twelve o'clock
I know their ways , and where they go to , when they come ashore , little Meg . Oh ! I 'll hunt him out . You put the children to bed , dear ; and then you sit up till I come back , if it 's past twelve o'clock , I 'll bring him home , alive or dead . Do n't cry no more , little Meg . ' She called softly up the stairs to say these last words , for she had started off immediately . Meg did as she had told her , and then waited with renewed hope for her return .