There, sir! that is the perfection of vessels! And if it is true
that the engineer has more confidence in the vessel than the builder,
and the builder than the captain himself, you understand
the trust I repose in my Nautilus; for I am at once captain,
builder, and engineer."
"But how could you construct this wonderful Nautilus in secret?"
"Each separate portion, M. Aronnax, was brought from different
parts of the globe."
"But these parts had to be put together and arranged?"
"Professor, I had set up my workshops upon a desert island in the ocean.
There my workmen, that is to say, the brave men that I instructed
and educated, and myself have put together our Nautilus. Then, when the work
was finished, fire destroyed all trace of our proceedings on this island,
that I could have jumped over if I had liked."
"Then the cost of this vessel is great?"
"M. Aronnax, an iron vessel costs L145 per ton. Now the Nautilus weighed
1,500. It came therefore to L67,500, and L80,000 more for fitting it up,
and about L200,000, with the works of art and the collections it contains.
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