half past seven in the morning
And while his wife -LRB- still wearing her insignia -RRB- and his guests were talking in a steady stream , Mr. Mix was telling himself that if Ordinance 147 was going to prevent so innocent an occupation as riding in a car on Sunday , he was very much afraid that life in this community was going to be too rich for his blood . That is , unless he were elected to be chief of the community . And in this case , he would see that he was n't personally inconvenienced . * * * * * At half past seven in the morning , Mirabelle was already at the breakfast table , and semi-audibly rating Mr. Mix for his slothfulness , when he came in with an odd knitting of his forehead and an unsteady compression of his mouth . To add to the effect , he placed his feet with studied clumsiness , and as he gave the _ Herald _ into Mirabelle 's hands , he uttered a sound which annoyed her . `` For the cat 's sake , Theodore , what are you groaning about ? '' `` Groan yourself , '' said Mr. Mix , and put a trembling finger on the headline .