Captain Grant's Children

Captain Grant's Children: Jules Verne

Translation: Google, Gemini

E-isbn (İng): 978-625-6020-58-0

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

Trademark Registration: 2012 / 35576

Publisher Certificate: 53253

Web Contact:

web: www.ozlemyayinevi.com

e-posta: bilgi@ozlemyayinevi.com

http://twitter.com/ozlemyayinevi

http://facebook@ankaraozlemyayinevi

http://instragam/ozlemyayinevi

Captain Grant's Children

It was a hot day on July 26, 1864.

The ship named Duncan was sailing through the waters of the North Channel. The Duncan was a large two-masted vessel. It ran on steam, but it also had sails to take advantage of the wind when needed. It was remarkably beautiful.

The captain of the Duncan was a skilled sailor named John Mangles, around 30 years old. The crew of the Duncan numbered 27, including the chief steward Obirent and the young first mate, Tom Austin.

The Lord and Lady were newly married. This happy union had only been three months in the making. Helena was the daughter of a famous geographer and explorer.

Among the passengers on the yacht were the ship's owner, Lord Edward Glenarvan, his wife Lady Helena, and his cousin, Major Mac Nabbs.

Their excursion was over, and they were returning to Glasgow. The yacht's passengers were lying on deck chairs, chatting on the ship's deck.

The lookout's voice pierced the air during a deep conversation:

“A fish has appeared. A hammerhead shark. It's following the ship.”

The Lord's young and beautiful wife and the others jumped up with curiosity. They looked in the direction the lookout had pointed and could not hide their astonishment at the size of the fish.

Lady Helena exclaimed, “Oh, my! This savage hammerhead is the most predatory species of shark. Let's hunt it!”

It wasn't difficult to hunt the fish after throwing the harpoons. The sailors hauled the giant fish onto the deck.

The Lord, Lady, and the others wanted to see what was inside the fish's stomach.

The Lord said, “These types of fish swallow whatever they find in the sea. Let's see what comes out of its stomach.”

They cut open the fish's stomach and were surprised to find nothing but a stone. Lord Glenarvan looked closely at the object, which felt like a stone due to its hardness, and realized it was not a stone at all.

“This is not a stone... It's a bottle! You know, bottles are sealed containers. They carry various news and documents from events that happen at sea...”

A little later, the cleaned bottle was on the Lord's table. The paper inside the bottle was visible to the naked eye. They decided it would be better to break the bottle than to try to open its rotting cork. The same text was written in three different languages: English, French, and German. The writing was faded in places. They racked their brains for hours over the three different pieces of paper. In the end, the text emerged:

“On June 7, 1862, a three-masted British ship, the Britannia, bearing the flag of Glasgow, sank in the waters of Patagonia in the Southern Hemisphere.

The ship's captain, Grant, and his two sailors struggled with the terrible waves of the sea and with great difficulty, managed to reach the shore. Their joy of survival did not last long as they fell into the hands of savage natives.

This document was thrown into the sea at 71 degrees longitude and 37 degrees 2 minutes latitude.

If help is not sent to Captain Grant and his sailors quickly, their lives may be in danger...”

To find out if the incident was real, the Lord and his companions consulted nautical magazines. They searched through different magazines. One of them found an article about the incident on a magazine page.

Indeed, there was a ship named Britannia belonging to Captain Grant, just as written on the paper, that had departed from the port of Callao in Peru on May 30, 1862!

Lord Glenarvan immediately changed the yacht's course and went to London. He made the necessary arrangements at the Admiralty Office to find Captain Grant and his crew. He also placed the following telegram advertisement in two famous English newspapers:

“Those wishing to obtain information about the three-masted Britannia yacht, registered in the Port of Glasgow, and Captain Grant, are kindly requested to contact Lord Glenarvan at Malcolm Castle in Dumbarton County, Scotland.”

The evening following the publication of the advertisement, the door of Lord Glenarvan's castle in Scotland was knocked upon.

The castle's butler opened the door. Two children were standing there. The girl was about 16, and the boy was about 12. It was clear at first glance that the two children were siblings.

