Final Details

: From The Earth To The Moon

It was the 22nd of November; the departure was to take place in

ten days. One operation alone remained to be accomplished to

bring all to a happy termination; an operation delicate and

perilous, requiring infinite precautions, and against the

success of which Captain Nicholl had laid his third bet. It was,

in fact, nothing less than the loading of the Columbiad, and the

introduction into it of 400,000 pounds of gun-c tton. Nicholl had

thought, not perhaps without reason, that the handling of such

formidable quantities of pyroxyle would, in all probability,

involve a grave catastrophe; and at any rate, that this immense

mass of eminently inflammable matter would inevitably ignite when

submitted to the pressure of the projectile.



There were indeed dangers accruing as before from the

carelessness of the Americans, but Barbicane had set his heart

on success, and took all possible precautions. In the first

place, he was very careful as to the transportation of the

gun-cotton to Stones Hill. He had it conveyed in small

quantities, carefully packed in sealed cases. These were

brought by rail from Tampa Town to the camp, and from thence

were taken to the Columbiad by barefooted workmen, who deposited

them in their places by means of cranes placed at the orifice of

the cannon. No steam-engine was permitted to work, and every

fire was extinguished within two miles of the works.



Even in November they feared to work by day, lest the sun's rays

acting on the gun-cotton might lead to unhappy results. This led

to their working at night, by light produced in a vacuum by means

of Ruhmkorff's apparatus, which threw an artificial brightness

into the depths of the Columbiad. There the cartridges were

arranged with the utmost regularity, connected by a metallic thread,

destined to communicate to them all simultaneously the electric

spark, by which means this mass of gun-cotton was eventually

to be ignited.



By the 28th of November eight hundred cartridges had been

placed in the bottom of the Columbiad. So far the operation had

been successful! But what confusion, what anxieties, what struggles

were undergone by President Barbicane! In vain had he refused

admission to Stones Hill; every day the inquisitive neighbors

scaled the palisades, some even carrying their imprudence to the

point of smoking while surrounded by bales of gun-cotton.

Barbicane was in a perpetual state of alarm. J. T. Maston

seconded him to the best of his ability, by giving vigorous

chase to the intruders, and carefully picking up the still

lighted cigar ends which the Yankees threw about. A somewhat

difficult task! seeing that more than 300,000 persons were

gathered round the enclosure. Michel Ardan had volunteered to

superintend the transport of the cartridges to the mouth of the

Columbiad; but the president, having surprised him with an

enormous cigar in his mouth, while he was hunting out the rash

spectators to whom he himself offered so dangerous an example,

saw that he could not trust this fearless smoker, and was

therefore obliged to mount a special guard over him.



At last, Providence being propitious, this wonderful loading

came to a happy termination, Captain Nicholl's third bet being

thus lost. It remained now to introduce the projectile into the

Columbiad, and to place it on its soft bed of gun-cotton.



But before doing this, all those things necessary for the

journey had to be carefully arranged in the projectile vehicle.

These necessaries were numerous; and had Ardan been allowed to

follow his own wishes, there would have been no space remaining

for the travelers. It is impossible to conceive of half the

things this charming Frenchman wished to convey to the moon.

A veritable stock of useless trifles! But Barbicane interfered

and refused admission to anything not absolutely needed.

Several thermometers, barometers, and telescopes were packed in

the instrument case.



The travelers being desirous of examing the moon carefully

during their voyage, in order to facilitate their studies,

they took with them Boeer and Moeller's excellent Mappa

Selenographica, a masterpiece of patience and observation,

which they hoped would enable them to identify those physical

features in the moon, with which they were acquainted.

This map reproduced with scrupulous fidelity the smallest

details of the lunar surface which faces the earth; the

mountains, valleys, craters, peaks, and ridges were all

represented, with their exact dimensions, relative positions,

and names; from the mountains Doerfel and Leibnitz on the

eastern side of the disc, to the Mare frigoris of the North Pole.



They took also three rifles and three fowling-pieces, and a

large quantity of balls, shot, and powder.



