midday
Landmark after landmark of peak or bold ridge took the angle of some recollected view of his five years ' wanderings . It was already noon when he saw Galeria from the far end of the long basin that he had crossed , with the V as the compass of his bearings , on the ride that brought him to the top to meet Mary and Pete Leddy . Then the V was lost while the train wound around the range that formed one side of the basin 's rim . The blaze of midday had passed before it entered the reaches of the best valley yet in the judgment of a connoisseur in valleys ; and under the Eternal Painter 's canopy a spot of green quivered in the heat-rays of the horizon . His Majesty was in a dreamy mood . He was playing in delicate variations , tranquil and enchanting , of effects in gold and silver , now gossamery thin , now thick and rich . `` What is this thing crawling along on two silken threads and so afraid of the hills ? ''