seven o’clock
ALL through that weary night my uncle and I , with Belcher , Berkeley Craven , and a dozen of the Corinthians , searched the country side for some trace of our missing man , but save for that ill-boding splash upon the road not the slightest clue could be obtained as to what had befallen him . No one had seen or heard anything of him , and the single cry in the night of which the ostler told us was the only indication of the tragedy which had taken place . In small parties we scoured the country as far as East Grinstead and Bletchingley , and the sun had been long over the horizon before we found ourselves back at Crawley once more with heavy hearts and tired feet . My uncle , who had driven to Reigate in the hope of gaining some intelligence , did not return until past seven o'clock , and a glance at his face gave us the same black news which he gathered from ours . We held a council round our dismal breakfast-table , to which Mr. Berkeley Craven was invited as a man of sound wisdom and large experience in matters of sport . Belcher was half frenzied by this sudden ending of all the pains which he had taken in the training , and could only rave out threats at Berks and his companions , with terrible menaces as to what he would do when he met them . My uncle sat grave and thoughtful , eating nothing and drumming his fingers upon the table , while my heart was heavy within me , and I could have sunk my face into my hands and burst into tears as I thought how powerless I was to aid my friend .