Next
moment the vision flashed clear, as usual, and the engineer saw that
the object was really a beetle; and in a second it was so near that
Smith's own body, back on the earth, involuntarily shrank back into
the recesses of his chair.
For that beetle was an enormity in the most unlimited sense of the
word. It was infinitely larger than any beetle the engineer had ever
seen--infinitely! It was as large as a good-sized horse!
But before Smith could get over his amazement there was a rush and a
swirl in the water behind the insect. Spray was dashed over the
rock, a huge form showed itself indistinctly beneath the waves, and
next instant the borrowed eyes were showing the engineer, so clearly
as to be undeniable, the most astounding sight he had ever seen.
A fish of mountainous size leaped from the water, snapped the beetle
into its mouth, and disappeared from sight. In a flash it had come
and gone, leaving the engineer fairly gasping and likewise wondering
how he could possibly expect anybody to believe him if he told the
bald truth of what he had seen.
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