Chapter X. IN WHICH PASSEPARTOUT IS ONLY TOO GLAD TO GET OFF WITH THE LOSS OF HIS SHOES

Everybody knows that the great reversed triangle of land, with its base in the north and its apex in the south, which is called India, embraces fourteen hundred thousand square miles, upon which is spread unequally a population of one hundred and eighty millions of souls. The British Crown exercises a real and despotic dominion over the larger portion of this vast country, and has a governor-general stationed at Calcutta, governors at Madras, Bombay, and in Bengal, and a lieutenant-governor at Agra.

But British India, properly so called, only embraces seven hundred thousand square miles, and a population of from one hundred to one hundred and ten millions of inhabitants. A considerable portion of India is still free from British authority; and there are certain ferocious rajahs in the interior who are absolutely independent. The celebrated East India Company was all-powerful from 1756, when the English first gained a foothold on the spot where now stands the city of Madras, down to the time of the great Sepoy insurrection. It gradually annexed province after province, purchasing them of the native chiefs, whom it seldom paid, and appointed the governor-general and his subordinates, civil and military. But the East India Company has now passed away, leaving the British possessions in India directly under the control of the Crown. The aspect of the country, as well as the manners and distinctions of race, is daily changing.

Formerly one was obliged to travel in India by the old cumbrous methods of going on foot or on horseback, in palanquins or unwieldy coaches; now fast steamboats ply on the Indus and the Ganges, and a great railway, with branch lines joining the main line at many points on its route, traverses the peninsula from Bombay to Calcutta in three days. This railway does not run in a direct line across India. The distance between Bombay and Calcutta, as the bird flies, is only from one thousand to eleven hundred miles; but the deflections of the road increase this distance by more than a third.

The general route of the Great Indian Peninsula Railway is as follows: Leaving Bombay, it passes through Salcette, crossing to the continent opposite Tannah, goes over the chain of the Western Ghauts, runs thence north-east as far as Burhampoor, skirts the nearly independent territory of Bundelcund, ascends to Allahabad, turns thence eastwardly, meeting the Ganges at Benares, then departs from the river a little, and, descending south-eastward by Burdivan and the French town of Chandernagor, has its terminus at Calcutta.

The passengers of the Mongolia went ashore at half-past four p.m.; at exactly eight the train would start for Calcutta.

Mr. Fogg, after bidding good-bye to his whist partners, left the steamer, gave his servant several errands to do, urged it upon him to be at the station promptly at eight, and, with his regular step, which beat to the second, like an astronomical clock, directed his steps to the passport office. As for the wonders of Bombay—its famous city hall, its splendid library, its forts and docks, its bazaars, mosques, synagogues, its Armenian churches, and the noble pagoda on Malabar Hill, with its two polygonal towers—he cared not a straw to see them. He would not deign to examine even the masterpieces of Elephanta, or the mysterious hypogea, concealed south-east from the docks, or those fine remains of Buddhist architecture, the Kanherian grottoes of the island of Salcette.

Having transacted his business at the passport office, Phileas Fogg repaired quietly to the railway station, where he ordered dinner. Among the dishes served up to him, the landlord especially recommended a certain giblet of "native rabbit," on which he prided himself.

Mr. Fogg accordingly tasted the dish, but, despite its spiced sauce, found it far from palatable. He rang for the landlord, and, on his appearance, said, fixing his clear eyes upon him, "Is this rabbit, sir?"

"Yes, my lord," the rogue boldly replied, "rabbit from the jungles."

"And this rabbit did not mew when he was killed?"

"Mew, my lord! What, a rabbit mew! I swear to you—"

"Be so good, landlord, as not to swear, but remember this: cats were formerly considered, in India, as sacred animals. That was a good time."

"For the cats, my lord?"

"Perhaps for the travellers as well!"

