CHAPTER SUMMARY AND NOTES

CHAPTER 30

Summary

Three passengers including Passepartout had disappeared. Some were wounded including Colonel Proctor. Aouda was safe and Fix had received a slight wound. Aouda was crying for Passepartout while Fogg was grave. Fogg resolves to go looking for the missing Passepartout and he talks to the Captain of Fort Kearney Station about this. The Captain is initially unwilling to send soldiers after the Sioux in order to find the three missing men but eventually he comes around and agrees. Thirty volunteers were chosen to accompany Fogg. Fix is requested to stay with Aouda. Fogg offers the soldiers a thousand pounds, if they were to save the prisoners.

Fogg and the soldiers leave and Aouda waits alone in a room in the station. Fix worries, frets and fumes over the fact that Fogg has moved away and wonders whether he will come back. In the afternoon the engine that had got detached from the train thunders back with the driver and stoker having come out of their unconsciousness. The engine is attached to the train again and the train gets ready to leave. Aouda requests the guard to wait but he refuses, as the train is already late. So the train leaves while the detective and Aouda stay behind. Afternoon, evening and night pass in relentless, anxious waiting for Fogg and his groupÂ’s return. The next morning, the Captain is about to send another group of soldiers after the previous group, when the latter group returns. With Fogg and the soldiers, were the three passengers, including Passepartout who had been taken away by the Sioux. Fogg distributes the promised award amongst the soldiers. Passepartout looks out for the train only to be told that it has left. He is disappointed, while Fogg merely asks calmly, when the next train would be coming along.

Notes

In this chapter the adventure with the Sioux is continued. The passengers see that three others are missing, including Passepartout. Aouda expresses her grief about PassepartoutÂ’s absence quite openly and looks very worried. Aouda as a woman is one who is open with her feelings. She is sensitive and feminine, a typical heroine. Fogg seems to be concerned about AoudaÂ’s feelings as well as of his own. He debates in his mind as to what he should do about Passepartout.

Finally he decides that he must go in search of his loyal valet. We can see that Fogg is not afraid of doing his duty, even if that involves putting his life at stake. He meets the Captain of Fort Kearney Station and asks for some men to be sent after the Sioux. The Captain is reluctant so Fogg decides to go on his own. The Captain is captured by FoggÂ’s sense of justice and his valor and agrees to send some soldiers with Fogg. Fogg has the kind of personality that impresses others and fills them with a sense of admiration.

Fogg asks Fix to look after Aouda, while he goes after the Sioux. Fix is reluctant as he does not wish to let Fogg go but then he agrees. Fix is extremely suspicious of Fogg but FoggÂ’s personality is such that Fix often does things, which he later regrets. He stays with Aouda at the Station but keeps worrying whether Fogg shall come back or not. FixÂ’s anxiety is extreme and this makes the reader feel contemptuous towards him. Aouda on the other hand is worried for FoggÂ’s sake. She has begun to love him dearly and she wonders what she will do if something drastic were to happen to him. The night of waiting at the station is a very painfully long one for her.

The engine driver and the stoker return in the engine that had separated from the train. While all the passengers are very happy, it is decided that the train shall now move immediately as it is already running late. Aouda and Fix request the engine driver to wait but he refuses. So Aouda and Fix are once again left alone to await the arrival of Fogg. We see how Aouda matches FoggÂ’s calm with her own controlled demeanor. She is extremely worried, yet elegantly restrained.

As dawn approaches the Captain of the Station starts worrying and contemplates sending some soldiers after FoggÂ’s group. But they are all glad to see FoggÂ’s group return along with the three passengers that had been captured by the Sioux. Fogg is victorious yet again and with him is a smiling Passepartout. We can see with every passing scene that Fogg is projected as the out and out hero of the narrative. He seldom fails. One of the factors for his success is the fact that he understands that humans always work harder when given incentive. Whenever he is faced with the challenge of limited time or a difficult situation, he offers reward money to the people who are a part of the situation and that does wonders for him. In the case of the Fort Kearney soldiers, he offers them reward money if they are able to rescue the passengers and fight the Sioux. When the feat is accomplished Fogg does not forget to distribute the money equitably. When they reach the Station, Passepartout's only concern is that they board the train as fast as possible and move on with their journey. He is angry when he learns that the train has already left whereas Fogg is as calm as ever. It is this calmness that makes him a winner and a formidable force.

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