three o’clock in the afternoon
Soon , however , appeared all along the horizon , like a misty veil over the waters , Japan itself ; and little by little , out of the dense shadow , arose the sharp , opaque outlines of the Nagasaki mountains . The wind was dead against us , and the strong breeze , which steadily increased , seemed as if the country were blowing with all its might , in a vain effort to drive us away from its shores . The sea , the rigging , the vessel itself , all vibrated and quivered as if with emotion . By three o'clock in the afternoon all these far-off objects were close to us , so close that they overshadowed us with their rocky masses and deep green thickets . We entered a shady channel between two high ranges of mountains , oddly symmetrical -- like stage scenery , very pretty , though unlike nature . It seemed as if Japan were opened to our view through an enchanted fissure , allowing us to penetrate into her very heart . Nagasaki , as yet unseen , must be at the extremity of this long and peculiar bay .