midnight
If it had not been for the charcoal-man , he would have ` doubled up ' the Schoolmaster , who is there in the corner with the Chouette . By the Lord ! I can hardly contain myself , when I see that old hag , and know how she behaved to the Goualeuse , -- but patience , ` a blow delayed is not a blow lost , ' as the saying is . '' The Hotel de Ville clock struck midnight ; the lamp of the tavern only shed a dim and flickering light . Except the Chourineur and his two companions , the Schoolmaster , and the Screech-owl , all the guests of the _ tapis-franc _ had retired one after the other . The Schoolmaster said , in an undertone , to the Chouette , `` If we go and hide in the alley opposite , we shall see the swells come out , and know which road they take . If they turn to the left , we can double upon them at the turning of the Rue Saint Eloi ; if to the right , we will wait for them by the ruins close to the tripe-market .