October 25, 2025 • 14 mins
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Chapter seventeen, deeper and deeper the coal mine. In truth,
we were compelled to put ourselves upon rations. Our supply
would certainly last no more than three days. I found
this out about supper time. The worst part of the
matter was that in what is called the transition rocks,
(00:22):
it was hardly to be expected we should meet with water.
I had read of the horrors of thirst, and I
knew that where we were, a brief trial of its
sufferings would put an end to our adventures and our lives.
But it was utterly useless to discuss the matter with
my uncle. He would have answered by some maximom from Plato.
(00:45):
During the whole of next day we proceeded on our
journey through this interminable gallery, arch after arch tunnel of
the tunnel, we journeyed without exchanging a word. We had
become as mute and reticent as ants. Our guide. The
road had no longer an upward tendency at all events.
(01:06):
If it had, it was not to be made out
very clearly. Sometimes there could be no doubt that we
were going downwards. But this inclination was scarcely to be distinguished,
and was by no means reassuring to the professor, because
the character of the strata was in no wise modified,
(01:27):
and the transition character of the rocks became more and
more marked. It was a glorious sight to see how
the electric light brought out the sparkles in the walls
of the calcerous rocks and the old red sandstone. One
might have fancied oneself in one of those deep cuttings
in Devonshire which have given their name to this kind
(01:48):
of soil. Some magnificent specimens of marble protected from the
sides of the gallery, some of an agate gray with
white veins of variegated character, the others of a yellow
spotted color with red veins. Farther off might be seen
samples of color in which charity hinted seams were to
(02:09):
be found in all their brightest shades. The greater number
of these marbles were stamped with the marks of primitive animals.
Since the previous evening, nature and creation had made considerable progress.
Instead of the rudimentary trilovites, I perceived the remains of
(02:29):
a more perfect order. Among others, the fish in which
the eye of a geologist has been able to discover
the first form of the reptile. The Devonian seas were
inhabited by a vast number of animals of this species,
which were deposited in tens of thousands in the rocks
(02:50):
of New Formation. It was quite evident to me that
we were ascending the scale of animal life of which
man forms the summit. My excellent uncle, the Professor, appeared
not to take notice of these warnings. He was determined,
at any risk to proceed. He must have been in
(03:11):
expectation of one of two things, either that a vertical
well was about to open under his feet and thus
allow him to continue his descent, or that some insurmountable
obstacle would compel us to stop and go back by
the road we had so long traveled. But evening came again,
(03:32):
and to my horror, neither hope was doomed to be realized.
On Friday after night, when I began to feel the
gnawing agony of thirst, and when in consequence appetite decreased,
our little band rose and once more followed the turnings
and windings, the ascents and descents of this interminable gallery
(03:57):
all were silent and gloomy. I could see that even
my uncle had ventured too far. After about ten hours
of further progress, a progress dull and monotonous to the
last degree, I remarked that the reverberation and reflection of
our lamps upon the sides of the tunnel had singularly diminished.
(04:20):
The marble discussed the calcerous rocks the red sandstone had disappeared,
leaving in their places a dark and gloomy wall, somber
and without brightness. When we reached a remarkably narrow part
of the tunnel, I leaned my left hand against the rock.
(04:40):
When I took my hand away and happened to glance
at it, it was quite black. We had reached the
coal strata of the central earth. A coal mine, I cried,
A coal mine without miners, responded my uncle a little severely.
How can we tell? I can tell?
Speaker 2 (05:01):
Replied my uncle, in a sharp and doctoral tone. I
am perfectly certain that this gallery, through successive layers of coal,
was not cut by the hand of man. But whether
it is the work of nature or not is of
little concern to us. The hour for our evening meal
has come, let us up. Hence the guide occupied himself
(05:24):
in preparing food. I had come to that point when
I could no longer eat. All I cared about were
the few drops of water which fell to my share.
What I suffered, it is useless to record. The guide
scored not quite half full. Was all that was left
for us three. Having finished the repast, my two companions
(05:49):
laid themselves down upon their rugs and found in sleep
a remedy for their fatigue and sufferings. As for me,
I could not sleep. I lay count the hours until morning.
The next morning, Saturday, at six o'clock we started again.
Twenty minutes later we suddenly came upon a vast excavation.
(06:12):
From its mighty extent, I saw at once that the
hand of man could have had nothing to do with
his coal mine. The vault above would have fallen in
as it was. It was only held together by some
miracle of nature. This mighty natural cavern was about a
hundred feet wide by about a hundred and fifty high.
