arranged that the force that had been operating in Aracan should,
if possible, effect a junction with Sir Archibald Campbell here. A
message brought down by a native was, however, received; stating
that the force had suffered very severely from fever and cholera,
and that the natural obstacles were found to be too great to be
overcome by troops debilitated by disease--that the attempt had,
therefore, been abandoned. Fortunately, the English general was
well able to do without this addition to his strength. He had
already proved that his command was perfectly capable of defeating
any Burmese force that could be brought against him, and an
addition would only have increased the difficulty of transport.

On the 9th of March the British force which, owing to the necessity
for leaving strong bodies to hold Melloon and other points that had
been captured, now mustered less than 2,000 fighting men, advanced
to attack the enemy, whose numbers were estimated at 16,000.

The new commander of the Burmese adopted other tactics than his
predecessors. His stockaded position was in front of the town of
Pagahn, but he occupied the jungle in great force, and attacked our
advance guard, five miles from the town. As the enemy occupied the
hills on both sides of the main road, Sir A. Campbell divided his
force and led half of it through the jungle on the right, while
General Cotton led the other half through the woods on the left.

The Burmese fought with considerable obstinacy. General Campbell
and his staff, with thirty-eight troopers and fifty men of the
13th, were somewhat in advance of the column; when the enemy closed
in on both flanks, and even got in their rear. These were, however,
dispersed by the rest of the 13th and, driving back the Burmese on
the flanks, the advance was continued. Presently, however, as the
British issued from the jungle, a mass of the enemy's horse charged
down, drove back the skirmishers and, for a time, the position of
the general and his staff was one of great peril. His little body
of troopers, however, dashed boldly at the assailants and held them
in check, until the guns that had followed the staff were brought
forward from the jungle. Then the troopers divided and rode right
and left; and the guns, opening fire, checked the assailants until
the infantry came up.

The Burmese army was now seen, drawn up in the form of a
semicircle, in the open. The two British columns were united and,
together,