noon
Portions of her mast and rigging were gone , and one large sail at her stern appeared to be fluttering in the wind . But it mattered not to me what had happened to her . She was a ship afloat , and I must reach her . Tired , hungry , and thirsty I rowed and rowed , but it was not until long after noon that I reached her . She must have been much farther from me than I had supposed . With a great deal of trouble I managed to clamber on board , and found the ship deserted . I had suspected that this would be the case , for as I had drawn near I would have seen some sign that my approach was noticed had there been anybody on board to perceive it .