midnight
He sat on the ground and began to take off his moccasins with ostentatious deliberation , abruptly indifferent to it all . Slowly he prepared for the night , yawning often , looking at the sky , arranging the fire , emphasising and delaying each of his movements as though to prove to himself that he acknowledged only the habitual . At last he turned in , his shoulder thrust aggressively toward the two motionless figures by the fire . It was by now close to midnight . The big moon had long since slipped from behind the solitary wolf on the hill . Yet Sam Bolton made no move toward his blankets , and the girl did not stir from the downcast attitude into which she had first fallen . The old woodsman looked at the situation with steady eyes .