about five in the afternoon
By this accident we lost three men overboard with the caboose , and nearly the whole of the larboard bulwarks . Scarcely had we recovered our senses , before the foretopsail went into shreds when we got up a storm stay-sail , and with this did pretty well for some hours , the ship heading the sea much more steadily than before . The gale still held on , however , and we saw no signs of its abating . The rigging was found to be ill-fitted , and greatly strained ; and on the third day of the blow , about five in the afternoon , our mizzen-mast , in a heavy lurch to windward , went by the board . For an hour or more , we tried in vain to get rid of it , on account of the prodigious rolling of the ship , and , before we had succeeded , the carpenter came aft and announced four feet water in the hold . To add to our dilemma , we found the pumps choked and nearly useless . All was now confusion and despair -- but an effort was made to lighten the ship by throwing overboard as much of her cargo as could be reached , and by cutting away the two masts that remained .