CHAPTER XXV. DE PROFUNDIS

 I therefore awoke next day relieved from the preoccupation of an immediate¹ start. Although we were in the very deepest of known depths, there was something not unpleasant about it. And, besides, we were beginning to get accustomed to this troglodyte² [1] life. I no longer thought of sun, moon, and stars, trees, houses, and towns, nor of any of those terrestrial superfluities which are necessaries of men who live upon the earth's surface. Being fossils, we looked upon all those things as mere³ jokes.

 

The grotto⁴ was an immense apartment. Along its granite⁵ floor ran our faithful stream. At this distance from its spring the water was scarcely tepid⁶, and we drank of it with pleasure.

 

After breakfast the Professor gave a few hours to the arrangement of his daily notes.

 

"First," said he, "I will make a calculation to ascertain⁷ our exact position. I hope, after our return, to draw a map of our journey, which will be in reality a vertical⁸ section of the globe, containing the track of our expedition."

 

"That will be curious, uncle; but are your observations sufficiently⁹ accurate to enable you to do this correctly?"

 

"Yes; I have everywhere observed the angles and the inclines. I am sure there is no error. Let us see where we are now. Take your compass, and note the direction."

 

I looked, and replied carefully:

 

[1] tpwgln, a hole; dnw, to creep into. The name of an Ethiopian tribe who lived in caves and holes. ??????, a hole, and ???, to creep into.

 

"South-east by east."

 

"Well," answered the Professor, after a rapid calculation, "I infer that we have gone eighty-five leagues since we started."

 

"Therefore we are under mid-Atlantic?"

 

"To be sure we are."

 

"And perhaps at this very moment there is a storm above, and ships over our heads are being rudely tossed by the tempest."

 

"Quite probable."

 

"And whales are lashing¹⁰ the roof of our prison with their tails?"

 

"It may be, Axel, but they won't shake us here. But let us go back to our calculation. Here we are eighty-five leagues south-east of Snæfell, and I reckon that we are at a depth of sixteen leagues."

 

"Sixteen leagues?" I cried.

 

"No doubt."

 

"Why, this is the very limit assigned by science to the thickness of the crust of the earth."

 

"I don't deny it."

 

"And here, according to the law of increasing temperature, there ought to be a heat of 2,732° Fahr.!"

 

"So there should, my lad."

 

"And all this solid granite ought to be running in fusion¹¹."

 

"You see that it is not so, and that, as so often happens, facts come to overthrow¹² theories."

 

"I am obliged to agree; but, after all, it is surprising."

 

"What does the thermometer say?"

 

"Twenty-seven, six tenths (82° Fahr.)."

 

"Therefore the savants are wrong by 2,705°, and the proportional increase is a mistake. Therefore Humphry Davy was right, and I am not wrong in following him. What do you say now?"

 

"Nothing."

 

In truth, I had a good deal to say. I gave way in no respect to Davy's theory. I still held to the central heat, although I did not feel its effects. I preferred to admit in truth, that this chimney of an extinct volcano, lined with lavas¹³, which are non-conductors of heat, did not suffer the heat to pass through its walls.

 

But without stopping to look up new arguments I simply took up our situation such as it was.

 

"Well, admitting all your calculations to be quite correct, you must allow me to draw one rigid¹⁴ result therefrom."

 

"What is it. Speak freely."

 

"At the latitude¹⁵ of Iceland, where we now are, the radius¹⁶ of the earth, the distance from the centre to the surface is about 1,583 leagues; let us say in round numbers 1,600 leagues, or 4,800 miles. Out of 1,600 leagues we have gone twelve!"

 

"So you say."

 

"And these twelve at a cost of 85 leagues diagonally?"

 

"Exactly so."

 

"In twenty days?"

 

"Yes."

 

"Now, sixteen leagues are the hundredth part of the earth's radius. At this rate we shall be two thousand days, or nearly five years and a half, in getting to the centre."

 

No answer was vouchsafed¹⁷ to this rational conclusion. "Without reckoning, too, that if a vertical depth of sixteen leagues can be attained¹⁸ only by a diagonal descent of eighty-four, it follows that we must go eight thousand miles in a south-easterly direction; so that we shall emerge from some point in the earth's circumference¹⁹ instead of getting to the centre!"

 

"Confusion to all your figures, and all your hypotheses besides," shouted my uncle in a sudden rage. "What is the basis of them all? How do you know that this passage does not run straight to our destination? Besides, there is a precedent²⁰. What one man has done, another may do."

 

"I hope so; but, still, I may be permitted—"

 

"You shall have my leave to hold your tongue, Axel, but not to talk in that irrational²¹ way."

 

I could see the awful Professor bursting through my uncle's skin, and

I took timely warning.

"Now look at your aneroid. What does that say?"

 

"It says we are under considerable pressure."

 

"Very good; so you see that by going gradually down, and getting accustomed to the density²² of the atmosphere, we don't suffer at all."

