Symptoms of a Storm.--The Country of the Moon.--The Future of the African Continent.--The Last Machine of all.--A View of the Country at Sunset.-- Flora1 and Fauna2.--The Tempest.--The Zone of Fire.--The Starry3 Heavens.
"See," said Joe, "what comes of playing the sons of the moon without her leave! She came near serving us an ugly trick. But say, master, did you damage your credit as a physician?"
"Yes, indeed," chimed in the sportsman. "What kind of a dignitary was this Sultan of Kazeh?"
"An old half-dead sot," replied the doctor, "whose loss will not be very severely4 felt. But the moral of all this is that honors are fleeting5, and we must not take too great a fancy to them."
"So much the worse!" rejoined Joe. "I liked the thing--to be worshipped!--Play the god as you like! Why, what would any one ask more than that? By-the-way, the moon did come up, too, and all red, as if she was in a rage."
While the three friends went on chatting of this and other things, and Joe examined the luminary6 of night from an entirely7 novel point of view, the heavens became covered with heavy clouds to the northward8, and the lowering masses assumed a most sinister9 and threatening look. Quite a smart breeze, found about three hundred feet from the earth, drove the balloon toward the north-northeast; and above it the blue vault10 was clear; but the atmosphere felt close and dull.
The aeronauts found themselves, at about eight in the evening, in thirty-two degrees forty minutes east longitude11, and four degrees seventeen minutes latitude12. The atmospheric13 currents, under the influence of a tempest not far off, were driving them at the rate of from thirty to thirty-five miles an hour; the undulating and fertile plains of Mfuto were passing swiftly beneath them. The spectacle was one worthy14 of admiration--and admire it they did.
"We are now right in the country of the Moon," said Dr. Ferguson; "for it has retained the name that antiquity15 gave it, undoubtedly16, because the moon has been worshipped there in all ages. It is, really, a superb country."
"It would be hard to find more splendid vegetation."
"If we found the like of it around London it would not be natural, but it would be very pleasant," put in Joe. "Why is it that such savage17 countries get all these fine things?"
"And who knows," said the doctor, "that this country may not, one day, become the centre of civilization? The races of the future may repair hither, when Europe shall have become exhausted18 in the effort to feed her inhabitants."
"Do you think so, really?" asked Kennedy.
"Undoubtedly, my dear Dick. Just note the progress of events: consider the migrations19 of races, and you will arrive at the same conclusion assuredly. Asia was the first nurse of the world, was she not? For about four thousand years she travailed, she grew pregnant, she produced, and then, when stones began to cover the soil where the golden harvests sung by Homer had flourished, her children abandoned her exhausted and barren bosom20. You next see them precipitating21 themselves upon young and vigorous Europe, which has nourished them for the last two thousand years. But already her fertility is beginning to die out; her productive powers are diminishing every day. Those new diseases that annually22 attack the products of the soil, those defective23 crops, those insufficient24 resources, are all signs of a vitality25 that is rapidly wearing out and of an approaching exhaustion26. Thus, we already see the millions rushing to the luxuriant bosom of America, as a source of help, not inexhaustible indeed, but not yet exhausted. In its turn, that new continent will grow old; its virgin27 forests will fall before the axe28 of industry, and its soil will become weak through having too fully29 produced what had been demanded of it. Where two harvests bloomed every year, hardly one will be gathered from a soil completely drained of its strength. Then, Africa will be there to offer to new races the treasures that for centuries have been accumulating in her breast. Those climates now so fatal to strangers will be purified by cultivation30 and by drainage of the soil, and those scattered31 water supplies will be gathered into one common bed to form an artery32 of navigation. Then this country over which we are now passing, more fertile, richer, and fuller of vitality than the rest, will become some grand realm where more astonishing discoveries than steam and electricity will be brought to light."
"Ah! sir," said Joe, "I'd like to see all that."
"You got up too early in the morning, my boy!"
"Besides," said Kennedy, "that may prove to be a very dull period when industry will swallow up every thing for its own profit. By dint33 of inventing machinery34, men will end in being eaten up by it! I have always fancied that the end of the earth will be when some enormous boiler35, heated to three thousand millions of atmospheric pressure, shall explode and blow up our Globe!"
"And I add that the Americans," said Joe, "will not have been the last to work at the machine!"
"In fact," assented36 the doctor, "they are great boiler-makers! But, without allowing ourselves to be carried away by such speculations37, let us rest content with enjoying the beauties of this country of the Moon, since we have been permitted to see it."
