midnight
* * * * * During the same week it began to thaw , the work went on quickly , and one Friday evening at the beginning of March `` Black Susy '' stood there , smart and shiny in her newly-mended garment . Next day the boiler was to be tried , and the wood and coal lay heaped up by the walls of the shed . Paul , unable to sleep , tossed on his bed . The hours crept slowly by , and a short eternity of the most painful expectation elapsed between midnight and dawn . `` Will she come to life ? Will she ? '' The clock struck one .