six o'clock
I ca n't afford you diamonds ; so I will take care of that little insignificant trifle , your beauty . '' Mrs. Staines and Mrs. Lucas exchanged calls , and soon Mrs. Staines could no longer complain she was out of the world . Mrs. Lucas invited her to every party , because her beauty was an instrument of attraction she knew how to use ; and Miss Lucas took a downright fancy to her ; drove her in the park , and on Sundays to the Zoological Gardens , just beginning to be fashionable . The Lucases rented a box at the opera , and if it was not let at the library by six o'clock , and if other engagements permitted , word was sent round to Mrs. Staines , as a matter of course , and she was taken to the opera . She began almost to live at the Lucases , and to be oftener fatigued than moped . The usual order of things was inverted ; the maiden lady educated the matron ; for Miss Lucas knew all about everybody in the Park , honorable or dishonorable ; all the scandals , and all the flirtations ; and whatever she knew , she related point-blank . Being as inquisitive as voluble , she soon learned how Mrs. Staines and her husband were situated .