from our -raft. We remain motionless, ready to fire. Suddenly the ichthyosaurus -and the plesiosaurus disappear below, leaving a whirlpool eddying in -the water. Several minutes pass by while the fight goes on under -water. - -All at once an enormous head is darted up, the head of the -plesiosaurus. The monster is wounded to death. I no longer see his -scaly armour. Only his long neck shoots up, drops again, coils and -uncoils, droops, lashes the waters like a gigantic whip, and writhes -like a worm that you tread on. The water is splashed for a long way -around. The spray almost blinds us. But soon the reptile's agony -draws to an end; its movements become fainter, its contortions cease -to be so violent, and the long serpentine form lies a lifeless log on -the labouring deep. - -As for the ichthyosaurus--has he returned to his submarine cavern? -or will he reappear on the surface of the sea? - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIV. - -THE GREAT GEYSER - - -_Wednesday, August 19_.--Fortunately the wind blows violently, and -has enabled us to flee from the scene of the late terrible struggle. -Hans keeps at his post at the helm. My uncle, whom the absorbing -incidents of the combat had drawn away from his contemplations, began -again to look impatiently around him. - -The voyage resumes its uniform tenor, which I don't care to break -with a repetition of such events as yesterday's. - -Thursday, Aug. 20.--Wind N.N.E., unsteady and fitful. Temperature -high. Rate three and a half leagues an hour. - -About noon a distant noise is heard. I note the fact without being -able to explain it. It is a continuous roar. - -"In the distance," says the Professor, "there is a rock or islet, -against which the sea is breaking." - -Hans climbs up the mast, but sees no breakers. The ocean' is smooth -and unbroken to its farthest limit. - -Three hours pass away. The roarings seem to proceed from a very -distant waterfall. - -I remark upon this to my uncle, who replies doubtfully: "Yes, I am -convinced that I am right." Are we, then, speeding forward to some -cataract which will cast us down an abyss? This method of getting on -may please the Professor, because it is vertical; but for my part I -prefer the more ordinary modes of horizontal progression. - -At any rate, some leagues to the windward there must be some noisy -phenomenon, for now the roarings are heard with increasing loudness. -Do they proceed from the sky or the ocean? - -I look up to the atmospheric vapours, and try to fathom their depths. -The sky is calm and motionless. The clouds have reached the utmost -limit of the lofty vault, and there lie still bathed in the bright -glare of the electric light. It is not there that we must seek for -the cause of this phenomenon. Then I examine the horizon, which is -unbroken and clear of all mist. There is no change in its aspect. But -if this noise arises from a fall, a cataract, if all this ocean flows -away headlong into a lower basin yet, if that deafening roar is -produced by a mass of falling water, the current must needs -accelerate, and its increasing speed will give me the measure of the -peril that threatens us. I consult the current: there is none. I -throw an empty bottle into the sea: it lies still. - -About four Hans rises, lays hold of the mast, climbs to its top. -Thence his eye sweeps a large area of sea, and it is fixed upon a -point. His countenance exhibits no surprise, but his eye is immovably -steady. - -"He sees something," says my uncle. - -"I believe he does." - -Hans comes down, then stretches his arm to the south, saying: - -"_Dere nere!_" - -"Down there?" repeated my uncle. - -Then, seizing his glass, he gazes attentively for a minute, which -seems to me an age. - -"Yes, yes!" he cried. "I see a vast inverted cone rising from the -surface." - -"Is it another sea beast?" - -"Perhaps it is." - -"Then let us steer farther westward, for we know something of the -danger of coming across monsters of that sort." - -"Let us go straight on," replied my uncle. - -I appealed to Hans. He maintained his course inflexibly. - -Yet, if at our present distance from the animal, a distance of twelve -leagues at the least, the column of water driven through its blowers -may be distinctly seen, it must needs be of vast size. The commonest -prudence would counsel immediate flight; but we did not come so far -to be prudent. - -Imprudently, therefore, we pursue our way. The nearer we approach, -the higher mounts the jet of water. What monster can possibly fill -itself with such a quantity of water, and spurt it up so continuously? - -At eight in the evening we are not two leagues distant from it. Its -body--dusky, enormous, hillocky--lies spread upon the sea like an -islet. Is it illusion or fear? Its length seems to me a couple of -thousand yards. What can be this cetacean, which neither Cuvier nor -Blumenbach knew anything about? It lies motionless, as if asleep; the -sea seems unable to move it in the least; it is the waves that -undulate upon its sides. The column of water thrown up to a height of -five hundred feet falls in rain with a deafening uproar. And here are -we scudding like lunatics before the wind, to get near to a monster -that a hundred whales a day would not satisfy! - -Terror seizes upon me. I refuse to go further. I will cut the -halliards if necessary! I am in open mutiny against the Professor, -who vouchsafes no answer. - -Suddenly Hans rises, and pointing with his finger at the menacing -object, he says: - -"_Holm._" - -"An island!" cries my uncle. - -"That's not an island!" I cried sceptically. - -"It's nothing else," shouted the Professor, with a loud laugh. - -"But that column of water?" - -"_Geyser,_" said Hans. - -"No doubt it is a geyser, like those in Iceland." - -At first I protest against being so widely mistaken as to have taken -an island for a marine monster. But the evidence is against me, and I -have to confess my error. It is nothing worse than a natural -phenomenon. - -As we approach nearer the dimensions of the liquid column become -magnificent. The islet resembles, with a most deceiving likeness, an -enormous cetacean, whose head dominates the waves at a height of -twenty yards. The geyser, a word meaning 'fury,' rises majestically -from its extremity. Deep and heavy explosions are heard from time to -time, when the enormous jet, possessed with more furious violence, -shakes its plumy crest, and springs with a bound till it reaches the -lowest stratum of the clouds. It stands alone. No steam vents, no hot -springs surround it, and all the volcanic power of the region is -concentrated here. Sparks of electric fire mingle with the dazzling -sheaf of lighted fluid, every drop of which refracts the prismatic -colours. - -"Let us land," said the Professor. - -"But we must carefully avoid this waterspout, which would sink our -raft in a moment." - -Hans, steering with his usual skill, brought us to the other -extremity of the islet. - -I leaped up on the rock; my uncle lightly followed, while our hunter -remained at his post, like a man too wise ever to be astonished. - -We walked upon granite mingled with siliceous tufa. The soil shivers -and shakes under our feet, like the sides of an overheated boiler -filled with steam struggling to get loose. We come in sight of a -small central basin, out of which the geyser springs. I plunge a -register thermometer into the boiling water. It marks an intense heat -of 325 deg., which is far above the boiling point; therefore this water -issues from an ardent furnace, which is not at all in harmony with -Professor Liedenbrock's theories. I cannot help making the remark. - -"Well," he replied, "how does that make against my doctrine?" - -"Oh, nothing at all," I said, seeing that I was going in opposition -to immovable obstinacy. - -Still I am constrained to confess that hitherto we have been -wonderfully favoured, and that for some reason unknown to myself we -have accomplished our journey under singularly favourable conditions -of temperature. But it seems manifest to me that some day we shall -reach a region where the central heat attains its highest limits, and -goes beyond a point that can be registered by our thermometers. - -"That is what we shall see." So says the Professor, who, having named -this volcanic islet after his nephew, gives the signal to embark -again. - -For some minutes I am still contemplating the geyser. I notice that -it throws up its column of water with variable force: sometimes -sending it to a great height, then again to a lower, which I -attribute to the variable pressure of the steam accumulated in its -reservoir. - -At last we leave the island, rounding away past the low rocks on its -southern shore. Hans has taken advantage of the halt to refit his -rudder. - -But before going any farther I make a few observations, to calculate -the distance we have gone over, and note them in my journal. We have -crossed two hundred and seventy leagues of sea since leaving Port -Graeuben; and we are six hundred and twenty leagues from Iceland, -under England. [1] - -[1] This distance carries the travellers as far as under the Pyrenees -if the league measures three miles. (Trans.) - - - - -CHAPTER XXXV. - -AN ELECTRIC STORM - - -_Friday, August 21_.--On the morrow the magnificent geyser has -disappeared. The wind has risen, and has rapidly carried us away from -Axel Island. The roarings become lost in the distance. - -The weather--if we may use that term--will change before long. The -atmosphere is charged with vapours, pervaded with the electricity -generated by the evaporation of saline waters. The clouds are sinking -lower, and assume an olive hue. The electric light can scarcely -penetrate through the dense curtain which has dropped over the -theatre on which the battle of the elements is about to be waged. - -I feel peculiar sensations, like many creatures on earth at the -approach of violent atmospheric changes. The heavily voluted cumulus -clouds lower gloomily and threateningly; they wear that implacable -look which I have sometimes noticed at the outbreak of a great storm. -The air is heavy; the sea is calm. - -In the distance the clouds resemble great bales of cotton, piled up -in picturesque disorder. By degrees they dilate, and gain in huge -size what they lose in number. Such is their ponderous weight that -they cannot rise from the horizon; but, obeying an impulse from -higher currents, their dense consistency slowly yields. The gloom -upon them deepens; and they soon present to our view a ponderous mass -of almost level surface. From time to time a fleecy tuft of mist, -with yet some gleaming light left upon it, drops down upon the dense -floor of grey, and loses itself in the opaque and impenetrable mass. - -The atmosphere is evidently charged and surcharged with electricity. -My whole body is saturated; my hair bristles just as when you stand -upon an insulated stool under the action of an electrical machine. It -seems to me as if my companions, the moment they touched me, would -receive a severe shock like that from an electric eel. - -At ten in the morning the symptoms of storm become aggravated. The -wind never lulls but to acquire increased strength; the vast bank of -heavy clouds is a huge reservoir of fearful windy gusts and rushing -storms. - -I am loth to believe these atmospheric menaces, and yet I cannot help -muttering: - -"Here's some very bad weather coming on." - -The Professor made no answer. His temper is awful, to judge from the -working of his features, as he sees this vast length of ocean -unrolling before him to an indefinite extent. He can only spare time -to shrug his shoulders viciously. - -"There's a heavy storm coming on," I cried, pointing towards the -horizon. "Those clouds seem as if they were going to crush the sea." - -A deep silence falls on all around. The lately roaring winds are -hushed into a dead calm; nature seems to breathe no more, and to be -sinking into the stillness of death. On the mast already I see the -light play of a lambent St. Elmo's fire; the outstretched sail -catches not a breath of wind, and hangs like a sheet of lead. The -rudder stands motionless in a sluggish, waveless sea. But if we have -now ceased to advance why do we yet leave that sail loose, which at -the first shock of the tempest may capsize us in a moment? - -"Let us reef the sail and cut the mast down!" I cried. "That will be -safest." - -"No, no! Never!" shouted my impetuous uncle. "Never! Let the wind -catch us if it will! What I want is to get the least glimpse of rock -or shore, even if our raft should be smashed into shivers!" - -The words were hardly out of his mouth when a sudden change took -place in the southern sky. The piled-up vapours condense into water; -and the air, put into violent action to supply the vacuum left by the -condensation of the mists, rouses itself into a whirlwind. It rushes -on from the farthest recesses of the vast cavern. The darkness -deepens; scarcely can I jot down a few hurried notes. The helm makes -a bound. My uncle falls full length; I creep close to him. He has -laid a firm hold upon a rope, and appears to watch with grim -satisfaction this awful display of elemental strife. - -Hans stirs not. His long hair blown by the pelting storm, and laid -flat across his immovable countenance, makes him a strange figure; -for the end of each lock of loose flowing hair is tipped with little -luminous radiations. This frightful mask of electric sparks suggests -to me, even in this dizzy excitement, a comparison with pre-adamite -man, the contemporary of the ichthyosaurus and the megatherium. [1] - -[1] Rather of the mammoth and the mastodon. (Trans.) - -The mast yet holds firm. The sail stretches tight like a bubble ready -to burst. The raft flies at a rate that I cannot reckon, but not so -fast as the foaming clouds of spray which it dashes from side to side -in its headlong speed. - -"The sail! the sail!" I cry, motioning to lower it. - -"No!" replies my uncle. - -"_Nej!