eight o'clock
The first step had already been taken ; what the next was will soon appear . Scarcely had Dodger failed in his attempt to obtain outside assistance when an unaccountable drowsiness overcame him , considerably to his surprise . `` I do n't know what 's come to me , '' he said to himself . `` It ca n't be more than seven or eight o'clock , and yet I feel so sleepy I can hardly keep my eyes open . I have n't worked any harder than usual to-day , and I ca n't understand it . '' Dodger had reason to be surprised , for he did n't usually retire till eleven o'clock . In a city like New York , where many of the streets are tolerably well filled even at midnight , people get in the way of sitting up much later than in the country , and Dodger was no exception to this rule .