four in the
morning
There was no way of knowing what woman 's thoughts went through her mind but , when the bottom of the hill was reached and she came up to the boy , she took his arm and walked beside him in dignified silence . For some reason they could not have explained they had both got from their silent evening together the thing needed . Man or boy , woman or girl , they had for a moment taken hold of the thing that makes the mature life of men and women in the modern world possible . Young George Willard got out of bed at four in the morning . It was April and the young tree leaves were just coming out of their buds . The trees along the residence streets in Winesburg are maple and the seeds are winged . When the wind blows they whirl crazily about , filling the air and making a carpet underfoot .