nearly five o’clock
To survive Mr Glegg , and talk eulogistically of him as a man who might have his weaknesses , but who had done the right thing by her , not-withstanding his numerous poor relations ; to have sums of interest coming in more frequently , and secrete it in various corners , baffling to the most ingenious of thieves -LRB- for , to Mrs Glegg 's mind , banks and strong-boxes would have nullified the pleasure of property ; she might as well have taken her food in capsules -RRB- ; finally , to be looked up to by her own family and the neighbourhood , so as no woman can ever hope to be who has not the præterite and present dignity comprised in being a `` widow well left , '' -- all this made a flattering and conciliatory view of the future . So that when good Mr Glegg , restored to good humour by much hoeing , and moved by the sight of his wife 's empty chair , with her knitting rolled up in the corner , went up-stairs to her , and observed that the bell had been tolling for poor Mr Morton , Mrs Glegg answered magnanimously , quite as if she had been an uninjured woman : `` Ah ! then , there 'll be a good business for somebody to take to . '' Baxter had been open at least eight hours by this time , for it was nearly five o'clock ; and if people are to quarrel often , it follows as a corollary that their quarrels can not be protracted beyond certain limits . Mr and Mrs Glegg talked quite amicably about the Tullivers that evening . Mr Glegg went the length of admitting that Tulliver was a sad man for getting into hot water , and was like enough to run through his property ; and Mrs Glegg , meeting this acknowledgment half-way , declared that it was beneath her to take notice of such a man 's conduct , and that , for her sister 's sake , she would let him keep the five hundred a while longer , for when she put it out on a mortgage she should only get four per cent . Mr Tulliver Further Entangles the Skein of Life Owing to this new adjustment of Mrs Glegg 's thoughts , Mrs Pullet found her task of mediation the next day surprisingly easy .