midnight
As the men from the Rito advanced , the Tehua scouts were to close in from the rear and follow them cautiously , until the enemies were all gathered on the desired spot , with the woods to their left and rugged , barren cliffs and peaks to their right . Then the trap would be sprung ; and if the Queres took to those bleak fastnesses for defence it would be easy to surround them , cut them off from water , and thus exterminate them completely . Night had fallen when another message came , to the effect that the numbers of the enemy were increasing , and beginning to spread over the timber in small groups . The war-chief sent a messenger to the Puye , and after midnight the great medicine-man of war appeared in person . The shaman was , like all the others , painted black ; a tall plume taken from an eagle rose behind each ear ; the left hand carried a rattle ; and a little drum was suspended from his shoulder . As soon as he arrived , one of the warriors retired to a spot which was almost hedged in by several bushy cedar-trees . There he built a fire , and as soon as it burned he covered it in such a manner that only a thin film of smoke arose from it .