midnight
I felt tired and overstrained , exceedingly regretful , full of longing after that lovely vision that had come to me and that I had had to drive away . The unearthly stillness combined with the brilliant , unabated , unfailing light had a curious mystery about it that charmed and delighted me . The sea , so blue and tranquil , sparkled softly on my left hand , the pellucid blue of the sky stretched overhead , and all the air was full of the sweet sunshine we associate with day . Yet it was midnight . I pulled out my watch and looked at it to assure myself of the fact . Sitka was wrapt in silence and sleep , my own footstep resounded strangely in the burning empty streets . I had to pass the tea-shop on my way to the ship .