three o'clock
To face him after the truth had reached his ear seemed to Chris a circumstance too terrible to dwell upon . Her action , of course , would proclaim the parentage of Timothy , and free Will from further slanderings ; while for herself , through tears she saw the kind faces of the gypsy people and her life henceforth devoted to her little one . To accentuate the significance of the act she determined to carry out her intention that same day , and during the afternoon opportunity offered . Her son , playing alone in the farmyard , came readily enough for a walk , and before three o'clock they had set out . The boy 's face was badly scratched from his morning battle , but pain had ceased , and his injuries only served as an object of great interest to Timothy . Where water in ditch or puddle made a looking-glass he would stop to survey himself . A spectator , aware of certain facts , had viewed the progress of Chris with some slight interest .