midnight
For instance , it was his practice to guide the flock by walking _ before _ them ; and this he explained as `` a way ` the Shepherd ' had . '' He said that when walking behind he was invariably alone ; but when going in front `` the Shepherd '' was frequently by his side . And there were greater `` revelations '' than this . During the lambing season , when Snarley would often spend the night in his box , high up among the wolds , `` the Shepherd '' would announce his presence towards midnight by giving a signal , which Snarley would immediately answer , and pass long hours with him communing on the mysteries of their craft . From this source Snarley professed to have derived some of the secrets on which his system of breeding was founded . '' ` The Shepherd ' had put him up to them . '' He said that it was `` the Shepherd '' who had turned his thoughts to Spain as the country which would provide him with a short-eared ram .