midnight
Presently we came to an open piece of country lying a thought downhill . The road was smooth and free of ice , the moonshine thin and bright over the meadows and the leafless trees . I was now honestly done with the purgatory of the covered cart ; I was close to my great-uncle 's ; I had no more fear of Mr. Dudgeon ; which were all grounds enough for jollity . And I was aware , besides , of us two as of a pair of tiny and solitary dolls under the vast frosty cupola of the midnight ; the rooms decked , the moon burnished , the least of the stars lighted , the floor swept and waxed , and nothing wanting but for the band to strike up and the dancing to begin . In the exhilaration of my heart I took the music on myself -- ` Merrily danced the Quaker 's wife , And merrily danced the Quaker . ' I broke into that animated and appropriate air , clapped my arm about Dudgeon 's waist , and away down the hill at a dancing step ! He hung back a little at the start , but the impulse of the tune , the night , and my example , were not to be resisted .