three o'clock in the afternoon
Where is the _ Ariel _ to be found ? '' The captain of the _ Mercury _ gave him the necessary directions , and the two air-ships parted . Within an hour a council of war , consisting of Natas , Arnold , and Tremayne , was being held in the saloon of the _ Ithuriel _ , on the issue of which the lives of more than two millions of men depended . It was a little after three o'clock in the afternoon when Natas , Tremayne , and Arnold ended their deliberations in the saloon of the _ Ithuriel _ . At the same hour a council of war was being held by Generals le Gallifet and Cosensz at the Crystal Palace Hotel , Sydenham , where the two commanders had taken up their quarters . Since daybreak matters had assumed a very serious , if not desperate aspect for the troops of the League to the south of London . Communication had entirely ceased with the Tsar since the night before , and this could only mean that his Majesty had lost the command of the air , through the destruction or disablement of his fleet of aerostats .