noon
Gradually the enemy 's shots became scarcer as the battle advanced up the slopes . Engineers were hard at work getting the streets of Hilgard cleared so as to save the troops the detour round the outside of the town . The burning houses were blown up with dynamite , and a temporary hospital was established near the city , to which the wounded were brought from all parts of the battle-field . By noon Hilgard was sufficiently cleared to allow the 36th Militia Regiment -LRB- Nebraska -RRB- to pass through . On both sides of the streets were smoking ruins filled with dead and dying and charred remains . The steps of the battalion sounded strangely hollow as the first company turned into the square where the white church still stood almost intact in the midst of the ruins . A wounded soldier was calling loudly for water .