(06:34):
The earth had evidently been cast apart by some violent
subterranean commotion. The mass, giving way to some prodigious upheaving
of nature, had split in two, leaving the vast gap
into which we inhabitants of the earth had penetrated for
the first time the whole singular history of the Cold
(06:55):
Period was written on those dark and gloomy walls, a
geologist would have been able easily to follow the different
phases of its formation. The seams of coal were separated
by strata of sandstone, a compact clay which appeared to
be crushed down by the weight from above. At that
(07:17):
period of the world which preceded the Secondary Epoch, the
Earth was covered by a coating of enormous and rich vegetation.
Due to the double action of tropical heat and perpetual humidity.
A vast atmospheric cloud of vapor surrounded the Earth on
all sides, preventing the rays of the Sun from ever
(07:39):
reaching it. Hence the conclusion that these intense heats did
not arise from this.
Speaker 1 (07:45):
New source of calorie. Perhaps even the Star of Day
was not quite ready for its brilliant work to illumine
a universe. Climates did not as yet exist, and a
level heat pervaded the whole surface of the lobe, the
same heat existing at the north pole as at the equator.
(08:06):
Whence did it come from the interior of the Earth.
In spite of all the learned theories of Professor Hartwig
a fierce and vehement fire certainly burned within the entrails
of the great spheroid. Its action was felt even to
the very topmost crust of the earth. The plants then
(08:28):
in existence, being deprived of the vivifying grays of the sun,
had neither buds, nor flowers, nor odor, But the roots
drew a strong and vigorous life from the burning earth.
Of early days, there were but few of what may
be called trees, only herbaceous plants, immense turfs, brears, mosses,
(08:52):
rare families, which, however, in those days, were counted by
tens and tens of thousands. It is entirely to this
exurberant vegetation that coal owes its origin. The crust of
the vast globe still yielded under the influence of the
seeding boiling mass, which was forever at work beneath. Hence
(09:15):
arose numerous fistures and continual falling in of the upper earth.
The dense mouth of plants, being beneath the waters, soon
formed themselves into vast agglomerations. Then came about the action
of natural chemistry in the depths of the ocean. The
vegetable mass had first became turf. Then, thanks to the
(09:39):
influence of gases and subterranean fermentation, they underwent the complete
process of mineralization. In this manner. In early days were
formed those vast and prodigious layers of coal, which an
ever increasing consumption must utterly use up in about three
centuries more if people do not find some more economic
(10:01):
light than gas and some cheaper multi power than steam.
All these reflections, the memories of my school studies, came
to my mind while I gazed upon these mighty accumulations
of coal, whose riches, however, are scarcely likely to be
ever utilized. The working of these mines could only be
(10:23):
carried out at an expense that would never yield a profit.
The matter, however, is scarcely worthy consideration when coal is
scattered over the whole surface of the globe, within a
few yards of the upper crust. As I looked at
this untouched strata, therefore, I knew they would remain as
(10:46):
long as the world lasts. While we still continued our journey,
I alone forgot the length of the road by giving
myself up folly to these geological considerations. The temperature continued
to be very much the same as while we were
traveling amid the lava and the skists. On the other hand,
(11:08):
my sense of smell was much affected by a very
powerful odor. I immediately knew that the gallery was filled
to overflowing with that dangerous gas the miners called fire damp,
the explosion of which has caused such fearful and terrible accidents,
making a hundred widows and hundreds of orphans in a
(11:30):
single hour. Happily we were able to illumine our progress
by means of the Ruhmkorff apparatus. If we had been
so rush and imprudent as to explore this gallery torch
in hand, a terrible explosion would have put an end
to our travels, simply because no travelers would be left.
(11:54):
Our excursion through this wondrous coal mine in the very
bowels of the earth lasted until evening. My uncle was
scarcely able to conceal his impatience and dissatisfaction at the road,
continuing still to advance in a horizontal direction. The darkness dense,
and a park a few yards in advance and in
(12:17):
the rear, rendered it impossible to make out what was
the length of the gallery. For myself, I began to
believe that it was simply interminable, and would go on
in the same manner for months. Suddenly, at six o'clock
we stood in front of a wall to the right,
to the left, above below. Nowhere was there any passage.
(12:41):
We had reached a spot where the rocks said, in
unmistakable accents, no thoroughfare. I stood stupefied. The guide simply
folded his arms. My uncle was silent. Well, well, so
much the better, cried my uncle. At last, I now
(13:02):
know what we are about. We are decidedly not upon
the road followed by sugnusum. All we have to do
is to go back. Let us take one night's good rest,
and before three days are over, I promise you we
shall have regained the point where the gallery is divided.
Yes we may, if our strength lasts as long, I
(13:25):
cried in a lamentable voice. And why not to morrow
among us three there will not be a drop of water.
It is just gone, and your courage with it, said
my uncle, speaking in a severe tone. What could I say?
