about four o'clock in the afternoon
`` No , '' said Jake , `` I do n't think so . The subject , so to speak , cropped up and he offered us the information . '' Then he talked of something else and soon afterwards the coast receded as they crossed a wide bay . It was about four o'clock in the afternoon when they reached the farthest point from land . There was no wind , and in the foreground the sea ran in long undulations whose backs blazed with light . Farther off , the gentle swell was smoothed out and became an oily expanse that faded into the glitter on the horizon , but at one point the latter was faintly blurred . A passing vessel , Dick thought , and occupied himself with the engine , for he had not brought the fireman .