they wanted so much room to perform them; and, strange to say,
they none of them noticed this great tension of the mind.
“Now,” said Nicholl, in a short tone, “now that I do not know
whether we shall ever return from the moon, I want to know what
we are going to do there?”
“What we are going to do there?” replied Barbicane, stamping
with his foot as if he was in a fencing saloon; “I do not know.”
“You do not know!” exclaimed Michel, with a bellow which
provoked a sonorous echo in the projectile.
“No, I have not even thought about it,” retorted Barbicane, in
the same loud tone.
“Well, I know,” replied Michel.
“Speak, then,” cried Nicholl, who could no longer contain the
growling of his voice.
“I shall speak if it suits me,” exclaimed Michel, seizing his
companions’ arms with violence.
“_It must_ suit you,” said Barbicane, with an eye on fire and a
threatening hand. “It was you who drew us into this frightful
journey, and we want to know what for.”
“Yes,” said the captain, “now that I do not know _where_ I am
going, I want to know _why_ I am going.”
“Why?” exclaimed Michel, jumping a yard high, “why? To take
possession of the moon in the name of the United States; to add
a fortieth State to the Union; to colonize the lunar regions;
to cultivate them, to people them, to transport thither all the
prodigies of art, of science, and industry; to civilize the
Selenites, unless they are more civilized than we are; and to
constitute them a republic, if they are not already one!”
“And if there are no Selenites?” retorted Nicholl, who, under the
influence of this unaccountable intoxication, was very contradictory.
“Who said that there were no Selenites?” exclaimed Michel in a
threatening tone.
“I do,” howled Nicholl.
“Captain,” said Michel, “do not repreat that insolence, or I
will knock your teeth down your throat!”
The two adversaries were going to fall upon each other, and the
incoherent discussion threatened to merge into a fight, when
Barbicane intervened with one bound.
“Stop, miserable men,” said he, separating his two companions;
“if there are no Selenites, we will do without them.”
“Yes,” exclaimed Michel, who was not particular; “yes, we will
do without them. We have only to make Selenites. Down with
the Selenites!”
“The empire of the moon belongs to us,” said Nicholl.
“Let us three constitute the republic.”
“I will be the congress,” cried Michel.
“And I the senate,” retorted Nicholl.
“And Barbicane, the president,” howled Michel.
“Not a president elected by the nation,” replied Barbicane.
“Very well, a president elected by the congress,” cried Michel;
“and as I am the congress, you are unanimously elected!”
“Hurrah! hurrah! hurrah! for President Barbicane,” exclaimed Nicholl.
“Hip! hip! hip!” vociferated Michel Ardan.
Then the president and the senate struck up in a tremendous
voice the popular song “Yankee Doodle,” while from the congress
resounded the masculine tones of the “Marseillaise.”
Then they struck up a frantic dance, with maniacal gestures,
idiotic stampings, and somersaults like those of the boneless
clowns in the circus. Diana, joining in the dance, and howling
in her turn, jumped to the top of the projectile. An unaccountable
flapping of wings was then heard amid most fantastic cock-crows,
while five or six hens fluttered like bats against the walls.
Then the three traveling companions, acted upon by some
unaccountable influence above that of intoxication, inflamed by
the air which had set their respiratory apparatus on fire, fell
motionless to the bottom of the projectile.
CHAPTER VIII
AT SEVENTY-EIGHT THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED AND FOURTEEN LEAGUES
What had happened? Whence the cause of this singular
intoxication, the consequences of which might have been
very disastrous? A simple blunder of Michel’s, which,
fortunately, Nicholl was able to correct in time.
After a perfect swoon, which lasted some minutes, the captain,
recovering first, soon collected his scattered senses.
Although he had breakfasted only two hours before, he felt a
gnawing hunger, as if he had not eaten anything for several days.
Everything about him, stomach and brain, were overexcited to the
highest degree. He got up and demanded from Michel a