midnight
IT was evening . Multitudes of light clouds , partially illumined by the moonbeams , overspread the horizon , and through them floated the full moon in tranquil majesty , while her splendour was reflected by every wave of the Adriatic Sea . All was hushed around ; gently was the water rippled by the night wind ; gently did the night wind sigh through the Colonnades of Venice . It was midnight ; and still sat a stranger , solitary and sad , on the border of the great canal . Now with a glance he measured the battlements and proud towers of the city ; and now he fixed his melancholy eyes upon the waters with a vacant stare . At length he spoke -- `` Wretch that I am , whither shall I go ? Here sit I in Venice , and what would it avail to wander further ?