The Mysterious Island Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Captain Grant's Children

Chapter 85: Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (16)
I was dropped by Captain Nemo about twenty paces or so.Suddenly, I saw Captain Nemo turn and rush towards me, pinning me to the ground with his strong hands, and his companion did the same to Conseil.At the moment when I was thrown down by the captain, countless thoughts flashed in my mind, but when I saw that he was lying beside me, he did not dare to move, so I was relieved.

I was lying on the ground, blocked by a thicket of moss, and when I looked up, I saw a phosphorescent, gigantic figure approaching us menacingly!They came over.

I recognized a pair of very scary dogfish coming!I was so scared that my heart almost jumped out!Dogfish is the most powerful kind of shark. Its tail is long and big, its eyes are like glass, and its eyes are dull. There are many holes around the mouth, and these holes emit a glowing phosphorous substance. Their gums are like steel. As strong as it is, it can bite a whole person into a meat sauce!Looking at their silver bellies and big mouths full of sharp teeth, I don't know what Conseil was thinking at this moment, maybe he was carefully classifying them.But, for me, it's not so much observing them from a biologist's point of view as I am observing them as a person who will be devoured.

Fortunately, this pair of voracious animals had very poor eyesight and walked past us without noticing us. We were just swept a little by their yellow and black tails.I can say with certainty that this danger was much greater than meeting a tiger in the forest, and it is a miracle that we escaped this danger.

Under the guidance of the electric light, we finally returned to the "Nautilus" after half an hour.The outer door was always open. After we entered the first small room, Captain Nemo closed the door, and then pressed a knob with his hand, and the sound of the water pump inside the ship was heard. With my ears closed, I feel the water around me slowly descending.Not long after, all the water in the small room was drained.So, the inner door opened, and we went into the changing room, and started taking off our wetsuits, which was no easier than putting on.I retired to my room and fell asleep, alternately amazed by the journey and exhausted.

four thousand miles under the pacific

The next day, November 11th, I had fully recovered from yesterday's fatigue.When I came to the platform, I happened to hear the words that the captain's mate must say every day.I think the meaning of this sentence should be reporting the situation on the sea surface, or that sentence means "we can't see anything".

Indeed, the sea was empty, and as far as the eye could see, there was not a sail or a ship, and the island of Crespo had disappeared without a trace during the night.The sea absorbs the other colors emitted by the prism, and reflects only the blue in all directions, presenting a pleasant indigo blue, like a wide-striped sky-blue curtain spread neatly on the rising and falling waves.

While I was savoring the beauty of the ocean with great interest, Captain Nemo also came to the platform and began to concentrate on making a series of astronomical observations, seemingly oblivious to my existence.After finishing his observations, he walked to the side light, leaned one arm on the light stand, and watched the vast sea.

After a while, about twenty strong and strong men came on the platform. They were all sailors of the "Nautilus", and they came to collect the fishing nets that had been cast behind the ship last night.Although the sailors all appeared to be European in size, they were clearly of different nationalities.If my eyesight was all right, I imagined Irish, French, Slavs, Greeks, or Cretans among them.These people don't like to speak very much, and even if they occasionally speak a few words, they are in a dialect that I can't understand, and I can't even tell where their dialect comes from.Therefore, I gave up the idea of ​​talking to them.

The big men quickly pulled the nets onto the boat.The nets were wide pockets, somewhat like the trawl nets used off the coast of Normandy, held open in the water by a floating cross-piece and a chain linking the lower mesh.These pocket-like nets are hung on the iron frame behind the boat. When the boat is moving, it is like a broom for sweeping the bottom of the sea. All the fish swept by it will not slip through the net, and all will be collected in the net.On this day, they caught many novel fish, for example, the sea frogfish with funny movements, also called harlequin fish; the black pufffish with many tentacles; Lepidoptera; very poisonous crescent fish; olive-colored hagfish; sealfish covered with silvery white scales; The slashed and scaly finfish; the light blue soft-shelled turtle and many kinds of gobies, etc.Then there are some bigger fish, there is a kangaroo with a protruding head; there are several beautiful carps nearly a meter long; and there are three tunas with sky blue and silver and white colors on their bodies.No matter how fast these fish swim, as long as they touch this net bag, they will never get out.

The results of this salvage were good. I roughly estimated that the fish salvaged could weigh more than 1000 catties.But this is not a particularly good result, because the net has been dragged behind the boat for several hours, and all kinds of aquatic animals will naturally be caught in the net.It seems that as long as this is the case, and the Nautilus's speed and electric attraction are renewed, we will be able to catch more fish, and we will have no shortage of food of good quality.

The seafood is immediately sent from the open panels to the food storage below, some to be eaten fresh and some to be preserved.