The sun, darting38 his last rays beneath the masses of heaped-up cloud, adorned39 with a crest40 of gold the slightest inequalities of the ground below; gigantic trees, arborescent bushes, mosses41 on the even surface--all had their share of this luminous42 effulgence43. The soil, slightly undulating, here and there rose into little conical hills; there were no mountains visible on the horizon; immense brambly palisades, impenetrable hedges of thorny44 jungle, separated the clearings dotted with numerous villages, and immense euphorbiae surrounded them with natural fortifications, interlacing their trunks with the coral-shaped branches of the shrubbery and undergrowth.
Ere long, the Malagazeri, the chief tributary45 of Lake Tanganayika, was seen winding46 between heavy thickets47 of verdure, offering an asylum48 to many water-courses that spring from the torrents49 formed in the season of freshets, or from ponds hollowed in the clayey soil. To observers looking from a height, it was a chain of waterfalls thrown across the whole western face of the country.
Animals with huge humps were feeding in the luxuriant prairies, and were half hidden, sometimes, in the tall grass; spreading forests in bloom redolent of spicy50 perfumes presented themselves to the gaze like immense bouquets51; but, in these bouquets, lions, leopards52, hyenas53, and tigers, were then crouching54 for shelter from the last hot rays of the setting sun. From time to time, an elephant made the tall tops of the undergrowth sway to and fro, and you could hear the crackling of huge branches as his ponderous55 ivory tusks56 broke them in his way.
"What a sporting country!" exclaimed Dick, unable longer to restrain his enthusiasm; "why, a single ball fired at random57 into those forests would bring down game worthy of it. Suppose we try it once!"
"No, my dear Dick; the night is close at hand--a threatening night with a tempest in the background--and the storms are awful in this country, where the heated soil is like one vast electric battery."
"You are right, sir," said Joe, "the heat has got to be enough to choke one, and the breeze has died away. One can feel that something's coming."
"The atmosphere is saturated58 with electricity," replied the doctor; "every living creature is sensible that this state of the air portends59 a struggle of the elements, and I confess that I never before was so full of the fluid myself."
"Well, then," suggested Dick, "would it not be advisable to alight?"
"On the contrary, Dick, I'd rather go up, only that I am afraid of being carried out of my course by these counter-currents contending in the atmosphere."
"Have you any idea, then, of abandoning the route that we have followed since we left the coast?"
"If I can manage to do so," replied the doctor, "I will turn more directly northward, by from seven to eight degrees; I shall then endeavor to ascend60 toward the presumed latitudes61 of the sources of the Nile; perhaps we may discover some traces of Captain Speke's expedition or of M. de Heuglin's caravan62. Unless I am mistaken, we are at thirty-two degrees forty minutes east longitude, and I should like to ascend directly north of the equator."
"Look there!" exclaimed Kennedy, suddenly, "see those hippopotami sliding out of the pools--those masses of blood-colored flesh--and those crocodiles snuffing the air aloud!"
"They're choking!" ejaculated Joe. "Ah! what a fine way to travel this is; and how one can snap his fingers at all that vermin!--Doctor! Mr. Kennedy! see those packs of wild animals hurrying along close together. There are fully two hundred. Those are wolves."
"No! Joe, not wolves, but wild dogs; a famous breed that does not hesitate to attack the lion himself. They are the worst customers a traveller could meet, for they would instantly tear him to pieces."
"Well, it isn't Joe that'll undertake to muzzle63 them!" responded that amiable64 youth. "After all, though, if that's the nature of the beast, we mustn't be too hard on them for it!"
Silence gradually settled down under the influence of the impending65 storm: the thickened air actually seemed no longer adapted to the transmission of sound; the atmosphere appeared MUFFLED66, and, like a room hung with tapestry67, lost all its sonorous68 reverberation69. The "rover bird" so-called, the coroneted crane, the red and blue jays, the mocking-bird, the flycatcher, disappeared among the foliage70 of the immense trees, and all nature revealed symptoms of some approaching catastrophe71.
At nine o'clock the Victoria hung motionless over Msene, an extensive group of villages scarcely distinguishable in the gloom. Once in a while, the reflection of a wandering ray of light in the dull water disclosed a succession of ditches regularly arranged, and, by one last gleam, the eye could make out the calm and sombre forms of palm-trees, sycamores, and gigantic euphorbiae.
"I am stifling72!" said the Scot, inhaling73, with all the power of his lungs, as much as possible of the rarefied air. "We are not moving an inch! Let us descend74!"
"But the tempest!" said the doctor, with much uneasiness.
"If you are afraid of being carried away by the wind, it seems to me that there is no other course to pursue."
