five minutes to eight
The odor of the brine came up from below and mingled with the whiffs of Mona Bouquet that swept after the young girls as they passed , and with the puffs of tobacco smoke that enveloped the young men as they dawdled on . Sometimes the revolving light of the lightship in the channel could be seen above the flash and flare of the pier lamps , and sometimes the dark water under foot gleamed and glinted between the open timbers of the pier pavement , and sometimes the deep rumble of the sea could be heard over the clash and clang of the pier band . Lovibond was there , walking to and fro , feeling himself for the first time to be an old fellow among so many younger folks , watching the clock , counting the minutes , and scanning every female form that came alone with the crink-crank-crick through the round stile of the pay-gate . Not until five minutes to eight did the right one appear , but she made up for the tardiness of her coming by the animation of her spirits . `` I could n't get away sooner , '' whispered Jenny . `` She watched me like a cat . She 'll be out in the grounds by this time .