three o'clock
And then on the morning of the fifth day the blow fell , in the shape of a short , decisive note ordering the young people to pack their belongings and repair down to `` The Meads '' for the remainder of the holidays . The mandate was so firm and decisive that there was no hope of escape . The girls might cry and the boys might storm , but both realised the uselessness of protest . Assisted by Miss Bruce and Nannie , once nurse and now schoolroom maid , the melancholy preparations were made in time to allow the party to catch the three o'clock train from Victoria . To secure a carriage in which they could travel alone and be able to talk as they pleased was the ambition of the four elders , and while Miss Bruce was busily looking after the luggage , they took possession of a corridor coupe , slammed the door , and blocked the window with determined faces , though deep in each heart lurked the conviction that Miss Bruce 's morbidly acute conscience would feel it her duty to interfere . `` Nix for the Spider ! '' hissed Gurth , prising a hockey-stick against the handle of the door the while he gazed with elaborate calm at a poster on the station wall .