nearly
twelve o'clock
Do n't keep him too warm , ma'am ; but be careful that you do n't let him be too cold ; will you have the goodness ? ' The old lady dropped a curtsey . The doctor , after tasting the cool stuff , and expressing a qualified approval of it , hurried away : his boots creaking in a very important and wealthy manner as he went downstairs . Oliver dozed off again , soon after this ; when he awoke , it was nearly twelve o'clock . The old lady tenderly bade him good-night shortly afterwards , and left him in charge of a fat old woman who had just come : bringing with her , in a little bundle , a small Prayer Book and a large nightcap . Putting the latter on her head and the former on the table , the old woman , after telling Oliver that she had come to sit up with him , drew her chair close to the fire and went off into a series of short naps , chequered at frequent intervals with sundry tumblings forward , and divers moans and chokings . These , however , had no worse effect than causing her to rub her nose very hard , and then fall asleep again .