nine o'clock
`` I had hardly expected to find my dear mother here before me , '' said he , with a smile . `` Why so , Eugene ? '' asked Olympia . `` Because the hour for your reception was fixed for nine o'clock , and it has not yet struck nine . '' The countess glanced quickly at the clock on the sculptured mantel - piece . `` It is almost ten , '' said she . `` Your clock is nearly an hour too fast , '' said Eugene , who had followed the direction of his mother 's eyes .