noon
Whitney reread this very carefully . He laid the letter down and stared at it . Two thousand dollars a share meant that he , owner of four hundred and eighty-seven shares , would have to pay in cash nine hundred and seventy-four thousand dollars . He ordered his private car attached to the noon express , and at five o'clock he was in Scarborough 's library . `` What is the meaning of this assessment ? '' he demanded , as Scarborough entered . `` Mr. Ranger explained the situation to us , '' replied Scarborough .