eleven o’clock
The marquis , who dearly loved a joke , amused himself by answering Leander 's extraordinary epistle with one in much the same style -- written in a delicate , lady-like hand upon perfumed paper , and sealed with a fanciful device -- altogether a production well calculated to deceive the poor devil , and confirm him in his ridiculous fancies . Accordingly , when he regained his bed-chamber after the play was over , he found upon his dressing-table a note addressed to himself . He hastened to open it , trembling from head to foot with excitement and delight , and read as follows : `` It is true , as you say so eloquently -- too eloquently for my peace of mind -- that goddesses can only love mortals . At eleven o'clock , when all the world is sunk in slumber , and no prying human eyes open to gaze upon her , Diana will quit her place in the skies above and descend to earth , to visit the gentle shepherd , Endymion -- not upon Mount Latmus , but in the park -- at the foot of the statue of silent love . The handsome shepherd must be sure to have fallen asleep ere Diana appears , so as not to shock the modesty of the immortal goddess -- who will come without her cortege of nymphs , wrapped in a cloud and devoid of her silvery radiance . '' We will leave to the reader 's imagination the delirious joy that filled to overflowing the foolish heart of the susceptible Leander , who was fooled to the top of his bent , when he read this precious note , which exceeded his wildest hopes . He immediately began his preparations to play the part of Endymion -- poured a whole bottle of perfume upon his hair and hands , chewed a flower of mace to make his breath sweet , twisted his glossy curls daintily round his white fingers -- though not a hair was awry -- and then waited impatiently for the moment when he should set forth to seek the rendezvous at the foot of the statue of silent love -- where we left him anxiously awaiting the arrival of his goddess .