about two in the morning
All that day he had fled , seeing no one , hearing no pursuing horse-beat . At night his wife , unable , in her weak condition , to sustain the terrible jolting , had expired . Taking nothing from the wagon but his saddle , he had mounted one of the horses with the child before him , and had continued his flight , the terrific wind at his back . Unaware that the wind had changed , he had traversed horseback much of the distance traveled during the day , and at about two in the morning -- that is to say , about all hour ago -- seeing a light , he had ridden straight toward it , to find shelter from the storm . The prisoner narrated all this in nervous haste , though he had already given every particular , time and again . His form as well as his voice trembled with undisguised terror , and indeed , the red and cruel eyes fastened contemptuously on him might have caused a much braver man than Gledware to shudder visibly . `` Well , pard , '' said the leader of the band , waiting until he had finished , `` you ca n't never claim that you ai n't been given your say , for I do admire free speech .