"Perhaps the storm won't burst to-night," said Joe; "the clouds are very high."
"That is just the thing that makes me hesitate about going beyond them; we should have to rise still higher, lose sight of the earth, and not know all night whether we were moving forward or not, or in what direction we were going."
"Make up your mind, dear doctor, for time presses!"
"It's a pity that the wind has fallen," said Joe, again; "it would have carried us clear of the storm."
"It is, indeed, a pity, my friends," rejoined the doctor. "The clouds are dangerous for us; they contain opposing currents which might catch us in their eddies75, and lightnings that might set on fire. Again, those perils76 avoided, the force of the tempest might hurl77 us to the ground, were we to cast our anchor in the tree-tops."
"Then what shall we do?"
"Well, we must try to get the balloon into a medium zone of the atmosphere, and there keep her suspended between the perils of the heavens and those of the earth. We have enough water for the cylinder78, and our two hundred pounds of ballast are untouched. In case of emergency I can use them."
"We will keep watch with you," said the hunter.
"No, my friends, put the provisions under shelter, and lie down; I will rouse you, if it becomes necessary."
"But, master, wouldn't you do well to take some rest yourself, as there's no danger close on us just now?" insisted poor Joe.
"No, thank you, my good fellow, I prefer to keep awake. We are not moving, and should circumstances not change, we'll find ourselves to-morrow in exactly the same place."
"Good-night, then, sir!"
"Good-night, if you can only find it so!"
Kennedy and Joe stretched themselves out under their blankets, and the doctor remained alone in the immensity of space.
However, the huge dome79 of clouds visibly descended80, and the darkness became profound. The black vault closed in upon the earth as if to crush it in its embrace.
All at once a violent, rapid, incisive81 flash of lightning pierced the gloom, and the rent it made had not closed ere a frightful82 clap of thunder shook the celestial83 depths.
"Up! up! turn out!" shouted Ferguson.
The two sleepers84, aroused by the terrible concussion85, were at the doctor's orders in a moment.
"Shall we descend?" said Kennedy.
"No! the balloon could not stand it. Let us go up before those clouds dissolve in water, and the wind is let loose!" and, so saying, the doctor actively86 stirred up the flame of the cylinder, and turned it on the spirals of the serpentine87 siphon.
The tempests of the tropics develop with a rapidity equalled only by their violence. A second flash of lightning rent the darkness, and was followed by a score of others in quick succession. The sky was crossed and dotted, like the zebra's hide, with electric sparks, which danced and flickered88 beneath the great drops of rain.
"We have delayed too long," exclaimed the doctor; "we must now pass through a zone of fire, with our balloon filled as it is with inflammable gas!"
"But let us descend, then! let us descend!" urged Kennedy.
"The risk of being struck would be just about even, and we should soon be torn to pieces by the branches of the trees!"
"We are going up, doctor!"
"Quicker, quicker still!"
In this part of Africa, during the equatorial storms, it is not rare to count from thirty to thirty-five flashes of lightning per minute. The sky is literally89 on fire, and the crashes of thunder are continuous.
The wind burst forth90 with frightful violence in this burning atmosphere; it twisted the blazing clouds; one might have compared it to the breath of some gigantic bellows91, fanning all this conflagration92.
Dr. Ferguson kept his cylinder at full heat, and the balloon dilated93 and went up, while Kennedy, on his knees, held together the curtains of the awning94. The balloon whirled round wildly enough to make their heads turn, and the aeronauts got some very alarming jolts95, indeed, as their machine swung and swayed in all directions. Huge cavities would form in the silk of the balloon as the wind fiercely bent96 it in, and the stuff fairly cracked like a pistol as it flew back from the pressure. A sort of hail, preceded by a rumbling97 noise, hissed98 through the air and rattled99 on the covering of the Victoria. The latter, however, continued to ascend, while the lightning described tangents to the convexity of her circumference100; but she bore on, right through the midst of the fire.
"God protect us!" said Dr. Ferguson, solemnly, "we are in His hands; He alone can save us--but let us be ready for every event, even for fire--our fall could not be very rapid."
The doctor's voice could scarcely be heard by his companions; but they could see his countenance101 calm as ever even amid the flashing of the lightnings; he was watching the phenomena102 of phosphorescence produced by the fires of St. Elmo, that were now skipping to and fro along the network of the balloon.
The latter whirled and swung, but steadily103 ascended104, and, ere the hour was over, it had passed the stormy belt. The electric display was going on below it like a vast crown of artificial fireworks suspended from the car.
