five o'clock
Gerande remained silent . `` I must know , '' added the old man , `` if they have brought back any more of those accursed watches upon which the Devil has sent this epidemic ! '' After these words Master Zacharius fell into complete silence , till he knocked at the door of his house , and for the first time since his convalescence descended to his shop , while Gerande sadly repaired to her chamber . Just as Master Zacharius crossed the threshold of his shop , one of the many clocks suspended on the wall struck five o'clock . Usually the bells of these clocks -- admirably regulated as they were -- struck simultaneously , and this rejoiced the old man 's heart ; but on this day the bells struck one after another , so that for a quarter of an hour the ear was deafened by the successive noises . Master Zacharius suffered acutely ; he could not remain still , but went from one clock to the other , and beat the time to them , like a conductor who no longer has control over his musicians . When the last had ceased striking , the door of the shop opened , and Master Zacharius shuddered from head to foot to see before him the little old man , who looked fixedly at him and said , -- `` Master , may I not speak with you a few moments ? ''