three o'clock
The affair went off very well . There were three or four card-tables in one of the lower rooms , and at one of them sat Lord Alfred Grendall and Mr. Melmotte , with two or three other players , cutting in and out at the end of each rubber . Playing whist was Lord Alfred 's only accomplishment , and almost the only occupation of his life . He began it daily at his club at three o'clock , and continued playing till two in the morning with an interval of a couple of hours for his dinner . This he did during ten months of the year , and during the other two he frequented some watering-place at which whist prevailed . He did not gamble , never playing for more than the club stakes and bets . He gave to the matter his whole mind , and must have excelled those who were generally opposed to him .