about nine o'clock in the evening
They liked and respected him . He was free with his money , always ready with a joke or a helping hand , was sober and clean of speech without appearing to notice any defect in others save on very rare occasions . He had been known to fight and beat a bigger man than himself to save a woman from a thrashing , and when Mrs. Bindle had poured down reproaches upon his head on account of his battered appearance , he had silently gone to bed and simulated sleep , although every inch of his body ached . It was about nine o'clock in the evening that the foreman had seen in Bindle the means of his obtaining some sleep and arriving at his bean-feast refreshed . At eleven o'clock he left the hotel , after having given to his deputy the most elaborate instructions . His parting words filled Bindle with unholy joy . `` If anythin ' goes wrong I 'll lose my job , and do n't you forget it . ''