nine o'clock
The circumstances of the burglary in detail were these : Mr. Claridge had himself been the last to leave the premises at about eight in the evening , at dusk , and had locked the small side door as usual . His assistant , Mr. Cutler , had left an hour and a half earlier . When Mr. Claridge left , everything was in order , and the policeman on fixed-point duty just opposite , who bade Mr. Claridge good-evening as he left , saw nothing suspicious during the rest of his term of duty , nor did his successors at the point throughout the night . In the morning , however , Mr. Cutler , the assistant , who arrived first , soon after nine o'clock , at once perceived that something unlooked-for had happened . The door , of which he had a key , was still fastened , and had not been touched ; but in the room behind the shop Mr. Claridge 's private desk had been broken open , and the contents turned out in confusion . The door leading on to the staircase had also been forced . Proceeding up the stairs , Mr. Cutler found another door open , leading from the top landing to a small room ; this door had been opened by the simple expedient of unscrewing and taking off the lock , which had been on the inside .