midnight
This failure made Rodolph despair of being able , now , to save the marquise from impending ruin ; his first thought had been to warn her of the treachery intended , and so prevent the statement of Sarah , which he had no means of keeping from the hands of M. d'Harville , from obtaining the slightest credence . Alas ! it was now too late . The infamous epistle dictated by the Countess Macgregor had reached the Marquis d'Harville shortly after midnight on the night in question . * * * * * It was morning ; and M. d'Harville continued slowly to pace his sleeping-apartment , the bed of which gave no indication of having been used during the night , though the silken counterpane hung in fragments , evidently proving that some powerful and devastating storm had possessed the mind of its owner . The chamber in question was furnished with elegant simplicity , its only ornaments consisting of a stand of modern arms and a range of shelves furnished with a well-chosen collection of books . Yet a sudden frenzy , or the hand of ungovernable rage , had reduced the quiet elegance which ordinarily reigned to a scene of frantic disorder .