midnight
When he awoke , finding it had ceased to rain , he took his seat beside the driver , and asked him several questions ; as how long had the fortunate guard of the Light Salisbury been in crossing the Atlantic ; at what time of the year had he sailed ; what was the name of the ship in which he made the voyage ; how much had he paid for passage-money ; did he suffer greatly from sea-sickness ? and so forth . But on these points of detail his friend was possessed of little or no information ; either answering obviously at random or acknowledging that he had never heard , or had forgotten ; nor , although he returned to the charge very often , could he obtain any useful intelligence on these essential particulars . They jogged on all day , and stopped so often -- now to refresh , now to change their team of horses , now to exchange or bring away a set of harness , now on one point of business , and now upon another , connected with the coaching on that line of road -- that it was midnight when they reached Hounslow . A little short of the stables for which the van was bound , Martin got down , paid his crown , and forced his silk handkerchief upon his honest friend , notwithstanding the many protestations that he did n't wish to deprive him of it , with which he tried to give the lie to his longing looks . That done , they parted company ; and when the van had driven into its own yard and the gates were closed , Martin stood in the dark street , with a pretty strong sense of being shut out , alone , upon the dreary world , without the key of it . But in this moment of despondency , and often afterwards , the recollection of Mr Pecksniff operated as a cordial to him ; awakening in his breast an indignation that was very wholesome in nerving him to obstinate endurance .