midnight
The crops were laid by . The huckleberries ripened ; the `` sarvices '' hung thick in the forest . Even the blackberries were beginning to turn and Andy and Jeff had been back at home more than a week , when Judith finally succeeded in getting her forces together and her guests promised . Many of them would have to walk four or five miles to sing and play for a few hours , tramping back at midnight to lie down and catch what sleep they could before dawn waked them to another day of toil . Thursday evening was set for the event . On Wednesday the Lusk girls coming in to discuss , found Judith with shining eyes and crimson cheeks , attacking the simple housework of the cabin . `` I wish ' t you 'd sing while I finish my churnin ' , '' the girl said , `` I 'm so flustered looks like I ca n't sca ` cely do anything right . ''