winter's midnight
-- Most miserable ! A peculiar walk in this old man , a certain slight but painful appearing yawing in his gait , had at an early period of the voyage excited the curiosity of the mariners . And to the importunity of their persisted questionings he had finally given in ; and so it came to pass that every one now knew the shameful story of his wretched fate . Belated , and not innocently , one bitter winter 's midnight , on the road running between two country towns , the blacksmith half-stupidly felt the deadly numbness stealing over him , and sought refuge in a leaning , dilapidated barn . The issue was , the loss of the extremities of both feet . Out of this revelation , part by part , at last came out the four acts of the gladness , and the one long , and as yet uncatastrophied fifth act of the grief of his life 's drama . He was an old man , who , at the age of nearly sixty , had postponedly encountered that thing in sorrow 's technicals called ruin .