Page:Works of Jules Verne - Parke - Vol 7.djvu/273

 sail admirably, having a deep draft of water, and everything was prepared to go rapidly, in case of a gale.

At midnight Phileas Fogg and Aouda descended into the cabin. Fix had preceded them, and was stretched on one of the cots. As for the pilot and his men, they remained on deck all night.

The next day, the 8th of November, at sunrise, the schooner had made more than one hundred miles. Her course, frequently tried, showed that the average of her speed was between eight and nine knots an hour. The Tankadere carried full sail, and in this rig she obtained the maximum of rapidity. If the wind kept the same, the chances were in her favor.

The Tankadere, during the whole day, did not go far from the coast, whose currents were favorable to her, and which was five miles off at the most from her larboard quarter, and irregularly outlined appeared sometimes across the clearings. The wind coming from the land was, on that account, not quite so strong, a fortunate circumstance for the schooner, for vessels of a small tonnage suffer above all from the roll of the sea which interferes with their speed, "killing" them, to use the sailors' expression.

Towards noon the breeze abated a little and set in from the southeast. The pilot put up his poles; but at the end of two hours it was necessary to take them down, as the wind freshened up again.

Mr. Fogg and the young woman, very fortunately unaffected by seasickness, ate with a good appetite the preserves and ship biscuit. Fix was invited to share their repast, and was compelled to accept, knowing very well that it is as necessary to ballast stomachs as vessels, but it vexed him! To travel at this man's expense, to be fed from his provisions, was rather against his grain. He ate, daintily, it is true, but finally he ate.

However, this repast finished, he took Mr. Fogg aside and said to him: "Sir"

This "sir" scorched his lips, and he controlled himself so as not to collar this "gentleman"! "Sir, you have been very kind to offer me a passage on your vessel. But, although my resources do not permit me to expend as freely as you, I intend to pay my share"

"Let us not speak of that, sir," replied Mr. Fogg.