midnight
The current swashed dismally among the slender , swaying willows , on either side ; and beyond these , he knew that there was at least three hundred yards of swimming depth before either shore could be reached . If any one should happen to pass , he could not , from the land , see Mortimer , on account of the willows . The nearest house was three or four miles distant ; and a voice could be heard but a little distance , above the swash of the flood and the rush of the cold wind . Mortimer 's parents did not expect him to return until late in the evening , and they would probably make no effort to learn of his whereabouts until after midnight . The night , too , was already growing very cold , with a raw , gusty wind that soughed drearily among the willows ; his bare hands and wet feet were fast becoming chilled and numb . All the desolation , helplessness and misery of the situation were forced upon him by that keen and merciless power of reflection which so often attacks the mind in moments of extreme peril or of sudden disaster . He saw but too plainly that it was useless to look for rescue before morning , and , clinging there to his bleak and uncertain perch , he felt that he would assuredly chill to death in a few hours .