six o'clock
All this was true . It had been specially enjoined upon them to be early at their work . An Irishman as a rule will not come regularly to his task . It is a very difficult thing to secure his services every morning at six o'clock ; but make a special point , -- tell him that you want him very early , and he will come to you in the middle of the night . Breakfast every morning punctually at eight o'clock is almost impossible in Ireland ; but if you want one special breakfast , so that you may start by a train at 4 A.M. , you are sure to be served . No irregular effort is distasteful to an Irishman of the lower classes , not if it entails on him the loss of a day 's food and the loss of a night 's rest ; the actual pleasure of the irregularity repays him for all this , and he never tells you that this or that is not his work . He prefers work that is not his own .