about four o'clock
In the meantime , Monsieur de Malouet had received me with still more cordial affability than usual , and without making any direct allusion to the accident which had brought me against my will to this cynegetic feast , he omitted no attention that could make me forget its trifling annoyance . Soon after the hounds started a deer , and I followed them with keen relish , being by no means indifferent to that manly pastime , though it is not sufficient for my happiness in this world . The pack was thrown off the scent two or three times , and the deer had the best of the day . At about four o'clock we started on our way back to the chateau . When we crossed the valley on our return , the twilight was already marking out more clearly upon the sky the outline of the trees and the crest of the hills ; a melancholy shade was falling upon the woods , and a whitish fog chilled the grass on the meadows , while a thicker mist indicated the sinuous course of the little river . As I remained absorbed in the contemplation of the scene which reminded me of better days , I discovered suddenly Madame de Palme at my side . `` I believe , after due reflection , '' she said with her usual brusqueness , `` that you scorn my ignorance and my lack of wit much more than my supposed want of morality .