twelve o'clock
Harlow said nothing . He also would have liked a pint of beer , but , as was usual with him , he had not the necessary cash . Having restored the circulation to a certain extent , they now resumed their work , and only just in time , for a few minutes afterwards they observed Misery peeping round the corner of the house at them and they wondered how long he had been there , and whether he had overheard their conversation . At twelve o'clock Crass and Slyme cleared off in a great hurry , and a little while afterwards , Philpot took off his apron and put on his coat to go to the ` Cricketers ' . When the others found out where he was going , several of them asked him to bring back a drink for them , and then someone suggested that all those who wanted some beer should give twopence each . This was done : one shilling and fourpence was collected and given to Philpot , who was to bring back a gallon of beer in a jar . He promised to get back as soon as ever he could , and some of the shareholders decided not to drink any tea with their dinners , but to wait for the beer , although they knew that it would be nearly time to resume work before he could get back .