eight o'clock
The girl was setting the table and could n't be disturbed . Granny was nervous and irritable because she knew that she would be forced to join the rest at the table that night . Keith felt like a disembodied soul let loose in infinite space without goal or purpose . Toward eight o'clock the parlour door opened and Keith was called in . A tiny Christmas tree stood on a table in a corner , glistening with lights and multicoloured paper festoons . It represented a great concession , because neither one of the parents cared much for the trouble involved . If there had been a number of children in the family , they said , then it would have been another matter .