three
o'clock
`` Old man , '' said Richard , `` I am going to take a look at the lady I love . '' Mr. Pickwick moaned querulously , while Richard sought the street . Richard , the day before , dispatched a note and a card to Mrs. Hanway-Harley and had been told in reply that he might call to-day at three . Richard decided to repair to the club , and wait for three o'clock . Richard , during his week in Washington , had found a deserted corner in the club and pre-empted it . At those times when he honored the club with his presence , he occupied this vantage point . From it he was given both a view of the street and a fair survey of the apartment itself .