midnight
`` I can not exchange places with a woman of the mining districts . My life has been so different that I should be miserable . '' As she philosophises Ethel glances about her boudoir . It is midnight . From her open window a refreshing breeze comes from the sea . Venetia , on the Long Island shore , where Gorman Purdy has built his palatial residence , is always fanned by ocean breezes . On this particular night in August the moon shines full and bright .