about seven o'clock
To this , knowing that the talk will throw a glimmer on several matters , I will now introduce my reader , as a spectator through the reversed telescope of my history . A few of the more influential of the inhabitants had grown , rather than formed themselves , into a kind of club , which met weekly at The Boar 's Head . Although they had no exclusive right to the room in which they sat , they generally managed to retain exclusive possession of it ; for if any supposed objectionable person entered , they always got rid of him , sometimes without his being aware of how they had contrived to make him so uncomfortable . They began to gather about seven o'clock , when it was expected that boiling water would be in readiness for the compound generally called toddy , sometimes punch . As soon as six were assembled , one was always voted into the chair . On the present occasion , Mr. Innes , the school-master , was unanimously elected to that honour . He was a hard-featured , sententious , snuffy individual , of some learning , and great respectability .