midday
he exclaimed . `` Now which way ? '' He had not much choice in the first place , for he remembered that there would be the moat to cross , and the probabilities were that there would only be one path . After that he saw his way clearly , and that was towards the sun , for he knew that if he made straight for that point he would be going by midday direct for the sea . That was his goal . Once he could reach the cliffs and get down on the shore , he meant to seize the first boat he met with , get afloat , and trust to fortune for the rest . For the first few moments Hilary kept close to the house , but , considering that a bold effort was the only one likely to succeed , he walked out straight to the moat , hesitated a moment as to whether he should leap in and swim or wade across , and ended by walking sharply along its brink till it turned off at right angles , and he now saw a sandstone bridge facing the entry of a large , old-fashioned hall , that had evidently gone to ruin , and which , from the outside aspect , seemed to be uninhabited , for a more thorough aspect of desolation it was impossible to imagine .