midnight
They were anticipating battle against a hated foe , and counted hardship as nothing compared with the joy of conflict . Every step brought them closer to the grapple of arms -- to that supreme test of strength , courage , endurance , for which they had left their homes . They might be poorly drilled , ill-dressed , variously armed , yet these were fighting men . It was at midnight when Morgan led us up the steep bluff , and out upon the sandy road . We advanced silently , and in straggling column through the darkness , passing the embers of camp-fires for several miles , the recumbent soldiery of other commands sleeping on the ground . At Hopewell , Washington was holding another council with his officers . As we swung past we could perceive his tall figure standing in the glow of a fire , and there arose from the lips of our men a sudden , involuntary cheer , breaking strangely upon the solemn silence of the night .