Robur the Conqueror by Jules Verne
page 81 of 217 (37%)
page 81 of 217 (37%)
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all sides like a cup.
In a couple of hours the "Albatross" was over Omaha, on the Nebraskan frontier--Omaha City, the real head of the Pacific Railway, that long line of rails, four thousand five hundred miles in length, stretching from New York to San Francisco. For a moment they could see the yellow waters of the Missouri, then the town, with its houses of wood and brick in the center of a rich basin, like a buckle in the iron belt which clasps North America round the waist. Doubtless, also, as the passengers in the aeronef could observe all these details, the inhabitants of Omaha noticed the strange machine. Their astonishment at seeing it gliding overhead could be no greater than that of the president and secretary of the Weldon Institute at finding themselves on board. Anyhow, the journals of the Union would be certain to notice the fact. It would be the explanation of the astonishing phenomenon which the whole world had been wondering over for some time. In an hour the "Albatross" had left Omaha and crossed the Platte River, whose valley is followed by the Pacific Railway in its route across the prairie. Things looked serious for Uncle Prudent and Phil Evans. "It is serious, then, this absurd project of taking us to the Antipodes." "And whether we like it or not!" exclaimed the other. "Robur had better take care! I am not the man to stand that sort of |
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