_" repeats Hans, leisurely shaking his head. - -But now the rain forms a rushing cataract in front of that horizon -toward which we are running with such maddening speed. But before it -has reached us the rain cloud parts asunder, the sea boils, and the -electric fires are brought into violent action by a mighty chemical -power that descends from the higher regions. The most vivid flashes -of lightning are mingled with the violent crash of continuous -thunder. Ceaseless fiery arrows dart in and out amongst the flying -thunder-clouds; the vaporous mass soon glows with incandescent heat; -hailstones rattle fiercely down, and as they dash upon our iron tools -they too emit gleams and flashes of lurid light. The heaving waves -resemble fiery volcanic hills, each belching forth its own interior -flames, and every crest is plumed with dancing fire. My eyes fail -under the dazzling light, my ears are stunned with the incessant -crash of thunder. I must be bound to the mast, which bows like a reed -before the mighty strength of the storm. - -(Here my notes become vague and indistinct. I have only been able to -find a few which I seem to have jotted down almost unconsciously. But -their very brevity and their obscurity reveal the intensity of the -excitement which dominated me, and describe the actual position even -better than my memory could do.) - -Sunday, 23.--Where are we? Driven forward with a swiftness that -cannot be measured. - -The night was fearful; no abatement of the storm. The din and uproar -are incessant; our ears are bleeding; to exchange a word is -impossible. - -The lightning flashes with intense brilliancy, and never seems to -cease for a moment. Zigzag streams of bluish white fire dash down -upon the sea and rebound, and then take an upward flight till they -strike the granite vault that overarches our heads. Suppose that -solid roof should crumble down upon our heads! Other flashes with -incessant play cross their vivid fires, while others again roll -themselves into balls of living fire which explode like bombshells, -but the music of which scarcely-adds to the din of the battle strife -that almost deprives us of our senses of hearing and sight; the limit -of intense loudness has been passed within which the human ear can -distinguish one sound from another. If all the powder magazines in -the world were to explode at once, we should hear no more than we do -now. - -From the under surface of the clouds there are continual emissions of -lurid light; electric matter is in continual evolution from their -component molecules; the gaseous elements of the air need to be -slaked with moisture; for innumerable columns of water rush upwards -into the air and fall back again in white foam. - -Whither are we flying? My uncle lies full length across the raft. - -The heat increases. I refer to the thermometer; it indicates . . . -(the figure is obliterated). - -_Monday, August 24._--Will there be an end to it? Is the atmospheric -condition, having once reached this density, to become final? - -We are prostrated and worn out with fatigue. But Hans is as usual. -The raft bears on still to the south-east. We have made two hundred -leagues since we left Axel Island. - -At noon the violence of the storm redoubles. We are obliged to secure -as fast as possible every article that belongs to our cargo. Each of -us is lashed to some part of the raft. The waves rise above our heads. - -For three days we have never been able to make each other hear a -word. Our mouths open, our lips move, but not a word can be heard. We -cannot even make ourselves heard by approaching our mouth close to -the ear. - -My uncle has drawn nearer to me. He has uttered a few words. They -seem to be 'We are lost'; but I am not sure. - -At last I write down the words: "Let us lower the sail." - -He nods his consent. - -Scarcely has he lifted his head again before a ball of fire has -bounded over the waves and lighted on board our raft. Mast and sail -flew up in an instant together, and I saw them carried up to -prodigious height, resembling in appearance a pterodactyle, one of -those strong birds of the infant world. - -We lay there, our blood running cold with unspeakable terror. The -fireball, half of it white, half azure blue, and the size of a -ten-inch shell, moved slowly about the raft, but revolving on its own -axis with astonishing velocity, as if whipped round by the force of -the whirlwind. Here it comes, there it glides, now it is up the -ragged stump of the mast, thence it lightly leaps on the provision -bag, descends with a light bound, and just skims the powder magazine. -Horrible! we shall be blown up; but no, the dazzling disk of -mysterious light nimbly leaps aside; it approaches Hans, who fixes -his blue eye upon it steadily; it threatens the head of my uncle, who -falls upon his knees with his head down to avoid it. And now my turn -comes; pale and trembling under the blinding splendour and the -melting heat, it drops at my feet, spinning silently round upon the -deck; I try to move my foot away, but cannot. - -A suffocating smell of nitrogen fills the air, it enters the throat, -it fills the lungs. We suffer stifling pains. - -Why am I unable to move my foot? Is it riveted to the planks? Alas! -the fall upon our fated raft of this electric globe has magnetised -every iron article on board. The instruments, the tools, our guns, -are clashing and clanking violently in their collisions with each -other; the nails of my boots cling tenaciously to a plate of iron let -into the timbers, and I cannot draw my foot away from the spot. At -last by a violent effort I release myself at the instant when the -ball in its gyrations was about to seize upon it, and carry me off my -feet .... - -Ah! what a flood of intense and dazzling light! the globe has burst, -and we are deluged with tongues of fire! - -Then all the light disappears. I could just see my uncle at full -length on the raft, and Hans still at his helm and spitting fire -under the action of the electricity which has saturated him. - -But where are we going to? Where? - -* * * * - -_Tuesday, August 25._--I recover from a long swoon. The storm -continues to roar and rage; the lightnings dash hither and thither, -like broods of fiery serpents filling all the air. Are we still under -the sea? Yes, we are borne at incalculable speed. We have been -carried under England, under the channel, under France, perhaps under -the whole of Europe. - -* * * * - -A fresh noise is heard! Surely it is the sea breaking upon the rocks! -But then . . . . - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVI. - -CALM PHILOSOPHIC DISCUSSIONS - - -Here I end what I may call my log, happily saved from the wreck, and -I resume my narrative as before. - -What happened when the raft was dashed upon the rocks is more than I -can tell. I felt myself hurled into the waves; and if I escaped from -death, and if my body was not torn over the sharp edges of the rocks, -it was because the powerful arm of Hans came to my rescue. - -The brave Icelander carried me out of the reach of the waves, over a -burning sand where I found myself by the side of my uncle. - -Then he returned to the rocks, against which the furious waves were -beating, to save what he could. I was unable to speak. I was -shattered with fatigue and excitement; I wanted a whole hour to -recover even a little. - -But a deluge of rain was still falling, though with that violence -which generally denotes the near cessation of a storm. A few -overhanging rocks afforded us some shelter from the storm. Hans -prepared some food, which I could not touch; and each of us, -exhausted with three sleepless nights, fell into a broken and painful -sleep. - -The next day the weather was splendid. The sky and the sea had sunk -into sudden repose. Every trace of the awful storm had disappeared. -The exhilarating voice of the Professor fell upon my ears as I awoke; -he was ominously cheerful. - -"Well, my boy," he cried, "have you slept well?" - -Would not any one have thought that we were still in our cheerful -little house on the Koenigstrasse and that I was only just coming down -to breakfast, and that I was to be married to Graeuben that day? - -Alas! if the tempest had but sent the raft a little more east, we -should have passed under Germany, under my beloved town of Hamburg, -under the very street where dwelt all that I loved most in the world. -Then only forty leagues would have separated us! But they were forty -leagues perpendicular of solid granite wall, and in reality we were a -thousand leagues asunder! - -All these painful reflections rapidly crossed my mind before I could -answer my uncle's question. - -"Well, now," he repeated, "won't you tell me how you have slept?" - -"Oh, very well," I said. "I am only a little knocked up, but I shall -soon be better." - -"Oh," says my uncle, "that's nothing to signify. You are only a -little bit tired." - -"But you, uncle, you seem in very good spirits this morning." - -"Delighted, my boy, delighted. We have got there." - -"To our journey's end?" - -"No; but we have got to the end of that endless sea. Now we shall go -by land, and really begin to go down! down! down!" - -"But, my dear uncle, do let me ask you one question." - -"Of course, Axel." - -"How about returning?" - -"Returning? Why, you are talking about the return before the arrival." - -"No, I only want to know how that is to be managed." - -"In the simplest way possible. When we have reached the centre of the -globe, either we shall find some new way to get back, or we shall -come back like decent folks the way we came. I feel pleased at the -thought that it is sure not to be shut against us." - -"But then we shall have to refit the raft." - -"Of course." - -"Then, as to provisions, have we enough to last?" - -"Yes; to be sure we have. Hans is a clever fellow, and I am sure he -must have saved a large part of our cargo. But still let us go and -make sure." - -We left this grotto which lay open to every wind. At the same time I -cherished a trembling hope which was a fear as well. It seemed to me -impossible that the terrible wreck of the raft should not have -destroyed everything on board. On my arrival on the shore I found -Hans surrounded by an assemblage of articles all arranged in good -order. My uncle shook hands with him with a lively gratitude. This -man, with almost superhuman devotion, had been at work all the while -that we were asleep, and had saved the most precious of the articles -at the risk of his life. - -Not that we had suffered no losses. For instance, our firearms; but -we might do without them. Our stock of powder had remained uninjured -after having risked blowing up during the storm. - -"Well," cried the Professor, "as we have no guns we cannot hunt, -that's all." - -"Yes, but how about the instruments?" - -"Here is the aneroid, the most useful of all, and for which I would -have given all the others. By means of it I can calculate the depth -and know when we have reached the centre; without it we might very -likely go beyond, and come out at the antipodes!" - -Such high spirits as these were rather too strong. - -"But where is the compass? I asked. - -"Here it is, upon this rock, in perfect condition, as well as the -thermometers and the chronometer. The hunter is a splendid fellow." - -There was no denying it. We had all our instruments. As for tools and -appliances, there they all lay on the ground--ladders, ropes, picks, -spades, etc. - -Still there was the question of provisions to be settled, and I -asked--"How are we off for provisions?" - -The boxes containing these were in a line upon the shore, in a -perfect state of preservation; for the most part the sea had spared -them, and what with biscuits, salt meat, spirits, and salt fish, we -might reckon on four months' supply. - -"Four months!" cried the Professor. "We have time to go and to -return; and with what is left I will give a grand dinner to my -friends at the Johannaeum." - -I ought by this time to have been quite accustomed to my uncle's -ways; yet there was always something fresh about him to astonish me. - -"Now," said he, "we will replenish our supply of water with the rain -which the storm has left in all these granite basins; therefore we -shall have no reason to fear anything from thirst. As for the raft, I -will recommend Hans to do his best to repair it, although I don't -expect it will be of any further use to us." - -"How so?" I cried. - -"An idea of my own, my lad. I don't think we shall come out by the -way that we went in." - -I stared at the Professor with a good deal of mistrust. I asked, was -he not touched in the brain? And yet there was method in his madness. - -"And now let us go to breakfast," said he. - -I followed him to a headland, after he had given his instructions to -the hunter. There preserved meat, biscuit, and tea made us an -excellent meal, one of the best I ever remember. Hunger, the fresh -air, the calm quiet weather, after the commotions we had gone -through, all contributed to give me a good appetite. - -Whilst breakfasting I took the opportunity to put to my uncle the -question where we were now. - -"That seems to me," I said, "rather difficult to make out." - -"Yes, it is difficult," he said, "to calculate exactly; perhaps even -impossible, since during these three stormy days I have been unable -to keep any account of the rate or direction of the raft; but still -we may get an approximation." - -"The last observation," I remarked, "was made on the island, when the -geyser was--" - -"You mean Axel Island. Don't decline the honour of having given your -name to the first island ever discovered in the central parts of the -globe." - -"Well," said I, "let it be Axel Island. Then we had cleared two -hundred and seventy leagues of sea, and we were six hundred leagues -from Iceland." - -"Very well," answered my uncle; "let us start from that point and -count four days' storm, during which our rate cannot have been less -than eighty leagues in the twenty-four hours." - -"That is right; and this would make three hundred leagues more." - -"Yes, and the Liedenbrock sea would be six hundred leagues from shore -to shore. Surely, Axel, it may vie in size with the Mediterranean -itself." - -"Especially," I replied, "if it happens that we have only crossed it -in its narrowest part. And it is a curious circumstance," I added, -"that if my computations are right, and we are nine hundred leagues -from Rejkiavik, we have now the Mediterranean above our head." - -"That is a good long way, my friend. But whether we are under Turkey -or the Atlantic depends very much upon the question in what direction -we have been moving. Perhaps we have deviated." - -"No, I think not. Our course has been the same all along, and I -believe this shore is south-east of Port Graeuben." - -"Well," replied my uncle, "we may easily ascertain this by consulting -the compass. Let us go and see what it says." - -The Professor moved towards the rock upon which Hans had laid down -the instruments. He was gay and full of spirits; he rubbed his hands, -he studied his attitudes. I followed him, curious to know if I was -right in my estimate. As soon as we had arrived at the rock my uncle -took the compass, laid it horizontally, and questioned the needle, -which, after a few oscillations, presently assumed a fixed position. -My uncle looked, and looked, and looked again. He rubbed his eyes, -and then turned to me thunderstruck with some unexpected discovery. - -"What is the matter?" I asked. - -He motioned to me to look. An exclamation of astonishment burst from -me. The north pole of the needle was turned to what we supposed to be -the south. It pointed to the shore instead of to the open sea! I -shook the box, examined it again, it was in perfect condition. In -whatever position I placed the box the needle pertinaciously returned -to this unexpected quarter. Therefore there seemed no reason to doubt -that during the storm there had been a sudden change of wind -unperceived by us, which had brought our raft back to the shore which -we thought we had left so long a distance behind us. