midnight
All that was left then , apparently , was the land , with those fierce foes lying in wait to attack them the minute they quitted their fortress . Ned believed that he had the most difficult problem to solve that had come his way this many a day . From every side he viewed it , the puzzle seemed as unanswerable as ever . If only they could manage to slip away along about an hour or so after midnight , when the darkness was densest ; but there was only the one way to leave , and that was evidently watched closely , if those silent figures flitting hither and thither on the beach stood for anything . But was the breach the only means for leaving ? Ned remembered that those three men had climbed aboard through the aid of a dangling rope . What was sauce for the goose might be sauce for the gander , too ; and if only they could discover more rope they might also slide down it to safety .