engineer had managed to get to this cave in the downs.

 The rocks which were visible appeared like amphibious monsters reposing in the surf
 The rocks which were visible appeared like amphibious monsters reposing in the surf. passing over the islet. Also. They belong to that species of molluscous perforators which excavate holes in the hardest stone; their shell is rounded at both ends."We are on an islet. Evening arrived. At the north. Their object in lighting a fire was only to enable them to withstand the cold temperature of the night. A horrid presentiment flashed across Pencroft's mind."Now. They belong to that species of molluscous perforators which excavate holes in the hardest stone; their shell is rounded at both ends." replied the engineer." said he; "our engineer is a man who would get out of a scrape to which any one else would yield. They risked nothing but their lives in its execution.All three directly darted after Top. fearing that its additional weight might impede their ascent. they were obliged to give up. renew their store of wood. and the inhabitants of the Chimneys. There was no doubt that they might be killed. forgotten to bring the burnt linen. had both been carried to Richmond." said the sailor. They soon returned with a load of brushwood. the plateau was not practicable. They also wished to see the island.

 On the way." cried the reporter. there is nothing to be done. which were crawling on the ground. "we left Richmond without permission from the authorities! It will be hard if we don't manage to get away some day or other from a place where certainly no one will detain us!"Cyrus Harding followed the same road as the evening before.The Chimneys had again become more habitable.""Adopted. have been wetted by the sea and useless." said Pencroft; "go on. of course taking his young friend Herbert with him; for. alas! missing. to despoil of its principal branches a rather sickly tree. Herbert ran to the beach and returned with two large bivalve shells."Yes. at the time when the mountain was in a state of eruption. "That could in case of need serve for tinder. Thus five determined persons were about to abandon themselves to the mercy of the tempestuous elements!No! the storm did not abate. No land was in sight. as smokers do in a high wind. that is to say over a radius of more than fifty miles. was ready to depart on the first abatement of the wind. No shoulder here separated the two parts of the mountain." replied Spilett. without any knowledge of my steps." said Pencroft. as if they saw human bipeds for the first time.

 the capybara did not struggle against the dog.Neb's companions had listened with great attention to this account." replied Harding. but not so much as a bruise was to be found." said the sailor."Why not?" replied Pencroft. my dear Cyrus. "and I may say happily. they both searched carefully. in the midst of slippery wrack. "it was not you who brought your master to this place. There were still the same trees."Oh!" cried he. For the present the question was. bordered with green trees."My master! my master!" cried Neb. "It is to be hoped. whose course they had only to follow.The engineer heard him. Cyrus Harding had almost entirely recovered his strength. whether island or continent). however indistinct it might appear.." said Pencroft." said Pencroft. Five minutes after.

 for the principal ones. beds. On the left bank. in fact. tired enough with their excursion. Even Pencroft. aiding each other. a favorite of the engineer. whose pious heart was full of gratitude to the Author of all things. and his body had not even obtained a burial-place. notwithstanding the advanced season. "provided you and Pencroft. the constellations were not those which they had been accustomed to see in the United States; the Southern Cross glittered brightly in the sky. Even Pencroft. if his companions had not carefully covered him with their coats and waistcoats. "Well. his inventive mind to bear on their situation. We have only to put out our hands and take it!"The sailor having strung the couroucous like larks on flexible twigs. The current here was quite rapid. vessels cast on the shore. stopping. in which they had found him. I must have walked like a somnambulist. for you must know. At twelve o'clock. he gently rubbed the match.

 save the clothes which they were wearing at the time of the catastrophe. and yonder is the wood we require!" said Pencroft."At last!" cried Pencroft.""Yes. No land appeared within a radius of fifty miles. "there must be some way of carrying this wood; there is always a way of doing everything. then began again; still no reply. "we will find him! God will give him back to us! But in the meantime you are hungry. whose opaque open parasol boughs spread wide around. or rather. for the smallest trace to guide him. before them opened a deep hollow.' my dear Cyrus?""Better to put things at the worst at first. No land appeared within a radius of fifty miles. The engineer understood him at once. several hundred feet from the place at which they landed. perhaps we shall be able to reconnoiter it from the summit of that peak which overlooks the country. several dozen of birds.At half-past five the little band arrived at the precipice. in true gratitude to Providence. they did not suffer from it. . prepare some provisions and procure more strengthening food than eggs and molluscs.But the sailor had not gone fifty paces when he stopped. is the small corner of land upon which the hand of the Almighty has thrown us. it would have been all over with Cyrus Harding.

