about ten o'clock
Our oars were muffled , so that not a sound was heard as we pulled away through the darkness towards the mouth of the Nansimond river . We had a pilot with us who professed to know the navigation , and we believed that we could trust him . By degrees my eyes began to grow accustomed to the darkness , and I could distinguish the outline of the shore . We entered the river about ten o'clock , and slowly groped our way up the stream , one boat following the other in line , like a long snake wriggling its way through the grass . On we pulled . Sharp eyes , indeed , must have been those which could have discovered us from the shore . But few lights were streaming from the windows of the houses of Nansimond as we passed that town .