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Then they searched for wood or dry branches. Sand and stones were all they found. One can understand the grief of Neb and his companions, who loved their brave comrade. The engineer escaped. Did he die? The hours were long and dreadful, the cold was intense. But the castaways did not sleep. They moved back and forth upon that arid island. They listened, they shouted, they tried to find their friend.
Once they heard an echo; and Herbert said:
– There is land to the west.
The sailor nodded. The land must be there!
The night passed. At 5 o’clock in the morning the heavens began to brighten, though the horizon remained obscure. The fog soon rose. At half past 6, the sky was clear. Then the sea appeared. Yes, the land was there! The island and the main land were separated by a channel half a mile wide. Into this current Neb jumped. Pencroff called to him. The reporter prepared to follow, but the sailor ran to him, and exclaimed:
– Do you want to cross this channel?
– Yes, I do, – replied Spilett.
– Well, listen to me. Neb can rescue his master without us. But if we throw ourselves into the channel, this strong current will carry us away. Wait, just wait a little.
Meantime, Neb was swimming against the current. Finally, he crossed the half mile which separated the isle from the mainland.
Neb landed at the base of a high rocky wall, and clambered its side, and then disappeared behind a rock. Neb’s companions ate shellfish, which they found upon the sands. It was a poor meal, but they didn’t have anything else.
The opposite coast formed an immense bay. Towards the north, the bay widened, with a shore more rounded. It was extending from the southwest to the northeast, and ended in a narrow cape. Between these two points, the distance was about eight miles. Half a mile from the shore the island lay upon the sea. Its width was about a quarter of a mile. Before the Island, the shore began with a beach with black rocks. Beyond this rose a perpendicular granite wall, at least 300 feet high and terminated by a ragged edge. This extended for about three miles.
Upon the upper level of the coast nothing was visible. Finally, distant towards the northwest about seven miles, shone a white summit. It was the snowy cap of a mountain.
Was this land an island or a part of a continent? Gideon Spilett, Pencroff, and Herbert looked upon the land.
– Well, – demanded Herbert, – what do you think of it, Pencroff?
– We will soon see, – replied the sailor, – In three hours we can reach that shore, and we will see what we can do to find Mr. Smith.
Pencroff was right. Three hours later, at low tide, Spilett and his two companions waded through the water. Herbert swam like a fish; and all arrived without difficulty at the other shore.
Glossary:
companion – товарищ
horizon – горизонт
bay – залив
summit – вершина
Chapter IV
The reporter walked further along the coast. Herbert wanted to go with him.
– Stay, my boy, – said the sailor. – We must pitch our camp for the night, and try to find something to eat. Our friends will need food when they come back. We are tired, cold, and hungry. We need shelter, fire, and food. We will find wood in the forest, and we can get bird eggs. And we must find a house.
– We can look for a cave in these rocks, – said Herbert.
They walked along the base of the rocky wall. Then they turned to the south. Pencroff noticed a narrow inlet in the coast. Now it was important to pitch the camp near the water.
The rock rose 300 feet, smooth and massive. It was a sturdy wall of the hardest granite.
Herbert noticed some rocks. On them lay hosts of bivalves.
– They are lithodomes, – said Herbert.
– Can we eat them? – said Pencroff.
– Certainly.
Pencroff and Herbert made a good meal of them, they tasted like oysters. Now they must find fresh water. Two hundred feet further on Pencroff and Herbert reached the inlet. A little river was flowing through it.
– Here is water, – said Pencroff, – and there is wood. Herbert, now we need the house. The river water was clear. Pencroff and Herbert went down into sandy corridors.
This is what we want, – said Pencroff. – These Chimneys will be our house.
– Herbert and Pencroff left the Chimneys, and walked up the left bank of the river. Soon they reached the elbow which the river made to the left. From this point they saw a forest.
– Good, – said the sailor, – these trees will help us to make a fire.
It was easy to gather the firewood: many dry branches lay at their feet. But how can they carry them to the Chimneys?
– We have the river, – suggested Herbert.
– Exactly, said Pencroff. – The river will be our road and our carrier, too. They looked at the ocean. The sea was a watery desert.
– Something tells me, – said Herbert, – that Mr. Smith is a very energetic man. So he saved himself. Don’t you think so, Pencroff?
The sailor shook his head sadly.
– Yes, – said he, – our engineer saved himself.
Pencroff and Herbert walked towards the west. They looked at the snowcapped mountain, which rose six or seven miles away. They saw a forest. Then from the edge of this forest to the coast stretched a plateau.
Glossary:
lithodomes – литодомы
Chapter V
Pencroff made the real house from the Chimneys. The Chimneys were divided into three or four chambers. They were dry, and they could stand up in them. The floor was covered with sand.
