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IN WHICH PHILEAS FOGG, PASSEPARTOUT, AND FIX GO EACH ABOUT
HIS BUSINESS
The weather was bad during the latter days of the voyage.
The wind, obstinately remaining in the north-west, blew a gale,
and retarded the steamer. The Rangoon rolled heavily and the passengers
became impatient of the long, monstrous waves which the wind raised
before their path. A sort of tempest arose on the 3rd of November,
the squall knocking the vessel about with fury, and the waves
running high. The Rangoon reefed all her sails, and even the rigging
proved too much, whistling and shaking amid the squall. The steamer
was forced to proceed slowly, and the captain estimated that she
would reach Hong Kong twenty hours behind time, and more if the
storm lasted.
Phileas Fogg gazed at the tempestuous sea, which seemed to
be struggling especially to delay him, with his habitual tranquillity.
He never changed countenance for an instant, though a delay of
twenty hours, by making him too late for the Yokohama boat, would
almost inevitably cause the loss of the wager. But this man of
nerve manifested neither impatience nor annoyance; it seemed as
if the storm were a part of his programme, and had been foreseen.
Aouda was amazed to find him as calm as he had been from the first
time she saw him.
Fix did not look at the state of things in the same light.
The storm greatly pleased him. His satisfaction would have been
complete had the Rangoon been forced to retreat before the violence
of wind and waves. Each delay filled him with hope, for it became
more and more probable that Fogg would be obliged to remain some
days at Hong Kong; and now the heavens themselves became his allies,
with the gusts and squalls. It mattered not that they made him
sea-sick--he made no account of this inconvenience; and, whilst
his body was writhing under their effects, his spirit bounded
with hopeful exultation.
Passepartout was enraged beyond expression by the unpropitious
weather. Everything had gone so well till now! Earth and sea had
seemed to be at his master's service; steamers and railways obeyed
him; wind and steam united to speed his journey. Had the hour
of adversity come? Passepartout was as much excited as if the
twenty thousand pounds were to come from his own pocket. The storm
exasperated him, the gale made him furious, and he longed to lash
the obstinate sea into obedience. Poor fellow! Fix carefully concealed
from him his own satisfaction, for, had he betrayed it, Passepartout
could scarcely have restrained himself from personal violence.
Passepartout remained on deck as long as the tempest lasted,
being unable to remain quiet below, and taking it into his head
to aid the progress of the ship by lending a hand with the crew.
He overwhelmed the captain, officers, and sailors, who could not
help laughing at his impatience, with all sorts of questions.
He wanted to know exactly how long the storm was going to last;
whereupon he was referred to the barometer, which seemed to have
no intention of rising. Passepartout shook it, but with no perceptible
effect; for neither shaking nor maledictions could prevail upon
it to change its mind.
On the 4th, however, the sea became more calm, and the storm
lessened its violence; the wind veered southward, and was once
more favourable. Passepartout cleared up with the weather. Some
of the sails were unfurled, and the Rangoon resumed its most rapid
speed. The time lost could not, however, be regained. Land was
not signalled until five o'clock on the morning of the 6th; the
steamer was due on the 5th. Phileas Fogg was twenty-four hours
behind-hand, and the Yokohama steamer would, of course, be missed.
The pilot went on board at six, and took his place on the bridge,
to guide the Rangoon through the channels to the port of Hong
Kong. Passepartout longed to ask him if the steamer had left for
Yokohama; but he dared not, for he wished to preserve the spark
of hope, which still remained till the last moment. He had confided
his anxiety to Fix who--the sly rascal!--tried to console him
by saying that Mr. Fogg would be in time if he took the next boat;
but this only put Passepartout in a passion.
Mr. Fogg, bolder than his servant, did not hesitate to approach
the pilot, and tranquilly ask him if he knew when a steamer would
leave Hong Kong for Yokohama.
"At high tide to-morrow morning," answered the pilot.
"Ah!" said Mr. Fogg, without betraying any astonishment.
Passepartout, who heard what passed, would willingly have embraced
the pilot, while Fix would have been glad to twist his neck.
"What is the steamer's name?" asked Mr. Fogg. "The
Carnatic."
"Ought she not to have gone yesterday?"
"Yes, sir; but they had to repair one of her boilers,
and so her departure was postponed till to-morrow."
"Thank you," returned Mr. Fogg, descending mathematically
to the saloon.
Passepartout clasped the pilot's hand and shook it heartily
in his delight, exclaiming, "Pilot, you are the best of good
fellows!"
The pilot probably does not know to this day why his responses
won him this enthusiastic greeting. He remounted the bridge, and
guided the steamer through the flotilla of junks, tankas, and
fishing boats which crowd the harbour of Hong Kong.
At one o'clock the Rangoon was at the quay, and the passengers
were going ashore.
Chance had strangely favoured Phileas Fogg, for had not the
Carnatic been forced to lie over for repairing her boilers, she
would have left on the 6th of November, and the passengers for
Japan would have been obliged to await for a week the sailing
of the next steamer. Mr. Fogg was, it is true, twenty-four hours
behind his time; but this could not seriously imperil the remainder
of his tour.
The steamer which crossed the Pacific from Yokohama to San
Francisco made a direct connection with that from Hong Kong, and
it could not sail until the latter reached Yokohama; and if Mr.
Fogg was twenty-four hours late on reaching Yokohama, this time
would no doubt be easily regained in the voyage of twenty-two
days across the Pacific. He found himself, then, about twenty-four
hours behind-hand, thirty-five days after leaving London.
The Carnatic was announced to leave Hong Kong at five the next
morning. Mr. Fogg had sixteen hours in which to attend to his
business there, which was to deposit Aouda safely with her wealthy
relative.
On landing, he conducted her to a palanquin, in which they
repaired to the Club Hotel. A room was engaged for the young woman,
and Mr. Fogg, after seeing that she wanted for nothing, set out
in search of her cousin Jeejeeh. He instructed Passepartout to
remain at the hotel until his return, that Aouda might not be
left entirely alone.
Mr. Fogg repaired to the Exchange, where, he did not doubt,
every one would know so wealthy and considerable a personage as
the Parsee merchant. Meeting a broker, he made the inquiry, to
learn that Jeejeeh had left China two years before, and, retiring
from business with an immense fortune, had taken up his residence
in Europe--in Holland the broker thought, with the merchants of
which country he had principally traded. Phileas Fogg returned
to the hotel, begged a moment's conversation with Aouda, and without
more ado, apprised her that Jeejeeh was no longer at Hong Kong,
but probably in Holland.
Aouda at first said nothing. She passed her hand across her
forehead, and reflected a few moments. Then, in her sweet, soft
voice, she said: "What ought I to do, Mr. Fogg?"
"It is very simple," responded the gentleman. "Go
on to Europe."
"But I cannot intrude--"
"You do not intrude, nor do you in the least embarrass
my project. Passepartout!"
"Monsieur."
"Go to the Carnatic, and engage three cabins."
Passepartout, delighted that the young woman, who was very
gracious to him, was going to continue the journey with them,
went off at a brisk gait to obey his master's order.
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