eight o'clock
Charlie had a hankering to be a rich man ; but somehow he could never see any connection between that hankering and his counter , except that he 'd hint to me sometimes about an heiress who used to squander her father 's money shamefully for the sake of having Charlie wait on her . But when it came to getting rich outside the dry-goods business and getting rich in a hurry , Charlie was the man . Along about Tuesday night -- he was paid on Saturday -- he 'd stay at home and begin to scheme . He 'd commence at eight o'clock and start a magazine , maybe , and before midnight he 'd be turning away subscribers because his presses could n't print a big enough edition . Or perhaps he would n't feel literary that night , and so he 'd invent a system for speculating in wheat and go on pyramiding his purchases till he 'd made the best that Cheops did look like a five-cent plate of ice cream . All he ever needed was a few hundred for a starter , and to get that he 'd decide to let me in on the ground floor . I want to say right here that whenever any one offers to let you in on the ground floor it 's a pretty safe rule to take the elevator to the roof garden .