midnight
All had machetes . All over the island other bands were in readiness , their orders being to wait until they heard of the fall of Port-au-Prince , when the massacre of all whites might begin . Benoit 's plan was to take the city at daybreak . At midnight , he started three columns of 300 men each , from three directions . They wandered into the city by twos and threes , taking up positions . Their orders were , that , at the firing of a gun at daybreak , when the stores opened , they were to rush through the business district , setting fires everywhere and killing the white men and the gendarmerie . Benoit believed that , while his men could not withstand a pitched battle with the Marines , they could sweep the town in guerilla fashion when the Marines were scattered here and there , putting out fires .