twelve o'clock
She knew the springs of the nation 's history , and she loved to recall the days when her brother was Silence Dogood , which he had never ceased to be . THE surrender of Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown brought the war to an end . The courier from the army came flying into Philadelphia at night . The watchman called out , `` Past twelve o'clock , and all is well ! '' `` Past one o'clock , and all is well ! '' and `` Past two o'clock , and Cornwallis is taken ! '' The people of the city were in the streets early that morning .