daybreakJ a brigade ofGPrs. with its coin pi r 

 meut of Golondauze, under Lieutenant Begbie, 

 and the on ' ' vpany ofSappf^rs and Miners 

 under 2d ! '^t Smythe, marched tor Room- 



biyah. T chraent, having halted for half 



an hour alChn.g^, reached Koombiyah with diffi- 

 culty at 2 p. M., the cattle being much dif?tresj*ed. 



On the 2d March, Colonel Herbert joined the 

 force in advaoce, having appointed Captain Uib- 

 game to succeed to the command of Malacca, oa 

 the departure of the Head Quarters ofiheSili 

 M. L» thestocka<le at Roombiyah bein^^ near- 

 ly completecl, and on the oth the Brigade Major, 

 Captain Wyllie, also arrived. The Sappers and 

 Miners were busily employed in cutting through 

 the felled trees» and hewing down the lt*(ty forest 

 of Roombivah to a dislauce ofei.u'hty yards on 

 each side of the road, a task in which they were 

 ably seconded by a body of Chinese and Malay 

 coolies. The axe employed in the Peninsula is 

 very small and light, and firmly bound with split 

 rations to an extremely pliable handle. The cut- 

 teri> erect a temporary stage around the tree to 

 be felled at the height of about three feet from 

 the ground, upon which they stand, and cut with 

 astoaishing rapidity. 



The very smalluess of the axe tells in favor of 

 the Malay, as he no occasion to hew the 

 tnmk to the width that an English felling axe 

 necessarily requires. The lower edge of the in- 

 cision is remarkably smooth and horizontal, whilst 

 the distance between it and and the upper lip 

 rarely exceeds three, or four, inches : the axe 

 tberefo:-e falls rapidly on nearly the same spot at 



