Around the world in 80 days

CHAPTER 1

Summary
Mr. Phileas Fogg lived at No. 7, Savile Row, Burlington Gardens. He was one of the most noticeable members of the Reform Club, about who little was known, except that he was a polished man of the world. Little was known of his history and his source of wealth. Many conjectured as to the nature of his past. It was likely that he had traveled a great deal though it was certain that he had not absented himself from London for many years. The first part of the first chapter is primarily devoted to the description of Mr. Fogg and his activities. His activities are described as being those of a meticulous man, highly organized, punctual and habitual.

When he breakfasted or dined all the resources of the club--its kitchens and pantries, its buttery and dairy--aided to crowd his table with their most succulent stores; he was served by the gravest waiters, in the best possible way. The mansion in Savile Row was exceedingly comfortable. The habits of its occupant demanded but little from the sole domestic, but Phileas Fogg required him to be superhumanly prompt and regular. He had dismissed James Forster, because that luckless youth had brought him shaving-water at a slightly different temperature than required. Passepartout had come for a job to Phileas Fogg and hoped to become the next valet. Mr. Fogg and Mr. Passepartout meet and finalize the nature of the services that Passepartout shall perform for Mr. Fogg. Mr. Passepartout is hired as a valet. Phileas Fogg then went off without a word. Passepartout heard the street door shut twice after his master and the previous servant left. Passepartout then remained alone in the house in Savile Row.

CHAPTER 2

Summary
During his brief interview with Mr. Fogg, Passepartout had been carefully observing him. He appeared to be a man about forty years of age, with fine, handsome features, and a tall, well shaped figure. His countenance possessed in the highest degree "repose in action," a quality of those who act rather than talk. Seen in the various phases of his daily life, he gave the idea of being perfectly well balanced. Phileas Fogg’s immaculate appearance and efficient behavior is now described.

As for Passepartout, he was a true Parisian of Paris. Since he had abandoned his own country for England, taking service as a valet, he had in vain searched for a master after his own heart. He was unlike other servants and had a certain class despite his colorful past. The author continues with his third person narrative - " It would be rash to predict how Passepartout’s lively nature would agree with Mr. Fogg. It was impossible to tell whether the new servant would turn out as absolutely methodical as his master required; experience alone could solve the question." Passepartout himself is described as a man who had been a sort of vagrant in his early years, and who now yearned for repose. Passepartout was desirous of respecting the gentleman whom he served. Hearing that Mr. Phileas Fogg was looking for a servant, and that his life was one of unbroken regularity, he felt sure that this would be the place he was after.

When Passepartout found himself alone in the house in Saville Row, he inspected it, and found the neatness quite to his liking. He observed, hung over the clock, a card which, upon inspection, proved to be a program of the daily routine of the house. It comprised all that was required of the servant, from morning till night. In short, the house, which must have been a very temple of disorder and unrest under the illustrious but dissipated Sheridan, was comfort, and method idealized. Passepartout is very pleased with the state of things and looks forward to his service with his master, Mr. Fogg.

CHAPTER 3

Summary
Phileas Fogg, reached the Reform Club, an imposing edifice in Pall Mall. He repaired at once to the dining room and took his place at the habitual table. His breakfast is minutely described. He then spent a considerable amount of time reading newspapers. Dinner passed as breakfast had done, and Mr. Fogg reappeared in the reading room. Mr. Fogg’s usual partners at whist appear and they all begin to discuss a famous robbery that had recently taken place at a bank in London. Phileas joins this conversation when he says that - ‘The Daily Telegraph says that he (the robber) is a gentleman."

The affair, which formed the subject, was this - A package of banknotes, to the value of fifty-five thousand pounds, had been taken from the principal cashier’s table. When the money was not found even at five o’clock, the amount was passed to the account of profit and loss. As soon as the robbery was discovered, picked detectives hastened off to various ports, inspired by the proffered reward of two thousand pounds, and five per cent on the sum that might be recovered. There were real grounds for supposing that the thief did not belong to a professional band but was a gentleman. The papers and clubs were full of the affair, and everywhere people were discussing the probabilities of a successful pursuit; and the Reform Club was especially agitated, several of its members being Bank officials.

Ralph and Stuart, both whist players argue whether the thief would be caught or not. Stuart questions - ‘Where could he (the thief) go, then?’’ Ralph replies - "Oh, I don’t know that. The world is big enough." It is here that Fogg once again joins the conversation, when he says - "It was once,". Phileas Fogg is questioned as to what he means by ‘once’ and then the conversation proceeds in such a way that Mr. Fogg declares that it is possible to go around the world in eighty days. John Sullivan supports this conjecture and shows the group the estimate made by the Daily Telegraph that claims that a journey round the world can be done in eighty days. Mr. Stuart thinks that the journey may sound plausible theoretically but is not feasible practically. He dares Mr. Fogg to complete such a feat himself and in his excitement, he puts a wager of four thousand. Phileas Fogg insists that he can carry out the exercise and says - "A true Englishman doesn’t joke when he is talking about so serious a thing as a wager," He bets twenty thousand pounds against anyone that he will make the tour of the world in eighty days or less. "We accept," replied Messrs. Stuart, Fallentin, Sullivan, Flanagan, and Ralph, after consulting each other.




