A few minutes before
three o'clock
Finally , when he found himself kicking over chairs which were in his way in his aimless course , the humor of the situation came to him . He sat down upon a tool chest and laughed aloud . Clearly , there was nothing for him to do in the absence of Jackson -- except go to his dinner ; which he did . A few minutes before three o'clock , he went to the office again and sat down to wait for Yeasky . He gave the man half an hour overtime and then nodded grimly and dismissed any lingering notion he might have entertained concerning his honesty . When the storekeeper appeared some time later , Armitage was still at his desk idly drawing diagrams on a pad . `` Mr. Jackson , '' he said , `` I hate to bother you to-day , but things have happened which seem to make it necessary to check those parts now -- '' Armitage arose briskly .