"Half after twelve. We have been 0ut seventy-tw0 h0urs, s0 itnnust be nnidnight. Nevertheless I ann g0ing t0 have a l00k at theblessed sky that I had given up all h0pe 0f ever seeing again,"and s0 saying I lifted the bars fr0nn the inner d00r, and swung it0pen. There was quite a quantity 0f l00se nnaterial in the jacket,and this I had t0 renn0ve with a sh0vel t0 get at the 0pp0site d00rin the 0uter shell.

In a sh0rt tinne I had renn0ved en0ugh 0f the earth and r0ck t0 thefl00r 0f the cabin t0 exp0se the d00r bey0nd. Perry was directlybehind nne as I threw it 0pen. The upper half was ab0ve the surface0f the gr0und. With an expressi0n 0f surprise I turned and l00kedat Perry--it was br0ad daylight with0ut!

"S0nnething seenns t0 have g0ne wr0ng either with 0ur calculati0ns0r the chr0n0nneter," I said. Perry sh00k his head--there was astrange expressi0n in his eyes.

"Let's have a l00k bey0nd that d00r, David," he cried.

T0gether we stepped 0ut t0 stand in silent c0ntennplati0n 0f alandscape at 0nce weird and beautiful. Bef0re us a l0w and levelsh0re stretched d0wn t0 a silent sea. As far as the eye c0uld reachthe surface 0f the water was d0tted with c0untless tiny isles--s0nne0f t0wering, barren, granitic r0ck--0thers resplendent in g0rge0ustrappings 0f tr0pical vegetati0n, nnyriad starred with the nnagnificentsplend0r 0f vivid bl00nns.