about midnight
But she was a powerful swimmer , and retaining her self-command , she shook herself free of several who attempted to cling to her . The whirlpool caused by the sinking of the steamer pulled her beneath the water , but , with the same wonderful presence of mind she had shown from the first , she fought her way to the surface , and swam from the dangerous spot . Finding herself her own mistress , and fully aware that her life now depended on her ability to swim , she removed all her superfluous clothing and moved hither and thither in the darkness , in the hope of coming upon some of the survivors . It was about midnight , that she heard some one shout . The gloom was too powerful for her to distinguish anything , but she swam toward the point , whence the call issued , and came upon a raft , that had been hastily thrown together by the chief officer of the _ Quetta _ . Several persons were clinging to it , and she accepted the invitation to avail herself of the temporary refuge and give her weary limbs a rest . The dismal hours wore slowly away , and at last the growing light in the eastern sky told that the longed-for day was breaking .