Then they enjoyed one of the grandest spectacles that Nature can offer to the gaze of man. Below them, the tempest; above them, the starry firmament105, tranquil106, mute, impassible, with the moon projecting her peaceful rays over these angry clouds.
Dr. Ferguson consulted the barometer107; it announced twelve thousand feet of elevation108. It was then eleven o'clock at night.
"Thank Heaven, all danger is past; all we have to do now, is, to keep ourselves at this height," said the doctor.
"It was frightful!" remarked Kennedy.
"Oh!" said Joe, "it gives a little variety to the trip, and I'm not sorry to have seen a storm from a trifling109 distance up in the air. It's a fine sight!"
暴风雨来临的征兆——月亮国——非洲大陆的未来——世界末日的机器——夕阳中地面的景色——植物和动物——雷雨——闪电带——星空
“这就是没有得到月亮许可冒充她儿子的结果！”乔说，“这颗卫星差点不怀好意地作弄了我们！哎，对了！主人，您有没有偶然间用您的医术损害了月亮的名誉？”
“总之，卡泽赫的这个苏丹到底怎么了？”猎人问。
“一个半死不活的老醉鬼。”博士答道，“他死了也不会让人太伤心的。不过，这件事的教益在于它证明了：高官显爵只不过是过眼烟云，不会长久的，因此，不要过于贪图享受这些东西。”
“真倒霉。”乔说，“当时，倒满合我的胃口！受崇拜，随心所欲地当神仙！可我有什么办法呢？月亮出来了，而且红通通的，这不恰恰表明她生气了吗？”
说话间，乔换了个位置，仔细打量起夜间的星辰。此时，北方的天空中移动着大块大块黑压压、 充满不祥之兆的乌云。在距地面300尺的空中聚拢起一股较强的风。它吹着“维多利亚号”向东北偏北的方向飞去。气球的上方，蔚蓝色的苍穹一片纯净，但明显感觉到空气沉闷。
8点钟左右， 3位旅行家到了东经32度40分，南纬4度17分的地方。受即将来临的暴风雨的影响，大气气流吹着他们以每小时35英里的速度飞行。姆夫托地区那一片片地势起伏不平却物产丰富的平原在他们脚下一闪而过。这种场面既奇妙，又令人赞叹不已。
“我们现在正在月亮国地区。”弗格森博士说，“这个名字是前人起的，一直沿用至今，也许是因为在这儿月亮始终受到崇拜的缘故。这里确实是个好地方，很难遇到比这儿更美的草木了。”
“要是在伦敦周围有这么一个地方就不正常了。”乔回答，“不过，如果真的有，那可太让人喜欢了！为什么好东西都留在一些不那么开化的地方呢？”
“又有谁知道，哪一天这个地区不会变成文明的中心呢？”博士反问道，“当欧洲的土地贫瘠得不能养活它的居民时，未来的人民或许就涌到这里来了。”
“您认为会这样吗？”肯尼迪问。
“也许吧，亲爱的肯尼迪。你看看事情的发展，想想民族的不断迁移，就会得出和我一样的结论了。亚洲是世界上人类的第一位哺育者，难道不对吗？大概4000年的时间里，那儿土地肥沃，物产丰富，社会发达。但是后来，当原本荷马①时期长出金黄色谷子的土地上只长石头时，它的儿女便离开了它那干枯憔悴的怀抱。你当然知道了，他们奔向了年青力壮的欧洲。现在欧洲又养活他们2000多年了。可是欧洲的土地已经不再肥沃，物产一天天地减少。使地力年年下降的各种病虫害、歉收、资源不足，都是环境恶化，土地贫瘠的征兆。因此，我们看到人们纷纷奔向美洲丰腴的怀抱。那儿的资源当然不是取之不竭，用之不尽的，只不过目前还没有贫瘠罢了。这个新大陆将来也要变老。它的那些原始森林将倒在工业的巨斧之下；它的土地将因人们过分索取而耗尽活力。现在每年收获两季的那些地方，将因地力用光，一年一收也有些勉强。到那时，非洲就将把几个世纪来在它的怀抱中孕育的财富奉送给新的种族。至于这种对外地人有害的气候，将会通过土地轮作和排水的办法得到改善。这些散乱的水流也将汇集到一条河里，形成一条航运交通干线。而我们现在漫游的这个比其他地方肥沃、富裕、更有生气的地区将会变成某个伟大的王国。到那一天，这儿将产生比蒸汽、电更令人敬佩的发明。”
①约公元前9——8世纪，古希腊吟游盲诗人。
“哇！先生，我真想看到这一切。”乔神往地说。
“小伙子，你出生得太早了点。”
“再说。”肯尼迪说道，“那或许是个更令人烦恼的时代。比工业为了自己的需要而吞噬一切的年代更叫人厌倦！人类发明了机器，但自己终将被机器毁灭！我一直在想，世界的末日就是某个烧到30亿大气压的大锅炉把我们这个星球炸飞的那一天！”
“我补充一句，”乔说，“美国人不会是最后一些造锅炉的人。”
“的确，”博士回答道，“他们是些造锅炉的好手！咱们就别去讨论这类事了吧。既然有条件看到月亮国大地，咱们就只管欣赏好了。”
几缕残阳划破团团积云斜射大地。从天空俯视，稍有起伏的地面被太阳的余辉染出一道道金浪；庞大的树木、乔木状的荒草、贴地的台藓，都分享着这份光的气息；微微波动的大地上稀稀落落凸起一个个圆锥状小丘。极目远眺，天地间一线相连，既不见峻岭，也没有高山；荆棘丛生的绿篱，排排难以通过的栅栏，大片大片多刺的热带丛林，把铺展着众多村庄的块块空地隔离开来；巨大的大戟夹杂着小灌木的珊瑚状枝条犹如一道道天然屏障保护着被围在中间的村庄。
一会儿的功夫，他们发现坦噶尼喀湖的干流马拉加扎里河①在草木青翠的绿茵丛中蜿蜒蠕动起来。这条河融入了众多小水流。这些小水流，有的形成于涨水期膨胀起的激流，有的来自大地粘土层凹地的水塘。在这几位空中观察者的眼里，它们宛如投向该地区整个西部的一个瀑布网。
①即马拉加拉西河， 为坦桑尼亚西部河流， 源出坦噶尼喀湖北端附近，全长450公里。
一些膘肥体壮，背部隆起大块腱肉的牲畜正在肥沃的草地上吃草。阔叶高草几乎淹没住了它们的肥大身躯。高高望去，散发着清香气息的森林犹如一个大花束。不过，在这些花束中隐藏着躲避白无酷热的狮子、豹、鬣狗、虎等猛兽。有时，一只大象弄得矮树梢乱摆，随后就响起象牙折断树木的劈啪声。
“真是个打猎的好地方！”肯尼迪动情地叫道，“往树林里随便放一枪都会打倒一只值得打的猎物！咱们能不能下去试几枪？”
“亲爱的肯尼迪，这可不行，天已经黑了。今天晚上可不大妙，看样子有雷雨。要知道，在这个地区雷雨是很可怕的。大地正好是一个大蓄电池。”
“先生，您说的不错。”乔说，“这会儿热得发闷，风也完全停了，总觉得不大对劲儿。”
“大气中充满了电。”博士解释道，“每个生灵都能感觉得出大自然发生巨变前空气的这种变化。得承认，我对这个从不那么敏感。”
“那么，”猎人问，“是不是要下降？”
“正相反，肯尼迪，我倒很想升上去。我现在就担心气流相交时，我们会被甩出航线。”
“就是说，你要改变我们动身以来一直走的方向吗？”
“如果有可能办得到，我就直接向北飞七八度，”弗格森回答说，“试着向假定的尼罗河源头地区飞去。也许，我们能见到斯皮克上尉的探险队，甚至德·霍伊格林先生的骆驼队留下的一些痕迹。如果我计算得没错，我们现在位于东经32度40分的地方。我倒真想笔直往上升得高高的。”
“你瞧！”肯尼迪打断同伴的话，喊道，“你瞧瞧那些正往水塘外钻的河马。真是一堆堆血红的肉。再瞧那些鳄鱼，吸气多响啊！”
“它们好像也感到闷热了！”乔说，“啊！这个办法旅行多美妙！那些不干好事的坏蛋真让人瞧不起！弗格森先生，肯尼迪先生，你们看！那群动物正挤成排往前走呢！足足有200只，它们是些狼！”
“不是狼，乔，是群野狗。不过，它们可是优种狗，甚至敢攻击狮子！一位旅行家如果遇到它们，那是最糟糕不过的了。他立即就会被撕成碎片。”
“哎哟！将来给它们戴嘴套的可别是乔。”讨人喜欢的乔回答，“不管怎么说，如果它们天性如此，就不应过份怪它们。”
雷雨即将来临，周围渐渐平静了下来。空气稠密得似乎连声音也难以透过。整个气氛看上去挺安逸：大地犹如一间铺着地毯的宽敞大厅，没有一点回声；振翅飞行的小鸟，头顶肉冠的野鹤，红的、蓝的松鹤、画眉、翁鸟都隐没在大树的繁枝密叶中。整个大自然呈现出诸多大难即将来临的征兆。
晚上9点钟， “维多利亚号”一动不动地悬在“姆西内”地区上空。黑暗中已几乎辨别不出下面散布着的一个个村庄。有时，黑乎乎的水面中荡出一丝回光，勾勒出分布规则的沟沟渠渠。透过最靠近气球的一块林中空地，眼睛依稀能捕捉住棕榈树、罗望子树、埃及无花果树和巨大的大戟那黑黝黝的，纹丝不动的树木轮廓。
“我觉得又闷又热，气都透不过来了。”苏格兰人说着，深深吸了一大口变得稀薄的空气，“我们动不了啦！往下降吗？”
“可是，雷雨来了呢？”博士忧心忡忡地说。
“既然你担心被风裹走，我觉得就没有其他办法可行了。”
“今晚也许不会下雷雨，乌云高着呢。”乔插了一句。
“就是这个缘故，我才拿不定主意要不要穿过乌云到上面去，因为那要升得很高、连地面也看不见，这样，我们整个晚上都无法知道，我们是不是在动，往哪儿动。”博士解释说。
“下决心吧，亲爱的弗格森，这事很急。”肯尼迪急切地说。
“让人恼火的是风停了。”乔接着说，“否则的话，我们早就离雷雨区远远的了。”
“诸位朋友，这事太遗憾了。乌云对我们的确是一种危险，因为乌云中带有对流气团，它能把我们卷入气流的旋涡中去。还有闪电，它能把我们烧成灰烬。从另一方面说，如果我们把锚勾住树顶的话，狂风的力量能把我们摔到地上。”
“那怎么办呢？”