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVII. - -THE LIEDENBROCK MUSEUM OF GEOLOGY - - -How shall I describe the strange series of passions which in -succession shook the breast of Professor Liedenbrock? First -stupefaction, then incredulity, lastly a downright burst of rage. -Never had I seen the man so put out of countenance and so disturbed. -The fatigues of our passage across, the dangers met, had all to be -begun over again. We had gone backwards instead of forwards! - -But my uncle rapidly recovered himself. - -"Aha! will fate play tricks upon me? Will the elements lay plots -against me? Shall fire, air, and water make a combined attack against -me? Well, they shall know what a determined man can do. I will not -yield. I will not stir a single foot backwards, and it will be seen -whether man or nature is to have the upper hand!" - -Erect upon the rock, angry and threatening, Otto Liedenbrock was a -rather grotesque fierce parody upon the fierce Achilles defying the -lightning. But I thought it my duty to interpose and attempt to lay -some restraint upon this unmeasured fanaticism. - -"Just listen to me," I said firmly. "Ambition must have a limit -somewhere; we cannot perform impossibilities; we are not at all fit -for another sea voyage; who would dream of undertaking a voyage of -five hundred leagues upon a heap of rotten planks, with a blanket in -rags for a sail, a stick for a mast, and fierce winds in our teeth? -We cannot steer; we shall be buffeted by the tempests, and we should -be fools and madmen to attempt to cross a second time." - -I was able to develop this series of unanswerable reasons for ten -minutes without interruption; not that the Professor was paying any -respectful attention to his nephew's arguments, but because he was -deaf to all my eloquence. - -"To the raft!" he shouted. - -Such was his only reply. It was no use for me to entreat, supplicate, -get angry, or do anything else in the way of opposition; it would -only have been opposing a will harder than the granite rock. - -Hans was finishing the repairs of the raft. One would have thought -that this strange being was guessing at my uncle's intentions. With a -few more pieces of surturbrand he had refitted our vessel. A sail -already hung from the new mast, and the wind was playing in its -waving folds. - -The Professor said a few words to the guide, and immediately he put -everything on board and arranged every necessary for our departure. -The air was clear--and the north-west wind blew steadily. - -What could I do? Could I stand against the two? It was impossible? If -Hans had but taken my side! But no, it was not to be. The Icelander -seemed to have renounced all will of his own and made a vow to forget -and deny himself. I could get nothing out of a servant so feudalised, -as it were, to his master. My only course was to proceed. - -I was therefore going with as much resignation as I could find to -resume my accustomed place on the raft, when my uncle laid his hand -upon my shoulder. - -"We shall not sail until to-morrow," he said. - -I made a movement intended to express resignation. - -"I must neglect nothing," he said; "and since my fate has driven me -on this part of the coast, I will not leave it until I have examined -it." - -To understand what followed, it must be borne in mind that, through -circumstances hereafter to be explained, we were not really where the -Professor supposed we were. In fact we were not upon the north shore -of the sea. - -"Now let us start upon fresh discoveries," I said. - -And leaving Hans to his work we started off together. The space -between the water and the foot of the cliffs was considerable. It -took half an hour to bring us to the wall of rock. We trampled under -our feet numberless shells of all the forms and sizes which existed -in the earliest ages of the world. I also saw immense carapaces more -than fifteen feet in diameter. They had been the coverings of those -gigantic glyptodons or armadilloes of the pleiocene period, of which -the modern tortoise is but a miniature representative. [1] The soil -was besides this scattered with stony fragments, boulders rounded by -water action, and ridged up in successive lines. I was therefore led -to the conclusion that at one time the sea must have covered the -ground on which we were treading. On the loose and scattered rocks, -now out of the reach of the highest tides, the waves had left -manifest traces of their power to wear their way in the hardest stone. - -This might up to a certain point explain the existence of an ocean -forty leagues beneath the surface of the globe. But in my opinion -this liquid mass would be lost by degrees farther and farther within -the interior of the earth, and it certainly had its origin in the -waters of the ocean overhead, which had made their way hither through -some fissure. Yet it must be believed that that fissure is now -closed, and that all this cavern or immense reservoir was filled in a -very short time. Perhaps even this water, subjected to the fierce -action of central heat, had partly been resolved into vapour. This -would explain the existence of those clouds suspended over our heads -and the development of that electricity which raised such tempests -within the bowels of the earth. - -This theory of the phenomena we had witnessed seemed satisfactory to -me; for however great and stupendous the phenomena of nature, fixed -physical laws will or may always explain them. - -We were therefore walking upon sedimentary soil, the deposits of the -waters of former ages. The Professor was carefully examining every -little fissure in the rocks. Wherever he saw a hole he always wanted -to know the depth of it. To him this was important. - -We had traversed the shores of the Liedenbrock sea for a mile when we -observed a sudden change in the appearance of the soil. It seemed -upset, contorted, and convulsed by a violent upheaval of the lower -strata. In many places depressions or elevations gave witness to some -tremendous power effecting the dislocation of strata. - -[1] The glyptodon and armadillo are mammalian; the tortoise is a -chelonian, a reptile, distinct classes of the animal kingdom; -therefore the latter cannot be a representative of the former. -(Trans.) - -We moved with difficulty across these granite fissures and chasms -mingled with silex, crystals of quartz, and alluvial deposits, when a -field, nay, more than a field, a vast plain, of bleached bones lay -spread before us. It seemed like an immense cemetery, where the -remains of twenty ages mingled their dust together. Huge mounds of -bony fragments rose stage after stage in the distance. They undulated -away to the limits of the horizon, and melted in the distance in a -faint haze. There within three square miles were accumulated the -materials for a complete history of the animal life of ages, a -history scarcely outlined in the too recent strata of the inhabited -world. - -But an impatient curiosity impelled our steps; crackling and -rattling, our feet were trampling on the remains of prehistoric -animals and interesting fossils, the possession of which is a matter -of rivalry and contention between the museums of great cities. A -thousand Cuviers could never have reconstructed the organic remains -deposited in this magnificent and unparalleled collection. - -I stood amazed. My uncle had uplifted his long arms to the vault -which was our sky; his mouth gaping wide, his eyes flashing behind -his shining spectacles, his head balancing with an up-and-down -motion, his whole attitude denoted unlimited astonishment. Here he -stood facing an immense collection of scattered leptotheria, -mericotheria, lophiodia, anoplotheria, megatheria, mastodons, -protopithecae, pterodactyles, and all sorts of extinct monsters here -assembled together for his special satisfaction. Fancy an -enthusiastic bibliomaniac suddenly brought into the midst of the -famous Alexandrian library burnt by Omar and restored by a miracle -from its ashes! just such a crazed enthusiast was my uncle, Professor -Liedenbrock. - -But more was to come, when, with a rush through clouds of bone dust, -he laid his hand upon a bare skull, and cried with a voice trembling -with excitement: - -"Axel! Axel! a human head!" - -"A human skull?" I cried, no less astonished. - -"Yes, nephew. Aha! M. Milne-Edwards! Ah! M. de Quatrefages, how I -wish you were standing here at the side of Otto Liedenbrock!" - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVIII. - -THE PROFESSOR IN HIS CHAIR AGAIN - - -To understand this apostrophe of my uncle's, made to absent French -savants, it will be necessary to allude to an event of high -importance in a palaeontological point of view, which had occurred a -little while before our departure. - -On the 28th of March, 1863, some excavators working under the -direction of M. Boucher de Perthes, in the stone quarries of Moulin -Quignon, near Abbeville, in the department of Somme, found a human -jawbone fourteen feet beneath the surface. It was the first fossil of -this nature that had ever been brought to light. Not far distant were -found stone hatchets and flint arrow-heads stained and encased by -lapse of time with a uniform coat of rust. - -The noise of this discovery was very great, not in France alone, but in -England and in Germany. Several savants of the French Institute, and -amongst them MM. Milne-Edwards and de Quatrefages, saw at once the -importance of this discovery, proved to demonstration the genuineness of -the bone in question, and became the most ardent defendants in what the -English called this 'trial of a jawbone.' To the geologists of the -United Kingdom, who believed in the certainty of the fact--Messrs. -Falconer, Busk, Carpenter, and others--scientific Germans were soon -joined, and amongst them the forwardest, the most fiery, and the most -enthusiastic, was my uncle Liedenbrock. - -Therefore the genuineness of a fossil human relic of the quaternary -period seemed to be incontestably proved and admitted. - -It is true that this theory met with a most obstinate opponent in M. -Elie de Beaumont. This high authority maintained that the soil of -Moulin Quignon was not diluvial at all, but was of much more recent -formation; and, agreeing in that with Cuvier, he refused to admit -that the human species could be contemporary with the animals of the -quaternary period. My uncle Liedenbrock, along with the great body of -the geologists, had maintained his ground, disputed, and argued, -until M. Elie de Beaumont stood almost alone in his opinion. - -We knew all these details, but we were not aware that since our -departure the question had advanced to farther stages. Other similar -maxillaries, though belonging to individuals of various types and -different nations, were found in the loose grey soil of certain -grottoes in France, Switzerland, and Belgium, as well as weapons, -tools, earthen utensils, bones of children and adults. The existence -therefore of man in the quaternary period seemed to become daily more -certain. - -Nor was this all. Fresh discoveries of remains in the pleiocene -formation had emboldened other geologists to refer back the human -species to a higher antiquity still. It is true that these remains -were not human bones, but objects bearing the traces of his -handiwork, such as fossil leg-bones of animals, sculptured and carved -evidently by the hand of man. - -Thus, at one bound, the record of the existence of man receded far -back into the history of the ages past; he was a predecessor of the -mastodon; he was a contemporary of the southern elephant; he lived a -hundred thousand years ago, when, according to geologists, the -pleiocene formation was in progress. - -Such then was the state of palaeontological science, and what we knew -of it was sufficient to explain our behaviour in the presence of this -stupendous Golgotha. Any one may now understand the frenzied -excitement of my uncle, when, twenty yards farther on, he found -himself face to face with a primitive man! - -It was a perfectly recognisable human body. Had some particular soil, -like that of the cemetery St. Michel, at Bordeaux, preserved it thus -for so many ages? It might be so. But this dried corpse, with its -parchment-like skin drawn tightly over the bony frame, the limbs -still preserving their shape, sound teeth, abundant hair, and finger -and toe nails of frightful length, this desiccated mummy startled us -by appearing just as it had lived countless ages ago. I stood mute -before this apparition of remote antiquity. My uncle, usually so -garrulous, was struck dumb likewise. We raised the body. We stood it -up against a rock. It seemed to stare at us out of its empty orbits. -We sounded with our knuckles his hollow frame. - -After some moments' silence the Professor was himself again. Otto -Liedenbrock, yielding to his nature, forgot all the circumstances of -our eventful journey, forgot where we were standing, forgot the -vaulted cavern which contained us. No doubt he was in mind back again -in his Johannaeum, holding forth to his pupils, for he assumed his -learned air; and addressing himself to an imaginary audience, he -proceeded thus: - -"Gentlemen, I have the honour to introduce to you a man of the -quaternary or post-tertiary system. Eminent geologists have denied -his existence, others no less eminent have affirmed it. The St. -Thomases of palaeontology, if they were here, might now touch him with -their fingers, and would be obliged to acknowledge their error. I am -quite aware that science has to be on its guard with discoveries of -this kind. I know what capital enterprising individuals like Barnum -have made out of fossil men. I have heard the tale of the kneepan of -Ajax, the pretended body of Orestes claimed to have been found by the -Spartans, and of the body of Asterius, ten cubits long, of which -Pausanias