The young girl said to the butler, “We read the advertisement in the newspaper. We are Captain Grant's children. We came to see the Lord.”

The butler was delighted by this sudden encounter:

“Come in... come in... My Lord is in London right now, but I can introduce you to Lady Helena. She is currently sitting in the drawing room. Follow me...”

With the butler in the lead and the children behind, they entered the drawing room where Lady Helena was sitting. The butler respectfully said:

“Ma'am, these two children say they are Captain Grant's children...”

The young Lady got up excitedly:

“Come, children. Welcome...”

The girl was very excited:

“Madam, please tell us everything openly. Is our father alive? What happened?”

“My dear child,” said the Lady. “I don't want to give you false hope. With God's help, maybe one day you will be reunited with your father...”

The Lady told them the story from beginning to end. The children listened to Lady Helena carefully.

The girl said, “We recognize our father's handwriting. If possible, can we see the writing that came out of the bottle?”

The Lady spread her arms and apologized:

“Unfortunately, that's not possible, children!... Because the documents are with Lord Glenarvan... You can see them when he returns. Now, you should take a shower and eat. Rest. When the Lord arrives, you can get the information you want from him and feel at ease.”

While the children were eating, the Lady learned about their past.

The children's names were Mary and Robert.

“Our mother died while giving birth to my brother Robert. Every time our father went on a trip, he would leave us with a female relative. In fact, when our mother died, this kind-hearted relative took care of and raised my brother Robert. The same woman looked after us during his travels. When that terrible incident happened, this kind-hearted woman did not leave us; she protected and cared for us. Our days, months, and years passed in poverty. She was not rich. She made a living in difficult conditions.”

That night, the Lady could not sleep from sadness, thinking about Captain Grant and his children.

The Lady heard the sound of the carriage wheels and horses' hooves and knew the Lord had arrived. She ran to the courtyard to meet him:

“How was your trip? Did it end as you expected?”

“Unfortunately, no, my dear. They won't give me a ship. They say the documents are written in incomprehensible language. They can't search the whole of Patagonia to find three sailors!... In short, they don't want to help.”

At the end of the Lord's words, the sound of a young lady crying rose from the room, and he looked in the direction of the sound and saw Grant's children.

Mary Grant was crying and saying, “Oh, my father! Will we never see you again?” Her brother Robert Grant was hugging his sister, comforting her:

“Don't cry, big sister. We will both look for our father. We will try until we find him.”

The Lord looked at his wife's face as if to say, “Who are these?”

The Lady explained:

“My dear, these are Captain Grant's children! They read the advertisement in the newspaper and came here two days ago. I kept them here to meet with you.”

“Ah! So, these are Captain Grant's children!”

The Lord called the children to his side and spoke with them for a long time.

After this meeting, he said to his wife:

“Since the people in London don't want to help us, we will do this ourselves.”

The Lady smiled:

“That's a good decision, truly. God has given us the task of reuniting these two orphans with their father. The Duncan is a good, solid vessel; it can withstand the southern seas. In fact, while you were in London, I was thinking the same thing and was going to suggest we search.”

Thus, Lord Edward and his wife, Lady Helena, came to an agreement and immediately began preparations.

On the evening of August 24, a religious meeting was held in the church. They prayed to God for a safe journey and the successful outcome of their plans.

The next day, the ship's coal storage was expanded to take on more coal, covering their needs for two years.

Provisions for two years were also stored in the pantry.

A revolving cannon was placed on the ship's front deck because they would be visiting unknown lands and could encounter people with different intentions.

They set sail from the port early in the morning. The sea was quite rough on the first day of the journey, but it calmed down in the following days.

Captain Grant's son, Robert Grant, seemed very happy. He was running from one end of the ship's deck to the other. He would climb the masts, watch the horizon, and then look over the railing at the dolphins following the ship. His sister Mary would often warn him to be careful. The ship's Captain, John Mangles, believed that Robert Grant would grow up to be a good sailor.

At one point, Lady Helena said to her husband, Lord Glenarvan, “Let's inspect the ship.”

