to the prospector with its priceless freight
of books, firearms, ammunition, scientific instruments, and still more
books--its great library of reference works upon every conceivable
branch of applied sciences?

And if I could not, of what value was all this vast storehouse of
potential civilization and progress to be to the world of my adoption?

Upon the other hand, if I remained here alone with it, what could I
accomplish single-handed?

Nothing.

But where there was no east, no west, no north, no south, no stars, no
moon, and only a stationary mid-day sun, how was I to find my way back
to this spot should ever I get out of sight of it?

I didn't know.

For a long time I stood buried in deep thought, when it occurred to me
to try out one of the compasses I had brought and ascertain if it
remained steadily fixed upon an unvarying pole. I reentered the
prospector and fetched a compass without.

Moving a considerable distance from the prospector that the needle
might not be influenced by its great bulk of iron and steel I turned
the delicate instrument about in every direction.

Always and steadily the needle remained rigidly fixed upon a point
straight out to sea, apparently pointing toward a large island some ten
or twenty miles distant. This then should be north.

I drew my note-book from my pocket and made a careful topographical
sketch of the locality within the range of my vision. Due north lay
the island, far out upon the shimmering sea.

The spot I had chosen for my observations was the top of a large, flat
boulder which rose six or eight feet above the turf. This spot I
called Greenwich. The boulder was the "Royal Observatory."

I had made a start! I cannot tell you what a sense of relief was
imparted to me by the simple fact that there was at least one spot
within Pellucidar with a familiar name and a place upon a map.

It was with almost childish joy that I made a little circle in my
note-book and traced the word Greenwich beside it.

Now I felt I might start out upon my search with some assurance of
finding my way back again to the prospector.

I decided that at first I would travel directly south in the hope that
I might in that direction find some familiar landmark. It was as good
a direction as any. This much at least might be said of it.

Among the many other things I had brought from the outer world were a
number of pedometers. I slipped three of these into my pockets with
the