three in the morning
Do not go out to-morrow before I see you . '' He left her , but she did not sleep all night . In spite of what she had gone through on that evening and of all the mental suffering of many days , she was stronger still than any one knew . It was between two and three in the morning when she lighted a candle , wrapped herself in a dressing-gown and began to make certain preparations for the day . In the first place she locked both her doors very softly , and arranged a stocking over each keyhole , twisting it round the keys themselves . Then she got some stiff writing-paper , and a heavy ivory paper-knife , and from the locked drawers she took that other package which was done up in coarse paper . From this she took some of the rough , half-pulverized white stuff , laid it upon the marble top of the chest of drawers , and with the ivory paper-knife , pressing heavily , she little by little crushed it as fine as dust .