midnight
Even Thad and Allan had known of no reason why a watch should be maintained , for they felt sure there could hardly be a human being within miles of the camp ; and even if this were not so , the chances were strongly in favor of its proving to be an honest farmer , or some miner on his way to the workings further west . The only sounds that could have been heard from time to time were an occasional peevish fretful croak from the captive owl , as it continued to peck savagely at the chain around its leg ; or it might be a snore from Bumpus , or some other fellow who had a fashion of lying squarely on his back . Perhaps pretty soon , when one of the scouts had been kept awake by this noise until patience ceased to be a virtue , he would get quietly up , and pour a tin-cup of lake water over the one who persisted in sleeping with his mouth wide open ; for that sort of radical remedy had proven effective on other occasions , and brought relief . It must have been almost midnight when a sudden change came about that took even the seasoned campers by surprise , for they had not been anticipating any such startling event . The stillness was broken by a piercing scream that caused every head to bob up , and the blankets to be hurriedly thrown aside . `` My owl 's mate has come in on us , mebbe ! '' exclaimed Step Hen ; for that idea was so firmly lodged in his brain that it had to occur to him as soon as he heard all that row .