Around the World in a Car

Around the World in a Car : Jules Verne

Cover image: Kubilay Sak

Translation: Google/Gemini

E-isbn (İng): 978-625-6020-50-4

Year of Printing: 2025

It cannot be reproduced, published or distributed without permission from the publishing house, except for short quotations for promotional purposes, provided that the source is cited.

Publication and Distribution: Özlem Publishing House

Yenibati Mahallesi Uğrak İş Merkezi No: 61

Batıkent / Ankara Tel: 0505 346 6049

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Publisher Certificate: 53253

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Around the World in a Car

“Everyone, take out the money in your pockets.”

“Here, Dad. This is all I have.”

“Sandre, don’t you have any money?”

“No, Dad.”

“That's a shame. We’re still missing two cents.”

“Now we have the full amount!”

These were the words spoken during a family meeting led by Mr. Cabel. For a street performer who earned his living traveling from town to town, this much money felt like a fortune. The final amount they had saved was two thousand dollars. When Mr. Cabel announced it, every member of the family hugged him and kissed his cheeks.

Mr. Cabel said cheerfully,
“Now we need to buy a safe to keep this money.”

Mrs. Cabel, who didn’t want to waste money, asked,
“Is it really necessary to buy a safe?”

Her husband explained that traveling with so much money could be dangerous, and a strongbox was the safest option. So Mrs. Cabel sighed and said,
“Then get a steel one and make sure to bargain!”

It was the year 1867. The Cabel family had moved from France to America eighteen years ago. Back then, it was easy to become richor go bankrupt overnight.

Mr. Cabel visited his friend William’s shop. With excitement in his voice, he said:
“I’d like to buy a steel safe, Mr. William!”

“Welcome, Mr. Cabel! Did I hear you right? A safe?”

“Why so surprised?”

“Don’t take it the wrong way, but safes are made for storing real money. You don’t need one for just a couple of dollars.”

“You’re right. That’s why I want a portable safefor a lot of money.”

“I have just the thing for you. One moment.”

William went to the back of his shop and brought out a small steel safe that weighed about ten kilograms.
“This one,” he said, “has a combination lock. Inside, there are compartments for coins and important papers. It’s even fireproof. And the code? Impossible to guess. A thief would have to try 400,000 different combinations! By then, he’d already be caught.”

Mr. Cabel looked impressed.
“And the price?”

“Only six dollars.”

After some bargaining, Mr. Cabel bought the safe for five dollars. Half an hour later, he proudly returned to the circus square where their wagon was parked. He stepped inside with joy, holding the little safe under his arm. The whole Cabel family gathered around the table to admire it. Everyone took turns opening and closing it with excitement. Once everyone was done playing with the safe, Mr. Cabel said:
“Children, take this one dollar and go buy food fit for kings!”

The kids cheered and rushed to the market. Once they were gone, Mr. Cabel turned to his wife and said:
“I sent them away so we could be alone. Let’s decide on the code for the safe. Only the two of us should know it.”

Cornelia smiled and told her husband to choose any letters he liked. Mr. Cabel replied:
“Just like I’ve written your name on my heart, I want to use it as our password.”

“But the code can only be four letters.”

“Then we’ll use the last four letters of your name: ELIA. That will be our code.”

“You’re such a romantic, dear.”

Mr. Cabel set the lock to ELIA. Now only he and his wife knew how to open the safe.

Meanwhile, the kids returned with their arms full. After they all ate until their bellies were full, Mr. Cabel began to speak:
“My children,” he said, “tomorrow we leave this town. We are now in a small place near California, still in America. But soon, we must change our dollars into French francs. Some of our money will be spent crossing the Atlantic. I’m sad about that, but it’s time to return to our homeland France.”

Ned raised his hand and asked:
“A ship ticket doesn’t cost that much. But what about the train ride? Will we have enough?”

Mr. Cabel frowned.
“A train? Why take a train when we have a wagon? We’ll travel a few kilometers at a time, and perform shows along the way to earn money!”

Jan was thrilled to travel by wagon again and excited to perform. Mr. Cabel continued:
“My children, you were all born in America, so you don’t know what France is like. But your mother and I do. After twenty years, we’re going to see our old home again. It’s a feeling you can’t understand yet.”

