Part 11 (1/2)

It was not enough to reach the walls; an opening in them must be accomplished, and to attain this purpose the party only had their pocket-knives Happily the temple walls were built of brick and wood, which could be penetrated with little difficulty; after one brick had been taken out, the rest would yield easily

They set noiselessly to work, and the Parsee on one side and Passepartout on the other began to loosen the bricks so as toon rapidly, when suddenly a cry was heard in the interior of the te frouide stopped Had they been heard? Was the alared the and Sir Francis They again hid themselves in the wood, and waited till the disturbance, whatever itthemselves ready to resuuards now appeared at the rear of the temple, and there installed themselves, in readiness to prevent a surprise

It would be difficult to describe the disappointment of the party, thus interrupted in their work They could not now reach the victim; how, then, could they save her? Sir Francis shook his fists, Passepartout was beside hie The tranquil Fogg waited, without betraying any eo away,” whispered Sir Francis

”Nothing but to go away,” echoed the guide

”Stop,” said Fogg ”I am only due at Allahabad tomorrow before noon”

”But what can you hope to do?” asked Sir Francis ”In a few hours it will be daylight, and--”

”The chance which now seems lost may present itself at the last mo's eyes What was this cool English woman at the very moment of the sacrifice, and boldly snatch her from her executioners? This would be utter folly, and it was hard to ad was such a fool Sir Francis consented, however, to reuide led thelade, where they were able to observe the sleeping groups

Meanwhile Passepartout, who had perched hi an idea which had at first struck hied in his brain

He had co to himself, ”What folly!” and then he repeated, ”Why not, after all? It's a chance--perhaps the only one; and with such sots!” Thinking thus, he slipped, with the suppleness of a serpent, to the lowest branches, the ends of which bent alhter shades now announced the approach of day, though it was not yet light This was thes and cries arose; the hour of the sacrifice had coht escaped fro and Sir Francis saw the victi shaken off the stupor of intoxication, to be striving to escape from her executioner

Sir Francis's heart throbbed; and, convulsively seizing Mr

Fogg's hand, found in it an open knife Just at this ain fallen into a stupor caused by the fu the fakirs, who escorted her with their wild, religious cries

Phileas Fogg and his co in the rear ranks of the crowd, followed; and in two minutes they reached the banks of the stream, and stopped fifty paces from the pyre, upon which still lay the rajah's corpse In the semi-obscurity they saw the victim, quite senseless, stretched out beside her husband's body

Then a torch was brought, and the wood, heavily soaked with oil, instantly took fire

At this , who, in an instant of enerosity, was about to rush upon the pyre But he had quickly pushed theed A cry of terror arose The whole round

The old rajah was not dead, then, since he rose of a sudden, like a spectre, took up his wife in his arms, and descended from the pyre in the hostly appearance

Fakirs and soldiers and priests, seized with instant terror, lay there, with their faces on the ground, not daring to lift their eyes and behold such a prodigy

The inaniorous arms which supported her, and which she did not see and Sir Francis stood erect, the Parsee bowed his head, and Passepartout was, no doubt, scarcely less stupefied

The resuscitated rajah approached Sir Francis and Mr Fogg, and, in an abrupt tone, said, ”Let us be off!”

It was Passepartout himself, who had slipped upon the pyre in thedarkness, had delivered the young wo his part with a happy audacity, had passed through the crowd aeneral terror

A moment after all four of the party had disappeared in the woods, and the elephant was bearing them away at a rapid pace

But the cries and noise, and a ball which whizzed through Phileas Fogg's hat, told them that the trick had been discovered