one o'clock in the morning
I do n't know if you happen to be one of those Johnnies who are steeped in crime , and so forth , and think nothing of pinching diamond necklaces . If you 're not , you 'll understand that I felt a lot less keen on the job I 'd taken on when I sat in my room , waiting to get busy , than I had done when I promised to tackle it in the dining-room . On paper it all seemed easy enough , but I could n't help feeling there was a catch somewhere , and I 've never known time pass slower . The kick-off was scheduled for one o'clock in the morning , when the household might be expected to be pretty sound asleep , but at a quarter to I could n't stand it any longer . I lit the lantern I had taken from Bill 's bicycle , took a grip of my knife , and slunk downstairs . The first thing I did on getting to the dining-room was to open the window . I had half a mind to smash it , so as to give an extra bit of local colour to the affair , but decided not to on account of the noise .