three o'clock in the
morning
He waited a minute or so and then walked off , leaving the square on the opposite side -- the Vermont Avenue side . He went directly home and went to bed . `` He is unmarried and lives alone , taking his luncheons and dinners out , but preparing his own breakfasts in his rooms . At three o'clock in the morning he was in bed and asleep when I rang his doorbell . In his night clothes he got up and let me in ; and as soon as I was in I accused him . As a matter of fact the double theft had been discovered the evening before , but unfortunately by then several hours had elapsed from the time the dispatch was taken , and already , as you know , the dispatch had changed hands . `` Within an hour after the discovery of the loss I had been set to work on the job .