nemy, although their
scouts had for some days previously been observed in the west, towards
St Antonio. All the artillery, with the exception of two long
four-pounders and a couple of mortars, were spiked and left behind us.
But the number of store and ammunition waggons with which we started was
too great, and our means of drawing them inadequate, so that, before we
had gone half a mile, our track was marked by objects of various kinds
scattered about the road, and several carts had broken down or been left
behind. At a mile from Goliad, on the picturesque banks of the St
Antonio, the remainder of the baggage was abandoned or hastily thrown
into the river, chests full of cartridges, the soldiers' effects, every
thing, in short, was committed to the transparent waters; and having
harnessed the oxen and draught horses to the artillery and to two
ammunition waggons, we slowly continued the march, our foes still
remaining invisible.

Our road lay through one of those enchanting landscapes, composed of
small prairies, intersected by strips of oak and underwood. On all sides
droves of oxen were feeding in the high grass, herds of wild-eyed deer
gazed wonderingly at the army that thus intruded upon the solitary
prairies of the west, and troops of horses dashed madly away upon our
approach, the thunder of their hoofs continuing to be audible long after
their disappearance. At eight miles from Goliad begins an extensive and
treeless prairie, known as the Nine-mile Prairie; and across this,
towards three in the afternoon, we had advanced about four or five
miles. Myself and some of my comrades, who acted as rearguard, were
about two miles behind, and had received orders to keep a sharp eye
upon the forest, which lay at a considerable distance to our left; but
as up to this time no signs of an enemy had been visible, we were riding
along in full security, when, upon casually turning our heads, we
perceived, about four miles off, at the edge of the wood, a something
that resembled a man on horseback. But as the thing, whatever it was,
did not appear to move, we decided that it must be a tree or some other
inanimate object, and we rode on without taking further notice. We
proceeded in this way for about a quarter of an hour, and then, the main
body being only about a quarter of a mile before us, marching at a
snail's pace, we halted to rest a little, and let our horses feed. Now,
for the first time, as we gazed out over the seeming