My job, with 29 other officers, was to cut down rubber trees and carry the logs into camp. There, another group sawed and split them for the cookhouse and the locomotives. Rarely did the full complement of 30 report for work. Everyone was afflicted with malaria which reduced our number to about 20 on a given day. We worked in teams of three - an axe man, and two carriers.
Rubber trees grow tall and straight.
The wood is fairly soft - and wet. Each of us became quite adept at felling a tree and we even had contests to see who could most accurately predict the line of fall. One man chopped while the other two went in and out of the camp. Burlap bags were used to protect the log carriers' shoulders and also to hide the occasional dried fish, fruit, or vegetables purchased from a passing native vendor. We always had a single guard with us.