ten o'clock
And , once started , he delivered quite a lecture on the past , asserting that no actress had ever yet understood it properly , for at the outset Pauline was simply a well-meaning little creature of the middle classes , and the beauty of her conversion at the finish arose from the working of a miracle , a stroke of heavenly grace which endowed her with something divine . This was not the opinion of Silviane , who from the first lines regarded Pauline as the ideal heroine of some symbolical legend . However , as the critic talked on and on , she had to feign approval ; and he was delighted at finding her so beautiful and docile beneath his ferule . At last , as ten o'clock was striking , he rose and tore out of the hot and reeking room in order to do his work . `` Ah ! my dears , '' cried Silviane , `` he 's a nice bore is that critic of yours ! What a fool he is with his idea of Pauline being a little _ bourgeoise _ !