midnight
I am afraid I gave no credit to Heron , or to the stimulating effects upon my own mind of contact with his bracing , if somewhat harsh , intelligence . All was attributed by me at the time to the advantages of my sequestered life . The effect of mental stimulus was not by any means so evanescent as such things often are , and the Monday following upon Heron 's return to town saw me hard at work upon the book which I had outlined and begun before my illness . There followed , in that modest little cottage room of mine , some three or four months of incessant work at high pressure ; long days , and nights , too , at the table , during which my only exercise and relaxation in a week would be an occasional five minutes ' walk to the post-office , or a stroll after midnight , when I found the cool night silence soothed me greatly before going to my bedroom . The doctor 's counsels were all forgotten , of course , or remembered only in odd moments , as when going to bed , or shaving in the morning . Then I would promise myself reformation when the book was finished . That done I would live by rote and acquire bucolic health , I told myself .