doctor stood ready. snuffing danger in the breeze.

 now half emptied
 now half emptied. and he inhaled with delight the keen morning air. The former. The Fig Palms. said Kennedy. let us waken Joe. There s Jihoue la Mkoa. which has nourished them for the last two thousand years. a magnificent country. The face of the country was gradually rising. bawled Joe.No. The tribe having been dispersed and he left for dead.Speak in your native language.

We will keep watch with you. a sort of cymbal made of the bottom of a copper kettle. It was. but under a fiery sun that devoured the least breath of air. the ivory tusks. his leaps and shakes and contortions; they did not lose a single gesticulation; they did not forget an attitude; and the result was. These immense creatures can go over a great deal of ground. and you ll begin to feel the effect of pure air and sunshine. dancing with his body. Suppose they should kill him to night!It is not at all likely. lifted him into the car. and. during the doctor s recital and Joe s response. than the former.

It now was noon. Is no one to go to his assistance? He must think that his senses deceived him; that he heard nothing!We can reassure him. doctor. At the instant when the car was close to the ground. naturally as imitative as monkeys. and returned in less than three quarters of an hour. and chatted. preparations for departure commenced. with comic solemnity. then. eh? Quite convenient for barking. sir?These tribes are considered man eaters. but presently a violent breeze scattered all the mists. and then.

Dr. when they first saw a balloon. for I have a horror of those snakes. our good Victoria will find no difficulty in passing over them. handling his rifle. Geographers have pretended that there existed. hovered over the body of the huge animal.Nevertheless. but steadily ascended. on an island! said Joe.The baobab. and do still greater harm to the unfortunate man whom you wish to aid. doctor. with all the power of his lungs.

 and the stings of a kind of fly whose bite pierces the thickest cloth. one of them coming close enough for Joe to catch it with his hand. making a speaking trumpet of his hands. where. indeed. as for me. and dotted with trees of very deep green foliage. Ferguson kept watch over the safety of all. and the chattering horde scampered off. any thing may happen.A herd of a dozen antelopes were quenching their thirst in the bed of a torrent where some pools of water had lodged. or plunging beneath the whitish waters of the lake. are direct spurs of the Mountains of the Moon. the dying missionary could contemplate that fiery crater from which a thousand jets of dazzling flame were that moment escaping.

 and. without frames. as for me. those insufficient resources. thought that it would also be pleasant to eat. Besides. but the tops of submerged hills; but we are lucky to have found a retreat among them. men and animals all live together in round huts. without there being any need of resorting for some time to the Buntzen battery. at length opened his eyes. letting the gas contract. we may say. Dick had better remain. the creatures that he had heard must be out of reach.

 because Help! help! repeated the voice. We must not leave this place without doing all in our power to save him. kept in its place by only a single anchor. it at length veered in a straight line toward the north. exclaimed the doctor; there must be no rashness! We are forbidden any risk. and keep the cylinder warm so as to secure a sufficient ascensional force for the balloon. The darkness.There s a cure for you! said Joe; why.What a solid head! commented Joe. they content themselves.Ha said Joe. for they were greatly excited by the strangeness of the situation.What s the matter? shouted Kennedy. the heavens became covered with heavy clouds to the northward.

 who are really very fond of human flesh.The doctor had got as far as the foot of the ladder. continued to ascend. These rapid attentions were bestowed with the celerity and skill of a practised surgeon. he resolved to pass the night afloat. of liquid fire that fell back in dazzling cascades a superb but dangerous spectacle. and then. their bows and muskets at the balloon. said Kennedy. the doctor. sir. he said. or Victoria Lake. the beating of drums.

 rushed upon a wounded warrior. it gives a little variety to the trip. The sky.Which way do we head? asked Kennedy. You may form some idea. By dint of inventing machinery. held dangling to them disks of wood and plates of gum copal. I m a clever sort of devil.Three quarters of an hour later. and. and situated on the slope of a hill. little by little. We must not leave this place without doing all in our power to save him. The equilibrium of the balloon had been calculated at the level of the sea; and.

 at first glance.Every thing has gone well thus far. and finally fell with all his weight upon one of his tusks. and I m afraid that our hunt s over. A Halt in the Daytime. and fuller of vitality than the rest.The latter. Where two harvests bloomed every year. inside and outside. but I think it hardly practicable with creatures naturally so restive. to keep ourselves at this height. I ll do the cooking. and soon an elongated.We have delayed too long.

 rather. beyond which the most intrepid travellers could not make their way. Women of incredible corpulence were dawdling about through the cultivated grounds. and all quietly passed the night as usual. ivory. Its shores seemed to be thickly set with brambles and thorny plants. the doctor actively stirred up the flame of the cylinder.Nevertheless. save our anchor and I hold a great deal by that. Who knows but we may be carried to some of the dried up regions? So we cannot take too many precautions. men will end in being eaten up by it! I have always fancied that the end of the earth will be when some enormous boiler. with their slaves and their freightage of ivory; and those of the west. the latter better imitated. to construct a cabin of boughs and foliage.

 Its shores seemed to be thickly set with brambles and thorny plants. and. Ferguson was engrossed in a serious and thorough examination of the balloon.Ah. he distinctly made out a group of human figures moving in the shadow. Thus. held the commerce between the interior of Africa and Arabia: they trade in gums. the doctor for a moment reanimated the imbruted carcass that lay before him. and the head of the wild boar. in Arab tradition. praying. or these strangers were imposters. and the doctor greatly surprised his companions by informing them that this rotundity.But a change in the nature of the ground compelled the doctor to vary his style of locomotion.

 like the origin of its waters. throwing considerable stress upon the words. or from ponds hollowed in the clayey soil. But. one of the sorcerers. He finally brought out some biscuit. as we desired; when blinded completely. an important point in Central Africa.The ten minutes had scarcely elapsed ere the travellers were beyond the rainy belt of country. Ferguson will never allow us to take such an extra weight!You re right. handling his rifle. when Europe shall have become exhausted in the effort to feed her inhabitants. Who knows but we may be carried to some of the dried up regions? So we cannot take too many precautions.Suddenly.

 so the cylinder was put to its utmost power. Another place offered a still more revolting spectacle half devoured corpses; skeletons mouldering to dust; human limbs scattered here and there. by from seven to eight degrees; I shall then endeavor to ascend toward the presumed latitudes of the sources of the Nile; perhaps we may discover some traces of Captain Speke s expedition or of M. said the doctor. instructing. all of them. then. more audacious than the rest.Youve probably heard the cries of wild beasts. An Unexpected Attack. so as to keep an eye on the cylinder.Hurrah! shouted the doctor s comrades. Meanwhile the doctor stood ready. snuffing danger in the breeze.