midnight
In vain she strove to dispel those frightful ideas , and avoid such topics of discourse for the future . The more she endeavoured to banish them , the more troublesome they became ; and such was her infatuation , that as her terrors increased , her thirst after that sort of knowledge was augmented . Many sleepless nights did she pass amidst those horrors of fancy , starting at every noise , and sweating with dreary apprehension , yet ashamed to own her fears , or solicit the comfort of a bedfellow , lest she should incur the ridicule and censure of her father 's wife ; and what rendered this disposition the more irksome , was the solitary situation of her chamber , that stood at the end of a long gallery scarce within hearing of any other inhabited part of the house . All these circumstances had been duly weighed by our projector , who , having prepared Celinda for his purpose , stole at midnight from his apartment , which was in another storey , and approaching her door , there uttered a piteous groan ; then softly retired to his bed , in full confidence of seeing next day the effect of this operation . Nor did his arrow miss the mark . Poor Celinda 's countenance gave such indications of melancholy and dismay , that he could not omit asking the cause of her disquiet , and she , at his earnest request , was prevailed upon to communicate the dreadful salutation of the preceding night , which she considered as an omen of death to some person of the family , in all probability to herself , as the groan seemed to issue from one corner of her own apartment . Our adventurer argued against this supposition , as contradictory to the common observation of those supernatural warnings which are not usually imparted to the person who is doomed to die , but to some faithful friend , or trusty servant , particularly interested in the event .