midnight
For two hours he put his louis at each turn of the wheel on the Lonely Nought . For two hours he lost . Increasing his stake , which had begun at five francs and had risen at length to five louis , he still coaxed the sardonic deity . Finally midnight came , and he was the only person playing at the table . All others had gone or had ceased to play . These stayed to watch the `` mad Inglesi , '' as a foreigner called him , knocking his head against the foot stool of an unresponsive god of chance . The croupiers watched also with somewhat disdainful , somewhat pitying interest , this last representative of a class who have an insane notion that the law of chances is in their favour if they can but stay the course .