LITMIR.BIZ

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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[16], 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[17]. 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[18], – 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.

      Chapter VII

      Gideon Spilett stood motionless upon the shore. He was gazing on the sea. The wind, already strong, was freshening, and the sky had an angry look. Pencroff began to prepare dinner. At 7 o’clock Neb was still absent.

      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![19]

      – 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.

      The wind was dry and cold. They followed Top. At 5 o’clock the sailor and his companions were six miles from the Chimneys. Top ran ahead, returned, and ran again.

      Five minutes after the reporter and his companions reached a hollow, before which Top stopped with a loud bark. The men entered the cave. Neb was there, he was kneeling beside a body upon a bed of grass. It was the body of Cyrus Smith.

      Chapter VIII

      Neb did not move.

      – Is he alive? – the sailor cried.

      Neb did not answer. Herbert did not move. The reporter knelt down beside the motionless body, and pressed his ear to the chest of the engineer. Gideon Spilett rose up.

      – He is alive! – he said.

      Pencroff knelt down beside Cyrus Smith; he also detected the heartbeat. Herbert brought water. He found a brook; so the lad soaked his handkerchief in the stream. The drops of fresh water produced an instantaneous effect. A sigh escaped from the breast of Smith.

      – We will save him, – said the reporter.

      Neb removed the clothing from his master. Neither on his head nor body nor limbs was there a bruise or even a scratch. That was astonishing.

      – I thought he was dead, – said Neb. – And I wanted to die near my master.

      Then Neb told them everything. Neb followed along the coast to the north, until he reached that part of the beach. There he searched the shore, the rocks, and the sand for any marks. He did not hope to find his master. Then he decided to continue some miles further up the coast.

      – I followed the shore two miles further, and yesterday evening, about 5 o’clock, I discovered footprints upon the sand.

      – Did they begin at the water? – demanded the reporter.

      – No, – answered Neb, – above high-water mark. They went towards the downs. I followed them for a quarter of an hour. Then I heard a dog. It was Top. Top brought me here, to my master.

      – So you, Neb, – said the reporter, – did not bring your master to this place?

      – No, it was not I, – answered Neb.

      It was a real mystery. But they had carry Cyrus Smith to the Chimneys as soon as possible and they had no time to solve the mystery.

      Soon the engineer opened his eyes.

      – My master! my master! – cried Neb.

      The engineer heard him. He recognized Neb and his companions.

      – Is it an island or a continent? – he murmured.

      – What is the difference? – cried Pencroff, – you are alive! Island or continent? We will see that later.

      The engineer closed his eyes. Pencroff and his companions constructed a stretcher[20], which they covered with leaves and grass. It was 10 o’clock when three men returned to Smith and Spilett.

      The engineer woke from his sleep. The color came back to his lips. He raised himself slightly.

      – Well, – said the sailor, – Mr. Smith, your stretcher is ready, and we will carry you to our house.

      – Thanks, my friend, – replied the engineer. – in an hour or two we will go. Did you find me on the beach?

      – No, – replied the reporter.

      – And it was not you who brought me to this hollow?

      – No.

      – How far is this place from the reef?

      – Half a mile, – replied Pencroff, – and we are very surprised to find you here. Do you remember what happened after you were washed away?

      Cyrus Smith remembered little. The wave swept him from the net of the balloon. Then Top sprang to him. Smith found himself in the midst of the tumultuous sea, more than half a mile from shore. He was swimming; but a strong current seized him. It carried him to the north, and soon he sank into the abyss. From that moment he remembered nothing.

      – It’s strange, – said the reporter. – Did anyone rescue you from the waves?

      – I don’t know.

      The rain stopped. At half past 5 the little party reached the Chimneys.

      Chapter IX

      The engineer

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