midnight
He had been to the railroad station to meet the last train , thinking it possible that his father might return , and he was confident that he had been the last to enter the house . He was very sure that he had not left the door unfastened , and this assurance made him confident that some person had entered the house . The noise at the door of his chamber was not an illusion or a dream : though it had been made by closing rather than by opening it , or he would have been likely to find the intruder in his room when he lighted his lamp . It seemed to him to be a matter of course that the midnight visitor had come into the mansion for the purpose of plundering its occupants , or of securing the valuables it contained . Putting his lamp on the table , he went out upon the veranda , and looked all about him . The grounds were very extensive , and a broad avenue led to the street . It was very dark ; but as he cast his eyes in the direction of the grand entrance to the estate , he discovered some dark object in motion ; but he lost sight of it in a moment .