eight
o'clock
A dense bank of cloud became visible to the northward ; it had a sinister dark olive tint , and lay low and motionless upon the sea , resembling a solid obstacle in the path of the ship . She went floundering towards it like an exhausted creature driven to its death . The coppery twilight retired slowly , and the darkness brought out overhead a swarm of unsteady , big stars , that , as if blown upon , flickered exceedingly and seemed to hang very near the earth . At eight o'clock Jukes went into the chart-room to write up the ship 's log . He copies neatly out of the rough-book the number of miles , the course of the ship , and in the column for `` wind '' scrawled the word `` calm '' from top to bottom of the eight hours since noon . He was exasperated by the continuous , monotonous rolling of the ship . The heavy inkstand would slide away in a manner that suggested perverse intelligence in dodging the pen .