nearly half past
six
The weather had been very cloudy all day , there had been rain at intervals and it was a dark evening , so dark that she had to light the lamp to see her work . Charley sat on the hearthrug in front of the fire repairing one of the wheels of a wooden cart that he had made with the assistance of another boy , and Elsie busied herself preparing the tea . Easton was not yet home ; Rushton & Co. had a few jobs to do and he had been at work since the previous Thursday . The place where he was working was some considerable distance away , so it was nearly half past six when he came home . They heard him at the gate and at her mother 's direction Elsie went quickly to the front door , which was ajar , to ask him to walk as quietly as possible so as not to wake Ruth . Mary had prepared the table for his tea in the kitchen , where there was a bright fire with the kettle singing on the hob . He lit the lamp and after removing his hat and overcoat , put the kettle on the fire and while he was waiting for it to boil he went softly upstairs .