ten o'clock
The eventful Friday evening came at last . The _ Capella _ , in company with four first-class torpedo-boats , was to be ready at a signal from Hurst to make a dash through the North Channel . A fleet of armed trawlers from the Poole base was to operate farther out to sea , in order to cut off the U-boat 's retreat should she be lucky enough to escape the attentions of the _ Capella _ and her consorts . At ten o'clock the east-going tidal stream began to set through the Needles Channel . Half an hour later it ran with a velocity exceeding five knots . The _ Capella _ , moving at a rate equal to that of the tide , kept about half a mile from the Isle of Wight shore , with the white , occulting light of the Needles just visible to the north of Cliff End Fort . It was a perfectly calm night , overcast , but with no wind .