nine o'clock
Love and the sea ! Have they not always been counterparts ? Do they not span the known and unknown in each man 's world , carrying some in safety -- others destroying ? It must have been nine o'clock when the forward watch called and , springing to the rail , peering through the darkness , we saw down upon the horizon the fixed white eye and three red sectors of the Key West light . `` A good run , Gates . '' `` Nothing of our size can beat it , sir . '' `` You think the _ Orchid _ will be in harbor ? ''