seven o'clock
The street lamps moved their tiny fans of flame which failed to illuminate ; the sky had dropped to the very houses . Des Esseintes viewed the arcades of the rue de Rivoli , drowned in the gloom and submerged by water , and it seemed to him that he was in the gloomy tunnel under the Thames . Twitchings of his stomach recalled him to reality . He regained his carriage , gave the driver the address of the tavern in the rue d'Amsterdam near the station , and looked at his watch : seven o'clock . He had just time to eat dinner ; the train would not leave until ten minutes of nine , and he counted on his fingers , reckoning the hours of travel from Dieppe to Newhaven , saying to himself : `` If the figures of the timetable are correct , I shall be at London tomorrow at twelve-thirty . '' The _ fiacre _ stopped in front of the tavern . Once more , Des Esseintes alighted and entered a long dark plain room , divided into partitions as high as a man 's waist , -- a series of compartments resembling stalls .