noon
It was line upon line , and precept upon precept . But she never tired , and rarely permitted herself to show that she was disturbed , no matter how deeply grieved she was at times over the wild and reckless spirit of her boy . On the next day she was not very well ; her head ached badly all the morning . Hearing the children in the passage when they came in from school at noon , she was , rising from the bed where she had lain down , to attend to them and give them their dinners , when Aunt Mary said -- `` Do n't get up , Anna , I will see to the children . '' It was rarely that Mrs. Hartley let any one do for them what she could do herself , for no one else could manage the unhappy temper of Clarence ; but so violent was the pain in her head , that she let Aunt Mary go , and sank back upon the pillow from which she had arisen . A good deal of noise and confusion continued to reach her ears , from the moment the children came in . At length a loud cry and passionate words from Clarence caused her to rise up quickly and go over to the dining-room .