ded.

I praised my able coadjutor, Captain Wallace, without whose skilful
seamanship not a soul of us could ever have reached that secret world.
"It was he," said I, "who has guided us without a chart through five
hundred miles of polar cavern to the realms of Pluto, to Plutusia, the
interior world. On him again we must depend for a safe exit when our
explorations are ended."

Flathootly attempted to make a speech, but, like the rest of the
company, fell asleep, and in less than half an hour afterward not a
soul remained awake, excepting Professor Starbottle and myself.

We both struggled against sleep long enough to take a survey of the
internal sphere. The _Polar King_ floated on the wide bosom of the sea
underneath the perpendicular sun that lit all Plutusia with its beams.
With our telescopes we discovered oceans, continents, mountain ranges,
lakes, cities, railroads, ships, and buildings of all kinds spread
like an immense map on the concave vault of the earth overhead. It was
a sight that alone amply repaid us for the discovery of so sublime a
sphere.

We thought what a cry of joy would electrify both planets when through
our instrumentality they first knew of each other's existence. We
alone possessed the tremendous secret! Then, what possibilities of
commerce! What keen and glorious revelations of art! What unfolding of
the secrets of nature each world would find in the other! What
inventions rival nations would discover in either world, and here for
the outer world what possible mountains of gold, what quarries of
jewels! What means of empire and joy and love! But such thoughts were
too vast for wearied souls. We were stunned by such conceptions, and,
yielding to nature, sank into a dreamless sleep.

CHAPTER X.

A VISIT FROM THE INHABITANTS OF PLUTUSIA.

How long we slept it is impossible to say. We must have remained in
slumber at least three days after the great excitement of our voyage
so far. The direct cause of my awaking was a loud noise on deck, and
on coming up to learn the cause, I saw Flathootly shaking his fist at
two strange flying men who hovered over the ship.

"Bad luck to ye," shouted Flathootly, "if iver I get a grip of ye
again you won't sail away so swately after jabbin' me in the neck like
that."

"Flathootly!" I cried, "what's the meaning of this? Were those men on
board ship? Had you hold of them?"

"Begorra, sorr," he replied, holding his hand over a slight wound in