“Eel-skins,” said Caspar, repeating the phrase, as he saw that Karl hesitated before pronouncing an opinion. “Don’t you think they would do?”
Karl had it on the tip of his tongue to cry out—“The very thing!” but something withheld1 him from making this unqualified declaration.
“They might—it is possible they might,” said he, apparently2 debating the question within himself—“just possible; and yet I fear—”
“What do you fear?” asked Caspar.
“Do you think they would not be strong enough?”
“Strong enough,” replied Karl. “That’s not what I fear.”
“The air can’t pass through an eel-skin?”
“No—not that.”
“At the seams, perhaps? We can stitch them neatly3; and then gum them over at the joinings. I’ll warrant Ossaroo can sew like a shoemaker.”
The shikaree could do all that. Karl knew it. It was not there the difficulty lay.
“The weight, then?” pursued Caspar interrogatively.
“Precisely that,” answered Karl; “I fear they will be too heavy. Bring one, Ossaroo; and let us have a look at it.”
The shikaree rose from his seat; and going into the hovel, returned presently—bringing back with him a long shrivelled object, which any one could tell to be a dried eel-skin.
There were many like it inside: for they had carefully preserved the skins of the eels5 they had caught, induced to do so by a sort of presentiment6, that some day they might find a use for them. In this case their prudent7 providence8 was likely to prove of service to them.
Karl took the skin; and, holding it out on the palm of his hand, appeared to make an estimate of its weight. Caspar watched his brother’s countenance9, and waited to hear what he would say; but Karl only expressed himself by a doubtful shake of the head, which seemed to show that his opinion was against the eel-skins.
“They might be made much lighter10, I fancy,” suggested Caspar: “scraping would do a deal for them; and by the way, why would not boiling make them light enough? It would take all the fatty, oily substance out of them.”
“There’s something in what you say,” rejoined Karl, apparently impressed by the last suggestion. “Boiling might render them a good deal lighter. We can easily try it.”
As Karl said this, he proceeded to the boiling spring, and plunged11 the eel-skin under the water. There it was permitted to remain for about half an hour, when it was taken out; and, after being scraped with the blade of a knife, was spread upon a rock, under the sun, where it would soon get thoroughly12 dry.
They all waited patiently for the completion of this process. The result was of too interesting a character to allow of their occupying themselves with anything else.
In due time the eel-skin had become sufficiently13 dry, to be submitted to examination; and Karl, once more taking it up, balanced it upon his palm.
Tested, even in this inexact fashion, it was evidently much lighter than before; and, by the gratified look with which the philosopher regarded it, he appeared to be much better satisfied with its weight. Still, however, he was not sanguine14: as his words testified. They were almost a repetition of what he had said before.
“It may do—it is just possible. At all events, there can be no harm in trying. Let us try it, then.”
To say, “Let us try it,” meant the same as to say, “Let us make the balloon.” The others understood that; and of course acquiesced15 in the determination.
As there was nothing to interfere16 with the immediate17 commencement of the work, they resolved to set about it at once; and in fact did set about it without farther delay.
The number of eel-skins on hand, though very considerable, would not be near enough for covering a balloon; and therefore Ossaroo went to work with his hooks and lines to catch a few hundreds more. Karl was able to tell how many it would take; or he could at least make an estimate sufficiently exact for the purpose. He designed a balloon of twelve feet diameter: for he knew that one of less size would not have power enough to carry up the weight of a man. Of course, Karl knew how to calculate the surface of a sphere whose diameter should be twelve feet. He had only to multiply the diameter on the circumference18; or the square of the diameter on the fixed19 number 3.1416; or find the convex surface of the circumscribing20 cylinder21; or else find four times the area of a great circle of the said sphere. Any one of these methods would give him the correct result.
On making the calculation, he found that a sphere of 12 feet diameter would have a surface of 452 square feet, within a trifling22 fraction. Therefore 452 square feet of eel-skins would be required to cover it. In other words, that quantity would be required to make the balloon.
