16. Walking through the plain

 

That cabin was, properly speaking, the arsenal and wardrobe of the Nautilus.
Hanging on the walls, a do-dinner awaited the expedition diving suits.
Seeing them, Ned showed great reluctance to the idea of ​​tapping into one of
them.
? But, Ned? 'I said, the forests of Crespo Island are underwater.
? Go! ? Said the harpooner, disappointed to see their dreams desvane-CERSE meat
fresh ?, and you, Professor Aronnax, are you going to get into a garment like that?
Is it necessary, Ned.
? You're very free to do so? He replied the harpooner, shrugging ?, but
that is, unless you force me, I never'll put me in one of these outfits.
? No one will force you, Mr. Ned? Said Captain Nemo.
? And Conseil, will you risk? ? He asked Ned.
? I will follow you wherever you go sir? Replied Conseil.
A call from the captain, came two men crew to help
get those wet suits, made of rubber, seamless and made of
so users could withstand considerable pressure. He had said something
armor elastic yet robust. Formed by those strange costumes and cha-queta
trousers, he was splicing trimmed with thick boots with a heavy soles
lead. The fabric jacket was reinforced with copper foils FMAS that
acorazaban the chest protecting him water pressure and allowing free
lung function; its sleeves ended in a FMOs gloves
hands left to freedom of movement.
As shown, such perfected diving suits were far from coatings as
reports as the cork breastplates, chests, and invented or marine costumes
preconi-zados in the eighteenth century.
Captain Nemo, one of his companions? A kind of Hercules, which was to have a
Conseil ?, prodigious strength and I found ourselves suddenly covered with those costumes, failing
just to accommodate our heads and in their areas Metallic-cas. But prior to
this operation, the captain asked permission to examine the guns that were to us
desti-Swim.
One of the men from the Nautilus introduced me a very simple whose rifle butt, made of
steel and hollow in its inte-rior, was of great dimension. The stock air reservoir served
compressed to a valve, driven by a gati-ment, let out by the barrel
metal. A box of pro-projectiles, housed in the cylinder head, contained twenty bullets
Power that a spring-auto- matically placed in the gun barrel.
Made a shot, following the pro-projectile was ready to go.
? Captain Nemo? I said ?, is a perfect and easy to use weapon. I am looking forward
try it. But how are we going to lle-gar to the sea?
? Right now, professor, the Nautilus is do poses-to ten meters deep.
Let's go.
? But how do we get out?
? Are you going to see it.
Captain Nemo entered his head on Metallic-ca sphere, and Conseil and I did the
own, but not before hearing the Canadian ironically wish us a "good game".
Our suits ended in a copper necklace bore-do to the helmet fit
metal. Three prote-tected by thick glass openings allowed to see in all
direc-tions simply by tilting his head inside the dial. Once it is
He found set, the Rouquayrol devices, placed at the back, began to fimcionar.
I could com-test that perfectly breathe.
Ruhmkorff pendant lamp with my belt and rifle in hand, I found myself
ready to go. But I apri-sioner in such a heavy suit and nailed to the floor by my soles
Lead me impossible step.
The case was expected as I felt pushed ha-ing a small adjoining cabin
the locker room. Also impelled my companions followed me. I could hear as
a door closed behind us provided with shutters, and suddenly we find ourselves
wrapped in a deep Dark-rity.
After a few minutes of waiting, I heard a hiss live at tiem-po who felt the cold won my
body from the feet to the chest. Obviously, from inside the ship and one I-Diante
inlet valve had given him the exte-rior water that invaded us and soon filled the
chamber where we were. A second gate formed in the pudding-co Nautilus
then he opened giving way to a diffused light. An instant later our feet
They trod the seabed.
How can we now transcribe the indelible impressions left-bles me this walk in
water? Words are powerless to express these wonders. When the same
brush is unable to reflect the particular effects of the liquid element, how could
play pen?
Captain Nemo and his companion went before bringing up the rear a few steps
we. Conseil and I were man-had close to each other, although this is not possible
changing a single word through our metallic shells. I no longer felt the
heaviness in my lap, or boots, or my air tank, or the
sphere inside which my head bobbed like a almen-dra in its shell. To the
dive into the water, all these objects will lose a part of your weight equal to that of the liquid
He moved, and I gladly took advantage of this physical-covered des Archimedes law. There was
longer an inert mass and had a relatively wide freedom of movement.
I was struck by the power of light, thirty feet below the ocean surface, reached the
background. Fácihnente sunlight pierced this watery mass dissipating their
coloration. He could distinguish objects at a distance of one hundred meters clearly. Beyond,
funds finely crumbled blue to erase degradations in Dusk-ness.
Indeed, the water around me was almost like the air, denser than the atmosphere
terrestrial, but nearly so clear. Above me, it distinguished calm sea surface.
We were walking on thin smooth sand, not wrinkled like that preserve beaches
Surf footprint. That dazzling carpet, like a true reflec-tor, reflected
the sun with surprising intensify-ness, producing a huge reverberation
penetrating-ba in all liquid molecules. Will I be believed when I say that at that
depth of thirty feet looked as if I stu-see on the surface? For a quarter
time we walked through the bottom of a sand strewn impalpable powder coating
shells. The hull of the Nautilus, perceptible as a long reef, gradually disappeared,
but his beacon, how-do the night was done in midst of the waters, facilitate our return
on board, with the screening of his mind sharp-ray visible. Indeed difficult to understand
for those who have only seen those white lights ashore so vividly pronounced. There the
dust that saturates the air gives them the appearance of a luminous fog; but at sea, as
under the sea, that light is transmitted with incomparable purity.
