midnight
Most of those about him slept as well , and the ten thousand horses , which had been ridden hard in the great display during the day , also sank into quiet . The restless hoofs ceased to move . Now and then there was a snort or a neigh , but the noise was slight on Fleetwood Hill or in the surrounding forests . A man came through the thickets soon after midnight and moved with the greatest caution toward the hill on which the artillery was ranged . He was in neither blue nor gray , just the plain garb of a civilian , but he was of strong figure and his smoothly shaven face , with its great width between the eyes and massive chin , expressed character and uncommon resolution . The intruder -- he was obviously such , because he sought with the minutest care to escape observation -- never left the shelter of the bushes . He had all the skill of the old forest runners , because his footsteps made no sound as he passed and he knew how to keep his figure always in the shadows until it became a common blur with them .