With the fishing done and the air changed, I think the "Nautilus" may be about to start its undersea journey again.Thinking of this, I was about to go back to my room. At this moment, Captain Nemo turned to me and said to me straight to the point:
"Professor, look at this ocean. Doesn't it have real life? Doesn't it have anger and warmth? Yesterday, it fell asleep just like us. After a peaceful night, now it has started to move again."

The queer man said neither good morning nor good night, and was now only concerned with continuing the conversation he had begun.

"Look, Mr. Professor," he went on, "the sun's touch has awakened the ocean from its slumber! Its day life has begun again! Observe the changing effects of its organic life, and you will find it has a pulse. , There are blood vessels, there are ups and downs, this is really a very interesting academic study. I think the scientist Morley is right, he found that the ocean also has a real circulatory system, just like the blood circulation in animals."

Captain Nemo was not so much addressing me as he was addressing himself, for he never waited for an answer from me, and I felt that instead of echoing him with words like "Of course," "Sure," and "You're right." "It's better not to say anything.Moreover, he also has a very special way of thinking, that is, he pauses for a long time after every sentence.

He continued: "The circulation system of the ocean does exist. As long as the creator adds heat, salt and microorganisms to the sea, this system can be circulated. The heat makes the sea water have different densities, so the sea produces smooth flow. Currents and counter currents. There is no evaporation of water vapor in the Arctic region, but it is obvious in the equatorial region, resulting in a constant exchange of seawater in the tropics and seawater in the polar regions. In addition, I found that the formation of true ocean breathing It works on the water flow from top to bottom and from bottom to top. I saw that seawater molecules fall back to the bottom of the sea after being heated on the sea surface, until they reach minus two degrees and reach their maximum density, and then the water molecules The temperature of the body is lowered again, it becomes lighter, and it rises to the top. The result of this phenomenon, you can see in the polar regions. At the same time, according to this prescient law of nature, you will also Understand that icing will always occur on the surface of the water."

When I finished listening to Captain Nemo's words, I thought to myself: "The polar regions! Does this fearless guy want us to go all the way to the polar regions?"

At this moment the captain stopped talking and began to observe the ocean intently.After a while, he spoke again:

"Professor, do you know the amount of salt in seawater? Let's put it this way, if you extract the salt dissolved in the sea to form a salt pile, its area can reach 450 million cubic meters. If you spread these salts on the earth If it is on the surface, its skin thickness can be as high as more than ten meters. Don't think that the existence of so much salt is formed randomly by nature, it is not like this."

"Salt makes it difficult for seawater to evaporate. Excessive water vapor cannot be carried away by the sea breeze, and too much water vapor will turn into water and submerge temperate regions. Salt can adjust the power of the entire earth and play a role in maintaining the balance of the entire earth. immeasurable effect."

Captain Nemo was silent again, stood up and walked a few steps on the platform, then walked towards me, and continued: "Speaking of those innumerable ciliate-like microorganisms that can only be seen under a microscope, there are several in a drop of water. There are millions of them, 80 of which only weigh one gram, but their role cannot be underestimated. They absorb the salt and solid matter in the seawater and produce corals, which are the creators of the real calcareous land. If minerals are lost in a drop of water The nutrients will become lighter, and then float to the surface of the water, absorbing the salt left over when the seawater evaporates, and then become heavier, sinking again, bringing new absorbable substances to the microorganisms. This results in the up and down of the water flow Circulation, endless movement, life will continue forever. Moreover, its vitality is more exuberant, more dynamic, and more endless than that on land. Some people say that the ocean is a fatal place for human beings, but for countless animals and to me, the ocean is where real life is!"

As Captain Nemo said these words, his facial expression changed completely, and a special mood was created for him.He went on to say:
"Therefore, only life in the ocean is real life! I want to build floating cities and subsea settlements that, like the 'Nautilus,' rise to the surface every morning to breathe. If my idea If it is realized, then these cities must be free and independent! However, no one knows if there will be some autocratic demon kings..."

Captain Nemo ended his speech with a violent gesture.Then he asked me straight to the point, as if to expel some ominous thoughts, he asked:
"Mr. Aronnax, do you know the depth of the ocean?"

"Captain, at least, I know the results of some of the main depth-findings."

"Can you talk to me? I can check if I need to."

"I remember some figures," I replied. "If I remember correctly, the average depth of the North Atlantic is 200 meters, and the Mediterranean is 500 meters. It was carried out at 35°, and the measured results were 2000 meters, 91 meters, and 140 meters. In short, according to general estimates, its average depth is about 7000 meters .”

Captain Nemo said: "Very well, Professor, I think we can let you know more exact figures. The average depth of this part of the Pacific Ocean where we are at present is only 4000 meters."

After Captain Nemo finished speaking, he walked towards the panel and disappeared under the iron ladder.I also stepped off the platform and went back to the living room.The thrusters started immediately, and from the speedometer, the current speed was twenty knots.