The Lord and the others got up together. The Major excused himself and stayed behind. Once the others had gone, Major Mac Nabbs looked at the foamy waters left behind by the ship, reliving many of his memories.

At one point, he heard footsteps behind him. When he turned his head, he met a man he had never seen before. He looked at him carefully but could not recognize him; it was the first time he had seen him. What was this stranger doing among the guest passengers?

The stranger was a little tall and thin. He looked about forty years old. At first glance, the size of his head was striking. With this physical appearance, he resembled a giant nail.

As if unaware that Major Mac Nabbs was observing him from a distance, the stranger took out the binoculars hanging crosswise on his chest in a solemn manner, extended the folds, and brought them to his eyes. He scanned the horizon line with these binoculars, which were a meter long.

At that moment, the Chief Steward Olbinett, who was passing by, looked at the foreign passenger and went to him. He, too, was seeing this man for the first time. He began to look at his face, wondering what he would say.

“At your service, sir?” he asked. The stranger, as if he hadn't heard, looked into the distance with his binoculars and said:

“Are you this ship's steward?”

“Yes, sir, I am the Chief Steward! My name is Olbinett.”

“Yes, I am. I am the passenger in cabin number six. Alright, my friend Olbinett,” he said. “Now we need to think about food. And without wasting any time. I haven't eaten for thirty-six hours. To be more precise, I've been sleeping for thirty-six hours! It's not too much for someone who has traveled from Paris to Glasgow!”

Chief Steward Olbinett's head was spinning. Who was this man? What was he? Where did he come from? But he couldn't find a proper answer to any of his questions.

At that moment, the captain appeared on the stairs. The chief steward pointed to the captain, indicating the foreign man:

“There is the ship's captain,” he said, freeing himself from his hands.

The stranger walked toward the captain:

“Oh, Captain Burton!... I'm so happy to meet you! So happy!” he said, extending his hand to shake.

Captain John Mangles was as surprised as the chief steward. He was very curious to know who this person was who was addressing him as “Captain Burton” and extending his hand.

He glanced at the Chief Steward as if to ask, “Who is this?” and asked with a nod, but the Chief Steward pouted and shrugged his shoulders, meaning “I don't know.”

The foreign passenger was talking non-stop:

“I am very pleased to meet you. Tell me, are you happy with the Scotia?”

“What Scotia?”

“My dear man, I'm talking about this ship we are on!”

Captain Mangles, for a moment, had doubts about the sanity of this stranger he was seeing for the first time, but after a careful examination, he could not find any trace of madness in him. “He might just be a distracted person,” he thought.

While the captain was trying to make a judgment about the strange foreign passenger, Lord Glenarvan, his wife Lady Helena Glenarvan, and Captain Grant's daughter Mary Grant appeared on the deck.

The foreign passenger saw them too. He was about to start speaking by saying, “Madam, miss, monsieur,” but Captain Mangles felt it was necessary to give a warning to the foreign passenger, explaining that the people approaching were not a family and revealing their true identities:

“Lord Edward Glenarvan. He is the owner of this ship.” The foreign passenger composed himself at this warning:

“Ah!.. Forgive me, my Lord!... Allow me to introduce myself. I am Jacques Eliacin Francois Marie Paganel. Secretary of the Geographical Society of Paris... Correspondent member of the societies of Berlin/Bombay/Darmstadt/Leipzig/London/Petersburg/Vienna/New York. Honorary member of the Royal Geographical and Ethnographical Institute of East India. I have been working on 'Island Geography' for twenty years. Now I am going to India to do scientific work. I will establish a connection between the works of great travelers.”

Lord Edward Glenarvan concluded that this stranger was the complete opposite of the captain's first impression; he was a sane and even highly intelligent person. He also remembered his name. He was one of France's most distinguished scientists. His fame and name had spread beyond the borders of his homeland to almost all countries of the world.

The strange passenger, Jacques Paganel, who had created such a contradictory impression, was actually famous for his absent-mindedness. The strange impression he made on those on the ship was nothing more than a distracted mistake: he had boarded Lord Edward Glenarvan's ship, which was under the command of Captain John Mangles, thinking it was his own ship!

