three in the afternoon
He might have boarded the craft now , and surprised the oriental in the cabin , but he had no grudge against him , and Rey 's Chinese were not purchasable . He thought of the forlorn last chance -- to creep back to the mouth of the Inlet where it was narrowest , and wait on a sheltered ledge there for the _ Savonarola _ to be ejected with pikes from the crooked mouth . He might leap on the deck as she swung around , but he would then have to face the whole party . After an interminable period -- it was past three in the afternoon -- the Chinese appeared from a cabin , and sat down on the low rail aft , mopping his shaven head . `` I do n't wish you any harm , little yellow man , '' Bedient thought , `` but you 'd be most accommodating if you would fall into a faint for a minute or two -- '' At this juncture , Bedient was startled by the clapping of hands from somewhere up the winding steps toward _ The Pleiad _ . The Chinese leaped up to listen for a repetition of the signal , which his kind answers the world over . The hands were clapped again , and then the voice : `` Oh , Boy , wo n't you come up here for a moment ?