midnight
No one came near them , but they ate their loaves and drank their water with the appetite of men who had often known what it was to be without even such simple food as that . The instant that night fell they were both up upon the pegs , grinding away at the hard stone and tugging at the bars . It was a rainy night , and there was a sharp thunder-storm , but they could see very well , while the shadow of the arched window prevented their being seen . Before midnight they had loosened one bar , and the other was just beginning to give , when some slight noise made them turn their heads , and there was their jailer standing , open-mouthed in the middle of the cell , staring up at them . It was De Catinat who observed him first , and he sprang down at him in an instant with his bar ; but at his movement the man rushed for the door , and drew it after him just as the American 's tool whizzed past his ear and down the passage . As the door slammed , the two comrades looked at each other . The guardsman shrugged his shoulders and the other whistled .