midnight
He had no letters to mail , but it was characteristic of his dramatic way of doing things that he walked to the letter-box , raised the drop and went through the motion of slipping in an envelope . He was accustomed to say that when one played a part it could not be done too carefully , and it amused him to reflect that if he were watched his action would appear consistent with his words , while if he were timed he would be found to have been gone from the club house exactly long enough . Not that he supposed anybody was likely to take the trouble to do either of these things , but Fenton was an imaginative man and he found a humorous pleasure in finishing even his trickery in an artistic manner . It was Saturday night , and just before midnight a servant opened the card-room door . The room was full of smoke , empty glasses stood beside the players , and piles of red and blue and white `` chips '' were heaped in uneven distribution along the edges of the table . `` It is ten minutes of twelve , gentlemen , '' the servant said , and retired . `` Jack-pots round , '' said Rangely , dealing rapidly .