After which Mr. Fogg quietly continued his dinner. Fix had gone on shore shortly after Mr. Fogg, and his first destination was the headquarters of the Bombay police. He made himself known as a London detective, told his business at Bombay, and the position of affairs relative to the supposed robber, and nervously asked if a warrant had arrived from London. It had not reached the office; indeed, there had not yet been time for it to arrive. Fix was sorely disappointed, and tried to obtain an order of arrest from the director of the Bombay police. This the director refused, as the matter concerned the London office, which alone could legally deliver the warrant. Fix did not insist, and was fain to resign himself to await the arrival of the important document; but he was determined not to lose sight of the mysterious rogue as long as he stayed in Bombay. He did not doubt for a moment, any more than Passepartout, that Phileas Fogg would remain there, at least until it was time for the warrant to arrive.

Passepartout, however, had no sooner heard his master's orders on leaving the Mongolia than he saw at once that they were to leave Bombay as they had done Suez and Paris, and that the journey would be extended at least as far as Calcutta, and perhaps beyond that place. He began to ask himself if this bet that Mr. Fogg talked about was not really in good earnest, and whether his fate was not in truth forcing him, despite his love of repose, around the world in eighty days!

Having purchased the usual quota of shirts and shoes, he took a leisurely promenade about the streets, where crowds of people of many nationalities—Europeans, Persians with pointed caps, Banyas with round turbans, Sindes with square bonnets, Parsees with black mitres, and long-robed Armenians—were collected. It happened to be the day of a Parsee festival. These descendants of the sect of Zoroaster—the most thrifty, civilised, intelligent, and austere of the East Indians, among whom are counted the richest native merchants of Bombay—were celebrating a sort of religious carnival, with processions and shows, in the midst of which Indian dancing-girls, clothed in rose-coloured gauze, looped up with gold and silver, danced airily, but with perfect modesty, to the sound of viols and the clanging of tambourines. It is needless to say that Passepartout watched these curious ceremonies with staring eyes and gaping mouth, and that his countenance was that of the greenest booby imaginable.

Unhappily for his master, as well as himself, his curiosity drew him unconsciously farther off than he intended to go. At last, having seen the Parsee carnival wind away in the distance, he was turning his steps towards the station, when he happened to espy the splendid pagoda on Malabar Hill, and was seized with an irresistible desire to see its interior. He was quite ignorant that it is forbidden to Christians to enter certain Indian temples, and that even the faithful must not go in without first leaving their shoes outside the door. It may be said here that the wise policy of the British Government severely punishes a disregard of the practices of the native religions.

Passepartout, however, thinking no harm, went in like a simple tourist, and was soon lost in admiration of the splendid Brahmin ornamentation which everywhere met his eyes, when of a sudden he found himself sprawling on the sacred flagging. He looked up to behold three enraged priests, who forthwith fell upon him; tore off his shoes, and began to beat him with loud, savage exclamations. The agile Frenchman was soon upon his feet again, and lost no time in knocking down two of his long-gowned adversaries with his fists and a vigorous application of his toes; then, rushing out of the pagoda as fast as his legs could carry him, he soon escaped the third priest by mingling with the crowd in the streets.

At five minutes before eight, Passepartout, hatless, shoeless, and having in the squabble lost his package of shirts and shoes, rushed breathlessly into the station.

Fix, who had followed Mr. Fogg to the station, and saw that he was really going to leave Bombay, was there, upon the platform. He had resolved to follow the supposed robber to Calcutta, and farther, if necessary. Passepartout did not observe the detective, who stood in an obscure corner; but Fix heard him relate his adventures in a few words to Mr. Fogg.

"I hope that this will not happen again," said Phileas Fogg coldly, as he got into the train. Poor Passepartout, quite crestfallen, followed his master without a word. Fix was on the point of entering another carriage, when an idea struck him which induced him to alter his plan.

"No, I'll stay," muttered he. "An offence has been committed on Indian soil. I've got my man."

Just then the locomotive gave a sharp screech, and the train passed out into the darkness of the night.

