midnight
The shabby man grinned . `` It wo n't be the last thing to come out of your pockets , '' said he , turning to push his way toward another table . The others rose and called for their reckoning ; and the listener on the cask slipped out of his corner , elbowed a passage to the door and stepped forth into the square . It was after midnight , a thin drizzle was falling , and the crowd had scattered . The rain was beginning to extinguish the paper lanterns and the torches , and the canvas sides of the tents flapped dismally , like wet sheets on a clothes-line . The man drew his cloak closer , and avoiding the stragglers who crossed his path , turned into the first street that led to the palace . He walked fast over the slippery cobble-stones , buffeted by a rising wind and threading his way between dark walls and sleeping house-fronts till he reached the lane below the ducal gardens .