four o'clock
I told Buck to carry the letter to the steward , that he might make his purchases of provisions early in the morning . It was one o'clock when I turned in , after finishing a twelve-page letter to my father . I turned out the next morning , or rather the same morning , only in season for breakfast . I had put my letter in the mail-box , and it had gone ashore in the first boat at four o'clock . I kept an anchor watch all night in port , which was divided up amongst all hands in the sailing and engineer 's department , except myself . Word had been passed from watch to watch to call the steward and a boat 's crew at half past three . The boats were hoisted up to the davits at night , and it required some time to get one into the water .