– Perhaps, – said Herbert, – our companions found a better place than ours.
– It is possible, – answered Pencroff, – but don’t stop. We will have two houses!
– Oh, – said Herbert, – will they find Mr. Smith, and bring him back?
– Yes, – murmured Pencroff. – He was a good man.
– Was! – said Herbert. – Do you think we will not see him again?
– Never! – replied the sailor. – But now our friends may return, and they will find a good shelter. At 6 o’clock, Neb and Gideon Spilett returned. They came back alone. The sailor was right: they did not find the engineer.
The reporter sat upon a rock. He was tired and very hungry. Neb was weeping, he lost all hope.
The reporter told Pencroff and Herbert about their search. Neb and he followed the coast for more than eight miles. The shore was deserted. Not a trace upon the sand, not a footprint. At that moment Neb raised his head, and exclaimed:
– No, he is not dead! It is impossible!
Herbert ran to him and cried:
– Neb, we will find him! But please eat something. But Neb refused to eat. He did not want to live.
As to Gideon Spilett, he devoured the mollusks. He was exhausted, but calm. Herbert took his hand.
– Mr. Spilett, – said he, – we discovered a shelter. You will be more comfortable there. So let us rest there. Tomorrow we will see.
The reporter rose, and proceeded towards the Chimneys.
Pencroff took the match and made fire. Was Cyrus still alive? If so, where was he? In a few minutes the food was ready. The sailor invited the reporter to eat.
Then the reporter retired to a dark corner. Herbert fell asleep at once. The sailor passed the night by the fire. Neb wandered upon the sands. He was calling his master.
Glossary:
chamber – комната
companion – товарищ
devour – поглощать
Chapter VI
The castaways had only the clothes they wore in the balloon. They did not have any guns, not even a pocket knife. They threw everything overboard to lighten the balloon.
Pencroff wanted to find food. They began to prepare an expedition along the coast. Neb did not believe that Smith was dead. In the morning of the 26
of March, at daybreak, Neb started along the coast northward.
For breakfast that morning they had only eggs and lithodomes, with salt. Herbert found it in the cavities of the rocks. Then the reporter stayed to keep up the fire, and Herbert and Pencroff went into the forest.
– We will hunt, Herbert, – said the sailor.
At 9 o’clock the breeze blew from the southeast. When Herbert and Pencroff reached the forest, Pencroff broke two thick branches. He made them into cudgels. The sailor observed the region. On the left bank the surface was flat. Sometimes it was moist and swampy. The opposite bank was more undulating. The hill was covered with trees. The descent was very steep. Both forest and shore looked wild. They saw fresh traces of animals.
They did not speak. Birds were singing and flying under the trees; but they were afraid of men.
Among fir trees, birds with small bodies and long tails fluttered.
– These are couroucous, – said Herbert. – Their meat is delicious. Besides, I think we can easily get at them with our sticks.
When they killed enough birds for dinner, they found a river and followed it downward. At 6 o’clock, Herbert and Pencroff re-entered the Chimneys.
Glossary:
lithodomes – литодомы
keep up the fire – поддерживать огонь
cudgel – дубина
Chapter VII
Gideon Spilett stood motionless upon the shore. He was looking at the sea. The wind, already strong, was freshening, and the sky had an angry look. Pencroff began to prepare dinner. By 7 o’clock Neb hadn’t returned.
The storm began. Furious wind passed over the coast from the southeast. At 8 o’clock Neb did not return. The birds were all they had for supper. Pencroff and Herbert devoured them. Then each one retired to their corners, and Herbert was soon asleep.
It was about 2 o’clock when Pencroff suddenly woke up. The reporter was shaking him.
– What’s the matter? – Pencroff cried.
– Listen, Pencroff, listen!
– It is the wind, – the sailor said.
– No, – answered Spilett, – listen again! I think I heard…
– What?
– The barking of a dog!
– Impossible! – answered the sailor.
– Wait and listen, – said the reporter.
– It is Top! It is Top! – cried Herbert, and they rushed to the entrance of the Chimneys. The darkness was absolute. The sea, the sky, and the earth were black. Then again, in the hush of the storm, they heard the barking of a dog.
It was indeed Top. But he was alone! Neither his master nor Neb accompanied him. The dog came to the Chimneys. Herbert drew the dog towards him.
– Top will guide us to its master! – said Herbert.
The tempest was terrible. It was difficult to follow a straight course. The reporter and the lad walked behind the dog, and the sailor followed after.
Probably, Neb found his master and sent the faithful dog to them. But is the engineer dead?
– Saved! He is saved! Isn’t he, Top? – repeated the boy. And the dog barked.
