midday
Here 's the milk you ordered for two o'clock . Just drink it now , Loote n't , and you 'll feel all right . '' Robert Allison mechanically reached out his hand for the glass of milk which the solicitous porter held out to him and dutifully drank it , while the porter hovered over him like an anxious hen , clucking out a constant stream of encouraging remarks . The porter and the glass finally disappeared down the aisle , and Robert Allison , now wide awake and flooded with returning energy , remembered with a whimsical smile the illusion that had overtaken him at midday . He glanced boldly down the aisle to assure himself that his mind was now free from phantoms . The heavy foliage along the mountainside , through which they had been passing , and which had created a twilight atmosphere in the car , had given way to wide open fields , and the long corridor was flooded from end to end with glaring June sunlight . Robert Allison caught his breath with a start and dug his thumb-nail into the palm of his hand to make sure he was awake .