four o'clock
When he reached home next day he went out to the flower garden , and with the help of Holly , who was very delicate with flowers , gathered a great bunch of carnations . They were , he told her , for ` the lady in grey ' -- a name still bandied between them ; and he put them in a bowl in his study where he meant to tackle Irene the moment she came , on the subject of June and future lessons . Their fragrance and colour would help . After lunch he lay down , for he felt very tired , and the carriage would not bring her from the station till four o'clock . But as the hour approached he grew restless , and sought the schoolroom , which overlooked the drive . The sun-blinds were down , and Holly was there with Mademoiselle Beauce , sheltered from the heat of a stifling July day , attending to their silkworms . Old Jolyon had a natural antipathy to these methodical creatures , whose heads and colour reminded him of elephants ; who nibbled such quantities of holes in nice green leaves ; and smelled , as he thought , horrid .