7 Phileas Fogg, Passepartout

CHAPTER 7 Phileas Fogg, Passepartout, and Sir Francis Have an Adventure Nestled up to their necks in the howdahs, Sir Francis and Phileas were tossed about by the elephant as she ran through the forest. Ali had told them that they could save a lot

of time by taking a shortcut, and so there they were, but it was much rougher than the normal road. Passepartout bounced around on the elephant's back. It may have hurt, but Passepartout was enjoying himself. He felt like a clown on a vault. The men rode through a thick forest and then through dry fields. They saw some animals—mainly monkeys—that Passepartout quite liked. The passengers were a bit scared of traveling through this rough territory on the way to Allahabad. They knew there were gangs of bandits who ruled the lands there and no one wanted any trouble. Although he loved being atop an elephant, Passepartout wondered what the monsieur was going to do with Kiouni once they arrived at Allahabad. He thought about this for a long while as they moved swiftly along. By that evening, the men had gone half the

distance to the other railway station. It was a cold night. They stopped at a run-down hut, where their guide lit a nice warm fire. Kiouni slept outside, leaning up against a large tree. Soon the snores of the travelers floated through the air. By six o'clock the next morning, they were on the way again. Ali wanted to get them to the railway station that evening. This meant that Phileas would only lose a small bit of the time he had gained since starting his trip. With only twelve miles to go, the men stopped under a banana tree and had a snack. After the break, Ali led Kiouni back into the forest. They had avoided all signs of the bandits so far and he wanted to keep it that way. Suddenly Kiouni stopped. "What's the matter?" Sir Francis asked. He stuck his head out of his howdah. The men heard loud voices coming through the woods.

"Quickly," Ali said. "We must hide." He led Kiouni off the trail so the people who were coming wouldn't see them. The clanging of instruments and loud voices crept closer and closer. A group of men dressed in costumes pulled a cart with an ugly statue on it. Sir Francis whispered, "Do you think they've seen us?" Ali made a motion with his hand for him to be quiet. Some of the men danced around the statue. Many of them were wearing long robes. Another group pulled a woman behind them. She fell down with almost every step she took. She was young, pretty, and wore gems on her hands, feet, neck, arms, and legs. The guards who followed her carried giant sabers and very sharp swords. "I think they mean to harm that poor girl," Sir Francis whispered. "I think you're right," Phileas said. "She

must be a princess. Look at the way she is dressed. I have twelve hours to spare—we must save her!" "Agreed!" Sir Francis said. "Agreed!" Passepartout added. "If they catch you, they will surely torture you," Ali said. "But you have my help as well. The girl they have captured is the daughter of a wealthy merchant in Bombay. Her name is Aouda. She is very famous." "That makes sense. They must have captured her for the ransom her family would pay to get her back!" Phileas said. "Let's think of a plan. It might be best to wait for the cover of darkness." Everyone nodded. "We should move our camp closer to them. That way we can see what they're doing," Sir Francis added. They tied up Kiouni and made their way closer to the camp. A large fire burned and they heard a great commotion. The men

planned to cut open the wall of the hut where the girl was being kept and steal her away. They waited until it was dark and the guards had fallen asleep. Then Passepartout and Ali slipped away and started breaking down the wall. Phileas and Sir Francis watched from behind a nearby tree. "Oh, no!" Phileas whispered. "The guard has woken up! We've got to do something before he finds Passepartout." The two men slowly snuck up behind the guard and hit him on the head. They didn't want to hurt him too badly. They just wanted to make sure he stayed asleep. Sir Francis and Phileas joined Passepartout and Ali digging away at the wall. Finally they were through! The poor girl lay on the bed. She looked half-dead. Passepartout carefully picked her up. "Hurry!" Phileas said, "we've got to get out of here right away!"