midnight
`` So as you are here at last , come in and have a drink , for whether you are men or devils , you must be cold out there in the damp . '' In they came accordingly , and , not being Mohammedans , partook of a tot of square-face from a bottle which I kept locked in a box to put Hans beyond the reach of temptation . `` To your health , Harût and Marût , '' I said , drinking a little out of the pannikin and giving the rest to Hans , who gulped the fiery liquor down with a smack of his lips . For I will admit that I joined in this unholy midnight potation to gain time for thought and to steady my nerve . `` To your health , O Lord Macumazana , '' the pair answered as they swallowed their tots , which I had made pretty stiff , and set down their pannikins in front of them with as much reverence as though these had been holy vessels . `` Now , '' I said , throwing a blanket over my shoulders , for the air was chilly , `` now let us talk , '' and taking the lantern which Hans had thoughtfully lighted , I held it up and contemplated them . There they were , Harût and Marût without doubt , to all appearance totally unchanged since some years before I had seen them at Ragnall in England .