Chapter XI. IN WHICH PHILEAS FOGG SECURES A CURIOUS MEANS OF CONVEYANCE AT A FABULOUS PRICE
Chapter IX. IN WHICH THE RED SEA AND THE INDIAN OCEAN PROVE PROPITIOUS TO THE DESIGNS OF PHILEAS FOGG

Footnotes

  1. noun: the steam-burning engine that pulls the train; sometimes used as a synecdoche to represent the whole train (synecdoche: a part represents the whole: "hands" represents all sailors on shipboard)

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  2. A reference to Fogg since Fogg is the employer responsible for Passepartout's actions.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  3. Referring to Passepartout's inadvertent (accidental, unwitting) violation of the sanctity of the Hindu he improperly visited.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  4. adjective, figure of speech, metaphor: one who is emotionally saddened and psychologically stripped of confidence and importance; metaphor derived from fowls with head-crests that are fallen due to illness or mating rejection  

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  5. adjective: hidden; unseen; unknown; unperceived

    Detective Fix is standing in a corner that is hidden from view or so remote that it is unperceived.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  6. adjective: breathing in gasps; breathing with difficulty, particularly as from exertion or as in shock

    Passepartout is breathing in gasps and with difficulty from having run shoeless and hatless from the attacking priests at the temple he inadvertently (accidentally) violated.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  7. Fogg is here complaining about being given cat meat, under the guise of "rabbit," to eat.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  8. In India, as in Egypt, cats were among the animals that were worship as gods, or "deified," and whose heads were added to statues of gods, making them "godheads."

    Fogg is reminding the innkeeper that cats in India had at one time been diefied godheads, which means that killing and eating cats was once a crime that might have been given the death penalty.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  9. verb (present participle form): mixing freely with something; move easily with or through something

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  10. noun: the act of putting something to use; acting to use something in a given way

    Passepartout engaged in the act of applying his toes to his problem of escape, perhaps pinching or shoving with them; remember, he was a tightrope walker who embraced a thin wire with his toes.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  11. adjective: flexible; able to move speedily and surely

    Recall that Passepartout had been a circus performer and gymnastics instructor.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  12. noun: yells that are loud; cries or remarks of anger or pain; violent outbursts

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  13. idiom, figure of speech: to attack suddenly, without warning; to encounter viciously

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  14. Flooring that is in a holy place and has been dedicated to a holy purpose.

    sacred, adjective
    dedicated to a holy and religious purpose

    flagging, noun
    derived from flagstone, indicating flooring covering made of flagstone

    flagstone, noun
    flagstone is a sedimentary rock commonly used for flooring and laid in squares like tiles

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  15. verb (present participle form): spread out, laying down, with arms and legs in awkward positions as if thrown there

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  16. noun: the highest Indian caste; the highest Hindu priesthood caste; something reflective of the priesthood caste

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  17. verb: variant of "spy"; to catch sight of something; to see something

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  18. adjective: simple with limited luxuries; strict in attitude, manner and simple appearance

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  19. The ancient Persian (Iranian) prophet who re-envisioned the Persian pantheon of gods and reduced them to two forces: Ahura Mazda (Illuminating Wisdom) embodying Good and Angra Mainyu (Destructive Spirit) embodying Evil. Zoroastrianism is said to have influenced later religions like Judaism, Gnosticism and Islam.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  20. According to available records, this is actually an odd description of Armenian clothing because the men wore full, gathered trousers, most often ending below the knee but occasionally going to the ankle, and waist-length waistcoats covered by calf-length outer coats called the chuka.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  21. People of the Indo-European country of Armenia, situated east of Turkey, north of Iran (then Persia) and south of what is now Georgia, with the Black Sea to the northwest and the Caspian Sea to the east.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  22. Tall hat constructed with a tall triangle in front and an equal triangle in back with a cleft between the two; often of silk that is highly decorated and richly adorned.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  23. Persian descendants of Zoroastrians and adherents of Zoroastrianism who fled from Persia to India in the 600-700s to escape Muslim invasion [see also Chapter IX "Parsees"].

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  24. "greenest booby":*** archaic,* idiom** (idioms depend upon culturally agreed meaning to succeed; we've let go the agreement on this one): meaning the most naive, inexperienced, stupid traveler one could possibly imagine

    green, noun
    inexperienced; naive; gullible

    booby, adjective
    from the Spanish bobo meaning "stupid person; slow bird" (Online Etymology)

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  25. noun: a small round percussion instrument encircled by small cymbals, which is played with the hands and wrists, that jangles and clangs.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  26. noun: Renaissance musical bowed instrument with six strings held in an upright vertical position, similar to the upright playing position for a cello.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  27. The hats worn by the Sindes were stiff, usually shiny, silk shaped as angular quadrilaterals or hexagonals (four-sided or six-sided) that were capped with flat, over-reaching tops. They might also have decorating panels up the front or sides of the "bonnets."

