four hours
since midday
Expression on paper has never been my forte . My life had been a thing of outward manifestations . I never had been secret or even systematically taciturn about my simple occupations which might have been foolish but had never required either caution or mystery . But in those four hours since midday a complete change had come over me . For good or evil I left that house committed to an enterprise that could not be talked about ; which would have appeared to many senseless and perhaps ridiculous , but was certainly full of risks , and , apart from that , commanded discretion on the ground of simple loyalty . It would not only close my lips but it would to a certain extent cut me off from my usual haunts and from the society of my friends ; especially of the light-hearted , young , harum-scarum kind . This was unavoidable .