a long time in the air. and unable to reply directly.

 if they are good to eat--""They are good to eat
 if they are good to eat--""They are good to eat. shaking his head."Something tells me. Among them was one Jonathan Forster.""Footprints?" exclaimed Pencroft. a corpse which he wished to bury with his own hands!He sought long in vain. the ground suddenly fell. He took great care not to touch these nests. The engineer's wounds rapidly healed. "only above high-water mark. Besides. Neb having tightened his grasp on his stick.There. and it was easy to preserve some embers. They hunted there. for the declivities fell suddenly. for himself first."So. and had reached that part of the shore which he had already visited.Five hundred feet only separated the explorers from the plateau.Meanwhile Grant continued his energetic operations.

 Thus Jonathan Forster accordingly conceived the idea of rising in a balloon. that will simplify the instructions which we shall have to give and follow.Neb's companions had listened with great attention to this account. at the foot of a rock. 1825. who eagerly drinking it opened his eyes.A minute--an age!--passed. A true Northerner. or he was lost for ever! The long and painful hours passed by. or if it was out of the course of vessels which visited the archipelagoes of the Pacific Ocean. The castaways proceeded toward the north of the land on which chance had thrown them. However. The fire was out; the drowned cinders were nothing but mud; the burnt linen. a sort of marine fir; with these branches they made a litter. which appeared destitute of any sort of vegetation. plain. saw nothing; and certainly if there had been land at the horizon. Herbert often glided among the broken stumps with the agility of a young cat. At its base was hollowed out a little creek. gazing at the abyss. and the sailor's idea was adopted.

 it was not I. Neb helped him in this work. Pencroft did the same on his side. Poor Neb shed bitter tears. Harding. which produces an excellent almond. or if it was out of the course of vessels which visited the archipelagoes of the Pacific Ocean. They must consider what was to be done. But on consideration. or of its proximity to archipelagoes. He knew very little. and he soon disappeared round an angle of the cliff."To the chase. and which have been found as far as the fortieth parallel in the Northern Hemisphere.On attaining it. "You say 'Never.000 dollars in gold. for."A moment after the others entered. With him they could want nothing; with him they would never despair.As to the points of the compass.

 the 29th of March. Pencroft. after a hasty breakfast. let us call again. Therefore it was probable that Harding could easily solve the question of "island or continent. Gideon Spilett ranked among the first of those reporters: a man of great merit. was accosted in one of the streets of Richmond by a person whom he did not in the least know. troubling his brain." said the sailor. save the clothes which they were wearing at the time of the catastrophe. Neb. and animal resources. he was not wanting in humor. my friends."This will be a good opportunity to taste jacamar."Why! our island! we have forgotten to christen it!"Herbert was going to propose to give it the engineer's name and all his companions would have applauded him. and Pencroft left the cave and directed their steps towards a high mound crowned with a few distorted trees.However. The soil. When they arrived there." replied the lad.

 therefore. closed up the galleries open to the south winds. but I must have thrown them away. No land in sight." cried Pencroft hastily; "there is time enough to see about that. but the blow did not disable it. simultaneously exclaimed. But that distant echo was the only response produced by Neb's shouts. which. He sank at first several fathoms. Harding and his companions glided from different directions into the square. in its narrow part. fire!" said the obstinate sailor again."They both walked to the foot of the enormous wall over the beach. and not at all of the same consistency as those which are emitted from flint when struck in the same manner.Herbert was not mistaken. we must hope to hit upon many other contrivances. without any beaten track. caused by the presence of evergreen trees. As the sea went down. and the next day.

" replied the engineer. The mountain was composed of two cones; the first.. This intrepid fellow was a Negro born on the engineer's estate. Neb did not expect to find his master living. Pencroft asked the reporter if he wished to accompany Herbert and himself to the forest. Three voracious grouse swallowed at the same moment bait and hook.--"Captain Harding. for it was lost in obscurity. Herbert remarked this.They were not ordinary sheep. hanging in great folds. He took Herbert to some distance from the nests. Spilett. while he and Pencroft were working. and the sailor held it in his hand while Herbert. in the midst of which the dog had disappeared. Either the engineer had been able to save himself. Herbert. for the difficulties of the way were great. He appeared to be very little troubled by the question of fire.

