Таинственный остров / The Mysterious Island. Уровень 3

He was forty years old or more. Sandy-colored whiskers encircled his face. His eye was clear and lively.

Cyrus Smith had a devoted servant. This man was black, he was born of slave parents. Smith freed them, but the servant had no desire to leave his master. He was a man of thirty years, vigorous, agile, adroit, intelligent, quick, always smiling and honest. His name was Nebuchadnezzar[11 - Nebuchadnezzar – Навуходоносор], but everybody called him Neb.

All these people were in Richmond[12 - Richmond – Ричмонд], and it was very difficult to get out.

They were prisoners. The reporter wanted to get out of Richmond at any risk.

Meanwhile, the siege continued. Among the people in the town there was Jonathan Forster[13 - Jonathan Forster – Джонатан Форстер], who was a violent Southerner. This Jonathan Forster conceived the idea of passing over the lines of the besiegers in a balloon.

So a balloon was made and placed at the disposal of Forster and five of his companions.

They found arms and food. The departure of the balloon was on the 18th of March. On the morning of the 18th there were symptoms of a storm, and soon the tempest began.

The balloon was ready, but the weather was terrible. The night of the 19th and 20th passed, but in the morning the storm was hard, and departure was impossible.

On this day Cyrus Smith in one of the streets of Richmond met a man whom he did not know. It was a sailor named Pencroff[14 - Pencroff – Пенкроф], aged from thirty-five to forty years, strongly built, his eyes were bright and glittering.

Pencroff came to Richmond on business, he had with him Herbert Brown[15 - Herbert Brown – Герберт Браун], of New Jersey[16 - New Jersey – Нью-Джерси], a lad fifteen years old, the son of Pencroff’s captain, and an orphan. Pencroff loved the boy as his own child. He also wanted to get out. He did not hesitate to address Mr. Smith without ceremony.

– Mr. Smith?

The engineer looked at the man who added in a low voice:

– Mr.

Smith, do you want to escape?

– How? – answered the engineer, quickly. – Who are you? – he demanded, in a cold voice.

Pencroff told him about himself.

– Well, – replied Smith. – And how do you propose to escape?

– By this idle balloon which is doing nothing, and is ready to take us!

The engineer seized Pencroff by the arm and hurried him to his house.