ten o'clock
`` Rich people have not much patience with failures , and the poor old pater has not the gift of success . I am afraid Uncle Bernard will be more inclined to blame than to help . '' And as events proved she was right . Mr Farrell sent word that he would be at liberty at ten o'clock in the sitting-room adjoining his bedroom , and the first few minutes of the interview proved that his attitude towards the family trouble was one of scornful impatience rather than sympathy . He was apparently quite unprepared for the girls , determination , and would not at first believe in its sincerity . `` You are surely joking , '' he said scathingly . `` If your parents are in such straits as you describe , how do you propose to help them by giving them two more people to keep and feed ?