noon
All the spalpanes in the strates could n't make ` im wink , yet while I was a-wailin ' over Barney he was as tender-feelin ' as a baby . '' The girl 's heart fluttered strangely at the words of her former maid , but she tried to disguise her emotion . When again left alone she strained her ears for every sound from the city , and was untiring in her watch . From noon till evening she kept a dainty lunch ready for Merwyn , but he did not come . After the young man 's return from his second fight he was given some rest . In the afternoon , he , with others , was sent on duty to the west side , the force being carried thither in stages which Acton had impressed into the service . One driver refused to stir , saying , insolently , that he had `` not been hired to carry policemen . ''