midnight
` He 's a thundering good chap , anyhow , ' said Davies ; and I heartily agreed . The narrow vigilant life began again at once . We were ` safe enough ' in a sense , but a warp and a twenty-pound anchor were poor security if the wind backed or increased . Plans for contingencies had to be made , and deck-watches kept till midnight , when the weather seemed to improve , and stars appeared . The glass was rising , so we turned in and slept under the very wing , so to speak , of the Imperial Government . ` Davies , ' I said , when we were settled in our bunks , ` it 's only a day 's sail to Norderney , is n't it ? ' ` With a fair wind , less , if we go outside the islands direct . '