“只能把‘维多利亚号’停在天难地险的夹缝中，也就是说，停在天地的中间地带。 我们有足够氢氧喷嘴用的水，而且还有200斤压载物没动过。必要时，我会用上它们。”
“我们来和你一起值班吧！”猎人建议。
“不，朋友们，用不着。你们把吃的东西收拾好就去睡吧。一旦需要，我会喊醒你们的。”
“可是，主人，既然现在还没有任何危险，您是不是休息一下？”
“不，谢谢，我的小伙子，我还是值班的好。现在我们的气球是停住不动的，如果情况不发生变化，我们明天还待在原地。”
“先生，晚安。”
“如果可能，睡个好觉吧。”
肯尼迪和乔躺进被子里睡了。留下博士一人注视着无垠的天空。
重重乌云不知不觉间压了下来，原本黑暗的夜晚变得伸手不见五指，黑洞洞的苍穹笼罩住地球，好像要把它压扁似的。突然，一道耀眼、迅猛的闪光划破黑沉沉的夜空，把重重乌云撕开一个口子，紧接着，天际深处响起一声震耳欲聋的炸雷。
“快起！”弗格森连忙叫醒旅伴。
酣睡中的两位已经被这可怕的响声惊醒，听到博士呼唤，立即爬了起来。
“咱们下降吗？”肯尼迪问。
“不！气球会吃不消的。趁乌云还没变成雨，风还没刮起来，咱们赶快往上升！”
说话间，博士利索地把氢氧喷嘴的火头加大了许多。
热带雷雨爆发的速度迅猛无比，力量大得惊人。又一道闪电撕裂了黑沉沉的夜空，紧跟着又闪了20多下。粗大的雨点中，噼啪作响的电光火石，犹如条条火蛇在穹隆中到处飞舞，划出道道五光十色的斑纹。
“我们迟了点。”博士说，“现在，我们只好乘着充满易燃气体的气球穿过闪电带了。”
“还是着陆吧！着陆吧！”肯尼迪一再唠叨。
“就是着陆了，也一样有可能被雷击中，冒的风险不比上升小多少，再说，我们的气球会很快被树枝划破的！”博士反驳道。
“那我们升上去！弗格森先生。”乔插话道。
“快些！再快些！”肯尼迪焦急地催促弗格森博士。
非洲的这一带地区每逢下雷雨时，每分钟闪电30到35下是很平常的事。夸张点说，天空这时已是一片火海，轰隆的炸雷声早响成了一团。
在这片动荡不安的大气中，暴风挟着它令人可怕的霸气肆意发威。炽热的乌云被它卷动着，旋拧着，好以有台巨大的风扇在拼命地吹风，使这场大火越烧越旺。
弗格森博士使喷嘴保持最大的火力。气球一边膨胀一边上升。肯尼迪跪在吊篮中间，紧紧拉住帐篷上的绳索。气球不停地旋转，同时令人不安地摆动着，弄得几位旅行家头晕目眩。气球的外壳与内壁之间出现一些大空隙，风拼命往里钻，塔夫绸在风的压力下发出吓人的响声。冰雹几乎随着喧嚣的嘈杂声一起划破大气倾泻而下，打在“维多利亚号”上噼啪作响。但是，气球不顾一切地仍在继续上升。闪电火龙不时地贴着气球边缘掠过，在气球周围划出一道道燃烧的切线。“维多利亚号”已进入了火海之中。
“愿上帝保佑我们！”弗格森博士说，“我们现在是在他的手中，只有他才能救我们。大家明白，目前的情况下，各种意外，甚至火灾都可能发生。我们做好准备吧，这样，坠落时可以慢些。”
博士的话勉强传到了同伴的耳中。不过，借着道道闪电的亮光，他们还是能够看清他镇定的神色。他正仔细观察飞舞在气球网套上的磷光现象。
气球不住地旋转着，摆动着，不过并没有停止上升。一刻钟后，“维多利亚号”已穿过雷雨云层，升到了宁静的高空。下面依旧风雨交加，电闪雷鸣，闪烁的电火花犹如一团光芒四射的焰火挂在吊篮的下边。
这儿，可真是大自然赠予人类的最美景观之一：下方，雷声轰鸣，电光闪耀，狂风肆虐，大雨滂沱；上方，浩浩长空，群星灿烂，一派恬静、祥和的气氛；柔和的月光，流水般泻在狂怒的乌云上。
弗格森博士查看了一下气压表， 上面显示气球是在12000尺的高度上。这时，已是晚上11点钟。
“感谢上帝，危险总算过去了。”他说，“我们保持在这个高度上就行了。”
“刚才太可怕了！”肯尼迪惊魂未定地说。
“倒也不坏。”乔接过话头，“这是给咱们的旅行增添点儿花样呢。我不反对升得高些欣赏下面的雷雨。多美的场面啊！”
收听单词发音 |
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flora
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| n.(某一地区的)植物群 | |
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fauna
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| n.(一个地区或时代的)所有动物，动物区系 | |
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starry
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| adj.星光照耀的, 闪亮的 | |
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severely
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| adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地 | |
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fleeting
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| adj.短暂的，飞逝的 | |
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luminary
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| n.名人，天体 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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northward
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| adv.向北；n.北方的地区 | |
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sinister
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| adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的 | |
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vault
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| n.拱形圆顶，地窖，地下室 | |
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longitude
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| n.经线，经度 | |
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latitude
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| n.纬度，行动或言论的自由(范围)，(pl.)地区 | |
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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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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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antiquity
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| n.古老；高龄；古物，古迹 | |
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undoubtedly
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| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
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savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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migrations
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| n.迁移，移居( migration的名词复数 ) | |
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bosom
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| n.胸，胸部；胸怀；内心；adj.亲密的 | |
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precipitating
