November 3, 2023 • 29 mins
"20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" is a classic science fiction adventure novel written by the French author Jules Verne. First published in 1870, the novel is set in the 19th century and follows the thrilling journey of Captain Nemo and his remarkable submarine, the Nautilus.The story is narrated by Professor Pierre Aronnax, a renowned marine biologist who, along with his loyal servant Conseil and harpoonist Ned Land, is taken aboard the Nautilus after their ship is attacked and sunk by an enigmatic and reclusive captain known as Captain Nemo. Nemo is a mysterious and enigmatic character who shuns contact with the outside world and chooses to live beneath the sea, exploring its depths in his advanced and technologically advanced submarine.As the protagonists join Nemo on his undersea adventures, they discover a breathtaking and fantastical world beneath the waves. They encounter a wide variety of marine life, explore hidden underwater landscapes, and even witness the lost city of Atlantis. The novel explores themes of exploration, the wonders of the natural world, and the consequences of unchecked technology."20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" is not only an exciting adventure story but also a reflection on the relationship between humanity and nature, as well as the ethical dilemmas posed by scientific and technological progress. Jules Verne's vivid descriptions of the undersea world and the captivating character of Captain Nemo have made this novel a timeless classic in the genre of science fiction and adventure literature. It continues to captivate readers with its sense of wonder and imagination, as well as its exploration of the mysteries of the deep sea.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:01):
This is a LibriVox recording. AllLibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or to volunteer,please visit librifox dot org. Recording by
Meredith Hughes, Cambridge, Massachusetts.Twenty thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules
(00:23):
Verne, Part two, Chapter fourteen, the South Pole. I rushed up
onto the platform. Yes, opensea, barely a few sparse floes,
some moving icebergs, a sea stretchinginto the distance, hosts of birds in
the air, and myriads of fishunder the waters, which varied from intense
(00:46):
blue to olive green depending on thedepth. The thermometer marked a three degrees
centigrade. It was as if acomparative springtime had been locked up behind that
ice bank, whose distant masses wereoutlined on the northern horizon. Are we
at the pole, I asked thecaptain, my heart pounding. I've no
idea, he answered me. Atnoon, we'll fix our position. But
(01:11):
will the sun show through this mist? I said, staring at the grayish
sky. No matter how faintly itshines, it will be enough for me.
The captain replied to the south.Ten miles from the Nautilus, a
solitary islet rose to a height oftwo hundred meters. We proceeded toward it,
but cautiously, because this sea couldhave been strewn with reefs. In
(01:34):
an hour we had reached the islet. Two hours later we had completed a
full circle around it. It measuredfour to five miles in circumference. A
narrow channel separated it from a considerableshore, perhaps a continent whose limits we
couldn't see. The existence of thisshore seemed to bear out Commander Maury's hypotheses.
(01:55):
In essence, the ingenious American hasnoted that between the south Pole and
the sixtieth parallel, the sea iscovered with floating ice of dimensions much greater
than any found in the North Atlantic. From this fact, he drew the
conclusion that the Antarctic Circle must containconsiderable shores, since icebergs can't form on
the high seas, but only alongcoast lines. According to his calculations,
(02:19):
this frozen mass enclosing the southernmost poleforms a vast ice cap whose width must
reach four thousand kilometers. Meanwhile,to avoid running aground, the Nautilus halted
three cable lengths from a strand crownedby superb piles of rocks. The skiff
was launched to sea. Two crewmencarrying instruments. The captain, Conseil and
(02:40):
I were on board. It wasten o'clock in the morning. I hadn't
seen ned land, no doubt inthe presence of the south Pole. The
Canadian hated having to eat his words. A few strokes of the oar brought
the skiff to the sand, whereit ran aground. Just as Conseil was
about to jump ashore him back.Sir, I told Captain Nemo to you
(03:04):
belongs the honor of first setting footon this shore. Yes, sir,
the captain replied, and if Ihave no hesitation in treading this polar soil,
it's because no human being until nowhas left a footprint here. So
saying, he leaped lightly on tothe sand. His heart must have been
throbbing with intense excitement. He scaledan overhanging rock that extended in a small
(03:28):
promontory, and there, mute andmotionless, with crossed arms and blazing eyes,
he seemed to be laying claim tothese southernmost regions. After spending five
minutes in this trance, he turnedto us whenever you're ready, sir,
he called to me. I gotout conseil at my heels, leaving the
two men in the skiff. Overan extensive area. The soil consisted of
(03:53):
that igneous gravel called tough, reddishin color, as if made from crushed
bricks. The ground was covered withflag lava flows and pomice stones. Its
volcanic origin was unmistakable. In certainlocalities. Thin smoke holes gave off a
sulfurous odor, showing that the innerfires still kept their wide ranging power.
(04:15):
Nevertheless, when I scaled a highescarpment, I could see no volcanoes within
a radius of several miles in theseAntarctic districts. As is well known,
Sir James Clark Ross had found cratersof Mount Erebus and Mount Terror in fully
active condition on the one hundred sixtyseventh meridian at latitude seventy seven degrees thirty
two minutes. The vegetation on thisdesolate continent struck me as quite limited.
(04:41):
A few lichens of the species Usneamelanoxanthra sprawled over the black rocks. The
whole meager flora of this region consistedof certain microscopic buds rudimentary diatoms made up
of a type of cell positioned betweentwo quartz rich shells, plus long purple
and crimson fucus plants buoyed by smallair bladders and washed up on the coast
(05:01):
by the surf. The beach wasstrewn with mollusks, small mussels, limpets,
smooth heart shaped cockles, and especiallysome sea butterflies with oblong, membrane
filled bodies whose heads are formed fromtwo rounded lobes. I also saw myriads
of those northernmost sea butterflies three centimeterslong, which a balen whale can swallow
(05:25):
by the thousands in one gulp.The open waters at the shore line were
alive with these delightful terrapods true butterfliesof the sea, among other zoophytes present
in these shallows. There were afew coral tree forms that, according to
Sir James Clark, ross, livein these Antarctic seas at depths as great
as one thousand meters, then smallalcion coral belonging to the species Prosillaria pelagica.
(05:49):
Also a large number of starfish uniqueto these climes, plus some feather
stars spangling the sand. But itwas in the air that life was superabundant.
