about eleven o’clock in the
evening
Slim chance , but hope springs eternal in the human breast ! Besides , there were two of us . Lastly , I can vouch -- as improbable as it seems -- that even if I had wanted to destroy all my illusions , even if I had been willing to `` give in to despair , '' I could not have done so ! The cetacean had rammed our frigate at about eleven o'clock in the evening . I therefore calculated on eight hours of swimming until sunrise . A strenuous task , but feasible , thanks to our relieving each other . The sea was pretty smooth and barely tired us .