midnight
If Allee had not been so sleepy she might have remembered one other time just a year before when Peace had heard the clock strike ; but being too near the land of Nod to realize anything but that Peace was calling her , she stumbled out of bed once more and allowed herself to be bundled up in wraps of all sorts until she was as shapeless as a mummy . In this fashion they slipped down the back stairs and out to the barn without betraying their presence , though the steps creaked under their weight , and every door they opened squeaked so alarmingly that Peace held her breath more than once for fear someone had heard . Once inside the dark barn , they had to feel their way about , for not a ray of light penetrated the blackness of the stormy night , and the grim silence of the place filled them with nameless terror . It was not so bad when they had finally found their way into Marmaduke 's stall and cuddled close to the friendly beast , who nosed them inquiringly , but even there they did not dare speak above a whisper ; and so they waited breathlessly for the mystic midnight hour when the animals should break their silence and talk , each secretly wishing she were safely back in bed again . Up at the house the merry evening had at length drawn to a close , and the guests had reluctantly departed . The President , returning from the gate where he had escorted the last guest to her sleigh , made a harrowing discovery . There was a light in the balcony window !