nearly eight o'clock
`` Sorry to have detained you , '' he said , flapping his hat on . `` Landlord says you 've settled the shot -- wo n't be long getting there now . '' In another minute they were in their seats and on the road to Tarrytown . It was nearly eight o'clock when they reached the old ferry , and found it deserted for the night . The boatmen had ceased their regular crossings nearly an hour before , and were quietly smoking their pipes at home . The moon was up , stars shone brightly in the serene sky , and not a sail specked the unruffled surface of the Tappan Zee . Lights twinkled on the opposite shore , and the little old town of Nyack was dimly seen .