He had sat still almost the whole day, but the strain of the watching and waiting had been as great as that of the walking now was.

He wondered if the guards would ever let them stop.
They waded another brook, passed through another wood and then they were ordered to halt.

The guards announced that they could sleep, as they would go no farther that night.

The men did not lie down.

They fell, and each lay where he fell, and in whatever position he had assumed when falling.
John was conscious of hearing the order, of striking the grass full length, and he knew nothing more until the next morning when he was aroused by Fleury.