ten o'clock
By degrees , without quite knowing it , Mrs. Bell was forced to lean against Mrs. Butler for support . By half-past nine she ventured to say to her neighbor : `` This waiting is intolerable . '' `` Vile , '' snapped Mrs. Butler , in response . By ten o'clock the opposing generals were sharing the same footstool . By a quarter-past ten they were both nodding . It was about that hour that Hunt in his position as verger once more appeared . The church doors were opened to the community at large , the bells began to ring out a merry and bridal peal , and the inhabitants of the town , the rich and poor alike , filed into the church .