six o'clock
Should she be able to find words ? She had scarcely spoken to him , ever , as yet , and now there was more to say than hours of solitude would leave time for . She knew not whether to bid the sun linger or speed . There was nothing unusual in her rising and going forth early , though perhaps she had never issued from the house quite so early as this morning ; it was not yet six o'clock when she gently closed the garden-gate behind her , and walked along the road which led on to the common . The sun had already warmed the world , and the sheen of earth and heaven was at its brightest ; the wind sweeping from the downs was like the breath of creation , giving life to forms of faultless beauty . Emily 's heart lacked no morning hymn ; every sense revelled in that pure joy which is the poetry of praise . She wished it had been near the hour of meeting , yet again was glad to have time to prepare herself .