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  .., 2026.



Jules Verne  

Mysterious Island  



Part One  

Air crash   



Chapter 1  1

The Hurricane of 1865.  1865 .  Shouts over the sea abyss.     .  A balloon carried away by the storm.   ,  .  A torn shell.   .  Only sea around.    .  Five travelers.   .  What happened in the gondola.     .  Land on the horizon.    .  The denouement of the drama.   .

- Are we going up?  ?

- What the hell!   ! We're going down!  !

- Worse, Mr. Cyrus!  ,  ! We're falling! !

- Oh my God!   ! Ballast overboard!   !

 The last bag has been dropped!    !

- How now?   ? Shall we get up? ?

- No!  !

- What is this?   ? It looks like waves are splashing?    ?

 There is a sea below us!    !

- Very close, about five hundred feet.   ,  .

A commanding voice rang out above the howl of the storm:   ,   :

 Throw all the heavy stuff overboard!     !. .. . Throw everything overboard!  ! Lord, save us! ,  !

These words rang out over the deserted expanse of the Pacific Ocean at about four o'clock in the afternoon on March 23, 1865.             23  1865 .

Surely everyone still remembers the terrible storm that broke out in 1865, at the time of the spring equinox, when a hurricane blew from the northeast and the barometer fell to seven hundred and ten millimeters. ,     ,   1865 ,    ,   -         . The hurricane raged without respite from March 18 to 26 and caused enormous devastation in America, Europe and Asia, capturing an area eighteen hundred miles wide, stretching diagonally to the equator from the thirty-fifth northern parallel to the fortieth southern parallel.      18  26       ,     ,       ,             . Destroyed cities, forests torn up by the roots, coasts devastated by sea waves the size of mountains, ships thrown ashore, numbering in the hundreds according to the reports of the Bureau Veritas, entire regions turned into deserts by the destructive force of tornadoes that crushed everything in their path, many thousands of people perished on land or buried in the depths sea, - such were the consequences of this terrible hurricane.  , ,   , ,      ,    ,     , ,      ,     ,   ,        ,       . In destructive power it surpassed even the storms that brought terrible devastation to Havana and Guadeloupe on October 25, 1810 and July 26, 1825.      ,        , 25  1810   26  1825 .

But in the March days of 1865, when such disasters were happening on land and at sea, an equally terrible drama was playing out in the storm-tossed air.     1865 ,         ,       ,  .

Indeed, the hurricane picked up the balloon, threw it like a ball to the top of the tornado, and, spinning it along with the column of air, carried it at a speed of ninety miles per hour; the balloon spun around its own axis like a top, as if it had fallen into some kind of air maelstrom.   ,    ,  ,  ,    ,     ,      ;      ,       .

Beneath the lower hoop of the balloon's net, a wicker gondola swayed, containing five people, barely visible in the thick mist mixed with water dust that descended to the very surface of the ocean.         ,    ,         ,          .

Where did this balloon come from, this pitiful toy of the inexorable storm?     ,    ? From what corner of the globe did it rush into the sky?         ? Certainly, it could not have set off during a hurricane. ,         . And yet the hurricane had been raging for five days already  its first signs made themselves known on March 18.       ,         18 . There was every reason to suppose that this balloon had come from afar, for it probably flew at least two thousand miles a day.    ,      ,  , ,        .

The travelers in the gondola had no way of determining how far they had traveled or where the balloon had ended up  they had no landmarks to use. ,   ,    ,         ,          . They must have experienced an extremely curious phenomenon: carried on the wings of a fierce storm, they did not feel it. ,       :     ,    . The balloon was carried farther and farther, but the passengers did not feel its rotational motion or its furious horizontal movement.    ,       ,     . Their eyes could not discern anything through the clouds swirling beneath the gondola.       ,   . Around them, everything was covered by a veil of fog, so thick that they could not tell whether it was day or night.      ,  ,           . Not a single reflection of heavenly bodies, not the slightest echo of earthly noises, not even the faintest roar of the roaring ocean reached them in the immeasurable darkness while they were flying at a great height.     ,     ,             ,      . And only when the balloon rapidly rushing down, they realized that they were flying over raging waves, and they understood the danger that threatened them.       ,  ,     ,  ,    .

But as soon as they had jettisoned all the cargo in the gondolathe supply of ammunition, weapons, and provisionsthe balloon rose again and flew at an altitude of four thousand five hundred feet.      ,      ,   ,           . Hearing the sea splashing beneath the gondola, the travelers decided that there was less danger for them up there, and without hesitation they threw overboard even the most necessary things, for they tried in every way to conserve gasthe soul of their airship, which carried them over the depths of the ocean. ,     ,  ,      ,          ,          ,     .

