This story is taken from _Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea_,
the book that foreshadowed the modern submarine. Monsieur Aronnax,
a scientist, with two companions, Ned Land and Conseil, was rescued
at sea by a strange craft, the _Nautilus_, owned and commanded by
one Captain Nemo, who hated mankind and never went ashore on
inhabited land. Monsieur Aronnax remained on the submarine for
months in a kind of captivity and met with many wonderful
adventures. It should be noted that modern inventions have already
outstripped many of the author's imaginings.
On returning to my room with Ned and Conseil, I found upon my table a
note addressed to me. I opened it impatiently. It was written in a bold
clear hand, and ran as follows:
"November 16, 1867.
To Professor Aronnax, on board the _Nautilus_:
Captain Nemo invites Professor Aronnax to a hunting party, which will
take place to-morrow morning in the forest of the island of Crespo. He
hopes that nothing will prevent the professor from being present, and he
will with pleasure see him joined by his companions."
"A hunt!" exclaimed Ned.
"And in the forests of the island of Crespo!" added Conseil.
"Oh, then the gentleman is going on [v]_terra firma_?" asked Ned Land.
"That seems to be clearly indicated," said I, reading the letter once
more.
"Well, we must accept," said Ned. "Once more on dry land, we shall know
what to do. Indeed, I shall not be sorry to eat a piece of fresh
venison."
I contented myself with replying, "Let us see where the island of Crespo
is."
I consulted the [v]planisphere and in 32° 40' north latitude, and 157°
50' west [v]longitude, I found a small island recognized in 1801 by
Captain Crespo, and marked in the ancient Spanish maps as Rocca de la
Platta, or Silver Rock.
I showed this little rock lost in the midst of the North Pacific to my
companions.
"If Captain Nemo does sometimes go on dry ground," said I, "he at least
chooses desert islands."
Ned Land shrugged his shoulders without speaking, and Conseil and he
left me. After supper, which was served by the steward, mute and
impassive, I went to bed, not without some anxiety.
The next morning, the 7th of November, I felt on awakening that the
_Nautilus_ was perfectly still. I dressed quickly and entered the
saloon. Captain Nemo was there, waiting for me. He rose, bowed, and
asked me if it was convenient for me to accompany him. I simply replied
that my companions and myself were ready to follow him.
We entered the room where breakfast was served.
"M. Aronnax," said the captain, "pray share my breakfast without
ceremony; we will chat as we eat. Though I promised you a walk in the
forest, I did not undertake to find hotels there; so breakfast as a man
should who will most likely not have his dinner till very late."
I did honor to the repast. It was composed of several kinds of fish, and
different sorts of seaweed. Our drink consisted of pure water, to which
the captain added some drops of a fermented liquor extracted from a
seaweed. Captain Nemo ate at first without saying a word. Then he began:
"Professor, when I proposed to you to hunt in my submarine forest of
Crespo, you evidently thought me mad. Sir, you should never judge
lightly of any man."
"But, captain, believe me--"
"Be kind enough to listen, and you will then see whether you have any
cause to accuse me of folly and contradiction."
"I listen."
"You know as well as I do, professor, that man can live under water,
providing he carries with him a sufficient supply of breathable air. In
submarine works, the workman, clad in an [v]impervious dress, with his
head in a metal helmet, receives air from above by means of
forcing-pumps and [v]regulators."
"That is a diving apparatus," said I.
"Just so. But under these conditions the man is not at liberty; he is
attached to the pump which sends him air through a rubber tube, and if
we were obliged to be thus held to the _Nautilus_, we could not go far."
"And the means of getting free?" I asked.
"It is to use the Rouquayrol apparatus, invented by two of your own
countrymen, which I have brought to perfection for my own use and which
will allow you to risk yourself without any organ of the body suffering.
