noon
And never a Phoenician ship-builder , never a Fulton of the steamer , never a modern designer of great yachts , stood higher in the estimation of his fellows than stood the expert in the making of the rude boats , as uncouth in appearance as the river-horse which sometimes upset them , but from which men could , at least , let down their lines or dart their spears to secure the fish in the teeming waters . And the fishermen had better spears and hooks now , for comparison was necessarily always made among devices , and bone barbs and hooks were whittled out from which the fish no longer often floundered . There came , in time , the making of rude nets , plaited simply from the tough marsh grasses , but they served the purpose and lessened somewhat the gravity of the great food question . One day , at noon , a man burst , panting , through the wide open entrance to the Fire Valley . His coat of skin was rent and hung awry and , as all could see when he staggered down the pathway , the flesh was torn from one cheek and arm , and down his leg on one side was the stain of dried blood . He was exhausted from his hurt and his run and his talk was , at first , almost unmeaning . He was met by some of the older and wiser among those who saw him coming and to their questions answered only by demanding Ab , who came at once .