nearly noon
There was no use going back in the dark to hunt for a trail they had mistaken in the daylight , so the regiment remained in the village overnight . They were a lot of very discouraged men , and the officers were enraged at the mistake , for which there was no one but themselves to blame . Early in the morning they retraced their way , and started off in an opposite direction to the one taken yesterday . It seemed that this must certainly be the path taken by the rebels , but the regiment marched until nearly noon without seeing any signs of them . Then , when they had halted for dinner , the colonel decided to let the men rest while two companies were sent ahead to reconnoitre , and report as to whether there were any signs of men having passed this way . He was beginning to think that the whole affair would be a wild-goose chase , and he decided that , if these companies found nothing , the whole regiment would return to Manila forthwith , probably to be the laughing-stock of the army there . The remaining companies had nothing to do now but lay about on the soft grass , and rest .