A light west wind was sweeping the balloon right
over the town, and far beyond it.
Half an hour later, the doctor, seeing the country deserted,
moderated the flame of his cylinder, and descended
toward the ground. At twenty feet above the turf, the
affrighted sorcerer made up his mind in a twinkling: he
let himself drop, fell on his feet, and scampered off at a
furious pace toward Kazeh; while the balloon, suddenly
relieved of his weight, again shot up on her course.
CHAPTER SIXTEENTH.
Symptoms of a Storm.--The Country of the Moon.--The Future of the African
Continent.--The Last Machine of all.--A View of the Country at Sunset.--
Flora and Fauna.--The Tempest.--The Zone of Fire.--The Starry Heavens.
"See," said Joe, "what comes of playing the sons of
the moon without her leave! She came near serving us
an ugly trick. But say, master, did you damage your
credit as a physician?"
"Yes, indeed," chimed in the sportsman. "What kind
of a dignitary was this Sultan of Kazeh?"
"An old half-dead sot," replied the doctor, "whose
loss will not be very severely felt. But the moral of all
this is that honors are fleeting, and we must not take too
great a fancy to them."
"So much the worse!" rejoined Joe.
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