about eight o'clock
It was during the few minutes ' rest after dinner that the burden of the day pressed heaviest upon her ; then a painful weariness grew into her limbs , and it seemed impossible to summon strength and will to beat carpets or sweep down the stairs . But if she were not moving about before the clock struck , Mrs. Bingley came down to the kitchen . `` Now , Esther , is there nothing for you to do ? '' And again , about eight o'clock , she felt too tired to bear the weight of her own flesh . She had passed through fourteen hours of almost unintermittent toil , and it seemed to her that she would never be able to summon up sufficient courage to get through the last three hours . It was this last summit that taxed all her strength and all her will . Even the rest that awaited her at eleven o'clock was blighted by the knowledge of the day that was coming ; and its cruel hours , long and lean and hollow-eyed , stared at her through the darkness .