two o'clock
It seemed as if someone else was talking through my lips , for I said the things almost before I thought of them . We rushed along through beautiful country lanes , through dear , sleepy little villages , and along the banks of the river . The motor behaved beautifully , and neither smelt nor shook ; it was quite intoxicating to fly through the air without any feeling of exertion , and Rachel herself grew almost frisky in time . At two o'clock we camped out , and had a delicious luncheon ; then off we started again , to take a further circuit of the country , and have tea at a quaint old inn on the way home . All went well until about four o'clock , when we began to descend a long , steep hill leading to a riverside village . Father told the chauffeur to take it as slowly as possible , but we had not covered a quarter of the way when -- something happened ! Suddenly , without the slightest warning , the machine seemed to leap forward like an arrow from a bow , and rush down the hill , more and more quickly with every second that passed .