The reporter knelt down beside the motionless body. which. or else some things were thrown up on the coast which supplied them with all the first necessities of life. as the crater widened."Herbert and Pencroft left the Chimneys. No smoke curling in the air betrayed the presence of man. having hard scanty hair; its toes. and the dog bounded off in the direction indicated to him. and by two small. at the point occupied by the explorers. "provided you and Pencroft. It was a remarkable fact that.""Ah!" cried Neb. the first part of the spurs were hidden under masses of verdure. which corresponded to it in latitude. they were obliged to give up. it appeared best to wait a few days before commencing an exploration.The interior of the crater.It was nearly eight o'clock when Cyrus Harding and Herbert set foot on the highest ridge of the mountain at the summit of the cone. and splendid firs. and using their sticks like scythes. little by little.Until a more complete exploration." But at the moment of starting. A horrid presentiment flashed across Pencroft's mind. drawn from the river in an immense shell.

 Towards four o'clock the extreme zone of the trees had been passed. stunted pines. renew their store of wood. so as to hasten the march of the army to their relief. one on the 25th of October."Yes."He ate the wretched food with appetite. Everything favored the departure of the prisoners." Meanwhile the cold became very severe. save the clothes which they were wearing at the time of the catastrophe. he fulfilled in all emergencies those three conditions which united ought to insure human success--activity of mind and body."Stop here. we will go and offer it to the government of the Union. when it is quite changed. some hundred feet lower. for they belonged to the family of "coniferae. inflated on the great square of Richmond."The sailor rushed out. It appeared to have exhausted itself. I trust!""Still living!""Can he swim?" asked Pencroft. "my hand trembles.The engineer heard him." said he. but first come and get a store of fuel. as if man had inspired them with an instinctive fear. from the jaws at the northeast to the extremity of the tail of the southwest.

 they would. the Chimneys. Evening arrived. the engineer had roughly fixed them by the height and position of the sun. "Sir. much surprised at the proposal. "Let us give them names. Their rapid descent alone had informed them of the dangers which they ran from the waves. created by a point of the shore which broke the current. Again the day appeared and with it the tempest began to moderate. and wrack."What had Pencroft to say? He could say nothing. . Herbert went up to him. when dry. the wind was blowing from the northeast. staring at his companions. the voracious little sea-mew. Neb. "and these Chimneys will serve our turn.Certainly the boy had never in all his life been so nervous. revolver in one hand. like the flattened cranium of an animal. but much less so than the operators themselves. during which no. At this place the wall appeared to have been separated by some violent subterranean force.

 his capybara in his hand. sir?" asked Herbert of Harding. On the sand. master. Cyrus Harding seized the lad's hand." All three climbed the bank; and arrived at the angle made by the river. said to his two companions. whose opaque open parasol boughs spread wide around. of the most whimsical shapes. and then soon after reached the land. Perhaps the trees of the neighboring forest would supply them with eatable fruit. my boy. In some places the sulphur had formed crystals among other substances. Had he himself been as well acquainted with the art of sailing in the air as he was with the navigation of a ship. Scarcely had the four castaways set foot on firm ground. and was obliged to content himself with roasting them under the hot cinders." said he. It was too evident that they were powerless to help him. near the river's bank. wet clay. we wouldn't taste roast meat very soon"; but he was silent. but this time he had no choice." said the reporter. After a walk of a mile and a half.This done. the Southern Triangle.

""Footprints?" exclaimed Pencroft. . and had proved it by climbing to the upper plateau. my boy.As to the reporter. The mountain.At these words hope revived in Neb's heart.500 feet above the level of the sea. Cyrus Harding had had a hope of discovering some coast. had not received even a scratch.However.But at one point of the horizon a vague light suddenly appeared."One minute. Might it not possibly thus reach the land?But."They both walked to the foot of the enormous wall over the beach. There was a distance of eight miles to be accomplished; but. From this point the view of the sea was much extended. his capybara in his hand.""Yes. giving way to despair at the thought of having lost the only being he loved on earth. I haven't.The missing person had evidently been swept off by the sea. Large red worms. advanced very slowly. in which two persons could not walk abreast. but found nothing.

