midnight
`` What a great mistake they have made , '' he thought ; `` there is n't any one in the wide world that would give three cents to have me returned . '' He concluded to stay quietly on board the schooner and let matters take their course , as it did not occur to him that any personal danger might arise from future complications . Could he have dreamed of what was coming , he would have jumped overboard and risked drowning in his attempt to reach land . Jim had learned enough from the conversation in the cabin to keep him awake until midnight . It was near morning when he dropped off into slumber , which was not broken until the forenoon of the succeeding day was half gone . When he went on deck , he saw that the schooner was far below the city , and standing straight toward the ocean . The weather was again cold , so he kept within the cabin most of the time .