It consists of a reservoir of thick iron plates, in which I store the
air under a pressure of fifty [v]atmospheres. This reservoir is fixed on
the back by means of braces, like a soldier's knapsack. Its upper part
forms a box in which the air is kept by means of a bellows, and
therefore cannot escape unless at its [v]normal tension. In the
Rouquayrol apparatus such as we use, two rubber pipes leave this box and
join a sort of tent which holds the nose and mouth; one is to introduce
fresh air, the other to let out foul, and the tongues close one or the
other pipe according to the wants of the [v]respirator. But I, in
encountering great pressures at the bottom of the sea, was obliged to
shut my head like that of a diver in a ball of copper; and it is into
this ball of copper that the two pipes, the inspirator and the
expirator, open. Do you see?"
"Perfectly, Captain Nemo. But the air that you carry with you must soon
be used; when it contains only fifteen per cent of oxygen it is no
longer fit to breathe."
"Right! But I told you, M. Aronnax, that the pumps of the _Nautilus_
allow me to store the air under considerable pressure; and the reservoir
of the apparatus can furnish breathable air for nine or ten hours."
"I have no further objections to make," I answered. "I will only ask one
thing, captain--how can you light your road at the bottom of the sea?"
"With the Ruhmkorff apparatus, M. Aronnax. One is carried on the back,
the other is fastened to the waist. It is composed of a [v]bunsen pile,
which I do not work with bichromate of potash but with sodium. A wire is
introduced which collects the electricity produced, and directs it
toward a lantern. In this lantern is a spiral glass which contains a
small quantity of carbonic acid gas. When the apparatus is at work, this
gas becomes luminous, giving out a white and continuous light. Thus
provided, I can breathe and I can see."
"Captain Nemo, to all my objections you make such crushing answers that
I dare no longer doubt. But if I am forced to admit the Rouquayrol and
Ruhmkorff apparatus, I must be allowed some reservations with regard to
the gun I am to carry."
"But it is not a gun for powder," he said.
"Then it is an air-gun?" I asked.
"Doubtless. How would you have me manufacture gunpowder on board,
without saltpeter, sulphur, or charcoal?"
"Besides," I added, "to fire under water in a medium eight hundred and
fifty times denser than the air, we must conquer a very considerable
resistance."
"That would be no difficulty. There exist guns which can fire under
these conditions. But I repeat, having no powder, I use air under great
pressure, which the pumps of the _Nautilus_ furnish abundantly."
"But this air must be rapidly used?"
"Well, have I not my Rouquayrol reservoir, which can furnish it at need?
A tap is all that is required. Besides, M. Aronnax, you must see
yourself that during our submarine hunt we can spend but little air."
"But it seems to me that in this twilight, and in the midst of this
fluid, which is very dense compared with the atmosphere, shots could not
go far or easily prove fatal."
"On the contrary," replied Nemo, "with this gun every blow is mortal;
however lightly the animal is touched, it falls dead as if struck by a
thunderbolt."
"Why?"
"Because the balls sent by this gun are not ordinary balls, but little
cases of glass, of which I have a large supply. These glass cases are
covered with a shell of steel and weighted with a pellet of lead; they
are real [v]Leyden jars, into which electricity is forced to a very high
tension. With the slightest shock they are discharged, and the animal,
however strong it may be, falls dead."
Captain Nemo then led me aft; and in passing before Ned and Conseil's
cabin, I called my two companions, who followed immediately. Conseil was
delighted at the idea of exploring the sea, but Ned declined to go when
he learned that the hunt was to be a submarine one. We came to a kind of
cell near the machinery-room, in which we were to put on our
walking-dress. It was, in fact, the arsenal and wardrobe of the
_Nautilus_. A dozen diving-suits hung from the partition, awaiting our
use.
