Six o'clock
It was a piece of great good luck that their squad had a corporal like him , a man who had seen service and knew all the tricks of the trade : he was an uncultivated peasant , of course , but a good fellow all the same . It was late when they reached their place of bivouac at Contreuve , after marching a long time on the Chalons and Vouziers road and descending by a steep path into the valley of the Semide , up which they came through a stretch of narrow meadows . The landscape had undergone a change ; they were now in the Ardennes , and from the lofty hills above the village where the engineers had staked off the ground for the 7th corps ' camp , the valley of the Aisne was dimly visible in the distance , veiled in the pale mists of the passing shower . Six o'clock came and there had been no distribution of rations , whereon Jean , in order to keep occupied , apprehensive also of the consequences that might result from the high wind that was springing up , determined to attend in person to the setting up of the tent . He showed his men how it should be done , selecting a bit of ground that sloped away a little to one side , setting the pegs at the proper angle , and digging a little trench around the whole to carry off the water . Maurice was excused from the usual nightly drudgery on account of his sore foot , and was an interested witness of the intelligence and handiness of the big young fellow whose general appearance was so stolid and ungainly . He was completely knocked up with fatigue , but the confidence that they were now advancing with a definite end in view served to sustain him .