As they cleaned up the dinner table, Mr. Cabel reminded everyone:
“Tomorrow, we leave early. Get your things ready.”

“We can’t do anything,” said Mr. Cabel calmly. “It’s impossible to cross the mountains without horses. I don’t see any other choicewe must go back. Maybe those thieves didn’t think we’d return, and went to the farm.”

They prepared the wagon. The horses were harnessed, and going downhill through the narrow passes was not as difficult. But everyone was quiet and upset. Not a word was spoken during the ride. Around noon, they stopped in front of the farm.

The farmer was furious about the theft. He didn’t care much about the stolen moneybut losing his horses made him very angry. According to the farmer, the thieves had gone over to the other side of the mountain and disappeared. There was no way to catch them now. Neither Mr. Cabel nor the farmer could do anything about it.

While losing three horses wouldn’t ruin the farmer’s life, it left the Cabel family in a terrible situation. How would they return to France without money? They needed a plan.

They gathered in the wagon to discuss what to do. Finally, Mr. Cabel said,
“In times like these, it’s hard to make decisions. I wish we had never bought that steel safe. But now, there is only one path left for us.”

“What path is that, Father?” asked Sandre.

“I’ll explain in a moment. We need to think everything through very carefully. Jan, bring me the map.”

Jan ran and brought the map. They laid it out on the floor. While leaning over it, Mr. Cabel muttered,
“We must give up going to France...”

His wife immediately protested,
“No! We can’t give up going to France!”

“You are brave, my dear,” said Mr. Cabel, “but how will we get there? We might be able to reach New York by giving performances, but we won’t be able to earn money on a ship. And we can’t board a ship without paying.”

“Let’s first figure out where exactly we are.”

Jan pointed to their location on the map.
“We’re at one of the worst parts of the Nevada Mountains,” he said.

“How far is New York?” asked Mr. Cabel.

“About five thousand kilometers.”

“And the Atlantic Ocean? How wide is it?”

“Twelve thousand kilometers, roughly.”

“I wish there was no ocean,” said Mr. Cabel. “We could easily make the journey with our wagon.”

“There’s no way to go east, so we must go west instead. Let’s see... We would have to travel north from California, pass through Washington, and reach the northern border of the United States. Then we’d go through British Columbia. After Alaska, we’d come to the Bering Strait.”

“How far is the strait from where we are?”

“About four thousand kilometers.”

“And how wide is the Bering Strait?”

“About seven kilometers.”

“That strait freezes in winter, doesn’t it?”

“Yes, Father. For four or five months, it’s completely frozen.”

“That’s good. That means we can cross over the ice. Once we’re in Asia, we’ll just travel across land until we reach Europe. Let’s hope we don’t run into wild tribes.”

“Show me Europe on the map.”

“There are the Ural Mountains,” said Jan. “Everything west of them is Europe.”

“And how far is it from the Urals to France?”

“About two thousand four hundred kilometers.”

“Then we’re better off going west,” said Mr. Cabel. “Two big advantages: First, the journey is shorter by about four thousand six hundred kilometers. Second, we won’t need to cross any more oceans after the Bering Strait. I suggest we go west.”

Jan nodded,
“I agree with you, Father. But I must say there’s no way we’ll reach France this year.”

“Why not?” asked Mr. Cabel, his eyes shining.

“If we went east, we’d only need to cross a bit of land before reaching New York and sailing. But going west, we’ll travel the entire way by wagon. Can it survive such a long journey? And what about the dangers?”

“We’ll reach France next year if not this year,” said Mr. Cabel. “And we can perform in Russian cities to earn money on the way.”

The family agreed. They studied the route one more time. Mr. Cabel said,
“We only have fifty dollars left. We’ll have to make it last. Let’s perform wherever we can, and hopefully, the Bering Strait will freeze soon. We’ll have time to save money before crossing into Asia.”

That evening, they sat around a warm meal prepared by Mrs. Cabel. Their minds were filled with thoughts of the journey. Ned brought up the stolen safe again.

