noon
He dressed himself like an automaton , and breakfasted like an anchorite . He left the hotel without his personal knowledge , and traversed half the length of Broadway without volition . His mind was making the visit in advance of the appointed time , and his torpid body alone observed the social usages . By noon the patent leathers were a reality ; by six-thirty he had assumed a clean shirt and his new necktie . When the clock struck seven he hastened to the elevated ; a half hour later found him parading the street opposite the conservatory , and at eight he arrived with a promptness which , persistently observed , commends a young man to a junior partnership . When the widow finally presented herself , Dennis was more than ever convinced , by the richness of her attire , that the business must be in a flourishing condition . For some unknown reason the beautiful woman was dressed entirely in black with the exception of some exquisite traceries in white about her throat and wrists .