the
hour of twelve
But to men there is permitted such a field of license , and the good behaviour asked of them is at once so easy and so little , that to fail in that is to fall beyond the reach of pardon . But will you suffer me to repeat a question , put to you at first , I am afraid , with some defect of courtesy ; and to ask you once more , who you are and how I have the honour of your company ? ' ` I am the proprietor of the house in which we stand , ' said I. ` And still I am at fault , ' returned the prince . But at that moment the timepiece on the mantel-shelf began to strike the hour of twelve ; and the young man , raising himself upon one elbow , with an expression of despair and horror that I have never seen excelled , cried lamentably , ` Midnight ! oh , just God ! ' We stood frozen to our places , while the tingling hammer of the timepiece measured the remaining strokes ; nor had we yet stirred , so tragic had been the tones of the young man , when the various bells of London began in turn to declare the hour . The timepiece was inaudible beyond the walls of the chamber where we stood ; but the second pulsation of Big Ben had scarcely throbbed into the night , before a sharp detonation rang about the house .