Zanzibar, where I will inflate my balloon, and from that point we shall
launch ourselves.”
“We!” said Dick.
“Have you still a shadow of an objection to offer? Speak, friend
Kennedy.”
“An objection! I have a thousand; but among other things, tell me, if
you expect to see the country. If you expect to mount and descend at
pleasure, you cannot do so, without losing your gas. Up to this time no
other means have been devised, and it is this that has always prevented
long journeys in the air.”
“My dear Dick, I have only one word to answer--I shall not lose one
particle of gas.”
“And yet you can descend when you please?”
“I shall descend when I please.”
“And how will you do that?”
“Ah, ha! therein lies my secret, friend Dick. Have faith, and let my
device be yours--‘Excelsior!’”
“‘Excelsior’ be it then,” said the sportsman, who did not understand a
word of Latin.
But he made up his mind to oppose his friend’s departure by all means in
his power, and so pretended to give in, at the same time keeping on the
watch. As for the doctor, he went on diligently with his preparations.
CHAPTER FOURTH.
African Explorations.--Barth, Richardson, Overweg, Werne, Brun-Rollet,
Penney, Andrea, Debono, Miani, Guillaume Lejean, Bruce, Krapf and
Rebmann, Maizan, Roscher, Burton and Speke.
The aerial line which Dr. Ferguson counted upon following had not been
chosen at random; his point of departure had been carefully studied,
and it was not without good cause that he had resolved to ascend at
the island of Zanzibar. This island, lying near to the eastern coast of
Africa, is in the sixth degree of south latitude, that is to say, four
hundred and thirty geographical miles below the equator.
From this island the latest expedition, sent by way of the great lakes
to explore the sources of the Nile, had just set out.
But it would be well to indicate what explorations Dr. Ferguson hoped to
link together. The two principal ones were those of Dr. Barth in 1849,
and of Lieutenants Burton and Speke in 1858.
Dr. Barth is a Hamburger, who obtained permission for himself and
for his countryman Overweg to join the expedition of the Englishman
Richardson. The latter was charged with a mission in the Soudan.
This vast region is situated between the fifteenth and tenth degrees
of north latitude; that is to say, that, in order to approach it, the
explorer must penetrate fifteen hundred miles into the interior of
Africa.
Until then, the country in question had been known only through the
journeys of Denham, of Clapperton, and of Oudney, made from 1822 to
1824. Richardson, Barth, and Overweg, jealously anxious to push their
investigations farther, arrived at Tunis and Tripoli, like their
predecessors, and got as far as Mourzouk, the capital of Fezzan.
They then abandoned the perpendicular line, and made a sharp turn
westward toward Ghat, guided, with difficulty, by the Touaregs. After
a thousand scenes of pillage, of vexation, and attacks by armed forces,
their caravan arrived, in October, at the vast oasis of Asben. Dr. Barth
separated from his companions, made an excursion to the town of Aghades,
and rejoined the expedition, which resumed its march on the 12th of
December. At length it reached the province of Damerghou; there the
three travellers parted, and Barth took the road to Kano, where he
arrived by dint of perseverance, and after paying considerable tribute.
In spite of an intense fever, he quitted that place on the 7th of March,
accompanied by a single servant. The principal aim of his journey was to
reconnoitre Lake Tchad, from which he was still three hundred and fifty
miles distant. He therefore advanced toward the east, and reached the
town of Zouricolo, in the Bornou country, which is the core of the great
central empire of Africa. There he heard of the death of Richardson, who
had succumbed to fatigue and privation. He next arrived at Kouka, the
capital of Bornou, on the borders of the lake. Finally, at the end of
three weeks, on the 14th of April, twelve months after having quitted
Tripoli, he reached the town of Ngornou.
We find him again setting forth on the 29th of March, 1851, with
Overweg, to visit the kingdom of Adamaoua, to the south of the lake, and
from there he pushed on as far as the town of Yola, a little below nine
degrees north latitude. This was the extreme southern limit reached by
that daring traveller.
He returned in the month of August to Kouka; from there he successively
traversed the Mandara, Barghimi, and Klanem countries, and reached his
extreme limit in the east, the town of Masena, situated at seventeen
degrees twenty minutes west longitude.
On the 25th of November, 1852, after the death of Overweg, his last
companion, he plunged into the west, visited Sockoto, crossed the Niger,
and finally reached Timbuctoo, where he had to languish, during eight
long months, under vexations inflicted upon him by the sheik, and all
kinds of ill-treatment and wretchedness. But the presence of a Christian
in the city could not long be tolerated, and the Foullans threatened to
besiege it. The doctor, therefore, left it on the 17th of March, 1854,
and fled to the frontier, where he remained for thirty-three days in
the most abject destitution. He then managed to get back to Kano in
November, thence to Kouka, where he resumed Denham’s route after four
months’ delay. He regained Tripoli toward the close of August, 1855,
and arrived in London on the 6th of September, the only survivor of his
party.
Such was the venturesome journey of Dr. Barth.
Dr. Ferguson carefully noted the fact, that he had stopped at four
degrees north latitude and seventeen degrees west longitude.
