nearly eleven o'clock
In the course of that week Gladys had occasion to be over-night in Glasgow , for the purpose of attending a concert with the family in Bellairs Crescent . It was a very select and fashionable affair , at which the _ élite _ and beauty of Glasgow were present . Gladys enjoyed the gay and animated scene as much as the music , which was also to her a rare treat . When they left the hall it was nearly eleven o'clock , and they had to wait some time in the vestibule till their carriage should move towards the door . It was a fine mild night , and the girls , with their soft hoods drawn over their heads , and their fleecy wraps close about their throats , stood close by the great doors , chatting merrily while they waited . The usual small crowd of loafers were hanging about the pavements , and as usual Gladys was saddened by the sight of the dejected and oftentimes degraded-looking denizens of the lower quarters of the city . It might be that , in contrast with the gay and handsomely-dressed people from the West End , their poverty seemed even more pitiable .