one o'clock
Families went dinnerless because housewives either could not get to the shops , or could not get away from them again . Telephones rang , and irate housekeepers enquired when the materials for lunch were coming . Taxicab drivers with fares sat stolidly at the wheel , conscious that their income was increasing automatically , whilst the fares themselves fumed and fussed as they saw their twopences vanish . It was not until past one o'clock that the trams restarted , and it was 2.30 before Bindle got back to the yard with his three pantechnicons . `` Poor ole ` Earty 's got it in the neck this time , '' he muttered as he turned back towards Fulham High Street to lend a hand in putting things straight . Mr. Hearty was distracted at the thought that none of his customers had received their fruit and vegetables , and Bindle was genuinely sorry for him . All that afternoon and late into the night he worked , helping to weigh up and deliver orders ; and when he eventually left the shop at a few minutes before midnight , he was `` as tired as a performin ' flea . ''