Now let us see what Lieutenants Burton and Speke accomplished in Eastern
Africa.
The various expeditions that had ascended the Nile could never manage to
reach the mysterious source of that river. According to the narrative
of the German doctor, Ferdinand Werne, the expedition attempted in 1840,
under the auspices of Mehemet Ali, stopped at Gondokoro, between the
fourth and fifth parallels of north latitude.
In 1855, Brun-Rollet, a native of Savoy, appointed consul for Sardinia
in Eastern Soudan, to take the place of Vaudey, who had just died, set
out from Karthoum, and, under the name of Yacoub the merchant, trading
in gums and ivory, got as far as Belenia, beyond the fourth degree, but
had to return in ill-health to Karthoum, where he died in 1857.
Neither Dr. Penney--the head of the Egyptian medical service, who, in
a small steamer, penetrated one degree beyond Gondokoro, and then came
back to die of exhaustion at Karthoum--nor Miani, the Venetian, who,
turning the cataracts below Gondokoro, reached the second parallel--nor
the Maltese trader, Andrea Debono, who pushed his journey up the Nile
still farther--could work their way beyond the apparently impassable
limit.
In 1859, M. Guillaume Lejean, intrusted with a mission by the French
Government, reached Karthoum by way of the Red Sea, and embarked upon
the Nile with a retinue of twenty-one hired men and twenty soldiers, but
he could not get past Gondokoro, and ran extreme risk of his life among
the negro tribes, who were in full revolt. The expedition directed by M.
d’Escayrac de Lauture made an equally unsuccessful attempt to reach the
famous sources of the Nile.
This fatal limit invariably brought every traveller to a halt. In
ancient times, the ambassadors of Nero reached the ninth degree of
latitude, but in eighteen centuries only from five to six degrees, or
from three hundred to three hundred and sixty geographical miles, were
gained.
Many travellers endeavored to reach the sources of the Nile by taking
their point of departure on the eastern coast of Africa.
Between 1768 and 1772 the Scotch traveller, Bruce, set out from
Massowah, a port of Abyssinia, traversed the Tigre, visited the ruins of
Axum, saw the sources of the Nile where they did not exist, and obtained
no serious result.
In 1844, Dr. Krapf, an Anglican missionary, founded an establishment
at Monbaz, on the coast of Zanguebar, and, in company with the Rev. Dr.
Rebmann, discovered two mountain-ranges three hundred miles from the
coast. These were the mountains of Kilimandjaro and Kenia, which Messrs.
de Heuglin and Thornton have partly scaled so recently.
In 1845, Maizan, the French explorer, disembarked, alone, at Bagamayo,
directly opposite to Zanzibar, and got as far as Deje-la-Mhora, where
the chief caused him to be put to death in the most cruel torment.
In 1859, in the month of August, the young traveller, Roscher, from
Hamburg, set out with a caravan of Arab merchants, reached Lake Nyassa,
and was there assassinated while he slept.
Finally, in 1857, Lieutenants Burton and Speke, both officers in the
Bengal army, were sent by the London Geographical Society to explore the
great African lakes, and on the 17th of June they quitted Zanzibar, and
plunged directly into the west.
After four months of incredible suffering, their baggage having been
pillaged, and their attendants beaten and slain, they arrived at Kazeh,
a sort of central rendezvous for traders and caravans. They were in the
midst of the country of the Moon, and there they collected some precious
documents concerning the manners, government, religion, fauna, and flora
of the region. They next made for the first of the great lakes, the
one named Tanganayika, situated between the third and eighth degrees
of south latitude. They reached it on the 14th of February, 1858, and
visited the various tribes residing on its banks, the most of whom are
cannibals.
They departed again on the 26th of May, and reentered Kazeh on the 20th
of June. There Burton, who was completely worn out, lay ill for several
months, during which time Speke made a push to the northward of more
than three hundred miles, going as far as Lake Okeracua, which he came
in sight of on the 3d of August; but he could descry only the opening of
it at latitude two degrees thirty minutes.
He reached Kazeh, on his return, on the 25th of August, and, in company
with Burton, again took up the route to Zanzibar, where they arrived
in the month of March in the following year. These two daring explorers
then reembarked for England; and the Geographical Society of Paris
decreed them its annual prize medal.
Dr. Ferguson carefully remarked that they had not gone beyond the second
degree of south latitude, nor the twenty-ninth of east longitude.
The problem, therefore, was how to link the explorations of Burton
and Speke with those of Dr. Barth, since to do so was to undertake to
traverse an extent of more than twelve degrees of territory.
CHAPTER FIFTH.
Kennedy’s Dreams.--Articles and Pronouns in the Plural.--Dick’s
Insinuations.--A Promenade over the Map of Africa.--What is contained
between two Points of the Compass.--Expeditions now on foot.--Speke and
Grant.--Krapf, De Decken, and De Heuglin.
Dr. Ferguson energetically pushed the preparations for his departure,
and in person superintended the construction of his balloon, with
certain modifications; in regard to which he observed the most absolute
silence. For a long time past he had been applying himself to the study
of the Arab language and the various Mandingoe idioms, and, thanks to
his talents as a polyglot, he had made rapid progress.