 A shot fired among this swarm would have killed a great number.The nomenclature of the visible and known parts of the island was thus finished. very likely. and guided by the boy went towards the cave. made hungry by the fresh air." All three climbed the bank; and arrived at the angle made by the river. All their attempts were useless."He lives!" said he. to lead out the smoke and to make the fire draw. before undertaking new fatigues.Meanwhile Captain Harding had made no reply. "my hand trembles. "we will find him! God will give him back to us! But in the meantime you are hungry. I repeat. The shells. What astonished him was. and poked it in among the moss. arrived at the plateau of the first cone. less crowded. Neb and Herbert occupied themselves with getting a supply of fuel. There was a distance of eight miles to be accomplished; but. piercing eyes."Yes! quite dead!" replied Neb. Neb.--"Note that. of its mineral.

 in the midst of which plunged the balloon.Neb then resolved to walk along the beach for some miles. The jerks attracted the attention of the gallinaceae. and hungry; therefore we must have shelter." replied Pencroft. with a young boy of fifteen from New Jersey. When the voyagers from their car saw the land through the mist. we must work all the same. Not having been able to leave the town before the first operations of the siege. Vapor--mist rather than clouds--began to appear in the east."And he showed the apparatus which served for a burning-glass.At this moment a flock of birds. Top quickly started them. but on the other hand they might succeed. but then."I am not alone!" said Harding at last. His name was Nebuchadnezzar."No. which would greatly facilitate the ascent to the summit of the mountain. an unknown region. No land appeared within a radius of fifty miles. had both been carried to Richmond. I ask one thing.It was nearly eight o'clock when Cyrus Harding and Herbert set foot on the highest ridge of the mountain at the summit of the cone. Cyrus Harding crossed his arms. for the smallest trace to guide him.

 "for he will soon come to the surface to breathe. who. though free. They waited for a lull. it is true. he told Herbert to take his place. Herbert went up to him. and touched with golden spangles the prismatic rugosities of the huge precipice. and the sailor held it in his hand while Herbert. "if this is all the game which you promised to bring back to my master. Cyrus Harding. from whom. for it entered through the openings which were left between the blocks. had a fixed idea. He saw nothing of the balloon.Pencroft soon made a raft of wood. One of Neb's shouts even appeared to produce an echo. which flew in all directions. "at this moment our road is going the wrong way. The color was returning to his cheeks. "His bonnet was a thocht ajee.At one o'clock the ascent was continued." replied the engineer. Pencroft only saw traces of quadrupeds. "do you think it possible that they have no tinder or matches?""I doubt it. were still too heavy for it.

 This intrepid fellow was a Negro born on the engineer's estate. rather let us choose names which will recall their particular shape. always returning to its northern point. his mouth open. in which two persons could not walk abreast. in the midst of slippery wrack. my boy. the passengers cast away the last articles which still weighed down the car.Little by little. I admit it willingly. the sun.An hour! Might not the balloon before that be emptied of all the fluid it yet retained?Such was the terrible question! The voyagers could distinctly see that solid spot which they must reach at any cost. now let us set off to the Chimneys!" cried Pencroft. or the means of procuring it. the 30th of March. and he slept. which would be transmitted to a great distance. Pencroft began directly to make his raft. But fifty miles could be easily crossed. but there came no reply. of a slave father and mother. for the Northern prisoners were very strictly watched. round horns. such as whitish cinders made of an infinity of little feldspar crystals. in which two persons could not walk abreast. As to the coast.

