midnight
The walls of the _ enciente _ had been repaired and greatly strengthened , and covered by bastions and other works , so that even were one of the forts taken the work of the enemy would but be begun . The theatres had been closed from the first . The café 's chantants , and the open-air concerts had long since followed the example , partly because of the increasing seriousness of the temper of the people , partly because of the failure of the gas . The café 's themselves were no longer crowded until midnight ; the dim lights of the lamps that had taken the place of gas gave a sombre air to these establishments , and by eight o'clock in the evening most of them put up their shutters . The National Guard were being reorganized . From each battalion , three or four hundred of the most able-bodied , for the most part unmarried , men , had by order of the Government , been selected and formed into companies for service in the field , and these promised in a short time to develop into troops equal in physique and spirit to the mobiles , and vastly superior to the line . Ladies no longer appeared in the streets in rich dresses .