As Toline was already standing, he could not get any higher, but he waited modestly for the geographer’s questions.
“Pupil Toline, what are the five divisions of the globe?”
“Oceanica, Asia, Africa, America, and Europe.”
“Perfectly so. Now we’ll take Oceanica first; where are we at this moment? What are the principal divisions?”
“Australia, belonging to the English; New Zealand, belonging to the English; Tasmania, belonging to the English. The islands of Chatham, Auckland, Macquarie, Kermadec, Makin, Maraki, are also belonging to the English.”
“Very good, and New Caledonia, the Sandwich Islands, the Mendana, the Pomotou?”
“They are islands under the Protectorate of Great Britain.”
“What!” cried Paganel, “under the Protectorate of Great Britain. I rather think on the contrary, that France—”
“France,” said the child, with an astonished look.
“Well, well,” said Paganel; “is that what they teach you in the Melbourne Normal School?”