three in the afternoon
A little later I heard the confused noises of a strike meeting , which was being held on the Green . It was like the croaking of a frog-pond , with now and then a strident voice -LRB- the bricklayer 's -RRB- crying `` Buckle your belts tighter , and starve rather than give in , boys . '' Still later I heard the procession going away , singing with a slashing sound that was like driving wind and pelting rain : '' _ The land , the land , the blessed , blessed land , Gawd gave the land to the people _ . '' But nothing awakened baby , and towards three in the afternoon -LRB- the idea that she was really ill having taken complete possession of me -RRB- I asked where I could find the nearest doctor , and being told , I went off in search of him . The doctor was on his rounds , so I left a written message indicating baby 's symptoms and begging him to come to her immediately . On the way back I passed a number of children 's funerals -- easily recognisable by the combined coach and hearse , the white linen `` weepers '' worn by the coachman and his assistant , and the little coffin , sprinkled with cheap flowers , in the glass case behind the driver 's seat . These sights , which brought back a memory of the woman who carried my baby down the Mile End Road , almost deprived me of my senses .