noon
Sunday , the rain came down as if determined to drive the quicksilver entirely out of my poor friend . Mr. Jaffrey sat bolt upright at the breakfast-table , looking as woe-begone as a bust of Dante , and retired to his chamber the moment the meal was finished . As the day advanced , the wind veered round to the northeast , and settled itself down to work . It was not pleasant to think , and I tried not to think , what Mr. Jaffrey 's condition would be if the weather did not mend its manners by noon ; but so far from clearing off at noon , the storm increased in violence , and as night set in the wind whistled in a spiteful falsetto key , and the rain lashed the old tavern as if it were a balky horse that refused to move on . The windows rattled in the worm-eaten frames , and the doors of remote rooms , where nobody ever went , slammed to in the maddest way . Now and then the tornado , sweeping down the side of Mount Agamenticus , bowled across the open country , and struck the ancient hostelry point-blank . Mr. Jaffrey did not appear at supper .