In the mean while his friend, the sportsman, never let him out of his
sight--afraid, no doubt, that the doctor might take his departure,
without saying a word to anybody. On this subject, he regaled him with
the most persuasive arguments, which, however, did NOT persuade Samuel
Ferguson, and wasted his breath in pathetic entreaties, by which the
latter seemed to be but slightly moved. In fine, Dick felt that the
doctor was slipping through his fingers.
The poor Scot was really to be pitied. He could not look upon the azure
vault without a sombre terror: when asleep, he felt oscillations that
made his head reel; and every night he had visions of being swung aloft
at immeasurable heights.
We must add that, during these fearful nightmares, he once or twice fell
out of bed. His first care then was to show Ferguson a severe contusion
that he had received on the cranium. “And yet,” he would add, with
warmth, “that was at the height of only three feet--not an inch
more--and such a bump as this! Only think, then!”
This insinuation, full of sad meaning as it was, did not seem to touch
the doctor’s heart.
“We’ll not fall,” was his invariable reply.
“But, still, suppose that we WERE to fall!”
“We will NOT fall!”
This was decisive, and Kennedy had nothing more to say.
What particularly exasperated Dick was, that the doctor seemed
completely to lose sight of his personality--of his--Kennedy’s--and to
look upon him as irrevocably destined to become his aerial companion.
Not even the shadow of a doubt was ever suggested; and Samuel made an
intolerable misuse of the first person plural:
“‘We’ are getting along; ‘we’ shall be ready on the----; ‘we’ shall
start on the----,” etc., etc.
And then there was the singular possessive adjective:
“‘Our’ balloon; ‘our’ car; ‘our’ expedition.”
And the same in the plural, too:
“‘Our’ preparations; ‘our’ discoveries; ‘our’ ascensions.”
Dick shuddered at them, although he was determined not to go; but he
did not want to annoy his friend. Let us also disclose the fact that,
without knowing exactly why himself, he had sent to Edinburgh for a
certain selection of heavy clothing, and his best hunting-gear and
fire-arms.
One day, after having admitted that, with an overwhelming run of
good-luck, there MIGHT be one chance of success in a thousand, he
pretended to yield entirely to the doctor’s wishes; but, in order
to still put off the journey, he opened the most varied series of
subterfuges. He threw himself back upon questioning the utility of the
expedition--its opportuneness, etc. This discovery of the sources of the
Nile, was it likely to be of any use?--Would one have really labored
for the welfare of humanity?--When, after all, the African tribes should
have been civilized, would they be any happier?--Were folks certain
that civilization had not its chosen abode there rather than in
Europe?--Perhaps!--And then, couldn’t one wait a little longer?--The
trip across Africa would certainly be accomplished some day, and in a
less hazardous manner.--In another month, or in six months before the
year was over, some explorer would undoubtedly come in--etc., etc.
These hints produced an effect exactly opposite to what was desired or
intended, and the doctor trembled with impatience.
“Are you willing, then, wretched Dick--are you willing, false
friend--that this glory should belong to another? Must I then be untrue
to my past history; recoil before obstacles that are not serious;
requite with cowardly hesitation what both the English Government and
the Royal Society of London have done for me?”
“But,” resumed Kennedy, who made great use of that conjunction.
“But,” said the doctor, “are you not aware that my journey is to compete
with the success of the expeditions now on foot? Don’t you know that
fresh explorers are advancing toward the centre of Africa?”
“Still--”
“Listen to me, Dick, and cast your eyes over that map.”
Dick glanced over it, with resignation.
“Now, ascend the course of the Nile.”
“I have ascended it,” replied the Scotchman, with docility.
“Stop at Gondokoro.”
“I am there.”
And Kennedy thought to himself how easy such a trip was--on the map!
“Now, take one of the points of these dividers and let it rest upon that
place beyond which the most daring explorers have scarcely gone.”
“I have done so.”
“And now look along the coast for the island of Zanzibar, in latitude
six degrees south.”
“I have it.”
“Now, follow the same parallel and arrive at Kazeh.”
“I have done so.”
“Run up again along the thirty-third degree of longitude to the opening
of Lake Oukereoue, at the point where Lieutenant Speke had to halt.”
“I am there; a little more, and I should have tumbled into the lake.”
“Very good! Now, do you know what we have the right to suppose,
according to the information given by the tribes that live along its
shores?”
“I haven’t the least idea.”
“Why, that this lake, the lower extremity of which is in two degrees
and thirty minutes, must extend also two degrees and a half above the
equator.”
“Really!”
“Well from this northern extremity there flows a stream which must
necessarily join the Nile, if it be not the Nile itself.”
“That is, indeed, curious.”
“Then, let the other point of your dividers rest upon that extremity of
Lake Oukereoue.”
“It is done, friend Ferguson.”
“Now, how many degrees can you count between the two points?”
“Scarcely two.”
“And do you know what that means, Dick?”
“Not the least in the world.”
“Why, that makes scarcely one hundred and twenty miles--in other words,
a nothing.”
“Almost nothing, Samuel.”
“Well, do you know what is taking place at this moment?”
“No, upon my honor, I do not.”