At the captain's call two of the ship's crew came to help us dress in
these heavy and impervious clothes, made of rubber without seam and
constructed expressly to resist considerable pressure. One might have
taken this diving apparatus for a suit of armor, both supple and
resisting. It formed trousers and waistcoat; the trousers were finished
off with thick boots, weighted with heavy leaden soles. The texture of
the waistcoat was held together by bands of copper, which crossed the
chest, protecting it from the great pressure of the water and leaving
the lungs free to act. The sleeves ended in gloves, which in no way
restrained the movement of the hands. There was a vast difference
noticeable between this dress and the old-fashioned diving-suit.
Captain Nemo and one of his companions, Conseil and myself, were soon
enveloped in the dresses; there remained nothing more to be done but
inclose our heads in the metal boxes. Captain Nemo thrust his head into
the helmet, Conseil and I did the same. The upper part of our dress
terminated in a copper collar, upon which was screwed the metal helmet.
Three holes, protected by thick glass, allowed us to see in all
directions by simply turning our heads in the interior of the
head-dress. As soon as it was in position, the Rouquayrol apparatus on
our backs began to act; and, for my part, I could breathe with ease.
With the Ruhmkorff lamp hanging from my belt, and the gun in my hand, I
was ready to set out. But to speak the truth, imprisoned in these heavy
garments and glued to the deck by the leaden soles, it was impossible
for me to take a step. This state of things, however, was provided for.
I felt myself being pushed into a little room next the wardrobe-room. My
companions followed, towed along in the same way. I heard a water-tight
door, furnished with stopper-plates, close upon us, and we were wrapped
in profound darkness.
After some minutes, a loud hissing was heard; I felt the cold mount from
my feet to my chest. Evidently from some part of the vessel they had, by
means of a tap, given entrance to the water, which was invading us and
with which the room was soon filled. A second door cut in the side of
the _Nautilus_ then opened. We saw a faint light. In another instant our
feet trod the bottom of the sea.
How can I retrace the impression left upon me by that walk under the
waters? Words are impotent to relate such wonders. Captain Nemo walked
in front, his companion followed some steps behind. Conseil and I
remained near each other, as if an exchange of words had been possible
through our metallic cases. I no longer felt the weight of my clothing,
or of my shoes, of my reservoir of air, or my thick helmet, in the midst
of which my head rattled like an almond in its shell.
The light which lit the soil thirty feet below the surface of the ocean
astonished me by its power. The solar rays shone through the watery mass
easily and dissipated all color, and I clearly distinguished objects at
a distance of a hundred and fifty yards. Beyond that the tints darkened
into fine gradations of [v]ultramarine and faded into vague obscurity.
We were walking on fine, even sand, not wrinkled as on a flat shore,
which retains the impression of the billows. This dazzling carpet,
really a reflector, repelled the rays of the sun with wonderful
intensity, which accounted for the vibration which penetrated every atom
of liquid. Shall I be believed when I say that, at a depth of thirty
feet, I could see as well as if I was in broad daylight?
For a quarter of an hour I trod on this sand; the hull of the
_Nautilus_, resembling a long shoal, disappeared by degrees; but its
lantern would help to guide us back when darkness should overtake us in
the waters. Soon forms of objects outlined in the distance became
discernible. I recognized magnificent rocks, hung with a tapestry of
[v]zoophytes of the most beautiful kind.
It was then about ten o'clock in the morning, and the rays of the sun
struck the surface of the waves at rather an oblique angle; at the touch
of the light, decomposed by [v]refraction as through a prism, flowers,
rocks, plants, and shells were shaded at the edges by the seven solar
colors. It was a marvelous feast for the eyes, this complication of
colored tints, a perfect [v]kaleidoscope of green, yellow, orange,
violet, indigo, and blue!
All these wonders I saw in the space of a quarter of a mile, scarcely
stopping and following Captain Nemo, who beckoned me on by signs. Soon
the nature of the soil changed; to the sandy plain succeeded an extent
of slimy mud; we then traveled over a plain of seaweed of wild and
luxuriant vegetation. This sward was of close texture and soft to the
feet, rivaling the softest carpet woven by the hand of man. While
verdure was spread at our feet, it did not abandon our heads. A light
network of marine plants grew on the surface of the water.