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  28. An ancient people of India occupying an area in the northwest corner of India (in present day Pakistan) on the west coast north of Bombay. They were known in every ancient civilization, for example, in Greece, they were known as Indus while in China they were known as Sintow. They were associated with the River Sindhu, now called the Indus River.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  29. A headdress made of long lengths of silk or cotton that is wound round and round the man's head and tucked in, especially used by Indian Hindus, Indian Sikhs (of a religion that is neither Hindu nor Muslim), or Muslims.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  30. Hindu Indians of a merchant caste from west and north India [see also Chapter IX "Banyans"].

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  31. Tall caps or hats worn by the upper class that were worn round the head, above the ears (where hats are worn today), the front of which sloped toward the crown of the head while the back of which rose at a much less severely sloping angle to the crown where the top narrowed to an single tubular section from which was appended a long tassel hanging directly down the back past the shortened hair and the neck.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  32. verb (also a noun): to walk about calmly, leisurely; to walk about with no aim or hurry; to amble

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  33. Syntax phrasing meaning Passepartout realizes that his course is truly (expressed in a positive negated verb that precedes a positive: "was not in truth") compelling onward, he who ironically only wants sit still.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  34. idiom,* figure of speech,* variant of "in earnest": meaning to have or express a purposeful, sincere intent; to be genuinely and sincerely determined on a course of action or decision etc.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  35. verb: to accept the unavoidable though unpleasant truth about something

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  36. adjective (Fix was fain): be willing; be pleased; be accommodating to do something

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  37. Fix has not received the warrant of arrest from the London police commissioner so he tries to get around the problem by getting one from the commissioner of the Bombay police.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  38. verb: to acquire or to get, e.g., to get or obtain the warrant of arrest

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  39. adverb: keenly; to a high degree; intensely

    Fix was keenly and intensely disappointed that the warrant of arrest had not arrived in Mumbai in time for him to arrest Fogg.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  40. adjective (that are relative): something that exists in relation to something; something depending on something else

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  41. A variation of "meow."

    Fogg is suggesting (most unpleasantly) that the "native rabbit" from "the jungles" is actually an unfortunate cooked house cat.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  42. adjective: acceptable; pleasant or pleasing; tasty

    Despite the "spicy sauce" (hoping to add flavor to the dish), Fogg did not like the "gibet of 'native rabbit'."

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  43. noun: the heart, liver, gizzard of a rabbit or fowl, e.g., chicken or turkey

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  44. Kanheri caves: Deep in mountain forest north of Bombay, hand-worked rock-cut chambers in mountains that were carved as viharas (monasteries), stupas, and Chaitya grihas (temples). The earliest chambers were simple and unadorned but later ones are adorned exquisitely and in precise detail. Dating from the 100 BC to 900 AD.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  45. Buddhist religious function buildings of these types: (1) viharas (monasteries), (2) stupas, and (3) Chaitya grihas (temples). They serve the practices of (1) shelter and ritual monasticism, (2) protection of relics, and as (3) the abode of gods and place of sacrifice, respectively.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  46. hypogeum (plural hypogea), noun: underground chamber or vault of an ancient building, often a catacomb, or burial chamber

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  47. A southerly or southeasterly wind that blows across the west coast of India, which marks the end of the autumn southwest monsoon season. The Elephanta blows one month between September and October in a direction oppositional to the monsoon wind.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  48. verb: to condescend; to lower oneself; lower oneself to do something beneath one's dignity

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  49. Made famous by merchant trader Chovvakkaran Moosa in the 1700s, it was an elegant area where the governor of Bombay had a residence and where the Silhara kings (Hindu ruling dynasty, 810-1240)  founded the Walkeshwar Temple.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  50. Places of prayer and worship for followers of the branch of Christian worship called Armenian Apostolic. It dates back to 300 AD and traces its origins to the missionary trip taken by the Apostles Bartholomew and Thaddeus, who were part of the twelve appointed as disciples and given power to preach and perform miracles (Matthew 3:13-18).