The Lord said, “Mr. Paganel, the Duncan is a research vessel.”

“But I have to go to India!”

“Unfortunately, that's impossible! Because the Indian Peninsula is behind us.”

“But how can that be, Captain Burton?”

“But I'm not Captain Burton, I'm Captain John Mangles!”

“Then what about the Scotia?”

“Unfortunately, Mr. Paganel, this ship is not the Scotia, it's the ship named Duncan, which belongs to Lord Edward Glenarvan. You must have absent-mindedly boarded this ship thinking it was that one!”

Jacques Paganel looked around sadly as if he had accepted his defeat. At that moment, his eyes fell on the words written on the steering cabinet: “DUNCAN Glasgow.” He was surprised... He ran to his cabin with a hopeless cry.

While they were discussing Jacques Paganel's situation, Jacques Paganel returned to them with a humbled spirit, ashamed of his ridiculous situation. In a sad voice, he said to those present:

“I boarded the ship at night. I went into my cabin in peace, lay down on my bed, and fell into a deep sleep because I was tired. It was such a sleep that (since the stewards didn't wake me up or call me for food) it lasted for 36 hours. I didn't know the truth until I asked Chief Steward Olbinett about the food! I thought I was on the Scotia! Such a distraction rarely happens, gentlemen. Now, if I ask for a favor, would you do it? Would you order the helmsman to correct the course to Calcutta instead of Chile?”

Lady Helena answered Paganel:

“Mr. Paganel, if we were on a pleasure trip, we would gladly accept your request. We would take you to your destination, but we have set out for a purpose. We are going to look for some shipwrecked people who have been stranded on the Patagonian coast. For this reason, the course of our ship cannot be changed.”

The issue was discussed in depth. Different ideas were put forward. They tried to appease Paganel and suggested that he change his plans and join them.

Paganel could not answer immediately. He was thinking about his mission.

The Lord, his wife, and the others tried to persuade Paganel in every way to join their group. One of them said, “We will pass through the Strait of Magellan,” and Paganel couldn't resist:

“Let me tell you something, my friends? I understand that all of you want me to stay!”

Lord Glenarvan smiled:

“And you? You, too, Mr. Paganel, are dying to stay!”

“That's true, my Lord! But I was afraid of being disrespectful.”

Paganel's decision to stay made them all happy. Captain Grant's son, Robert Grant, hugged Mr. Paganel with such enthusiasm that Paganel, who had given the impression of being a serious and dignified person, could not stand this childish enthusiasm and fell backward. As he got up seriously, he said:

“He's a great young man. I want to teach him geography.”

On September 7, the Duncan crossed the equator and entered the Southern Hemisphere.

Almost everyone on the ship was very hopeful that they would find Captain Grant and his two sailors.

Captain Mangles was at the head of these happy people. The reason for his hope was to find Captain Grant as soon as possible and make the orphaned children happy.

As for the learned geographer, he could undoubtedly be called the happiest man in the Southern Hemisphere. He spent his time examining maps and studying Spanish.

No one on the ship knew Spanish. Paganel thought this language might be necessary for their research.

On September 15, the Duncan crossed the Tropic of Capricorn, and on September 25, it reached the waters of the Strait of Magellan. The Duncan passed through this strait in 36 hours.

On the 42nd day of their departure from Scotland, they anchored in the port of Talcahuano, Chile.

Lord Glenarvan and Paganel went ashore. Paganel immediately wanted to use his Spanish but could not communicate with the locals. He was surprised and saddened by this pessimistic result: “My pronunciation must be wrong,” he thought.

They asked the locals and some people for directions to the British Consulate. They found the building with the directions. The research carried out by both the consul and themselves did not yield a positive result. They could not obtain any information about Captain Grant or his ship.

They conducted a wide inquiry in the city on this matter, but unfortunately, they could not get a single clue.