Mr. Fogg decides to take the train to Dover that very evening and tells his challengers that he would be back in the Reform Club, on Saturday, the 21 st of December.

A memorandum of the wager was at once drawn up and signed by the six parties. The party offered to suspend the game so that Mr. Fogg might make his preparations for departure but the latter is calm and insists on playing some more.

CHAPTER 4

Summary
Having won twenty guineas at whist, Phileas Fogg takes leave of his friends. Passepartout, who had studied the program of his duties, was surprised to see his master guilty of the inexactness of appearing at an unaccustomed hour; for, according to rule, he was not due in Savile Row until midnight. Passerpartout is even more surprised when he is told that they shall be starting for Dover and Calais in ten minutes.

On being told that they shall be going around the world, Passerpartout is completely taken aback as he had been expecting a very quiet life with his master. The servant is told that they shall be travelling very light and would have no need of heavy trunks. Passepartout tried to reply to his master, but could not. He went out, mounted to his own room, fell into a chair, and muttered: "That’s good, that is! And I, who wanted to remain quiet!" He mechanically set about making the preparations for departure. He thinks that perhaps they would go as far as Paris, and it would do his eyes good to see Paris once more. By eight o’clock Passepartout had packed the modest carpet-bag, containing the wardrobes of his master and himself; then, still troubled in mind, he carefully shut the door of his room, and descended to Mr. Fogg.

Mr. Fogg was quite ready. Under his was a red bound copy of Bradshaw’s Continental Railway Steam Transit and General Guide, with its timetables showing the arrival and departure of steamers and railways. He took the carpetbag, opened it, and slipped into it a goodly roll of Bank of England notes, which would pass wherever he might go.

Passepartout is told to take care of the carpetbag as it has twenty thousand pounds in it. Master and man then descended, the street door was double locked, and they took a cab and drove rapidly to Charing Cross. When they reached the station, they came across a beggar woman who asked them for alms. Mr. Fogg is very generous and gives her twenty guineas. Passerpartout’s master’s action touched his susceptible heart.

Two first class tickets for Paris having been speedily purchased, Mr. Fogg was crossing the station to the train, when he perceived his five friends of the Reform. He tells them that they will be able to assure themselves that he has really been around the world, by checking his passport. Fogg and his servant then seated themselves in a first class carriage. The night was dark, and a fine, steady rain was falling. Phileas Fogg, snugly ensconced in his corner, did not open his lips. Passepartout, not yet recovered from his stupefaction, clung mechanically to the carpetbag, with its enormous treasure.

Just as the train was whirling through Sydenham, Passepartout suddenly realized that he had left the gas in his room on. "Very well, young man," returned Mr. Fogg, coolly; "it will burn at your expense."

CHAPTER 5

Summary
Phileas Fogg rightly suspected that his departure from London would create a lively sensation. The news of the bet spread through the Reform Club, and got into the papers throughout England. The boasted "tour of the world" was talked about, disputed and argued by many. Some took sides with Phileas Fogg, but the large majority shook their heads and declared against him. Those who did not support him declared, that the tour of the world could be made, but only theoretically. Numerous articles in papers debated the question of the possibility of such a journey. The ladies supported Fogg after seeing a picture of his handsome figure.

At last a long article appeared, on the 7 th of October, in the bulletin of the Royal Geographical Society, which treated the question from every point of view, and demonstrated the utter folly of the enterprise. It showed how Fogg would have to mathematically jump from trains to ships and so on to be able to accomplish the task at hand. It pointed out the many obstacles that would be faced. This article made a great deal of noise, and, being copied into all the papers, seriously depressed the advocates of the rash tourist.

