His men had not gone far when firing broke out near Meriam's Corner. Smith's troops were now heavily outnumbered by the militia and for the rest of the day this imbalance grew as more and more companies of militia arrived from around the colony while Smith's men suffered from casualties as they were repeatedly ambushed along the road. Smith ordered a very fast pace for his column, reasoning that if the men slowed down they would be overwhelmed and soon run out of ammunition, supplies of which were rapidly running low. Despite his difficulties, Smith was largely able to keep his men in disciplined formations for much of the return to Lexington. More and more of Smith's officers were killed or wounded, hampering his attempts to maintain control, and his men finally lost unit cohesion and hurried onward in a general mass.