eleven o'clock
Silence descended upon the room . Only the breathing of the dog upon the mat came through the deep stillness , like the pulse of time marking the minutes ; and the steady drip , drip of the fog outside upon the window-ledges dismally testified to the inclemency of the night beyond . And the soft crashings of the coals as the fire settled down into the grate became less and less audible as the fire sank and the flames resigned their fierceness . It was now well after eleven o'clock , and Dr. Silence devoted himself again to his book . He read the words on the printed page and took in their meaning superficially , yet without starting into life the correlations of thought and suggestion that should accompany interesting reading . Underneath , all the while , his mental energies were absorbed in watching , listening , waiting for what might come . He was not over sanguine himself , yet he did not wish to be taken by surprise .