four o'clock in the afternoon
Then came the trouble . The fish were , of course somewhat widely separated when they died , and the task of collecting all those immense carcasses was one of no ordinary magnitude . Had it not been for the wonderfully skilful handling of the ship , the task would , I should think , have been impossible , but the way in which she was worked compelled the admiration of anybody who knew what handling a ship meant . Still , with all the ability manifested , it was five hours after the last whale died before we had gathered them all alongside , bringing us to four o'clock in the afternoon . A complete day under that fierce blaze of the tropical sun , without other refreshment than an occasional furtive drink of tepid water , had reduced us to a pitiable condition of weakness , so much so that the skipper judged it prudent , as soon as the fluke-chains were passed , to give us a couple of hours ' rest . As soon as the sun had set we were all turned to again , three cressets were prepared , and by their blaze we toiled the whole night through . Truth compels me to state , though , that none of us foremast hands had nearly such heavy work as the officers on the stage .