midnight
When a man sees how little it takes to make women happy -- them that 's good and never thinks of anything but doing their best for everybody belonging to 'em -- it 's wonderful how men ever make up their minds to go wrong and bring all that loves them to shame and grief . When they 've got nobody but themselves to think of it do n't so much matter as I know of ; but to keep on breaking the hearts of those as never did you anything but good , and would n't if they lived for a hundred years , is cowardly and unmanly any way you look at it . And yet we 'd done very little else ourselves these years and years . We all sat up till nigh on to midnight with our hands in one another 's -- Jim down at mother 's feet ; Aileen and I close beside them on the old seat in the verandah that father made such a time ago . At last mother gets up , and they both started for bed . Aileen seemed as if she could n't tear herself away . Twice she came back , then she kissed us both , and the tears came into her eyes .