three in the morning
She always said it was `` a joy to have somebody besides the cat around to talk to . '' The loneliness of shipmasters who sail the seven seas is often mentioned in song and in story ; the loneliness of their wives at home is not usually marked . They went to bed . Old men do not usually sleep much after second cock-crow , and it was not far from three in the morning when Cap'n Ira awoke . Like most mariners , he was wide awake when he opened his eyes . He lay quietly for several moments in the broad bed he occupied alone . The half-sobbing breathing of the old woman sounded from her room , through the open door .