about four o'clock
Tommy was interested , however . She managed to get close enough to the car to examine the gown of Miss Collier with critical eyes , and Tommy was something of a judge of clothes , for her parents entertained smartly-dressed friends from the city quite frequently . The little girl looked disdainfully at the newcomers , but made no comment . Miss Elting and the guardian who accompanied her to `` The Pines '' returned about four o'clock that afternoon , having passed the automobile on the way . Harriet obtained an interview with the teacher shortly afterwards during the period of relaxation and rest before the dinner hour . The two women wandered off a short distance into the forest , Harriet having suggested a walk , and Miss Elting shrewdly suspecting that her little friend had something on her mind of which she wished to unburden herself . `` Now we will sit down here and be nice and comfy , and you will entertain me , '' smiled Miss Elting .