a quarter to one
`` Then please do n't think of it , '' she said . `` That 's easy ! '' he exclaimed , mockingly . At a quarter to one they entered a sleepy village reminiscent of a New England of other days . The long street , deeply shaded in summer , was bordered by decorous homes , some of which had stood there for a century and a half ; others were of the Mansard period . The high school , of strawberry-coloured brick , had been the pride and glory of the Kingsbury of the '70s : there were many churches , some graceful and some hideous . At the end of the street they came upon a common , surrounded by stone posts and a railing , with a monument in the middle of it , and facing the common on the north side was a rambling edifice with many white gables , in front of which , from an iron arm on a post , swung a quaint sign , `` Kingsbury Tavern . ''