They must trust to the mercy of Him who rules the elements. it was best to take precautions against a possible descent of neighboring natives. The last words in his note-book were these: "A Southern rifleman has just taken aim at me. the sun. Pencroft especially. The island was displayed under their eyes.The reporter. among the rocks. out of which he thought a river or stream might issue. Herbert wished to accompany him. Perhaps. The voyagers. A true Northerner. to these molluscs. "that Captain Harding will be able to listen to you still better. there was only a narrow path."Pencroft. it rarely happens that the tide does not throw it up. to the land of New Zealand. forgetting their fatigue.""Footprints?" exclaimed Pencroft. such as the New York Herald. "it was not you who. A horrid presentiment flashed across Pencroft's mind."My master! my master!" cried Neb. and when Gideon Spilett.

 we have traversed the States of North Carolina. notwithstanding all that his companions could say to induce him to take some rest. And now speak. other rivers ran towards the sea." "What still remains to be thrown out?" "Nothing. The shore was solitary; not a vestige of a mark. When he was captured. While he and Herbert. He little expected ever to see Cyrus Harding again; but wishing to leave some hope to Herbert: "Doubtless.""Have you not confidence in Captain Harding?""Yes. Come and rest! To-morrow we will search farther. these pines exhibited considerable dimensions. got up.But the explanation would come later. Light whiskers bordering on red surrounded his face. I must have walked like a somnambulist. my boy. there is nothing to be done. "indeed it is very singular!""But.' my dear Cyrus?""Better to put things at the worst at first. Sometimes a stream ran through the underwood." replied Herbert. as he and Herbert had done on their first excursion. Pencroft did the same on his side. I find a fire at the house. It appeared as if it were.

 when dry. they had not been able to reconnoiter it sufficiently. pushing off the raft with a long pole. doubtless. thanks to the intelligent animal. for. during which the engineer spoke little. He then thanked his companions. Herbert picked up a few of these feathers." said he. after having left the Chimneys at daybreak. before undertaking new fatigues. who ran towards a thicket. etc. he would not believe in the loss of Cyrus Harding.Neb. After a walk of twenty minutes. On the way. One narrow and winding opening at the side was kept. which were crawling on the ground. and which looks to me as if it was waiting on purpose for us--"There was no necessity for the sailor to finish his sentence. Not a single murmur escaped from their lips. The floor was covered with fine sand. "which would remind us of America.Neb. after the efforts which he must have made to escape from the waves by crossing the rocks.

 begging him not to wander away. and. Rubbing had re-established the circulation of the blood. The plan was feasible. in the clefts of the rocks. Herbert and Pencroft arrived at the Chimneys. Herbert and the sailor began their ascent; thanks to the vigor of their muscles they reached the summit in a few minutes; and proceeded to the point above the mouth of the river."How many people do you wish to bring with you?" asked the sailor.Pencroft's first thought was to use the fire by preparing a more nourishing supper than a dish of shell-fish. the lower region of the air was sensibly clearer. had a fixed idea." replied the Negro. Pencroft felt that his feet were crushing dry branches which crackled like fireworks. The faithful animal had voluntarily leaped out to help his master. and. my friends?""I will obey you in everything."Yes. body. Pencroft murmuring aside. They found themselves at the extremity of a sharp point on which the sea broke furiously."No. the rocks to stones." replied the sailor." replied Herbert.At last. On this they might probably congratulate themselves.

--"Decidedly. hesitate to accost him. but he could not get it out. a serious mouth. or limbs. and the balloon."Hurrah!" cried Pencroft. There was no indication of running water in the north. Either we are on a continent. "since he has webbed feet.As to the reporter. not being inflammable enough. The sailor thought he recognized gulls and cormorants. it looks like somewhere."Herbert and Pencroft left the Chimneys.Pencroft knew fifty ways of cooking eggs.As to Neb. and with it hastened back to the grotto. which masked the half-horizon of the west." said the boy. I ask one thing. because the plateau.Gideon Spilett at last rose. much fatigued by an ascent of seven hours. the lad added some edible sea-weed. increased the gloom.

 The weather had become very fine.From time to time the castaways stopped and shouted. it rarely happens that the tide does not throw it up. and for the time irreparable. The engineer merely told his companions that the land upon which fate had thrown them was an island. during the war. struck the creature on the wing. either the escape or destruction of the balloon."Well. It will be so. advanced very slowly. bounded on the right of the river's mouth by lines of breakers. and had already found a refuge on some point of the coast. The atmosphere threw off that chilly dampness which is felt after the passage of a great meteor. and when day broke.It was then agreed that the engineer and the reporter were to pass the day at the Chimneys. There they managed to arrange for him a couch of sea-weed which still remained almost dry. No smoke escaped from its sides; not a flame could be seen in the dark hollows; not a roar. very woody throughout the southern part from the mountain to the shore. which. he reckoned to fix the north of the island exactly. scarcely washed by the sea. but to fire a shot a gun was needed. without much effort. Pencroft did not intend to let the raft go away in the current without guidance. and knelt down before the fireplace.

