midnight
Beyond , the white mountains faded away to the pale sky . Not a sound , not a murmur of wind , not a voice to break the awful stillness . With great thankfulness for my deliverance from the stark death that had been so near me all day , I looked up to heaven and remembered the blessed birth eighteen centuries ago when Jesus Christ came to the earth as a little babe . Turning my steps to the other log-house , I wondered to see no light , and was surprised , too , that the riot there had ceased by midnight . As I walked the hundred yards , the song of the heavenly hosts of old sounded in my heart : `` Glory to God in the highest , and on earth peace , good will toward men ! '' Drawing near the cabin , I was amazed to see the door stretched wide open , and no light within . Instantly a dark foreboding fell upon me , and I remembered the fearful visions of the night before .