about nine in the
morning
Besides , I reflected , she might strike on some of the insidious coral reefs that abound in those fair but terribly dangerous seas . So I came to the conclusion that it would be better to let her remain where she was -- at least , for the time being . Moreover , I felt sure that the captain , with his knowledge of those regions , would know of some island or convenient sandbank , perhaps not very far distant , on which he might run his boat for safety until the storm had passed . The boats receded farther and farther from view , until , about nine in the morning , I lost sight of them altogether . They had started out soon after sunrise . It then occurred to me that I ought to put the ship into some sort of condition to enable her to weather the storm , which was increasing instead of abating . This was not the first storm I had experienced on board the _ Veielland _ , so I knew pretty well what to do .