about ten o'clock
I remained in my room until his arrival , which was not until late in the forenoon . When he arrived , I thought he would have gone distracted with joy -- he wept and laughed by turns -- gazing at times with a vacant stare , then touching me to prove my identity . After he became more composed , I learned that it was currently reported and believed in Lanark , that I had perished in the river . Malcolm had waited for me with extreme impatience , after nightfall , until about ten o'clock , when he could be induced by the landlord of the inn to remain no longer , and even the landlord had become uneasy . After some delay , several men were engaged to accompany Malcolm in his search for me , and , having procured torches and a lantern , they proceeded to the side of the river , beneath the fall , and , after searching every spot they could reach in the darkness of the night , for more than a mile on each side , they again , on Malcolm 's importunities , and his offer of a handsome reward , renewed their search the second time . In an eddy not far below the fall , one of them discovered my hat , sunk near the margin , and filled with water and mud . That I had been drowned none of the party had the smallest doubt .