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| adj.急落的，猛冲的v.（突如其来地）使发生( precipitate的现在分词 )；促成；猛然摔下；使沉淀 | |
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annually
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| adv.一年一次，每年 | |
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defective
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| adj.有毛病的，有问题的，有瑕疵的 | |
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insufficient
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| adj.(for，of)不足的，不够的 | |
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vitality
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| n.活力，生命力，效力 | |
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exhaustion
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| n.耗尽枯竭，疲惫，筋疲力尽，竭尽，详尽无遗的论述 | |
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virgin
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| n.处女，未婚女子；adj.未经使用的；未经开发的 | |
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axe
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| n.斧子；v.用斧头砍，削减 | |
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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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cultivation
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| n.耕作，培养，栽培（法），养成 | |
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scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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artery
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| n.干线，要道；动脉 | |
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dint
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| n.由于，靠；凹坑 | |
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machinery
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| n.(总称)机械，机器；机构 | |
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boiler
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| n.锅炉；煮器(壶，锅等) | |
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assented
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| 同意，赞成( assent的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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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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darting
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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adorned
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| [计]被修饰的 | |
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crest
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| n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖 | |
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mosses
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| n. 藓类, 苔藓植物 名词moss的复数形式 | |
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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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effulgence
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| n.光辉 | |
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thorny
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| adj.多刺的，棘手的 | |
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tributary
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| n.支流；纳贡国；adj.附庸的；辅助的；支流的 | |
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winding
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| n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈 | |
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thickets
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| n.灌木丛( thicket的名词复数 )；丛状物 | |
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asylum
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| n.避难所，庇护所，避难 | |
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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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spicy
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| adj.加香料的；辛辣的，有风味的 | |
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bouquets
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| n.花束( bouquet的名词复数 )；（酒的）芳香 | |
