five o'clock
It was Gourlay 's own cob , which he used for driving round the countryside . It was a black -- Gourlay `` made a point '' of driving with a black . `` The brown for sturdiness , the black for speed , '' he would say , making a maxim of his whim to give it the sanction of a higher law . Gilmour was in a wild temper because he had been forced to get up at five o'clock in order to turn several hundred cheeses , to prevent them bulging out of shape owing to the heat , and so becoming cracked and spoiled . He did not raise his head at his master 's approach . And his head being bent , the eye was attracted to a patent leather collar which he wore , glazed with black and red stripes . It is a collar much affected by ploughmen , because a dip in the horse-trough once a month suffices for its washing .