I turned round on my side, and from sheer exhaution,
(13:48):
fell into a heavy sleep, disturbed by dreams of water,
and I awoke, unrefreshed, I would have bartered a diamond
mine for a glass of pure spring water. End of
Chapter seventeen,
Chapter seventeen, deeper and deeper the coal mine. In truth,
we were compelled to put ourselves upon rations. Our supply
would certainly last no more than three days. I found
this out about supper time. The worst part of the
matter was that in what is called the transition rocks,
(00:22):
it was hardly to be expected we should meet with water.
I had read of the horrors of thirst, and I
knew that where we were, a brief trial of its
sufferings would put an end to our adventures and our lives.
But it was utterly useless to discuss the matter with
my uncle. He would have answered by some maximom from Plato.
(00:45):
During the whole of next day we proceeded on our
journey through this interminable gallery, arch after arch tunnel of
the tunnel, we journeyed without exchanging a word. We had
become as mute and reticent as ants. Our guide. The
road had no longer an upward tendency at all events.
(01:06):
If it had, it was not to be made out
very clearly. Sometimes there could be no doubt that we
were going downwards. But this inclination was scarcely to be distinguished,
and was by no means reassuring to the professor, because
the character of the strata was in no wise modified,
(01:27):
and the transition character of the rocks became more and
more marked. It was a glorious sight to see how
the electric light brought out the sparkles in the walls
of the calcerous rocks and the old red sandstone. One
might have fancied oneself in one of those deep cuttings
in Devonshire which have given their name to this kind
(01:48):
of soil. Some magnificent specimens of marble protected from the
sides of the gallery, some of an agate gray with
white veins of variegated character, the others of a yellow
spotted color with red veins. Farther off might be seen
samples of color in which charity hinted seams were to
(02:09):
be found in all their brightest shades. The greater number
of these marbles were stamped with the marks of primitive animals.
Since the previous evening, nature and creation had made considerable progress.
Instead of the rudimentary trilovites, I perceived the remains of
(02:29):
a more perfect order. Among others, the fish in which
the eye of a geologist has been able to discover
the first form of the reptile. The Devonian seas were
inhabited by a vast number of animals of this species,
which were deposited in tens of thousands in the rocks
(02:50):
of New Formation. It was quite evident to me that
we were ascending the scale of animal life of which
man forms the summit. My excellent uncle, the Professor, appeared
not to take notice of these warnings. He was determined,
at any risk to proceed. He must have been in
(03:11):
expectation of one of two things, either that a vertical
well was about to open under his feet and thus
allow him to continue his descent, or that some insurmountable
obstacle would compel us to stop and go back by
the road we had so long traveled. But evening came again,
(03:32):
and to my horror, neither hope was doomed to be realized.
On Friday after night, when I began to feel the
gnawing agony of thirst, and when in consequence appetite decreased,
our little band rose and once more followed the turnings
and windings, the ascents and descents of this interminable gallery
(03:57):
all were silent and gloomy. I could see that even
my uncle had ventured too far. After about ten hours
of further progress, a progress dull and monotonous to the
last degree, I remarked that the reverberation and reflection of
our lamps upon the sides of the tunnel had singularly diminished.
(04:20):
The marble discussed the calcerous rocks the red sandstone had disappeared,
leaving in their places a dark and gloomy wall, somber
and without brightness. When we reached a remarkably narrow part
of the tunnel, I leaned my left hand against the rock.
(04:40):
When I took my hand away and happened to glance
at it, it was quite black. We had reached the
coal strata of the central earth. A coal mine, I cried,
A coal mine without miners, responded my uncle a little severely.
How can we tell? I can tell?
Speaker 2 (05:01):
Replied my uncle, in a sharp and doctoral tone. I
am perfectly certain that this gallery, through successive layers of coal,
was not cut by the hand of man. But whether
it is the work of nature or not is of
little concern to us. The hour for our evening meal
has come, let us up. Hence the guide occupied himself
(05:24):
in preparing food. I had come to that point when
I could no longer eat. All I cared about were
the few drops of water which fell to my share.
What I suffered, it is useless to record. The guide
scored not quite half full. Was all that was left
for us three. Having finished the repast, my two companions
(05:49):
laid themselves down upon their rugs and found in sleep
a remedy for their fatigue and sufferings. As for me,
I could not sleep. I lay count the hours until morning.
The next morning, Saturday, at six o'clock we started again.
Twenty minutes later we suddenly came upon a vast excavation.
(06:12):
From its mighty extent, I saw at once that the
hand of man could have had nothing to do with
his coal mine. The vault above would have fallen in
as it was. It was only held together by some
miracle of nature. This mighty natural cavern was about a
hundred feet wide by about a hundred and fifty high.
(06:34):
The earth had evidently been cast apart by some violent
subterranean commotion. The mass, giving way to some prodigious upheaving
of nature, had split in two, leaving the vast gap
into which we inhabitants of the earth had penetrated for
the first time the whole singular history of the Cold
(06:55):
Period was written on those dark and gloomy walls, a
geologist would have been able easily to follow the different
phases of its formation. The seams of coal were separated
by strata of sandstone, a compact clay which appeared to
be crushed down by the weight from above. At that
(07:17):
period of the world which preceded the Secondary Epoch, the
Earth was covered by a coating of enormous and rich vegetation.