The night passed in worries that would have been fatal for less courageous people.    ,        . Finally, dawn broke, and as soon as the light began to break, the hurricane seemed to begin to subside. ,  ,     ,     . On March 24, signs of calm appeared from the very early morning. 24        . At dawn, the thunderclouds hanging over the sea rose high.         . Within a few hours, the tornado funnel expanded, and its column broke apart.      ,    . The hurricane turned into a very fresh wind, that is, the speed of movement of air layers decreased by half.      ,        . Still, as sailors say, the wind blew on three reefs, but the raging elements had almost calmed down.  ,   ,     ,     .

By eleven o'clock in the morning the sky had almost cleared of clouds, and the humid air acquired that special transparency that you not only see but also feel after a strong storm has passed.         ,       ,    ,     ,    . It seemed as if the hurricane had not rushed far to the west, but had ceased on its own. ,    ,  ,    . Perhaps, when the tornado column broke apart, the storm was resolved by electrical discharges, as sometimes happens with typhoons in the Indian Ocean.  ,    ,    ,          .

But at that same hour, the balloon's passengers again noticed that they were slowly but steadily descending.           ,   ,   . The balloon's shell gradually shrank, stretched out, and instead of a spherical shape, the aerostat took on an egg-shaped form.    , ,        .

By midday he was already flying over the sea at a height of two thousand feet.            . The volume of the balloon was fifty thousand cubic feet; thanks to these dimensions, he was able to stay in the air for so long, sometimes rising upward, sometimes floating horizontally.       ;           ,   ,    .

To lighten the weight of the gondola, the travelers had already thrown overboard the last of the heavier objects, discarded the small supply of food they had left behind, and even everything that was in their pockets; then one of the passengers climbed onto the lower hoop, to which the rope net protecting the balloon's shell was attached, and tried to tie the lower valve of the aerostat more tightly.    ,       -  ,         ,      ;        ,      ,   ,       .

It became clear that it was no longer possible to keep the balloon at altitude  there was not enough gas for this.  ,       ,      .

So, death awaited everyone! ,   !

Below was neither a continent nor an island, but the vastness of the sea.    ,  ,   . There was not a single patch of dry land, a strip of solid ground, to which the balloons anchor could cling.       ,   ,       .

All around was only the sea, still tossing its waves with an incomprehensible fury.   ,       . Wherever you looked, there was only boundless ocean; the unfortunate aeronauts, although they looked from a great height and could encompass a space of forty miles around, did not see the shore.         ;  ,               ,   . Before their eyes stretched only a desert of water, mercilessly whipped by the hurricane, torn by the waves - they rushed like wild horses with scattered manes; the flashing crests of the fierce waves seemed from above like a huge white net.        ,   ,  ,   ,      ;         . There was no land in sight, not a single ship!      ,   !

Stop, stop the fall of the balloon at all costs, otherwise the abyss will swallow it up! ,         ,    ! The people in the gondola made every effort to achieve this as quickly as possible. ,   ,   ,    . But their efforts remained fruitless - the balloon sank lower and lower, and at the same time the wind carried it with extraordinary speed in the direction from the northeast to the southwest.          ,             -  -.

The travelers found themselves in a terrible situation.     . There was no doubt - they had lost all control over the balloon.          . All their attempts led to nothing.        . The balloon's shell was shrinking more and more.      . The gas was escaping from it, and there was no way to contain it.    ,       . The descent noticeably accelerated, and by one o'clock in the afternoon the gondola was separated from the ocean surface by a distance of only six hundred feet.   ,             . And the gas was becoming less and less.     . It was freely escaping through a gap that had appeared in the balloon's shell.     ,    .

Having thrown everything out of the gondola, the travelers managed to stay in the air for a few extra hours.    ,   ,        . But this was only a delay in the inevitable catastrophe: if land did not appear in sight by nightfall, both the balloon and the gondola would sink into the abyss of the ocean.       :        ,         .

There was only one remedy left to try, and the travelers resorted to it, showing themselves to be energetic and courageous people who had often had to look death in the eye.     ,     ,      ,        . Not the slightest murmur escaped their lips.        . They decided to fight to the last minute and try by all means to slow the fall of the ball.             . The gondola was something like a wicker basket and, of course, could not float: as soon as it fell into the water, it would immediately sink.       , ,   :     ,    .

By two o'clock in the afternoon the balloon was already four hundred feet above the ocean surface.              .

And then a courageous voice was heard  the voice of a brave man whose heart knows no fear.         ,     . His call was answered by voices no less determined.        .

 Did you throw everything away?   ?

- No!  ! There is gold left  ten thousand francs!      !

