one o’clock
He did not want a drink , and he could not think of any subject of conversation likely to interest a tousled girl who had just been crawling about the floor on her hands and knees . At last he said `` Good morning . '' Mary Ellen gaped at him and then smiled . The Major , recollecting that it was half-past one o'clock , and therefore no longer morning , said that it was a fine evening . Mary Ellen 's smile broadened . The Major expressed a polite hope that she was quite well . He thought of shaking hands with her , and wished that he had brought a pair of gloves with him , Mary Ellen 's hands were certainly dirty and they looked hot .