about half past twelve
In ten minutes they were ready to mount , and after a final embrace , and many a ` Be sure and take care of yourselves ' from their mother and sisters , they started off across the plain at a long , steady gallop . ` They have got just an hour 's start , boys , ' Mr. Hardy said . ` Your mother said that it was exactly half an hour from the first alarm to my arrival , and I was in the house a minute or two under that time . It is about half past twelve now . ' ` It is very fortunate , papa , that we had our horses safe up at the house . ' ` Yes , boys . If we had been obliged to wait until to-morrow morning before starting , our chance of coming up would have been very slight .