midnight
I had never been left entirely without human companionship before , not even for a night , and I soon began to wonder at the amount of loneliness that can be compressed into a few hours . Before the afternoon was half spent I was mentally reviewing the history of Robinson Crusoe , and was feeling an intense sympathy for that resourceful castaway . I lingered over my evening tasks , and , sooner than seemed possible , dusk came and night was at hand , so at last I reluctantly closed and made fast the kitchen door . Reluctantly , for to-night , this common and necessary precaution seemed , somehow , to cut me adrift from all chance of human aid , and by this time my mind was running on wild tales of bandits , of lonely camps , and the far sweep of the cattle ranges where , in darkened hollow or at the foot of shadowy buttes , great gray wolves lay in wait for their midnight prey , indifferent as to whether the prey consisted of cattle or cattleman . Still , I am sure that I was not really cowardly ; it was only the unusual situation that set me thinking of these things . Father 's light rifle hung in its accustomed place over the kitchen fireplace , and , as a last precaution , I took it down , and , after ascertaining that it was properly loaded , put it near the head of the bed , within reach of my hand . To be expert with firearms is almost a matter of course for girls on Western ranches , and I was an unusually good marksman .