midnight
`` Yes , I see , dear ; it 's about half-way between , '' Aunt Juley had hazarded in earlier years . No ; truth , being alive , was not half-way between anything . It was only to be found by continuous excursions into either realm , and though proportion is the final secret , to espouse it at the outset is to insure sterility . Helen , agreeing here , disagreeing there , would have talked till midnight , but Margaret , with her packing to do , focussed the conversation on Henry . She might abuse Henry behind his back , but please would she always be civil to him in company ? `` I definitely dislike him , but I 'll do what I can , '' promised Helen . `` Do what you can with my friends in return . ''