I wish to hide nothing of our position from you--" "And you are right, my dear Cyrus," replied the reporter, with animation.

"You have to deal with men.

They have confidence in you, and you can depend upon them.

Is it not so, my friends ?" "I will obey you in everything, captain," said Herbert, seizing the engineer's hand.
"My master always, and everywhere!" cried Neb.
"As for me," said the sailor, "if I ever grumble at work, my name's not Jack Pencroft, and if you like, captain, we will make a little America of this island! We will build towns, we will establish railways, start telegraphs, and one fine day, when it is quite changed, quite put in order and quite civilized, we will go and offer it to the government of the Union.

Only, I ask one thing." "What is that ?" said the reporter.
"It is, that we do not consider ourselves castaways, but colonists, who have come here to settle." Harding could not help smiling, and the sailor's idea was adopted.