three o’clock
Antoinette 's one eyed black cat -LRB- a hideous beast -RRB- met me in the hall and arching its back welcomed me affably to its new residence . And on my breakfast-table I found a copy of the first edition of Cristoforo da Costa 's `` _ Elogi delle Donne Illustri _ , '' a book which , in great diffidence , I had asked Lord Carnforth , a perfect stranger , to allow me the privilege of consulting in his library , and which Lord Carnforth , with a scholar 's splendid courtesy , had sent me to use at my convenience . Filled with peace and good-will to all men , like a personification of Christmas in May , I started out this morning to see my lawyers . I reached them at three o'clock , having idled at second-hand bookstalls and lunched on the road . I signed their unintelligible document , and wandered through the Temple Gardens and along the Embankment . When I had passed under Hungerford Bridge , it struck me that I was warm , a little leg-weary , and the Victoria Embankment Gardens smiled an invitation to repose . I struck the shady path beneath the terrace of the National Liberal Club , and sat myself down on a comfortable bench .