midnight
When he had climbed down the chimneys of all the houses in that village , and had left a toy for every sleeping child , Claus found that his great sack was not yet half emptied . `` Onward , friends ! '' he called to the deer ; `` we must seek another village . '' So away they dashed , although it was long past midnight , and in a surprisingly short time they came to a large city , the largest Claus had ever visited since he began to make toys . But , nothing daunted by the throng of houses , he set to work at once and his beautiful steeds carried him rapidly from one roof to another , only the highest being beyond the leaps of the agile deer . At last the supply of toys was exhausted and Claus seated himself in the sledge , with the empty sack at his feet , and turned the heads of Glossie and Flossie toward home . Presently Flossie asked : `` What is that gray streak in the sky ? ''