eight o'clock
Faith had never had much experience in doing up parcels , but she managed very nicely after her hands stopped trembling . Long before noon she was aching in every muscle . The dust that rose from the floor was irritating her throat and the store was so hot that her head was aching . She looked down at the clerks , who had been on their feet steadily since eight o'clock , and began to understand the callousness of their expressions . A great throb of pity for them , rather than for herself , dimmed her eyes for an instant so that she could not see her packages . During that first few hours Faith could not help noticing how often Number 89 sent up goods to be wrapped . There were double as many sales to her credit as to any of the others at the counter , and at a leisure moment she leaned over and looked down at her .