four o'clock in the afternoon
***** Forty-eight hours after leaving Levuka the cutter was clear of the land , and leaping and spinning before the trade wind which was blowing lustily . Danvers , as he sat in a deck-chair smoking a cigar , took a lazy interest in the crew , who were all natives of the Line Islands -- short , square-built , half-naked savages , with jet-black hair and huge pendulous ear-lobes filled with coiled-up leaves . There were but eight of them -- the _ Loelia _ was a vessel of ninety tons -- and Diaz was the only white man on board except Brabant and Danvers . It was four o'clock in the afternoon . A native seaman struck eight bells and Brabant came on deck . Pedro was standing aft beside the helmsman . `` We 're going along at a jolly good pace , are we not -- '' began Danvers .