nine o'clock
Naturally enough , the chief topic of conversation at the dinner-table , that night , was the encounter with the gunboat , and the clever manner in which the Spaniards had been `` bluffed '' , Don Hermoso maintaining that it was entirely due to Jack 's skill in the gentle art that no suspicion had appeared to enter the heads of the Spaniards that the contraband had already been got rid of . The matter was very freely discussed , and it was finally decided that , on the whole , it was a very fortunate circumstance not only that the encounter had taken place , but that it had occurred where and when it did ; for the ignorance of the Spanish authorities as to the speed of the yacht would naturally preclude the suspicion that the vessel had already spent some hours in discharging her cargo , while the very complete and thorough search to which the yacht had been subjected was of course conclusive , so far as the non - existence of contraband on board at that moment was concerned . The only point upon which Jack had any uneasiness was the fact of the yacht being so formidably armed ; he had given what he regarded as a very clever and ingenious explanation of the circumstance , which he hoped would prove completely satisfactory , but he was nevertheless not wholly free from doubts on the matter . On the following morning the two Montijos and Jack were astir betimes , in order to catch an early train to Pinar del Rio ; and nine o'clock found them ashore and on the platform , waiting for the train to emerge from the siding into which it had been shunted . Calonna was not at that time an important place , nor is the Cuban railway system remarkable for its efficiency ; nothing need therefore be said about either save that after jolting through some exceedingly beautiful country , which grew more beautiful with every mile of progress upon a gradually rising gradient , the travellers were safely landed in the city of Pinar del Rio -- a distance of some fifteen miles from Calonna -- in a trifle over an hour ! Here Senor Montijo 's private carriage -- a somewhat cumbersome , four-wheeled affair , fitted with a leather awning and curtains to protect the occupants from either sun or rain , and drawn by four horses , the off leader being ridden by a postilion , while the wheelers were driven from the box -- was awaiting them , it having been sent in from the house on the preceding day . The luggage having been securely strapped on to a platform attached to the rear of the coach , Don Hermoso signed to Jack to enter the vehicle , placed himself by Jack 's side , and was followed by Carlos , when the affair got under way , with a tremendous amount of shouting and whip cracking , and went rolling and rumbling and jolting down the narrow street and so out into the country .