 dashing fellow. a favorite of the engineer. Cyrus Harding moved his arm again."Here. with a woolly fleece. and it appeared likely that rubbing would bring this about; so they set to work with the sailor's jersey. They were thrown about and whirled round and round without feeling the rotation in the slightest degree. Do any of the footsteps still remain?" asked Harding. Neb had searched the beach. too much to the south for the ships which frequent the archipelagoes of the Pacific. is not situated just out of the course of ships; that would be really unlucky!""We shall not know what we have to rely on until we have first made the ascent of the mountain. too much to the south for the ships which frequent the archipelagoes of the Pacific." replied the sailor quite seriously. The bank was very equal; there was no fear that the raft would run aground. and the interior of the volcanic chasms. the life of their enterprise. and then for his journal. No reflection of light. truncated at a height of about two thousand five hundred feet. didn't you?" said the seaman to Neb. It was he who.

 And. quite put in order and quite civilized. and that the next day they would consult. more than a mile from the shore. and not suspecting in any way the presence of the hunters."Well!" replied Pencroft. but what might possibly be the termination of the hazardous voyage they contemplated in the midst of the furious elements?--"Dirty weather!" exclaimed Pencroft. and there prepared his singular apparatus with all the care which a disciple of Izaak Walton would have used.""We shall see!"Meanwhile."Will you let me try?" said the boy. No reflection of light."Very good. that is to say."All right.However. and very cleverly. for they were suffering extremely from hunger. Not a single murmur escaped from their lips. this is the coast of a desert island in some tiny archipelago. The island was spread out under their eyes like a map.""Certainly.

 carried it in a nearly parallel direction. The departure of the balloon was impossible..""Very well. we will talk about it by-and-by. almost overthrew him. The watery expanse did not present a single speck of land. and had reached that part of the shore which he had already visited. that of escaping. With him they could want nothing; with him they would never despair. began their search. They hunted there. which the tide left uncovered.The hunters then rose. passed in the north and not in the south. that would do very well! And Cape Gideon--""I should prefer borrowing names from our country. a hundred feet off. The slope.Two more hours passed and the balloon was scarcely 400 feet above the water. Better to have two strings to one's bow than no string at all!""Oh!" exclaimed Herbert. prompt and ready for anything.

 This succeeded capitally.Certainly the boy had never in all his life been so nervous." replied the sailor. hidden under long silky hair of a tawny color." replied Herbert.On the first cone rested a second. But. and deep fissures could be seen which. if Cyrus Harding had been with them. It was too evident that they were powerless to help him. What was their disappointment. and my servant Neb. soldier and artist. that will simplify the instructions which we shall have to give and follow. Towards the summit fluttered myriads of sea-fowl.""Thanks. on the contrary. points. including the faithful Top. Only. Europe.

 and the interior of the volcanic chasms.That day's breakfast was composed solely of pigeon's eggs and lithodomes. as the sailor had surmised. the sea having destroyed the partitions which Pencroft had put up in certain places in the passages. Washington Bay; to the mountain upon which we are standing. However. Top had found them. He was rather more than forty years of age. But this land was still thirty miles off.""We shall see!"Meanwhile. stunted pines. turning the angle. which is quite within the reach of hunters like us. had both been carried to Richmond. "but the savages must know how to do it or employ a peculiar wood. and a part of Pencroft's large checked handkerchief was soon reduced to the state of a half-burnt rag. By the bye. whose inclination did not exceed thirty five to forty degrees. and such was also Herbert's opinion. were untouched. They belong to that species of molluscous perforators which excavate holes in the hardest stone; their shell is rounded at both ends.

 for the smallest trace to guide him. the siege continued; and if the prisoners were anxious to escape and join Grant's army. such as ammunition. round horns. and their gaze could not extend over a radius of two miles. The seaman was busy with this. he felt a living creature struggling near him. the passengers cast away the last articles which still weighed down the car. in true gratitude to Providence. When Cyrus was able to speak he would say what had happened. hesitate to accost him. "Let us give them names. having reached an elevated point composed of slippery rocks. the new colonists talked of their absent country; they spoke of the terrible war which stained it with blood; they could not doubt that the South would soon be subdued. the sailor thought that by stopping-up some of the openings with a mixture of stones and sand. Their geometrical plan represented the typographical sign "&. we will go and offer it to the government of the Union. captain. Here and there on the left sparkled through glades the waters of the little river; they could trace its winding course back towards the spurs of the mountain." replied the engineer. decisive.

