The weather was still superb. The wind, after veering2 to the west, had sunk to a perfect calm. Pursuing its inverted3 course, the sun rose and set with undeviating regularity4; and the days and nights were still divided into periods of precisely5 six hours each — a sure proof that the sun remained close to the new equator which manifestly passed through Gourbi Island.
Meanwhile the temperature was steadily6 increasing. The captain kept his thermometer close at hand where he could repeatedly consult it, and on the 15th he found that it registered 50 degrees centigrade in the shade.
No attempt had been made to rebuild the gourbi, but the captain and Ben Zoof managed to make up quarters sufficiently7 comfortable in the principal apartment of the adjoining structure, where the stone walls, that at first afforded a refuge from the torrents8 of rain, now formed an equally acceptable shelter from the burning sun. The heat was becoming insufferable, surpassing the heat of Senegal and other equatorial regions; not a cloud ever tempered the intensity9 of the solar rays; and unless some modification10 ensued, it seemed inevitable11 that all vegetation should become scorched12 and burnt off from the face of the island.
In spite, however, of the profuse13 perspirations from which he suffered, Ben Zoof, constant to his principles, expressed no surprise at the unwonted heat. No remonstrances14 from his master could induce him to abandon his watch from the cliff. To withstand the vertical15 beams of that noontide sun would seem to require a skin of brass16 and a brain of adamant17; but yet, hour after hour, he would remain conscientiously18 scanning the surface of the Mediterranean19, which, calm and deserted20, lay outstretched before him. On one occasion, Servadac, in reference to his orderly’s indomitable perseverance21, happened to remark that he thought he must have been born in the heart of equatorial Africa; to which Ben Zoof replied, with the utmost dignity, that he was born at Montmartre, which was all the same. The worthy22 fellow was unwilling23 to own that, even in the matter of heat, the tropics could in any way surpass his own much-loved home.
This unprecedented24 temperature very soon began to take effect upon the products of the soil. The sap rose rapidly in the trees, so that in the course of a few days buds, leaves, flowers, and fruit had come to full maturity25. It was the same with the cereals; wheat and maize26 sprouted27 and ripened28 as if by magic, and for a while a rank and luxuriant pasturage clothed the meadows. Summer and autumn seemed blended into one. If Captain Servadac had been more deeply versed29 in astronomy, he would perhaps have been able to bring to bear his knowledge that if the axis30 of the earth, as everything seemed to indicate, now formed a right angle with the plane of the ecliptic, her various seasons, like those of the planet Jupiter, would become limited to certain zones, in which they would remain invariable. But even if he had understood the rationale of the change, the convulsion that had brought it about would have been as much a mystery as ever.
The precocity31 of vegetation caused some embarrassment32. The time for the corn and fruit harvest had fallen simultaneously33 with that of the haymaking; and as the extreme heat precluded34 any prolonged exertions36, it was evident “the population” of the island would find it difficult to provide the necessary amount of labor37. Not that the prospect38 gave them much concern: the provisions of the gourbi were still far from exhausted39, and now that the roughness of the weather had so happily subsided40, they had every encouragement to hope that a ship of some sort would soon appear. Not only was that part of the Mediterranean systematically41 frequented by the government steamers that watched the coast, but vessels42 of all nations were constantly cruising off the shore.
In spite, however, of all their sanguine44 speculations45, no ship appeared. Ben Zoof admitted the necessity of extemporizing46 a kind of parasol for himself, otherwise he must literally47 have been roasted to death upon the exposed summit of the cliff.
Meanwhile, Servadac was doing his utmost — it must be acknowledged, with indifferent success — to recall the lessons of his school-days. He would plunge48 into the wildest speculations in his endeavors to unravel49 the difficulties of the new situation, and struggled into a kind of conviction that if there had been a change of manner in the earth’s rotation50 on her axis, there would be a corresponding change in her revolution round the sun, which would involve the consequence of the length of the year being either diminished or increased.
Independently of the increased and increasing heat, there was another very conclusive51 demonstration52 that the earth had thus suddenly approximated towards the sun. The diameter of the solar disc was now exactly twice what it ordinarily looks to the naked eye; in fact, it was precisely such as it would appear to an observer on the surface of the planet Venus. The most obvious inference would therefore be that the earth’s distance from the sun had been diminished from 91,000,000 to 66,000,000 miles. If the just equilibrium53 of the earth had thus been destroyed, and should this diminution54 of distance still continue, would there not be reason to fear that the terrestrial world would be carried onwards to actual contact with the sun, which must result in its total annihilation?
