The Mighty Orinoco. Jules Verne

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       THE MIGHTY ORINOCO

      THE WESLEYAN

      EARLY CLASSICS OF

      SCIENCE FICTION

      SERIES

      GENERAL EDITOR

      ARTHUR B. EVANS

      Invasion of the Sea Jules Verne

      The Mysterious Island Jules Verne

      Lumen Camille Flammarion

      The Battle of the Sexes in Science Fiction Justine Larbalestier

      The Last Man Jean-Baptiste Cousin de Grainville

       THE MIGHTY ORINOCO

       JULES VERNE

      translated by STANFORD L. LUCE

      edited by ARTHUR B. EVANS

       introduction & notes by

      WALTER JAMES MILLER

      WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY PRESS Middletown, Connecticut

      Published by Wesleyan University Press,

      Middletown, CT 06459

      Translation © 2002 by Stanford L. Luce

      Introduction and notes © 2002 by Walter James Miller

      All rights reserved

      Set in Quadraat and Neuland types by BW&A Books, Inc.

      Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper

      ISBN 0–8195–6511–3 (cloth)

      ISBN 0–8195–6780-9 (paper)

      First paperback edition, 2005

      CIP data appear at the back of the book.

      5 4 3 2 1

      Cover illustration by George Roux.

       Contents

	Introduction, ix
	The Mighty Orinoco
	PART ONE
I	M. Miguel and His Two Colleagues, 3
II	Sergeant Martial and His Nephew, 16
III	On Board the Simón Bolívar, 27
IV	First Encounter, 39
V	The Maripare and the Gallinetta, 50
VI	Island after Island, 62
VII	Buena Vista to La Urbana, 75
VIII	A Cloud of Dust on the Horizon, 86
IX	Three Boats Navigating Together, 102
X	At the Mouth of the Meta, 114
XI	A Halt in the Village of Atures, 129
XII	A Few Observations by Germain Paterne, 144
XIII	Respect for the Tapir, 155
XIV	The Chubasco, 168
XV	San Fernando, 181
	PART TWO
I	A Few Words about the Past, 197
II	The First Leg of the Journey, 210
III	Two Days in Danaco, 223
IV	Final Advice from Manuel Assomption, 236
V	Beef Cows and Electric Eels, 248
VI	Terrible Fears, 262
VII	The Campsite near Maunoir Peak, 277
VIII	The Young Indian, 288
IX	Across the Sierra, 299
X	The Ford of Frascaès, 311
XI	The Mission of Santa Juana, 323
XII	En Route, 337
XIII	Two Months at the Mission, 348
XIV	Au Revoir! 361
	Notes, 371
	Bibliography, 395
	Jules Gabriel Verne: A Biography, 417
	About the Contributors, 425

       INTRODUCTION

      You