nine o'clock
A curse is but a few idle words ; still , since that time , not a decent seaman had ever sailed with him . He could not bear the oppressive darkness any longer ; peopled as it was with shadows , it weighed upon him . He went into the inner room , lit a match , looked at his watch . It was not yet nine o'clock . Time that evening was creeping on at a sluggish pace . `` Surely , '' he soliloquised , `` if Vranic is coming he can not delay much longer . '' After a few seconds he put out the light and returned to the front room .