The continuance of the splendid weather afforded Servadac every facility for observing the heavens. Night after night, constellations56 in their beauty lay stretched before his eyes — an alphabet which, to his mortification57, not to say his rage, he was unable to decipher. In the apparent dimensions of the fixed58 stars, in their distance, in their relative position with regard to each other, he could observe no change. Although it is established that our sun is approaching the constellation55 of Hercules at the rate of more than 126,000,000 miles a year, and although Arcturus is traveling through space at the rate of fifty-four miles a second — three times faster than the earth goes round the sun — yet such is the remoteness of those stars that no appreciable59 change is evident to the senses. The fixed stars taught him nothing.
Far otherwise was it with the planets. The orbits of Venus and Mercury are within the orbit of the earth, Venus rotating at an average distance of 66,130,000 miles from the sun, and Mercury at that of 35,393,000. After pondering long, and as profoundly as he could, upon these figures, Captain Servadac came to the conclusion that, as the earth was now receiving about double the amount of light and heat that it had been receiving before the catastrophe60, it was receiving about the same as the planet Venus; he was driven, therefore, to the estimate of the measure in which the earth must have approximated to the sun, a deduction61 in which he was confirmed when the opportunity came for him to observe Venus herself in the splendid proportions that she now assumed.
That magnificent planet which — as Phosphorus or Lucifer, Hesperus or Vesper, the evening star, the morning star, or the shepherd’s star — has never failed to attract the rapturous admiration62 of the most indifferent observers, here revealed herself with unprecedented glory, exhibiting all the phases of a lustrous63 moon in miniature. Various indentations in the outline of its crescent showed that the solar beams were refracted into regions of its surface where the sun had already set, and proved, beyond a doubt, that the planet had an atmosphere of her own; and certain luminous64 points projecting from the crescent as plainly marked the existence of mountains. As the result of Servadac’s computations, he formed the opinion that Venus could hardly be at a greater distance than 6,000,000 miles from the earth.
“And a very safe distance, too,” said Ben Zoof, when his master told him the conclusion at which he had arrived.
“All very well for two armies, but for a couple of planets not quite so safe, perhaps, as you may imagine. It is my impression that it is more than likely we may run foul65 of Venus,” said the captain.
“Plenty of air and water there, sir?” inquired the orderly.
“Yes; as far as I can tell, plenty,” replied Servadac.
“Then why shouldn’t we go and visit Venus?”
Servadac did his best to explain that as the two planets were of about equal volume, and were traveling with great velocity66 in opposite directions, any collision between them must be attended with the most disastrous68 consequences to one or both of them. But Ben Zoof failed to see that, even at the worst, the catastrophe could be much more serious than the collision of two railway trains.
The captain became exasperated69. “You idiot!” he angrily exclaimed; “cannot you understand that the planets are traveling a thousand times faster than the fastest express, and that if they meet, either one or the other must be destroyed? What would become of your darling Montmartre then?”
The captain had touched a tender chord. For a moment Ben Zoof stood with clenched70 teeth and contracted muscles; then, in a voice of real concern, he inquired whether anything could be done to avert71 the calamity72.
“Nothing whatever; so you may go about your own business,” was the captain’s brusque rejoinder.
All discomfited73 and bewildered, Ben Zoof retired74 without a word.
During the ensuing days the distance between the two planets continued to decrease, and it became more and more obvious that the earth, on her new orbit, was about to cross the orbit of Venus. Throughout this time the earth had been making a perceptible approach towards Mercury, and that planet — which is rarely visible to the naked eye, and then only at what are termed the periods of its greatest eastern and western elongations — now appeared in all its splendor75. It amply justified76 the epithet77 of “sparkling” which the ancients were accustomed to confer upon it, and could scarcely fail to awaken78 a new interest. The periodic recurrence79 of its phases; its reflection of the sun’s rays, shedding upon it a light and a heat seven times greater than that received by the earth; its glacial and its torrid zones, which, on account of the great inclination80 of the axis, are scarcely separable; its equatorial bands; its mountains eleven miles high; — were all subjects of observation worthy of the most studious regard.
But no danger was to be apprehended81 from Mercury; with Venus only did collision appear imminent82. By the l8th of January the distance between that planet and the earth had become reduced to between two and three millions of miles, and the intensity of its light cast heavy shadows from all terrestrial objects. It might be observed to turn upon its own axis in twenty-three hours twenty-one minutes — an evidence, from the unaltered duration of its days, that the planet had not shared in the disturbance83. On its disc the clouds formed from its atmospheric84 vapor85 were plainly perceptible, as also were the seven spots, which, according to Bianchini, are a chain of seas. It was now visible in broad daylight. Buonaparte, when under the Directory, once had his attention called to Venus at noon, and immediately hailed it joyfully86, recognizing it as his own peculiar87 star in the ascendant. Captain Servadac, it may well be imagined, did not experience the same gratifying emotion.
