about twelve o’clock
It was the formal baptism of Hope by her father . I never saw a more touching ceremony , but it is one that I need not describe . Stephen and I slept in the enclosure by the packed flower , which he would not leave out of his sight . It was as well that we did so , since about twelve o'clock by the light of the moon I saw the door in the wall open gently and the heads of some of the albino women appear through the aperture . Doubtless , they had come to steal away the holy plant they worshipped . I sat up , coughed , and lifted the rifle , whereon they fled and returned no more . Long before dawn Brother John , his wife and daughter were up and making preparations for the march , packing a supply of food and so forth .