England is the world of betting men, who are of a higher class than mere gamblers. Not only the members of the Reform, but the general public, made heavy wagers for or against Phileas Fogg, who was set down in the betting books as if he were a race-horse. Bonds were issued, and made their appearance on ‘Change. Though after the article, the value of Fogg stock declined. Lord Albemarle, an elderly paralytic gentleman, was now the only advocate of Phileas Fogg left. He felt that if the journey could be accomplished, an Englishman should complete it first. The Fogg party dwindled more and more, everybody was going against him, and the bets stood a hundred and fifty and two hundred to one; and a week after his departure an incident occurred which deprived him of backers at any price.The commissioner of police received the following telegraphic dispatch:- Suez. Rowan, Chief of Police, Scotland Yard, London. 'Am shadowing bank thief, Phileas Fogg. Send without delay warrant for arrest Bombay .Detective Fix'

The effect of this dispatch was instantaneous. The polished gentleman disappeared to give place to the bank robber. His photograph was minutely examined, and it betrayed, feature by feature, the description of the robber which had been provided to the police. The mysterious habits of Phileas Fogg were recalled; his solitary ways, his sudden departure; and it seemed clear that, in undertaking a tour round the world on the pretext of a wager, he had no other end in view than to elude the detectives, and throw them off his track.

CHAPTER 6

Summary
In this chapter, Verne explains the circumstances in which the above mentioned telegraphic dispatch about Phileas Fogg was sent. The steamer Mongolia, belonging to the Peninsular and Oriental Company, was due at eleven o’clock a.m. on the 9 th of October, at Suez. The Mongolia plied regularly between Brindisi and Bombay via the Suez Canal.

Two men were promenading up and down the wharves, among the crowd of natives. One was the British consul at Suez, who was in the habit of seeing, from his office window, English ships daily passing to and fro on the great canal. The other was a small built personage with a nervous, intelligent face, and bright eyes peering out from under eyebrows, which he was incessantly twitching. He was manifesting signs of impatience, nervously pacing up and down. This was Fix, one of the detectives who had been dispatched from England in search of the bank robber. It was his responsibility to note all suspicious looking people. The detective was inspired by the hope of obtaining the splendid reward, which would be the prize of success, and waited with a feverish impatience, the arrival of the steamer Mongolia. He has a conversation with the consul, while awaiting the arrival of the Mongolia, in which he explains how he proposed to find the robber. Mr. Fix evidently was not wanting in a tinge of self-conceit.

As he passed among the busy crowd, Fix, scrutinized the passers by with a keen, rapid glance. He was irritated that the Mongolia had not yet come in and was questioning the consul on the course of the ship. The consul pointed out that the bank robber might be able to successfully hide in England itself, without leaving the country. This observation furnished the detective food for thought, and meanwhile the consul went away to his office. Fix had a feeling that the robber would be on board the Mongolia.

When the ship came in, Fix carefully examined each face and figure, which made its appearance. One of the passengers came up to him and politely asked if he could point out the English consulate, at the same time showing a passport which he wished to have validated. Fix took the passport, and with a rapid glance read the description of its bearer. An involuntary motion of surprise nearly escaped him, for the description in the passport was identical with that of the bank robber, which he had received from Scotland Yard. He found out that the passport was that of the man’s master and he advised the questioner that for getting the passport validated, the master would have to make an appearance himself at the Consulate.

CHAPTER 7

Summary
The detective passed down the quay, and made his way to the consul’s office. He told the Consul that he thought that the robber was on the Mongolia. The consul said that the robber might not come to the consulate, as it was not necessary to get the passport countersigned. But, Fix feels otherwise and says that he hopes that the Consul will not visa the passport. "Why not? If the passport is genuine I have no right to refuse." Fix wants to keep the robber here till he can get the warrant.

Two strangers enter the Consul’s room as Fix and the Consul are conversing, one of who was the servant whom Fix had met on the quay and the other, who was his master, held out his passport with the request that the consul would do him the favor to visa it. The consul took the document and carefully read it, whilst Fix observed from afar. The consul just asked a few questions before agreeing to visa Fogg’s passport. The consul proceeded to sign and date the passport. Mr. Fogg paid the customary fee, coldly bowed, and went out, followed by his servant. The consul feels that Fogg looks like an honest man and doubts that descriptions can be totally trusted - even if Fogg does look like the robber, he may not be one. Fix decides to find out by getting Passepartout to talk, as he believes that a Frenchman cannot resist opening his mouth. Fix starts off in search of Passepartout.

Meanwhile Mr. Fogg, after leaving the consulate, repaired to the quay, gave some orders to Passepartout and went off to the Mongolia.

In his cabin, Fogg fed the journey dates into an itinerary divided into columns, indicating the month, the day of the month, and the day for the stipulated and actual arrivals at each principal point - Paris, Brindisi, Suez, Bombay, Calcutta, Singapore, Hong Kong, Yokohama, San Francisco, New York, and London from the 2 nd of October to the 21 st of December. This methodical record thus contained an account of everything needed, and Mr. Fogg always knew whether he was behind or in advance of his time. On this Friday, October 9 th , he noted his arrival at Suez, and observed that he had as yet neither gained nor lost. He sat down quietly to breakfast in his cabin, never once thinking of inspecting the town, being one of those Englishmen who are wont to see foreign countries through the eyes of their domestics.