On the 20th, the distance between the two bodies had again sensibly diminished. The captain had ceased to be surprised that no vessel43 had been sent to rescue himself and his companion from their strange imprisonment88; the governor general and the minister of war were doubtless far differently occupied, and their interests far otherwise engrossed89. What sensational90 articles, he thought, must now be teeming91 to the newspapers! What crowds must be flocking to the churches! The end of the world approaching! the great climax92 close at hand! Two days more, and the earth, shivered into a myriad93 atoms, would be lost in boundless94 space!
These dire67 forebodings, however, were not destined95 to be realized. Gradually the distance between the two planets began to increase; the planes of their orbits did not coincide, and accordingly the dreaded96 catastrophe did not ensue. By the 25th, Venus was sufficiently remote to preclude35 any further fear of collision. Ben Zoof gave a sigh of relief when the captain communicated the glad intelligence.
Their proximity97 to Venus had been close enough to demonstrate that beyond a doubt that planet has no moon or satellite such as Cassini, Short, Montaigne of Limoges, Montbarron, and some other astronomers98 have imagined to exist. “Had there been such a satellite,” said Servadac, “we might have captured it in passing. But what can be the meaning,” he added seriously, “of all this displacement99 of the heavenly bodies?”
“What is that great building at Paris, captain, with a top like a cap?” asked Ben Zoof.
“Do you mean the Observatory100?”
“Yes, the Observatory. Are there not people living in the Observatory who could explain all this?”
“Very likely; but what of that?”
“Let us be philosophers, and wait patiently until we can hear their explanation.”
Servadac smiled. “Do you know what it is to be a philosopher, Ben Zoof?” he asked.
“I am a soldier, sir,” was the servant’s prompt rejoinder, “and I have learnt to know that ‘what can’t be cured must be endured.’”
The captain made no reply, but for a time, at least, he desisted from puzzling himself over matters which he felt he was utterly101 incompetent102 to explain. But an event soon afterwards occurred which awakened103 his keenest interest.
About nine o’clock on the morning of the 27th, Ben Zoof walked deliberately104 into his master’s apartment, and, in reply to a question as to what he wanted, announced with the utmost composure that a ship was in sight.
“A ship!” exclaimed Servadac, starting to his feet. “A ship! Ben Zoof, you donkey! you speak as unconcernedly as though you were telling me that my dinner was ready.”
“Are we not philosophers, captain?” said the orderly.
But the captain was out of hearing.
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1
postpone
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| v.延期，推迟 | |
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veering
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| n.改变的；犹豫的；顺时针方向转向；特指使船尾转向上风来改变航向v.（尤指交通工具）改变方向或路线( veer的现在分词 )；（指谈话内容、人的行为或观点）突然改变；（指风） （在北半球按顺时针方向、在南半球按逆时针方向）逐渐转向；风向顺时针转 | |
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inverted
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| adj.反向的，倒转的v.使倒置，使反转( invert的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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regularity
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| n.规律性，规则性；匀称，整齐 | |
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precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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6
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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8
torrents
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| n.倾注；奔流( torrent的名词复数 )；急流；爆发；连续不断 | |
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intensity
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| n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度 | |
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modification
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| n.修改，改进，缓和，减轻 | |
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inevitable
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| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
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scorched
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| 烧焦，烤焦( scorch的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（植物）枯萎，把…晒枯； 高速行驶； 枯焦 | |
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13
profuse
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| adj.很多的，大量的，极其丰富的 | |
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14
remonstrances
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| n.抱怨，抗议( remonstrance的名词复数 ) | |
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15
vertical
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| adj.垂直的，顶点的，纵向的；n.垂直物，垂直的位置 | |
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brass
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| n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器 | |
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adamant
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| adj.坚硬的，固执的 | |
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conscientiously
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| adv.凭良心地；认真地，负责尽职地；老老实实 | |
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Mediterranean
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| adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的 | |
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deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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perseverance
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| n.坚持不懈，不屈不挠 | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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unwilling
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| adj.不情愿的 | |
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unprecedented
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| adj.无前例的，新奇的 | |
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maturity
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| n.成熟；完成；(支票、债券等)到期 | |
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maize
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| n.玉米 | |
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sprouted
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| v.发芽( sprout的过去式和过去分词 )；抽芽；出现；（使）涌现出 | |
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ripened
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| v.成熟，使熟( ripen的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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versed
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| adj. 精通，熟练 | |
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axis
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| n.轴，轴线，中心线；坐标轴，基准线 | |
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precocity
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| n.早熟，早成 | |
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embarrassment
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| n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫 | |
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simultaneously
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| adv.同时发生地，同时进行地 | |
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precluded
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| v.阻止( preclude的过去式和过去分词 )；排除；妨碍；使…行不通 | |
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preclude
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| vt.阻止，排除，防止；妨碍 | |
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exertions
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| n.努力( exertion的名词复数 )；费力；（能力、权力等的）运用；行使 | |
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labor
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| n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦 | |
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prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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subsided
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| v.（土地）下陷（因在地下采矿）( subside的过去式和过去分词 )；减弱；下降至较低或正常水平；一下子坐在椅子等上 | |
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systematically
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| adv.有系统地 | |
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vessels
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| n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人 | |
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43
vessel
