noon
`` Yes , but my dear madame , they do not live by cultivating the land , '' returned the Professor . `` The seasons are too variable , and the changes of temperature are far too sudden to permit raising of crops of any kind . '' `` Mr. Barton told me that they did raise a little garden stuff , such as onions , lettuce , and radishes ; but potatoes , corn , etc. , invariably are nipped by frost , and never mature , '' said Denison . The Professor , a few moments before noon , ascended to the observatory with sextant and chronometer , and determined the latitude and longitude of `` Silver Cloud , '' as Mrs. Jones had named the aluminum ship . He made the entry in his logbook . `` There is our exact position now , Doctor , '' and he placed the point of a pencil on the map of Labrador . `` In forty-eight hours we will be within the Arctics at this rate of speed , '' cried Dr. Jones , rubbing his hands with delight .