nine o'clock
`` Then stow the rubber curtains inside and see to the lights . It may be late before we get back . '' `` All right , Captain , '' answered Percy respectfully . It was still not nine o'clock when the `` Comet , '' polished and oiled and looking as neat in his dark blue and buff uniform as a soldier on parade , stood ready for departure . The hamper of luncheon was strapped on behind , and underneath the middle seats in a pan of ice were bottles of root beer and ginger ale . Presently he started down the steep road with his load . The rustic camp , perched on the ledge in the side of the mountain , with its guard of pine trees crowding almost to its doors , never looked more alluring .