Таємничий острів

           "Thatisdifficulttoestimate,"repliedtheengineer,"foritissouneven."

           IfCyrusHardingwasnotmistakeninhiscalculation,theislandhadalmosttheextentofMaltaorZante,intheMediterranean,butitwasatthesametimemuchmoreirregularandlessrichincapes,promontories,points,bays,orcreeks.Itsstrangeformcaughttheeye,andwhenGideonSpilett,ontheengineer’sadvice,haddrawntheoutline,theyfoundthatitresembledsomefantasticanimal,amonstrousleviathan,whichlaysleepingonthesurfaceofthePacific.

           Thiswasinfacttheexactshapeoftheisland,whichitisofconsequencetoknow,andatolerablycorrectmapofitwasimmediatelydrawnbythereporter.

           Theeastpartoftheshore,wherethecastawayshadlanded,formedawidebay,terminatedbyasharpcape,whichhadbeenconcealedbyahighpointfromPencroftonhisfirstexploration.Atthenortheasttwoothercapesclosedthebay,andbetweenthemrananarrowgulf,whichlookedlikethehalf-openjawsofaformidabledog-fish.

           Fromthenortheasttothesouthwestthecoastwasrounded,liketheflattenedcraniumofananimal,risingagain,formingasortofprotuberancewhichdidnotgiveanyparticularshapetothispartoftheisland,ofwhichthecenterwasoccupiedbythevolcano.

           Fromthispointtheshoreranprettyregularlynorthandsouth,brokenattwo-thirdsofitsperimeterbyanarrowcreek,fromwhichitendedinalongtail,similartothecaudalappendageofagiganticalligator.