midnight
They sprang to their saddles and , wheeling , set out over the prairie . Gradually they lengthened out into single file . Presently the leader came loping back , and the whole body rode around Watusk and Ambrose in a vast circle . It was like an uncanny midnight circus . The riders maintained their silence . The only sounds were the thudding of hoofs on turf and the shaking of the horsemen in their clothes . Only one or two used saddles .