As the eels happened to be of large size—most of them being over a yard in length, and full four inches in average girth—the skin of one when spread out would yield about a square foot of surface. Taking large and small together—and allowing for waste, the heads and tails that would have to be chopped off—Karl calculated that he would get nearly a square foot each out of the eels; and that about five hundred skins would make the balloon bag. But as they would have to be cut occasionally with a slant23, in order to get the globe shape, perhaps a few more would be needed; and therefore Ossaroo was to keep his baits in the water, until the requisite24 number of eels should be hooked out of it.
Ossaroo had another department assigned to him besides catching25 the fish; and one that took up more of his time: since the baiting of the hooks, and looking after them, required only his occasional attention. Spinning the thread by which the skins were to be sewed together, was a much more delicate operation: since in these both strength and fineness were absolutely necessary. But as Caspar had said, Ossaroo was an adept26 with the distaff; and several large skeins of the finest twist were soon turned off from his nimble fingers.
When enough thread had been thus produced, Ossaroo proceeded to making the cords and stronger ropes, that would be needed for attaching the “boat”—as well as to hold the balloon in its place, while being got ready for its ascent27.
Caspar’s employment was—first, the skinning of the eels; and afterwards the scraping, boiling, and drying of the skins; while Karl, who acted as engineer-in-chief, besides giving a general superintendence to the work, occupied himself in imparting the final dressing28 to the material, and cutting it into such shapes, that it could be closely and conveniently stitched together.
Karl had also made an excursion into the forest, and brought back with him large quantities of a gum, which he had extracted from a tree of the genus ficus—a sort of caoutchouc—which is yielded by many species of ficus in the forests of the Lower Himalayas. Karl had gone in search of this substance, because he knew it would be required for paying the seams, and rendering29 them air-tight.
When they had pursued their various avocations30 for about a week, it was thought that material enough of every kind was collected and made ready; and then Ossaroo was set to stitching. Fortunately, they were provided with needles: for these had formed a part of the accoutrement of the plant-hunters—when originally starting upon their expedition.
As neither Karl nor Caspar had any experience in handling such sharp tools, the sewing had all to be done by Ossaroo; and it took another full week to accomplish this Sartorean task.
At the end of that time, it was fully4 accomplished31 and complete; and the huge bag was ready to receive its coat of gum varnish32. A day sufficed for “paying;” and nothing more remained but to attach the “boat,” or “car,” that was to carry them aloft in their daring flight into the “azure fields of air.”
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1
withheld
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| withhold过去式及过去分词 | |
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2
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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eels
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| abbr. 电子发射器定位系统（=electronic emitter location system） | |
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6
presentiment
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| n.预感，预觉 | |
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7
prudent
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| adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的 | |
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8
providence
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| n.深谋远虑，天道，天意；远见；节约；上帝 | |
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9
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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10
lighter
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| n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级 | |
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11
plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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12
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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13
sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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14
sanguine
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| adj.充满希望的，乐观的，血红色的 | |
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15
acquiesced
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| v.默认，默许( acquiesce的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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16
interfere
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| v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰 | |
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17
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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18
circumference
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| n.圆周，周长，圆周线 | |
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19
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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20
circumscribing
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| v.在…周围划线( circumscribe的现在分词 )；划定…范围；限制；限定 | |
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21
cylinder
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| n.圆筒，柱(面)，汽缸 | |
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22
trifling
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| adj.微不足道的；没什么价值的 | |
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slant
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| v.倾斜，倾向性地编写或报道；n.斜面，倾向 | |
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24
requisite
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| adj.需要的，必不可少的；n.必需品 | |
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25
catching
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| adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住 | |
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adept
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| adj.老练的，精通的 | |
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ascent
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| n.(声望或地位)提高；上升，升高；登高 | |
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28
dressing
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| n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料 | |
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29
rendering
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| n.表现，描写 | |
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avocations
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| n.业余爱好，嗜好( avocation的名词复数 )；职业 | |
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31
accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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32
varnish
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| n.清漆；v.上清漆；粉饰 | |
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