“Very well, then, I’ll tell you. The Geographical Society regard as very
important the exploration of this lake of which Speke caught a glimpse.
Under their auspices, Lieutenant (now Captain) Speke has associated with
him Captain Grant, of the army in India; they have put themselves at
the head of a numerous and well-equipped expedition; their mission is to
ascend the lake and return to Gondokoro; they have received a subsidy
of more than five thousand pounds, and the Governor of the Cape of Good
Hope has placed Hottentot soldiers at their disposal; they set out
from Zanzibar at the close of October, 1860. In the mean while John
Petherick, the English consul at the city of Karthoum, has received
about seven hundred pounds from the foreign office; he is to equip a
steamer at Karthoum, stock it with sufficient provisions, and make his
way to Gondokoro; there, he will await Captain Speke’s caravan, and be
able to replenish its supplies to some extent.”
“Well planned,” said Kennedy.
“You can easily see, then, that time presses if we are to take part in
these exploring labors. And that is not all, since, while some are thus
advancing with sure steps to the discovery of the sources of the Nile,
others are penetrating to the very heart of Africa.”
“On foot?” said Kennedy.
“Yes, on foot,” rejoined the doctor, without noticing the insinuation.
“Doctor Krapf proposes to push forward, in the west, by way of the Djob,
a river lying under the equator. Baron de Decken has already set out
from Monbaz, has reconnoitred the mountains of Kenaia and Kilimandjaro,
and is now plunging in toward the centre.”
“But all this time on foot?”
“On foot or on mules.”
“Exactly the same, so far as I am concerned,” ejaculated Kennedy.
“Lastly,” resumed the doctor, “M. de Heuglin, the Austrian vice-consul
at Karthoum, has just organized a very important expedition, the first
aim of which is to search for the traveller Vogel, who, in 1853, was
sent into the Soudan to associate himself with the labors of Dr. Barth.
In 1856, he quitted Bornou, and determined to explore the unknown
country that lies between Lake Tchad and Darfur. Nothing has been seen
of him since that time. Letters that were received in Alexandria, in
1860, said that he was killed at the order of the King of Wadai; but
other letters, addressed by Dr. Hartmann to the traveller’s father,
relate that, according to the recital of a felatah of Bornou, Vogel was
merely held as a prisoner at Wara. All hope is not then lost. Hence,
a committee has been organized under the presidency of the Regent of
Saxe-Cogurg-Gotha; my friend Petermann is its secretary; a national
subscription has provided for the expense of the expedition, whose
strength has been increased by the voluntary accession of several
learned men, and M. de Heuglin set out from Massowah, in the month of
June. While engaged in looking for Vogel, he is also to explore all
the country between the Nile and Lake Tchad, that is to say, to knit
together the operations of Captain Speke and those of Dr. Barth, and
then Africa will have been traversed from east to west.” *
* After the departure of Dr. Ferguson, it was ascertained
that M. de Heuglin, owing to some disagreement, took a route
different from the one assigned to his expedition, the
command of the latter having been transferred to Mr.
Muntzinger.
“Well,” said the canny Scot, “since every thing is getting on so well,
what’s the use of our going down there?”
Dr. Ferguson made no reply, but contented himself with a significant
shrug of the shoulders.
CHAPTER SIXTH.
A Servant--match him!--He can see the Satellites of Jupiter.--Dick
and Joe hard at it.--Doubt and Faith.--The Weighing Ceremony.--Joe and
Wellington.--He gets a Half-crown.
Dr. Ferguson had a servant who answered with alacrity to the name
of Joe. He was an excellent fellow, who testified the most absolute
confidence in his master, and the most unlimited devotion to his
interests, even anticipating his wishes and orders, which were always
intelligently executed. In fine, he was a Caleb without the growling,
and a perfect pattern of constant good-humor. Had he been made on
purpose for the place, it could not have been better done. Ferguson
put himself entirely in his hands, so far as the ordinary details of
existence were concerned, and he did well. Incomparable, whole-souled
Joe! a servant who orders your dinner; who likes what you like; who
packs your trunk, without forgetting your socks or your linen; who has
charge of your keys and your secrets, and takes no advantage of all
this!
But then, what a man the doctor was in the eyes of this worthy Joe! With
what respect and what confidence the latter received all his decisions!
When Ferguson had spoken, he would be a fool who should attempt to
question the matter. Every thing he thought was exactly right; every
thing he said, the perfection of wisdom; every thing he ordered to be
done, quite feasible; all that he undertook, practicable; all that
he accomplished, admirable. You might have cut Joe to pieces--not an
agreeable operation, to be sure--and yet he would not have altered his
opinion of his master.
So, when the doctor conceived the project of crossing Africa through the
air, for Joe the thing was already done; obstacles no longer existed;
from the moment when the doctor had made up his mind to start, he had
arrived--along with his faithful attendant, too, for the noble fellow
knew, without a word uttered about it, that he would be one of the
party.
Moreover, he was just the man to render the greatest service by his
intelligence and his wonderful agility. Had the occasion arisen to name
a professor of gymnastics for the monkeys in the Zoological Garden (who
are smart enough, by-the-way!), Joe would certainly have received the
appointment. Leaping, climbing, almost flying--these were all sport to
him.