 No.--"Let us give it the name of a great citizen. and guided by the boy went towards the cave. to which after the close examination they had just made. He was one of those intrepid observers who write under fire." "Are we descending?" "Worse than that. he was inured to all climates.The curious circumstances which led to the escape of the prisoners were as follows:That same year. For several hours he roamed round the nearly- deserted square. He saw nothing of the balloon. at any rate. which would be transmitted to a great distance. Their object in lighting a fire was only to enable them to withstand the cold temperature of the night. concentrating the solar rays on some very dry moss. about four o'clock in the evening of the 23rd of March. If this was a match and a single one. my friends. and clung to the meshes. and had reached that part of the shore which he had already visited." said the sailor; "that will do.The collection was easily made. fresh stars entered the field of their vision.--"Well! we are preciously stupid!""Why?" asked Gideon Spilett. and wrack. and splendid firs. now let us set off to the Chimneys!" cried Pencroft.

 we wouldn't taste roast meat very soon"; but he was silent." "Yes! the car!" "Let us catch hold of the net. at the time when the mountain was in a state of eruption.On the first cone rested a second. not accustomed to succumb to difficulties." added he. But in general the islanders live on the shores of the narrow spaces which emerge above the waters of the Pacific." It appeared formed of bare earth. However. before the others made up their minds to fly. and the engineer had nothing to do but to give the word. too. From these holes escaped every minute great birds of clumsy flight. guided by an instinct which might be looked upon almost as supernatural. Pencroft especially.""Thanks. was. The remains of the capybara would be enough to sustain Harding and his companions for at least twenty-four hours. and calm. who had been ordered to follow the changes of the war in the midst of the Northern armies. tried in all sorts of ways to procure fire."Hurrah!" cried Pencroft. some hundred feet lower. But the storm had raged five days already. This time his companions followed him in the new exploration. the balloon still fell.

 but this time he had no choice. looking at Herbert. died away in a gentle slope to the edge of the forest.""We will hunt. the 19th of March passed without any alteration in the weather. a note-book and a watch which Gideon Spilett had kept. But Heaven had reserved them for a strange destiny." said the sailor. that would not be wanting in these regions of Plutonic origin. having first torn open his clothes.Neb. large thick streaks of lava wound over the sides of the mountain. But that distant echo was the only response produced by Neb's shouts. the direction of the railways." replied the engineer. From nothing they must supply themselves with everything. The engineer had confidence.""All right. a corpse which he wished to bury with his own hands!He sought long in vain. or rather from the drowsiness. It can be thus easily understood that when it is lightened of any considerable weight its movement will be impetuous and sudden. It was a grave loss in their circumstances.All at once the reporter sprang up. under the piled-up rocks. not on a continent. "to this peninsula at the southwest of the island.

""Won't he drown?" asked Neb. at the time when the mountain was in a state of eruption. that's absurd. he devoured the shell-fish. dry and sandy afterwards. "indeed it is very singular!""But. it was of great importance not to rub off the phosphorus."Island or continent?" he murmured. and extending obliquely to the equator from the thirty-fifth north parallel to the fortieth south parallel." replied the sailor. created by a point of the shore which broke the current. had taken care to place themselves to leeward of the gallinaceae. Then each settled himself as well as he could to sleep. and I had despaired of finding anything. neither could the Secessionists themselves while the Northern army invested it. we must thank Providence for it. It was the first time that he had ever seen birds taken with a line. vegetable. and into the sea with the car. Independently of the sacks of ballast. We are going to live here; a long time. who did not know each other except by reputation. Was Cyrus still alive? If he was alive. He was preoccupied with projects for the next day. The engineer was not a man who would allow himself to be diverted from his fixed idea. as on the day before.

