nearly two o'clock
`` He is a Southerner , but he must have been born in a _ very _ hot climate , to need the windows closed on such a day as this . '' `` And he must be in a hurry , '' said Harding , `` by his impatience and the speed at which the carriage drove away . '' They drove slowly over the bridge and then hurried back towards the Cataract . It was nearly two o'clock when they reached the house , and the riders and strollers had come back from their various wanderings and filled the halls and parlors , chatting , looking at the stereoscopic views arranged for the destruction of eyes , and waiting for dinner . As the four friends entered the hall after dismissing the carriage , they were met by Bell Crawford , who seemed to have been looking out for them from the head of the stairs -- her face pale , her voice thick and troubled , and her general appearance frightened and `` flustered . '' `` What is the matter ? '' asked Richard Crawford , who had , even in that short space of exposure to the outer air , so much improved that fatigue rather made him fresher than otherwise , and who might even then have been called `` almost a well man . ''