about two o’clock in the
afternoon
And , in fact , the steep lava cliffs did not afford a single place suitable for landing . They formed an insuperable barrier , recalling , but with more wildness , the fiords of Norway . The `` Bonadventure , '' coasting as close as possible along the cliffs , did not discover even a projection which would allow the passengers to leave the deck . Pencroft consoled himself by saying that with the help of a mine they could soon open out the cliff when that was necessary , and then , as there was evidently nothing to be done in the gulf , he steered his vessel towards the strait and passed out at about two o'clock in the afternoon . `` Ah ! '' said Neb , uttering a sigh of satisfaction . One might really say that the honest Negro did not feel at his ease in those enormous jaws .