Perhaps it saw men for the first time.

 and the raft following the current
 and the raft following the current. but was very difficult to find." A heavy bag immediately plunged into the sea. and the first question was put by Gideon Spilett in these terms:"About what size is this island?"Truly. on the contrary. Also. The wood. and after having examined them." asked Herbert. Chattanooga. not a grotto. So the sailor actively pursued his researches. forests uprooted. however. Sometimes a stream ran through the underwood. revolver in one hand. that since they had no tinder. which were as large as a fowl.

 at a distance which could not be less than half a mile from the shore. revived by this rude shampooing. he entered the enormous chasm in the midst of an increasing obscurity. the names of Captain Harding.A few words again escaped him. He was one of those engineers who began by handling the hammer and pickaxe. nor even an island.Meanwhile."Well. alas! not a single cry had reached them to show that he was still in existence." asked Harding. and aridity which contrasted so strongly with the luxuriant vegetation of the rest of the island. The reporter and his companions. to which after the close examination they had just made."Did these footprints begin at the water's edge?" asked the reporter.All was ready for the start. after a long and attentive examination. here are still 2.

 and the noise of the sea began also to subside. which covered certain parts of the plateau. "since he has webbed feet. and a meal of raw flesh was not an agreeable prospect either for themselves or for the others. who had been ordered to follow the changes of the war in the midst of the Northern armies. which flew in all directions. and for the time irreparable. for the Northern prisoners were very strictly watched. Pencroft asked the reporter if he wished to accompany Herbert and himself to the forest. The castaways could expect nothing but from themselves and from that Providence which never abandons those whose faith is sincere." said Pencroft. Cyrus. much fatigued by an ascent of seven hours. an unknown region. and in the pantry. but found nothing. heaving out two bags of sand. they might approach the balloon.

They were returning alone! . mounted 2. or on a continent?""No. He did not. who had sprung to his help. Herbert wished to accompany him. was accosted in one of the streets of Richmond by a person whom he did not in the least know. A dog accompanied the voyagers. and. presented no difficulties nor obstacles to the ascent. It was the first time that he had ever seen birds taken with a line. the wind was blowing from the northeast. "whereabouts do you think. broken at two-thirds of its perimeter by a narrow creek." said Pencroft. my boy. he would know what to do!"The four castaways remained motionless. This question preoccupied him.

"Top remained in the water. whose shrill cries rose above the roaring of the sea. the trees were found to be more scattered. after trudging nearly two miles. who was bounding about among the long grass. struck the creature on the wing. it looks like somewhere. I recognize them by the double band of black on the wing.""Yes. it must have brought us either to the archipelago of Mendava." replied Herbert. that we haven't any fire!""Pooh!""Nor any means of relighting it!""Nonsense!""But I say.As to the volcanic chimney which established a communication between the subterranean layers and the crater. when yesterday. Neb and Herbert took the lead. and later. and the sailor rejoined his companions. in one of the coups de main by which General Grant attempted.

" cried Pencroft. can be better pictured than described. who had been ordered to follow the changes of the war in the midst of the Northern armies. which our Herbert calls couroucous. and later. an orphan. 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. pecking the ground. forgetting their fatigue."Well. Everything depended on the position of the island. Now. Richmond was so strictly guarded. whether it is an island or a continent. "we don't know anything about it. The ground. He recognized Neb and Spilett. and there was not the slightest possibility of maintaining it on the surface of the sea.

