About four in the morning
I noticed that immediately Krause arrived the girl Niâbon disappeared , and did not return . That was my first meeting with her , and I did not see her again till the evening of the storm , when she brought Tematau to me . We , Niâbon , Tematau and myself , were undisturbed by any visitors during the night , for the storm increased in violence , and , as daylight approached , the clamour of the surf upon the reef was something terrific . About four in the morning , however , there came such a thunderous , sudden boom that the island seemed shaken to its coral foundations , and Niâbon declared that the storm had broken . `` That is what the people of the Tokelau Islands call _ O le fati le galu _ -- the last great wave , that gathering itself together far out on the ocean , rushes to the reef , and curling high up as the mast of a ship , falls and shakes the land from one side to the other . '' The girl knew what she was talking about , for from that moment the fury of the wind sensibly decreased , and half an hour later we were able to open the door and gaze out upon the sea , still seething white with broken , tumbling surf ? Walking down to my boat-house , I found that the boat herself was not injured in any way , though most of the roof had been blown away .