If Ferguson was the head and Kennedy the arm, Joe was to be the right
hand of the expedition. He had, already, accompanied his master on
several journeys, and had a smattering of science appropriate to his
condition and style of mind, but he was especially remarkable for a
sort of mild philosophy, a charming turn of optimism. In his sight every
thing was easy, logical, natural, and, consequently, he could see no use
in complaining or grumbling.
Among other gifts, he possessed a strength and range of vision that
were perfectly surprising. He enjoyed, in common with Moestlin, Kepler’s
professor, the rare faculty of distinguishing the satellites of Jupiter
with the naked eye, and of counting fourteen of the stars in the group
of Pleiades, the remotest of them being only of the ninth magnitude.
He presumed none the more for that; on the contrary, he made his bow to
you, at a distance, and when occasion arose he bravely knew how to use
his eyes.
With such profound faith as Joe felt in the doctor, it is not to
be wondered at that incessant discussions sprang up between him and
Kennedy, without any lack of respect to the latter, however.
One doubted, the other believed; one had a prudent foresight, the
other blind confidence. The doctor, however, vibrated between doubt and
confidence; that is to say, he troubled his head with neither one nor
the other.
“Well, Mr. Kennedy,” Joe would say.
“Well, my boy?”
“The moment’s at hand. It seems that we are to sail for the moon.”
“You mean the Mountains of the Moon, which are not quite so far off.
But, never mind, one trip is just as dangerous as the other!”
“Dangerous! What! with a man like Dr. Ferguson?”
“I don’t want to spoil your illusions, my good Joe; but this undertaking
of his is nothing more nor less than the act of a madman. He won’t go,
though!”
“He won’t go, eh? Then you haven’t seen his balloon at Mitchell’s
factory in the Borough?”
“I’ll take precious good care to keep away from it!”
“Well, you’ll lose a fine sight, sir. What a splendid thing it is! What
a pretty shape! What a nice car! How snug we’ll feel in it!”
“Then you really think of going with your master?”
“I?” answered Joe, with an accent of profound conviction. “Why, I’d go
with him wherever he pleases! Who ever heard of such a thing? Leave him
to go off alone, after we’ve been all over the world together! Who would
help him, when he was tired? Who would give him a hand in climbing over
the rocks? Who would attend him when he was sick? No, Mr. Kennedy, Joe
will always stick to the doctor!”
“You’re a fine fellow, Joe!”
“But, then, you’re coming with us!”
“Oh! certainly,” said Kennedy; “that is to say, I will go with you up to
the last moment, to prevent Samuel even then from being guilty of such
an act of folly! I will follow him as far as Zanzibar, so as to stop him
there, if possible.”
“You’ll stop nothing at all, Mr. Kennedy, with all respect to you, sir.
My master is no hare-brained person; he takes a long time to think over
what he means to do, and then, when he once gets started, the Evil One
himself couldn’t make him give it up.”
“Well, we’ll see about that.”
“Don’t flatter yourself, sir--but then, the main thing is, to have
you with us. For a hunter like you, sir, Africa’s a great country. So,
either way, you won’t be sorry for the trip.”
“No, that’s a fact, I shan’t be sorry for it, if I can get this crazy
man to give up his scheme.”
“By-the-way,” said Joe, “you know that the weighing comes off to-day.”
“The weighing--what weighing?”
“Why, my master, and you, and I, are all to be weighed to-day!”
“What! like horse-jockeys?”
“Yes, like jockeys. Only, never fear, you won’t be expected to make
yourself lean, if you’re found to be heavy. You’ll go as you are.”
“Well, I can tell you, I am not going to let myself be weighed,” said
Kennedy, firmly.
“But, sir, it seems that the doctor’s machine requires it.”
“Well, his machine will have to do without it.”
“Humph! and suppose that it couldn’t go up, then?”
“Egad! that’s all I want!”
“Come! come, Mr. Kennedy! My master will be sending for us directly.”
“I shan’t go.”
“Oh! now, you won’t vex the doctor in that way!”
“Aye! that I will.”
“Well!” said Joe with a laugh, “you say that because he’s not here;
but when he says to your face, ‘Dick!’ (with all respect to you, sir,)
‘Dick, I want to know exactly how much you weigh,’ you’ll go, I warrant
it.”
“No, I will NOT go!”
At this moment the doctor entered his study, where this discussion had
been taking place; and, as he came in, cast a glance at Kennedy, who did
not feel altogether at his ease.
“Dick,” said the doctor, “come with Joe; I want to know how much you
both weigh.”
“But--”
“You may keep your hat on. Come!” And Kennedy went.
They repaired in company to the workshop of the Messrs. Mitchell,
where one of those so-called “Roman” scales was in readiness. It
was necessary, by the way, for the doctor to know the weight of his
companions, so as to fix the equilibrium of his balloon; so he made Dick
get up on the platform of the scales. The latter, without making any
resistance, said, in an undertone:
“Oh! well, that doesn’t bind me to any thing.”
“One hundred and fifty-three pounds,” said the doctor, noting it down on
his tablets.
“Am I too heavy?”
