impossible to him now. "It would be rather
jolly to see what it's like at the other end, and it's no use stopping
here. Do you know your way from the Equator?" he added, turning to the
Dodo.

"Yes," said the bird, who was quite ready to start on the perilous
voyage, and, grasping Fidge by the hand, he gave a loud whoop, and began
to slide down the steep incline.

"Well, good-by," cried Dick, hurriedly, shaking hands with the Walrus.
"Thanks for all your kindness." And, jumping on the sled behind
Marjorie, he pushed off, and they shot over the edge after the others.

They just caught a glimpse of the little dog throwing up his arms in
surprise, and as they disappeared into space they heard the old Walrus
crying, in an anxious voice--

"Gom back! gom back! I forgot to tell you somedings."

CHAPTER X.

SOME NEW ACQUAINTANCES.

It was all very well for the Walrus to shout "Come back!" but _that_ was
a matter of utter impossibility, for down--and down--and down the
children sped at a terrific rate, so quickly indeed that after a moment
or two they must have lost their senses completely, for not one of them
could remember anything about the marvelous journey through the center
of the earth.

"It seemed," Dick explained afterwards, "as though we were falling
through a big black hole for hours and hours, and then, all of a sudden,
it was light again, and we shot out into the air at the other end."

The children were greatly relieved to find that they were not expected
to walk on their heads, as they had vaguely feared might have been the
case on the other side of the world. "But, of course," Marjorie
explained, "we are not really _quite_ on the other side, or we should
be at the South Pole, and that would be as cold as where we came from,
wouldn't it, Dick?"

"I suppose so," answered Dick, looking about him. "Well, this place is
hot enough, anyhow, whew!" and he unbuttoned the heavy fur coat which he
had been glad enough to put on a short time before.

"We are probably somewhere near the Equator," remarked the Dodo,
pointing to the palms and other tropical plants to be seen on every
side. "I've heard that this sort of thing grows there."

"In that case we have only to find out where the sea is, and wait on the
shore for a passing ship to come and take us back to England," said
Marjorie, who was as fond as her brother of reading books of adventure,
and so knew exactly what to expect under the circumstances