Journey to the Center of the Earth Page #4

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from the appalling danger,

think of

the inconvenience.

The lack

of privacy!

In short,

you don't want this?

I may be mad

about this journey,

but to burden myself with

a female is sheer stupidity.

I may have been

a disturbance to men,

never a burden.

This is

an absolute holdup.

I assure you

you will not receive

one iota of extra

consideration.

You'll sleep

where we sleep,

you'll eat

what we eat.

Then you accept

my proposition?

Oh!

Professor, look!

There's our gateway.

Thank you, Scartaris.

Never was there

a brighter sunrise.

Now, we descend

into oblivion,

or we enter

the great book of history.

Roll call.

Carla Goetaborg.

Alexander McEwen.

Hans und

Gertrude Belka.

Oliver S. Lindenbrook.

What did he say?

Hans and who?

And Gertrude.

Professor!

Professor!

All right,

you've arrived.

Rather an alarming

descent.

I found it

exhilarating.

I wonder

if Madam Goetaborg

will change her mind.

You make

my mouth water.

Hans is tying the rope

on her.

I'm a fool.

I should have told him

to tie her to a mule

and send her home.

What language

would you have used?

She may be of some use

in that respect,

then there's always the blessed

chance the rope may break.

Are you all right,

ma'am?

Oh, quite.

Hans insisted

on a double rope.

Did he indeed?

How solicitous.

But that was for Gertrude.

Poor Sir Oliver,

stuck with a woman.

If only you

could see your face.

That's my consolation,

madam.

I don't have to

look at it. You do.

There's not enough rope

in all Europe!

Perhaps this is

the wrong entrance.

The sign was

unmistakable.

But there's no

other way to continue.

Gertrude!

Gertrude!

Oh, madam!

Madam!

He says there's a tunnel

on the other side.

Slanting downhill,

but walkable.

Eureka!

Oh, thank you.

Now then,

a general summary...

A... We must never use

more than two Ruhmkorf lamps

at a time.

B... We won't need our

breathing equipment immediately.

Nevertheless, never

take a step without it.

C... Use our canteens freely.

There'll be many

springs on our way.

As my husband's charts

indicated.

Is he to be with us

on our entire journey?

Sorry.

Well, every journey

begins with a first step.

May the good Lord

be with us.

Onward!

Let's have

some music.

Alec, will you

start us off?

Miss Jenny!

I saw you turn pale

when the dominie spoke

of those in peril

at the far ends

of the earth.

Far ends of the earth.

At least that

would be somewhere.

There was a clipping

in a Stockholm paper,

a dispatch

from Reykjavik.

I can only read

their names.

I had it translated.

The last news

of them was

that they went

up Mount Sneffels

with some heavily laden

donkeys.

Yes?

And then the animals

came down without their packs.

And?

And that's all.

Oliver S. Lindenbrook,

Alexander McEwen,

Hans Belka,

and Madam...

What's...

Why, it seems a woman

went with them.

A woman!

You know what

they'll call that

in the Royal Observatory

at Greenwich?

A slight tremor coming

from undefined regions.

Well, we've lived

through a slight tremor.

Let us proceed.

It seems to be

moving away from us.

In these regions,

I don't venture to say

anything is moving away

or coming towards us.

The only thing

we can be certain of

is that danger

is always with us.

We might as well

ignore it.

Run!

Jump!

Aah! Oh!

The three notches.

The three notches

of Arne Saknussemm.

What does that mean?

We've been shown

the right path.

We have a guide.

Alec,

the plumb bob.

Look! Without these marks,

we would have gone astray.

We'd have wasted months

exploring endlessly.

We might have taken

any one of these channels.

But our great colleague

maketh a path for our feet.

Well, you all

deserve a rest.

Let's have tea with

a double ration of raisins.

May I comb my hair first,

Professor?

Oh!

Ladies

on the left.

Gentleman

on the right.

Oh!

What is it,

madam?

Shh!

If we'd known

you had nightmares,

we'd have made different

sleeping arrangements.

Someone is walking

up there.

I heard footsteps,

human footsteps.

Since the beginning

of time,

all women have heard footsteps...

up there.

My hearing is

extremely acute.

The hearing of all women

is extremely acute.

My wife used to hear

rats in the attic,

usually, on the nights before

I had an important lecture.

Alec,

go find out.

Hans...

Will you leave

those men alone!

They need rest.

Moreover,

it was stipulated

that I

give the orders.

Don't use that

patient voice with me.

How about

an impatient voice?

I am a member

of this expedition.

As such, I intend to report

any of my observations.

Alec...

put it down

in the record

that a member

of the expedition

reported rats

in the attic.

Lights out!

Don't be afraid,

madam.

I'm right here.

Conceal these marks

completely.

Ill give them

some new ones.

This is steeper than

anything we've encountered.

It's just as well we all

had a good night's rest.

Alec, take this down.

of our descent,

starting from an estimated depth

of 129 kilometers,

limestone formation

continues.

Aye-aye,

Professor!

Here are the three

notches again.

Good!

Gertrude!

Wrong turn.

Let's see.

What have we here?

One heads 220 degrees

south-southwest,

the other 160 degrees

south-southeast. Strange.

I would have wagered

we should go that way.

That was Gertrude's

feeling, too.

Are you sure

your compass is right?

Quite.

What's he saying?

Hans is wondering about the

ultimate goal of our expedition.

He's asking, "Why?"

Alec, suppose

you tell him.

Well, why does man

freeze to death

trying to reach

the North Pole?

Why does man suffer

the steaming heat

of the Amazon?

Why does he

stagger his mind

with the mathematics

of the sky?

Once a question mark

has arisen in

the human brain,

the answer

must be found

if it takes

a thousand years.

Render that into

a few Icelandic words!

Tell him

that scientists

have bats in

their belfries.

Oh!

Are you all right?

Can you

unhook yourself?

Hans!

I didn't see it!

I didn't see it!

Never mind

about that.

How is it possible?

This way was

clearly indicated.

There must

have been a quake

since

Arne Saknussemm's day.

This is no

recent fissure.

I wasn't

in a position

to observe it

scientifically.

We made a mistake somewhere,

but where?

What are you

doing here, madam?

We were supposed

to stay together.

We've been tricked,

tricked into

the wrong tunnel.

Those three notches

are not

Arne Saknussemm's.

She's right, Professor.

Someone has passed through

before us.

No need

to ask who.

Madam heard him

last night.

Now she's saying,

"I told you so."

Silently, I admit,

but she's saying it.

When I wish

to say something,

I say it aloud.

In view of

this new development,

I must end

the expedition.

But you're not a man

who frightens easily.

I'm not thinking

of myself,

but of you...

a woman!

I'm one

of your men.

If a madman

is loose...

He's against us all,

against the concept

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