five A.M.
cried J. T. Maston , mounting his steed . `` All right , '' said the Floridan ; `` but it is true enough , nevertheless . '' `` Gentlemen , '' answered Barbicane , `` I thank you for your kind attention ; but it is time to be off . '' It was five A.M. when Barbicane and his party , quitting Tampa Town , made their way along the coast in the direction of Alifia Creek . This little river falls into Hillisborough Bay twelve miles above Tampa Town . Barbicane and his escort coasted along its right bank to the eastward . Soon the waves of the bay disappeared behind a bend of rising ground , and the Floridan `` champagne '' alone offered itself to view .