 

"Nothing, except a little pain in the ears."

 

"That's nothing, and you may get rid of even that by quick breathing whenever you feel the pain."

 

"Exactly so," I said, determined²³ not to say a word that might cross my uncle's prejudices. "There is even positive pleasure in living in this dense²⁴ atmosphere. Have you observed how intense sound is down here?"

 

"No doubt it is. A deaf man would soon learn to hear perfectly²⁵."

 

"But won't this density augment²⁶?"

 

"Yes; according to a rather obscure law. It is well known that the weight of bodies diminishes as fast as we descend²⁷. You know that it is at the surface of the globe that weight is most sensibly felt, and that at the centre there is no weight at all."

 

"I am aware of that; but, tell me, will not air at last acquire the density of water?"

 

"Of course, under a pressure of seven hundred and ten atmospheres."

 

"And how, lower down still?"

 

"Lower down the density will still increase."

 

"But how shall we go down then."

 

"Why, we must fill our pockets with stones."

 

"Well, indeed, my worthy²⁸ uncle, you are never at a loss for an answer."

 

I dared venture no farther into the region of probabilities, for I might presently have stumbled upon an impossibility, which would have brought the Professor on the scene when he was not wanted.

 

Still, it was evident that the air, under a pressure which might reach that of thousands of atmospheres, would at last reach the solid state, and then, even if our bodies could resist the strain, we should be stopped, and no reasonings would be able to get us on any farther.

 

But I did not advance this argument. My uncle would have met it with his inevitable²⁹ Saknussemm, a precedent which possessed³⁰ no weight with me; for even if the journey of the learned Icelander were really attested³¹, there was one very simple answer, that in the sixteenth century there was neither barometer³² or aneroid and therefore Saknussemm could not tell how far he had gone.

 

But I kept this objection to myself, and waited the course of events.

 

The rest of the day was passed in calculations and in conversations. I remained a steadfast³³ adherent³⁴ of the opinions of Professor Liedenbrock, and I envied the stolid³⁵ indifference³⁶ of Hans, who, without going into causes and effects, went on with his eyes shut wherever his destiny guided him.

1 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

2 troglodyte   

n.古代穴居者；井底之蛙

参考例句：

• This is the most outstanding,intact example of a troglodyte settlement in the Mediterranean region ecosystem.马泰拉地区是保存最为完好、典型的史前穴居人定居点。
• He dismissed advocates of a completely free market as economic troglodytes with no concern for the social consequences.他认为那些鼓吹完全自由市场经济的人对经济只是一知半解，完全没有顾及到可能产生的社会后果

3 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

4 grotto   

n.洞穴

参考例句：

• We reached a beautiful grotto,whose entrance was almost hiden by the vine.我们到达了一个美丽的洞穴，洞的进口几乎被藤蔓遮掩著。
• Water trickles through an underground grotto.水沿着地下岩洞流淌。

5 granite   

adj.花岗岩，花岗石

参考例句：

• They squared a block of granite.他们把一块花岗岩加工成四方形。
• The granite overlies the older rocks.花岗岩躺在磨损的岩石上面。

6 tepid   

adj.微温的，温热的，不太热心的

参考例句：

• She bent her mouth to the tap and drank the tepid water.她把嘴伸到水龙头底下去喝那微温的水。
• Her feet firmly planted on the tepid rough brick of the floor.她一双脚稳固地立在微温而粗糙的砖地上。

7 ascertain   

vt.发现，确定，查明，弄清

参考例句：

• It's difficult to ascertain the coal deposits.煤储量很难探明。
• We must ascertain the responsibility in light of different situtations.我们必须根据不同情况判定责任。

8 vertical   

adj.垂直的，顶点的，纵向的；n.垂直物，垂直的位置

参考例句：

• The northern side of the mountain is almost vertical.这座山的北坡几乎是垂直的。
• Vertical air motions are not measured by this system.垂直气流的运动不用这种系统来测量。

9 sufficiently   

adv.足够地，充分地

参考例句：

• It turned out he had not insured the house sufficiently.原来他没有给房屋投足保险。
• The new policy was sufficiently elastic to accommodate both views.新政策充分灵活地适用两种观点。

10 lashing   

n.鞭打；痛斥；大量；许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥

参考例句：

• The speaker was lashing the crowd. 演讲人正在煽动人群。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The rain was lashing the windows. 雨急打着窗子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 fusion   

n.溶化；熔解；熔化状态，熔和；熔接

参考例句：

• Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc. 黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。
• This alloy is formed by the fusion of two types of metal.这种合金是用两种金属熔合而成的。

12 overthrow   

v.推翻，打倒，颠覆；n.推翻，瓦解，颠覆

参考例句：

• After the overthrow of the government,the country was in chaos.政府被推翻后，这个国家处于混乱中。
• The overthrow of his plans left him much discouraged.他的计划的失败使得他很气馁。