We had been gone from the _Nautilus_ an hour and a half. It was near
noon; I knew this by the [v]perpendicularity of the sun's rays, which
were no longer refracted. The magical colors disappeared by degrees and
the shades of emerald and sapphire were effaced. We walked with a
regular step, which rang upon the ground with astonishing intensity;
indeed the slightest noise was transmitted with a quickness and
vividness to which the ear is unaccustomed on earth, water being a
better conductor of sound than air in the [v]ratio of four to one. At
this period the earth sloped downward; the light took a uniform tint. We
were at a depth of a hundred and five yards.
At this depth I could still see the rays of the sun, though feebly; to
their intense brilliancy had succeeded a reddish twilight, but we could
find our way well enough. It was not necessary to resort to the
Ruhmkorff apparatus as yet. At this moment Captain Nemo stopped and
waited till I joined him, pointing then to an obscure mass which loomed
in the shadow at a short distance.
"It is the forest of the island of Crespo," thought I, and I was not
mistaken.
This under-sea forest was composed of large tree-plants; and the moment
we penetrated under its vast [v]arcades I was struck by the singular
position of their branches: not an herb which carpeted the ground, not a
branch which clothed the trees was either broken or bent, nor did they
extend in a [v]horizontal direction; all stretched up toward the surface
of the sea. Not a filament, not a ribbon, however thin, but kept as
straight as a rod of iron. They were motionless, yet when bent to one
side by the hand they directly resumed their former position. Truly it
was a region of perpendicularity.
I soon accustomed myself to this fantastic position, as well as to the
comparative darkness which surrounded us. The sights were very
wonderful. Under numerous shrubs as large as trees on land were massed
bushes of living flowers--animals rather than plants--of various colors
and glowing softly in the obscurity of the ocean depth. Fish flies flew
from branch to branch like a swarm of humming-birds, while swarms of
marine creatures rose at our feet like a flight of snipes.
In about an hour Captain Nemo gave the signal to halt. I, for my part,
was not sorry, and we stretched ourselves under an arbor of plants, the
long thin blades of which stood up like arrows. I felt an irresistible
desire to sleep, an experience which happens to all divers. My eyes soon
closed behind the thick glasses and I fell into a heavy slumber. Captain
Nemo and his companion, stretched in the clear crystal, set me the
example.
How long I remained buried in this drowsiness I cannot judge; but when I
woke, the sun seemed sinking toward the horizon. Captain Nemo had
already risen, and I was beginning to stretch my limbs when an
unexpected sight brought me briskly to my feet.
A few steps off, a monster sea-spider, about forty inches high, was
watching me with squinting eyes, ready to spring on me. Though my
diver's dress was thick enough to defend me from the bite of this
animal, I could not help shuddering with horror. Conseil and the sailor
of the _Nautilus_ awoke at this moment. Captain Nemo pointed out the
hideous creature, which a blow from the butt end of a gun knocked over;
I saw the claws of the monster writhe in horrible convulsions. This
incident reminded me that other animals more to be feared might haunt
these obscure depths, against whose attacks my diving-clothes would not
protect me.
Indeed, I thought that this halt would mark the end of our walk; but I
was mistaken, for instead of returning to the _Nautilus_, we continued
our bold excursion. The ground was still on the incline; its declivity
seemed to be getting greater and to be leading us to lower depths. It
must have been about three o'clock when we reached a narrow valley
between high walls; thanks to the perfection of our apparatus, we were
far below the depth to which divers ever penetrate.
At our great depth the darkness thickened; ten paces away not an object
was visible. I was groping my way when I suddenly saw a brilliant white
light flash out ahead; Captain Nemo had turned on his electric torch.
The rest of us soon followed his example, and the sea, lit by our four
lanterns, was illuminated for a circle of forty yards.