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leopards
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| n.豹( leopard的名词复数 )；本性难移 | |
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hyenas
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| n.鬣狗( hyena的名词复数 ) | |
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crouching
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的现在分词 ) | |
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ponderous
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| adj.沉重的，笨重的，(文章)冗长的 | |
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tusks
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| n.（象等动物的）长牙( tusk的名词复数 )；獠牙；尖形物；尖头 | |
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random
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| adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动 | |
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saturated
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| a.饱和的，充满的 | |
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59
portends
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| v.预示( portend的第三人称单数 )；预兆；给…以警告；预告 | |
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60
ascend
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| vi.渐渐上升，升高；vt.攀登，登上 | |
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latitudes
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| 纬度 | |
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caravan
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| n.大蓬车；活动房屋 | |
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63
muzzle
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| n.鼻口部；口套；枪(炮)口；vt.使缄默 | |
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amiable
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| adj.和蔼可亲的，友善的，亲切的 | |
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impending
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| a.imminent, about to come or happen | |
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muffled
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| adj.（声音）被隔的；听不太清的；（衣服）裹严的；蒙住的v.压抑，捂住( muffle的过去式和过去分词 )；用厚厚的衣帽包着（自己） | |
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tapestry
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| n.挂毯，丰富多采的画面 | |
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sonorous
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| adj.响亮的，回响的；adv.圆润低沉地；感人地；n.感人，堂皇 | |
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reverberation
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| 反响； 回响； 反射； 反射物 | |
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70
foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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71
catastrophe
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| n.大灾难，大祸 | |
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72
stifling
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| a.令人窒息的 | |
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73
inhaling
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| v.吸入( inhale的现在分词 ) | |
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74
descend
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| vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降 | |
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75
eddies
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| （水、烟等的）漩涡，涡流( eddy的名词复数 ) | |
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76
perils
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| 极大危险( peril的名词复数 )； 危险的事（或环境） | |
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hurl
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| vt.猛投，力掷，声叫骂 | |
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cylinder
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| n.圆筒，柱(面)，汽缸 | |
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79
dome
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| n.圆屋顶，拱顶 | |
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80
descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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81
