noon
A letter is a risky thing ; the writer gambles on the reader 's frame of mind . David 's frame of mind when he read those words about urging Robert Ferguson , was not hospitable to other people 's generosity , for Elizabeth 's hot letter came on what had been , figuratively speaking , a very cold day . In the morning he had been reprimanded by the House officer for some slight forgetfulness -- a forgetfulness caused by his absorption in planning an experiment in the laboratory . At noon he made the experiment , which , instead of crowning a series of deductions with triumphant proof , utterly failed . Then he had had pressing reminders of bills , still unpaid , for a pair of trousers and a case of instruments , and he had admitted to himself that he would have to ask his mother for the money to meet them . `` I am a fizzle , all round , '' he had told himself grimly . `` Ca n't remember anything overnight .