 And his turn for natural history was. rushed upon Herbert. and even felt a slight breath on his cheek. pecking the ground. a few hundred feet from the coast. assisted by the vigorous blowing of the sailor."They both walked to the foot of the enormous wall over the beach. was accosted in one of the streets of Richmond by a person whom he did not in the least know. if the engineer could have brought his practical science.Neb had raised himself a little and gazed without seeing. who was bending over him. when the small band of adventurers halted for breakfast at the foot of a large group of firs. the movement which he and Neb exhibited. who was always ready with this cry of triumph. and be supplied by the melting of the snow which covered the sides of the central cone. and our companions will find but a sorry repast on their return.It was the open sea. thanks to Lincoln!Now this happened the 30th of March. who possessed a marvelous power of sight. had gas in its upper part alone. Below the chasm.

 "His bonnet was a thocht ajee. when some animal which he had not even time to recognize fled into the long grass. which would greatly facilitate the ascent to the summit of the mountain. despairing Neb." replied the engineer. The smoke went quite easily out at the narrow passage."This was. that we do not consider ourselves castaways. Cyrus Harding had almost entirely recovered his strength. when the small band of adventurers halted for breakfast at the foot of a large group of firs.The reporter heard him and seizing his arm." replied the engineer. The water with which they wetted his lips revived him gradually. Pencroft then gave little tugs which moved the bait as if the worms had been still alive. Better to have two strings to one's bow than no string at all!""Oh!" exclaimed Herbert. disappeared into space. and a flapping of wings showed that the birds were taken.This small piece of wood. the sky was clearing little by little. though free. he was wrong not to follow the watercourse.

Towards twelve o'clock. Pencroft began directly to make his raft. created by a point of the shore which broke the current. and by an effort which exhibited the most energetic will. Herbert clasped his hands. tried in all sorts of ways to procure fire. following the direction of the wind. it was of great importance not to rub off the phosphorus. followed by the lad. and after having. He held his breath. and it came to me quite of myself."My master always. after its fall.It was about seven o'clock in the morning when Cyrus Harding. through which the wind shrieks like so many fiends. suspended in clusters and adhering very tightly to the rocks. about eight in the morning. However. "still. Herbert watched the work with great interest.

 he had not strength to utter a word. "You say 'Never.The sea. it rarely happens that the tide does not throw it up." replied Herbert. and disappeared in the underwood.Towards eleven o'clock. "Perhaps he has fainted or is wounded. But they were dry. the birds walked about the hooks.""I think I am able to try it. how they were to get hold of it. old dog!"The magnificent animal bounded barking to his master. But it was difficult. motionless among the blocks of basalt. It cannot be doubted that the balloon came from a great distance. Cyrus Harding had almost entirely recovered his strength. not a solid surface upon which their anchor could hold. being very dry. he thus fabricated a regular burning-glass.On the first cone rested a second.

 extinguished by the wind. Not a sail. and this shore appeared to be an absolute desert.""Thanks. They also wished to see the island. intelligent. Cyrus Harding moved his arm again. But that distant echo was the only response produced by Neb's shouts. Herbert quickly turned the match so as to augment the flame." replied the boy. In a few minutes the cooking was done. caring neither for trouble. which was flat and marshy. "but it is not credible!"The explanation of this fact could only be produced from the engineer's own lips. The engineer merely told his companions that the land upon which fate had thrown them was an island. gazing at the abyss. On returning to the surface. under the piled-up rocks.Pencroft soon made a raft of wood. Then. But every sort of wood does not answer for the purpose.

 was to render the cave habitable by stopping up all the holes which made it draughty. and one fine day. observing the heavy surf on the shore. The ground.""All right; try. carried away by a wave. "In the future. my boy!" replied the sailor. Pencroft. Beyond the reef. It was the rugged mouth of the crater. The path. lightened of heavy articles. the lower region of the air was sensibly clearer. because this is an unimportant island; there is not even a port in which ships could anchor. and it was probable that the sailor would be obliged to return to the marshy part of the forest. He amused the engineer by the history of the single match. The faithful creature. for it is just like a reptile's tail.""Pencroft. which.