There various species of birds flew andfluttered by the thousands, deafening us,
with their calls crowding the rocks.Other fowl watched without fear as we
(06:10):
passed, and pressed familiarly against ourfeet. These were oks, as agile
and supple in water, where theyare sometimes mistaken for fast benito, as
they are clumsy and heavy on land. They uttered outlandish calls and participated in
numerous public assemblies that featured much noisebut little action. Among other fowl,
I noted some sheath bills from thewading bird family. The size of pigeons,
(06:34):
white in color, the beak shortand conical, the eyes framed by
red circles. Conseil laid in asupply of them, because when their properly
cooked, these winged creatures make apleasant dish. In the air. There
passed sooty albatross with four meter wingspansbirds aptly dubbed vultures of the ocean.
(06:55):
Also gigantic petrels, including several witharching wings, andenthusiastic eaters of seal that
are known as keebranta, jesos andcape pigeons. A sort of small duck,
the tops of their bodies black andwhite. In short, a whole
series of petrels, some whitish withwhite wings trimmed and brown, others blue
and exclusive to these Antarctic seas.The former so oily I told Conseil that
(07:19):
inhabitants of the Faroe Islands simply fitthe birds with a wick. Then lighted
up. With that minor addition,Conseil replied, these fowl would make perfect
lamps. After this we should insistthat nature equip them with wicks in advance.
Half a mile farther on the groundwas completely riddled with penguin nests,
(07:40):
egg laying burrows, from which numerousbirds emerged. Later, Captain Nemo had
hundreds of them hunted because their blackflesh is highly edible. They braithed like
donkeys the size of a goose,with slate colored bodies, white undersides,
and lemon colored neck bands. Theseanimals let themselves be stoned to death without
making any effort to get away.Meanwhile, the mists didn't clear, and
(08:05):
by eleven o'clock the sun still hadn'tmade an appearance. Its absence disturbed me.
Without it, no sights were possible, then, how could we tell
whether we had reached the pole?When I rejoined Captain Nemo, I found
him leaning silently against a piece ofrock and staring at the sky. He
seemed impatient, baffled. But whatcould we do? This daring and powerful
(08:28):
man couldn't control the sun as hedid the sea. Noon arrived without the
orb of day appearing for a singleinstant. You couldn't even find its hiding
place behind the curtain of mist.And soon this mist began to condense into
snow. Until tomorrow, the captainsaid simply, and we went back to
(08:48):
the Nautilus amid flurries in the air. During our absence, the nets had
been spread, and I observed withfascination the fish just hauled on board.
The Antarctic seas serve as a refugefor an extremely large number of migratory fish
that flee from storms in the subpolar zones. In truth, only to
slide down the gullets of porpoises andseals. I noted some one decimeter southern
(09:13):
bullhead, a species of whitist cartilaginousfish, overrun with bluish gray stripes and
armed with stings. Then some Antarcticrabbit fish three feet long, the body
very slender, the skin a smoothsilver white, The head rounded, the
topside furnished with three fins, thesnout ending in a trunk that curved back
toward the mouth. I sampled itsflesh but found it tasteless. Despite Conseil's
(09:37):
views, which were largely approving,the blizzard lasted until the next day.
It was impossible to stay on theplatform. From the lounge, where I
was writing up the incidents of thisexcursion to the Polar continent, I could
hear the calls of petrel and albatrosscovorting in the midst of the turmoil.
The Nautilus didn't stay idle and cruisingalong the coast. It advanced some ten
(10:01):
miles farther south, amid the halflight left by the sun as it skimmed
the edge of the horizon. Thenext day, March twentieth, it stopped
snowing. The cold was a littlemore brisk. The thermometer marked minus two
degrees centigrade. The mist had cleared, and on that day I hoped our
noon sights could be accomplished, sinceCaptain Nemo hadn't yet appeared. Only Conseil
(10:26):
and I were taken ashore by theskiff. The soil's nature was still the
same. Volcanic traces of lava,slag, and basaltic rock were everywhere,
but I couldn't find the crater thathad vomited them up there as yonder.
Myriads of birds enlivened this part ofthe Polar continent, but they had to
share their dominion with huge herds ofmarine mammals that looked at us with gentle
(10:48):
eyes. These were seals of variousspecies, some stretched out on the ground,
others lying on drifting ice floes,several leaving or re entering the sea.
Having never dealt with man. Theydidn't run off at our approach,
and I counted enough of them thereaboutsto provision a couple hundred ships. He
(11:09):
gods. Conseil said, it's afortune that ned Land didn't come with us.
Why so, Conseil, because thatmad cap hunter would kill every animal
here. Every animal. May beoverstating it, but in truth, I
doubt we could keep our Canadian friendfrom harpooning some of these magnificent cetaceans,
(11:30):
which would be an affront to CaptainNemo, since he hates to slay harmless
beasts needlessly. He's right, certainly, Conseil, But tell me, haven't
you finished classifying these superb specimens ofmarine fauna. Master is well aware,
conseil replied that I'm not seasoned inpractical application when Master has told me these
(11:52):
animals names. They're seals and Wallas'stwo genera. Our scholarly conseil I hastened
to say that belonged to the familyPinnipedia, order Carnivora, group unguiculata,
subclass Monodelphia, class Mammalia branch verdebrata. Very nice, Conseil I replied,
(12:13):
but these two genera of seals andwalruses are each divided into species, and
if I am not mistaken, wenow have a chance to actually look at
them. Let's it was eight o'clockin the morning. We had four hours
to ourselves before the sun could beproductively observed. I guided our steps toward
a huge bay that made a crescentshaped incision into the granite cliffs along the
beach. There all about us,I swear that the shores and ice floes
(12:39):
were crowded with marine mammals as faras the eye could see. And I
involuntarily looked around for Old Proteus,that mythological shepherd who guarded King Neptune's immense
flocks. To be specific, thesewere seals. They formed distinct male and
female groups, the father watching overhis family, the mother suckling her little
ones. The stronger youngsters in manpancipated a few paces away. When these
(13:03):
mammals wanted to relocate, they movedin little jumps made by contracting their bodies
clumsily, helped by their imperfectly developedflippers, which, as with their manity
relatives, form actual forearms in thewater their ideal element, I must say,
these animals swim wonderfully thanks to theirflexible backbones, narrow pelvises, close
cropped hair, and webbed feet.Resting on shore, they assumed extremely graceful
(13:28):
positions. Consequently, their gentle features, their sensitive expressions equal to those of
the loveliest women, their soft,limpid eyes, their charming poses led the
ancients to glorify them by metamorphosing themales into sea gods and the females into
mermaids. I drew Conseil's attention tothe considerable growth of the cerebral lobes found
(13:50):
in these intelligent cetaceans. No mammalexcept man has more abundant cerebral matter.
