midnight
To this day they are of a paler hue than elsewhere . ' He climbed the three flights of stone stairs , and put his key into the lock ; but before he turned it , he stopped -- to rest , to take breath . On the door his name was painted in big white letters , Mr. Richard Dane . It is always silent in the Temple at midnight ; to-night the silence was dense , like a fog . It was Sunday night ; and on Sunday night , even within the hushed precincts of the Temple , one is conscious of a deeper hush . When he had lighted the lamp in his sitting-room , he let himself drop into an armchair before the empty fireplace . He was tired , he was exhausted .