Due to the double action of tropical heat and perpetual humidity.
A vast atmospheric cloud of vapor surrounded the Earth on
all sides, preventing the rays of the Sun from ever
(07:39):
reaching it. Hence the conclusion that these intense heats did
not arise from this.
Speaker 1 (07:45):
New source of calorie. Perhaps even the Star of Day
was not quite ready for its brilliant work to illumine
a universe. Climates did not as yet exist, and a
level heat pervaded the whole surface of the lobe, the
same heat existing at the north pole as at the equator.
(08:06):
Whence did it come from the interior of the Earth.
In spite of all the learned theories of Professor Hartwig
a fierce and vehement fire certainly burned within the entrails
of the great spheroid. Its action was felt even to
the very topmost crust of the earth. The plants then
(08:28):
in existence, being deprived of the vivifying grays of the sun,
had neither buds, nor flowers, nor odor, But the roots
drew a strong and vigorous life from the burning earth.
Of early days, there were but few of what may
be called trees, only herbaceous plants, immense turfs, brears, mosses,
(08:52):
rare families, which, however, in those days, were counted by
tens and tens of thousands. It is entirely to this
exurberant vegetation that coal owes its origin. The crust of
the vast globe still yielded under the influence of the
seeding boiling mass, which was forever at work beneath. Hence
(09:15):
arose numerous fistures and continual falling in of the upper earth.
The dense mouth of plants, being beneath the waters, soon
formed themselves into vast agglomerations. Then came about the action
of natural chemistry in the depths of the ocean. The
vegetable mass had first became turf. Then, thanks to the
(09:39):
influence of gases and subterranean fermentation, they underwent the complete
process of mineralization. In this manner. In early days were
formed those vast and prodigious layers of coal, which an
ever increasing consumption must utterly use up in about three
centuries more if people do not find some more economic
(10:01):
light than gas and some cheaper multi power than steam.
All these reflections, the memories of my school studies, came
to my mind while I gazed upon these mighty accumulations
of coal, whose riches, however, are scarcely likely to be
ever utilized. The working of these mines could only be
(10:23):
carried out at an expense that would never yield a profit.
The matter, however, is scarcely worthy consideration when coal is
scattered over the whole surface of the globe, within a
few yards of the upper crust. As I looked at
this untouched strata, therefore, I knew they would remain as
(10:46):
long as the world lasts. While we still continued our journey,
I alone forgot the length of the road by giving
myself up folly to these geological considerations. The temperature continued
to be very much the same as while we were
traveling amid the lava and the skists. On the other hand,
(11:08):
my sense of smell was much affected by a very
powerful odor. I immediately knew that the gallery was filled
to overflowing with that dangerous gas the miners called fire damp,
the explosion of which has caused such fearful and terrible accidents,
making a hundred widows and hundreds of orphans in a
(11:30):
single hour. Happily we were able to illumine our progress
by means of the Ruhmkorff apparatus. If we had been
so rush and imprudent as to explore this gallery torch
in hand, a terrible explosion would have put an end
to our travels, simply because no travelers would be left.
(11:54):
Our excursion through this wondrous coal mine in the very
bowels of the earth lasted until evening. My uncle was
scarcely able to conceal his impatience and dissatisfaction at the road,
continuing still to advance in a horizontal direction. The darkness dense,
and a park a few yards in advance and in
(12:17):
the rear, rendered it impossible to make out what was
the length of the gallery. For myself, I began to
believe that it was simply interminable, and would go on
in the same manner for months. Suddenly, at six o'clock
we stood in front of a wall to the right,
to the left, above below. Nowhere was there any passage.
(12:41):
We had reached a spot where the rocks said, in
unmistakable accents, no thoroughfare. I stood stupefied. The guide simply
folded his arms. My uncle was silent. Well, well, so
much the better, cried my uncle. At last, I now
(13:02):
know what we are about. We are decidedly not upon
the road followed by sugnusum. All we have to do
is to go back. Let us take one night's good rest,
and before three days are over, I promise you we
shall have regained the point where the gallery is divided.
Yes we may, if our strength lasts as long, I
(13:25):
cried in a lamentable voice. And why not to morrow
among us three there will not be a drop of water.
It is just gone, and your courage with it, said
my uncle, speaking in a severe tone. What could I say?
I turned round on my side, and from sheer exhaution,
(13:48):
fell into a heavy sleep, disturbed by dreams of water,
and I awoke, unrefreshed, I would have bartered a diamond
mine for a glass of pure spring water. End of
Chapter seventeen,
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