Why are the dinner guests impatient and mystified on the next Thursday?

       The guests all arrive at the time traveler's home in Richmond, yet he is not home. He had left a note saying to  begin dinner at seven if he had not returned. While they were eating the time traveler comes through the front door ragged and covered in dirt. He explains, "I'm going to wash and dress, and then I'll come down and explain things..."(17) He denotes that he will give his story once he is cleansed and has eaten. The guests wait impatiently, and he commences his story.