Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-10-17
FROM MADAGASCAR.

Return to Washington of Lieutenant Ma.
son Shufeldt from His Diplomatic Mis-
sion-He Gives an Interesting Account
: of His Observations-More thsn Half of
His Companions Die-A Country Rich In
Its Mineral Resources-French Occupa-
ton Dett roys Foreign Commerce.
WASHINGTON, Sept. 20. - Lieutenant
Mason Shufeldt, United States Navy,
whose visit to Madagascar has attracted
much attention, reached the city Wednesday
morning, and at night went to New York
to see the President and report to him.
Lieutenant Schufeldt was sent to Madagas-
car in a diplomatic capacity. His mission
was to find out if there were not some way
in which the French occupation on the sea-
coast could be terminated. The HOvaS
really care very little about this occupation.
The frightful unhealthy character of the
timber belt, about 100 miles wide, which sepa-
rates the coast trade from the interior table
land about six hundred feet above the sea,
is an absolute protection to the Hovas from
a French army, and as the natives have no
commerce they do not feel the loss OF q
seaport or two. But the French occupation
of Tamatave has practically destroyed for
eign commerce, and European merchants
Il NlO ~ v VAS IA
leave. Madagascar is the last stronghold
of the American carrying trade, and our ex-
ports to the island have been large, and
much in excess of English exports to the
island. The natives will not buy English
cotton cloth when they can get American,
and plain white American cottons are sell
ing at the Hova capital for sixty cents a
| yard. Lieutenant Shufeldt says the people
have a passion for the purchase of all sorts
OF new things, and particularly all the APP
| pliances of civilization, and the island offers
a richer opening to commerce Ii even
Japan at its zenith. The people have such
mechanical ingenuity thatthey manufacture
al excellent Calling gun simply from draw
ings without ever having seen a model.
The country is enormously rich in all
mineral resources, but the natives only
work the iron mines. They know, how
ever, that they possess rich gold and silver
mines, though for currency they use the
French tiye-franc pieces, which they cut up
for change. Lieuten ant Shufeldt ascer-
tanned that the Hova Government is willing
to pay three or four million dollars III
demnity if the French will leave the island,
and to raise the money the Queen granted
a concession to a foreign company to be
formed to work the gold mines, thirty per
cent. of the proceeds to be paid to the
Queen, and with that she shall pay the in
demnity to the French. There has hitherto
been a serious question about getting the
precious ores to the seacoast, and a part Of
Lieutenant Shufeldt's mission was to ascer-
tain if the principal rivers of the island
were navigable as far as the gold-felds.
He found the river was navigable for
two hundred and fifty miles, atfording am
pie means Of communication between
the gold-tields and the coast. In all
treaties between Madagascar and foreign
powers there has been a provision that any
European developing a mine on the island
Or carrying away specimens should be made
subject to the Hova criminal laws and pun
ished with twenty years Imprisonment. The
Hova Government put the stipulation in
lest a gold fever should break out and
the island be overrun with Euro
pean and American miners and adventur-
ers. The Queen is now willing to waive
this in part, and on his way home Lieuten-
ant Shufeldt stopped in London and organ
lied a company to work under the conces-
Shufeldt is the only white man who ever
went entirely across the island, a distance
OF LOIS miles, not in a direct line, but as
he was obliged to travel. He started
with 800 natives and three white men.
The three white men he buried with his
w hands on the way. Of the natives
only 15s completed the journey. The rest
persisted Of fever. 1t is supposed that the
project of the Administration is to bring
about American intervention, and induce
the French to abandon their territorial
claims, take a lot OF gold to pay the ex-
penses of their Chinese war, and get out of
Madagascar. Lieutenant Shufeldt speaks
highly of the Hovas, and enthusiastically
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