midnight
If the house got on fire we were all to rush to Pa , and he would save us . Well , last night Ma had to go to one of the neighbors , where they was going to have twins , and we did n't sleep much , cause Ma had to come home twice in the night to get saffron , and an old flannel petticoat that I broke in when I was a kid , cause the people where Ma went did not know as twins was on the bill of fare , and they only had flannel petticoats for one . Pa was cross at being kept awake , and told Ma he hoped when all the children in Milwaukee were born , and got grown up , she would take in her sign and not go around nights and act as usher to baby matinees . Pa says there ought to be a law that babies should arrive on the regular day trains , and not wait for the midnight express . Well , Pa he got asleep , and he slept till about eight o'clock in the morning , and the blinds were closed , and it was dark in his room , and I had to wait for my breakfast till I was hungry as a wolf , and the girl told me to wake Pa up , so I went up stairs , and I do n't know what made me think of it , but I had some of this powder they make red fire with in the theatre , that me and my chum had the 4th of July , and I put it in a washdish in the bath-room , and I touched it off and hollered fire . I was going to wake Pa up and tell him it was all right , and laugh at him . I guess there was too much fire , or I yelled too loud , cause Pa jumped out of bed and grabbed a rope and rushed through the hall towards the back window , that goes out on a shed .