noon
I have an engagement to be in Montreal the first of February , and I could n't think of going alone . They have merry times there in mid-winter ; and I 'm sure it will be ever so much nicer for you than keeping house alone here . '' Grace said , of course , that it was impossible ; but Walter declared that doing the impossible was precisely in his line , and pushed on his various advantages with such spirit and energy that , when they parted for the night , Grace said she would think of it : which promise , at the breakfast-table next morning , was interpreted by the unblushing Walter , and reported to John , as a full consent . Before noon that day , Walter had walked up with John and Grace to take a survey of the cottage , and had given John indefinite power to engage workmen and artificers to rearrange and enlarge and beautify it for their return after the wedding journey . For the rest of the visit , all the three were busy with pencil and paper , projecting balconies , bow-windows , pantries , library , and dining-room , till the old cottage so blossomed out in imagination as to leave only a germ of its former self . Walter 's visit brought back to John a deal of the warmth and freedom which he had not known since he married . We often live under an insensible pressure of which we are made aware only by its removal .