Three-quarters of Lee’s army was now north of Sharpsburg. The successive Federal attacks had punched the northeast salient of the Confederate left and center inward toward the Dunker Church. Now these two sectors were merged into one long line that ran roughly southeast from Nicodemus Hill, past the Dunker Church, to end along the Sunken Road. What had been the right (southern) end of the long Confederate line was now the rear. Properly speaking, Lee had no center. He had two separate lines—the main one, facing northeast toward East Woods; and a detached guard force, facing southeast toward the Lower Bridge. Between them was only a thin line of riflemen. If McClellan now delivered simultaneous hammer blows from northeast, east, and southeast, he would surely destroy Lee’s weak defensive setup. But if he continued his piece-meal attacks, Lee could keep on shuttling his brigades back and forth to meet them. And this is what they both did. [Illustration: _Maj. Gen. Lafayette McLaws, who led Jackson’s counterattack after the ambush._ Courtesy, Frederick Hill Meserve Collection.] [Illustration: _Maj. Gen. D. H. Hill._ Courtesy, Library of Congress.] _The Fight for the Sunken Road_ Sedgwick may have wondered, in the moments before the Confederate onslaught in the West Woods, why General French was not closely following him. Nor is it clear, in view of French’s instructions, why he did not do so. French’s troops had crossed Pry’s Mill Ford in Sedgwick’s wake. After marching about a mile west, they had veered south toward the Roulette farmhouse, possibly drawn that way by the fire of enemy skirmishers. Continuing to advance, they became engaged with Confederate infantry at the farmhouse and in a ravine which inclines southward to a ridge. On the crest of this ridge, a strong enemy force waited in a deeply cut lane—the Sunken Road. [Illustration: _Mumma farm, left; Roulette farmhouse, far right. This view looking east from Hagerstown Pike. French’s division advanced from left toward the Sunken Road, which is off picture to the right. Both farmhouses seen in this modern view were here at time of the battle._] Worn down by farm use and the wash of heavy rains, this natural trench joins the Hagerstown Pike 500 yards south of the Dunker Church. From this point the road runs east about 1,000 yards, then turns south toward the Boonsboro Pike. That first 1,000 yards was soon to be known as Bloody Lane.