one o'clock
`` Whenever my men sing that song on guard , it tells me that everything is amply serene , '' remarked our _ segundo _ , with the air of a field-marshal , as we walked back to the fire . The evening had passed so rapidly it was now almost time for the second guard to be called , and when the lateness of the hour was announced , we skurried to our blankets like rabbits to their warrens . The second guard usually got an hour or two of sleep before being called , but in the absence of our regular foreman , the mice would play . When our guard was called at one o'clock , as usual , Officer delayed us several minutes looking for his spurs , and I took the chance to ask The Rebel why it was that he never wore spurs . `` It 's because I 'm superstitious , son , '' he answered . `` I own a fine pair of silver-plated spurs that have a history , and if you 're ever at Lovell 's ranch I 'll show them to you . They were given to me by a mortally wounded Federal officer the day the battle of Lookout Mountain was fought .