nearly
noon
Oh , what a moment that was for Pierre ! He sprang into the gutter as the German passed and savagely jumped up and down upon the fragments of the green poster ! It was a matter for bitter regret to him long after that the German did not seem to notice him . The whole morning passed in such joy and excitement that it was nearly noon when at last Mother Meraut , beaming with happiness , and accompanied by a radiant Pierre and Pierrette , entered the Cathedral . They were astonished to find it no longer the silent and dim sanctuary to which they were accustomed . The Abbe ' was there , and the Verger , looking quite distracted , was directing a group of men in moving the praying-chairs from the western end of the Cathedral , and the space where they had been was already covered with heaps of straw . Under the great choir at the western end there were piles of broken glass .