eight o'clock
Leigh and Cardington rose to their feet and stood gazing at the spectacle . For the most part the crowd was composed of labouring men , who looked as if they had just come from the factory or the shop , but here and there could be seen a glimpse of bright ribbon , or a feather , or the silk hat of a pale-faced clerk . So rapid was the movement that the two spectators were forced to resume their seats in a few minutes to forestall their seizure . It was eight o'clock , the time set for the appearance of the President , when Mayor Emmet came from one of the wings , entirely alone , and took a chair near the centre of the stage . He had not been invited to meet the President at dinner , and while the great man and his entertainers lingered over their cigars , the mayor appeared promptly in the opera house , as if keeping a business engagement . No one who listened to the welcome he received could doubt his personal popularity or the intensity with which his constituents resented the slight he had endured . At first he sat facing the tumult imperturbably , and then a smile slowly mounted to his eyes , as he rose and bowed his acknowledgements .