four o'clock in the afternoon
Toward four o'clock in the afternoon Fred Starratt remembered that he had been commissioned by his wife to bring home oyster cocktails for dinner . Of course , it went without saying that he was expected to attend to the cigars . That meant he must touch old Wetherbee for money . Five dollars would do the trick , but , while he was about it , he decided that he might as well ask for twenty-five .