About eight o'clock
`` All right . I 'll be careful . '' The hatchet was delivered to the tramp a little later . About eight o'clock the tramp went down to the lake and looked for Andy 's boat . There was but one in sight -- Conrad 's -- but he never doubted that this was the one he was to destroy . He waited till half-past eight , when he considered it dark enough for his purpose . He carefully laid the shavings in one end of the boat , covered them over with pieces of board , which , with the help of the hatchet , he split into smaller pieces , and then set them on fire .