noon
The day of the week in each case had been Friday , and the humming noise had commenced at precisely the same time -- the passing of the sun over the meridian . To-day was the third successive Friday , and Constans had made preparations for the careful noting of the phenomenon should it reoccur . He waited with a lively sense of expectation , and he was not disappointed . At high noon the humming began again , and it seemed to be louder than when he had listened to it on the two former occasions -- the air was full of the vibrant droning . There was a sinister quality , too , in its monotone , and Constans for the moment felt himself swayed by a gust of superstitious terror . He recalled the traditions current among the House-dwellers , the belief that Doom was inhabited not only by the outlaws but by demons of many a grewsome sort and kind . There were strange tales of lights that lured the wanderer onward , only to vanish as the victim sank into some frightful abyss ; of invisible hands that plucked at the rash intruder 's skirts ; of monstrous shapes that leered and gabbled behind the traveller 's back and were only blocks of stone when he turned to face them ; of bloodless creatures that one might meet in the full flood of day , and whose unearthly character was only to be proved by observing that they cast no shadow in even the brightest sunlight ; of vampires and ghouls and fair women with enchanting voices , who enticed their victims into blind passageways and then changed suddenly to foul , harpy-like monsters .