night, about twelve o'clock
I saw him at breakfast , but afterward neither he nor his horse was to be seen . All day Massena was in his usual gloom , and he spent much of his time staring with his telescope at the English lines and at the shipping in the Tagus . He said nothing of the mission upon which he had sent our comrade , and it was not for us to ask him any questions . That night , about twelve o'clock , I was standing outside the Marshal 's headquarters when he came out and stood motionless for half an hour , his arms folded upon his breast , staring through the darkness toward the east . So rigid and intent was he that you might have believed the muffled figure and the cocked hat to have been the statue of the man . What he was looking for I could not imagine ; but at last he gave a bitter curse , and , turning on his heel , he went back into the house , banging the door behind him . Next day the second aide-de-camp , Duplessis , had an interview with Massena in the morning , after which neither he nor his horse was seen again .