midnight
It was very evident , however , that he felt that there had been very great carelessness on the part of somebody , and perhaps he chided himself that he had not interested himself in the matter . However , he had his hopes that , in spite of the cunning of the wolverines , the men would succeed in killing some of them , and as one wolverine skin is worth four beaver skins , if they were successful there would at least be some satisfaction in that . As it was still a long time until daylight the boys were persuaded to lie down in their bed , and Memotas carefully tucked them in . Refreshing sleep speedily came to them again , and when they awoke it was to hear Mr Ross giving some final instructions to three dog-drivers who were just about to start on the trail made at midnight by the wolverines , barking dogs and angry , indignant hunters . Wrapped securely upon their sleds was a liberal supply of food , with kettles , axes , and other things that might be required . As they started the eastern sky almost suddenly became illuminated with the brightness of the coming day . So beautiful was the morning that the boys longed to go with the departing trains .