speaks. I have read the reports of the skeleton of Trapani, -found in the fourteenth century, and which was at the time identified -as that of Polyphemus; and the history of the giant unearthed in the -sixteenth century near Palermo. You know as well as I do, gentlemen, -the analysis made at Lucerne in 1577 of those huge bones which the -celebrated Dr. Felix Plater affirmed to be those of a giant nineteen -feet high. I have gone through the treatises of Cassanion, and all -those memoirs, pamphlets, answers, and rejoinders published -respecting the skeleton of Teutobochus, the invader of Gaul, dug out -of a sandpit in the Dauphine, in 1613. In the eighteenth century I -would have stood up for Scheuchzer's pre-adamite man against Peter -Campet. I have perused a writing, entitled Gigan--" - -Here my uncle's unfortunate infirmity met him--that of being unable -in public to pronounce hard words. - -"The pamphlet entitled Gigan--" - -He could get no further. - -"Giganteo--" - -It was not to be done. The unlucky word would not come out. At the -Johannaeum there would have been a laugh. - -"Gigantosteologie," at last the Professor burst out, between two -words which I shall not record here. - -Then rushing on with renewed vigour, and with great animation: - -"Yes, gentlemen, I know all these things, and more. I know that -Cuvier and Blumenbach have recognised in these bones nothing more -remarkable than the bones of the mammoth and other mammals of the -post-tertiary period. But in the presence of this specimen to doubt -would be to insult science. There stands the body! You may see it, -touch it. It is not a mere skeleton; it is an entire body, preserved -for a purely anthropological end and purpose." - -I was good enough not to contradict this startling assertion. - -"If I could only wash it in a solution of sulphuric acid," pursued my -uncle, "I should be able to clear it from all the earthy particles -and the shells which are incrusted about it. But I do not possess -that valuable solvent. Yet, such as it is, the body shall tell us its -own wonderful story." - -Here the Professor laid hold of the fossil skeleton, and handled it -with the skill of a dexterous showman. - -"You see," he said, "that it is not six feet long, and that we are -still separated by a long interval from the pretended race of giants. -As for the family to which it belongs, it is evidently Caucasian. It -is the white race, our own. The skull of this fossil is a regular -oval, or rather ovoid. It exhibits no prominent cheekbones, no -projecting jaws. It presents no appearance of that prognathism which -diminishes the facial angle. [1] Measure that angle. It is nearly -ninety degrees. But I will go further in my deductions, and I will -affirm that this specimen of the human family is of the Japhetic -race, which has since spread from the Indies to the Atlantic. Don't -smile, gentlemen." - -Nobody was smiling; but the learned Professor was frequently -disturbed by the broad smiles provoked by his learned eccentricities. - -"Yes," he pursued with animation, "this is a fossil man, the -contemporary of the mastodons whose remains fill this amphitheatre. -But if you ask me how he came there, how those strata on which he lay -slipped down into this enormous hollow in the globe, I confess I -cannot answer that question. No doubt in the post-tertiary period -considerable commotions were still disturbing the crust of the earth. -The long-continued cooling of the globe produced chasms, fissures, -clefts, and faults, into which, very probably, portions of the upper -earth may have fallen. I make no rash assertions; but there is the -man surrounded by his own works, by hatchets, by flint arrow-heads, -which are the characteristics of the stone age. And unless he came -here, like myself, as a tourist on a visit and as a pioneer of -science, I can entertain no doubt of the authenticity of his remote -origin." - -[1] The facial angle is formed by two lines, one touching the brow -and the front teeth, the other from the orifice of the ear to the -lower line of the nostrils. The greater this angle, the higher -intelligence denoted by the formation of the skull. Prognathism is -that projection of the jaw-bones which sharpens or lessons this -angle, and which is illustrated in the negro countenance and in the -lowest savages. - -The Professor ceased to speak, and the audience broke out into loud -and unanimous applause. For of course my uncle was right, and wiser -men than his nephew would have had some trouble to refute his -statements. - -Another remarkable thing. This fossil body was not the only one in -this immense catacomb. We came upon other bodies at every step -amongst this mortal dust, and my uncle might select the most curious -of these specimens to demolish the incredulity of sceptics. - -In fact it was a wonderful spectacle, that of these generations of -men and animals commingled in a common cemetery. Then one very -serious question arose presently which we scarcely dared to suggest. -Had all those creatures slided through a great fissure in the crust -of the earth, down to the shores of the Liedenbrock sea, when they -were dead and turning to dust, or had they lived and grown and died -here in this subterranean world under a false sky, just like -inhabitants of the upper earth? Until the present time we had seen -alive only marine monsters and fishes. Might not some living man, -some native of the abyss, be yet a wanderer below on this desert -strand? - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIX. - -FOREST SCENERY ILLUMINATED BY ELECTRICITY - - -For another half hour we trod upon a pavement of bones. We pushed on, -impelled by our burning curiosity. What other marvels did this cavern -contain? What new treasures lay here for science to unfold? I was -prepared for any surprise, my imagination was ready for any -astonishment however astounding. - -We had long lost sight of the sea shore behind the hills of bones. -The rash Professor, careless of losing his way, hurried me forward. -We advanced in silence, bathed in luminous electric fluid. By some -phenomenon which I am unable to explain, it lighted up all sides of -every object equally. Such was its diffusiveness, there being no -central point from which the light emanated, that shadows no longer -existed. You might have thought yourself under the rays of a vertical -sun in a tropical region at noonday and the height of summer. No -vapour was visible. The rocks, the distant mountains, a few isolated -clumps of forest trees in the distance, presented a weird and -wonderful aspect under these totally new conditions of a universal -diffusion of light. We were like Hoffmann's shadowless man. - -After walking a mile we reached the outskirts of a vast forest, but -not one of those forests of fungi which bordered Port Graeuben. - -Here was the vegetation of the tertiary period in its fullest blaze -of magnificence. Tall palms, belonging to species no longer living, -splendid palmacites, firs, yews, cypress trees, thujas, -representatives of the conifers, were linked together by a tangled -network of long climbing plants. A soft carpet of moss and hepaticas -luxuriously clothed the soil. A few sparkling streams ran almost in -silence under what would have been the shade of the trees, but that -there was no shadow. On their banks grew tree-ferns similar to those -we grow in hothouses. But a remarkable feature was the total absence -of colour in all those trees, shrubs, and plants, growing without the -life-giving heat and light of the sun. Everything seemed mixed-up and -confounded in one uniform silver grey or light brown tint like that -of fading and faded leaves. Not a green leaf anywhere, and the -flowers--which were abundant enough in the tertiary period, which -first gave birth to flowers--looked like brown-paper flowers, -without colour or scent. - -My uncle Liedenbrock ventured to penetrate under this colossal grove. -I followed him, not without fear. Since nature had here provided -vegetable nourishment, why should not the terrible mammals be there -too? I perceived in the broad clearings left by fallen trees, decayed -with age, leguminose plants, acerineae, rubiceae and many other eatable -shrubs, dear to ruminant animals at every period. Then I observed, -mingled together in confusion, trees of countries far apart on the -surface of the globe. The oak and the palm were growing side by side, -the Australian eucalyptus leaned against the Norwegian pine, the -birch-tree of the north mingled its foliage with New Zealand kauris. -It was enough to distract the most ingenious classifier of -terrestrial botany. - -Suddenly I halted. I drew back my uncle. - -The diffused light revealed the smallest object in the dense and -distant thickets. I had thought I saw--no! I did see, with my own -eyes, vast colossal forms moving amongst the trees. They were -gigantic animals; it was a herd of mastodons--not fossil remains, -but living and resembling those the bones of which were found in the -marshes of Ohio in 1801. I saw those huge elephants whose long, -flexible trunks were grouting and turning up the soil under the trees -like a legion of serpents. I could hear the crashing noise of their -long ivory tusks boring into the old decaying trunks. The boughs -cracked, and the leaves torn away by cartloads went down the -cavernous throats of the vast brutes. - -So, then, the dream in which I had had a vision of the prehistoric -world, of the tertiary and post-tertiary periods, was now realised. -And there we were alone, in the bowels of the earth, at the mercy of -its wild inhabitants! - -My uncle was gazing with intense and eager interest. - -"Come on!" said he, seizing my arm. "Forward! forward!" - -"No, I will not!" I cried. "We have no firearms. What could we do in the -midst of a herd of these four-footed giants? Come away, uncle--come! No -human being may with safety dare the anger of these monstrous beasts." - -"No human creature?" replied my uncle in a lower voice. "You are -wrong, Axel. Look, look down there! I fancy I see a living creature -similar to ourselves: it is a man!" - -I looked, shaking my head incredulously. But though at first I was -unbelieving I had to yield to the evidence of my senses. - -In fact, at a distance of a quarter of a mile, leaning against the -trunk of a gigantic kauri, stood a human being, the Proteus of those -subterranean regions, a new son of Neptune, watching this countless -herd of mastodons. - -Immanis pecoris custos, immanior ipse. [1] - -[1] "The shepherd of gigantic herds, and huger still himself." - -Yes, truly, huger still himself. It was no longer a fossil being like -him whose dried remains we had easily lifted up in the field of -bones; it was a giant, able to control those monsters. In stature he -was at least twelve feet high. His head, huge and unshapely as a -buffalo's, was half hidden in the thick and tangled growth of his -unkempt hair. It most resembled the mane of the primitive elephant. -In his hand he wielded with ease an enormous bough, a staff worthy of -this shepherd of the geologic period. - -We stood petrified and speechless with amazement. But he might see -us! We must fly! - -"Come, do come!" I said to my uncle, who for once allowed himself to -be persuaded. - -In another quarter of an hour our nimble heels had carried us beyond -the reach of this horrible monster. - -And yet, now that I can reflect quietly, now that my spirit has grown -calm again, now that months have slipped by since this strange and -supernatural meeting, what am I to think? what am I to believe? I -must conclude that it was impossible that our senses had been -deceived, that our eyes did not see what we supposed they saw. No -human being lives in this subterranean world; no generation of men -dwells in those inferior caverns of the globe, unknown to and -unconnected with the inhabitants of its surface. It is absurd to -believe it! - -I had rather admit that it may have been some animal whose structure -resembled the human, some ape or baboon of the early geological ages, -some protopitheca, or some mesopitheca, some early or middle ape like -that discovered by Mr. Lartet in the bone cave of Sansau. But this -creature surpassed in stature all the measurements known in modern -palaeontology. But that a man, a living man, and therefore whole -generations doubtless besides, should be buried there in the bowels -of the earth, is impossible. - -However, we had left behind us the luminous forest, dumb with -astonishment, overwhelmed and struck down with a terror which -amounted to stupefaction. We kept running on for fear the horrible -monster might be on our track. It was a flight, a fall, like that -fearful pulling and dragging which is peculiar to nightmare. -Instinctively we got back to the Liedenbrock sea, and I cannot say -into what vagaries my mind would not have carried me but for a -circumstance which brought me back to practical matters. - -Although I was certain that we were now treading upon a soil not -hitherto touched by our feet, I often perceived groups of rocks which -reminded me of those about Port Graeuben. Besides, this seemed to -confirm the indications of the needle, and to show that we had -against our will returned to the north of the Liedenbrock sea. -Occasionally we felt quite convinced. Brooks and waterfalls were -tumbling everywhere from the projections in the rocks. I thought I -recognised the bed of surturbrand, our faithful Hansbach, and the -grotto in which I had recovered life and consciousness. Then a few -paces farther on, the arrangement of the cliffs, the appearance of an -unrecognised stream, or the strange outline of a rock, came to throw -me again into doubt. - -I communicated my doubts to my uncle. Like myself, he hesitated; he -could recognise nothing again amidst this monotonous scene. - -"Evidently," said I, "we have not landed again at our original -starting point, but the storm has carried us a little higher, and if -we follow the shore we shall find Port Graeuben." - -"If that is the case it will be useless to continue our exploration, -and we had better return to our raft. But, Axel, are you not -mistaken?" - -"It is difficult to speak decidedly, uncle, for all these rocks are -so very much alike. Yet I think I recognise the promontory at the -foot of which Hans constructed our launch. We must be very near the -little port, if indeed this is not it," I added, examining a creek -which I thought I recognised. - -"No, Axel, we should at least find our own traces and I see nothing--" - -"But I do see," I cried, darting upon an object lying on the sand. - -And I showed my uncle a rusty dagger which