Accordingly, seals are quite capable ofbeing educated. They make good pets,
and together with certain other naturalists,I think these animals can be properly trained
to performed yeoman service as hunting dogsfor fishermen. Most of these seals were
(14:11):
sleeping on the rocks or the sand. Among those properly termed seals which have
no external ears, unlike sea lions, whose ears protrude, I observed several
varieties of the species Stenorhinkus, threemeters long, with white hair, bulldog
heads and armed with ten teeth ineach jaw, foreigncizors in both the upper
and lower, plus two big caninesshaped like the fleur de lis. Among
(14:33):
them slithered some sea elephants, atype of seal with a short, flexible
trunk. These are the giants ofthe species, with a circumference of twenty
feet and a length of ten meters. They didn't move as we approached.
Are these animals dangerous, Conseil askedme, Only if they are attacked,
(14:54):
I replied, But when these giantseals defend their little ones. Their fury
is dreadful, and it is norare for them to smash a fisherman's long
boat to bits there within their rights. Conseil answered, I don't say nay.
Two miles farther on we were stoppedby a promontory that screened the bay
from southerly winds. It dropped straightdown to the sea, and surf foamed
(15:16):
against it. From beyond this ridgethere came fearsome bellows, such as a
herd of cattle might produce. GraciousConseil put in a choir of bulls,
No, I said, a choirof walruses. Are they fighting with each
other? Either fighting or playing?With all due respect? Master, this
(15:37):
we must see. Then see it, we must conseil. And there we
were climbing these blackish rocks, amidsudden landslides, and over stones slippery with
ice. More than once I tooka tumble at the expense of my backside.
Conseil, more cautious or more stable, barely faltered and would help me
(15:58):
up, saying, if Mass's legswould kindly adopt a wider stance, master
will keep his balance. Arriving atthe topmost ridge of this promontory, I
could see vast white plains covered withwalruses. These animals were playing among themselves.
They were howling, not in anger, but in glee. Walruses resemble
(16:18):
seals in the shape of their bodiesand the arrangement of their limbs. But
their lower jaws lack canines and incisors, and as for their upper canines,
they consist of two tusks eighty centimeterslong with a circumference of thirty three centimeters
at the socket, made of solidivory with outstriations, harder than elephant tusks
and less prone to yellowing, Theseteeth are in great demand. Accordingly,
(16:41):
walruses are the victims of a mindlesshunting that soon will destroy them all,
since their hunters indiscriminately slaughter pregnant femalesand youngsters, and over four thousand individuals
are destroyed annually. Passing near theseunusual animals, I could examine them at
my leisure, since they didn't stir. Their hides were rough and heavy,
(17:02):
a tan color leaning toward a reddishbrown. Their coats were short and less
than abundant. Some were four meterslong, more tranquil and less fearful than
their northern relatives. They posted nosentinels on guard duty at the approaches to
their campsite. After examining this communityof walruses, I decided to return in
(17:22):
my tracks. It was eleven o'clockand if Captain Nemo found conditions favorable for
taking his sights, I wanted tobe present at the operation, but I
held no hopes that the sun wouldmake an appearance that day. It was
hidden from our eyes by clouds squeezedtogether on the horizon. Apparently the jealous
orb didn't want to reveal this inaccessiblespot on the globe to any human being.
(17:47):
Yet I decided to return to theNautilus. We went along a steep
narrow path that ran over the cliff'ssummit. By eleven thirty we had arrived
at our landing place. The Beech'sgift had brought the Captain ashore. I
spotted him standing on a chunk ofbasalt. His instruments were beside him,
his eyes were focused on the northernhorizon, along which the sun was sweeping
(18:08):
in its extended ark. I founda place near him and waited without speaking.
Noon arrived, and just as onthe day before, the sun didn't
put in an appearance. It wassheer bad luck. Our noon sights were
still lacking. If we couldn't obtainthem tomorrow, we would finally have to
give up any hope of fixing ourposition. In essence, it was precisely
(18:33):
March twentieth. Tomorrow, the twentyfirst was the day of the equinox.
The sun would disappear below the horizonfor six months, not counting refraction,
and after its disappearance, the longpolar night would begin. Following the September
equinox, the Sun had emerged abovethe northerly horizon, rising in long spirals
until December twenty first. At thattime the summer solstice of these southernmost districts,
(18:57):
the sun had started back down,and tomorrow it would cast its last
rays. I shared my thoughts andfears with Captain Nemo. You're right,
Professor Aronnax, He told me.If I can't take the sun's altitude tomorrow,
I won't be able to try againfor another six months. But precisely
(19:18):
because Sailor's luck has led me intothese seas, on March twenty first,
it will be easy to get ourbearings if the noonday sun does appear before
our eyes. Why easy, Captain, Because when the orb of day sweeps
in such long spirals, it's difficultto measure its exact altitude above the horizon,
and our instruments are open to committingserious errors. Then what can you
(19:41):
do? I use only my chronometer, Captain Nemo answered me. At noon
tomorrow, March twenty. First,if after accounting for a refraction, the
Sun's disk is cut exactly in halfby the northern horizon, that will mean
I'm at the south pole, right, I said. Nevertheless, it isn't
a mathematically exact proof because the equinoxesneedn't fall precisely at noon, no doubt,
(20:07):
sir, But the air will beunder one hundred meters, and that's
close enough for us until tomorrow.Then Captain Nemo went back on board Conseil,
and I stayed behind until five o'clock, surveying the beach, observing and
studying. The only unusual object Ipicked up was an ox egg of remarkable
size for which a collector would havepaid more than a thousand francs. Its
(20:30):
cream colored tint, plus the streaksand markings that decorated it, Like so
many hieroglyphics made it a rare trinket. I placed it in Conseil's hands,
and holding it like a precious porcelainfrom China, that cautious, sure footed
lad got it back to the Nautilusin one piece. There I put this
rare egg inside one of the glasscases in the museum. I ate supper,
(20:52):
feasting with an appetite on an excellentpiece of seal liver, whose flavor
reminded me of pork. Then Iwent to bed, but not without praying,
like a good Hindoo for the favorsof the radiant orb. The next
day, March twenty first, brightand early, at five o'clock in the
morning, I climbed onto the platform. I found Captain Nemo. There.
(21:15):
The weather is clearing a bit.He told me, I have high hopes.