“Why, no, Mr. Kennedy!” said Joe; “and then, you know, I am light to
make up for it.”
So saying, Joe, with enthusiasm, took his place on the scales, and
very nearly upset them in his ready haste. He struck the attitude of
Wellington where he is made to ape Achilles, at Hyde-Park entrance, and
was superb in it, without the shield.
“One hundred and twenty pounds,” wrote the doctor.
“Ah! ha!” said Joe, with a smile of satisfaction And why did he smile?
He never could tell himself.
“It’s my turn now,” said Ferguson--and he put down one hundred and
thirty-five pounds to his own account.
“All three of us,” said he, “do not weigh much more than four hundred
pounds.”
“But, sir,” said Joe, “if it was necessary for your expedition, I could
make myself thinner by twenty pounds, by not eating so much.”
“Useless, my boy!” replied the doctor. “You may eat as much as you like,
and here’s half-a-crown to buy you the ballast.”
CHAPTER SEVENTH.
Geometrical Details.--Calculation of the Capacity of the Balloon.--The
Double Receptacle.--The Covering.--The Car.--The Mysterious
Apparatus.--The Provisions and Stores.--The Final Summing up.
Dr. Ferguson had long been engaged upon the details of his expedition.
It is easy to comprehend that the balloon--that marvellous vehicle
which was to convey him through the air--was the constant object of his
solicitude.
At the outset, in order not to give the balloon too ponderous
dimensions, he had decided to fill it with hydrogen gas, which is
fourteen and a half times lighter than common air. The production of
this gas is easy, and it has given the greatest satisfaction hitherto in
aerostatic experiments.
The doctor, according to very accurate calculations, found that,
including the articles indispensable to his journey and his apparatus,
he should have to carry a weight of 4,000 pounds; therefore he had to
find out what would be the ascensional force of a balloon capable of
raising such a weight, and, consequently, what would be its capacity.
A weight of four thousand pounds is represented by a displacement of the
air amounting to forty-four thousand eight hundred and forty-seven
cubic feet; or, in other words, forty-four thousand eight hundred and
forty-seven cubic feet of air weigh about four thousand pounds.
By giving the balloon these cubic dimensions, and filling it with
hydrogen gas, instead of common air--the former being fourteen and
a half times lighter and weighing therefore only two hundred and
seventy-six pounds--a difference of three thousand seven hundred and
twenty-four pounds in equilibrium is produced; and it is this difference
between the weight of the gas contained in the balloon and the weight of
the surrounding atmosphere that constitutes the ascensional force of the
former.
However, were the forty-four thousand eight hundred and forty-seven
cubic feet of gas of which we speak, all introduced into the balloon, it
would be entirely filled; but that would not do, because, as the balloon
continued to mount into the more rarefied layers of the atmosphere,
the gas within would dilate, and soon burst the cover containing it.
Balloons, then, are usually only two-thirds filled.
But the doctor, in carrying out a project known only to himself,
resolved to fill his balloon only one-half; and, since he had to carry
forty-four thousand eight hundred and forty-seven cubic feet of gas,
to give his balloon nearly double capacity he arranged it in that
elongated, oval shape which has come to be preferred. The horizontal
diameter was fifty feet, and the vertical diameter seventy-five feet.
He thus obtained a spheroid, the capacity of which amounted, in round
numbers, to ninety thousand cubic feet.
Could Dr. Ferguson have used two balloons, his chances of success would
have been increased; for, should one burst in the air, he could, by
throwing out ballast, keep himself up with the other. But the management
of two balloons would, necessarily, be very difficult, in view of the
problem how to keep them both at an equal ascensional force.
After having pondered the matter carefully, Dr. Ferguson, by an
ingenious arrangement, combined the advantages of two balloons, without
incurring their inconveniences. He constructed two of different sizes,
and inclosed the smaller in the larger one. His external balloon, which
had the dimensions given above, contained a less one of the same shape,
which was only forty-five feet in horizontal, and sixty-eight feet
in vertical diameter. The capacity of this interior balloon was
only sixty-seven thousand cubic feet: it was to float in the fluid
surrounding it. A valve opened from one balloon into the other, and thus
enabled the aeronaut to communicate with both.
This arrangement offered the advantage, that if gas had to be let off,
so as to descend, that which was in the outer balloon would go first;
and, were it completely emptied, the smaller one would still remain
intact. The outer envelope might then be cast off as a useless
encumbrance; and the second balloon, left free to itself, would not
offer the same hold to the currents of air as a half-inflated one must
needs present.
Moreover, in case of an accident happening to the outside balloon, such
as getting torn, for instance, the other would remain intact.
The balloons were made of a strong but light Lyons silk, coated with
gutta percha. This gummy, resinous substance is absolutely water-proof,
and also resists acids and gas perfectly. The silk was doubled, at the
upper extremity of the oval, where most of the strain would come.
Such an envelope as this could retain the inflating fluid for any length
of time. It weighed half a pound per nine square feet. Hence the surface
of the outside balloon being about eleven thousand six hundred square
feet, its envelope weighed six hundred and fifty pounds. The envelope
of the second or inner balloon, having nine thousand two hundred square
feet of surface, weighed only about five hundred and ten pounds, or say
eleven hundred and sixty pounds for both.
