midnight
The boys and girls of the mountain , to the number of a dozen or more , had gathered for a frolic -- a frolic that shook the foundations of Poteet 's castle , and aroused echoes familiar enough to the good souls who are fond of the cotillon in its primitive shape . The old folks who had accompanied the youngsters sat in the kitchen with Teague and his wife , and here Woodward also sat , listening with interest to the gossip of what seemed to be a remote era -- the war and the period preceding it . The activity of Sis Poteet found ample scope , and , whether lingering for a moment at her father 's side like a bird poised in flight , or moving lightly through the figures of the cotillon , she never appeared to better advantage . Toward midnight , when the frolic was at its height , an unexpected visitor announced himself . It was Uncle Jake Norris , who lived on the far side of the mountain . The fiddler waved his bow at Uncle Jake , and the boys and girls cried `` Howdy , '' as the visitor stood beaming and smiling in the doorway . To these demonstrations Uncle Jake , `` a chunk of a white man with a whole heart , '' as he described himself , made cordial response , and passed on into the kitchen .