Fogg’s final special-train attempt to reach London

Phileas Fogg’s final special-train attempt to reach London turns the last stage of his journey into a contest against railway time itself. Although locomotives are available and he arranges an express alternative, the railway cannot depart on his preferred schedule; delays then make the difference between completing the journey and meeting the wager’s deadline. His arrival in London, just five minutes too late, makes the attempt a decisive apparent failure.

The Missed Express and the Special Train

At the station, Phileas Fogg asks whether an express train is about to leave for London. It is forty minutes past two, but the scheduled express departed thirty-five minutes earlier. The narrowness of the gap makes the missed connection especially consequential: the train is not merely unavailable later in the day; it has just gone, leaving no ordinary express for Fogg to take.

He responds by ordering a special train. Several rapid locomotives are on hand, so the immediate obstacle is not a lack of engines. Instead, railway arrangements prevent the special from leaving before three o’clock. That restriction fixes the earliest possible start regardless of Fogg’s urgency, and distinguishes the journey from a simple matter of hiring a faster locomotive. The timetable and operating arrangements are part of the obstacle.

Departure Under Pressure

At three, Fogg sets out for London with Aouda and Passepartout. He has stimulated the engineer with the offer of a generous reward, turning the departure into a negotiated effort to press the available railway service toward its limit. The reward helps secure the effort, but it cannot undo the delay imposed before the train is allowed to start.

The journey is measured against a strict requirement: it must be completed in five and a half hours. The narrative notes that this would have been easy if the road had remained clear throughout. That qualification makes the result depend not simply on distance or locomotive speed, but on what happens during the run. Forced delays intervene, and the special train’s departure does not guarantee that Fogg can recover the time already lost.

Arrival and the Wager’s Apparent Failure

When Fogg steps from the train at the London terminus, all the clocks in London are striking ten minutes before nine. The clock reading supplies the scene’s exact, public measure of arrival; the subsequent calculation gives it its consequence. Having made the tour of the world, Fogg is five minutes behind the wager’s deadline and has lost.

The attempt therefore ends in a sharp reversal. Fogg has crossed the distance, found an alternative after missing the express, secured a special train, and continued despite delays, yet completion of the journey is not enough: the wager depends on arriving within its time limit. The difference between success and failure is reduced to five minutes, making the final railway dash the last practical test of the deadline and apparently settling the outcome against him.

Narrative Significance

The episode brings the journey’s recurring concern with timetables to a concentrated point. Earlier, the special train seems to offer a way around the missed connection; the departure restriction and forced delays expose the limits of that solution. Available locomotives, a reward to the engineer, and a determined final run cannot ensure punctual arrival when railway arrangements and interruptions govern the journey.

Its ending is deliberately severe in its arithmetic. The clocks register a time, and the narrator translates that reading into a five-minute deficit and a lost wager. The world tour has been completed, but the wager has not: the distinction turns a vast journey into a final question of minutes and leaves Fogg, Aouda, and Passepartout arriving at the terminus with the apparent result already decided.