Thus, some time after the return of the travellers, the public received with marked favour the announcement of a company, limited, with a capital of a hundred million of dollars, divided into a hundred thousand shares of a thousand dollars each, under the name of the "_National Company of Interstellary Communication._" President Barbicane; Vice-president, Captain Nicholl; Secretary, J. T. Maston; Director of Movements, Michel Ardan. And as it is part of the American temperament to foresee everything in business, even failure, the Honourable Harry Trolloppe, judge commissioner, and Francis Drayton, magistrate, were nominated beforehand! * * * * * * Transcriber's note: Minor inconsistencies in the spelling of character names have been regularized. The spelling of the names of historical scientists "Bœer and Moedler" have been regularized to be consistent as possible with the author's inconsistent spelling, which today are spelled variously but perhaps most commonly "Beer and Moedler". Obvious minor typesetting errors have been silently corrected.