I had just picked up. - -"Come," said he, "had you this weapon with you?" - -"I! No, certainly! But you, perhaps--" - -"Not that I am aware," said the Professor. "I have never had this -object in my possession." - -"Well, this is strange!" - -"No, Axel, it is very simple. The Icelanders often wear arms of this -kind. This must have belonged to Hans, and he has lost it." - -I shook my head. Hans had never had an object like this in his -possession. - -"Did it not belong to some pre-adamite warrior?" I cried, "to some -living man, contemporary with the huge cattle-driver? But no. This is -not a relic of the stone age. It is not even of the iron age. This -blade is steel--" - -My uncle stopped me abruptly on my way to a dissertation which would -have taken me a long way, and said coolly: - -"Be calm, Axel, and reasonable. This dagger belongs to the sixteenth -century; it is a poniard, such as gentlemen carried in their belts to -give the coup _de grace._ Its origin is Spanish. It was never either -yours, or mine, or the hunter's, nor did it belong to any of those -human beings who may or may not inhabit this inner world. See, it was -never jagged like this by cutting men's throats; its blade is coated -with a rust neither a day, nor a year, nor a hundred years old." - -The Professor was getting excited according to his wont, and was -allowing his imagination to run away with him. - -"Axel, we are on the way towards the grand discovery. This blade has -been left on the strand for from one to three hundred years, and has -blunted its edge upon the rocks that fringe this subterranean sea!" - -"But it has not come alone. It has not twisted itself out of shape; -some one has been here before us! - -"Yes--a man has." - -"And who was that man?" - -"A man who has engraved his name somewhere with that dagger. That man -wanted once more to mark the way to the centre of the earth. Let us -look about: look about!" - -And, wonderfully interested, we peered all along the high wall, -peeping into every fissure which might open out into a gallery. - -And so we arrived at a place where the shore was much narrowed. Here -the sea came to lap the foot of the steep cliff, leaving a passage no -wider than a couple of yards. Between two boldly projecting rocks -appeared the mouth of a dark tunnel. - -There, upon a granite slab, appeared two mysterious graven letters, -half eaten away by time. They were the initials of the bold and -daring traveller: - -[Runic initials appear here] - -"A. S.," shouted my uncle. "Arne Saknussemm! Arne Saknussemm -everywhere!" - - - - -CHAPTER XL. - -PREPARATIONS FOR BLASTING A PASSAGE TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH - - -Since the start upon this marvellous pilgrimage I had been through so -many astonishments that I might well be excused for thinking myself -well hardened against any further surprise. Yet at the sight of these -two letters, engraved on this spot three hundred years ago, I stood -aghast in dumb amazement. Not only were the initials of the learned -alchemist visible upon the living rock, but there lay the iron point -with which the letters had been engraved. I could no longer doubt of -the existence of that wonderful traveller and of the fact of his -unparalleled journey, without the most glaring incredulity. - -Whilst these reflections were occupying me, Professor Liedenbrock had -launched into a somewhat rhapsodical eulogium, of which Arne -Saknussemm was, of course, the hero. - -"Thou marvellous genius!" he cried, "thou hast not forgotten one -indication which might serve to lay open to mortals the road through -the terrestrial crust; and thy fellow-creatures may even now, after -the lapse of three centuries, again trace thy footsteps through these -deep and darksome ways. You reserved the contemplation of these -wonders for other eyes besides your own. Your name, graven from stage -to stage, leads the bold follower of your footsteps to the very -centre of our planet's core, and there again we shall find your own -name written with your own hand. I too will inscribe my name upon -this dark granite page. But for ever henceforth let this cape that -advances into the sea discovered by yourself be known by your own -illustrious name--Cape Saknussemm." - -Such were the glowing words of panegyric which fell upon my attentive -ear, and I could not resist the sentiment of enthusiasm with which I -too was infected. The fire of zeal kindled afresh in me. I forgot -everything. I dismissed from my mind the past perils of the journey, -the future danger of our return. That which another had done I -supposed we might also do, and nothing that was not superhuman -appeared impossible to me. - -"Forward! forward!" I cried. - -I was already darting down the gloomy tunnel when the Professor -stopped me; he, the man of impulse, counselled patience and coolness. - -"Let us first return to Hans," he said, "and bring the raft to this -spot." - -I obeyed, not without dissatisfaction, and passed out rapidly among -the rocks on the shore. - -I said: "Uncle, do you know it seems to me that circumstances have -wonderfully befriended us hitherto?" - -"You think so, Axel?" - -"No doubt; even the tempest has put us on the right way. Blessings on -that storm! It has brought us back to this coast from which fine -weather would have carried us far away. Suppose we had touched with -our prow (the prow of a rudder!) the southern shore of the -Liedenbrock sea, what would have become of us? We should never have -seen the name of Saknussemm, and we should at this moment be -imprisoned on a rockbound, impassable coast." - -"Yes, Axel, it is providential that whilst supposing we were steering -south we should have just got back north at Cape Saknussemm. I must -say that this is astonishing, and that I feel I have no way to -explain it." - -"What does that signify, uncle? Our business is not to explain facts, -but to use them!" - -"Certainly; but--" - -"Well, uncle, we are going to resume the northern route, and to pass -under the north countries of Europe--under Sweden, Russia, Siberia: -who knows where?--instead of burrowing under the deserts of Africa, -or perhaps the waves of the Atlantic; and that is all I want to know." - -"Yes, Axel, you are right. It is all for the best, since we have left -that weary, horizontal sea, which led us nowhere. Now we shall go -down, down, down! Do you know that it is now only 1,500 leagues to -the centre of the globe?" - -"Is that all?" I cried. "Why, that's nothing. Let us start: march!" - -All this crazy talk was going on still when we met the hunter. -Everything was made ready for our instant departure. Every bit of -cordage was put on board. We took our places, and with our sail set, -Hans steered us along the coast to Cape Saknussemm. - -The wind was unfavourable to a species of launch not calculated for -shallow water. In many places we were obliged to push ourselves along -with iron-pointed sticks. Often the sunken rocks just beneath the -surface obliged us to deviate from our straight course. At last, -after three hours' sailing, about six in the evening we reached a -place suitable for our landing. I jumped ashore, followed by my uncle -and the Icelander. This short passage had not served to cool my -ardour. On the contrary, I even proposed to burn 'our ship,' to -prevent the possibility of return; but my uncle would not consent to -that. I thought him singularly lukewarm. - -"At least," I said, "don't let us lose a minute." - -"Yes, yes, lad," he replied; "but first let us examine this new -gallery, to see if we shall require our ladders." - -My uncle put his Ruhmkorff's apparatus in action; the raft moored to -the shore was left alone; the mouth of the tunnel was not twenty -yards from us; and our party, with myself at the head, made for it -without a moment's delay. - -The aperture, which was almost round, was about five feet in -diameter; the dark passage was cut out in the live rock and lined -with a coat of the eruptive matter which formerly issued from it; the -interior was level with the ground outside, so that we were able to -enter without difficulty. We were following a horizontal plane, when, -only six paces in, our progress was interrupted by an enormous block -just across our way. - -"Accursed rock!" I cried in a passion, finding myself suddenly -confronted by an impassable obstacle. - -Right and left we searched in vain for a way, up and down, side to -side; there was no getting any farther. I felt fearfully -disappointed, and I would not admit that the obstacle was final. I -stopped, I looked underneath the block: no opening. Above: granite -still. Hans passed his lamp over every portion of the barrier in -vain. We must give up all hope of passing it. - -I sat down in despair. My uncle strode from side to side in the -narrow passage. - -"But how was it with Saknussemm?" I cried. - -"Yes," said my uncle, "was he stopped by this stone barrier?" - -"No, no," I replied with animation. "This fragment of rock has been -shaken down by some shock or convulsion, or by one of those magnetic -storms which agitate these regions, and has blocked up the passage -which lay open to him. Many years have elapsed since the return of -Saknussemm to the surface and the fall of this huge fragment. Is it -not evident that this gallery was once the way open to the course of -the lava, and that at that time there must have been a free passage? -See here are recent fissures grooving and channelling the granite -roof. This roof itself is formed of fragments of rock carried down, -of enormous stones, as if by some giant's hand; but at one time the -expulsive force was greater than usual, and this block, like the -falling keystone of a ruined arch, has slipped down to the ground and -blocked up the way. It is only an accidental obstruction, not met by -Saknussemm, and if we don't destroy it we shall be unworthy to reach -the centre of the earth." - -Such was my sentence! The soul of the Professor had passed into me. -The genius of discovery possessed me wholly. I forgot the past, I -scorned the future. I gave not a thought to the things of the surface -of this globe into which I had dived; its cities and its sunny -plains, Hamburg and the Koenigstrasse, even poor Graeuben, who must -have given us up for lost, all were for the time dismissed from the -pages of my memory. - -"Well," cried my uncle, "let us make a way with our pickaxes." - -"Too hard for the pickaxe." - -"Well, then, the spade." - -"That would take us too long." - -"What, then?" - -"Why gunpowder, to be sure! Let us mine the obstacle and blow it up." - -"Oh, yes, it is only a bit of rock to blast!" - -"Hans, to work!" cried my uncle. - -The Icelander returned to the raft and soon came back with an iron -bar which he made use of to bore a hole for the charge. This was no -easy work. A hole was to be made large enough to hold fifty pounds of -guncotton, whose expansive force is four times that of gunpowder. - -I was terribly excited. Whilst Hans was at work I was actively -helping my uncle to prepare a slow match of wetted powder encased in -linen. - -"This will do it," I said. - -"It will," replied my uncle. - -By midnight our mining preparations were over; the charge was rammed -into the hole, and the slow match uncoiled along the gallery showed -its end outside the opening. - -A spark would now develop the whole of our preparations into activity. - -"To-morrow," said the Professor. - -I had to be resigned and to wait six long hours. - - - - -CHAPTER XLI. - -THE GREAT EXPLOSION AND THE RUSH DOWN BELOW - - -The next day, Thursday, August 27, is a well-remembered date in our -subterranean journey. It never returns to my memory without sending -through me a shudder of horror and a palpitation of the heart. From -that hour we had no further occasion for the exercise of reason, or -judgment, or skill, or contrivance. We were henceforth to be hurled -along, the playthings of the fierce elements of the deep. - -At six we were afoot. The moment drew near to clear a way by blasting -through the opposing mass of granite. - -I begged for the honour of lighting the fuse. This duty done, I was -to join my companions on the raft, which had not yet been unloaded; -we should then push off as far as we could and avoid the dangers -arising from the explosion, the effects of which were not likely to -be confined to the rock itself. - -The fuse was calculated to burn ten minutes before setting fire to -the mine. I therefore had sufficient time to get away to the raft. - -I prepared to fulfil my task with some anxiety. - -After a hasty meal, my uncle and the hunter embarked whilst I -remained on shore. I was supplied with a lighted lantern to set fire -to the fuse. "Now go," said my uncle, "and return immediately to us." -"Don't be uneasy," I replied. "I will not play by the way." I -immediately proceeded to the mouth of the tunnel. I opened my -lantern. I laid hold of the end of the match. The Professor stood, -chronometer in hand. "Ready?" he cried. - -"Ay." - -"Fire!" - -I instantly plunged the end of the fuse into the lantern. It -spluttered and flamed, and I ran at the top of my speed to the raft. - -"Come on board quickly, and let us push off." - -Hans, with a vigorous thrust, sent us from the shore. The raft shot -twenty fathoms out to sea. - -It was a moment of intense excitement. The Professor was watching the -hand of the chronometer. - -"Five minutes more!" he said. "Four! Three!" - -My pulse beat half-seconds. - -"Two! One! Down, granite rocks; down with you." - -What took place at that moment? I believe I did not hear the dull -roar of the explosion. But the rocks suddenly assumed a new -arrangement: they rent asunder like a curtain. I saw a bottomless pit -open on the shore. The sea, lashed into sudden fury, rose up in an -enormous billow, on the ridge of which the unhappy raft was uplifted -bodily in the air with all its crew and cargo. - -We all three fell down flat. In less than a second we were in deep, -unfathomable darkness. Then I felt as if not only myself but the raft -also had no support beneath. I thought it was sinking; but it was not -so. I wanted to speak to my uncle, but the roaring of the waves -prevented him from hearing even the sound of my voice. - -In spite of darkness, noise, astonishment, and terror, I then -understood what had taken place. - -On the other side of the blown-up rock was an abyss. The explosion -had caused a kind of earthquake in this fissured and abysmal region; -a great gulf had opened; and the sea, now changed into a torrent, was -hurrying us along into it. - -I gave myself up for lost. - -An hour passed away--two hours, perhaps--I cannot tell. We