CHAPTER NINE

Ned Land's Anger

I do not know how long we slept, but when we awoke, we no longer felt tired, as we were the evening before. After waking, I noticed that the other two were still sleeping, and I immediately began examining our surroundings. I then began thinking about how the captain of this submarine would provide us with air, as our supply of air in that room would not last much longer. Humans breathe in the air, but breathe out a gas that is poisonous to again breathe in. As the room's air supply was used, it filled with the poisonous gas we breathed out. If we had not received new supplies of air, we would soon have died from breathing in the poisonous gases. Although the room was quite large, we had already breathed in a great deal of the air supply during the night, and now the room was becoming filled with the poisonous gas we breathed out.

I wondered how the captain would supply our room with new breathable air. Would he create air through a chemical method, or would he simply go to the surface of the water again for new supplies, like a whale. I was thinking about this matter when I felt a strong wind of new breathable air come into the room. I then realized that we had come to the surface of the water. I soon discovered that the air was coming into the room through a pipe in the wall. I had discovered the mystery of the submarine's air supply. At that moment, Ned and Conseil were waking from their deep sleep.

"Did master sleep well?" asked Conseil, with his usual politeness.

"Very well, my dear boy. And you, Mr Land?"

"I slept quite well, thank you, Professor. But I am a bit confused right now, as I feel a strong sea wind!"

I then told the Canadian of my discovery while he was asleep.

"Well, it must be near dinnertime now," Ned responded.

"Dinnertime, my friend? Rather, it is near breakfast time. We have certainly begun a new day," I told him.

"So," said Conseil, "we have slept for twenty-four hours?"

"Yes, we must have," I responded.

"Dinner or breakfast, either way, I hope someone brings us our meals soon," Ned said.

We waited for a great deal of time, and became quite hungry during our wait. Ned grew angry as he became hungrier. For another two hours, Ned simply got angrier; he cried and shouted, but no one came. No sound could go through those strong iron walls.

I was terrified, Conseil was calm, Ned was angry.

Then, we heard a noise outside. The locks were turned and the door opened. Someone came in, but just as he entered the room, Ned Land jumped up and put both hands around the man's neck. Ned was holding his neck tightly, so the man could not breathe. Conseil hurried to help the man, and I was running over when I stopped after hearing these words in French—

"Be quiet, Master Land; and you, Professor, will you please listen to me?"

(end of section)