four
o'clock
This was true because Mildred had a different nature ; it was easier for her to understand a temperament that would sacrifice everything to its dream , than for the more practical and sensible Barbara . Moreover , Barbara was so much in love these days that she found it difficult to give a great deal of thought to other people . She struggled against the tendency , but it is ever the vice of lovers . Finally , on Thursday , Mildred Thornton received a note from General Alexis inviting her and her two friends to come that afternoon at four o'clock to the Winter Palace . And although the three girls were Americans , they understood that such an invitation was not in reality an invitation , but a command . For the Czar and Czarina had announced that they would be pleased to meet the three American Red Cross nurses . The meeting was to be informal , as these were war times and there were no court levees .