three o’clock in the morning
It is certain that the appearance and disappearance of this mysterious father have given rise to very singular conjectures ; and probably if the thumb-screws were put upon the organist , who was , they say , entrusted with the education of the interesting bastard , we might get the secret of his birth and possibly other unexpected revelations . Now I have thought of a man on whom you have , I believe , great influence , who might in this hunt for facts assist us immensely . Do n't you remember the robbery of those jewels from Jenny Cardine , about which she was so unhappy one night at Very 's ? You asked the waiter for pens and paper , and on a simple note which you sent at three o'clock in the morning to a Monsieur Saint-Esteve the police went to work , and before the evening of the next day the thieves were captured and the jewels restored . '' `` Yes , '' said the colonel , `` I remember all that ; my interference was lucky . But I must tell you that had I paused to reflect I should not have treated Monsieur de Saint-Esteve so cavalierly . He is a man to be approached with greater ceremony . ''