four o'clock
I shall do some samples of show-cards the same as I did last winter and try to get orders from some of the shops -- they usually want something extra at this time , but I 'm afraid it is rather too late : most of them already have all they want . ' ` I should n't go out again today if I were you , ' said Nora , noticing how ill he looked . ` You should stay at home and read , or write up those minutes . ' The minutes referred to were those of the last meeting of the local branch of the Painters ' Society , of which Owen was the secretary , and as the snow continued to fall , he occupied himself after dinner in the manner his wife suggested , until four o'clock , when Frankie returned from school bringing with him a large snowball , and crying out as a piece of good news that the snow was still falling heavily , and that he believed it was freezing ! They went to bed very early that night , for it was necessary to economize the coal , and not only that , but -- because the rooms were so near the roof -- it was not possible to keep the place warm no matter how much coal was used . The fire seemed , if anything , to make the place colder , for it caused the outer air to pour in through the joints of the ill-fitting doors and windows . Owen lay awake for the greater part of the night .