Page:Works of Jules Verne - Parke - Vol 6.djvu/314

 water. The contused wound appeared,—an oval below the chest between the third and fourth ribs. It was there that Herbert had been hit by the bullet.

Cyrus Harding and Gideon Spilett then turned the poor boy over; as they did so, he uttered a moan so feeble that they almost thought it was his last sigh.

His back was covered with blood from another wound, by which the ball had immediately escaped. "God be praised!" said the reporter, "the ball is not in the body, and we shall not have to extract it."

"But the heart?" asked Harding.

"The heart has not been touched; if it had been, Herbert would be dead!"

"Dead!" exclaimed Pencroft with a groan. He had only heard the last words uttered by the reporter.

"No, Pencroft," replied Cyrus Harding, "no! He is not dead. His pulse still beats. He has even uttered a moan. But for your boy's sake calm yourself. We have need of all our self-possession. Do not make us lose it, my friend."

Pencroft was silent, but a reaction set in, and great tears rolled down his cheeks. In the meanwhile, Gideon Spilett endeavored to collect his ideas, and proceed methodically. After his examination he had no doubt that the ball, entering in front, between the two ribs, had issued behind. But what mischief had been committed in its passage? What important organs had been reached? A professional surgeon would have had difficulty in determining this at once, and still more so the reporter.

However, he knew one thing, this was that he would have to prevent the inflammatory strangulation of the injured parts, then to contend with the local inflammation and fever which would result from the wound. Now, what stiptics, what antiphlogistics ought to be employed? By what means could inflammation be prevented?

The most important thing was that the two wounds should be dressed without delay. It did not appear necessary that a fresh flow of blood should be caused by bathing them in tepid water. The hemorrhage had been very abundant, and Herbert was already too much enfeebled by the loss of blood. The reporter, therefore, thought it best to simply bathe the two wounds with cold water.