incisive
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| adj.敏锐的，机敏的，锋利的，切入的 | |
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82
frightful
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| adj.可怕的；讨厌的 | |
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83
celestial
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| adj.天体的；天上的 | |
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84
sleepers
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| n.卧铺（通常以复数形式出现）；卧车( sleeper的名词复数 )；轨枕；睡觉（呈某种状态）的人；小耳环 | |
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85
concussion
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| n.脑震荡；震动 | |
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86
actively
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| adv.积极地，勤奋地 | |
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87
serpentine
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| adj.蜿蜒的，弯曲的 | |
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88
flickered
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| （通常指灯光）闪烁，摇曳( flicker的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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89
literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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90
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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91
bellows
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| n.风箱；发出吼叫声，咆哮（尤指因痛苦）( bellow的名词复数 )；（愤怒地）说出（某事），大叫v.发出吼叫声，咆哮（尤指因痛苦）( bellow的第三人称单数 )；（愤怒地）说出（某事），大叫 | |
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92
conflagration
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| n.建筑物或森林大火 | |
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dilated
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| adj.加宽的，扩大的v.（使某物）扩大，膨胀，张大( dilate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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awning
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| n.遮阳篷；雨篷 | |
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95
jolts
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| （使）摇动， （使）震惊( jolt的名词复数 ) | |
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96
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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rumbling
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| n. 隆隆声, 辘辘声 adj. 隆隆响的 动词rumble的现在分词 | |
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98
hissed
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| 发嘶嘶声( hiss的过去式和过去分词 )； 发嘘声表示反对 | |
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99
rattled
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| 慌乱的，恼火的 | |
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100
circumference
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| n.圆周，周长，圆周线 | |
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101
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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102
phenomena
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| n.现象 | |
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103
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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104
ascended
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| v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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105
firmament
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| n.苍穹；最高层 | |
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106
tranquil
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| adj. 安静的, 宁静的, 稳定的, 不变的 | |
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107
barometer
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| n.气压表，睛雨表，反应指标 | |
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108
elevation
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| n.高度；海拔；高地；上升；提高 | |
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109
trifling
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| adj.微不足道的；没什么价值的 | |
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