The network that supported the car was made of very strong hempen
cord, and the two valves were the object of the most minute and careful
attention, as the rudder of a ship would be.
The car, which was of a circular form and fifteen feet in diameter, was
made of wicker-work, strengthened with a slight covering of iron, and
protected below by a system of elastic springs, to deaden the shock of
collision. Its weight, along with that of the network, did not exceed
two hundred and fifty pounds.
In addition to the above, the doctor caused to be constructed two
sheet-iron chests two lines in thickness. These were connected by means
of pipes furnished with stopcocks. He joined to these a spiral, two
inches in diameter, which terminated in two branch pieces of unequal
length, the longer of which, however, was twenty-five feet in height and
the shorter only fifteen feet.
These sheet-iron chests were embedded in the car in such a way as to
take up the least possible amount of space. The spiral, which was not to
be adjusted until some future moment, was packed up, separately, along
with a very strong Buntzen electric battery. This apparatus had been
so ingeniously combined that it did not weigh more than seven hundred
pounds, even including twenty-five gallons of water in another
receptacle.
The instruments provided for the journey consisted of two barometers,
two thermometers, two compasses, a sextant, two chronometers, an
artificial horizon, and an altazimuth, to throw out the height of
distant and inaccessible objects.
The Greenwich Observatory had placed itself at the doctor’s disposal.
The latter, however, did not intend to make experiments in physics; he
merely wanted to be able to know in what direction he was passing, and
to determine the position of the principal rivers, mountains, and towns.
He also provided himself with three thoroughly tested iron anchors, and
a light but strong silk ladder fifty feet in length.
He at the same time carefully weighed his stores of provision, which
consisted of tea, coffee, biscuit, salted meat, and pemmican, a
preparation which comprises many nutritive elements in a small space.
Besides a sufficient stock of pure brandy, he arranged two water-tanks,
each of which contained twenty-two gallons.
The consumption of these articles would necessarily, little by little,
diminish the weight to be sustained, for it must be remembered that
the equilibrium of a balloon floating in the atmosphere is extremely
sensitive. The loss of an almost insignificant weight suffices to
produce a very noticeable displacement.
Nor did the doctor forget an awning to shelter the car, nor the
coverings and blankets that were to be the bedding of the journey, nor
some fowling pieces and rifles, with their requisite supply of powder
and ball.
Here is the summing up of his various items, and their weight, as he
computed it:
Ferguson........................... 135 pounds.
Kennedy............................ 153”
Joe................................ 120”
Weight of the outside balloon...... 650”
Weight of the second balloon....... 510”
Car and network.................... 280”
Anchors, instruments, awnings,
and sundry utensils, guns,
coverings, etc................... 190”
Meat, pemmican, biscuits, tea,
coffee, brandy................... 386”
Water.............................. 400”
Apparatus.......................... 700”
Weight of the hydrogen............. 276”
Ballast............................ 200”
-----
4,000 pounds.
Such were the items of the four thousand pounds that Dr. Ferguson
proposed to carry up with him. He took only two hundred pounds of
ballast for “unforeseen emergencies,” as he remarked, since otherwise he
did not expect to use any, thanks to the peculiarity of his apparatus.
CHAPTER EIGHTH.
Joe’s Importance.--The Commander of the Resolute.--Kennedy’s
Arsenal.--Mutual Amenities.--The Farewell Dinner.--Departure on the
21st of February.--The Doctor’s Scientific
Sessions.--Duveyrier.--Livingstone.--Details of the Aerial
Voyage.--Kennedy silenced.
About the 10th of February, the preparations were pretty well completed;
and the balloons, firmly secured, one within the other, were altogether
finished. They had been subjected to a powerful pneumatic pressure in
all parts, and the test gave excellent evidence of their solidity and of
the care applied in their construction.
Joe hardly knew what he was about, with delight. He trotted incessantly
to and fro between his home in Greek Street, and the Mitchell
establishment, always full of business, but always in the highest
spirits, giving details of the affair to people who did not even ask
him, so proud was he, above all things, of being permitted to accompany
his master. I have even a shrewd suspicion that what with showing the
balloon, explaining the plans and views of the doctor, giving folks a
glimpse of the latter, through a half-opened window, or pointing him
out as he passed along the streets, the clever scamp earned a few
half-crowns, but we must not find fault with him for that. He had
as much right as anybody else to speculate upon the admiration and
curiosity of his contemporaries.
On the 16th of February, the Resolute cast anchor near Greenwich. She
was a screw propeller of eight hundred tons, a fast sailer, and the very
vessel that had been sent out to the polar regions, to revictual the
last expedition of Sir James Ross. Her commander, Captain Bennet,
had the name of being a very amiable person, and he took a particular
interest in the doctor’s expedition, having been one of that gentleman’s
admirers for a long time. Bennet was rather a man of science than a man
of war, which did not, however, prevent his vessel from carrying four
carronades, that had never hurt any body, to be sure, but had performed
the most pacific duty in the world.
