3:15 in the
afternoon
Good news . He can come . Now we can find out what that accursed hydrogen-line impulse means . '' On Spindrift Island , off the coast of New Jersey , it was 3:15 in the afternoon . The island was quiet under a blanket of snow . The long , gray laboratory buildings , where so many dramatic scientific developments had taken place , were deserted . Only in the homes of the scientists was there activity , and all of it was in preparation for Christmas .