Midnight
Hadassah had so often attended meetings in the elder 's dwelling , with or without her grand-daughter , that habit had made her regard such attendance as less perilous than it was now to be proved to have been . But Hadassah on this night could not retire to rest . She could not close her eyes in sleep until they had again looked upon her whom the Hebrew lady fondly called her `` white dove . '' Midnight stole on , and Hadassah 's heart , notwithstanding her courage and faith , became burdened with heavy anxiety . She made Anna lie down and rest ; while she herself , notwithstanding her state of indisposition , kept watch by the door . Presently her ear caught the sound of footsteps , hurried yet stealthy . Hadassah heard danger in that sound , and opened the door without waiting to know who came , or whether the steps would be arrested at her threshold .