morning,
noon
Thenceforward , Bob 's holidays were all halcyon days . He had certainly enjoyed himself before ; in his rambles on the beach , in his daily dip and new experiences of the delights of swimming ; in the various little trips he and Nellie had taken ; aye , and in the pleasurable occupation of collecting all those strange wonders of the shore , with which they had been so recently made familiar . But , never had he enjoyed himself to the extent he did now ! There was nothing , on his once having tasted the joy of sailing , that could compare with it for a moment in his mind ; and , if his own tastes had been consulted , he would have been content to have spent morning , noon , and night on board the _ Zephyr _ . It was the same with Dick ; and , under the Captain 's able tuition , both the boys soon acquired sufficient knowledge of tacking and wearing , sailing close-hauled and going free with the helm amidships , besides other nice points of seamanship , as to be able almost to handle the cutter as well as their instructor . Nellie , naturally , could not enter so fully into these details as Bob and Dick ; but , still , she took quite as much pleasure as they did in skimming over the undulating surface of the water and hearing the gurgling ripple made by the boat 's keel . She felt a little alarm sometimes , perhaps , when , with her mainsail sharply braced up , the _ Zephyr _ would heel over to leeward , burying her gunwale in the foam ploughed up by her keen-edged bow , as it raced past , boiling and eddying , astern .