Eleven o’clock
The sad truth was , however , that they had done something more than discipline the lad . They had fairly worried his native virtues of frankness and fair-dealing out of his heart ; they had beaten him back , inch by inch , into the miry refuge of sheer duplicity . Zack was deceiving them both . Eleven o'clock was the family hour for going to bed at Baregrove Square . Zack 's first proceeding on entering his room was to open his window softly , put on an old traveling cap , and light a cigar . It was December weather at that time ; but his hardy constitution rendered him as impervious to cold as a young Polar bear . Having smoked quietly for half an hour , he listened at his door till the silence in Mr. Thorpe 's dressing-room below assured him that his father was safe in bed , and invited him to descend on tiptoe -- with his boots under his arm -- into the hall .