about twelve o'clock
`` They need not alarm themselves , '' replied I ; `` I shall not intrude upon their domain again in a hurry . Now look out , and let me know when Peter Barnett is coming . '' So saying , I gave him the wished-for sixpence , and with a grin of satisfaction he departed . With leaden feet the hours crawled along , and still old Peter Barnett did not make his appearance ; when , about twelve o'clock , a horseman passed by , followed by a groom . As he rode at a very quiet pace , his face was easily recognised , and I saw at a glance it was Mr. Vernor . Fortunately he never looked towards the window at which I was standing , or he must have seen me . Scarcely ten minutes had elapsed , when old Peter arrived , breathless from the speed at which he had come ; his grotesque but expressive features gleaming with delight and sagacity , while his merry little eyes danced and twinkled as if they would jump out of their sockets .