One night, they gathered on the ship's deck. The geographer Paganel explained his thoughts about Captain Grant as follows:

“Gentlemen, ladies, if Captain Grant and his friends were captured by the natives, could they have been taken inland along the 37th parallel? The bottle you found must have reached the sea through the current of one of the many rivers that are abundant here. In my opinion, we should go inland along this latitude. We should extend our research, if necessary, all the way to the Atlantic Ocean.”

Lady Helena asked the geographer Paganel in a not-so-happy voice:

“Mr. Paganel, do you think the natives would keep Captain Grant alive? What do you say?”

“Madam Helena, according to the information I have obtained, the natives of that region are not the primitive communities called 'cannibals.' They do not eat humans! They decided to set off without wasting any time. They would proceed in a straight line along the thirty-seventh parallel.

Meanwhile, the Duncan would follow the parallel by sea, reach its endpoint in the Atlantic, and meet them there.

It was decided to set off on October 14.

The group that would go by land included: Lord Glenarvan, the geographer, Major Mac Nabbs, Captain Grant's son Robert Grant, the Duncan's First Mate Tom Austin, and the sailors Wilson and Mulrady.

The first search party and those who remained on the ship said goodbye with sadness and tears. As the group set off, the Duncan also slowly disappeared from view, cleaving through the waves.

The search party, led by Lord Glenarvan, consisted of three men and one child. The chief muleteer, who was in charge of the mules, was of English origin. Therefore, there was no difficulty in communication. The other two local guides prevented the mules from scattering and ensured they followed a path. As for the child, he was 12 years old. He was riding the small mare that was at the very front of the mule caravan and was responsible for leading the mules.

Lord Edward Glenarvan had changed his clothes to conform to the local conditions of the country he was in, wearing Chilean clothes.

The geographer Paganel, who had the childlike impulses of an intellectual who had spent years reading, researching, writing, and drawing, and Captain Grant's son, Robert Grant, were overjoyed as they put the national poncho over their heads.

On the first day, they did not sit and chat much due to the effect of the journey; they walked continuously.

They rarely came across any locals. They crossed small streams. On October 17, the road began to get steeper.

This time, the small streams became more frequent. They began to climb the mountains. The journey was getting more and more difficult. When they reached a certain point, a wall of rock suddenly blocked their way.

The chief muleteer stopped. He looked at this natural wall that blocked the road. He got off his mule and started looking at the rock, his arms crossed over his chest. The Lord asked the Chief Muleteer:

“What's wrong? Did you get lost?” The Chief Muleteer showed the obstacle:

“No, my Lord, a rock has blocked the road, and the mules cannot pass here.”

The Major, with his military mind, immediately intervened as if he had found a practical solution to this difficult situation:

“The mules can't pass, but people can!” The Chief Muleteer objected:

“Nooo! Never! I won't leave my mules. If you want, you can continue your journey without mules, we can turn back from here.”

The geographer Paganel spoke in an encouraging voice:

“Come on, let's just cross this wall. We'll find Argentinian guides on the other side. I'll show the way.”

The locals took their mules and left.

The Lord and his companions crossed the rock, a remnant of an earthquake that blocked the road, and reached an open area in two hours.

After resting for a while, the group continued on their way. Since the road passed through a mountainous area, they were constantly climbing. As the altitude increased, the natural appearance of the surroundings also changed and became icy.

When the group reached 3,300 meters, they began to feel a constriction in their chests, difficulty breathing, and difficulty walking. They could only move forward by falling and getting up. When they stopped and looked around, they noticed a mountain hut a little ahead. They walked towards the hut. They reached the side of the hut. They wanted to push the door and take a look inside. The door creaked open, and they entered carefully. Lord Edward looked around:

“It's still good to have this hut in a place like this. At least it will protect us from the night frost. It probably won't be dangerously cold here at night. We'll spend the night here. Let's put our belongings aside and collect some firewood to light the hearth.”

The men went out to collect firewood. The women prepared the hearth. They cleaned and tidied up the surroundings.