And immediately the heavy bag flew into the ocean.       .

 Did the ball rise?   ?

- Just a little bit.  -. It'll fall again now!   !

- What else can be thrown away?     ?

- Nothing!  !

- Nothing?  ? And the gondola?  ?

 Everyone cling to the net.     . And throw the gondola into the water!    !

Indeed, this was the only and last means of lightening the balloon. ,         . The ropes with which the gondola was tied to the hoop of the net were cut, and as soon as the gondola broke away, the balloon rose to a height of two thousand feet. ,       , ,     ,        .

The five travelers had climbed above the hoop and were now clinging to the mesh cells by clinging to the ropes.           ,   . All five looked down to where the ocean roared.    , ,   .

It is well known that any balloon is characterized by extraordinary sensitivity. ,      . Reduce its load even a little, and the balloon will immediately rise into the air.     ,     . An aerostat hovering in the air is similar in its sensitivity to mathematically precise scales. ,   ,      . And it is quite clear that if the balloon gets rid of its rather heavy gondola, it will immediately rise to a considerable height.   , ,       ,      . This is what happened in this case.      .

But, after remaining at the top for a moment, the balloon began to descend again. ,    ,    . The gas was leaking through the hole in the shell, and the damage could not be repaired.      ,     .

The travelers had done everything they could, and now no human power could save them.   ,  ,          . Their only hope was for a miracle.     .

At four o'clock in the afternoon the balloon was only five hundred feet above the ocean surface.               .

Suddenly a loud barking was heard.    . The travelers took the dog with them, and now it was in the balloon's net next to its owner.     ,           .

Top saw something!   - !  exclaimed one of the passengers.     .

And immediately a loud cry was heard:     :

 Earth!  ! Earth! !

The balloon was still carried by the wind to the southwest; since dawn it had already flown hundreds of miles, and indeed a rather high bank appeared before the travelers.      -;       ,        .

But this land was thirty miles away.        . The balloon could reach it in at least an hour, and only if the wind did not change.         ,     ,    . In an hour!  ! But what if all the remaining gas leaked out before that time? ,        ?

A terrible question!  ! The unfortunate aeronauts clearly distinguished land.     . They did not know whether it was an island or a continent, and they could hardly imagine what part of the world the storm had carried them to.   ,    ,    ,       . But even if instead of hospitable land there was an uninhabited island before them, they had to get to it at any cost.           ,       .

However, at four o'clock in the afternoon it became completely obvious that the balloon could no longer stay in the air.        ,        . It flew, touching the surface of the water.  ,   . The crests of huge waves repeatedly licked the lower cells of the net, it became wet, heavy, and the balloon barely rose, like a bird with a broken wing.         ,  , ,    ,     .

Half an hour later, there was no more than a mile left to the shore, but the gas in the balloon had almost completely run out and was only held in the upper part of the flabby, flattened shell, hanging in large folds.        ,               ,  ,   . The passengers, clinging to the net, became an unbearable burden for the balloon - soon it was half submerged in the water, and furious waves began to whip at it. ,   ,     ,       ,       . The shell was bent into a hump, and the wind, inflating it, rushed across the water like a sailboat.   ,  ,  ,   ,   . It seemed that at any moment it would reach land. , -   .

And indeed, he was already two cable lengths from the shore, when suddenly a cry of horror escaped the four travelers.  ,        ,        . A menacing wave rose, and the balloon, as if already deprived of lifting force, unexpectedly flew up.   ,  ,      ,   . As if having gotten rid of some part of its load, it rose to one thousand five hundred feet, but then fell into an air funnel, the wind whirled it and carried it no longer towards the land, but almost parallel to it.    -   ,      ,      ,         ,    . But two minutes later the wind changed and finally threw the balloon onto the sandy shore, where it was out of reach of the waves.        , ,    ,       .

The travelers helped each other to get out of the net that had entangled them.         . The ball, freed from its burden, took off at the first gust of wind and, like a wounded bird that had momentarily returned to life, soared upward and disappeared into the expanse of the sky. ,    ,      ,   ,     ,       .

There were five travelers and a dog in the balloon gondola, but only four people were washed ashore.        ,       .

The one who was missing was apparently washed away by a wave, which lightened the balloon's load, allowing it to rise for the last time and reach land a few moments later. ,   , ,   ,    ,            .

But as soon as the castaways (they can be called that) set foot on the ground, all four, not seeing the fifth companion, exclaimed:      (    )   ,   ,    , :

- Maybe hes trying to swim to it...   ,    ... Lets save him!  ! Lets save him! !



