nearly three o'clock
We set to work to replace the sleepers that had been shifted aside from where they had left their mark , and we continued our task without intermission . Having no fear of being noticed amid the confusion which followed the attack , I went into the luggage van to assure myself that Kinko was safe and sound , to tell him what had passed , to caution him on no account to come put of his box . He promised me , and I was at ease regarding him . It was nearly three o'clock when we began work . The rails had been shifted for about a hundred yards . As Faruskiar remarked , it was not necessary for us to fix them permanently . That would be the task of the workmen the company would send from Tcharkalyk when we reached that station , which is one of the most important on the line .