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| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
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sanguine
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| adj.充满希望的，乐观的，血红色的 | |
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speculations
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| n.投机买卖( speculation的名词复数 )；思考；投机活动；推断 | |
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46
extemporizing
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| v.即兴创作，即席演奏( extemporize的现在分词 ) | |
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literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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48
plunge
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| v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲 | |
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49
unravel
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| v.弄清楚（秘密）；拆开，解开，松开 | |
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50
rotation
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| n.旋转；循环，轮流 | |
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51
conclusive
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| adj.最后的，结论的；确凿的，消除怀疑的 | |
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demonstration
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| n.表明，示范，论证，示威 | |
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53
equilibrium
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| n.平衡，均衡，相称，均势，平静 | |
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54
diminution
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| n.减少；变小 | |
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55
constellation
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| n.星座n.灿烂的一群 | |
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constellations
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| n.星座( constellation的名词复数 )；一群杰出人物；一系列（相关的想法、事物）；一群（相关的人） | |
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mortification
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| n.耻辱，屈辱 | |
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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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appreciable
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| adj.明显的，可见的，可估量的，可觉察的 | |
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catastrophe
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| n.大灾难，大祸 | |
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61
deduction
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| n.减除，扣除，减除额；推论，推理，演绎 | |
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admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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63
lustrous
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| adj.有光泽的；光辉的 | |
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luminous
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| adj.发光的，发亮的；光明的；明白易懂的；有启发的 | |
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foul
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| adj.污秽的；邪恶的；v.弄脏；妨害；犯规；n.犯规 | |
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66
velocity
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| n.速度，速率 | |
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67
dire
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| adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的 | |
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disastrous
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| adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的 | |
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exasperated
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| adj.恼怒的 | |
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70
clenched
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| v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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71
avert
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| v.防止，避免；转移(目光、注意力等) | |
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72
calamity
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| n.灾害，祸患，不幸事件 | |
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discomfited
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| v.使为难( discomfit的过去式和过去分词)；使狼狈；使挫折；挫败 | |
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retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
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75
splendor
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| n.光彩；壮丽，华丽；显赫，辉煌 | |
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76
justified
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| a.正当的，有理的 | |
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epithet
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| n.（用于褒贬人物等的）表述形容词，修饰语 | |
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awaken
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| vi.醒，觉醒；vt.唤醒，使觉醒，唤起，激起 | |
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recurrence
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| n.复发，反复，重现 | |
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inclination
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| n.倾斜；点头；弯腰；斜坡；倾度；倾向；爱好 | |
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apprehended
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| 逮捕，拘押( apprehend的过去式和过去分词 )； 理解 | |
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imminent
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| adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的 | |
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83
disturbance
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| n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调 | |
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atmospheric
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| adj.大气的，空气的；大气层的；大气所引起的 | |
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vapor
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| n.蒸汽，雾气 | |
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joyfully
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| adv. 喜悦地, 高兴地 | |
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peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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imprisonment
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| n.关押，监禁，坐牢 | |
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engrossed
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| adj.全神贯注的 | |
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sensational
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| adj.使人感动的，非常好的，轰动的，耸人听闻的 | |
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teeming
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| adj.丰富的v.充满( teem的现在分词 )；到处都是；（指水、雨等）暴降；倾注 | |
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92
climax
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| n.顶点；高潮；v.(使)达到顶点 | |
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myriad
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| adj.无数的；n.无数，极大数量 | |
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boundless
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| adj.无限的；无边无际的；巨大的 | |
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destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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dreaded
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| adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词) | |
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proximity
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| n.接近，邻近 | |
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astronomers
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| n.天文学者，天文学家( astronomer的名词复数 ) | |
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displacement
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| n.移置，取代，位移，排水量 | |
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observatory
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| n.天文台，气象台，瞭望台，观测台 | |
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101
utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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102
incompetent
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| adj.无能力的，不能胜任的 | |
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103
awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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deliberately
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| adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地 | |
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