midnight
He drifted presently into stocks , and they sat talking until eleven o'clock , when Adams , after glancing in surprise at the hour , remarked , with a laugh , that he had forgotten he no longer boasted the constitution of his college days . It had been a pleasant evening to both , and as Kemper threw off his coat a little later , he found himself reflecting , not without wonder , that the quiet -- the absolute inaction of the last few hours had refreshed rather than bored him . On the whole he was inclined to admit that he liked Adams better than any man he knew -- liked his assured self-possession , his indifference to small creature comforts ; liked , too , the quiet tolerance which characterised his human relations -- and he impulsively determined that he would arrange to see him often during the next few years . It was time now , he concluded with an admirable midnight resolution , while he struggled in exasperation to unfasten his collar , that he himself should begin to pay a due regard to his health -- to restrict his indulgences ; and he drew an agreeable picture of the consolation that Adams ' friendship might afford to an abstemious man of middle age . `` By Jove -- confound this button -- there , I 've twisted it like the deuce -- by Jove , it is refreshing to be thrown with a chap who is interested in something besides women and horses -- who finds other objects -- or subjects if you choose -- suffice for his entertainment . '' For the first time in his life he found himself wishing regretfully that at least a share of his own enjoyments had assumed a character which belonged less exclusively to the external world . The joy in knowledge , the delight in contemplation were unknown to him , though he was dimly aware that for another man they might prove to be an unfailing , a permanent solace .