five o'clock
Mr. Stone 's room , for which he insisted on paying rent , was never entered by a servant . It was on the ground-floor , and anyone passing the door between the hours of four and six could hear him dictating slowly , pausing now and then to spell a word . In these two hours it appeared to be his custom to read out , for fair copying , the labours of the other seven . At five o'clock there was invariably a sound of plates and cups , and out of it the little model 's voice would rise , matter-of-fact , soft , monotoned , making little statements ; and in turn Mr. Stone 's , also making statements which clearly lacked cohesion with those of his young friend . On one occasion , the door being open , Hilary heard distinctly the following conversation : The LITTLE MODEL : `` Mr. Creed says he was a butler . He 's got an ugly nose . '' -LRB- A pause . -RRB-