midnight
`` What has happened , brother ? '' Ben Ouafy asked . `` Last evening the Franks began to land , and all night they continued to come ashore . At midnight Koraim , the commander of the town , went out to see what they were doing , at the head of twenty Mamelukes , and fell upon a company of their skirmishers , charged them , killed many , and carried the head of their captain in triumph into the town . At five this morning our tribe arrived . We rode up near them , and saw that they had neither horsemen nor cannon . They were divided into three columns , and were marching towards the town .