five o'clock
They rarely assembled less than six or seven to lunch ; after lunch they went to the drawing-room , and the eternal discussion on the relations of the sexes was only interrupted by the piano . St. Clare played better than Lord Chadwick , but Mrs. Lahens preferred Lord Chadwick to accompany her . He followed her voice , always making the most of it . At five o'clock the ladies had tea , very often the men chose brandies and sodas ; cigarettes were permitted , and in these influences all the scandals of the fair ran glibly from the tongue , and surprising were the imaginations of Mrs. Lahens ' scandalous brain . The reserve that Agnes ' innocence imposed on the wit of the various narratives , and on the philosophy of the comments often became painfully irksome , and on noticing Harding 's embarrassments Mrs. Lahens would suggest that Agnes went to her room . Agnes gladly availed herself of the permission , and without the slightest admission to herself that she hated the drawing-room . Such admission would be to impugn her mother 's conduct , and Agnes was far too good a little girl to do that .