an hour after midnight
`` Had not Pangloss been hanged , '' said Candide , `` he would give us good counsel in this emergency , for he was a profound philosopher . Failing him let us consult the old woman . '' She was very prudent and commenced to give her opinion when suddenly another little door opened . It was an hour after midnight , it was the beginning of Sunday . This day belonged to my lord the Inquisitor . He entered , and saw the whipped Candide , sword in hand , a dead man upon the floor , Cunegonde aghast , and the old woman giving counsel . At this moment , the following is what passed in the soul of Candide , and how he reasoned : If this holy man call in assistance , he will surely have me burnt ; and Cunegonde will perhaps be served in the same manner ; he was the cause of my being cruelly whipped ; he is my rival ; and , as I have now begun to kill , I will kill away , for there is no time to hesitate .