The night of March 14th must have been a Hellish one for the Kentucky (King) and Georgia (Ward) Volunteers. A February cold front complete with driving rain provided their cover. The maybe 20 men left in King's party, hiding in the woods from Urrea's 1,500, had first to cross the Mission River neck-deep in water, stumbling on the deep mud and submerged snags, and then clawing their way up the steep earthen banks. Included among their number were four wounded, who were helped along with "much pain".
As for Ward's 120 in the church, we have these interesting details from Col.Francisco Garay, serving under Urrea....
http://www.tamu.edu/faculty/ccbn/dewitt/goliadframe.htmA little past midnight one of our advance guards brought in a prisoner who was at first believed to belong to the band that had been chased from the woods. He was only a messenger from La Bahia [Goliad] who was trying to get into the church, information which be volunteered without being questioned. He presented a note addressed by Colonel Fannin to the so-called Colonel Ward in which he ordered him to evacuate his position upon receipt of the message, no matter what sacrifices he might have to make or what obstacles he would have to overcome. He was to go without delay to Fort Defiance (that was the name of La Bahia) where he (Fannin) would be waiting without fail the next day. Since Colonel Garay thought that it would be well for Ward to receive this information, he permitted the prisoner to deliver it without appearing that he understood its contents. It must truly have been a miserable night because Garay by his own account acted on his own in this matter, not trying to communicate with Urrea who could not have been far away. Plainly letting the message through was an attempt by Garay to induce the Georgians to quit their impregnable position in the church and attempt a breakout.
From complimentary accounts on the Georgian side we know that the captured messenger was a local Irish settler and that Fannin had also included the information that he would be evacuating Goliad and falling back east towards Victoria.
Ward did slip out, shortly after receipt of the letter sometime after midnight, probably four or five hours after King's band had forded the river.
Both groups then floundered their way through the brush and tall grass in total darkness and pouring rain while seeking a trodden path or road, all the while expecting that Urrea's 1,500 would be hot on their trail at first light. King had been trying to circle east around the mission and the Mexican encampments so as to head north towards Goliad. From survivors' accounts we get that Ward had intended to strike out east for Victoria, so Ward's men heading east must have crossed the tracks of King's men circling around to the north and we know that neither group made it very far that night, but in the miserable conditions the two parties were unaware of each other.
Not likely would they have any source of working light with them to read a compass (whatever DiCaprio's experiences were in
"The Revenant", flint and steel are actually hard to work in the rain). Not likely a compass was needed anyhow, the cold North wind would provide bearings enough.
Morning light found King's men just three miles north of Refugio, out on open ground along the expected path of flight, guns and all of their remaining powder still soaking wet and useless. They were speedily located and taken into Mexican custody.
In the dark Ward's men had finally located the wagon road heading south to Copano Bay and had taken it. Not the direction they had ostensibly intended but surely at that point the overriding need was to put some serious distance between themselves and Urrea.
The sense we are given is that Ward got away, 120 exhausted men on foot, following one of the few main thoroughfares out of town in an area thick with long-time resident Loyalist vaqueros. Perhaps just as likely any scouts on the Mexican side were not keen to close with what had been proven to be 100+ deadly accurate riflemen.
Doubtless too Urrea could have taken the time to systematically locate and hunt these men down had he so chosen, but competent strategist that he was, his considerable energies were now focused upon Fannin and the main Texian force at Goliad.
If letting Ward get away had been a gamble on Urrea's part it paid off, as it turned out most of these men would be captured the following week anyway. By Urrea's own account however, the presence of these what he believed to be 200 men under Ward, hovering somewhere off his flank and rear contributed in no small measure to his subsequent decision to execute King and his men for reasons of military expediency.
Birdwatcher
