three o'clock
The only other way to reach the glen was by a circuitous route which led to the entrance of the narrow gorge , along the sides of which it was possible to make way with difficulty down the bank of the river to the place where it met the sea . But this would have taken him an hour and a half , and was far from easy when the river was swollen with high tide . Nor was there any house within some distance at which assistance could be procured , and Wright , in a tumult of conflicting emotions , determined to wait where he was , on the chance of seeing the boat as it returned from St. Catherine 's Head . It was already three o'clock , and he knew that they could not now be longer than an hour at most ; so with eager eyes he sat watching the headland , round which he knew they would first come in sight . He watched with wild eager eyes , absorbed in the one longing desire to catch sight of them ; but the leaden-footed moments crawled on like hours , and he could not help shivering with agony and fear . At last he caught a glimpse of them , and springing up , began to shout at the top of his voice , and wave his handkerchief and his arms in the hope of attracting their attention . Little thought those blithe merry-hearted boys in the midst of the happy laughter which they sent ringing over the waters , little they thought how terrible a tragedy awaited them .