“I hope the thieves get caught,” he said.

Jan looked at him with surprise.
“They won’t get caught. Why would they?”

“You’re forgetting the code,” said Ned. “They can’t open the safe.”

“If they can’t open it, they’ll break it. It’s not that hard.”

After that, they stopped talking about the safe. All conversations focused on the road ahead.

The Cabel Circus was now heading to Europe the long way around. The route they chose was unlike any ever taken before. But once the decision was made, they were determined to follow it.

On the morning of March 2nd, they set out early. The old horses pulled the heavy wagon with all their strength. The spring weather was kind, and people were beginning to come out of their homes. That meant more opportunities to perform along the way.

Mr. Cabel took advantage of this. He gave performances in every town they passed. While many people were tired of unprofessional street circuses, they were impressed by Mr. Cabel’s shows. Still, the money earned from ten performances added up to only twelve dollars.

By April 27th, they had traveled 1,400 kilometers and reached British Columbia. From there, they still had to travel another 800 kilometers to reach the Russian controlled area in northern Alaska. Sometimes, they had to get out and walk. Sometimes, they took turns riding in the wagon. Usually, Mrs. Cabel and Letitia stayed inside.

Mr. Cabel met a Native American named Ro No. He belonged to a tribe that had close ties with Europe and knew the area very well. Since Mr. Cabel spoke many languages, he enjoyed talking to Native Americans along the way.

That day, Jan proudly returned with a few deer and even a bison. They lived off the meat they hunted and tried to ration their food. But the weather kept getting colder as they went north. Rain season was coming too. Mr. Cabel wanted to cross the Frazer River before it flooded. If it rained too much, they could be stuck waiting for days.

And then the rain began.

Traveling became harder. Although the wagon didn’t leak, the muddy roads slowed them down. Jan looked out the window and said:

“We’ve reached Cariboo. This is gold country! They say people come here with nothing and leave rich!”

Letitia clapped her hands.
“Can we look for gold too, Papa?”

Before her father could reply, Ned jumped in,
“She’s right! Why not try? We might find a huge gold nugget!”

“You’re dreaming, Ned,” said Jan.

Mr. Cabel admitted they had no luck when it came to gold. Still, talk of gold continued until evening. The rain wasn’t letting up, slowing their journey, but the Native guide tried to make up for lost time by taking shorter paths.

One of the dangers in the valley was wild animals. The guide especially warned them about the fierce bears that lived in the area. And in fact, Sandre narrowly escaped becoming a bear’s dinner.

On May 17th, they crossed one of the small branches of the Frazer River and stopped to rest about fifty meters from the water. Jan went into the forest to hunt for food. Sandre, looking for something to do, tied a rope around his waist and crossed to the other side of the river. He had spotted a bright bird and was determined to catch it. As he chased the bird, which flew from branch to branch, he didn’t realize how deep he had gone into the forest. He was now two kilometers away from the wagon. The bird had disappeared. Sad and frustrated, Sandre looked around and suddenly noticed the sky had darkened. Thunder cracked through the clouds, and lightning lit up the sky.

Afraid, Sandre muttered,
“I need to go back. Dad’s going to be really angry.”

Just then, he spotted something shiny, about the size of a pine cone. He picked it up excitedly.
“Oh my God! It’s gold! It must’ve fallen from a gold prospector’s bag. I won’t tell anyone for now. I’ll surprise my family when I sell it!”

But as he turned to run back, a storm hit. Heavy rain poured down, and lightning flashed. Suddenly, Sandre froze. Just twenty meters ahead, a huge bear was growling and baring its sharp teeth.

Panicked, he turned and ran as fast as he could. The bear followed. Running through the rain, dodging trees, gasping for breath, he finally reached the river but he was on the wrong side. The water had risen, and it was impossible to cross.

With the bear closing in, he climbed a tree. But the bear followed with surprising skill. Sandre climbed to the outer branches, but it was no use the bear was coming closer. Thinking quickly, he untied his rope, made a lasso, and threw it like a cowboy toward a tree across the river. The rope caught on a branch. He tied the other end tightly to his tree.

