midnight
She needed not to tell me this truth -- I felt it ; felt it in the purity of her soul , her silence , her perfect trust in me . For this I knew , then and forever -- only by respect could I win the love of her . This knowledge was restraint enough . We rested for an hour at midnight , on the banks of a small stream . The sky had lightened somewhat , and we could perceive the way fairly well when we again advanced , now traveling through a more open country , a prairie , interspersed with groves of trees . Daylight overtook us at the edge of a slough , which bordered a little lake , where in the gray dawn , Tim , by a lucky shot , managed to kill a crippled duck , which later furnished us with a meager breakfast . In the security of a near-by cluster of trees , we ventured to build a fire , and , sitting about it , discussed whether to remain there , or press on .