The hold of the Resolute was so arranged as to find a stowing-place for
the balloon. The latter was shipped with the greatest precaution on the
18th of February, and was then carefully deposited at the bottom of
the vessel in such a way as to prevent accident. The car and its
accessories, the anchors, the cords, the supplies, the water-tanks,
which were to be filled on arriving, all were embarked and put away
under Ferguson’s own eyes.
Ten tons of sulphuric acid and ten tons of iron filings, were put on
board for the future production of the hydrogen gas. The quantity was
more than enough, but it was well to be provided against accident. The
apparatus to be employed in manufacturing the gas, including some thirty
empty casks, was also stowed away in the hold.
These various preparations were terminated on the 18th of February, in
the evening. Two state-rooms, comfortably fitted up, were ready for the
reception of Dr. Ferguson and his friend Kennedy. The latter, all
the while swearing that he would not go, went on board with a regular
arsenal of hunting weapons, among which were two double-barrelled
breech-loading fowling-pieces, and a rifle that had withstood every
test, of the make of Purdey, Moore & Dickson, at Edinburgh. With such
a weapon a marksman would find no difficulty in lodging a bullet in the
eye of a chamois at the distance of two thousand paces. Along with
these implements, he had two of Colt’s six-shooters, for unforeseen
emergencies. His powder-case, his cartridge-pouch, his lead, and his
bullets, did not exceed a certain weight prescribed by the doctor.
The three travellers got themselves to rights on board during the
working-hours of February 19th. They were received with much distinction
by the captain and his officers, the doctor continuing as reserved as
ever, and thinking of nothing but his expedition. Dick seemed a good
deal moved, but was unwilling to betray it; while Joe was fairly dancing
and breaking out in laughable remarks. The worthy fellow soon became the
jester and merry-andrew of the boatswain’s mess, where a berth had been
kept for him.
On the 20th, a grand farewell dinner was given to Dr. Ferguson and
Kennedy by the Royal Geographical Society. Commander Bennet and his
officers were present at the entertainment, which was signalized by
copious libations and numerous toasts. Healths were drunk, in sufficient
abundance to guarantee all the guests a lifetime of centuries. Sir
Francis M----presided, with restrained but dignified feeling.
To his own supreme confusion, Dick Kennedy came in for a large share
in the jovial felicitations of the night. After having drunk to the
“intrepid Ferguson, the glory of England,” they had to drink to “the no
less courageous Kennedy, his daring companion.”
Dick blushed a good deal, and that passed for modesty; whereupon the
applause redoubled, and Dick blushed again.
A message from the Queen arrived while they were at dessert. Her Majesty
offered her compliments to the two travellers, and expressed her
wishes for their safe and successful journey. This, of course, rendered
imperative fresh toasts to “Her most gracious Majesty.”
At midnight, after touching farewells and warm shaking of hands, the
guests separated.
The boats of the Resolute were in waiting at the stairs of Westminster
Bridge. The captain leaped in, accompanied by his officers and
passengers, and the rapid current of the Thames, aiding the strong arms
of the rowers, bore them swiftly to Greenwich. In an hour’s time all
were asleep on board.
The next morning, February 21st, at three o’clock, the furnaces began
to roar; at five, the anchors were weighed, and the Resolute, powerfully
driven by her screw, began to plough the water toward the mouth of the
Thames.
It is needless to say that the topic of conversation with every one on
board was Dr. Ferguson’s enterprise. Seeing and hearing the doctor soon
inspired everybody with such confidence that, in a very short time,
there was no one, excepting the incredulous Scotchman, on the steamer
who had the least doubt of the perfect feasibility and success of the
expedition.
During the long, unoccupied hours of the voyage, the doctor held regular
sittings, with lectures on geographical science, in the officers’
mess-room. These young men felt an intense interest in the discoveries
made during the last forty years in Africa; and the doctor related to
them the explorations of Barth, Burton, Speke, and Grant, and depicted
the wonders of this vast, mysterious country, now thrown open on
all sides to the investigations of science. On the north, the young
Duveyrier was exploring Sahara, and bringing the chiefs of the
Touaregs to Paris. Under the inspiration of the French Government, two
expeditions were preparing, which, descending from the north, and coming
from the west, would cross each other at Timbuctoo. In the south, the
indefatigable Livingstone was still advancing toward the equator; and,
since March, 1862, he had, in company with Mackenzie, ascended the river
Rovoonia. The nineteenth century would, assuredly, not pass, contended
the doctor, without Africa having been compelled to surrender the
secrets she has kept locked up in her bosom for six thousand years.
But the interest of Dr. Ferguson’s hearers was excited to the highest
pitch when he made known to them, in detail, the preparations for his
own journey. They took pleasure in verifying his calculations; they
discussed them; and the doctor frankly took part in the discussion.
As a general thing, they were surprised at the limited quantity of
provision that he took with him; and one day one of the officers
questioned him on that subject.
“That peculiar point astonishes you, does it?” said Ferguson.
“It does, indeed.”
“But how long do you think my trip is going to last? Whole months? If
so, you are greatly mistaken. Were it to be a long one, we should be
lost; we should never get back. But you must know that the distance from
Zanzibar to the coast of Senegal is only thirty-five hundred--say four
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