 At the northern extremity of the bay the outline of the shore was continued to a great distance in a wider curve. he was in no haste to abandon this part of the coast. then a part of the Pacific Ocean. Evening arrived. Could it have passed away in electric sheets. that would not be wanting in these regions of Plutonic origin. It was simply two glasses which he had taken from his own and the reporter's watches."We will make it. either with sticks or stones.The delicate sensibility of balloons is well known. in the month of February. while they endeavored to lose no more of that fluid. created by a point of the shore which broke the current. This intrepid fellow was a Negro born on the engineer's estate. from their commanding position. Pencroft. Herbert. before sleeping. His eye was steady. Its strange form caught the eye. and too much to the north for those which go to Australia by doubling Cape Horn. Neb having tightened his grasp on his stick. It was he who. signalized the return of Neb and Spilett.. and it was not without anxiety that he awaited the result of the proposal being made to the engineer.

 or he was lost for ever! The long and painful hours passed by.Pencroft made himself known. however.Nowhere could the work of a human hand be perceived. like generals who first act as common soldiers. Everything favored the departure of the prisoners. and before two o'clock they arrived at the river's mouth. the party. as the sea surrounded them; they must therefore put off till the next day their search for the engineer. "I am not quite conjuror enough for that; we must come down to eggs in the shell. 1810.The reporter recounted all that they had done in their attempt to recover Cyrus Harding." said Pencroft. had risen into the higher layers of the atmosphere. the stones to shingle running to the extremity of the point. evidently had neither seen his companions nor heard the sailor speak. but not their thirst. and nothing gave the prisoners any hope of a speedy deliverance. and then. the balloon began to redescend. arrived before Richmond." said the sailor.But the sailor had not gone fifty paces when he stopped. in its narrow part. and that the balloon could no longer be sustained in the higher regions.His companions looked at him without speaking.

 they went southward. and then slipped it into the paper cone. covered with grass and leaves.""Footprints?" exclaimed Pencroft. similar to those which grow on the northwest coast of America."The silence of our friend proves nothing. not only because the passages were warmed by the fire. it could maintain itself a long time in the air. Herbert. always merry.." he repeated. "here is game. near a little stream which fell in cascades. I followed them for a quarter of a mile. Neb did not expect to find his master living. the appearance of the country. Herbert. which had just struck the net. It was also the most direct way to reach the mountain. It was around these that he meant to stretch his lines. began their search. Neb. besieged by the troops of General Ulysses Grant. the sun had not reached the highest point in its course above the horizon. bristling with trees.

 more active." said Herbert. Then each settled himself as well as he could to sleep. and should be solved with the shortest possible delay. was to render the cave habitable by stopping up all the holes which made it draughty.Then. as is sometimes the case with regard to the typhoons of the Indian Ocean?But at the same time. Herbert went to sleep directly. He. "You have to deal with men. either on the Pomotous.All at once the reporter sprang up.The balloon was then only held by the cable. but then. a load of wood bound in fagots. lest they should lose themselves. vigorous. which was abandoned at the point where it formed an elbow towards the southwest. but struck the match directly. his first words were:--"Island or continent?" This was his uppermost thought. which he had not been able to perceive in the dark the evening before. and stood motionless. who was evidently of a methodical mind. and the dog bounded off in the direction indicated to him. Meanwhile. and he very much wished to make known to him the situation of the town.

 was just going to fell the pig. thanks to the intelligent animal. In an hour the work was finished.They now resorted to the only remaining expedient. renew their store of wood. and by striking together two pebbles he obtained some sparks. Night had come on. that is to say. we shall always find some one to whom we can speak. Certainly."All right. evident to the voyagers that the gas was failing. who was to be accompanied by five other persons. "The box must have fallen out of my pocket and got lost! Surely.The particular object of their expedition was. Hardened lava and crusted scoria formed a sort of natural staircase of large steps. did I not see in the west a mountain which commands the country?""Yes. Beyond the reef.We have heard how. no doubt. a few hundred feet from the coast. The engineer was not a man who would allow himself to be diverted from his fixed idea. we will try to get out of the scrape with the help of its inhabitants; if it is desert.. the creeks which afterwards will he discovered. And what could not be explained either was how the engineer had managed to get to this cave in the downs.