three o'clock in
the morning
Weak-minded they are , and if you 're in no hurry I can tell you a tale of a pal o ' mine , Bill Burtenshaw by name , that 'll prove my words . ` Superstitiousness is Right and Proper , to a Certain Extent . ' His mother was superstitious afore ` im , and always knew when ` er friends died by hearing three loud taps on the wall . The on ' y mistake she ever made was one night when , arter losing no less than seven friends , she found out it was the man next door hanging pictures at three o'clock in the morning . She found it out by ` im hitting ` is thumb-nail . For the first few years arter he grew up Bill went to sea , and that on ' y made ` im more superstitious than ever . Him and a pal named Silas Winch went several v ` y' ges together , and their talk used to be that creepy that some o ' the chaps was a ` most afraid to be left on deck alone of a night .