a quarter to nine
Ban him , ban every fowl -- Bee-bird with Procne of the bloodied breast : These rifle all -- our Hero with the rest , Snapped on the wing and haled , a tit-bit , to the nest . -- But seek a green moss 'd pool , with well-spring nigh ; And through the turf a streamlet fleeting by . '' So much , with interminably slow pauses , we accomplished before the light waned in the summer-house and Isabel called us in to supper , which we ate together in a low-ceiled parlour overlooking the garden . At a quarter to nine , on pretence that I had still to make up arrears of sleep , she signed to me to wish her father good-night and escorted me out into the passage . A slip of the bolt , and I was free of the night . I found the spot where I had dropped into the road , and cautiously mounted the hedge , putting the brambles aside and peering through them into the fast falling twilight . A low whistle sounded , and Mr. Rogers stepped into view on the footbridge .