November 26th.--"The enemy appeared in great force this morning at day-break all along our front, and had a good deal of skirmishing with the piquets; but we could not succeed in drawing them within musket-shot of our works. They are all armed with muskets, and have a great many jinjals, and two or more guns, with which they annoyed us very considerably, having taken up a position in the woody part of the village, from whence they opened a musket fire on the boats. From this I determined to dislodge them, and sent out a strong party for that purpose; these came close upon them, and drove them out, with, I have every reason to believe, considerable loss. They are, however, by no means discomfited, and are, I understand, determined to entrench themselves round us, and make regular approaches, as their orders are peremptory to carry the place. In confirmation of this a number of their entrenching tools were left behind by the killed and wounded. Our only casualty this morning, I am happy to say, is one Lascar severely, but not dangerously, wounded: the shot first grazed the jaw-bone, entered the shoulder, and came out under the arm-pit. From one of the prisoners taken this morning, whom I have, by this opportunity, forwarded to Major Jackson, I learn there are absolutely 5500 men now here, and that a further force is hourly expected from Puttow-down, where, he says, the Setahwoon now is." Thus 200 British troops resisted the attack of between 5000 and 6000 of the enemy; which occasioned Sir Archibald Campbell to observe in his despatch, "the meritorious conduct of both officers and men, as detailed in the enclosed copies of letters from Captain Deane, will, I am certain, obtain for them the approbation of the Right Honourable the Governor-General in council." While this detachment was maintaining its post against such very superior numbers of the enemy, Brigadier-General Sir A. Campbell had resolved to make an attack upon every accessible part of the Burmese line, to the east of the Irawaddy, extending from a commanding ridge of hills to two villages about eleven miles north-east of Prome. The enemy's army was divided into three corps, all protected by stockades, and occupying positions of difficult approach; but each separated from the other by local obstructions, so that they could be attacked separately.