four o'clock
But Stern viewed them with a melancholy pride and interest -- his own handiwork in the very long ago . They had no time , however , for retrospection ; but , once more taking the shore , kept steadily northward . And before noon they reached the debris of Buffalo , stark and deserted by the lake where once its busy commerce and its noisy life had thronged . By four o'clock that afternoon they had collected fuel enough for the plane to do that distance on , and more . Late that night they were again back at the spot where they had landed the night before . And here , in high spirits and with every hope of better fortune now to follow evil , they cooked their meal and spent an hour in planning their next move , then slept the sleep of well-earned rest . They had now decided to abandon the idea of visiting Boston .