eleven o'clock
How long I should have to keep on I could only guess . Not a creature seemed to be about of whom I could make inquiries . It was as if I was in a land of desolation . I suppose it was between eleven o'clock and midnight . I had not given up my quest for work till all the shops were closed , -- and in Hammersmith , that night , at any rate , they were not early closers . Then I had lounged about dispiritedly , wondering what was the next thing I could do . It was only because I feared that if I attempted to spend the night in the open air , without food , when the morning came I should be broken up , and fit for nothing , that I sought a night 's free board and lodging .