four o'clock in the morning
I congratulate you upon it heartily ; if you ever want to turn it into money it will be quite a small fortune . Luckily my father is in a position to make me a good allowance , so I have no intention of ever parting with this ring , it will be a remembrance of the siege , and the sort of thing to wear on grand occasions . '' They found that during their absence the men had worked hard , and that , except for a final scrub , the brig was now ship-shape and in good order . At four o'clock in the morning the crew were again on deck It was still dark , but the men set to with a will to scrub the decks , for , as they said , if they passed near the _ Tigre _ they should not like the decks to look like those of a trader in ballast . An hour 's hard work and they had finished , just as the look-out reported that the _ Tigre 's _ men were going aloft to loosen sails . It was light now , and in a very few minutes the canvas was spread and the anchor catted . The _ Tigre _ , with her great sail spread , was not yet under way , and the brig , as she laid her course west , passed a hundred yards under her stern .