half past eight in the morning
But at last sheer physical exhaustion intervened and he fell heavily asleep . He did n't waken until the conductor took up his bit of pasteboard again , shook him by the shoulder , and told him that he 'd be at his destination in five minutes . Presently , in the hotel , he locked his door , opened the window and sat down to think . Two days later , at half past eight in the morning , he walked in on Frederica at breakfast with her two eldest children . He had been able to count on this because the Whitneys had a certain pride in preserving some of the customs of the generation before them ; at least Martin had , and Frederica 's good-natured , rueful acquiescence gave her at once something to laugh at him a little about and a handy leverage for the extraction of miscellaneous concessions . It was n't exactly a misdemeanor to be late to breakfast -- it began promptly at eight o'clock -- but it was distinctly meritorious not to be . Martin never was and he always left the house for his office at exactly eight-twenty .