Six o'clock
This man , who did not appear to take the slightest notice of the previous arrival , behaved , however , precisely as he had done : he also took off his zarapé , reclined on a butaca , and lit up a cigarette . Presently the garden sand creaked beneath the footsteps of a third visitor , followed immediately by a fourth , and then by a fifth ; in short , at the end of an hour twenty persons were assembled in this room . They all smoked with apparent carelessness , and since their arrival had not exchanged a syllable . Six o'clock struck from a clock standing on a sideboard . The last stroke of the hour had scarce ceased vibrating ere the company , as if by common agreement , threw away their cigars , and rose with a vivacity that certainly was little to be expected after their previous carelessness . At the same moment a secret door opened in the wall , and a man appeared on the threshold . This man was tall , elegant , and aristocratic , and appeared to be young .