seven o'clock
While he waited for an answer to his ring he looked about him . He was in a sort of yard which was almost entirely filled up by the sculptor 's studio , a long structure lighted at one end as it seemed from the roof , and at the other by the usual north window . At the end of the yard rose a huge many-storied building which seemed to be a factory of some sort . David 's Lancashire eye distinguished machinery through the monotonous windows , and the figures of the operatives ; it took note also of the fact that the rooms were lit up and work still going on at seven o'clock . All around were the ugly backs of tall houses , every window flung open to this May heat . The scene was squalid and _ triste _ save for the greenish blue of the evening sky , and the flight of a few pigeons round the roof of the factory . A man in a blouse came at last , and led the way in when David asked for Madame Cervin .