eight o'clock
Do n't you forget that . Whatever happens , do n't you dare let yourself forget . '' Looking cautiously about , George Willard arose from his desk in the office of the Winesburg Eagle and went hurriedly out at the back door . The night was warm and cloudy and although it was not yet eight o'clock , the alleyway back of the Eagle office was pitch dark . A team of horses tied to a post somewhere in the darkness stamped on the hard-baked ground . A cat sprang from under George Willard 's feet and ran away into the night . The young man was nervous .