Did a ship pass by the island when Jack let the rescue fire go out in chapter 4?

Ralph believes he sees a ship passong on the horizon, but we never know if the ship was real or in his imagination. Possibly there was a real ship, just as possibly, the ship was a mirage. None-the-less, if the ship was real, it would not have seen the signal fire because the fire was not burning. It is my opinion that Ralph saw a ship.