could not fail at times to weigh heavily upon the minds of all.

Under these circumstances it was very necessary to counteract the tendency



to de-spond by continualdiversion; and the recreation of skating thus

opportunely provided, seemed just the thing to arouse the flagging spirits,



and to restore a wholesome excitement.

With dogged obstinacy, Isaac Hakkabut refused to take any



share either in the labors or the amusements of the colony.

In spite of the cold, he had not been seen since the day



of his arrival from Gourbi Island. Captain Servadac

had strictlyforbidden any communication with him;



and the smoke that rose from the cabin chimney of the _Hansa_

was the sole indication of the proprietor being still on board.



There was nothing to prevent him, if he chose, from partaking

gratuitously of the volcanic light and heat which were being



enjoyed by all besides; but rather than abandon his close

and personal oversight of his precious cargo, he preferred



to sacrifice his own slender stock of fuel.

Both the schooner and the tartan had been carefully moored in the way



that seemed to promise best for withstanding the rigor of the winter.

After seeing the vessels made secure in the freeze 的过去分词">frozen creek.



Lieutenant Procope, following the example of many Arctic explorers,

had the precaution to have the ice beveled away from the keels,



so that there should be no risk of the ships' sides being crushed

by the increasing pressure; he hoped that they would follow any



rise in the level of the ice-field, and when the thaw should come,

that they would easily regain their proper water-line.



On his last visit to Gourbi Island, the lieutenant had ascertained

that north, east, and west, far as the eye could reach,



the Gallian Sea had become one uniform sheet of ice.

One spot alone refused to freeze; this was the pool immediately



below the central cavern, the receptacle for the stream

of burning lava. It was entirely enclosed by rocks,



and if ever a few icicles were formed there by the action

of the cold, they were very soon melted by the fiery shower.



Hissing and spluttering as the hot lava came in contact with it,

the water was in a continual state of ebullition, and the fish



that abounded in its depths defied the angler's craft; they were,

as Ben Zoof remarked, "too much boiled to bite."



At the beginning of April the weather changed. The sky became overcast,

but there was no rise in the temperature. Unlike the polar winters



of the earth, which ordinarily are affected by atmospheric influence,

and liable to slight intermissions of their severity at various shiftings



of the wind, Gallia's winter was caused by her immense distance from

the source of all light and heat, and the cold was consequently destined



to go on steadily increasing until it reached the limit ascertained

by Fourier to be the normal temperature of the realms of space.



With the over-clouding of the heavens there arose a violent tempest;

but although the wind raged with an almost inconceivable fury, it was



unaccompanied by either snow or rain. Its effect upon the burning curtain

that covered the aperture of the central hall was very remarkable.



So far from there being any likelihood of the fire being extinguished

by the vehemence of the current of air, the hurricane seemed rather



to act as a ventilator, which fanned the flame into greater activity,

and the utmost care was necessary to avoid being burnt by the fragments



of lava that were drifted into the interior of the grotto. More than once

the curtain itself was rifted entirely asunder, but only to close up again



immediately after allowing a momentarydraught of cold air to penetrate the

hall in a way that was refreshing and rather advantageous than otherwise.



On the 4th of April, after an absence of about four days, the new satellite,

to Ben Zoof's great satisfaction, made its reappearance in a crescent form,



a circumstance that seemed to justify the anticipation that henceforward it

would continue to make a periodic revolution every fortnight.



The crust of ice and snow was far too stout for the beaks

of the strongest birds to penetrate, and accordingly large



swarms had left the island, and, following the human population,

had taken refuge on the volcanic promontory; not that there



the barren shore had anything in the way of nourishment

to offer them, but their instinct impelled them to haunt now



the very habitations which formerly they would have shunned.

Scraps of food were thrown to them from the galleries;



these were speedily devoured, but were altogether inadequate

in quantity to meet the demand. At length, emboldened by hunger,



several hundred birds ventured through the tunnel, and took up their

quarters actually in Nina's Hive. Congregating in the large hall,



the half-famished creatures did not hesitate to snatch bread,

meat, or food of any description from the hands of the residents



as they sat at table, and soon became such an intolerable nuisance

that it formed one of the daily diversions to hunt them down;



but although they were vigorously attacked by stones and sticks,

and even occasionally by shot, it was with some difficulty



that their number could be sensibly reduced.

By a systematic course of warfare the bulk of the birds



were all expelled, with the exception of about a hundred,

which began to build in the crevices of the rocks.



These were left in quiet possession of their quarters, as not

only was it deemed advisable to perpetuate the various breeds,



but it was found that these birds acted as a kind of police,

never failing either to chase away or to kill any others of



their species who infringed upon what they appeared to regard

as their own special privilege in intruding within the limits



of their domain.

On the 15th loud cries were suddenly heard issuing from the mouth



of the principal gallery.

"Help, help! I shall be killed!"



Pablo in a moment recognized the voice as Nina's. Outrunning

even Ben Zoof he hurried to the assistance of his little playmate,

• extreme [ik´stri:m] a.尽头的 n.极端 (初中英语单词)


• physical [´fizikəl] a.物质的；有形的 (初中英语单词)


• violent [´vaiələnt] a.强暴的；猛烈的 (初中英语单词)


• liquid [´likwid] n.液体 a.流动的 (初中英语单词)


• steadily [´stedili] ad.坚定地；不断地 (初中英语单词)


• arrest [ə´rest] vt.逮捕 n.逮捕；停止 (初中英语单词)


• agency [´eidʒənsi] n.代理商；机构；代理 (初中英语单词)


• breath [breθ] n.呼吸；气息 (初中英语单词)


• convert [kən´və:t, ´kɔnvə:t] v.转变 n.改变信仰者 (初中英语单词)


• communication [kə,mju:ni´keiʃən] n.通信；通讯联系 (初中英语单词)


• fragment [´frægmənt] n.碎片；破片；断片 (初中英语单词)