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V . The Elephant On the morning of the third day , the train stopped in the middle of a forest near a small village called Kholby . A railway guard walked along the train . “ Everybody out ! ” he shouted . “ The line ends here . ” “ What do you mean ? ” cried Sir Francis . “ We are going to Allahabad ! ” “ The railway isn’t finished yet , ” said the guard . “ The next part of the line starts at Allahabad . That’s fifty miles from here . Passengers must find their own way there . ” “ But the newspapers said the railway was finished ! ” cried Passepartout . “ The newspapers were wrong , ” said the guard . Sir Francis was very angry . But Mr Fogg only said , “ Sir Francis , we will find a way to Allahabad . I expected some small problem . I have two days in hand . ” The other passengers quickly took all the carts and horses in the village . But Passepartout did not give up . Soon he came back with a big smile . “ Sir , I have found an elephant ! ” The elephant’s name was Kiouni . He was big , strong and gentle , and he belonged to a man from the village . Mr Fogg went to see the owner . “ I would like to hire your elephant , ” he said . “ I will pay you ten pounds an hour . ” “ No , ” said the owner . “ Twenty pounds ? Forty ? ” “ No . ” “ Then I will buy him . I will give you a thousand pounds . ” “ No . ” “ Twelve hundred . Fifteen hundred . Eighteen hundred . Two thousand pounds . ” “ Yes , ” said the man at last . Passepartout went pale . Two thousand pounds for an elephant ! Sir Francis took Mr Fogg to one side . “ Think carefully , ” he said . “ That’s a lot of money . ” “ I am betting twenty thousand pounds , ” said Mr Fogg . “ This elephant may save me twenty thousand . So he is cheap . ” A young man from the village offered to be their guide . Mr Fogg agreed to pay him well . Then he turned to Sir Francis . “ Will you come with us to Allahabad ? ” he asked . The general thanked him warmly and accepted . The guide put a large saddle on the elephant’s back , with a seat on each side . Mr Fogg sat on one side and Sir Francis on the other . Passepartout sat on the saddle between them , and the guide sat on the elephant’s neck . They left Kholby at nine o’clock in the morning . It was not a comfortable ride . The elephant moved quickly , and the travellers shook from side to side . Passepartout laughed and held on tightly . Sometimes he gave Kiouni a piece of sugar , and the elephant took it with his trunk . They travelled all day . In the evening they stopped at an empty hut , ate their supper and slept . The next morning they went on . By the afternoon they were only twelve miles from Allahabad . Then , suddenly , the guide stopped the elephant . From the trees in front of them came the sound of drums and voices . The guide quickly led Kiouni into the thick forest . “ Stay here , ” he whispered . “ Don’t let anyone see you . ”
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