Nine o’clock
`` Yes , but do n't be long , '' answered the latter . `` Good ; that means we have a quarter of an hour , '' remarked Mistigris , with the innate genius for observation of the Paris rapin . The pair disappeared . Nine o'clock was striking in the hotel kitchen . Georges thought it just and reasonable to remonstrate with Pierrotin . `` Hey ! my friend ; when a man is blessed with such wheels as these -LRB- striking the clumsy tires with his cane -RRB- he ought at least to have the merit of punctuality .