April morning, about ten o'clock
But how and when they met again , and who came off best in the end , this tale will truly and sufficiently set forth hereafter . Spring had come again , after a long wet winter , and every orchard-hollow blushed once more with appleblossoms . In warm sheltered southern valleys hedges were already green , and even the tall hedgerow-elms began , day after day , to grow more shady and dense . It was a bright April morning , about ten o'clock , when Mary Thornton , throwing up her father 's studywindow from the outside , challenged him to come out and take a walk ; and John , getting his hat and stick , immediately joined her in front of the house . `` Where is your aunt , my love ? '' said John . `` She is upstairs , '' said Mary .