about 3 o'clock
It cleared usually late in the afternoon for a short while , and he would be able to go out for half an hour . But where should he go ? He foresaw his walk from end to end before he began it : the descent of the hill , the cart-track and the old ruts full of water , the dead reeds on the shore soaking , the dripping trees . But he knew that about 3 o'clock the clouds would lift , and the sunset begin in the gaps in the mountains . He might go as far as the little fields between Derrinrush and the plantations , and from there he could watch the sunset . But the sunset would soon be over , and he would have to return home , for a long evening without a book . Terrible !