eight o’clock
The coachmen , already drunk , donned their new dark blue caftans , and their hair shone with grease . The women servants made a gay picture in their many coloured cotton dresses , head and neck kerchiefs , and the maids employed in the house diffused a scent of cloves within a ten yards radius . The cooks had donned their white caps in the early morning , and had been incessantly busy in the preparation of the breakfast , dinner and supper to be served to the family and their guests , the kitchen , and the servants the visitors brought with them . Tatiana Markovna had begun to make her toilet at eight o'clock , as soon as she had given her orders ; she descended to the hall to greet her guests with the reserved dignity of a great lady , and the gentle smile of a happy mother and a hospitable hostess . She had set a small simple cap on her grey hair ; the light brown silk dress that Raisky had brought from St. Petersburg suited her well , and round her neck she wore beautiful old lace ; the Turkish shawl lay on the arm-chair in her room . Now she was preparing to drive to Mass , and walked slowly up and down the hall with crossed hands , awaiting the assembly of the household . She hardly noticed the bustle around her , as the servants went hither and thither , sweeping the carpets , cleaning the lamps , dusting the mirrors , and taking the covers from the furniture .