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  51. The religious house for gathering for Jews to worship, pray and receive instruction.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  52. A marketplace in India and Middle Eastern countries; often an out-of-doors marketplace.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  53. A complex clock with special mechanisms and an additional raised dial that tells astronomical information like zodiac constellation alignment and the positions of sun, moon and major planets.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  54. The Bombay train station, the westerly most point that is the beginning of the Great Indian Peninsula Railway Line route to Calcutta in the east.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  55. On the west India coast, the destination of the steamship Magnolia after crossing the Arabian Sea, which is the end of the Suez Canal route.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  56. The general route of the railroad connection to East India is northerly to easterly to southerly. The route begins from Bombay (now Mumbai) in a general northerly direction, then crosses the west coast mountain range in a northeasterly direction proceeding to a north-central position below central Nepal and from there turns gently to a southeasterly direction to terminate in the southeastern corner at Calcutta (now Kolkata) on the north side of the Bay of Bengal, the northern annex to the Indian Ocean.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  57. On the north of the Bay of Bengal in the eastern corner of India.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  58. noun: the end point; the end of a railroad route; the station at the end point

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  59. To the southeast of Burdivan and north of Calcutta (Kolkata).

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  60. In central eastern India, below the eastern corner of Nepal and west of present day Bangladesh. Now spelled Bardhaman or Burdwan.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  61. To the east of Allahabad and at the Ganges River. Now spelled Varanasi, it is also called the "city of temples" and thought to be a holy place to die for Hindus because of its connection to the Ganges River, which is a holy river for Hindus.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  62. A region in north central India. originally home of the Chedi Kingdom. Now spelled Bundelkhand.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  63. About 300 miles northeast of Bombay in the Pradesh state. Now spelled Burhanpu.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  64. Mountain chain running down the west coast of India, separating Bombay, on the coastal stretch, from the interior. Now spelled "Ghats."

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  65. In South Goa, in the state of Goa, India, on the west coast very near to Bombay, now Mumbai.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  66. The Ganges River originating in the Himalayas and flowing to the southeast to empty into the Bay of Bengal, to the east of and below Calcutta (then Calcutta, now Kolkata), which is on the east coast of India and a northern annex of the Indian Ocean.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  67. The Indus River originating in Tibet to flow through northern India and Kashmir westward to empty in the Arabian Sea.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  68. adjective: large and awkward; clumsy to move around; difficult because of size,  shape or weight

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  69. noun: travel conveyance in India and Asia; a litter; a large box carried on two long poles by human bearers

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  70. cumberous, adjective, archaic; the same as cumbersome: troublesome, clumsy, awkward

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  71. verb (past participle form), polite: to do as asked or bidden; required to perform according to what was necessary or available

    In the past, travel was restricted to other modes, therefore travelers were "obliged" or required to accommodate themselves to the other modes and routes of travel.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  72. The similar habits and the differences displayed by the collection of peoples of different ethnic backgrounds gathered in Suez.

    manners, noun
    the way in which things are said or done in a society or by a specific individual

    distinctions, noun
    differences and contrasts between how similar things are done by different groups or individuals

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  73. The way in which India is considered; the quality it appears to have.

    aspect, noun
    particular appearance by which something can be considered; a particular quality about something

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  74. Still speaking of the East India Company while in its height of power.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  75. Sepoy Rebellion: the rebellion of Indian troops in British military forces.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  76. The East India Company lost power and the influence of the British in India changed (for the worse) when the British Crown took over (nationalized) the Company.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  77. In the interior of India.

    This implies that the British government cannot reach as far as these fierce rajah kings who dwell in the heart of the vast Indian subcontinent.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  78. noun phrase (adjective + noun): meaning princes or kings who are violently fierce and savage

    ferocious, adjective
    savage, fierce, cruel

    rajah, noun
    an Indian prince of ruler

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  79. adjective: tyrannical; cruel, oppressive absolute power

    Author Jules Verne is making a strong statement denouncing (against) England's Imperialism in colonized India.

    — Karen P.L. Hardison

  80. literary device, metonymy [the general (Crown) represents the specific (present monarch and government)]:

    *meaning: *the government of Great Britain in the person of Queen Victoria and in the collective power of the Parliament

    — Karen P.L. Hardison