midnight
is that you , nurse ? Miss Pauline is better . I was talking about Plato , nurse . The last translation I have been making from his immortal work does not please me ; but toil -- ceaseless toil -- the midnight oil , _ et cetera _ , may evoke the spirit of the true Muse , and I may be able to put the matter before the great English thinking public in a way worthy of the immortal master . '' Mr. Dale had now pushed his hat very far back from his forehead . He removed it , still quite abstractedly , and retired with long , shuffling strides to his beloved study . `` No food until I ring for it , '' he said when he reached the door , and then he vanished .