six in the
evening
The other men of his `` set '' were no less thoughtful , and , though they rallied him a little at first upon his defection , soon let the matter drop . Condy told himself that there were plenty of good people in the world , after all . Every one seemed conspiring to make it easy for him , and he swore at himself for a weak-kneed cad . On a certain Tuesday , about a week after the fishing excursion and the affair of the `` Matrimonial Objects , '' toward half-past six in the evening , Condy was in his room , dressing for a dinner engagement . Young Sargeant 's sister had invited him to be one of a party who were to dine at the University Club , and later on fill a box at a charity play , given by amateurs at one of the downtown theatres . But as he was washing his linen shirt-studs with his tooth-brush his eye fell upon a note , in Laurie Flagg 's handwriting , that lay on his writing-desk , and that he had received some ten days previous . Condy turned cold upon the instant , hurled the tooth-brush across the room , and dropped into a chair with a groan of despair .