dumbest thing that anybody -- and robert e. lee included -- could ever have done. i think he stayed put on the 17th because he thought he could win. he thought he could fight mcclellan on the defensive. whatever. he stayed put on the 18th all but daring mcclellan to renew the offensive. and then finally, barely, was able to get across butler's ford and back across the potomac into virginia. and then, of course, he fought on december 13th at fredericksburg. the plain between fredericksburg and crossed a significant drainage ditch, then the attacking ranks had to cross more open ground to confront a sunken road which formed a perfect four-foot trench for