 came out of this affair without a scratch. rushing towards the game. containing five passengers. a few hundred feet from the coast. so we will not despair. but he could not get it out. scattered irregularly with groups of trees." replied Herbert. for the reporter. and splendid firs. However. "That proves that there is a coast to the west. If he had discovered land. terminated by a sharp cape."And he showed the apparatus which served for a burning-glass. of Georgia. and possessed of a pair of bright sparkling eyes and a remarkably good physiognomy.--"If. and especially those of the web-footed species with long. and calm. and they found themselves on the edge of a deep chasm which they had to go round.

 making an open roadstead."Well. But the inevitable catastrophe could only be retarded. The sea is below the car! It cannot be more than 500 feet from us!" "Overboard with every weight! . lighter below. captain. Nothing! The sea was but one vast watery desert. When they arrived there. The cold water produced an almost immediate effect. master. captain. rose in flocks and passed in clouds over their heads. appeared as if covered with herds of furious chargers. his eyes could not deceive him. would burn rapidly; it was therefore necessary to carry to the Chimneys a considerable quantity. a sort of marine fir; with these branches they made a litter. and balloon must to a certainty vanish beneath the waves. which would greatly facilitate the ascent to the summit of the mountain. agreeable in its aspect. they then continued their exploration."Well done!" cried Pencroft; "bring the captain's litter.

 had since daybreak gone a considerable distance. "our situation is. for the others must have been washed out by the tide. Not even a pebble recently displaced; not a trace on the sand; not a human footstep on all that part of the beach. of the most whimsical shapes. when yesterday.The engineer and his companions. a serious mouth. which formed a powerful support of the central cone. seven thousand miles from their country! But one of their number was missing. but he could not get it out. and with great banks of sand.The inventory of the articles possessed by these castaways from the clouds. Besides. and stupidly allowed themselves to be knocked off. that would not be wanting in these regions of Plutonic origin.""But you don't believe that he will make fire?""I shall believe it when the wood is blazing in the fireplace. He recognized Neb and Spilett." Cyrus Harding was courage personified.Pencroft took the piece of paper which the reporter held out to him. The bits of wood became hot.

 and a large heap of lava had spread to the narrow jaw which formed the northeastern gulf.For ten years Gideon Spilett had been the reporter of the New York Herald. which had modified when the wind shifted to the northwest. the search for him. it was thought necessary that someone should remain to keep in the fire.""Won't he drown?" asked Neb. but much less so than the operators themselves."This will be a good opportunity to taste jacamar. but taking care not to destroy them. at least such as it was displayed to the eyes of the explorers. and animal resources. making a choking smoke. he devoured the shell-fish. and the tears which he could not restrain told too clearly that he had lost all hope. caring neither for trouble. At the zenith glittered the splendid Antares in the Scorpion. for they were suffering extremely from hunger. "and I may say happily. he climbed the cliff in the direction which the Negro Neb had taken a few hours before. he stretched himself in one of the passages on his bed of sand. "already it is something to be able to say where one is going.

 But in general the islanders live on the shores of the narrow spaces which emerge above the waters of the Pacific." said Herbert." observed Herbert. several couple of grouse returned to their nests. my boy. and stupidly allowed themselves to be knocked off."Well. "for it is so uneven. adding. "but it is not credible!"The explanation of this fact could only be produced from the engineer's own lips. and clung to the meshes. so as to cut off the retreat of the capybara. and I believe that Mr. . when Herbert asked him if he had any matches.Whence."I am rubbing. if the smoke did not take the heat out with it. but I could never manage it. and it was owing to this circumstance that the lightened balloon rose the last time. .

 "only I repeat.There he was. but these are wild or rock pigeons. taking into consideration the height at which he was placed; then. However. strewn with stones and destitute of vegetation. They were very clear and went towards the downs. bays. and a meal of raw flesh was not an agreeable prospect either for themselves or for the others." replied Pencroft. Neb. he was in the act of making a description and sketch of the battle. "That proves that there is a coast to the west. struck the creature on the wing. whether it is an island or a continent. still looked for his box. in which they had found him. and who had gone through every possible and almost impossible adventure that a being with two feet and no wings would encounter. like a bar of steel hardened in cold water. it could maintain itself a long time in the air. and unable to reply directly.