Captain Nemo still plunged onward into the dark reaches of the forest,
whose trees were getting scarcer at every step. At last, after about
four hours, this marvelous excursion came to an end. A wall of superb
rocks rose before us, a heap of gigantic blocks, an enormous granite
shore. It was the prop of the island of Crespo. It was the earth!
The return now began. Captain Nemo resumed his place at the head of his
little band and directed the course without hesitation. I thought we
were not following the road we had come, on our return to the
_Nautilus_. The new way was very steep and consequently very painful; we
approached the surface of the sea rapidly, but this ascent was not so
sudden as to cause a too rapid relief from the pressure of the water,
which would have been dangerous. Very soon light reappeared and grew,
and as the sun was low on the horizon, the refraction edged all objects
with a [v]spectral ring. At ten yards deep, we walked amid a shoal of
little fishes, more numerous than the birds of the air; but no
[v]aquatic game worthy of a shot had as yet met our gaze. Suddenly I saw
the captain put his gun to his shoulder and follow a moving object into
the shrubs. He fired; I heard a slight hissing and the creature fell
stunned at some distance from us.
It was a magnificent sea-otter, five feet long and very valuable. Its
skin, chestnut-brown above and silvery underneath, would have made one
of those beautiful furs so sought after in the Russian and Chinese
markets. I admired the curious animal, with its rounded head ornamented
with short ears, its round eyes, and white whiskers like those of a cat,
and its webbed feet and nails and tufted tail. This precious beast,
hunted and tracked by fishermen, has now become very rare and has sought
refuge in the northern parts of the Pacific.
Captain Nemo's companion threw the sea-otter over his shoulder, and we
continued our journey. For an hour a plain of sand lay stretched before
us, which sometimes rose to within two yards of the surface of the
water. I then saw our image clearly reflected, drawn inversely, and
above us appeared an identical group reflecting our movements: in a
word, the image was like us in every point, except that the figures
walked with their heads downward and their feet in the air.
For two hours we followed these sandy plains, then fields of [v]algae
very disagreeable to cross. Candidly, I felt that I could do no more
when I saw a glimmer of light, which for a half-mile broke the darkness
of the waters. It was the lantern of the _Nautilus_. Before twenty
minutes were over we should be on board, and I should be able to breathe
with ease, for it seemed that my reservoir supplied air very deficient
in oxygen. But I did not reckon on an accidental meeting which delayed
our arrival for some time.
I had remained some steps behind, when presently I saw Captain Nemo come
hurriedly toward me. With his strong hand he bent me to the ground,
while his companion did the same to Conseil. At first I knew not what to
think of this sudden attack, but I was soon reassured by seeing the
captain lie down beside me and remain immovable.
I was stretched on the ground, just under shelter of a bush of algae,
when, raising my head, I saw some enormous mass, casting phosphorescent
gleams, pass blusteringly by. My blood froze in my veins as I recognized
two formidable sharks. They were man-eaters, terrible creatures with
enormous tails and a dull glassy stare--monstrous brutes which could
crush a whole man in their iron jaws! I noticed their silver undersides
and their huge mouths bristling with teeth, from a very unscientific
point of view and more as a possible victim than as a naturalist.
Happily the [v]voracious creatures do not see well. They passed without
noticing us, brushing us with their brownish fins, and we escaped by a
miracle from a danger certainly greater than that of meeting a tiger
full-face in a forest. Half an hour later, guided by the electric light,
we reached the _Nautilus_. The outside door had been left open, and
Captain Nemo closed it as soon as we entered the first cell. He then
pressed a knob. I heard the pumps working in the midst of the vessel. I
felt the water sinking from around me, and in a few minutes the cell
was entirely empty. The inside door then opened, and we entered the
vestry.
Our diving-dress was taken off, not without some trouble; and fairly
worn out from want of food and sleep, I returned to my room in great
wonder at this surprising excursion at the bottom of the sea.