About eight o'clock
However , she nodded vigorous acceptance of his desire , and immediately he changed the topic . While , for him , the quiet pleasure he had anticipated in the visit had not materialized and he longed to leave at once , for Daney 's sake he remained for tea . When he departed , Mrs. Daney ran to her room and found surcease from her distress in tears , while her husband sat out on the veranda smoking one of The Laird 's fine cigars , his embarrassment considerably alleviated by the knowledge that his imprudent wife had received a lesson that should last for the remainder of her life . About eight o'clock , his wife called him to the telephone . The Laird was on the wire . `` In the matter of the indiscreet young lady in the store , Andrew , '' he ordered , `` do not dismiss her or reprimand her . The least said in such cases is soonest mended . ''