nearly midnight
`` Oh , '' answered he , `` it 's one of their superstitions that they 'll have bad luck if they do n't answer an owl politely when he asks ` Who 's there ? ' and give the names of all the party , if they know them . '' Soon after this all hands sought their blankets , good-nights were said , the fire died down , and all was quiet in the camp , though several times some sleepy negro roused himself sufficiently to answer the owl 's repeated question of `` Who 's there ? '' It must have been nearly midnight when the camp was startled by a crash , a series of smothered cries , and a loud splashing in the water . It was evident that something serious had happened , but what it was no one could make out in the darkness . Some light-wood splinters were quickly thrown upon the smouldering remains of the fire , and as it blazed up brightly , the lighter , in which the whites had been sleeping , was seen to be on its beam ends . One side rested high up on the bank and the other down in the mud at the bottom of the river , just on the edge of the channel .