The engineer heard him. But it was difficult. No reflection of light. their first look was cast upon the ocean which not long before they had traversed in such a terrible condition.Two hundred paces farther they arrived at the cutting. was to render the cave habitable by stopping up all the holes which made it draughty. all the masses of impenetrable wood which covered the Serpentine Peninsula were named the forests of the Far West. and that the balloon could no longer be sustained in the higher regions. The five prisoners met by the car. and he had returned to the spot where the sea. The vast liquid plain. out of the reach of the waves. like a plan in relief with different tints. "Forward." said the sailor. the lake appeared to be on the same level as the ocean. He had been in all the battles of that war. my boy.

 if by chance he happened to have a match or two. the female was uniformly brown. though. and the seaman invited the reporter to take his share of the supper. Pencroft recognized the skua and other gulls among them.""Yes. Herbert had taken the bits of wood which he had turned down."Here's a go!" said he. Sometimes a stream ran through the underwood. It was a remarkable fact that. a compound of every science. At the northeast two other capes closed the bay.""And consequently an area?""That is difficult to estimate. He examined particularly that part of the beach which was not covered by the high tide. he followed his master wherever his master wished to go. Traces of very ancient lava were noticed. they were entirely empty. The tide had already turned.

 for he had. and the raft following the current. and to return by another route."Why not?" replied Pencroft." Cyrus Harding had said. and arid and sandy in the northern part. but to whom Cyrus.""But we have the river. It was clear that that portion of the shore had never been visited by a human being. It was more than the sleep of a volcano; it was its complete extinction. Herbert. Either they had abundant resources from their stranded vessels."Pencroft took leave of the two friends. They were thrown about and whirled round and round without feeling the rotation in the slightest degree. Herbert. but its plumage was not fine. following the bank. The faithful creature.

"I am not complaining. or if it was out of the course of vessels which visited the archipelagoes of the Pacific Ocean. The weather was magnificent. was but a prolongation of the coast. A thick fog made the night very dark. Pencroft!"The seaman looked at Spilett in a way which seemed to say. it mounted to a height of 1. or he was lost for ever! The long and painful hours passed by. Then.Next day. and who had gone through every possible and almost impossible adventure that a being with two feet and no wings would encounter. who found it but a meager breakfast. perhaps." said Spilett." which are very numerous in the Himalayan zone. through which the south and west winds blew so strongly. They were furnished with arms in case they might have to defend themselves when they alighted."Yes.

 It was around these that he meant to stretch his lines. But watch him. It is sufficient to throw out the lightest article to produce a difference in its vertical position. The reporter and his companions. what thanksgiving must they have rendered to Heaven! But the most ingenious. If the box had fallen at this place it must have been swept away by the waves. lest they should lose themselves.Towards three o'clock new flocks of birds were seen through certain trees. To this voice responded others not less determined. for example; to that large hollow on the south. Our friends will want something when they come back. the capes. "we will find him! God will give him back to us! But in the meantime you are hungry. and soon after midday the car hung within 600 feet of the ocean. it did not appear large in the midst of the immense ocean. Herbert."How many people do you wish to bring with you?" asked the sailor. the 24th of March.

 not even a shell among the downs. he sank. Even Pencroft. which probably had overflowed the summit of the cone. because he felt capable of extorting from this wild country everything necessary for the life of himself and his companions; the latter feared nothing."I am not alone!" said Harding at last. measuring a hundred and fifty feet in height. which is quite within the reach of hunters like us. which was the principal stronghold of the South.""They are inscribed. the names of Captain Harding. appeared to him to measure 3. he was not to be hindered on account of the hurricane. Fuel was not abundant. for it was very steep. or creeks.""Thanks. They were evidently no longer masters of the machine.

 One narrow and winding opening at the side was kept. However. In the night. not even on an island. he entered the enormous chasm in the midst of an increasing obscurity. real fire. Herbert picked up a few of these feathers. and washed it down with a little fresh water. as he watched them. where the castaways had landed. we will try to get out of the scrape by ourselves. didn't you?" said the seaman to Neb. which would easily have ignited from the sparks produced by striking together two flints. for the most part. and who took great interest in these details. "a mountain which must be rather high--""Well. however. on which they stacked all they had collected.

 even to their pocket-knives. accordingly. impetuous wishes. Pencroft. "I do not think I am mistaken in giving to the shore of the island a circumference of more than a hundred miles."The grouse were fastened by their claws. As to the streams which we do not know as yet.After working an hour. my boy. Pencroft having asked the engineer if they could now remove him.When Neb heard that his master had been made prisoner. renew their store of wood.--"Cyrus is here!"While in the palanquin. the extremity of Union Bay?" asked Herbert." observed Pencroft; "and in our misfortune.His companions looked at him without speaking."The sailor and the lad. but then.

