About noon
Being in the track of the ocean steamers it was not long before he found himself overtaking a magnificent vessel whose decks were crowded with passengers . He dropped down some distance , to enable him to see these people more plainly , and while he hovered near he could hear the excited exclamations of the passengers , who focused dozens of marine glasses upon his floating form . This inspection somewhat embarrassed him , and having no mind to be stared at he put on additional speed and soon left the steamer far behind him . About noon the sky clouded over , and Rob feared a rainstorm was approaching . So he rose to a point considerably beyond the clouds , where the air was thin but remarkably pleasant to inhale and the rays of the sun were not so hot as when reflected by the surface of the water . He could see the dark clouds rolling beneath him like volumes of smoke from a factory chimney , and knew the earth was catching a severe shower of rain ; yet he congratulated himself on his foresight in not being burdened with umbrella or raincoat , since his elevated position rendered him secure from rain-clouds . But , having cut himself off from the earth , there remained nothing to see except the clear sky overhead and the tumbling clouds beneath ; so he took from his pocket the Automatic Record of Events , and watched with breathless interest the incidents occurring in different parts of the world .