two o'clock
The rooms themselves were on the eleventh floor of a down-town office-building , as near the roof as it had been possible for him to secure suitable quarters . For eight years Sidwell had made them his home when he was in town . The circle of his friends had commented , his mother and sisters -LRB- his father had been long dead -RRB- had protested , when , a much younger man , he first severed himself from the semi-colonial mansion which for three generations had borne the name of Sidwell ; but as usual , he had had his own way . `` I want to work when I feel so inclined , when the mood is on me , whether it 's two o'clock of the afternoon or of the morning , ' '' he had explained ; `` and I ca n't do it without interruption here with you and your friends . '' For the same reason he had chosen to live near the sky . There , high above the noise and confusion , he could observe and catch the influence of the activity which is in itself a powerful stimulant , without experiencing its unpleasantness . Essentially , the man was an æsthete .