After breakfast, we'll make our wayashore and choose an observation. Post
this issue settled, I went tofind ned Land. I wanted to take
him with me. The obstinate Canadianrefused, and I could clearly see that
his tight lipped mood and his badtemper were growing by the day. Under
(21:37):
the circumstances, I ultimately wasn't sorrythat he refused. In truth, there
were too many seals ashore, andit would never do to expose this impulsive
fishermen to such temptations. Breakfast over, I made my way ashore. The
Nautilus had gone a few more milesduring the night. It lay well out
a good league from the coast,which was crowned by a sharp peak four
(21:59):
hundred to five hundred dred meters high. In addition to me, the skiff
carried Captain Nemo, two crewmen,and the instruments in other words, a
chronometer, a spyglass, and abarometer. During our crossing I saw numerous
baleen whales belonging to the three speciesunique to these southernmost seas, the bowhead
whale or right whale according to theEnglish, which has no dorsal fin,
(22:22):
the humpback whale from the genus Balianopterain other words, winged whales beasts with
wrinkled bellies and huge whitish fins thatgenus name regardless, do not yet form
wings, and the fin back whaleyellowish brown. The swiftest of all cetaceans,
This powerful animal is audible from faraway when it sends up towering spouts
(22:44):
of air and steam that resemble swirlsof smoke. Herds of these different mammals
were playing about in the tranquil waters, and I could easily see that this
Antarctic polar basin now served as arefuge for those cetaceans too relentlessly pursued by
hunters. I also noted long,whitish strings of salps, a type of
mollusk found in clusters, and somejellyfish of large size that swayed in the
(23:07):
eddies of the billows. By nineo'clock we had pulled up to shore.
The sky was growing brighter. Cloudswere fleeing to the south. Mists were
rising from the cold surface of thewater. Captain Nemo headed toward the peak,
which he no doubt planned to makehis observatory. It was an arduous
climb over sharp lava and pumice stonesin the midst of air, often reeking
(23:30):
with sulfurous fumes from the smoke holes. For a man out of practice at
treading land. The captain scaled thesteepest slopes with a supple agility I couldn't
equal, and which would have beenenvied by hunters of Pyrenees. Mountain goats.
It took us two hours to reachthe summit of this half crystal,
half basalt peak. From there,our eyes scanned a vast sea which scrawled
(23:52):
its boundary line firmly against the backgroundof the northern sky at our feet,
dazzling tracts of white over our heads, a pale azure clear of mists.
North of us, the Sun's disklike a ball of fire, already cut
into by the edge of the horizon. From the heart of the waters,
jets of liquid rising like hundreds ofmagnificent bouquets. Far off, like a
(24:15):
sleeping cetacean the Nautilus behind us,to the south and east, an immense
shore, a chaotic heap of rocksand ice whose limits we couldn't see.
Arriving at the summit of this peak, Captain Nemo carefully determined its elevation by
means of his barometer, since hehad to take this factor into account in
his noon sights. At eleven fortyfive, The sun, by then seen
(24:40):
only by refraction, looked like agolden disc, dispersing its last rays over
this deserted continent and down to theseseas not yet plowed by the ships of
Man. Captain Nemo had brought aspyglass with a reticular eyepiece which corrected the
Sun's refraction by means of a mirror, and he used it to observe the
orb, sinking little, oh bylittle along a very extended diagonal that reached
(25:03):
below the horizon. I held thechronometer. My heart was pounding mightily.
If the lower half of the Sun'sdisk disappeared, just as the chronometer said,
Noon, We were right at thepole. Noon, I called the
South pole. Captain Nemo replied ina solemn voice, handing me the spyglass,
(25:23):
which showed the orb of day cutinto two exactly equal parts by the
horizon. I stared at the lastrays wreathing this peak, while shadows were
gradually climbing its gradients. Just then, resting his hand on my shoulder,
Captain Nemo said to me. Insixteen hundred, Sir, the Dutchman Garrick
(25:45):
was swept by storms and currents,reaching latitude sixty four degrees south and discovering
the South Shetland Islands. On Januaryseventeenth, seventeen seventy three, the famous
Captain Cook went along the thirty eighthmeridian arriving at latitude sixty seven degrees thirty
minutes, and on January thirtieth,seventeen seventy four, along the one hundred
(26:08):
ninth meridian, he reached latitude seventyone degrees fifteen minutes. In eighteen nineteen,
the Russian Bellinghausen lay on the sixtyninth parallel, and in eighteen twenty
one on the sixty sixth at longitudeone hundred eleven degrees west. In eighteen
twenty, the Englishman Brandsfield stopped atsixty five degrees. That same year,
(26:30):
the American moral, whose reports aredubious, went along the forty second meridian,
finding open sea at latitude seventy degreesfourteen minutes. In eighteen twenty five,
the Englishman Powell was unable to getbeyond sixty two degrees. That same
year, a humble seal fisherman,the Englishman Weddele, went as far as
(26:51):
latitude seventy two degrees fourteen minutes onthe thirty fifth meridian, and as far
as seventy four degrees fifteen minutes onthe thirty sixth. In eighteen twenty ten
x nine, the Englishman Forester,commander of the Chanticleer laid claim to the
Antarctic continent in latitude sixty three degreestwenty six minutes and longitude sixty six degrees
twenty six minutes on February first,eighteen thirty one. The Englishman Bisco discovered
(27:15):
Enderby Land at latitude sixty eight degreesfifty minutes, Adelaide Land at latitude sixty
seven degrees on February fifth, eighteenthirty two, and Graham Land at latitude
sixty four degrees forty five minutes onFebruary twenty first. In eighteen thirty eight,
the Frenchman Dumont d'Urville stopped at theIce Bank in latitude sixty two degrees
fifty seven minutes, citing the LouisPhilippe Peninsula on January twenty first. Two
(27:41):
years later, at a new southerlyposition of sixty six degrees thirty minutes,
he named the Adelaide Coast, andeight days later the Clai Coast at sixty
four degrees forty minutes. In eighteenthirty eight, the American Wilkes advanced as
far as the sixty ninth parallel onthe one hundredth meridian. In eighteen thirty
nine, the Englishman in Balini discoveredthe Sabrina coast at the edge of the
(28:02):
polar circle. Lastly, on Januarytwelfth, eighteen forty two, with his
ships the Erebus and the Terror,the Englishman Sir James Clark Ross found Victoria
Land in latitude seventy degrees fifty sixminutes and longitude one hundred seventy one degrees
seven minutes east. On the twentythird of that same month, he reached
the seventy fourth parallel, a positiondenoting the farthest south attained until then.
(28:26):
On the twenty seventh he lay atseventy six degrees eight minutes, on the
twenty eighth at seventy seven degrees thirtytwo minutes, on February second at seventy
eight degrees four minutes, and latein eighteen forty two he returned to seventy
one degrees, but couldn't get beyondit well. Now, in eighteen sixty
eight, on this twenty first dayof March, I myself, Captain Nemo,
(28:48):
have reached the south pole at ninetydegrees, and I hereby claimed this
entire part of the globe, equalto one sixth of the known continents.
