That was the opportunity Paul desired.
He seized the anchor that was in the bow of the fellow's boat and dropped it in the stream.

The boat swung around and hung there, and Paul paddled away.

When quite a distance down he heard faint cries of "Captain, Captain, where are you ?" The boatman thought he was drifting; but Boyton never saw him again.
Below Ancenes Paul was met by Jules Verne, the distinguished novelist, who came up the river on a boat rowed by some of his sailors.

He accompanied the voyager all the way to Nantes, where the trip terminated.

The two men became great friends, the navigator enjoying the novelist's hospitality on his yacht and also at his residence in Nantes.