three o'clock
The examination of these men proved a very tedious business indeed , but whatever other countries may say of us , we French are patient , and if the haystack is searched long enough , the needle will be found . I did not discover the needle I was looking for , but I came upon one quite as important , if not more so . It was nearly ten o'clock at night when a cabman answered my oft-repeated questions in the affirmative . ` Did you take up a passenger a few minutes past three o'clock on the Boulevard des Italiens , near the Crédit-Lyonnais ? Had he a short black beard ? Did he carry a small box in his hand and order you to drive to the Madeleine ? ' The cabman seemed puzzled .