The twilight was fast deepening into night.

The last rosy glow of the sun faded, and thick darkness enveloped the vast forest, in which twenty thousand men had fallen, and in which most of them yet lay, the wounded with the dead.
There was presently a deep boom from the river, and a shell fired by one of the gunboats curved far over their heads and dropped into the forest, where the Southern army was encamped.

All through the night and at short but regular intervals the gunboats maintained this warning fire, heartening the Union soldiers, and telling them at every discharge that however they might have to fight for the land, the water was always theirs.
Dick saw Colonel Winchester going among his men, and pulling himself together he saluted his chief.
"Any orders, sir ?" he said.
"No, Dick, my boy, none for the present," replied the colonel, a little sadly.

"Half of my poor regiment is killed or wounded, and the rest are so exhausted that they are barely able to move.

But they fought magnificently, Dick! They had to, or be crushed! It is only here that we have withstood the rush of the Southern army, and it is probable that we, too, would have gone had not night come to our help." "Then we have been beaten ?" "Yes, Dick, we have been beaten, and beaten badly.