“I mean to ask you to do it,” calmly replied the other.
“But I certainly will not grant your request,” with a decided movement of the head.
“But you will not only grant my request, but you will, with me, reach the pole before a week has passed.” There was a quiet, cool assurance in his words that gave Hugh a feeling that the man was not talking at random, but had some grand scheme in view, which, to him, gave promise of success. Feeling this to be the case, he framed his next words accordingly: “Tell me what you mean? How is this to be accomplished? Explain yourself.”
Without replying to the questions, Cobb simply asked: “Will you get the authority for a few simple changes in the construction of this vessel? Can you do this?”
“Yes; I think I can; that is, if it is to improve the ship.”
“Then, get that permission, and have the changes made, a list of which I will give you this evening; they can be finished by day after to-morrow. Also, have 10,000 pounds of meteorite and 200 gallons of nitric acid put aboard the vessel, and 2,500 pounds of meteorite and fifty gallons of acid near at hand. Increase your supply of lipthalite sufficiently to run the engines twenty-five days.”
“But will you not be adding too much weight for buoyancy?” suggested Hugh.
“How much will the hydrogen which is used to inflate that bag weigh?” asked Cobb, pointing to the folded envelope.
“Well,” replied Hugh, thinking a moment, “the capacity is two million cubic feet, and a cubic foot of air weighs nearly eight hundredths of a pound; that would give about 160,000 pounds. Assuming the specific gravity of air at one, that of hydrogen would be sixty-nine thousandths, and the weight about 11,000 pounds.”