Stephen's emended version, laid out as a tercet, anticipates the tercet of Heighos at the end of Calypso. Presumably it is 8:45 am as Stephen sets off for Dalkey. For Bloom, the bells of St George's Church are tolling for Paddy Dignam; for Stephen, the bells (real or imaginary) are ringing for his mother.

It is doubtful whether Stephen can actually hear any chimes. The closest church to him in 1904 was probably St Patrick's Church in Bullock Harbour, about 600 metres away, but it had no clock tower. St Joseph's Church on Summerhill Road, about 750 metres away, also lacked a clock tower. The closest clock tower was probably that on the Town Hall in Kingstown (now Dún Laoghaire), about 1.5 kilometres away.