about
nine o'clock
`` Washington 's pet has got away . '' The two boys went below , and , with their aid , the colored man succeeded in catching the rooster , which , crowing a loud protest , was shut up in a wooden cage and taken to the shop , ready to be placed in the projectile . There was little to do at the last moment . Professor Henderson had arranged for a relative to come and live in the house during the time of the journey to Mars , and this gentleman arrived about nine o'clock . Meanwhile , the last of the stores and supplies had been put in the Annihilator , a final inspection had been given the machinery , and all the scientific instruments were in place . Washington carried the cage containing his rooster into the storeroom , where there was a large quantity of provisions , sufficient to last for a year , in case , after reaching Mars , the travelers should find on the planet no food which they could cat . There was a plentiful supply of water , and machinery for distilling more out of the atmosphere .