But be that as it may, there was one part of the papers which caused me to turn the thought over once or twice in my mind as to visiting the center of the earth, which I did, and my experiences during that voyage I will give you at another time.
Suffice it then to say that I ended the trip by being volcanoed out, and I will recount to you what occurred immediately after my advent.
I was somewhat disturbed upon ascertaining I had landed in a small clearing in a pine forest at a very high altitude. Had it not been for the heat caused by the eruption of the volcano I have no doubt I should have found myself several yards down in a snow-bank. But so hot had the fire from the crater been the ground was almost too hot to stand upon and I made haste to find more comfortable quarters.
As I was wending my way through the thick forest I heard a great hissing behind me, and to my astonishment observed a river of lava rushing after me at terrific speed. It was of such width I could not run counter and hope to escape. It so happened that in front of me was an inextricable mass of fallen timber, pitch pine almost entirely, and upon this I quickly placed myself. It was so matted together I believe it would have made a convenient raft upon which to take my ride down the incline.
On came the lava, shooting, spurting along, until it lifted my raft on its red-hot bosom and bore it swiftly onward, consuming everything else in its passage.
I soon became aware it was likewise making inroads on my lifeboat, and the dense volume of smoke which began to rise from it gave me an idea.
My mantle had served me well so far, and I now prepared it with greater care, and, therefore, obtained better service from it than I had done in my descent from the sky.
I tied a rope to each corner and it was quickly filled by a mass of pitchy smoke which was ascending all about me. I had got ready none too soon, for the heat was beginning to scorch me, as the balloon tugged a moment at its cargo and slowly rose. To make sure of a trip of sufficient duration I snatched a number of large pine knots blazing furiously, and held them beneath my chariot.
I must have presented a weird spectacle to the inhabitants, sailing through the air suspended by my parachute and surrounded by a ring of flashing, sputtering, sizzling torchlights. I had quite a comfortable seat where the ropes crossed, and from this position I selected a verdant place to disembark, and succeeded remarkably well, for I landed not only on a nice soft spot, but what was decidedly better, for I was beastly hungry, at a hunter’s camp, and it had been recently occupied, for there were standing against a tree several fine Remington rifles and one Winchester, with full magazines, as I learned.