the airships had been partitioned off so that a portion of the interior could be darkened in order to serve as a sleeping chamber , wherein , according to the regulations prescribed by the commander of the squadron each member of the expedition in his turn passed eight out of every twenty-four hourssleeping if he could , if not , meditating , in a more or less dazed way , upon the wonderful things that he was seeing and doingthings far more incredible than the creations of a dream .