Page:Amazing Stories Volume 01 Number 04.djvu/73

 What Went Before ROFESSOR HARDWIGG, chemist, philoso- actites and stalagmiles, ele. Ist their desperate pher, mineralogist, ete, while delighting in a scarch for a spring, theg kear and tap a tremendoars vare old book by a famous Iceland author, torrent of hot water, sovick for a time also acts as comes upon a mysterious parckament containing a secret message. The profeseor and his nephew all, Horry strays from his compandons and in kis Harry, have deciphered it: "Descend into the crater attemut to rajoln then gets hopelasaly lost. When of the Yokul of Sneffels, sohtch the shade of Scar- he has abont given up all hope of finding his com- taris covers befora the kalends of July, audaclous pantons or of being found, he hears voices and dis- travelor, and you will reach the center of the earth. I did it-Arne Sakmiasem." The profestor end Harry (in the case of the lat- lation, they effect a reunion. ter aruck agalnst his will and better judgment) start for Iceland and Mount Sneffels, with the good e guide to thems in their descent. Then, to cap it covers a "whiepering gallery." Tlaus they are able to communicate swlth each other and after some caleu- They contixus on their tooy intil they come to an enorwous ezpanse of soater-the Central Sea. Hens Harry'a fancée, In Iceland, they very fortunately stcceeda in biilding a raft and they atart of for an- obtain the eervices of Hans, a true leelandie quide other ahore. But they meet some huge sea monaters -calm, stolid and dependable, After umerous ad- amtong other dangers and afler many days on the ventures and any intereeting encounters and dif- etrlt elimbing, they reach BMount Sneffels and dencend by means of a terrific kurrieane and etorm they are into its erater, They go deeper and deeper, lower- very rudely brought back to a point on the same ing themselvea tnto the bigger shafts by means of elde from soliich they started, There were lots of sturdy ropes doubled over the rocks abote. Once now, they socre reasrured of the validity ie repairing the raft, Professor Hardwigg end of the mysterious message when they noticed the Harry go off on e toer of further discovery and they inscription "Arne Saknustem'" on some rocks, Also, they see all kinda of rook formatione, ovpsum, stal- selves at every turn. water eannot see any signs of a shore. And then time lost, but they are not discouraged. While Hans are not disappointed, New wonders unfold them- A Trip to the Center of the Earth JULES VERNE Part III CHAPTER XXXVI sembled to n certain extent, the mysterlous peraon- age in one of Hoffmann's fantautic tales-the man who lost his shadow." After we had walked alout a mle farther, we came to the edge of a vast forest, not, however, one What Is It? TOR a long and weary hour we tramped over this great had of bones, We advanced re- gardless of everything, drawn on by ardent of the vast mushroom forests we had discovered curiosity. What other marvela did this great cavern contain-what other wondroun treasures for the vegotation of the tertiary period, in all its superb near Port Gretchen. It was the glorious and wild scientific man? My eyes were quita prepared for magnificence. Huge palms, of a species now un- any number of surprises, my imagination lived in known, superh palmacites-a genus of fossil palms expectation of somothing new and wonderful. from the coal formation- pines, yew, cypress, and The borders of the great Central Ocean had JULES VERNE'S preat romance is coneluded in this conffers or cone-bearing for some time disappeared fosdt seith the velhicle thot Verse chose to bring back the gether by an inextricable hebind the hilis that were trevelers from the cartik's isterior. Bat it shonld be re and complicated mass of seattered over the ground eanbered that baek they had to come, and we know of no creeping plants. A heau- occupied by the pinin of befter snethod than the one tehich Penie chose. At fesst i tiful carpet of mosses and bones. is legical, elthough the chancrs are thet our keroes wonld and enthuslastic Profes- too critical en eh points, for the story cerloinly ie ånd trees. sor, who did not care whether he lost himself or not, hurriad me forward. advanced silently, The imprudent pot hopeariped pch Ge ordcal. Eut e ahould st be ferns grew heneath the Pleasnnt brooks rewains one of the great clasries of scientifietion. Seune murmured beneath um- of the most breathless end hair-raising epliodes ecur in brageous houghs, little the clesing chapters. W e bathed in waven of elec- tric fluid. The light illumined equally the sides of small tree-like shrubs, such as are neen in the hot worthy of this name, for no shade did they give. Upon their borders grew every hill and rock. The appearance presented was countries on our own inhabited globe. that of a troplcal country at mid-day in summer- in the midat of the equatorial regions and under the shrubs, these treea-was color! Forever deprived vertical rays of the sun, The rocks, the distant The one thing wanted to these plants, these of the vivifying warmth of the sun, they were vapid mountains, some confused masses of far-off forests, and colorless. All shade was lost in one uniform SSBumed a weird and mysterious aspect under thla tint, of a hrown and faded charneter. The leavas equal distrihution of the luminous fluld! We re- were wholly devold of green, and the flowers, so
 * Error. The author was Adelbert van Chamisso.