Having grown up in the circus, Sandre had excellent balance. He swung across the rope like a tightrope walker and made it to the other side. As he looked back, he saw the bear trying to do the same!

“What a stubborn bear!” Sandre thought. Then he quickly untied the rope and let it fall into the water. The bear stood there, staring like a disappointed fruit thief.

As soon as Sandre climbed down, he ran into Jan and Ned. They had been searching both sides of the river. Their father had gone upstream. Expecting to be punished, Sandre lowered his head and said,
“I made a mistake. I almost got eaten by a bear.”

Back at the wagon, Mr. Cabel hugged him with relief. But then his face turned serious.
“Don’t ever do that again. I’ll forgive you this once. You gave us all a scare.”

Jan grabbed his rifle to hunt the bear, but his father stopped him.
“We’ve wasted enough time. Let’s keep moving.”

On the evening of May 31st, they entered Alaska. It was too dark to continue, so Mr. Cabel had the family set up camp. Alaska was still under Russian rule at the time.

The next morning, they headed northwest and soon reached the Simpson River. But they couldn’t cross.

Three soldiers stood in their path, uniforms crisp, faces stern. They were representatives of the Russian Tsar. They signaled for the family to stop. The leader said:
“Show your passports.”

Mr. Cabel didn’t understand Russian.
“Did he say passports?” he asked in English.

The soldier replied in English this time,
“Yes. Where are your passports?”

“We don’t have any,” Mr. Cabel admitted.

“Then you cannot pass. No one enters the Tsar’s land without a passport.”

Mr. Cabel tried to reason with them,
“We’re traveling the world for fun. We’re from France. No country has asked us for passports before. We hoped kind men like you would understand.”

But the guards weren’t kind. They barked insults instead.
“Where can we get passports then?” Mr. Cabel asked.

“Not our problem. Get them wherever you like.”

“At least let us go to Sitka. Maybe the French consulate there can help.”

“Go to Sacramento,” one guard snapped.

“That would take months!” Mr. Cabel pleaded. “We’ve come such a long way. Could we pay a small fee instead?”

He gave the guards a meaningful look, trying to offer a bribe. But they weren’t interested.
“No passports, no entry.”

That night, the family was devastated. They couldn’t stay there for weeks. But going back also wasn’t an option they’d come too far.

They went to bed quietly, their wagon filled with silence. Just as they were settling in, they heard gunshots nearby. Mr. Cabel, Jan, and Ned grabbed their rifles and ran toward the sound. At first, they hesitated maybe it was just a forest noise?

“No,” Jan said. “Listen! Someone’s crying!”

Sure enough, they heard a woman’s voice, crying for help. They rushed to the source and found two men lying on the ground at the edge of the forest. A Native woman was crying over one of them.

“Please help!” she said in her language. “They’ve been shot!”

Jan bent down and checked the man’s chest.
“He’s alive!”

Mr. Cabel checked the other man.
“This one… he’s dead.”

The bullet had gone through his temple. The other man was unconscious but alive. The Native woman pressed cloth to his wound as they carried him back to the wagon.

From a distance, Mr. Cabel shouted to his wife,
“Cornelia! We’re bringing a wounded man! Get ready to stop the bleeding!”

Ned cleared a space in the first compartment. They laid the man down and gave him a pillow. He was about 36 years old, pale from blood loss. As Mrs. Cabel cleaned the wound, she pointed to the Native girl and asked:
“Who is this child?”

Jan replied...

“She was with the dead man,” Jan explained. “The cries for help they were hers.”

They carefully cut open the wounded man’s shirt and found a stab wound in his chest. But there had also been gunfire. How could both a stabbing and shooting happen in one attack? No one could figure it out. Mrs. Cabel called for the medicine kit and cleaned the wound, wrapping it tightly.

Once the wounded man was stable, everyone turned their attention to the Native girl. They wanted to hear her story. Through Mr. Cabel’s translation, she explained she belonged to a settled tribe in Alaska. Her name was Kayete. Her family had all died, and she had come here hoping to find work from the Russians. She didn’t know the wounded men. She had heard the gunshots and, like the others, ran to help. She yelled for help, which scared the attackers away. But when they returned and saw others