eleven o'clock
But , ' he added , confidentially , `` you could n't buy 'em for that price in a shop , you know . They costs the committee a good bit more nor that -- wholesale ; but we 've got some rich gents on our committee and they makes up the difference , ' and with a nod and a cunning leer he lurched off . Frankie was sleeping soundly when they reached home , and so was the kitten , which was curled up on the quilt on the foot of the bed . After they had had some supper , although it was after eleven o'clock , Owen fixed the tree in a large flower-pot that had served a similar purpose before , and Nora brought out from the place where it had been stored away since last Christmas a cardboard box containing a lot of glittering tinsel ornaments -- globes of silvered or gilded or painted glass , birds , butterflies and stars . Some of these things had done duty three Christmases ago and although they were in some instances slightly tarnished most of them were as good as new . In addition to these and the toys they had bought that evening they had a box of bon-bons and a box of small coloured wax candles , both of which had formed part of the things they got from the grocer 's with the Christmas Club money ; and there were also a lot of little coloured paper bags of sweets , and a number of sugar and chocolate toys and animals which had been bought two or three at a time for several weeks past and put away for this occasion . There was something suitable for each child that was coming , with the exception of Bert White ; they had intended to include a sixpenny pocket knife for him in their purchases that evening , but as they had not been able to afford this Owen decided to give him an old set of steel graining combs which he knew the lad had often longed to possess .