four o'clock
It was a half-hour that she loved to think about . Miss Allison had invited them all to a picnic at the old mill on the following day . They were to go in the afternoon and come back by moonlight . It was not quite four o'clock when Mrs. Sherman stepped into the carriage at the door , followed by Eliot with an armful of wraps , which might be needed later in the evening . Every spare inch of the carriage was packed with things for the picnic . A huge lunch hamper stood on the front seat beside the coachman , and he could scarcely find room for his feet for the big freezer of ice-cream that took up so much space . Rugs , cushions , and camp-stools were tucked in at every corner , and Mrs. Sherman held Joyce 's mandolin in her lap .