Observing Conseil, I discovered that, just barely, the gallant lad had fallen under the general influence. At least so I thought. Perhaps his nerves were twitching with curiosity for the first time in history. “Come on, Conseil!” I told him. “Here’s your last chance to pocket that $2,000.00!” “If master will permit my saying so,” Conseil replied, “I never expected to win that prize, and the Union government could have promised $100,000.00 and been none the poorer.” “You’re right, Conseil, it turned out to be a foolish business after all, and we jumped into it too hastily. What a waste of time, what a futile expense of emotion! Six months ago we could have been back in France—” “In master’s little apartment,” Conseil answered. “In master’s museum! And by now I would have classified master’s fossils. And master’s babirusa would be ensconced in its cage at the zoo in the Botanical Gardens, and it would have attracted every curiosity seeker in town!” “Quite so, Conseil, and what’s more, I imagine that people will soon be poking fun at us!” “To be sure,” Conseil replied serenely, “I do think they’ll have fun at master’s expense. And must it be said . . . ?” “It must be said, Conseil.” “Well then, it will serve master right!” “How true!” “When one has the honor of being an expert as master is, one mustn’t lay himself open to—” Conseil didn’t have time to complete the compliment. In the midst of the general silence, a voice became audible. It was Ned Land’s voice, and it shouted: “Ahoy! There’s the thing in question, abreast of us to leeward!” CHAPTER 6 At Full Steam AT THIS SHOUT the entire crew rushed toward the harpooner—commander, officers, mates, sailors, cabin boys, down to engineers leaving their machinery and stokers neglecting their furnaces. The order was given to stop, and the frigate merely coasted. By then the darkness was profound, and as good as the Canadian’s eyes were, I still wondered how he could see—and what he had seen. My heart was pounding fit to burst. But Ned Land was not mistaken, and we all spotted the object his hand was indicating. Two cable lengths off the Abraham Lincoln’s starboard quarter, the sea seemed to be lit up from underneath. This was no mere phosphorescent phenomenon, that much was unmistakable. Submerged some fathoms below the surface of the water, the monster gave off that very intense but inexplicable glow that several captains had mentioned in their reports. This magnificent radiance had to come from some force with a great illuminating capacity. The edge of its light swept over the sea in an immense, highly elongated oval, condensing at the center into a blazing core whose unbearable glow diminished by degrees outward. “It’s only a cluster of phosphorescent particles!” exclaimed one of the officers.