nearly
midnight
And then for the first time I realized that the deck I stood on was the same ! They 'd gotten hold of the old black sloop when she was auctioned at Charles Town , patched up her bottom and here she was -- buccaneering once more ! Where the gang of cut-throats aboard her were gathered , I do n't know , but they put Stede Bonnet 's famous crew to shame . `` Pharaoh Daggs was somewhere ashore with two of the crew till nearly midnight . When he returned , the rest were lying like pigs about the deck . He had sobered slightly -- enough to remember the night 's undertaking -- but it was useless to think of rousing those sots to any sort of endeavor . He kicked one or two of them savagely with his heavy boot , too , but it got hardly more than a grunt from them .