During the next few weeks, Captain Nemo's mate came regularly to record the course, and marked each one on the chart, so that I had a pretty accurate idea of ​​the course taken by the "Nautilus".But Captain Nemo was seldom seen, and the times I saw him were extremely limited.

The parlor panels were opened for hours almost every day, and our eyes were never tired of watching the mysteries of the underwater world.Conseil, Ned Land, and I talked while looking at the sea.Conseil told the Canadians about the novelty we saw during our walk on the bottom of the sea. After hearing this, the Canadians regretted not going with us.But I hope that there will be opportunities to travel in such underwater forests in the future.

The Nautilus remained at a depth between 100 and 150 meters and was heading southeast.But one day, without knowing why, the "Nautilus" dived into the seabed to a depth of 2000 meters along a diagonal line through the two inclined panels on the side of the hull.At that time, the temperature indicated by the thermometer was [-] degrees Celsius.No matter which sea area you are in, in this deep water, the temperature seems to be the same.

At three o'clock in the morning on January 1, the "Nautilus" crossed the Tropic of Cancer from a position of 26° west longitude. On the 172th, the Hawaiian Islands came into view. On February 27, 1779, the famous navigator Cook was killed in this place.Counting from the starting point of the voyage, we have traveled 2 miles so far.In the morning, I came to the platform and saw the island of Hawaii about two miles downwind.A total of seven islands form the archipelago, and Hawaii is the largest of them all.I can clearly see the world on the island, the mountains that run almost parallel to the coast, and the volcanoes at the foot of Mauna Loa at an altitude of 14 meters.Among other species in this sea area, the fishing nets also caught the typical seafood in this sea area-Peacock fan coral, which is a squashed and beautifully shaped polyp, which is a special animal in this sea area .

The "Nautilus" still kept heading southeast. On December-January it crossed the line of the equator at longitude 12° W; and after a swift and smooth course we sighted the Marquesas Islands on the 1th of the same month.I saw Cape Martin on the island of Nukayiwa at latitude 142°4' south and longitude 8°57' west, three nautical miles from us, the most important of the islands belonging to the French archipelago.As Captain Nemo disliked approaching land, I saw nothing but jungle-covered mountains on the horizon.Many beautiful fishes in this sea area have been caught by fishing nets, including golden-tailed and blue-finned Griffon fish with extremely delicious meat, naked fish with no scales but delicious, and fish with bone gills. Orbs, black and yellow tacha better than tuna, all fish worthy of human consumption in a ship's restaurant.

After leaving these beautiful islands belonging to France, from December 12th to 4th, the total mileage of the "Nautilus" was about 11 miles.During this voyage we encountered a large school of calamari, a curious mollusc resembling a cuttlefish.They belong to the class Cephalopoda, order Dibranchia, and belong to the same family as anal fish and cuttlefish.These fishes, which were especially studied by paleontologists, provided a lot of metaphorical material for some ancient Greek orators, and they were also a delicacy on the tables of some wealthy Greek citizens.

During the night of December 12th and 9th, the "Nautilus" encountered a large group of nocturnal molluscs. It is impossible to estimate their number, but tens of thousands can only be used to describe their large number.They moved from temperate regions to warmer waters, following the route taken by whitefish and sardines.Looking at these mollusks through the thick crystal porthole, relying on the movement of the power tube on the body, they swim backwards at extremely fast speeds, chasing other fish and molluscs, and eating fish smaller than them , or are eaten by larger fish.No matter how fast the Nautilus was going, it traveled for hours among this large herd.Countless marlin and squid have been netted, and I see nine Pacific species classified by Albany among them.

During this voyage, the ocean changed the scenery and scenes from time to time, constantly presenting various wonderful scenes in front of us, making us dizzy and feast our eyes.We should not only appreciate the masterpieces of the Creator in the ocean, but also gain insight into the most amazing secrets under the ocean.

All day on December 12, I stayed in the living room reading a book.Ned Land and Conseil gazed at the bright water through the open panels. The storage tanks of the "Nautilus" were filled with water, and the voyage stopped at a depth of 11 meters.There are few living creatures in this sea area, only some big fish occasionally appear here.

At this time, what I was holding in my hand was a very interesting book, "The Regulator of the Stomach" by Jean Massy.While I was reading with relish, Conseil interrupted me with a surprised voice:

"Sir, could you please come here?"

"Conseil, what's the matter?"

"Sir, please come and have a look."

I got up and went to the window and looked out.

Under the strong electric light, I saw a huge black monster floating motionless in the middle of the sea.I watched it carefully, trying to discern the attributes of this gigantic whale.Looking at it, a thought suddenly flashed in my mind:
"That's a boat!" I yelled.

"Sir is right," replied the Canadian, "that is a wreck struck on a reef!"

(End of this chapter)