So quickly did he go that there was little chance of seeing
anything clearly; but he had glimpses of many strange sights. Many
ships he saw upon the sea--small ships and stately steamers crawling
over the ocean like strange water-beetles. Once, as the Cloud Horse
drifted low, Neville saw a beautiful sailing-ship, with all sails set,
and strange-looking men upon the deck. They looked very like pirates,
and perhaps they were; but Neville had no time to make sure, for the
very next minute he was over a wild land where he saw a horde of black
men, with spears and clubs, hunting an elephant through a clearing in
a great jungle. As he looked, the elephant turned to charge the
hunters; but what happened then Neville did not see, for in a moment
more he was above a great city with crowds of people in the
streets--people dressed in strange, bright-coloured clothes--and there
were bells ringing and whistles blowing. Then a great desert spread
beneath him, with no living thing in sight but a great tawny lion
prowling over the sand. Then came the sea again, and more ships; and
the light began to grow dim, for he was nearly half-way round the
earth, and was approaching the dawn.
Dimmer grew the light, and dimmer yet, just as though evening were
coming--and before him, Neville saw the dawn like a silvery gateway in
the sky.
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