midnight
But there was no denying the fact that something serious was at hand . From desultory puff s the wind had now increased to a steady blow , which drove a stinging hail of sand all about them blindingly . Eddies of hot wind caught up larger grains and dried cactus stems and drove them in terrestrial water spouts across the face of the desert . The moon was quite obscured now , and it was as black as a country church at midnight . All at once Peggy 's pony sank down , and with a long sigh stretched itself out upon the alkali . Roy 's almost immediately did the same . As they did so the wind came more furiously .