Chapter 2  2

An episode of the American Civil War.     .  Engineer Cyrus Smith.    .  Gideon Spilett.   .  Negro Nab.   .  Sailor Pencroff.   .  Young Herbert.   .  An unexpected proposal.   .  A date at ten o'clock in the evening.     .  Departure in a storm.    .

The men cast ashore by a hurricane on some distant shore were not professional aeronauts or amateurs of air travel. ,     -  ,   -    . They had been held as prisoners of war, and their natural courage had prompted them to escape from captivity under the most extraordinary circumstances!      ,            ! A hundred times they could have perished!     ! A hundred times the balloon with a ruptured envelope could have thrown them into the abyss.          . But heaven had prepared an astonishing fate for them.      . On March 20, the travelers were already seven thousand miles from Richmond, besieged by the troops of General Ulysses Grant - they had fled from this capital of the state of Virginia - the main stronghold of the secessionists during the days of the terrible civil war.           ,     ,                 . Their air journey lasted five days.      .

These are the curious circumstances under which the escape of the captives took place, ending in the catastrophe we have already told our readers about.        ,  ,      .

In February 1865, during one of the assaults by which General Grant vainly attempted to take Richmond, several officers of the Federal army fell into the hands of the enemy and were interned in that city.  1865 ,   ,     ,         ,              . One of the most notable prisoners was at the general headquarters of Grant's army; his name was Cyrus Smith.           ,    .

Cyrus Smith, a native of Massachusetts, an engineer by profession, was a first-class scientist; during the war, the United States government entrusted him with the management of railroads of great strategic importance.  ,  ,   ,   ;              .

Thin, bony, and gaunt, he could be considered a true North American in appearance, and although he was no more than forty-five years old, his short-cropped hair was streaked with gray; silver threads would have been visible in his beard, but Cyrus Smith did not wear a beard, leaving only a thick moustache. , , ,        ,         ,       ;       ,      ,    .

His face was striking in its stern beauty and chiseled profile - such faces seem created to be depicted on medals; his eyes burned with the fire of energy, his stern lips rarely smiled - in a word, Cyrus Smith had the appearance of a scientist endowed with the spirit of a warrior.                 ,     ;    ,    ,  ,      ,   . He belonged to the number of those engineers who, at the beginning of their careers, voluntarily wielded a hammer and pick, like generals who began their military service as privates.      ,            ,  ,    . Therefore, it is not surprising that, with exceptional inventiveness and sharpness of mind, he also had very dexterous, skillful hands.   ,             ,  . Developed muscles indicated his great strength.       . He was a man of action and at the same time a thinker; He acted without any effort on his own, driven by an indomitable vital energy, was distinguished by rare tenacity and was never afraid of possible failures.         ;       ,    ,         . His great knowledge was combined with a practical mind and, as soldiers say, with great resourcefulness; in addition, he developed remarkable endurance and under no circumstances lost his head - in short, he had three traits inherent in a strong person developed to a high degree: physical and mental energy, purposefulness and a powerful will.          ,   ,   ;                 ,   ,         ,   :    ,    . He could have chosen as his motto the words spoken in the 17th century by William of Orange:       ,   XVII   :

"When I undertake anything, I do not need hopes; when I persist in my actions, I do not need success."  -,     ;    ,    .

At the same time, Cyrus Smith was the personification of bravery.        . He participated in all the battles of the Civil War.       . Having begun his service under the command of Ulysses S. Grant in a detachment of Illinois volunteers, he fought at Paducah, Belmont, Pittsburg Landing, the siege of Corinth, at Port Gibson, at the Black River, at Chattanooga, near the Wilderness, on the Potomac - and everywhere he fought valiantly, as a soldier worthy of General Grant, who, when asked about his losses, replied: "I do not count my dead."          ,    , , -,   ,  -,   ,  ,  ,      ,  ,    ,      :     . A hundred times Cyrus Smith could have been among those whom the formidable commander did not count, but although he did not spare himself in these battles, he was lucky until the day when he was wounded at Richmond and taken prisoner.         ,     ,          ,     ,           .

Along with Cyrus Smith, another outstanding person also fell into the hands of the Southerners that same day  none other than Gideon Spilett, a special correspondent for the New York Herald, who had been assigned to the Northern army to follow the vicissitudes of the war.                    ,   ,    - ,      ,     .

Gideon Spilett belonged to that remarkable breed of reporters, primarily English and American, who, like Stanley and others like him, will stop at nothing to obtain accurate information about a topical event and report it quickly to their newspaper.        ,     ,            ,               . In the United States, such large newspapers as the New York Herald have become a real force, and their representatives, the "special correspondents," have to be reckoned with.      ,  - ,   ,    ,  ,  . Gideon Spilett occupied one of the first places among these "special correspondents."           .




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