one o'clock in the afternoon
Suddenly the barometer fell after keeping somewhat high during the earlier hours of the day . Evidently the indications were such as a shipmaster might feel anxious at , though the master of an aeronef might despise them . There was every sign that a terrible storm had recently raged in the Pacific . It was one o'clock in the afternoon when Tom Turner came up to the engineer and said , `` Do you see that black spot on the horizon , sir -- there away to due north of us ? That is not a rock ? '' `` No , Tom ; there is no land out there . '' `` Then it must be a ship or a boat . ''