In the name of which sovereign captainin my own name, Sir So,
saying Captain Nemo unfriled a black flagbearing a gold n on its quartered bunting,
(29:11):
then turning toward the orb of Day, whose last rays were licking at
the sea's horizon. Farewell, OSun, he called, disappear, O
radiant orb, retire beneath this opensea, and let six months of night
spread their shadows over my new domains. End of Chapter fourteen.
This is a LibriVox recording. AllLibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or to volunteer,please visit librifox dot org. Recording by
Meredith Hughes, Cambridge, Massachusetts.Twenty thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules
(00:23):
Verne, Part two, Chapter fourteen, the South Pole. I rushed up
onto the platform. Yes, opensea, barely a few sparse floes,
some moving icebergs, a sea stretchinginto the distance, hosts of birds in
the air, and myriads of fishunder the waters, which varied from intense
(00:46):
blue to olive green depending on thedepth. The thermometer marked a three degrees
centigrade. It was as if acomparative springtime had been locked up behind that
ice bank, whose distant masses wereoutlined on the northern horizon. Are we
at the pole, I asked thecaptain, my heart pounding. I've no
idea, he answered me. Atnoon, we'll fix our position. But
(01:11):
will the sun show through this mist? I said, staring at the grayish
sky. No matter how faintly itshines, it will be enough for me.
The captain replied to the south.Ten miles from the Nautilus, a
solitary islet rose to a height oftwo hundred meters. We proceeded toward it,
but cautiously, because this sea couldhave been strewn with reefs. In
(01:34):
an hour we had reached the islet. Two hours later we had completed a
full circle around it. It measuredfour to five miles in circumference. A
narrow channel separated it from a considerableshore, perhaps a continent whose limits we
couldn't see. The existence of thisshore seemed to bear out Commander Maury's hypotheses.
(01:55):
In essence, the ingenious American hasnoted that between the south Pole and
the sixtieth parallel, the sea iscovered with floating ice of dimensions much greater
than any found in the North Atlantic. From this fact, he drew the
conclusion that the Antarctic Circle must containconsiderable shores, since icebergs can't form on
the high seas, but only alongcoast lines. According to his calculations,
(02:19):
this frozen mass enclosing the southernmost poleforms a vast ice cap whose width must
reach four thousand kilometers. Meanwhile,to avoid running aground, the Nautilus halted
three cable lengths from a strand crownedby superb piles of rocks. The skiff
was launched to sea. Two crewmencarrying instruments. The captain, Conseil and
(02:40):
I were on board. It wasten o'clock in the morning. I hadn't
seen ned land, no doubt inthe presence of the south Pole. The
Canadian hated having to eat his words. A few strokes of the oar brought
the skiff to the sand, whereit ran aground. Just as Conseil was
about to jump ashore him back.Sir, I told Captain Nemo to you
(03:04):
belongs the honor of first setting footon this shore. Yes, sir,
the captain replied, and if Ihave no hesitation in treading this polar soil,
it's because no human being until nowhas left a footprint here. So
saying, he leaped lightly on tothe sand. His heart must have been
throbbing with intense excitement. He scaledan overhanging rock that extended in a small
(03:28):
promontory, and there, mute andmotionless, with crossed arms and blazing eyes,
he seemed to be laying claim tothese southernmost regions. After spending five
minutes in this trance, he turnedto us whenever you're ready, sir,
he called to me. I gotout conseil at my heels, leaving the
two men in the skiff. Overan extensive area. The soil consisted of
(03:53):
that igneous gravel called tough, reddishin color, as if made from crushed
bricks. The ground was covered withflag lava flows and pomice stones. Its
volcanic origin was unmistakable. In certainlocalities. Thin smoke holes gave off a
sulfurous odor, showing that the innerfires still kept their wide ranging power.
(04:15):
Nevertheless, when I scaled a highescarpment, I could see no volcanoes within
a radius of several miles in theseAntarctic districts. As is well known,
Sir James Clark Ross had found cratersof Mount Erebus and Mount Terror in fully
active condition on the one hundred sixtyseventh meridian at latitude seventy seven degrees thirty
two minutes. The vegetation on thisdesolate continent struck me as quite limited.
(04:41):
A few lichens of the species Usneamelanoxanthra sprawled over the black rocks. The
whole meager flora of this region consistedof certain microscopic buds rudimentary diatoms made up
of a type of cell positioned betweentwo quartz rich shells, plus long purple
and crimson fucus plants buoyed by smallair bladders and washed up on the coast
(05:01):
by the surf. The beach wasstrewn with mollusks, small mussels, limpets,
smooth heart shaped cockles, and especiallysome sea butterflies with oblong, membrane
filled bodies whose heads are formed fromtwo rounded lobes. I also saw myriads
of those northernmost sea butterflies three centimeterslong, which a balen whale can swallow
(05:25):
by the thousands in one gulp.The open waters at the shore line were
alive with these delightful terrapods true butterfliesof the sea, among other zoophytes present
in these shallows. There were afew coral tree forms that, according to
Sir James Clark, ross, livein these Antarctic seas at depths as great
as one thousand meters, then smallalcion coral belonging to the species Prosillaria pelagica.
(05:49):
Also a large number of starfish uniqueto these climes, plus some feather
stars spangling the sand. But itwas in the air that life was superabundant.
There various species of birds flew andfluttered by the thousands, deafening us,
with their calls crowding the rocks.Other fowl watched without fear as we
(06:10):
passed, and pressed familiarly against ourfeet. These were oks, as agile
and supple in water, where theyare sometimes mistaken for fast benito, as
they are clumsy and heavy on land. They uttered outlandish calls and participated in
numerous public assemblies that featured much noisebut little action. Among other fowl,
I noted some sheath bills from thewading bird family. The size of pigeons,
(06:34):
white in color, the beak shortand conical, the eyes framed by
red circles. Conseil laid in asupply of them, because when their properly
cooked, these winged creatures make apleasant dish. In the air. There
passed sooty albatross with four meter wingspansbirds aptly dubbed vultures of the ocean.
(06:55):
Also gigantic petrels, including several witharching wings, andenthusiastic eaters of seal that
are known as keebranta, jesos andcape pigeons. A sort of small duck,
the tops of their bodies black andwhite. In short, a whole
series of petrels, some whitish withwhite wings trimmed and brown, others blue
and exclusive to these Antarctic seas.The former so oily I told Conseil that
(07:19):
inhabitants of the Faroe Islands simply fitthe birds with a wick. Then lighted
up. With that minor addition,Conseil replied, these fowl would make perfect
lamps. After this we should insistthat nature equip them with wicks in advance.
