five o'clock in the morning
`` What was the case ? '' `` Well , a gentleman , a man of very good position , was found dead , stark dead , in the area of a certain house in Paul Street , off Tottenham Court Road . Of course the police did not make the discovery ; if you happen to be sitting up all night and have a light in your window , the constable will ring the bell , but if you happen to be lying dead in somebody 's area , you will be left alone . In this instance , as in many others , the alarm was raised by some kind of vagabond ; I do n't mean a common tramp , or a public-house loafer , but a gentleman , whose business or pleasure , or both , made him a spectator of the London streets at five o'clock in the morning . This individual was , as he said , ` going home , ' it did not appear whence or whither , and had occasion to pass through Paul Street between four and five a.m. Something or other caught his eye at Number 20 ; he said , absurdly enough , that the house had the most unpleasant physiognomy he had ever observed , but , at any rate , he glanced down the area and was a good deal astonished to see a man lying on the stones , his limbs all huddled together , and his face turned up . Our gentleman thought his face looked peculiarly ghastly , and so set off at a run in search of the nearest policeman . The constable was at first inclined to treat the matter lightly , suspecting common drunkenness ; however , he came , and after looking at the man 's face , changed his tone , quickly enough .