nine o'clock
He had rolled in the moist earth of the melon patch , while under the discipline of Mr. Batterman , till his clothes were plastered with mud . His face was begrimed with the rich black mould of the garden , through which the tears of anger and resentment he had shed , under the influence of their natural gravity , had furrowed passages down his checks . In the simple but eloquent language of Mrs. Green , the housekeeper of Woodville , who had followed the party up stairs , to offer her services in the capacity of nurse , Richard was `` a sight to behold . '' He had retired from the sitting room , and bade the family good night before nine o'clock , looking like a decent person . His pants were in good condition then ; certainly , if they had been in their present plight , it would have been noticed . The first impulse of the visiting party was to laugh at the extraordinary appearance he presented ; but a stronger feeling of interest and sympathy overruled the inclination , and the culprit was spared this humiliation . Richard was almost as much astonished as they were , for he had not regarded a thing so trivial as his personal experience , in the excitement and terror of the hour .