Midnight
And when he comes -- '' He raised his arm high above his head , laughed wildly , paused , let the hand drop , and then fell to staring into the fire . Pierre again placed the flask of rum between his fingers . But Gaspard put it down , caught his arms together across his breast , and never turned his face from the fire . Midnight came , and still they sat there silent . No man had a greater gift in waiting than Pierre . Many a time his life had been a swivel , upon which the comedies and tragedies of others had turned . He neither loved nor feared men : sometimes he pitied them .