About midnight
Umballa , Ludianah , Phillour , Jullundur , they rang like the coming marriage-bells in her ears , and William felt deeply and truly sorry for all strangers and outsiders -- visitors , tourists , and those fresh-caught for the service of the country . It was a glorious return , and when the bachelors gave the Christmas Ball , William was , unofficially , you might say , the chief and honoured guest among the Stewards , who could make things very pleasant for their friends . She and Scott danced nearly all the dances together , and sat out the rest in the big dark gallery overlooking the superb teak floor , where the uniforms blazed , and the spurs clinked , and the new frocks and four hundred dancers went round and round till the draped flags on the pillars flapped and bellied to the whirl of it . About midnight half a dozen men who did not care for dancing came over from the Club to play `` Waits , '' and that was a surprise the Stewards had arranged -- before any one knew what had happened , the band stopped , and hidden voices broke into `` Good King Wenceslaus , '' and William in the gallery hummed and beat time with her foot : `` Mark my footsteps well , my page , Tread thou in them boldly . Thou shalt feel the winter 's rage Freeze thy blood less coldly ! '' `` Oh , I hope they are going to give us another ! Is n't it pretty , coming out of the dark in that way ?