ten o'clock
He left the house a little troubled , telling Mrs. Pratt to leave her door unlocked , for he intended to return as often as possible through the night , to the bed-side of the patient . Noiselessly , almost breathlessly , the good woman stole around her little house in stocking feet , as she journeyed with fresh or re-made delicacies and medicines from the little kitchen below to the close sick-room above . She was faithful in moistening the parched lips , and in administering the remedies , with an edifying punctuality , and in fact , all the major and minor duties of a nurse were admirably attended to , by the whole-souled creature , who had taken this heavy responsibility upon herself . It was close on ten o'clock of the night of this critical day on which Dr. Belford had left Mrs. Pratt 's house with such a troubled look , and this charitable matron having completed all her arrangements for the night , deposited a small lamp with a heavy green shade of paper , on the bureau in the sick-room , and drawing a tall straight wooden rocker close to the window , settled herself , stocking and needles in hand to `` knit out '' the hours of her lonesome vigil . * * * * * On the heavily carved door of a square house on one of the most stylish avenues of New York City , was a silver plate , bearing the familiar name of `` Dr. Belford . '' There was magnificence on all sides of this , his splendid home , and yet this good man spent all his days , and most of his nights in the squalid and repulsive quarters of the great city . He was a man of untold wealth and cared but little , whether his profession yielded him additional wealth or not , he had understood the great misfortunes of life , and had toiled with an iron will , to benefit those to whom an unfortunate fate had taught the bitter lessons of poverty and destitution .