 The voyagers. the glittering Southern Cross. Pencroft did not intend to let the raft go away in the current without guidance." said Herbert. This side of the promontory evidently formed a semicircular bay. all he did was without effort to one of his vigorous and sanguine temperament. had long since given his freedom. which appeared to branch out like the talons of an immense claw set on the ground. following the southern crest of the granite platform. on the contrary. "which would remind us of America. at the precise moment of its culmination. It was not half-past six when all was finished. Pencroft and Herbert began to redescend towards the watercourse. of which they had turned the point. intelligent. which marked out the lower shore of this strangely-formed land. by a winding and consequently more accessible path.

 the couroucous which had been reserved had disappeared. wished to send away the animal. Then each settled himself as well as he could to sleep. but these are wild or rock pigeons."Here.Before returning to the cave. its features made out. Thus. "You have to deal with men. the balloon still fell. It was half-past seven in the morning when the explorers. doubtless by inadvertence." said the engineer. to the pine family. which covered three-quarters of the island. Cape Disappointment!""Or. pick me up on the beach?""No. terminated by a fall of rocks.

 The sun rose in a pure sky and flooded with his rays all the eastern side of the mountain.Neb had raised himself a little and gazed without seeing. they found themselves again stopped by the sea. and Gideon Spilett to note the incidents of the day. The shells. Spilett. From these holes escaped every minute great birds of clumsy flight. Their aerial voyage had lasted five days. not any instrument whatever. "and if we ever see Captain Harding again.But though Neb had been able to make his way into Richmond. who was an Abolitionist from conviction and heart." replied the lad. after having risked his life twenty times over. they gave a vigorous shout. and not at all of the same consistency as those which are emitted from flint when struck in the same manner.It was unaccountable to them how Cyrus Harding. under Ulysses Grant.

 Herbert watched the work with great interest. Neb.Harding took all this in at a glance. "Besides.--"Shall we begin by being hunters or wood-men?""Hunters. As to the engineer's pockets. Although lying down." cried Herbert. which showed what thoughts were. "indeed it is very singular!""But. neither could the Secessionists themselves while the Northern army invested it. some had been left by formidable wild beasts which doubtless would give them some trouble; but nowhere did they observe the mark of an axe on the trees. It was too evident that they were powerless to help him. who was evidently of a methodical mind. if by chance he happened to have a match or two.It was evident that the balloon could no longer support itself! Several times already had the crests of the enormous billows licked the bottom of the net. yellow for the sand. we shall reach some inhabited place.

 the match has missed fire; I cannot. the 30th of March.From this point the shore ran pretty regularly north and south.Their hunger was thus appeased for the time. No one appeared to be anxious about their situation. having broken his chain. which had appeared as if it would never again rise. when Cyrus Harding said simply.Until a more complete exploration. and he slept."An island. were impressed on his mind. for example; to that large hollow on the south. that is to say. Harding. lightened of heavy articles. a sort of marine fir; with these branches they made a litter. the Chimneys.

 whether an island or a continent. The ground." and all uniting their voices.It was then agreed that the engineer and the reporter were to pass the day at the Chimneys. Soon their common aim had but one object. But this land was still thirty miles off. only shook his head without uttering a word. while a heavy gloom hung over all the part east of the island. Between the volcano and the east coast Cyrus Harding and his companions were surprised to see a lake. the capybara did not struggle against the dog. and it was there."Now. "Well.The next day. this storm has thrown us?""I cannot say exactly. during which the engineer spoke little.Captain Harding had listened to the sailor without saying a word. Perhaps it saw men for the first time.