s and men were not familiar. On the other hand the Southern
army would know every inch of it, and the inhabitants were ready and
eager to give it information.

Dick could not keep from regarding the dark forests with apprehension.
He had seen the Northern generals lose so much through ignorance of the
ground and uncertain movements that he feared for them again. He soon
learned that Rosecrans himself shared this fear. He had come to the
division and recommended its closer concentration.

But the young Ohio troops were not afraid. They said that if they were
attacked they would hold their ground long enough for the rest of the
Northern army to beat the Southern, and McCook himself was confident.

Meanwhile, Bragg, after delaying, had suddenly decided to make the
attack himself, and throughout the day he had been gathering his whole
army for the spring. All his generals, Hardee, Breckinridge, Polk,
Cleburne and the rest were in position and the cavalry was led by
Wheeler, a youthful rough rider, destined to become famous as Fighting
Joe Wheeler.

Each general was ready to attack in the morning, but neither knew the
willingness of the other. Yet everybody was aware that a great battle
was soon to come. They had felt it in both armies, and for two or three
days the firing of the skirmishers had been almost continuous. Scouts
kept each side well informed.

Dick, Warner and Pennington, before they lay down in their blankets,
listened to the faint reports of rifles. They could see little owing
to the deep woods in which they lay, but the sound of the shots came
clearly.

"A part of our army is to cross the fords of Stone River in the morning
by daylight or before," said Warner, "and we're to surprise the enemy
and rush him. I wonder if we'll do it."

"We will not," said Pennington with emphasis. "We may beat the enemy,
but we will not surprise him. We never do. Why should we surprise him?
He is here in his own country. If the whole Southern army were sound
asleep, a thousand of the natives would wake up their generals and tell
them that the Yankee army was advancing."

"Their sentinels are watching, anyhow," said Dick, "but I imagine that
we'd gain something if the first rush was ours and not theirs."

"We'll hope for the best," said Warner, "I wonder whose time this will
be to get wounded. It was mine at Antietam, yours, Dick, at Perryville,
and only you are left Pennington, so it's bound to be you."

"No, it won'