noon
`` It was himself . '' `` They 're a ' sae sonsie ! '' said the young lady from the buffet with a rapturous sigh . At the junction where the train stopped at noon , Naval occupation of the North proclaimed itself . A Master-at-Arms , austere of visage and stentorian voiced , fell upon the weary voyagers like a collie rallying a flock of sheep . A Lieutenant-Commander of the Reserve , in a tattered monkey-jacket , was superintending the unstowing of bags and hammocks by a party of ancient mariners in white working rig and brown gaiters . A retired Boatswain , who apparently bore the responsibilities of local Traffic Superintendent upon his broad shoulders , held sage council with the engine driver .