It took some time to divide my baggage fairly among them, as they all wanted to shirk the heavy boxes, and would seize hold of some light article and march off with it, until made to come back and wait until the whole had been fairly apportioned.

At length about eight o'clock all was arranged, and we started for our walk to Mr.M.'s farm.
The country was at first a uniform plain of burned-up rice-grounds, but at a few miles' distance precipitous hills appeared, backed by the lofty central range of the peninsula.

Towards these our path lay, and after having gone six or eight miles the hills began to advance into the plain right and left of us, and the ground became pierced here and there with blocks and pillars of limestone rock, while a few abrupt conical hills and peaks rose like islands.

Passing over an elevated tract forming the shoulder of one of the hills, a picturesque scene lay before us.
We looked down into a little valley almost entirely surrounded by mountains, rising abruptly in huge precipices, and forming a succession of knolls and peaks and domes of the most varied and fantastic shapes.
In the very centre of the valley was a large bamboo house, while scattered around were a dozen cottages of the same material.
I was kindly received by Mr.Jacob Mesman in an airy saloon detached from the house, and entirely built of bamboo and thatched with grass.
After breakfast he took me to his foreman's house, about a hundred yards off, half of which was given up to me until I should decide where to have a cottage built for my own use.

I soon found that this spot was too much exposed to the wind and dust, which rendered it very difficult to work with papers or insects.