Half a mile farther on the groundwas completely riddled with penguin nests,
(07:40):
egg laying burrows, from which numerousbirds emerged. Later, Captain Nemo had
hundreds of them hunted because their blackflesh is highly edible. They braithed like
donkeys the size of a goose,with slate colored bodies, white undersides,
and lemon colored neck bands. Theseanimals let themselves be stoned to death without
making any effort to get away.Meanwhile, the mists didn't clear, and
(08:05):
by eleven o'clock the sun still hadn'tmade an appearance. Its absence disturbed me.
Without it, no sights were possible, then, how could we tell
whether we had reached the pole?When I rejoined Captain Nemo, I found
him leaning silently against a piece ofrock and staring at the sky. He
seemed impatient, baffled. But whatcould we do? This daring and powerful
(08:28):
man couldn't control the sun as hedid the sea. Noon arrived without the
orb of day appearing for a singleinstant. You couldn't even find its hiding
place behind the curtain of mist.And soon this mist began to condense into
snow. Until tomorrow, the captainsaid simply, and we went back to
(08:48):
the Nautilus amid flurries in the air. During our absence, the nets had
been spread, and I observed withfascination the fish just hauled on board.
The Antarctic seas serve as a refugefor an extremely large number of migratory fish
that flee from storms in the subpolar zones. In truth, only to
slide down the gullets of porpoises andseals. I noted some one decimeter southern
(09:13):
bullhead, a species of whitist cartilaginousfish, overrun with bluish gray stripes and
armed with stings. Then some Antarcticrabbit fish three feet long, the body
very slender, the skin a smoothsilver white, The head rounded, the
topside furnished with three fins, thesnout ending in a trunk that curved back
toward the mouth. I sampled itsflesh but found it tasteless. Despite Conseil's
(09:37):
views, which were largely approving,the blizzard lasted until the next day.
It was impossible to stay on theplatform. From the lounge, where I
was writing up the incidents of thisexcursion to the Polar continent, I could
hear the calls of petrel and albatrosscovorting in the midst of the turmoil.
The Nautilus didn't stay idle and cruisingalong the coast. It advanced some ten
(10:01):
miles farther south, amid the halflight left by the sun as it skimmed
the edge of the horizon. Thenext day, March twentieth, it stopped
snowing. The cold was a littlemore brisk. The thermometer marked minus two
degrees centigrade. The mist had cleared, and on that day I hoped our
noon sights could be accomplished, sinceCaptain Nemo hadn't yet appeared. Only Conseil
(10:26):
and I were taken ashore by theskiff. The soil's nature was still the
same. Volcanic traces of lava,slag, and basaltic rock were everywhere,
but I couldn't find the crater thathad vomited them up there as yonder.
Myriads of birds enlivened this part ofthe Polar continent, but they had to
share their dominion with huge herds ofmarine mammals that looked at us with gentle
(10:48):
eyes. These were seals of variousspecies, some stretched out on the ground,
others lying on drifting ice floes,several leaving or re entering the sea.
Having never dealt with man. Theydidn't run off at our approach,
and I counted enough of them thereaboutsto provision a couple hundred ships. He
(11:09):
gods. Conseil said, it's afortune that ned Land didn't come with us.
Why so, Conseil, because thatmad cap hunter would kill every animal
here. Every animal. May beoverstating it, but in truth, I
doubt we could keep our Canadian friendfrom harpooning some of these magnificent cetaceans,
(11:30):
which would be an affront to CaptainNemo, since he hates to slay harmless
beasts needlessly. He's right, certainly, Conseil, But tell me, haven't
you finished classifying these superb specimens ofmarine fauna. Master is well aware,
conseil replied that I'm not seasoned inpractical application when Master has told me these
(11:52):
animals names. They're seals and Wallas'stwo genera. Our scholarly conseil I hastened
to say that belonged to the familyPinnipedia, order Carnivora, group unguiculata,
subclass Monodelphia, class Mammalia branch verdebrata. Very nice, Conseil I replied,
(12:13):
but these two genera of seals andwalruses are each divided into species, and
if I am not mistaken, wenow have a chance to actually look at
them. Let's it was eight o'clockin the morning. We had four hours
to ourselves before the sun could beproductively observed. I guided our steps toward
a huge bay that made a crescentshaped incision into the granite cliffs along the
beach. There all about us,I swear that the shores and ice floes
(12:39):
were crowded with marine mammals as faras the eye could see. And I
involuntarily looked around for Old Proteus,that mythological shepherd who guarded King Neptune's immense
flocks. To be specific, thesewere seals. They formed distinct male and
female groups, the father watching overhis family, the mother suckling her little
ones. The stronger youngsters in manpancipated a few paces away. When these
(13:03):
mammals wanted to relocate, they movedin little jumps made by contracting their bodies
clumsily, helped by their imperfectly developedflippers, which, as with their manity
relatives, form actual forearms in thewater their ideal element, I must say,
these animals swim wonderfully thanks to theirflexible backbones, narrow pelvises, close
cropped hair, and webbed feet.Resting on shore, they assumed extremely graceful
(13:28):
positions. Consequently, their gentle features, their sensitive expressions equal to those of
the loveliest women, their soft,limpid eyes, their charming poses led the
ancients to glorify them by metamorphosing themales into sea gods and the females into
mermaids. I drew Conseil's attention tothe considerable growth of the cerebral lobes found
(13:50):
in these intelligent cetaceans. No mammalexcept man has more abundant cerebral matter.
Accordingly, seals are quite capable ofbeing educated. They make good pets,
and together with certain other naturalists,I think these animals can be properly trained
to performed yeoman service as hunting dogsfor fishermen. Most of these seals were
(14:11):
sleeping on the rocks or the sand. Among those properly termed seals which have
no external ears, unlike sea lions, whose ears protrude, I observed several
varieties of the species Stenorhinkus, threemeters long, with white hair, bulldog
heads and armed with ten teeth ineach jaw, foreigncizors in both the upper
and lower, plus two big caninesshaped like the fleur de lis. Among
(14:33):
them slithered some sea elephants, atype of seal with a short, flexible
trunk. These are the giants ofthe species, with a circumference of twenty
feet and a length of ten meters. They didn't move as we approached.
Are these animals dangerous, Conseil askedme, Only if they are attacked,
(14:54):
I replied, But when these giantseals defend their little ones. Their fury
is dreadful, and it is norare for them to smash a fisherman's long
boat to bits there within their rights. Conseil answered, I don't say nay.
