a quarter to nine
Investigation , however , satisfied us that , if the plate were ever unearthed , the Crown would not interfere . Evidence that an ancestor had buried it was available , and reference to the will of Nicholas would establish its identity . Whether it belonged to us or to Vandy was another matter , but Reason suggested that Law and Equity alike would favour the party in whose land it was found . We ordered breakfast early and the car at a quarter to nine , but , for all that , it was past midnight before we went to bed . The next morning , for once in a way , we were up to time . Two minutes after the quarter we were all six in the car , and it was not yet nine o'clock when Jonah pulled up in the shade of a mighty oak less than a hundred paces from the tall iron gates which stood gaunt , rusty and forbidding , to mar the beauty of the quiet by-road . So far as we could see there was no one about , but we were anxious not to attract attention , so Berry and I alighted and strolled casually forward .