clutched -each other fast, to save ourselves from being thrown off the raft. We -felt violent shocks whenever we were borne heavily against the craggy -projections. Yet these shocks were not very frequent, from which I -concluded that the gully was widening. It was no doubt the same road -that Saknussemm had taken; but instead of walking peaceably down it, -as he had done, we were carrying a whole sea along with us. - -These ideas, it will be understood, presented themselves to my mind -in a vague and undetermined form. I had difficulty in associating any -ideas together during this headlong race, which seemed like a -vertical descent. To judge by the air which was whistling past me and -made a whizzing in my ears, we were moving faster than the fastest -express trains. To light a torch under these' conditions would have -been impossible; and our last electric apparatus had been shattered -by the force of the explosion. - -I was therefore much surprised to see a clear light shining near me. -It lighted up the calm and unmoved countenance of Hans. The skilful -huntsman had succeeded in lighting the lantern; and although it -flickered so much as to threaten to go out, it threw a fitful light -across the awful darkness. - -I was right in my supposition. It was a wide gallery. The dim light -could not show us both its walls at once. The fall of the waters -which were carrying us away exceeded that of the swiftest rapids in -American rivers. Its surface seemed composed of a sheaf of arrows -hurled with inconceivable force; I cannot convey my impressions by a -better comparison. The raft, occasionally seized by an eddy, spun -round as it still flew along. When it approached the walls of the -gallery I threw on them the light of the lantern, and I could judge -somewhat of the velocity of our speed by noticing how the jagged -projections of the rocks spun into endless ribbons and bands, so that -we seemed confined within a network of shifting lines. I supposed we -were running at the rate of thirty leagues an hour. - -My uncle and I gazed on each other with haggard eyes, clinging to the -stump of the mast, which had snapped asunder at the first shock of -our great catastrophe. We kept our backs to the wind, not to be -stifled by the rapidity of a movement which no human power could -check. - -Hours passed away. No change in our situation; but a discovery came -to complicate matters and make them worse. - -In seeking to put our cargo into somewhat better order, I found that -the greater part of the articles embarked had disappeared at the -moment of the explosion, when the sea broke in upon us with such -violence. I wanted to know exactly what we had saved, and with the -lantern in my hand I began my examination. Of our instruments none -were saved but the compass and the chronometer; our stock of ropes -and ladders was reduced to the bit of cord rolled round the stump of -the mast! Not a spade, not a pickaxe, not a hammer was left us; and, -irreparable disaster! we had only one day's provisions left. - -I searched every nook and corner, every crack and cranny in the raft. -There was nothing. Our provisions were reduced to one bit of salt -meat and a few biscuits. - -I stared at our failing supplies stupidly. I refused to take in the -gravity of our loss. And yet what was the use of troubling myself. If -we had had provisions enough for months, how could we get out of the -abyss into which we were being hurled by an irresistible torrent? Why -should we fear the horrors of famine, when death was swooping down -upon us in a multitude of other forms? Would there be time left to -die of starvation? - -Yet by an inexplicable play of the imagination I forgot my present -dangers, to contemplate the threatening future. Was there any chance -of escaping from the fury of this impetuous torrent, and of returning -to the surface of the globe? I could not form the slightest -conjecture how or when. But one chance in a thousand, or ten -thousand, is still a chance; whilst death from starvation would leave -us not the smallest hope in the world. - -The thought came into my mind to declare the whole truth to my uncle, -to show him the dreadful straits to which we were reduced, and to -calculate how long we might yet expect to live. But I had the courage -to preserve silence. I wished to leave him cool and self-possessed. - -At that moment the light from our lantern began to sink by little and -little, and then went out entirely. The wick had burnt itself out. -Black night reigned again; and there was no hope left of being able -to dissipate the palpable darkness. We had yet a torch left, but we -could not have kept it alight. Then, like a child, I closed my eyes -firmly, not to see the darkness. - -After a considerable lapse of time our speed redoubled. I could -perceive it by the sharpness of the currents that blew past my face. -The descent became steeper. I believe we were no longer sliding, but -falling down. I had an impression that we were dropping vertically. -My uncle's hand, and the vigorous arm of Hans, held me fast. - -Suddenly, after a space of time that I could not measure, I felt a -shock. The raft had not struck against any hard resistance, but had -suddenly been checked in its fall. A waterspout, an immense liquid -column, was beating upon the surface of the waters. I was -suffocating! I was drowning! - -But this sudden flood was not of long duration. In a few seconds I -found myself in the air again, which I inhaled with all the force of -my lungs. My uncle and Hans were still holding me fast by the arms; -and the raft was still carrying us. - - - -CHAPTER XLII. - -HEADLONG SPEED UPWARD THROUGH THE HORRORS OF DARKNESS - - -It might have been, as I guessed, about ten at night. The first of my -senses which came into play after this last bout was that of hearing. -All at once I could hear; and it was a real exercise of the sense of -hearing. I could hear the silence in the gallery after the din which -for hours had stunned me. At last these words of my uncle's came to -me like a vague murmuring: - -"We are going up." - -"What do you mean?" I cried. - -"Yes, we are going up--up!" - -I stretched out my arm. I touched the wall, and drew back my hand -bleeding. We were ascending with extreme rapidity. - -"The torch! The torch!" cried the Professor. - -Not without difficulty Hans succeeded in lighting the torch; and the -flame, preserving its upward tendency, threw enough light to show us -what kind of a place we were in. - -"Just as I thought," said the Professor "We are in a tunnel not -four-and-twenty feet in diameter. The water had reached the bottom of -the gulf. It is now rising to its level, and carrying us with it." - -"Where to?" - -"I cannot tell; but we must be ready for anything. We are mounting at -a speed which seems to me of fourteen feet in a second, or ten miles -an hour. At this rate we shall get on." - -"Yes, if nothing stops us; if this well has an aperture. But suppose -it to be stopped. If the air is condensed by the pressure of this -column of water we shall be crushed." - -"Axel," replied the Professor with perfect coolness, "our situation -is almost desperate; but there are some chances of deliverance, and -it is these that I am considering. If at every instant we may perish, -so at every instant we may be saved. Let us then be prepared to seize -upon the smallest advantage." - -"But what shall we do now?" - -"Recruit our strength by eating." - -At these words I fixed a haggard eye upon my uncle. That which I had -been so unwilling to confess at last had to be told. - -"Eat, did you say?" - -"Yes, at once." - -The Professor added a few words in Danish, but Hans shook his head -mournfully. - -"What!" cried my uncle. "Have we lost our provisions?" - -"Yes; here is all we have left; one bit of salt meat for the three." - -My uncle stared at me as if he could not understand. - -"Well," said I, "do you think we have any chance of being saved?" - -My question was unanswered. - -An hour passed away. I began to feel the pangs of a violent hunger. -My companions were suffering too, and not one of us dared touch this -wretched remnant of our goodly store. - -But now we were mounting up with excessive speed. Sometimes the air -would cut our breath short, as is experienced by aeronauts ascending -too rapidly. But whilst they suffer from cold in proportion to their -rise, we were beginning to feel a contrary effect. The heat was -increasing in a manner to cause us the most fearful anxiety, and -certainly the temperature was at this moment at the height of 100 deg. -Fahr. - -What could be the meaning of such a change? Up to this time facts had -supported the theories of Davy and of Liedenbrock; until now -particular conditions of non-conducting rocks, electricity and -magnetism, had tempered the laws of nature, giving us only a -moderately warm climate, for the theory of a central fire remained in -my estimation the only one that was true and explicable. Were we then -turning back to where the phenomena of central heat ruled in all -their rigour and would reduce the most refractory rocks to the state -of a molten liquid? I feared this, and said to the Professor: - -"If we are neither drowned, nor shattered to pieces, nor starved to -death, there is still the chance that we may be burned alive and -reduced to ashes." - -At this he shrugged his shoulders and returned to his thoughts. - -Another hour passed, and, except some slight increase in the -temperature, nothing new had happened. - -"Come," said he, "we must determine upon something." - -"Determine on what?" said I. - -"Yes, we must recruit our strength by carefully rationing ourselves, -and so prolong our existence by a few hours. But we shall be reduced -to very great weakness at last." - -"And our last hour is not far off." - -"Well, if there is a chance of safety, if a moment for active -exertion presents itself, where should we find the required strength -if we allowed ourselves to be enfeebled by hunger?" - -"Well, uncle, when this bit of meat has been devoured what shall we -have left?" - -"Nothing, Axel, nothing at all. But will it do you any more good to -devour it with your eyes than with your teeth? Your reasoning has in -it neither sense nor energy." - -"Then don't you despair?" I cried irritably. - -"No, certainly not," was the Professor's firm reply. - -"What! do you think there is any chance of safety left?" - -"Yes, I do; as long as the heart beats, as long as body and soul keep -together, I cannot admit that any creature endowed with a will has -need to despair of life." - -Resolute words these! The man who could speak so, under such -circumstances, was of no ordinary type. - -"Finally, what do you mean to do?" I asked. - -"Eat what is left to the last crumb, and recruit our fading strength. -This meal will be our last, perhaps: so let it be! But at any rate we -shall once more be men, and not exhausted, empty bags." - -"Well, let us consume it then," I cried. - -My uncle took the piece of meat and the few biscuits which had -escaped from the general destruction. He divided them into three -equal portions and gave one to each. This made about a pound of -nourishment for each. The Professor ate his greedily, with a kind of -feverish rage. I ate without pleasure, almost with disgust; Hans -quietly, moderately, masticating his small mouthfuls without any -noise, and relishing them with the calmness of a man above all -anxiety about the future. By diligent search he had found a flask of -Hollands; he offered it to us each in turn, and this generous -beverage cheered us up slightly. - -"_Fortraefflig,_" said Hans, drinking in his turn. - -"Excellent," replied my uncle. - -A glimpse of hope had returned, although without cause. But our last -meal was over, and it was now five in the morning. - -Man is so constituted that health is a purely negative state. Hunger -once satisfied, it is difficult for a man to imagine the horrors of -starvation; they cannot be understood without being felt. - -Therefore it was that after our long fast these few mouthfuls of meat -and biscuit made us triumph over our past agonies. - -But as soon as the meal was done, we each of us fell deep into -thought. What was Hans thinking of--that man of the far West, but -who seemed ruled by the fatalist doctrines of the East? - -As for me, my thoughts were made up of remembrances, and they carried -me up to the surface of the globe of which I ought never to have -taken leave. The house in the Koenigstrasse, my poor dear Graeuben, -that kind soul Martha, flitted like visions before my eyes, and in -the dismal moanings which from time to time reached my ears I thought -I could distinguish the roar of the traffic of the great cities upon -earth. - -My uncle still had his eye upon his work. Torch in hand, he tried to -gather some idea of our situation from the observation of the strata. -This calculation could, at best, be but a vague approximation; but a -learned man is always a philosopher when he succeeds in remaining -cool, and assuredly Professor Liedenbrock possessed this quality to a -surprising degree. - -I could hear him murmuring geological terms. I could understand them, -and in spite of myself I felt interested in this last geological -study. - -"Eruptive granite," he was saying. "We are still in the primitive -period. But we are going up, up, higher still. Who can tell?" - -Ah! who can tell? With his hand he was examining the perpendicular -wall, and in a few more minutes he continued: - -"This is gneiss! here is mica schist! Ah! presently we shall come to -the transition period, and then--" - -What did the Professor mean? Could he be trying to measure the -thickness of the crust of the earth that lay between us and the world -above? Had he any means of making this calculation? No, he had not -the aneroid, and no guessing could supply its place. - -Still the temperature kept rising, and I felt myself steeped in a -broiling atmosphere. I could only compare it to the heat of a furnace -at the moment when the molten metal is running into the mould. -Gradually we had been obliged to throw aside our coats and -waistcoats, the lightest covering became uncomfortable and even -painful. - -"Are we rising into a fiery furnace?" I cried at one moment when the -heat was redoubling. - -"No," replied my uncle, "that is impossible--quite impossible!" - -"Yet," I answered, feeling the wall, "this well is burning hot." - -At the same moment, touching the water, I had to withdraw my hand in -haste. - -"The water is scalding," I cried. - -This time the Professor's only answer was an angry gesture. - -Then an unconquerable terror seized upon me, from which I could