five in the
afternoon
It was her plight that perturbed him , from which he sought an outlet -- never his own . Yet his own was desperate enough ... . Baffled and uneasy , he at length bethought him of his watch . But its testimony seemed incredible : surely the hour could not be five in the afternoon ! -- surely he could not have slept so close upon a full round of the clock ! And if it were so , what of the girl ? Had she , too , so sorely needed sleep that the brief November day had dawned and waned without her knowledge ?