midday
With the stick in his hand , he went on down the road until he approached a large white house standing some distance back from the street . The grounds were filled with a profusion of shrubbery . The negro entered the gate and secreted himself in the bushes , at a point where he could hear any one that might approach . It was near midday , and he had not eaten . He had walked all night , and had not slept . The hope of meeting his loved ones had been meat and drink and rest for him . But as he sat waiting , outraged nature asserted itself , and he fell asleep , with his head on the rising root of a tree , and his face upturned .