the hour of nine
It would comfort me if I were in his place . Nine o'clock then , Mr. Hatton , and at your quarters . '' Before dark the ambulances got away , Dr. Weeks and the lieutenant going with them on horseback . Cutting short a post-prandial cigar , Mr. Holmes left the surgeon to sip his coffee in solitude when a glance at his watch showed him that the hour of nine was approaching . Quickly he strode over toward `` Bedlam , '' and sprang up the low flight of steps to the veranda . To his surprise , the hall-door was closed ; he turned the knob , but there was no yielding . Looking in through the side-lights , he could see that a lamp was burning on the second floor , but that the hall-lantern below had either been forgotten or its light extinguished .