no -longer get free. I felt that a catastrophe was approaching before -which the boldest spirit must quail. A dim, vague notion laid hold of -my mind, but which was fast hardening into certainty. I tried to -repel it, but it would return. I dared not express it in plain terms. -Yet a few involuntary observations confirmed me in my view. By the -flickering light of the torch I could distinguish contortions in the -granite beds; a phenomenon was unfolding in which electricity would -play the principal part; then this unbearable heat, this boiling -water! I consulted the compass. - -The compass had lost its properties! it had ceased to act properly! - - - -CHAPTER XLIII. - -SHOT OUT OF A VOLCANO AT LAST! - - -Yes: our compass was no longer a guide; the needle flew from pole to -pole with a kind of frenzied impulse; it ran round the dial, and spun -hither and thither as if it were giddy or intoxicated. - -I knew quite well that according to the best received theories the -mineral covering of the globe is never at absolute rest; the changes -brought about by the chemical decomposition of its component parts, -the agitation caused by great liquid torrents, and the magnetic -currents, are continually tending to disturb it--even when living -beings upon its surface may fancy that all is quiet below. A -phenomenon of this kind would not have greatly alarmed me, or at any -rate it would not have given rise to dreadful apprehensions. - -But other facts, other circumstances, of a peculiar nature, came to -reveal to me by degrees the true state of the case. There came -incessant and continuous explosions. I could only compare them to the -loud rattle of a long train of chariots driven at full speed over the -stones, or a roar of unintermitting thunder. - -Then the disordered compass, thrown out of gear by the electric -currents, confirmed me in a growing conviction. The mineral crust of -the globe threatened to burst up, the granite foundations to come -together with a crash, the fissure through which we were helplessly -driven would be filled up, the void would be full of crushed -fragments of rock, and we poor wretched mortals were to be buried and -annihilated in this dreadful consummation. - -"My uncle," I cried, "we are lost now, utterly lost!" - -"What are you in a fright about now?" was the calm rejoinder. "What -is the matter with you?" - -"The matter? Look at those quaking walls! look at those shivering -rocks. Don't you feel the burning heat? Don't you see how the water -boils and bubbles? Are you blind to the dense vapours and steam -growing thicker and denser every minute? See this agitated compass -needle. It is an earthquake that is threatening us." - -My undaunted uncle calmly shook his head. - -"Do you think," said he, "an earthquake is coming?" - -"I do." - -"Well, I think you are mistaken." - -"What! don't you recognise the symptoms?" - -"Of an earthquake? no! I am looking out for something better." - -"What can you mean? Explain?" - -"It is an eruption, Axel." - -"An eruption! Do you mean to affirm that we are running up the shaft -of a volcano?" - -"I believe we are," said the indomitable Professor with an air of -perfect self-possession; "and it is the best thing that could -possibly happen to us under our circumstances." - -The best thing! Was my uncle stark mad? What did the man mean? and -what was the use of saying facetious things at a time like this? - -"What!" I shouted. "Are we being taken up in an eruption? Our fate -has flung us here among burning lavas, molten rocks, boiling waters, -and all kinds of volcanic matter; we are going to be pitched out, -expelled, tossed up, vomited, spit out high into the air, along with -fragments of rock, showers of ashes and scoria, in the midst of a -towering rush of smoke and flames; and it is the best thing that -could happen to us!" - -"Yes," replied the Professor, eyeing me over his spectacles, "I don't -see any other way of reaching the surface of the earth." - -I pass rapidly over the thousand ideas which passed through my mind. -My uncle was right, undoubtedly right; and never had he seemed to me -more daring and more confirmed in his notions than at this moment -when he was calmly contemplating the chances of being shot out of a -volcano! - -In the meantime up we went; the night passed away in continual -ascent; the din and uproar around us became more and more -intensified; I was stifled and stunned; I thought my last hour was -approaching; and yet imagination is such a strong thing that even in -this supreme hour I was occupied with strange and almost childish -speculations. But I was the victim, not the master, of my own -thoughts. - -It was very evident that we were being hurried upward upon the crest -of a wave of eruption; beneath our raft were boiling waters, and -under these the more sluggish lava was working its way up in a heated -mass, together with shoals of fragments of rock which, when they -arrived at the crater, would be dispersed in all directions high and -low. We were imprisoned in the shaft or chimney of some volcano. -There was no room to doubt of that. - -But this time, instead of Snaefell, an extinct volcano, we were inside -one in full activity. I wondered, therefore, where could this -mountain be, and in what part of the world we were to be shot out. - -I made no doubt but that it would be in some northern region. Before -its disorders set in, the needle had never deviated from that -direction. From Cape Saknussemm we had been carried due north for -hundreds of leagues. Were we under Iceland again? Were we destined to -be thrown up out of Hecla, or by which of the seven other fiery -craters in that island? Within a radius of five hundred leagues to -the west I remembered under this parallel of latitude only the -imperfectly known volcanoes of the north-east coast of America. To -the east there was only one in the 80th degree of north latitude, the -Esk in Jan Mayen Island, not far from Spitzbergen! Certainly there -was no lack of craters, and there were some capacious enough to throw -out a whole army! But I wanted to know which of them was to serve us -for an exit from the inner world. - -Towards morning the ascending movement became accelerated. If the -heat increased, instead of diminishing, as we approached nearer to -the surface of the globe, this effect was due to local causes alone, -and those volcanic. The manner of our locomotion left no doubt in my -mind. An enormous force, a force of hundreds of atmospheres, -generated by the extreme pressure of confined vapours, was driving us -irresistibly forward. But to what numberless dangers it exposed us! - -Soon lurid lights began to penetrate the vertical gallery which -widened as we went up. Right and left I could see deep channels, like -huge tunnels, out of which escaped dense volumes of smoke; tongues of -fire lapped the walls, which crackled and sputtered under the intense -heat. - -"See, see, my uncle!" I cried. - -"Well, those are only sulphureous flames and vapours, which one must -expect to see in an eruption. They are quite natural." - -"But suppose they should wrap us round." - -"But they won't wrap us round." - -"But we shall be stifled." - -"We shall not be stifled at all. The gallery is widening, and if it -becomes necessary, we shall abandon the raft, and creep into a -crevice." - -"But the water--the rising water?" - -"There is no more water, Axel; only a lava paste, which is bearing us -up on its surface to the top of the crater." - -The liquid column had indeed disappeared, to give place to dense and -still boiling eruptive matter of all kinds. The temperature was -becoming unbearable. A thermometer exposed to this atmosphere would -have marked 150 deg.. The perspiration streamed from my body. But for the -rapidity of our ascent we should have been suffocated. - -But the Professor gave up his idea of abandoning the raft, and it was -well he did. However roughly joined together, those planks afforded -us a firmer support than we could have found anywhere else. - -About eight in the morning a new incident occurred. The upward -movement ceased. The raft lay motionless. - -"What is this?" I asked, shaken by this sudden stoppage as if by a -shock. - -"It is a halt," replied my uncle. - -"Is the eruption checked?" I asked. - -"I hope not." - -I rose, and tried to look around me. Perhaps the raft itself, stopped -in its course by a projection, was staying the volcanic torrent. If -this were the case we should have to release it as soon as possible. - -But it was not so. The blast of ashes, scorix, and rubbish had ceased -to rise. - -"Has the eruption stopped?" I cried. - -"Ah!" said my uncle between his clenched teeth, "you are afraid. But -don't alarm yourself--this lull cannot last long. It has lasted now -five minutes, and in a short time we shall resume our journey to the -mouth of the crater." - -As he spoke, the Professor continued to consult his chronometer, and -he was again right in his prognostications. The raft was soon hurried -and driven forward with a rapid but irregular movement, which lasted -about ten minutes, and then stopped again. - -"Very good," said my uncle; "in ten minutes more we shall be off -again, for our present business lies with an intermittent volcano. It -gives us time now and then to take breath." - -This was perfectly true. When the ten minutes were over we started -off again with renewed and increased speed. We were obliged to lay -fast hold of the planks of the raft, not to be thrown off. Then again -the paroxysm was over. - -I have since reflected upon this singular phenomenon without being -able to explain it. At any rate it was clear that we were not in the -main shaft of the volcano, but in a lateral gallery where there were -felt recurrent tunes of reaction. - -How often this operation was repeated I cannot say. All I know is, -that at each fresh impulse we were hurled forward with a greatly -increased force, and we seemed as if we were mere projectiles. During -the short halts we were stifled with the heat; whilst we were being -projected forward the hot air almost stopped my breath. I thought for -a moment how delightful it would be to find myself carried suddenly -into the arctic regions, with a cold 30 deg. below the freezing point. My -overheated brain conjured up visions of white plains of cool snow, -where I might roll and allay my feverish heat. Little by little my -brain, weakened by so many constantly repeated shocks, seemed to be -giving way altogether. But for the strong arm of Hans I should more -than once have had my head broken against the granite roof of our -burning dungeon. - -I have therefore no exact recollection of what took place during the -following hours. I have a confused impression left of continuous -explosions, loud detonations, a general shaking of the rocks all -around us, and of a spinning movement with which our raft was once -whirled helplessly round. It rocked upon the lava torrent, amidst a -dense fall of ashes. Snorting flames darted their fiery tongues at -us. There were wild, fierce puffs of stormy wind from below, -resembling the blasts of vast iron furnaces blowing all at one time; -and I caught a glimpse of the figure of Hans lighted up by the fire; -and all the feeling I had left was just what I imagine must be the -feeling of an unhappy criminal doomed to be blown away alive from the -mouth of a cannon, just before the trigger is pulled, and the flying -limbs and rags of flesh and skin fill the quivering air and spatter -the blood-stained ground. - - - -CHAPTER XLIV. - -SUNNY LANDS IN THE BLUE MEDITERRANEAN - - -When I opened my eyes again I felt myself grasped by the belt with -the strong hand of our guide. With the other arm he supported my -uncle. I was not seriously hurt, but I was shaken and bruised and -battered all over. I found myself lying on the sloping side of a -mountain only two yards from a gaping gulf, which would have -swallowed me up had I leaned at all that way. Hans had saved me from -death whilst I lay rolling on the edge of the crater. - -"Where are we?" asked my uncle irascibly, as if he felt much injured -by being landed upon the earth again. - -The hunter shook his head in token of complete ignorance. - -"Is it Iceland?" I asked. - -"_Nej,_" replied Hans. - -"What! Not Iceland?" cried the Professor. - -"Hans must be mistaken," I said, raising myself up. - -This was our final surprise after all the astonishing events of our -wonderful journey. I expected to see a white cone covered with the -eternal snow of ages rising from the midst of the barren deserts of -the icy north, faintly lighted with the pale rays of the arctic sun, -far away in the highest latitudes known; but contrary to all our -expectations, my uncle, the Icelander, and myself were sitting -half-way down a mountain baked under the burning rays of a southern -sun, which was blistering us with the heat, and blinding us with the -fierce light of his nearly vertical rays. - -I could not believe my own eyes; but the heated air and the sensation -of burning left me no room for doubt. We had come out of the crater -half naked, and the radiant orb to which we had been strangers for -two months was lavishing upon us out of his blazing splendours more -of his light and heat than we were able to receive with comfort. - -When my eyes had become accustomed to the bright light to which they -had been so long strangers, I began to use them to set my imagination -right. At least I would have it to be Spitzbergen, and I was in no -humour to give up this notion. - -The Professor was the first to speak, and said: - -"Well, this is not much like Iceland." - -"But is it Jan Mayen?" I asked. - -"Nor that either," he answered. "This is no northern mountain; here -are no granite peaks capped with snow. Look, Axel, look!" - -Above our heads, at a height of five hundred feet or more, we saw the -crater of a volcano, through which, at intervals of fifteen minutes -or so, there issued with loud explosions lofty columns of fire, -mingled with pumice stones, ashes, and flowing lava. I could feel the -heaving of the mountain, which seemed to breathe like a huge whale, -and puff out fire and wind from its vast blowholes. Beneath, down a -pretty steep declivity, ran streams of lava for eight or nine hundred -feet, giving the mountain a height of about 1,300 or 1,400 feet. But -the base of the mountain was hidden in a perfect bower of rich -verdure, amongst which I was able to distinguish the olive, the fig, -and vines, covered with their luscious purple bunches. - -I was forced to confess that there was nothing arctic here. - -When the eye passed beyond these green surroundings it rested on a -wide, blue expanse of sea or lake, which appeared to enclose this -enchanting island, within a compass of only a few leagues. Eastward -lay a pretty little white seaport town or village, with a few houses -scattered around it, and in the harbour of which a few vessels of -peculiar rig were gently swayed by the softly swelling waves. Beyond -it, groups of islets rose from the smooth, blue waters, but in such -numbers that they seemed to dot the sea like a shoal. To the west -distant coasts lined the dim horizon, on some rose blue mountains of -smooth, undulating forms; on a more distant coast arose a prodigious -cone crowned on its summit with a snowy plume of white cloud. To the -northward lay spread a vast sheet of water, sparkling and dancing -under the hot, bright rays, the uniformity broken here and there by -the topmast of a gallant ship appearing above the horizon, or a -swelling sail moving slowly before the wind. - -This unforeseen spectacle was most charming to eyes long used to -underground darkness. - -"Where are we? Where are we?" I asked faintly. - -Hans closed his eyes with lazy indifference. What did it matter to -him? My uncle looked round with dumb surprise. - -"Well, whatever mountain this may be," he said at last, "it is very -hot here. The explosions are going on still, and I don't think it -would look well to have come out by an eruption, and then to get our -heads broken by bits of falling rock. Let us get down. Then we shall -know better what we are about. Besides, I am starving, and parching -with thirst." - -Decidedly the Professor was not given to contemplation. For my part, -I could for another hour or two have forgotten my hunger and my -fatigue to enjoy the lovely scene before me; but I had to follow my -companions. - -The slope of the volcano was in many places of great steepness. We -slid down screes of ashes, carefully avoiding the lava streams which -glided sluggishly by us like fiery serpents. As we went I chattered -and asked all sorts of questions as to our whereabouts, for I was too -much excited not to talk a great deal. - -"We are in Asia," I cried, "on the coasts of India, in the Malay -Islands, or in Oceania. We have passed through half the globe, and -come out nearly at the antipodes." - -"But the compass?" said my uncle. - -"Ay, the compass!" I said, greatly puzzled. "According to the compass -we have gone northward." - -"Has it lied?" - -"Surely not. Could it lie?" - -"Unless, indeed, this is the North Pole!" - -"Oh, no, it is not the Pole; but--" - -Well, here was something that baffled us completely. I could not tell -what to say. - -But now we were coming into that delightful greenery, and I was -suffering greatly from hunger and thirst. Happily, after two hours' -walking, a charming country lay open before us, covered with olive -trees, pomegranate trees, and delicious vines, all of which seemed to -belong to anybody who pleased to claim them. Besides, in our state of -destitution and famine we were not likely to be particular. Oh, the -inexpressible pleasure of pressing those cool, sweet fruits to our -lips, and eating grapes by mouthfuls off the rich, full bunches! Not -far off, in the grass, under the delicious shade of the trees, I -discovered a spring of fresh, cool water, in which we luxuriously -bathed our faces, hands, and feet. - -Whilst we were thus enjoying the sweets of repose a child appeared -out of a grove of olive trees. - -"Ah!" I cried, "here is an inhabitant of this happy land!" - -It was but a poor boy, miserably ill-clad, a sufferer from poverty, -and our aspect seemed to alarm him a great deal; in fact, only half -clothed, with ragged hair and beards, we were a suspicious-looking -party; and if the people of the country knew anything about thieves, -we were very likely to frighten them. - -Just as the poor little wretch was going to take to his heels, Hans -caught hold of him, and brought him to us, kicking and struggling. - -My uncle began to encourage him as well as he could, and said to him -in good German: - -"_Was heiszt diesen Berg, mein Knablein? Sage mir geschwind!_" - -("What is this mountain called, my little friend?") - -The child made no answer. - -"Very well," said my uncle. "I infer that we are not in Germany." - -He put the same question in English. - -We got no forwarder. I was a good deal puzzled. - -"Is the child dumb?" cried the Professor, who, proud of his knowledge -of many languages, now tried French: "_Comment appellet-on cette -montagne, mon enfant?_" - -Silence still. - -"Now let us try Italian," said my uncle; and he said: - -"_Dove noi siamo?_" - -"Yes, where are we?" I impatiently repeated. - -But there was no answer still. - -"Will you speak when you are told?" exclaimed my uncle, shaking the -urchin by the ears. "_Come si noma questa isola?_" - -"STROMBOLI," replied the little herdboy, slipping out of Hans' hands, -and scudding into the plain across the olive trees. - -We were hardly thinking of that. Stromboli! What an effect this -unexpected name produced upon my mind! We were in the midst of the -Mediterranean Sea, on an island of the AEolian archipelago, in the -ancient Strongyle, where AEolus kept the winds and the storms chained -up, to be let loose at his will. And those distant blue mountains in -the east were the mountains of Calabria. And that threatening volcano -far away in the south was the fierce Etna. - -"Stromboli, Stromboli!" I repeated. - -My uncle kept time to my exclamations with hands and feet, as well as -with words. We seemed to be chanting in chorus! - -What a journey we had accomplished! How marvellous! Having entered by -one volcano, we had issued out of another more than two thousand -miles from Snaefell and from that barren, far-away Iceland! The -strange chances of our expedition had carried us into the heart of -the fairest region in the world. We had exchanged the bleak regions -of perpetual snow and of impenetrable barriers of ice for those of -brightness and 'the rich hues of all glorious things.' We had left -over our heads the murky sky and cold fogs of the frigid zone to -revel under the azure sky of Italy! - -After our delicious repast of fruits and cold, clear water we set off -again to reach the port of Stromboli. It would not have been wise to -tell how we came there. The superstitious Italians would have set us -down for fire-devils vomited out of hell; so we presented ourselves -in the humble guise of shipwrecked mariners. It was not so glorious, -but it was safer. - -On my way I could hear my uncle murmuring: "But the compass! that -compass! It pointed due north. How are we to explain that fact?" - -"My opinion is," I replied disdainfully, "that it is best not to -explain it. That is the easiest way to shelve the difficulty." - -"Indeed, sir! The occupant of a professorial chair at the Johannaeum -unable to explain the reason of a cosmical phenomenon! Why, it would -be simply disgraceful!" - -And as he spoke, my uncle, half undressed, in rags, a perfect -scarecrow, with his leathern belt around him, settling his spectacles -upon his nose and looking learned and imposing, was himself again, -the terrible German professor of mineralogy. - -One hour after we had left the grove of olives, we arrived at the -little port of San Vicenzo, where Hans claimed his thirteen week's -wages, which was counted out to him with a hearty shaking of hands -all round. - -At that moment, if he did not share our natural emotion, at least his -countenance expanded in a manner very unusual with him, and while -with the ends of his fingers he lightly pressed our hands, I believe -he smiled. - - - -CHAPTER XLV. - -ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL - - -Such is the conclusion of a history which I cannot expect everybody -to believe, for some people will believe nothing against the -testimony of their own experience. However, I am indifferent to their -incredulity, and they may believe as much or as little as they please. - -The Stromboliotes received us kindly as shipwrecked mariners. They -gave us food and clothing. After waiting forty-eight hours, on the 31 -st of August, a small craft took us to Messina, where a few days' -rest completely removed the effect of our fatigues. - -On Friday, September the 4th, we embarked on the steamer Volturno, -employed by the French Messageries Imperiales, and in three days more -we were at Marseilles, having no care on our minds except that -abominable deceitful compass, which we had mislaid somewhere and -could not now examine; but its inexplicable behaviour exercised my -mind fearfully. On the 9th of September, in the evening, we arrived -at Hamburg. - -I cannot describe to you the astonishment of Martha or the joy of -Graeuben. - -"Now you are a hero, Axel," said to me my blushing _fiancee,_ my -betrothed, "you will not leave me again!" - -I looked tenderly upon her, and she smiled through her tears. - -How can I describe the extraordinary sensation produced by the return -of Professor Liedenbrock? Thanks to Martha's ineradicable tattling, -the news that the Professor had gone to discover a way to the centre -of the earth had spread over the whole civilised world. People -refused to believe it, and when they saw him they would not believe -him any the more. Still, the appearance of Hans, and sundry pieces of -intelligence derived from Iceland, tended to shake the confidence of -the unbelievers. - -Then my uncle became a great man, and I was now the nephew of a great -man--which is not a privilege to be despised. - -Hamburg gave a grand fete in our honour. A public audience was given -to the Professor at the Johannaeum, at which he told all about our -expedition, with only one omission, the unexplained and inexplicable -behaviour of our compass. On the same day, with much state, he -deposited in the archives of the city the now famous document of -Saknussemm, and expressed his regret that circumstances over which he -had no control had prevented him from following to the very centre of -the earth the track of the learned Icelander. He was modest -notwithstanding his glory, and he was all the more famous for his -humility. - -So much honour could not but excite envy. There were those who envied -him his fame; and as his theories, resting upon known facts, were in -opposition to the systems of science upon the question of the central -fire, he sustained with his pen and by his voice remarkable -discussions with the learned of every country. - -For my part I cannot agree with his theory of gradual cooling: in -spite of what I have seen and felt, I believe, and always shall -believe, in the central heat. But I admit that certain circumstances -not yet sufficiently understood may tend to modify in places the -action of natural phenomena. - -While these questions were being debated with great animation, my -uncle met with a real sorrow. Our faithful Hans, in spite of our -entreaties, had left Hamburg; the man to whom we owed all our success -and our lives too would not suffer us to reward him as we could have -wished. He was seized with the mal de pays, a complaint for which we -have not even a name in English. - -"_Farval,_" said he one day; and with that simple word he left us and -sailed for Rejkiavik, which he reached in safety. - -We were strongly attached to our brave eider-down hunter; though far -away in the remotest north, he will never be forgotten by those whose -lives he protected, and certainly I shall not fail to endeavour to -see him once more before I die. - -To conclude, I have to add that this 'Journey into the Interior of -the Earth' created a wonderful sensation in the world. It was -translated into all civilised languages. The leading newspapers -extracted the most interesting passages, which were commented upon, -picked to pieces, discussed, attacked, and defended with equal -enthusiasm and determination, both by believers and sceptics. Rare -privilege! my uncle enjoyed during his lifetime the glory he had -deservedly won; and he may even boast the distinguished honour of an -offer from Mr. Barnum, to exhibit him on most advantageous terms in -all the principal cities in the United States! - -But there was one 'dead fly' amidst all this glory and honour; one -fact, one incident, of the journey remained a mystery. Now to a man -eminent for his learning, an unexplained phenomenon is an unbearable -hardship. Well! it was yet reserved for my uncle to be completely -happy. - -One day, while arranging a collection of minerals in his cabinet, I -noticed in a corner this unhappy compass, which we had long lost -sight of; I opened it, and began to watch it. - -It had been in that corner for six months, little mindful of the -trouble it was giving. - -Suddenly, to my intense astonishment, I noticed a strange fact, and I -uttered a cry of surprise. - -"What is the matter?" my uncle asked. - -"That compass!" - -"Well?" - -"See, its poles are reversed!" - -"Reversed?" - -"Yes, they point the wrong way." - -My uncle looked, he compared, and the house shook with his triumphant -leap of exultation. - -A light broke in upon his spirit and mine. - -"See there," he cried, as soon as he was able to speak. "After our -arrival at Cape Saknussemm the north pole of the needle of this -confounded compass began to point south instead of north." - -"Evidently!" - -"Here, then, is the explanation of our mistake. But what phenomenon -could have caused this reversal of the poles?" - -"The reason is evident, uncle." - -"Tell me, then, Axel." - -"During the electric storm on the Liedenbrock sea, that ball of fire, -which magnetised all the iron on board, reversed the poles of our -magnet!" - -"Aha! aha!" shouted the Professor with a loud laugh. "So it was just -an electric joke!" - -From that day forth the Professor was the most glorious of savants, -and I was the happiest of men; for my pretty Virlandaise, resigning -her place as ward, took her position in the old house on the -Koenigstrasse in the double capacity of niece to my uncle and wife to -a certain happy youth. What is the need of adding that the -illustrious Otto Liedenbrock, corresponding member of all the -scientific, geographical, and mineralogical societies of all the -civilised world, was now her uncle and mine? - - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of A Journey to the Interior of the Earth, by -Jules Verne - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A JOURNEY TO THE INTERIOR *** - -***** This file should be named 3748.txt or 3748.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/3/7/4/3748/ - -Produced by Norman M. Wolcott. - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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