midnight
Yet there was something . It might not be sound or sight , but there was a presence , a something -- he could not explain . He was alert in every nerve . Suddenly the words of the hymn he had been singing in the afternoon flashed again into his mind , and , with his cocked revolver in his hand , alone , on guard , in the midnight of the savage wilderness , the words came that were not even a whisper : God shall charge His angel legions Watch and ward o'er thee to keep ; Though thou walk through hostile regions , Though in desert wilds thou sleep . He gave a contented sigh and lay down . What was there to worry about ? It was just his case for which the hymn was written .