one o'clock in the afternoon
She walked on with head , shoulders , and back scorching in the fierce sun , and allowed him to continue shading the pavement before them with her umbrella . When they reached the house she gently took the umbrella from him and thanked him ; and he mechanically raised his hat . They had walked more than a mile together ; he had not spoken a word , and he did not even know it . Dinner on Sunday , the most elaborate feast of the week for the Madisons , was always set for one o'clock in the afternoon , and sometimes began before two , but not to-day : the escorts of both daughters remained , and a change of costume by Cora occasioned a long postponement . Justice demands the admission that her reappearance in a glamour of lilac was reward for the delay ; nothing more ravishing was ever seen , she was warrantably informed by the quicker of the two guests , in a moment 's whispered tete-a-tete across the banisters as she descended . Another wait followed while she prettily arranged upon the table some dozens of asters from a small garden-bed , tilled , planted , and tended by Laura . Meanwhile , Mrs. Madison constantly turned the other cheek to the cook .