noon
He was not afraid of the Turks . If the Asiatic shore had been festooned with red flags from the City of the Blind down by the Isles of the Princes to the last of the gray fortresses overlooking the Symplegades , it would not have altered a plan of his jot or tittle . Enough that Lael wanted and needed an outing on the glorious Bosphorus . Accordingly , shortly after noon two chairs were brought and set down in his house . That is to say , two upright boxes fixed centrally on poles , and differing in nowise from the sedans still the mode of carriage affected by ladies of Constantinople unless it might be in their richer appointments . Inside , all was silk , lace and cushions ; outside , the inlaying of mother of pearl and vari-colored woods was suggestive of modern papier-mache . The entrance was by a door in the front .