about half past five
But all the same there was much to be thankful for : poor though they were , they were far better off than many thousands of others : they still had food and shelter , and they had each other and the boy . Before they went to bed Owen carried the tree into Frankie 's bedroom and placed it so that he would be able to see it in all its glittering glory as soon as he awoke on Christmas morning . The Pandorama Although the party was not supposed to begin till six o'clock , Bert turned up at half past four , bringing the ` Pandoramer ' with him . At about half past five the other guests began to arrive . Elsie and Charley Linden came first , the girl in a pretty blue frock trimmed with white lace , and Charley resplendent in a new suit , which , like his sister 's dress , had been made out of somebody 's cast-off clothes that had been given to their mother by a visiting lady . It had taken Mrs Linden many hours of hard work to contrive these garments ; in fact , more time than the things were worth , for although they looked all right -- especially Elsie 's -- the stuff was so old that it would not wear very long : but this was the only way in which she could get clothes for the children at all : she certainly could not afford to buy them any . So she spent hours and hours making things that she knew would fall to pieces almost as soon as they were made .