Bragg had no notion of retreating.
In the night that followed Colonel Winchester himself and some of his young officers, accompanied by the brave and skillful Sergeant Whitley, scouted toward Stone River.

In the darkness and with great care, in order to avoid any sound of splashing, they waded a deep creek and came out upon a plateau, rolling slightly in character, and with a deep clay soil, very muddy from the heavy rains.

A part of the plateau was cleared of forest, but here and there were groves, chiefly of the red cedar, and thickets, some of them so dense that a man would have difficulty in forcing his way through.
Colonel Winchester and his little group paused at the edge of the creek, and then dived promptly into a thicket.

They saw further up the plateau many fires and the figures of men walking before them and they saw nearer by sentinels marching back and forth.

They were even able to make out cannon in batteries, and they knew that it was not worth while to go any further.