eight o'clock
I had four pounds in my pocket at the time that I went adrift , which was more than sufficient , even if I had not intended to go and see my mother . A wherry came alongside , and Peggy Pearson and I stepped into it , after I had thanked the captain , and given a sovereign to the seamen to drink my health . As soon as we landed at Sheerness I gave another of my sovereigns to Peggy , and left her to find her way back to Portsmouth , while I walked up to Chatham to my mother 's house . It was past eight o'clock and quite dark when I arrived ; the shop was closed , and the shutters up at the front door ; so I went round to the back to obtain admittance . The door was not fast , and I walked into the little parlour without meeting with anybody . I heard somebody upstairs , and I thought I heard sobbing ; it then struck me that my supposed loss might have been communicated to my mother . There was a light on the parlour table , and I perceived an open letter lying near to it .