"We cannot tell whom we shall have to deal with," said Michel Ardan.

"Men or beasts may possibly object to our visit. It is only wise

to take all precautions."



These defensive weapons were accompanied by pickaxes, crowbars,

saws, and other useful implements, not to mention clothing

adapted to every temperature, from that of polar regions to that

of the torrid zone.



Ardan wished to convey a number of animals of different sorts,

not indeed a pair of every known species, as he could not see

the necessity of acclimatizing serpents, tigers, alligators, or

any other noxious beasts in the moon. "Nevertheless," he said

to Barbicane, "some valuable and useful beasts, bullocks, cows,

horses, and donkeys, would bear the journey very well, and would

also be very useful to us."



"I dare say, my dear Ardan," replied the president, "but our

projectile-vehicle is no Noah's ark, from which it differs both in

dimensions and object. Let us confine ourselves to possibilities."



After a prolonged discussion, it was agreed that the travelers

should restrict themselves to a sporting-dog belonging to

Nicholl, and to a large Newfoundland. Several packets of seeds

were also included among the necessaries. Michel Ardan, indeed,

was anxious to add some sacks full of earth to sow them in; as

it was, he took a dozen shrubs carefully wrapped up in straw to

plant in the moon.



The important question of provisions still remained; it being

necessary to provide against the possibility of their finding

the moon absolutely barren. Barbicane managed so successfully,

that he supplied them with sufficient rations for a year.

These consisted of preserved meats and vegetables, reduced by

strong hydraulic pressure to the smallest possible dimensions.

They were also supplied with brandy, and took water enough for

two months, being confident, from astronomical observations,

that there was no lack of water on the moon's surface. As to

provisions, doubtless the inhabitants of the earth would find

nourishment somewhere in the moon. Ardan never questioned

this; indeed, had he done so, he would never have undertaken

the journey.



"Besides," he said one day to his friends, "we shall not be

completely abandoned by our terrestrial friends; they will take

care not to forget us."



"No, indeed!" replied J. T. Maston.



"Nothing would be simpler," replied Ardan; "the Columbiad will

be always there. Well! whenever the moon is in a favorable

condition as to the zenith, if not to the perigee, that is to

say about once a year, could you not send us a shell packed

with provisions, which we might expect on some appointed day?"



"Hurrah! hurrah!" cried J. T. Matson; "what an ingenious fellow!

what a splendid idea! Indeed, my good friends, we shall not

forget you!"



"I shall reckon upon you! Then, you see, we shall receive news

regularly from the earth, and we shall indeed be stupid if we

hit upon no plan for communicating with our good friends here!"



These words inspired such confidence, that Michel Ardan carried

all the Gun Club with him in his enthusiasm. What he said

seemed so simple and so easy, so sure of success, that none

could be so sordidly attached to this earth as to hesitate to

follow the three travelers on their lunar expedition.



All being ready at last, it remained to place the projectile in

the Columbiad, an operation abundantly accompanied by dangers

and difficulties.



The enormous shell was conveyed to the summit of Stones Hill.

There, powerful cranes raised it, and held it suspended over the

mouth of the cylinder.



It was a fearful moment! What if the chains should break under

its enormous weight? The sudden fall of such a body would

inevitably cause the gun-cotton to explode!



Fortunately this did not happen; and some hours later the

projectile-vehicle descended gently into the heart of the cannon

and rested on its couch of pyroxyle, a veritable bed of

explosive eider-down. Its pressure had no result, other than

the more effectual ramming down of the charge in the Columbiad.



"I have lost," said the captain, who forthwith paid President

Barbicane the sum of three thousand dollars.



Barbicane did not wish to accept the money from one of his

fellow-travelers, but gave way at last before the determination

of Nicholl, who wished before leaving the earth to fulfill all

his engagements.



"Now," said Michel Ardan, "I have only one thing more to wish

for you, my brave captain."



"What is that?" asked Nicholl.



"It is that you may lose your two other bets! Then we shall be

sure not to be stopped on our journey!"