four o'clock
in the afternoon
Snow was falling slowly and persistently , as it had done all the afternoon , when , about ten days later , I arrived at the little station of Holt Stacey , the nearest to Holt Manor . The motor brougham awaited my rather late train , and I was quickly installed among the fur rugs in its cosy interior and being whirled along the silent whiteness of the narrow lanes between the station and my destination . The weather was very cold , and I saw through the windows of the car that every branch and twig had its thick covering of pure white snow , while the thatched roofs of the tiny cottages we passed were heavily laden . By four o'clock in the afternoon most of the cottage windows were lit up , and the glow of the oil lamps shining through tiny panes on to the gleaming carpet of snow without , produced a most picturesque effect . Now we were purring up the hilly drive ; then rounding the sweep to the hall door . The man did not have to ring . Before he could get off the box I heard heavy footsteps leaping down the stairs three at a time and flying across the hall .