When darkness fell, they sat on wooden benches around a wooden table near the hearth, ate their hot soup, and filled their stomachs. While drinking the coffee prepared by the sailors and continuing their conversation, they heard some howling sounds from outside. In the deep silence of the night, the wild howls created shivers in their hearts.

The Lord said to himself, “What could animals be doing at this altitude?”

Paganel said, “Maybe they got scared of something and came here.” The Major took aim and shot at one of them. It was a direct hit.

Two sailors ran and dragged the animal to the hut by its legs. They cut it into large pieces. They put it on wooden skewers and roasted it. Anyone who took a bite of the wolf's meat grimaced.

The Lord said, “It's very tasteless!” Paganel said:

“The animal must have been tired. That's why the meat is tasteless. This animal came from a long way.”

“But isn't it strange, Mr. Paganel, what could be the reason for these animals to come to this altitude?”

“Fear, my Lord. They may have come from fear, but what kind of fear could it be? Animals' instincts are much more developed than human instincts. They can sense a future danger long before.”

The Lord had just fallen asleep when he jumped up with a terrible jolt. Naturally, the others felt the same jolt and jumped up from their places. The ground under their feet was shaking, roaring, and rumbling.

Before they had time to throw themselves outside, the ground split open along with the hut, and they began to roll down the slope. They were experiencing a terrible earthquake. The mountains and stones were changing shape. The earthquake they were experiencing was one of the most devastating earthquakes in Chile.

The frequent earthquakes seen in this country were considered common, but this one was one of the very rare ones. The locations of the mountains changed. The beds of the streams were closed, turning into lakes. Landslides turned many lands into dough, folding them into a single piece of land. Two fields became one.

The flat land where the Lord and his friends were located was rapidly flowing downwards.

As the piece of land on which they were standing flowed downwards, they were thrown forward with a violent jolt, and each of them fell to one side like a sack of meat. They were stunned and couldn't come to their senses for a while. The flow had stopped.

The Major gathered his strength and stood up. He looked at his friends. They were lying in a stunned state. He counted and realized that one person was missing. Captain Grant's son, Robert Grant, was not there.

The terrible night was over.

As the first daylight began to illuminate the surroundings, the Lord and his friends slowly came to their senses, thanks to the Major's personal efforts.

The group rested until their spirits recovered. Then they got up and started looking for Robert. The search continued all day. Only Lord Edward Glenarvan had hope. Robert was not dead. He thought that he was somewhere, alive, and perhaps looking for them, but another problem had arisen: their food had run out. They wanted to set off as soon as possible.

In the middle of the second day, as they were getting ready to set off with a sudden decision, the Lord's eyes caught a shadow in the sky. He showed the shadow to his friends. They looked. It was a vulture.

The vulture came closer and closer. It continued to fly, circling over a hard-to-reach plain about a quarter of a mile away. Then it disappeared among the rocks. Soon after, it reappeared with a human-like object in its claws.

The Lord and his friends shaded their foreheads with their hands and looked carefully at the object in its claws. The same word of astonishment came from all of their lips.

“It's Robert Grant.”

Lord Edward:

“It's better for the boy to fall and be shattered on these rocks than to perish in the claws of that savage animal! Shoot that monster!”

The Major took aim at the animal. Just as he was about to pull the trigger, a gunshot was heard from another part of the valley. The sound echoed throughout the valley.

The vulture was hit. It began to fall slowly, spinning as it went. But it did not let go of the boy in its talons. It landed gently on the ground. When they reached it, the animal was dead.

Robert was not even visible within the animal's huge wings! He was alive but unconscious. They took off his clothes, carried him to a nearby stream, and dipped him in the water.

“My Lord! Is that you? My father...”

They were all so happy to have found the boy safe and sound. They hugged and caressed him. Robert struggled to free himself from their grasp. He took a deep breath.

Once the joy of finding the boy subsided, they began to investigate who had shot the animal. When they looked around, they saw a tall person standing like a statue, watching them from about fifty paces beyond the stream. He was holding a long rifle at his feet. His hair hung down to his shoulders. He was wearing an expensive coat on his back.

