five
o'clock
At ten o'clock Mr. Bingle walked out upon the moon-lit lawn and gazed about him in all directions , taking in the terraces , the park , the gardens , and last of all the splendid facade of the great house itself . Head gardener Edgecomb approached and to him Mr. Bingle said : `` It was a beautiful place -- a beautiful place , indeed , '' and then straightway returned to the house . Edgecomb , slack grammarian though he was , made note of the fact that he spoke of the house in the past tense , quite as if it were a thing that had ceased to exist . The children had had their supper when Melissa came down from Mrs. Bingle 's room , whither she had been summoned in some haste at five o'clock . She promptly announced that they were to skip off to bed at once as their mother 's head was that bad that she was not to be disturbed by the slightest sound . To the inquiries of her fellow-servants , Melissa curtly replied that it was none of their business what had happened and if they had any business they 'd better attend to it instead of snooping around the halls trying to find out something that did not in the least concern them . Melissa knew what had happened .