about three o'clock in the afternoon
He might have interrogated his hostess , but feared to show his interest in the supposed stranger . He preferred to wait a few hours and gather his facts from other lips . Meantime it rained . At about three o'clock in the afternoon Mr. Ransom left his room . He had been careful almost from his first arrival to sit with his door ajar . He had , therefore , only to give it a slight push and walk out when he heard the bustle of preparation going on in the two rooms in whose future occupancy he was so vitally interested . A maid stood in the hall .