In "The Twenty-One Balloons," what did Professor Sherman say that made the audience applaud for five minutes? Why did the crowd react that way?

Professor Sherman gets settled in his bed, propped up with pillows, and makes two statements that make the crowd go wild.  First he says, "I am happy to be home again!" (38). The crowd cheers for four minutes. Then he says, "I haven't been away very long, but I have certainly missed..." (38).  It is at this point that the crowd applauds for five minutes.  They are applauding wildly because the professor's statement reminds them that the Professor has broken the record of traveling around the world in eighty days by a full forty days, and this is an incredible and exciting thing to have accomplished. It should also be noted that the crowd has been anticipating this talk by Professor Sherman for five days now, and all of the preparations that the city has done in preparation have created a buildup of excitement.