The consul looked at Fix in surprise and said, "There's a thief on board the Mongolia? Are you certain?"
"Consul, I have no doubt. I have spotted my man," said Fix with conviction.
"He passes himself off as an eccentric, rich man who is going around the world in eighty days.
When he arrives to have his passport stamped, you must hold him here!"
"He is coming to have a visa entered in his passport?" asked the consul.
"Yes, but I hope you will not issue the visa," said Fix.
"Why not? If the passport is genuine, I have no right to refuse."
"Criminals such as this man use passports to flee the law.
You must keep him here!" replied Fix, his frustration growing.
"I cannot hold a man, no matter how sure you are of his guilt, without a warrant.
Surely you are aware of that," replied the consul, shaking his head.
"Perhaps this Mr. Fogg won't even come here if he is indeed the person you suppose him to be.
A robber doesn't like to leave traces of his flight behind him, you know.
Besides, he is not obligated to have his passport stamped anyway."
"If he is as shrewd as I think he is, consul, he will—" began Fix.
But before he could finish, someone knocked on the door.
Fix quickly hid himself in a corner of the room as Passepartout and his master entered the office.
From his hiding place, Fix observed as the consul took Mr. Fogg's documents and read them carefully.
"You are Mr. Phileas Fogg?" asked the consul.
"I am," said Fogg.
"And this is your servant?" asked the consul.
"He is," said Fogg. "A Frenchman named Passepartout."
"You are from London?" asked the consul.
"Yes," said Fogg.
"And you are going . . . ?" asked the consul.
"To Bombay," replied Mr. Fogg.
"Very good, sir," said the consul. "You know that no passport is required and a visa would be meaningless?"
"I know it, sir," replied Phileas Fogg.
"But I wish to prove, by your visa, that I traveled via Suez."
"Very well, sir." The consul proceeded to sign and date the passport, and then added his official seal.
Mr. Fogg paid the fee, bowed, and went out, followed by Passepartout.
After leaving the consul's office, Mr. Fogg returned to the dock and gave some instructions to Passepartout.
Then he made his way to his cabin on the Mongolia and picked up his travel journal.
In this journal a detailed itinerary listed all the major stopping points on Mr. Fogg's route:
Paris, Brindisi, Suez, Bombay, Calcutta, Singapore, Hong Kong, Yokohama, San Francisco, New York, and finally London.
Next to each was written the expected day and time of arrival with a space for noting the actual arrival time and the hours gained or lost.
As a result Mr. Fogg always knew whether he was behind or in advance of his schedule.
He added his newest entry: Reached Suez Wednesday, October 9, at 11:00 a.m.
Total of hours spent: 158; or in days: six and a half.
As Fogg closed his journal and put away his pen, he observed that he had neither gained nor lost time.
He sat down quietly to eat breakfast in his cabin, never once thinking of visiting the town.
After seeing Mr. Fogg in person, Fix was convinced that Fogg was the culprit.
Fogg fit the description of the robber perfectly.
"Everything adds up," Fix said to himself.
"His leaving London so quickly, his hiring a new servant the very same day . . . It's all very suspicious."
Fix quickly decided that he must follow Mr. Fogg.
It was his duty, after all, and the reward for catching such a cunning criminal as this supposed gentleman would be his. Fix turned to the consul.
"I must leave at once. I am going to telegraph the police in London.
I must follow this man!" he said.
The detective thanked the consul for his help and left.
Fix went immediately to the telegraph office and sent the following wire: Suez to London.
Rowan, Commissioner of Police, Scotland Yard. I've found the bank robber, Phileas Fogg.
Send an arrest warrant to Bombay without delay. Fix, Detective.
A quarter of an hour later, with a small bag in his hand, Fix boarded the Mongolia.
During our journey it's my job to keep track of Mr. Fogg's passport.
If I lose it, I will be in big trouble!
Whenever you travel abroad, you must bring a passport with you.
A passport is a document issued by your country for the purpose of overseas travel.
The word "passport" most likely comes from the medieval word for the gate, or porte, of a city.
Notice my name, Passepartout, looks a lot like the word "passport."
Hmm . . . that's a funny coincidence, isn't it!
Foreign governments use passports to identify who is arriving in, or leaving, their country.
When you arrive in a foreign country, you must obtain a visa, which gives you permission to enter the country.
The visa is either stamped into or attached to your passport.
I have to admit, I was a little worried that Mr. Fogg's passport wouldn't have enough pages for all the countries we were going to visit.
If he did run out, perhaps the visas could be stamped onto his forehead.
Ha-ha! Don't tell Mr. Fogg I said that!