Topsy-Turvy · Chapter
What Had Been Done at Kilimanjaro During Eight Month of This Memorable Year explained
This chapter details the secret operations of President Barbicane and Captain Nicholl at Kilimanjaro in the Wamasai region, under the protection of Sultan Bali-Bali.
What happens
This chapter details the secret operations of President Barbicane and Captain Nicholl at Kilimanjaro in the Wamasai region, under the protection of Sultan Bali-Bali. They have spent eight months constructing a massive cannon—actually a mine shaft bored into the mountain—using local iron and coal, and the explosive melimelonite. The work was kept secret, though rumors eventually reached Consul Richard W. Trust. Meanwhile, in Baltimore, Alcide Pierdeux discovers a fatal flaw in J.T. Maston's calculations, realizing the entire plan is doomed.
Themes in this chapter
Secrecy and Public Anxiety
The entire operation at Kilimanjaro is shrouded in secrecy, with Sultan Bali enforcing strict silence among workers, yet rumors eventually leak, causing unease.
Scientific Hubris
Barbicane and Nicholl's overconfidence in their engineering abilities, despite the monumental scale and potential for catastrophic failure, exemplifies scientific hubris.
Imperialism and National Rivalry
The American project in Africa, using local labor and resources under a Sultan's authority, reflects the imperialist dynamics and national rivalries of the era.
Characters to notice
- President Barbicane
Leads the secret operation at Kilimanjaro, overseeing the construction of the cannon shaft and expressing confidence in the project.
- Capt. Nicholl
Barbicane's associate at Kilimanjaro, involved in the manufacturing and final preparations, modestly accepting praise.
- J. T. Maston
Absent from the scene; his calculations are the basis of the project, but he is imprisoned and hidden away, unaware of the impending flaw.
- Mrs. Evangelina Scorbitt
One of the few who knew of Barbicane and Nicholl's departure from the United States.
- Sultan Bali
The ruler of Wamasai who provided workers and land for the project in exchange for $300,000, ensuring secrecy.
- Alcide Pierdeux
In Baltimore, he discovers a critical error in Maston's calculations, realizing the cannon will fail.
Key passages
“If it was finally discovered it must have been that the Sultan modified his severe rules after the accomplishment of the works and that there were traitors and babblers even amongst the Negroes.”
The secret likely got out because the Sultan relaxed his strict rules after the work was done, and some of the native workers talked.
Explains how the secrecy was eventually breached.
“It was not a cannon, not even a mortar, which they intended to make, but simply a gallery bored in the massive rock of Kilimanjaro—a shaft of a mine, if you wish to call it so.”
Instead of building a traditional cannon, they dug a tunnel into the mountain to serve as the gun barrel.
Clarifies the nature of the 'cannon' construction.
“Ah! What a fool Maston is!—what a stupid fellow! His whole problem will go in the soup!”
Pierdeux exclaims that Maston's calculations are completely wrong and the entire project is doomed.
Reveals the critical error discovered by Pierdeux.