noon
After considerable skirmishing around , they managed to secure some wire from one of the vessels in the harbor . The severed strands were then removed and new pieces cut to length . It was found that the weight of the machine upon the unsupported skid , had cracked the skid past repair ; so they had to whittle out another from some tough wood , which the natives brought them from the nearby forest , before they could connect the new wires and were ready to start . Finally they took off at a few minutes past noon , more than three hours behind their rivals . It was disheartening , to say the least -- all the more so on account of the fact that their delay had again been caused by the sinister acts of the other crew . They made up their minds that if they should meet Pete Deveaux and his crowd at another stop , something worse than a single fistic encounter would take place ! As they soared away toward Nukahiva , with Upolu growing constantly dimmer , John , who had been studying the schedule , turned to his companions and asked : `` Do any of you fellows know what date this is ? ''