four o'clock
And sure enough ! as soon as Buster reached the edge of the cornfield , there was the old gentleman , sitting on the topmost rail of the fence and looking as if he had just enjoyed an excellent meal . As soon as he saw that Buster Bumblebee wanted to talk with him , old Mr. Crow was willing enough to listen , for he always liked to know about other people 's affairs . He kept nodding his head with a wise air while Buster explained to him how he wished to find some cotton , with which to stuff his ears every night , so that he might not be disturbed when the trumpeter aroused the household at three or four o'clock each morning . `` That 's a splendid plan , '' said old Mr. Crow when Buster had finished . `` An excellent plan -- but you may as well forget it , because there 's no cotton growing in these parts . Cotton grows in the South , more than a thousand miles away .