nearly eleven o'clock
The next morning the March family breakfasted late after an evening prolonged beyond midnight in spite of half-hourly agreements that now they must really all go to bed . The children had both to recognize again and again how well their parents were looking ; Tom had to tell his father about the condition of ` Every Other Week ' ; Bella had to explain to her mother how sorry her husband was that he could not come on to meet them with her , but was coming a week later to take her home , and then she would know the reason why they could not all , go back to Chicago with him : it was just the place for her father to live , for everybody to live . At breakfast she renewed the reasoning with which she had maintained her position the night before ; the travellers entered into a full expression of their joy at being home again ; March asked what had become of that stray parrot which they had left in the tree-top the morning they started ; and Mrs. March declared that this was the last Silver Wedding Journey she ever wished to take , and tried to convince them all that she had been on the verge of nervous collapse when she reached the ship . They sat at table till she discovered that it was very nearly eleven o'clock , and said it was disgraceful . Before they rose , there was a ring at the door , and a card was brought in to Tom . He glanced at it , and said to his father , `` Oh , yes ! This man has been haunting the office for the last three days .