13 lavas   

n.（火山喷发的）熔岩( lava的名词复数 )；（熔岩冷凝后的）火山岩

参考例句：

• The lake was ponded by lavas a long time ago. 这条湖是很久以前熔岩堵塞河道形成的。 来自辞典例句
• Such lavas also once came from the volcanoes in the Cascade Range in Washington. 在华盛顿州的喀斯喀特山脉的火山也喷出过这样的熔岩。 来自辞典例句

14 rigid   

adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的

参考例句：

• She became as rigid as adamant.她变得如顽石般的固执。
• The examination was so rigid that nearly all aspirants were ruled out.考试很严，几乎所有的考生都被淘汰了。

15 latitude   

n.纬度，行动或言论的自由(范围)，(pl.)地区

参考例句：

• The latitude of the island is 20 degrees south.该岛的纬度是南纬20度。
• The two cities are at approximately the same latitude.这两个城市差不多位于同一纬度上。

16 radius   

n.半径，半径范围；有效航程，范围，界限

参考例句：

• He has visited every shop within a radius of two miles.周围两英里以内的店铺他都去过。
• We are measuring the radius of the circle.我们正在测量圆的半径。

17 vouchsafed   

v.给予，赐予( vouchsafe的过去式和过去分词 )；允诺

参考例句：

• He vouchsafed to me certain family secrets. 他让我知道了某些家庭秘密。
• The significance of the event does, indeed, seem vouchsafed. 这个事件看起来确实具有重大意义。 来自辞典例句

18 attained   

（通常经过努力）实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况）

参考例句：

• She has attained the degree of Master of Arts. 她已获得文学硕士学位。
• Lu Hsun attained a high position in the republic of letters. 鲁迅在文坛上获得崇高的地位。

19 circumference   

n.圆周，周长，圆周线

参考例句：

• It's a mile round the circumference of the field.运动场周长一英里。
• The diameter and the circumference of a circle correlate.圆的直径与圆周有相互关系。

20 precedent   

n.先例，前例；惯例；adj.在前的，在先的

参考例句：

• Is there a precedent for what you want me to do?你要我做的事有前例可援吗？
• This is a wonderful achievement without precedent in Chinese history.这是中国历史上亘古未有的奇绩。

21 irrational   

adj.无理性的，失去理性的

参考例句：

• After taking the drug she became completely irrational.她在吸毒后变得完全失去了理性。
• There are also signs of irrational exuberance among some investors.在某些投资者中是存在非理性繁荣的征象的。

22 density   

n.密集，密度，浓度

参考例句：

• The population density of that country is 685 per square mile.那个国家的人口密度为每平方英里685人。
• The region has a very high population density.该地区的人口密度很高。

23 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

24 dense   

a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。
• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage. 小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。

25 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

26 augment   

vt.(使)增大，增加，增长，扩张

参考例句：

• They hit upon another idea to augment their income.他们又想出一个增加收入的办法。
• The government's first concern was to augment the army and auxiliary forces.政府首先关心的是增强军队和辅助的力量。

27 descend   

vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降

参考例句：

• I hope the grace of God would descend on me.我期望上帝的恩惠。
• We're not going to descend to such methods.我们不会沦落到使用这种手段。

28 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

29 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

30 possessed   

adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的

参考例句：

• He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
• He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。

31 attested   

adj.经检验证明无病的，经检验证明无菌的v.证明( attest的过去式和过去分词 )；证实；声称…属实；使宣誓

参考例句：

• The handwriting expert attested to the genuineness of the signature. 笔迹专家作证该签名无讹。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Witnesses attested his account. 几名证人都证实了他的陈述是真实的。 来自《简明英汉词典》

32 barometer   

n.气压表，睛雨表，反应指标

参考例句：

• The barometer marked a continuing fall in atmospheric pressure.气压表表明气压在继续下降。
• The arrow on the barometer was pointing to"stormy".气压计上的箭头指向“有暴风雨”。

33 steadfast   

adj.固定的，不变的，不动摇的；忠实的；坚贞不移的

参考例句：

• Her steadfast belief never left her for one moment.她坚定的信仰从未动摇过。
• He succeeded in his studies by dint of steadfast application.由于坚持不懈的努力他获得了学业上的成功。

34 adherent   

n.信徒，追随者，拥护者

参考例句：

• He was most liberal where money would bring him a powerful or necessary political adherent.在金钱能够收买一个干练的或者必需的政治拥护者的地方，他是最不惜花钱的。
• He's a pious adherent of Buddhism.他是一位虔诚的佛教徒。

35 stolid   

adj.无动于衷的，感情麻木的

参考例句：

• Her face showed nothing but stolid indifference.她的脸上毫无表情，只有麻木的无动于衷。
• He conceals his feelings behind a rather stolid manner.他装作无动于衷的样子以掩盖自己的感情。

36 indifference   

n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎

参考例句：

• I was disappointed by his indifference more than somewhat.他的漠不关心使我很失望。
• He feigned indifference to criticism of his work.他假装毫不在意别人批评他的作品。