midnight
It was not his way to relate any incidents which were not of a cheering or laughter-inspiring nature . He said nothing of the times when his luck was bad , when he made blunders , and , approaching the wrong people , was met roughly or grudgingly , and found no resource left but to beat a retreat . He made no mention of his experiences in the blizzard , which continued , and at times nearly beat breath and life out of him as he fought his way through it . Especially he told no story of the morning when , after having labored furiously over the writing of his `` stuff '' until long after midnight , he had taken it to Galton , and seen his face fall as he looked over it . To battle all day with a blizzard and occasional brutal discouragements , and to sit up half the night tensely absorbed in concentrating one 's whole mental equipment upon the doing of unaccustomed work has its effect . As he waited , Tembarom unconsciously shifted from one foot to another , and had actually to swallow a sort of lump in his throat . `` I guess it wo n't do , '' he said rather uncertainly as Galton laid a sheet down .