midnight
_ CHAPTER I _ _ THE VAULT _ Let me know , therefore , fully the intent Of this thy dismal preparation -- This talk fit for a charnel . WEBSTER . Within a sepulchral vault , and at midnight , two persons were seated . The chamber was of singular construction and considerable extent . The roof was of solid stone masonry , and rose in a wide semicircular arch to the height of about seventeen feet , measured from the centre of the ceiling to the ground floor , while the sides were divided by slight partition-walls into ranges of low , narrow catacombs . The entrance to each cavity was surrounded by an obtusely-pointed arch , resting upon slender granite pillars ; and the intervening space was filled up with a variety of tablets , escutcheons , shields , and inscriptions , recording the titles and heraldic honors of the departed .