noon
He had been at sea , of course ; there was no denying that fact , for he knew ships , and spoke the lingo of blue water ; but the very idea that that blood-stained buccaneer , whose hated name was on the lips of every sea-faring man of Britain , would ever dare openly to visit England , and then sail under his own name on board an English vessel for Virginia , was too preposterous for consideration . Why , it would be sheer madness . The knowledge that such a possibility ever had flashed into my mind became amusing , and chuckling over it , I finally fell asleep . It was noon , the sky overcast , the wind blowing strong from the southeast , when the Virginia coast was first sighted from our mast-head . An hour later it became plainly visible from the deck below , and the prisoners were routed out from their quarters , and the shackles , removed from limbs when we first arrived on board , were again riveted in place , binding them together in fours , preparatory to landing . I , with one or two others , already disposed of , and in control of masters , were spared this indignity , and permitted to move about as we pleased within the narrow deck space reserved for our use . The last meal was served in the open , the men squatting on the deck planks , endeavoring to jest among themselves , and assuming a cheerfulness they were very far from feeling .