Two miles farther on we were stoppedby a promontory that screened the bay
from southerly winds. It dropped straightdown to the sea, and surf foamed
(15:16):
against it. From beyond this ridgethere came fearsome bellows, such as a
herd of cattle might produce. GraciousConseil put in a choir of bulls,
No, I said, a choirof walruses. Are they fighting with each
other? Either fighting or playing?With all due respect? Master, this
(15:37):
we must see. Then see it, we must conseil. And there we
were climbing these blackish rocks, amidsudden landslides, and over stones slippery with
ice. More than once I tooka tumble at the expense of my backside.
Conseil, more cautious or more stable, barely faltered and would help me
(15:58):
up, saying, if Mass's legswould kindly adopt a wider stance, master
will keep his balance. Arriving atthe topmost ridge of this promontory, I
could see vast white plains covered withwalruses. These animals were playing among themselves.
They were howling, not in anger, but in glee. Walruses resemble
(16:18):
seals in the shape of their bodiesand the arrangement of their limbs. But
their lower jaws lack canines and incisors, and as for their upper canines,
they consist of two tusks eighty centimeterslong with a circumference of thirty three centimeters
at the socket, made of solidivory with outstriations, harder than elephant tusks
and less prone to yellowing, Theseteeth are in great demand. Accordingly,
(16:41):
walruses are the victims of a mindlesshunting that soon will destroy them all,
since their hunters indiscriminately slaughter pregnant femalesand youngsters, and over four thousand individuals
are destroyed annually. Passing near theseunusual animals, I could examine them at
my leisure, since they didn't stir. Their hides were rough and heavy,
(17:02):
a tan color leaning toward a reddishbrown. Their coats were short and less
than abundant. Some were four meterslong, more tranquil and less fearful than
their northern relatives. They posted nosentinels on guard duty at the approaches to
their campsite. After examining this communityof walruses, I decided to return in
(17:22):
my tracks. It was eleven o'clockand if Captain Nemo found conditions favorable for
taking his sights, I wanted tobe present at the operation, but I
held no hopes that the sun wouldmake an appearance that day. It was
hidden from our eyes by clouds squeezedtogether on the horizon. Apparently the jealous
orb didn't want to reveal this inaccessiblespot on the globe to any human being.
(17:47):
Yet I decided to return to theNautilus. We went along a steep
narrow path that ran over the cliff'ssummit. By eleven thirty we had arrived
at our landing place. The Beech'sgift had brought the Captain ashore. I
spotted him standing on a chunk ofbasalt. His instruments were beside him,
his eyes were focused on the northernhorizon, along which the sun was sweeping
(18:08):
in its extended ark. I founda place near him and waited without speaking.
Noon arrived, and just as onthe day before, the sun didn't
put in an appearance. It wassheer bad luck. Our noon sights were
still lacking. If we couldn't obtainthem tomorrow, we would finally have to
give up any hope of fixing ourposition. In essence, it was precisely
(18:33):
March twentieth. Tomorrow, the twentyfirst was the day of the equinox.
The sun would disappear below the horizonfor six months, not counting refraction,
and after its disappearance, the longpolar night would begin. Following the September
equinox, the Sun had emerged abovethe northerly horizon, rising in long spirals
until December twenty first. At thattime the summer solstice of these southernmost districts,
(18:57):
the sun had started back down,and tomorrow it would cast its last
rays. I shared my thoughts andfears with Captain Nemo. You're right,
Professor Aronnax, He told me.If I can't take the sun's altitude tomorrow,
I won't be able to try againfor another six months. But precisely
(19:18):
because Sailor's luck has led me intothese seas, on March twenty first,
it will be easy to get ourbearings if the noonday sun does appear before
our eyes. Why easy, Captain, Because when the orb of day sweeps
in such long spirals, it's difficultto measure its exact altitude above the horizon,
and our instruments are open to committingserious errors. Then what can you
(19:41):
do? I use only my chronometer, Captain Nemo answered me. At noon
tomorrow, March twenty. First,if after accounting for a refraction, the
Sun's disk is cut exactly in halfby the northern horizon, that will mean
I'm at the south pole, right, I said. Nevertheless, it isn't
a mathematically exact proof because the equinoxesneedn't fall precisely at noon, no doubt,
(20:07):
sir, But the air will beunder one hundred meters, and that's
close enough for us until tomorrow.Then Captain Nemo went back on board Conseil,
and I stayed behind until five o'clock, surveying the beach, observing and
studying. The only unusual object Ipicked up was an ox egg of remarkable
size for which a collector would havepaid more than a thousand francs. Its
(20:30):
cream colored tint, plus the streaksand markings that decorated it, Like so
many hieroglyphics made it a rare trinket. I placed it in Conseil's hands,
and holding it like a precious porcelainfrom China, that cautious, sure footed
lad got it back to the Nautilusin one piece. There I put this
rare egg inside one of the glasscases in the museum. I ate supper,
(20:52):
feasting with an appetite on an excellentpiece of seal liver, whose flavor
reminded me of pork. Then Iwent to bed, but not without praying,
like a good Hindoo for the favorsof the radiant orb. The next
day, March twenty first, brightand early, at five o'clock in the
morning, I climbed onto the platform. I found Captain Nemo. There.
(21:15):
The weather is clearing a bit.He told me, I have high hopes.
After breakfast, we'll make our wayashore and choose an observation. Post
this issue settled, I went tofind ned Land. I wanted to take
him with me. The obstinate Canadianrefused, and I could clearly see that
his tight lipped mood and his badtemper were growing by the day. Under
(21:37):
the circumstances, I ultimately wasn't sorrythat he refused. In truth, there
were too many seals ashore, andit would never do to expose this impulsive
fishermen to such temptations. Breakfast over, I made my way ashore. The
Nautilus had gone a few more milesduring the night. It lay well out
a good league from the coast,which was crowned by a sharp peak four
(21:59):
hundred to five hundred dred meters high. In addition to me, the skiff
carried Captain Nemo, two crewmen,and the instruments in other words, a
chronometer, a spyglass, and abarometer. During our crossing I saw numerous
baleen whales belonging to the three speciesunique to these southernmost seas, the bowhead
whale or right whale according to theEnglish, which has no dorsal fin,
(22:22):
the humpback whale from the genus Balianopterain other words, winged whales beasts with
wrinkled bellies and huge whitish fins thatgenus name regardless, do not yet form
wings, and the fin back whaleyellowish brown. The swiftest of all cetaceans,
This powerful animal is audible from faraway when it sends up towering spouts
(22:44):
of air and steam that resemble swirlsof smoke. Herds of these different mammals
were playing about in the tranquil waters, and I could easily see that this
Antarctic polar basin now served as arefuge for those cetaceans too relentlessly pursued by
hunters. I also noted long,whitish strings of salps, a type of
mollusk found in clusters, and somejellyfish of large size that swayed in the
(23:07):
eddies of the billows. By nineo'clock we had pulled up to shore.
