The storm pushed the Nautilus (the name of the submarine) to the east. All hope to escape near New York was gone. Ned Land was very sad. He stayed alone in his room. Conseil and Professor Aronnax stayed together.
The ship moved through thick fog (a low cloud that makes it difficult to see). Fog is very dangerous for sailors. Many ships hit rocks in the fog. We saw many wrecks (broken ships at the bottom of the sea) on the ocean floor. Some ships were very old. Others were new and shiny.
On May 15th, we were near Newfoundland. There are large hills of sand and mud under the water here. The warm Gulf Stream meets cold water from the north in this place. Many small sea animals die here. The water is not very deep.
On May 17th, I saw a long line on the sea floor. It was the telegraph cable (a long wire used to send messages under the ocean). Conseil thought it was a giant sea snake. I told Conseil it was a wire for messages. I told Conseil the history of the cable.
The first cable was built in 1858. It stopped working after 400 messages. In 1863, people tried again with a bigger cable. But that cable broke too. A man named Cyrus Field spent all his money to build a better one.
In 1866, a very big ship called the Great Eastern carried a new cable. Some people tried to break the cable with nails. The captain of the ship was very angry. He said he would throw those people into the sea. After that, nobody tried to break the cable again.
The work was successful on July 27th. America sent a message to Europe. The message spoke about peace on earth. The cable was covered in a strong material called gutta-percha (a type of natural rubber). This material protects the wires from the salt water.
The Nautilus (the submarine) followed the cable to the deep water. We reached a place where the ocean floor was like a wide valley. This valley was 100 miles wide. On May 28th, we were only 120 miles from Ireland.
Captain Nemo did not go to the land. He moved toward the south. We passed the coast of Ireland and England. Ned Land asked me many questions. I did not have the answers. Captain Nemo stayed in his room.
On May 31st, the ship moved in circles. Captain Nemo was looking for a specific place. He seemed very sad. Maybe he was thinking about his old home. I felt that something important was about to happen.
On June 1st, the ship continued to search. The sea was beautiful and the sky was clear. I saw a large ship far away. Captain Nemo used a sextant (a tool used to find a ship's position by looking at the sun). He looked at the sun very carefully.
Captain Nemo said, "It is here." He went inside the ship. I did not know if he saw the other ship. The windows of the Nautilus (the submarine) closed. The ship began to sink straight down. We stopped at the bottom of the sea.
Captain Nemo opened the windows. The light from the ship showed the sea floor. I saw a large object on the right side. It was a very old ship without its masts. It was covered in white shells. It looked like it was covered in snow.
Captain Nemo spoke in a slow voice. He said the ship was once called the Marseillais. It was a French warship with seventy-four guns. It was built in 1762. It fought many battles for France.
In 1794, the French government changed its name. It became the Avenger. On June 1st, 1794, the ship fought the English. It was exactly seventy-four years ago on this day. The ship was in this exact place in the ocean.
The ship was badly broken. It had a lot of water inside. Many sailors were hurt. But the sailors did not want to surrender. They stayed on the ship as it sank. They all cried, "Long live the Republic!"
Captain Nemo looked at the wreck. He crossed his arms. He called the ship a good name. He seemed very proud of the sailors who died there.