The native, who was the center of attention, said something, but the Lord and his friends did not understand a thing.

The Lord used gestures to ask the native if he knew Spanish. The native nodded his head, meaning “Yes, I do.”

They called for Mr. Paganel. He ran over and greeted them. He began to speak to the native in so-called Spanish:

“You are a brave man!”

But the native did not answer. He continued to look at his face. It was clear that he did not understand Mr. Paganel's words. Paganel continued:

“Are you a Patagon?” he asked.

Again, there was no sound from the native. This time, Paganel got angry and shouted loudly:

“Don't you understand?”

It was clear that the native did not understand. He answered Paganel in Spanish.

“I don't understand.”

The Major smiled slightly at this situation:

“Ah, my scholarly friend! Weren't you absent-minded again?”

Paganel was quite angry. He rummaged through his pockets. He found a book and handed it over:

“Here's the book, see for yourselves.”

The Lord looked at the book with a sidelong glance and smiled:

“Oh, my friend, what have you done? This book is in Portuguese!”

Paganel apologized.

“Don't worry, my Lord, Spanish and Portuguese are very similar languages. I will correct my mistake immediately. I'll get along with the Patagon right away, don't worry.”

Mr. Paganel proved to be right in this regard. He communicated with the native using a few words. His name was Talkav, and he worked as a guide in the Pampas. He was exactly the kind of person they were looking for.

They immediately made a deal with Talkav. They went to a native village. They bought seven small Argentinian horses with harnesses and enough food to meet their needs.

They decided to set off at eight in the morning on October 22.

In the morning, they arrived at the starting point at eight o'clock. The road extended to the sea with a gentle slope.

When it was time to set off, the guide Talkav called his horse named Thauka, which was grazing in the nearby grove, with a sharp whistle.

The beautiful native horse neighed and came out from among the trees with its tail in the air, at lightning speed. It passed through the group at the same speed and stopped next to its owner. Everyone admired Thauka's beauty.

The native guide was in front, the Lord was behind him... Then the others took their places in order and set off.

They traveled for hours. When evening came, they took a break at a suitable place. In the morning, the weather was clear and beautiful. There was no trace of the previous night's situation.

The Lord thought he could find a native village on the way and get information about Captain Grant from them, but they did not come across a single native village for miles!

The Lord opened up his thoughts to Paganel. He asked him to ask the guide Talkav why they couldn't find a native person.

After half an hour of effort, Paganel was able to convey his thoughts to Talkav. He asked if he had heard of three foreigners falling into the hands of the natives.

Talkav replied, “Maybe.” They immediately gathered around him. The native continued.

“It was a foreigner. A European. I haven't seen him, but I heard he was a very brave man! I heard he was in the hands of a native tribe that roams between the Colorada and Rio Negro.”

The Lord and his friends were very happy with this information. For days, they passed through unproductive, monotonous lands and meadows. The natives called these places “Pampa.”

The group had a lot of trouble in these lands; there was no water. Most of the streams they passed had dried up. The lake they had hoped for had also dried up. They were disappointed. They took a break in one place. During the break, Talkav made a suggestion.

“Those whose horses are tired should go slowly, and those whose horses are better should go fast and see if there is water ahead. If they find water, they should wait for the tired group to come. If they can't find water, they should turn back, and we can go south together.”

It was decided that the Lord, Talkav, and Robert would go ahead.

That night, most of them slept, dreaming of water. The next morning, the two groups separated early. They took a break for about an hour in the afternoon. They were very thirsty. With a final effort, they started moving forward again. Around three o'clock, a bright white line appeared on the horizon. It was shimmering under the sun's rays.

Robert and Lord Edward shouted with the same excitement.

“Water! Water!”

They spurred their horses toward the water. The animals, as if they had smelled the water, galloped in that direction.

It wasn't long before they got there. What they saw was really water! It was not a mirage. The group and their horses plunged into the water! They drank to their hearts' content.

After watering his horse, Talkav went on a trip along the stream. He looked around. He hadn't gone very far when he came across a ramada, a shelter for herds enclosed on three sides. He approached and examined