ten
minutes to four
` Yet it was not a sudden impulse . His grey-headed mate , a first-rate sailor and a nice old chap with strangers , but in his relations with his commander the surliest chief officer I 've ever seen , would tell the story with tears in his eyes . It appears that when he came on deck in the morning Brierly had been writing in the chart-room . `` It was ten minutes to four , '' he said , `` and the middle watch was not relieved yet of course . He heard my voice on the bridge speaking to the second mate , and called me in . I was loth to go , and that 's the truth , Captain Marlow -- I could n't stand poor Captain Brierly , I tell you with shame ; we never know what a man is made of . He had been promoted over too many heads , not counting my own , and he had a damnable trick of making you feel small , nothing but by the way he said ` Good morning . '