Jules verne around the world in eighty days

Jules VERNE

AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS

1. Phileas Fogg and Passepartout accept each other:
the one as master, the other as man

Mr. Phileas Fogg lived, in 1872, at No. 7, Saville Row, Burlington
Gardens, the house in which Sheridan died in 1816. He was one of the most
Noticeable members of the Reform Club, though he seemed always to avoid
Attracting attention; an enigmatical personage, about whom little was
Known, except that he was as a polished man the world. People said that he
Resembled Byron, – at least that his head was Byronic; but he was a
Bearded, tranquil Byron, who might live on a thousand years without
Growing old.
Certainly an Englishman, it was more doubtful whether Phileas Fogg
Was a Londoner. He was never seen on ‘Change, nor at the Bank, nor in the
Counting-rooms of the “City;” no ships ever came into London docks of
Which he was the owner; he had no public employment; he had never been
Entered at any of the Inns of Court, either at the Temple, or Lincoln’s
Inn, or Gray’s Inn; nor had his voice ever resounded in the Court of
Chancery, or in the Exchequer, or the Queen’s Bench, or the Ecclesiastical
Courts. He certainly was not a manufacturer; nor was he a merchant or a
Gentleman farmer. His name was strange to the scientific and learned
Societies, and he never was known to take part in the sage deliberations
Of the Royal Institution or the London Institution, the Artisans
‘Association or the Institution of Arts and Sciences. He belonged, in
Fact, to none of the numerous societies which swarm in the English
Capital, from the Harmonic to that of the Entomologists, founded mainly
For the purpose of abolishing pernicious insects.
Phileas Fogg was a member of the Reform, and that was all.
The way in which he got admission to this exclusive

club was simple
Enough.
He was recommended by the Barings, with whom he had an open credit.
His checks were regularly paid at sight from his account current, which
Was always flush.
Was Phileas Fogg rich? Undoubtedly. But those who knew him best could
Not imagine how he had made his fortune, and Mr. Fogg was the last person
To whom to apply for the information. He was not lavish, nor, on the
Contrary, avaricious; for whenever he knew that money was needed for a
Noble, useful, or benevolent purpose, he supplied it quickly, and
Sometimes anonymously. He was, in short, the least communicative of men.
He talked very little, and seemed all the more mysterious for his taciturn
Manner. His daily habits were quite open to observation; but whatever he
Did was so exactly the same thing that he had always done before, that the
Wits of the curious were fairly puzzled.
Had he travelled? It was likely, for no one seemed to know the world
More familiarly; there was no spot so secluded that he did not appear to
Have an intimate acquaintance with it. He often corrected, with a few
Clear words, the thousand conjectures advanced by members of the club as
To lost and unheard-of travellers, pointing out the true probabilities,
And seeming as if gifted with a sort of second sight, so often did events
Justify his predictions. He must have travelled everywhere, at least in
The spirit.
It was at least certain that Phileas Fogg had not absented himself
From London for many years. Those who were honored by a better