two o'clock
in the afternoon
But I had to live up to the character I had given myself when Martin became my brother , and the one dread of my life was that , finding me as timid as other girls , he might want me no more . We reached the sea by a little bay , called Murphy 's Mouth , which had a mud cabin that stood back to the cliff and a small boat that was moored to a post on the shore . Both belonged to Tommy the Mate , who was a `` widow man '' living alone , and therefore there were none to see us when we launched the boat and set out on our voyage . It was then two o'clock in the afternoon , the sun was shining , and the tide , which was at the turn , was beginning to flow . I had never been in a boat before , but I dared not say anything about that , and after Martin had fixed the bow oar for me and taken the stroke himself , I spluttered and plunged and made many blunders . I had never been on the sea either , and almost as soon as we shot clear of the shore and were lifted on to the big waves , I began to feel dizzy , and dropped my oar , with the result that it slipped through the rollocks and was washed away . Martin saw what had happened as we swung round to his rowing , but when I expected him to scold me , he only said : `` Never mind , shipmate !