Herbert was going to propose to give it the engineer’s name and all his companions would have applauded him, when Cyrus Harding said simply,—­

“Let us give it the name of a great citizen, my friend; of him who now struggles to defend the unity of the American Republic!  Let us call it Lincoln Island!”

The engineer’s proposal was replied to by three hurrahs.

And that evening, before sleeping, the new colonists talked of their absent country; they spoke of the terrible war which stained it with blood; they could not doubt that the South would soon be subdued, and that the cause of the North, the cause of justice, would triumph, thanks to Grant, thanks to Lincoln!

Now this happened the 30th of March, 1865.  They little knew that sixteen days afterwards a frightful crime would be committed in Washington, and that on Good Friday Abraham Lincoln would fall by the hand of a fanatic.

Chapter 12

They now began the descent of the mountain.  Climbing down the crater, they went round the cone and reached their encampment of the previous night.  Pencroft thought it must be breakfast-time, and the watches of the reporter and engineer were therefore consulted to find out the hour.

That of Gideon Spilett had been preserved from the sea-water, as he had been thrown at once on the sand out of reach of the waves.  It was an instrument of excellent quality, a perfect pocket chronometer, which the reporter had not forgotten to wind up carefully every day.

As to the engineer’s watch, it, of course, had stopped during the time which he had passed on the downs.

The engineer now wound it up, and ascertaining by the height of the sun that it must be about nine o’clock in the morning, he put his watch at that hour.

“No, my dear Spilett, wait.  You have kept the Richmond time, have you not?”

“Yes, Cyrus.”

“Consequently, your watch is set by the meridian of that town, which is almost that of Washington?”

“Undoubtedly.”

“Very well, keep it thus.  Content yourself with winding it up very, exactly, but do not touch the hands.  This may be of use to us.

“What will be the good of that?” thought the sailor.

They ate, and so heartily, that the store of game and almonds was totally exhausted.  But Pencroft was not at all uneasy, they would supply themselves on the way.  Top, whose share had been very much to his taste, would know how to find some fresh game among the brushwood.  Moreover, the sailor thought of simply asking the engineer to manufacture some powder and one or two fowling-pieces; he supposed there would be no difficulty in that.

On leaving the plateau, the captain proposed to his companions to return to the Chimneys by a new way.  He wished to reconnoiter Lake Grant, so magnificently framed in trees.  They therefore followed the crest of one of the spurs, between which the creek that supplied the lake probably had its source.  In talking, the settlers already employed the names which they had just chosen, which singularly facilitated the exchange of their ideas.  Herbert and Pencroft—­the one young and the other very boyish—­were enchanted, and while walking, the sailor said,