eight o'clock in the evening
It was only when , by an effort , he looked ahead for years and tried to fancy the possibility of being so cut off from the world for life , that he could appreciate the terrible nature of the punishment . Better a thousand times to be one of the murderers in the prison behind the wall . They had work to occupy their time , and constantly changing associates , with the knowledge that by good conduct they would sooner or later be released and be allowed to live outside the prison . When at eight o'clock in the evening the prisoners were locked up in their huts , he endeavoured to learn everything that Alexis Stumpoff knew of Siberia . He found that his knowledge was much more extensive than he had expected . `` As I came out nominally , Godfrey , as a free man , I brought with me every book I could buy on the country , and I almost got them by heart . It seemed to me that I was likely to be kept here for years , if not for life .