Summary
Meanwhile, it turns out that Passepartout is on the Carnatic after all. He had awoken from his opium stupor three hours after Fix left him in the opium den, still extremely disoriented but feeling some sense of duty to board the Carnatic, which he does, just as it is leaving. When he comes to his senses again, he is glad that he did not miss the steamer; however, he soon realizes that Mr. Fogg and Aouda did, since he did not tell them about the earlier departure time. He realizes that this was all part of Detective Fogg's trick to keep Mr. Fogg in Hong Kong.
Passepartout is distraught, but has no choice but to continue on to Yokohama. When the steamer reaches Japan, he gets off to explore the area, which has been made extremely European just like in Hong Kong. He moves further into the Japanese quarter of Yokohama, which is extremely different, and encounters all sorts of people here. He starts to get hungry, but has absolutely no money with which to buy food.
The following morning, famished, he realizes he needs to find something to eat as soon as possible. He decides to hold a street concert to earn money from Japanese passerby. He trades his very European outfit for old clothes that seem better suited for a wandering artist. The clothing dealer also pays him a few small coins, with which he purchases breakfast at a teahouse.
Trying to figure out how he will get on to the United States without being able to pay his passage, he spots a clown wandering with a placard advertising a Japanese acrobatic troupe performing once more before their passage to the U.S. He follows the clown back into the Japanese quarter and asks William Batulcar, the director of the troupe, whether he can be of use. He refuses to take Passepartout as a servant, but agrees to take him as a clown.
Immediately they perform for spectators, and this includes a peculiar performance by the Long Noses, who do acrobatic and gymnastic moves with five to seven-foot long bamboo noses affixed to their faces. Since one of the Long Noses recently quit the troupe, Passepartout takes his place, and joins in the formation of a human pyramid while balancing on the noses.
Just as the formation is nearly complete, though, Passepartout causes it to totter and fall. He is not concerned with this, though, because he has just found his master, Mr. Fogg, standing in the crowd with Aouda. Overjoyed, Passepartout collapses at Fogg's feat and hurries on to the American steamer with him.
Fogg, Aouda, and Fix were indeed able to board the steamer in Shanghai, and when they reached Yokohama, they heard that Passepartout had indeed been on the Carnatic from Hong Kong after all. They went in search for him, and found him with the acrobats. Aouda told Passepartout the whole story about what had happened to them; she has been getting more and more attached to Fogg with each day that passes. Passepartout decides the time has not yet come to divulge to Fogg what he learned about Fix.
By this point, Fogg has traversed exactly half of the globe. Even though he is already two-thirds of the way done with his allotted time, however, he can continue in a straight line for the rest of the journey, and expects everything to go much faster and more smoothly. Also in the middle of the ship's journey, Passepartout's watch, still set to London time, matches up perfectly with the real time of day. What he does not realize, though, is that while it is nine in the morning there, it is actually nine in the evening in London.
It turns out that Detective Fix is also on board the steamer to San Francisco. He has decided that since Fogg intends to return to England, he will follow and arrest him there, now that he has the warrant. He tries to conceal himself from Passepartout but runs into him anyway. Fix explains that he is now their ally, since he wants Fogg to make it back to England just as much as they do. Even though he still wants to arrest Fogg, their goals are the same, so they can work together now.
They make it to San Francisco at last, and have the day to spend in the city before the cross-country train leaves for New York. Passepartout is surprised so see how many different types of people and ethnic groups are represented in the cosmopolitan city. A lot of the city reminds him of England. Fogg sends Passepartout to purchase them some rifles, having heard stories about Native Americans attacking the trains.
Fogg runs into Fix, who pretends to be extremely surprised to see him, and expresses his delight that they will be traveling across the country together to Europe, since his business had recalled him there. As they walk down San Francisco's famous Montgomery Street, they run into a political meeting that turns into a fight between supporters of two different candidates for some position, Mr. Camerfield and Mr. Mandiboy.
Fix insists that he and Fogg move away, since they do not know how Englishmen would be received in such a situation. Too late, though, they get caught in the fray, trying to protect Aouda who is with them. A man who seems to be chief of the band of fighting voters strikes them, and after exchanging insults, he introduces himself as Colonel Stamp Proctor.
They escape the fight unscathed, but their clothes are in tatters, so they head to a tailor to buy new ones. Passepartout is waiting for them with the guns he purchased. As they board the train, Fogg asks the porter about the meeting in the streets; ironically, the porter tells him it was a meeting assembled for the election of a justice of the peace.
The train to New York traverses the Pacific Railroad, which is made up of two parts: the Union Pacific and Central Pacific. The journey takes seven days, and spends much time crossing wild territory inhabited by Indians (Native Americans) and wild beasts. The train transforms into a dormitory at night so the passengers can sleep. Throughout the beginning of the journey, they encounter much of America's wild natural setting, including picturesque mountains and buffalo crossing the tracks. The buffaloes delay them, but ever stoic, Fogg does not seem perturbed. As chapter 26 ends, they make it to Utah, a state inhabited by the only colony of Mormons.
Analysis
Up until this point in the story, readers have always understood Passepartout as part of a unit, never separated from Fogg and very much defined by his relationship to him. The beginning of this section is the first time readers see Passepartout alone. He tries his hardest, but it is clear that he is so used to taking Fogg's orders and following in his shadow that he has difficulty figuring out how to function by himself. His absolute elation upon seeing Fogg again proves that with his master is where he, the sidekick, is most comfortable.
Aouda is still only described through remarks about her conversations with the other characters. She does not have much of her own voice, which speaks to the widespread perception of women as less capable than men during this time period, both in society and in literature. However, she is clearly becoming smitten with Mr. Fogg, enticed by the excitement of his task, his stoic nature, and the way he treats her so well and appears to care for her in a way that he does not seem to care for anyone else. She is slowly chipping away at the emotional wall Fogg has constructed around himself.
During their crossing of the Pacific, the motif of timekeeping and watches once again comes into play. Since the entire wager hinges upon finishing the round-the-world trip in eighty days, time has, of course, been an important theme throughout. But in addition to this, Verne hints that time is even more important than it initially appears. He would not refer to Passepartout's watch and the time difference so frequently if it would not become important later on. In literature, everything happens for a reason.
Still showing sheer determination to achieve his goal and do his duty, Fix has decided to follow Fogg all the way to London. The dynamic between Fix, Fogg, and Passepartout will certainly change, though, now that Fogg is technically working with them rather than against them, since they both want to make it back to England as swiftly as possible. Additionally, Passepartout now holds with him a great weapon: knowledge of Fix's true intentions that he can choose to share with his master at any point.
As the characters reach San Francisco, Verne once again shows his knowledge of different parts of the world by describing the city in great detail. The statements he makes about America reflect not only his perspectives on the country, but also European (and particularly, British) society's perspectives. During the 19th century, the United States was emerging as a new and powerful nation. Central to the American identity was the goal of expansion and progress, something that was observed closely by other nations.
Verne's descriptions show the general "ruggedness" with which America was perceived at this time. Americans were thought of as rough and boisterous, and the fight between the two political figures in the city is quite representative of this perspective. Verne uses this episode to contrast the rugged American with the refined Englishman (and it is clear where his bias lies).
His prose goes beyond stereotypes of just the American people, though. As they begin the train ride, his descriptions of the American landscape characterize it as wild and untamed, full of open and unpredictable spaces and terrain that varies so much across long distances. This parallels his earlier descriptions of the interior of India. India's "wildness" created obstacles for the characters to overcome, and America's "wildness" will certainly do the same.
