SECOND PART
CHAPTER 14: The South Pole
(continued)
Captain Nemo went back on board. Conseil and I stayed behind
until five o'clock, surveying the beach, observing and studying.
The only unusual object I picked up was an auk's egg of remarkable size,
for which a collector would have paid more than 1,000 francs.
Its cream-colored tint, plus the streaks and markings that
decorated it like so many hieroglyphics, made it a rare trinket.
I placed it in Conseil's hands, and holding it like precious
porcelain from China, that cautious, sure-footed lad got it back
to the Nautilus in one piece.
There I put this rare egg inside one of the glass cases in the museum.
I ate supper, feasting with appetite on an excellent piece of seal
liver whose flavor reminded me of pork. Then I went to bed;
but not without praying, like a good Hindu, for the favors of
the radiant orb.
The next day, March 21, bright and early at five o'clock in the morning,
I climbed onto the platform. I found Captain Nemo there.
"The weather is clearing a bit," he told me. "I have high hopes.
After breakfast we'll make our way ashore and choose an observation post."
This issue settled, I went to find Ned Land. I wanted to take him
with me. The obstinate Canadian refused, and I could clearly see
that his tight-lipped mood and his bad temper were growing by the day.
Under the circumstances I ultimately wasn't sorry that he refused.
In truth, there were too many seals ashore, and it would never do
to expose this impulsive fisherman to such temptations.
Breakfast over, I made my way ashore. The Nautilus had gone a few
more miles during the night. It lay well out, a good league from
the coast, which was crowned by a sharp peak 400 to 500 meters high.
In addition to me, the skiff carried Captain Nemo, two crewmen,
and the instruments--in other words, a chronometer, a spyglass,
and a barometer.
|