Captain Nemo showed me the instruments on the walls of his room. "These tools help me guide the Nautilus," Captain Nemo said. "They show me where I am in the middle of the ocean." I saw many tools that I knew.
He showed me a thermometer (an instrument that shows how hot or cold it is). He showed me a barometer (an instrument that shows changes in the weather). He also had a compass (a tool that shows direction) to find his way. Captain Nemo used these tools when the boat was on the surface.
I saw a dial with a needle. This was a manometer (a tool that shows how deep the boat is in the water). It showed the pressure of the water outside the boat. I did not know what the other instruments were. Captain Nemo began to explain.
"One power does everything on this boat," Captain Nemo said. "It gives us light and heat. It is the soul of my machines. That power is electricity (a type of energy used for power and light)."
"Electricity?" I asked. I was very surprised. I did not know electricity was so strong. I thought electricity was only for small things.
Captain Nemo explained his secret. He takes sodium (a part of salt) from the sea water. He uses this sodium to make electricity. "The ocean gives me everything," Captain Nemo said. "It gives me heat, light, and movement."
"But what about the air you breathe?" I asked.
"I can make air if I want," Captain Nemo said. "But I usually go to the surface for air. However, electricity runs the pumps. These pumps help us stay deep under the water for a long time."
Captain Nemo showed me an electric clock. It showed twenty-four hours. For Captain Nemo, there is no day or night under the sea. He uses man-made light all the time. It was ten o’clock in the morning.
Then Captain Nemo showed me another dial. It showed the speed of the Nautilus. "Look," Captain Nemo said. "We are traveling at fifteen miles an hour." This was very fast.
We walked to the back of the boat. The boat is about 105 feet long. It has many rooms like the dining room and the library. Each room has a very strong door. These doors stop water from coming in if there is a hole.
I saw an iron ladder in the middle of the boat. "Where does that go?" I asked. Captain Nemo said it led to a small boat. He kept the small boat in a special place on top of the Nautilus.
Captain Nemo explained how to use the small boat. He gets into it through a hole in the top of the Nautilus. Then he moves the small boat away. He can sail it on the water. When he wants to return, he sends an electric message. Then the Nautilus comes to him.
We walked past a small room. Ned Land and Conseil were there. They were eating their breakfast. They looked very happy. Next, we saw the kitchen.
The kitchen used electricity to cook the food. There was also a machine to make clean water for drinking. There was even a bathroom. It had hot and cold water for the crew.
Next, we went into the engine room (the room where the machines are). It was very large and bright. It was sixty-five feet long. I looked at the machines with interest. I wanted to understand how the boat moved.
Captain Nemo showed me the large magnets. They made electricity for the boat. This electricity moved the screw (the part of the boat that turns to move it through water). The screw was nineteen feet wide. It turned very fast.
"The Nautilus can travel at fifty miles an hour," Captain Nemo said. I was amazed. This boat was very powerful.
"But how do you move the boat up and down?" I asked. "How do you stay in the middle of the deep water?"
Captain Nemo did not answer yet. He told me to come to the large room. "I will explain everything there," Captain Nemo said. He promised to tell me all the secrets of the Nautilus.