four
o'clock in the morning
A ball , with a dead man in one of the bedrooms , would be dreadful . With a dying man it was bad enough ; -- but then a dying man is always also a living man ! Lord Rufford had already telegraphed for a first-class surgeon from London , it having been whispered to him that perhaps Old Nokes from Rufford might be mistaken . The surgeon could not be there till four o'clock in the morning by which time care would have been taken to remove the signs of the ball ; but if there was reason to send for a London surgeon , then also was there reason for hope ; -- and if there were ground for hope , then the desirability of putting off the ball was very much reduced . `` He 's at the furthest end of the corridor , '' the Lord said to his sister , `` and wo n't hear a sound of the music . '' Though the man were to die why should n't the people dance ? Had the Major been dying three or four miles off , at the hotel at Rufford , there would only have been a few sad looks , a few shakings of the head , and the people would have danced without any flaw in their gaiety .