five minutes after eleven
He was engaged at the moment in adding up a column of figures . Having entered the total , he looked up again , laid down his pen , frowned with annoyance , and picked up an old pair of field-glasses that stood ready to hand on the sill of his desk beside the ink-well . He glanced at the clock on his chimney-piece before throwing up the window-sash . The hour was eleven -- five minutes after eleven , to be exact ; the month April ; the day sunny , with a humming northerly wind ; the tide drawing far out towards low-ebb , and the air so clear that the small figure standing on the edge of the waves could not be mistaken . As he threw up the sash Elder Penno caught sight of Tom Hancock , the school attendance officer , lounging against a post on the quay below . `` You 're the very man I want , '' said the Elder . `` Is n't that Tregenza 's grandchild over yonder ? ''