The sky was growing brighter. Cloudswere fleeing to the south. Mists were
rising from the cold surface of thewater. Captain Nemo headed toward the peak,
which he no doubt planned to makehis observatory. It was an arduous
climb over sharp lava and pumice stonesin the midst of air, often reeking
(23:30):
with sulfurous fumes from the smoke holes. For a man out of practice at
treading land. The captain scaled thesteepest slopes with a supple agility I couldn't
equal, and which would have beenenvied by hunters of Pyrenees. Mountain goats.
It took us two hours to reachthe summit of this half crystal,
half basalt peak. From there,our eyes scanned a vast sea which scrawled
(23:52):
its boundary line firmly against the backgroundof the northern sky at our feet,
dazzling tracts of white over our heads, a pale azure clear of mists.
North of us, the Sun's disklike a ball of fire, already cut
into by the edge of the horizon. From the heart of the waters,
jets of liquid rising like hundreds ofmagnificent bouquets. Far off, like a
(24:15):
sleeping cetacean the Nautilus behind us,to the south and east, an immense
shore, a chaotic heap of rocksand ice whose limits we couldn't see.
Arriving at the summit of this peak, Captain Nemo carefully determined its elevation by
means of his barometer, since hehad to take this factor into account in
his noon sights. At eleven fortyfive, The sun, by then seen
(24:40):
only by refraction, looked like agolden disc, dispersing its last rays over
this deserted continent and down to theseseas not yet plowed by the ships of
Man. Captain Nemo had brought aspyglass with a reticular eyepiece which corrected the
Sun's refraction by means of a mirror, and he used it to observe the
orb, sinking little, oh bylittle along a very extended diagonal that reached
(25:03):
below the horizon. I held thechronometer. My heart was pounding mightily.
If the lower half of the Sun'sdisk disappeared, just as the chronometer said,
Noon, We were right at thepole. Noon, I called the
South pole. Captain Nemo replied ina solemn voice, handing me the spyglass,
(25:23):
which showed the orb of day cutinto two exactly equal parts by the
horizon. I stared at the lastrays wreathing this peak, while shadows were
gradually climbing its gradients. Just then, resting his hand on my shoulder,
Captain Nemo said to me. Insixteen hundred, Sir, the Dutchman Garrick
(25:45):
was swept by storms and currents,reaching latitude sixty four degrees south and discovering
the South Shetland Islands. On Januaryseventeenth, seventeen seventy three, the famous
Captain Cook went along the thirty eighthmeridian arriving at latitude sixty seven degrees thirty
minutes, and on January thirtieth,seventeen seventy four, along the one hundred
(26:08):
ninth meridian, he reached latitude seventyone degrees fifteen minutes. In eighteen nineteen,
the Russian Bellinghausen lay on the sixtyninth parallel, and in eighteen twenty
one on the sixty sixth at longitudeone hundred eleven degrees west. In eighteen
twenty, the Englishman Brandsfield stopped atsixty five degrees. That same year,
(26:30):
the American moral, whose reports aredubious, went along the forty second meridian,
finding open sea at latitude seventy degreesfourteen minutes. In eighteen twenty five,
the Englishman Powell was unable to getbeyond sixty two degrees. That same
year, a humble seal fisherman,the Englishman Weddele, went as far as
(26:51):
latitude seventy two degrees fourteen minutes onthe thirty fifth meridian, and as far
as seventy four degrees fifteen minutes onthe thirty sixth. In eighteen twenty ten
x nine, the Englishman Forester,commander of the Chanticleer laid claim to the
Antarctic continent in latitude sixty three degreestwenty six minutes and longitude sixty six degrees
twenty six minutes on February first,eighteen thirty one. The Englishman Bisco discovered
(27:15):
Enderby Land at latitude sixty eight degreesfifty minutes, Adelaide Land at latitude sixty
seven degrees on February fifth, eighteenthirty two, and Graham Land at latitude
sixty four degrees forty five minutes onFebruary twenty first. In eighteen thirty eight,
the Frenchman Dumont d'Urville stopped at theIce Bank in latitude sixty two degrees
fifty seven minutes, citing the LouisPhilippe Peninsula on January twenty first. Two
(27:41):
years later, at a new southerlyposition of sixty six degrees thirty minutes,
he named the Adelaide Coast, andeight days later the Clai Coast at sixty
four degrees forty minutes. In eighteenthirty eight, the American Wilkes advanced as
far as the sixty ninth parallel onthe one hundredth meridian. In eighteen thirty
nine, the Englishman in Balini discoveredthe Sabrina coast at the edge of the
(28:02):
polar circle. Lastly, on Januarytwelfth, eighteen forty two, with his
ships the Erebus and the Terror,the Englishman Sir James Clark Ross found Victoria
Land in latitude seventy degrees fifty sixminutes and longitude one hundred seventy one degrees
seven minutes east. On the twentythird of that same month, he reached
the seventy fourth parallel, a positiondenoting the farthest south attained until then.
(28:26):
On the twenty seventh he lay atseventy six degrees eight minutes, on the
twenty eighth at seventy seven degrees thirtytwo minutes, on February second at seventy
eight degrees four minutes, and latein eighteen forty two he returned to seventy
one degrees, but couldn't get beyondit well. Now, in eighteen sixty
eight, on this twenty first dayof March, I myself, Captain Nemo,
(28:48):
have reached the south pole at ninetydegrees, and I hereby claimed this
entire part of the globe, equalto one sixth of the known continents.
In the name of which sovereign captainin my own name, Sir So,
saying Captain Nemo unfriled a black flagbearing a gold n on its quartered bunting,
(29:11):
then turning toward the orb of Day, whose last rays were licking at
the sea's horizon. Farewell, OSun, he called, disappear, O
radiant orb, retire beneath this opensea, and let six months of night
spread their shadows over my new domains. End of Chapter fourteen.
Popular Podcasts
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.
The Charlie Kirk Show
Charlie is America's hardest working grassroots activist who has your inside scoop on the biggest news of the day and what's really going on behind the headlines. The founder of Turning Point USA and one of social media's most engaged personalities, Charlie is on the front lines of America’s culture war, mobilizing hundreds of thousands of students on over 3,500 college and high school campuses across the country, bringing you your daily dose of clarity in a sea of chaos all from his signature no-holds-barred, unapologetically conservative, freedom-loving point of view. You can also watch Charlie Kirk on Salem News Channel