about noon
He promised to return in three days at farthest ; and , bidding me keep up my spirits in the interval , turned around the corner of the pi-pi , and , under the guidance of the venerable Marheyo , was soon out of sight . His departure oppressed me with melancholy , and , re-entering the dwelling , I threw myself almost in despair upon the matting of the floor . In two hours ' time the old warrior returned , and gave me to understand , that after accompanying my companion a little distance , and showing him the route , he had left him journeying on his way . It was about noon of this same day , a season which these people are wont to pass in sleep , that I lay in the house , surrounded by its slumbering inmates , and painfully affected by the strange silence which prevailed . All at once I thought I heard a faint shout , as if proceeding from some persons in the depth of the grove which extended in front of our habitation . The sounds grew louder and nearer , and gradually the whole valley rang with wild outcries . The sleepers around me started to their feet in alarm , and hurried outside to discover the cause of the commotion .