noon
That night had little sleep for him , and the marvels of Carlin -- face and voice , laugh , heart , hand -- grew upon him contrary to all precedent . This was a battle against all the wild animals rolled into one ; most terribly , a battle because there seemed such a beauty about the yearning which the girl awoke in him . He was abroad early next day . The thought had come , that she might find him in the jungle at noon or soon afterward as yesterday . As the dragging forenoon wore on , Skag was in tightening tension . He hated himself for this , but the fact stubbornly remained that all he cared for in the world was the meeting again . It seemed greater than he -- this agony of separation .