six in the morning
and then they separated . In a few moments Harding and Herbert on one side , the reporter and Neb on the other , had disappeared behind the rocks , and five minutes later Ayrton and Pencroft , having without difficulty crossed the channel , disembarked on the islet and concealed themselves in the clefts of its eastern shore . None of them could have been seen , for they themselves could scarcely distinguish the brig in the fog . It was half-past six in the morning . Soon the fog began to clear away , and the topmasts of the brig issued from the vapour . For some minutes great masses rolled over the surface of the sea , then a breeze sprang up , which rapidly dispelled the mist . The _ Speedy _ now appeared in full view , with a spring on her cable , her head to the north , presenting her larboard side to the island .