noon
They were nearing the Straits ; already Tarifa 's white fortress was smiling in friendly fashion across the narrowing waters , while , on the other hand , the hazy spurs of Atlas outlined the African coast . And as they gazed delightedly , with much laughter over the roughening waves , which made it necessary for them to wedge themselves into convenient nooks in order to stand upright , they saw great Gibraltar looming up somber , massive , and gray-blue , with the frown of a giant defying the universe . No wonder the ancients thought these opposite heights , so impregnable , so sentinel-like , were gates set by the gods to define earth 's outer boundaries , beyond which the most daring mariner must never sail . As our friends watched the broad slope of Calpe , lying in the full sunshine of a brilliant noon , its ledges bristling with bastions and cannon , above the little town which seems to nestle beneath in contented safety , Faith turned to her sister with kindling eyes . `` Now , are n't you proud of our mother , England ? Where in all the world is there such another fortress commanding the entrance to two oceans , and looking down upon two continents , I 'd like to know ? '' Hope looked up in amazement .