twelve o'clock
The air was full of the sounds of hammering and sawing , the ringing of trowels , the rattle of pails , the splashing of water brushes , and the scraping of the stripping knives used by those who were removing the old wallpaper . Besides being full of these the air was heavily laden with dust and disease germs , powdered mortar , lime , plaster , and the dirt that had been accumulating within the old house for years . In brief , those employed there might be said to be living in a Tariff Reform Paradise -- they had Plenty of Work . At twelve o'clock Bob Crass -- the painters ' foreman -- blew a blast upon a whistle and all hands assembled in the kitchen , where Bert the apprentice had already prepared the tea , which was ready in the large galvanized iron pail that he had placed in the middle of the floor . By the side of the pail were a number of old jam-jars , mugs , dilapidated tea-cups and one or two empty condensed milk tins . Each man on the ` job ' paid Bert threepence a week for the tea and sugar -- they did not have milk -- and although they had tea at breakfast-time as well as at dinner , the lad was generally considered to be making a fortune . Two pairs of steps , laid parallel on their sides at a distance of about eight feet from each other , with a plank laid across , in front of the fire , several upturned pails , and the drawers belonging to the dresser , formed the seating accommodation .