We kept walking down this vast plain pa-newly limitless. When cutting with
hand the liquid mass that closed behind me, I saw that the footprint is my pa-sos
He erased immediately under the water pressure.
Suddenly, they were drawn before our eyes some for-more diluted almost the distance. They were
magnificent rocks carpeted with the most beautiful examples of zoophytes. But what
It caught my attention was a special effect to the environment in which I was.
It was then ten in the morning. The rays of the sun touched the surface
water in a very oblique angle, and the light touch of his decomposed by the
refracted-tion, as through a prism, flowers, rocks, plants, polyps with-chas and dyed
at the edges of the seven colors of the spectrum. The intertwining of colors was a
wonder, a feast for the eyes, a true kaleidoscope of green, yellow,
orange, violet, indigo, blue .... in short, the whole palette of a colorful angry. How
po-der was not communicated to the Conseil Sensació I live s and rival em-abargaban
deliración him in exclamations! I did not know, as Captain Nemo and his companion,
change my thoughts by signs agreed. Therefore, I ha-blaba myself and
He shouted in the field of copper around my head, so spending more empty words
air than is desirable.
Faced with such a splendid show, Conseil had deteni-do like me. Obviously, in
presence of these samples zoophytes and molluscs, good boy was engaged, as
custom, pleasure classification. Polyps and echinoderms abounded on the floor. The
isinos varied; the cornularias living in isolation; OCU-virgin clusters Linas,
once designated by the name of "white coral"; the bristling form fungias
fungi; anemones, attached by its muscular drive, resembled a carpet of flowers
porpites enamel adorned with gor-hose of blue tentacles; of stars
cons-telaban sea sand and warty asterofitos, fine lace that would
embroidery by hand of the nymphs and whose festoons moved to the undulations
caused by our departure. I felt a real regret having to crush under my
bright specimens feet molus-cos that planted thousands soil: the
combs-centric; hammers; the donáceas, real bouncy shells; the trocos;
red helmets; the wing conchs - angel; the afisias and many other products of this
endless ocean. But we had to keep going and continue forwardly ha, while
above our heads vogue-ban troops of their blue tentacles fisalias
floating behind like a trail, and jellyfish, whose opaline ombrelas or pinkish
festooned with a blue stripe us "harboring" of sunlight, and noctilucae Pelagie
that, in the dark, would have strewn our way fosfores-ado- flashes.
I glimpsed all these wonders in the space of a quarter mile, barely pausing
according to Captain Nemo, from time to time, I made some signs. The
nature of the soil began to change. A sandy plain happened a layer of clay
Americans call viscous oaze, composed solely of siliceous shells or
calcareous. Then rode a prairie of algae, pelagic very leafy plants that
waters had not started yet. Tight and soft grass that could have
ri-valizar with the softest carpet woven by the hand of man. But while
under our feet, the vegetation also upon our heads. Slight
Dome marine plants belonging to the family of lush algae, which
know more than two thousand is-species, he passed on the surface of the waters. Saw float
fucos long ribbons, a globular, tubulados other, laurencias, leaves cladóstefos
very fine, pal-piss rodimenas fans like cactus. I observed that plants
Green kept near the sea surface, while red occupied a
average depth, leaving the background to black or dark hydrophilic.
These algae are truly a wonder of the crea-tion, one of the wonders of the
universal flora. This family is both smaller and larger plants at the
nature. So, if it was possible to have a space of five square millimeters
forty thousand of these plan-tas, have also picked up wrack of a length exceeding
five hundred meters.
It had been about an hour and a half we had left the Nautilus. It was almost
noon, judging from the per-pendicularidad from sunlight, which no longer is refracted-ban.
The magic of colors was slowly disappearing, and shades of emerald and
Sapphire were erased from our firmament. We walked at a steady pace that resonated
on the floor with a great intensity. All children noises are transmitted with a speed to
which it is unaccustomed ear to the ground. Indeed, water is better for sound
vehicle air and spread it with a speed four times higher.
At that time, the ground became very pro-nounced decline. The light took on a
uniform hue. -Mos reaches a depth of one hundred meters that put us at a
ten atmospheres pressure. But our costumes were so well designed to do that
that pressure did not cause me suffering nin-gun. only felt some discomfort in the
finger joints, but it was temporary. As for the exhaustion that should produce a
two-hour ride, em-butido a diving which was not used, was
practically zero, because my movements, aided by the water, producing a
surprising ease.
At a depth of three hundred feet, we saw yet but weakly rays
sun. In bright light-BIA it has happened a reddish twilight, a compromise between the day and
night. But still we saw enough not to need the assistance of the
Ruhmkorff devices.
Captain Nemo stopped, waited for me to join him and then showed me the finger
a black masses who stood out in the dark at close range.
"It is the forest of Crespo Island," I thought. And I do not equi-vocaba.