about noon
It was almost possible for Mark to walk on this weed , the green appearance of which induced him to name the place the Prairie . Such a collection of weed could only have been owing to the currents , which must have brought it into this basin , where it was probably retained even previously to the late eruption . The presence of the deposit of mud , as well as the height of the surrounding rocks , many of which were doubtless out of water previously to the phenomenon , went to corroborate this opinion . After working her way through a great many channels , some wide and some narrow , some true and some false , the Bridget reached the southern verge of the group , about noon . Mark then supposed himself to be quite twenty miles from the Reef , and the Peak appeared very little nearer than when he left it . This startled him on the score of distance ; and , after meditating on all his chances , the young man determined to pass the remainder of that day where he was , in order to put to sea with as much daylight before him as possible . He desired also to explore the coast and islands in that vicinity , in order to complete his survey of the cluster .