MADAGASCAR, an important and interesting island, on the eastern coast of Africa, separated from the mainland by the channel of Mozambique, which is nearly 300 miles broad. It is one of the largest islands in the world, extending from 12. 2. to 25. 40. south latitude, being above 800 miles in length from north to south, and varying in breadth from 120 to 300 miles. It is traversed from north to south by a double chain of mountains, some of which reach the height of 6000 feet above the level of the sea. Some of these elevations are the craters of extinct volcanoes, and have the shape of an inverted cone. These ranges divide Madagascar into two parts, approaching nearer to the eastern than to the western coast. The scenery is often very-grand and picturesque, presenting high, abrupt precipices, luxuriant valleys, passes and ravines, immense forests, streams, and lakes. Numerous rivers have their rise in these mountains, which amply Supply the surrounding country with water for the purposes of irrigation. Probably no country in the world is more plentifully supplied with this indispensable requisite. The most considerable of these rivers are the Murundava on the western side, and the Mananzari and Manangara on the eastern. The Andevourante is navigable for canoes to the distance of a hundred miles from the sea. The Manguru, one of the finest of them, rises from the lake Antsianaxe, which is seventy-five miles in circumference. Four other lakes, Rassoi-Be, Rassoi-Massaïe, Irangue, and Nossi-Be, extend along the eastern side, and communicate with one another.

This island is very rich in mineral productions, though these are turned to very little account. Iron ore abounds in considerable quantities very near the surface of the soil, and, when wrought, the metal is found soft and malleable, and equal to any in the world. The mountains contain tin and lead; and small quantities of pale gold and copper have been obtained. Immense blocks of rock crystal, some of them twenty feet in circumference, abound in the country; granite, very fine black agates, and many other less precious stones, are also found. Along the western part are numerous banks of mineral salt, which is to be obtained with very little labour.

The botany of the island still presents an almost unexplored field for the naturalist. From the fertility and marshy nature of the soil, vegetation in every quarter is most luxuriant. In the fields and forests are found many trees and shrubs, useful both in the arts and for the purposes of life. Amongst the most valuable are the sagou tree, the leaves of which are used to manufacture stuffs in high repute; two species of coffee tree; a plant called the ravinale, from which the inhabitants make many useful instruments; and several varieties of the cotton tree, particularly that known as the largest species. This country also furnishes some costly woods, such as sandal, black and white ebony, green and white spotted. The indigo plant, rice, and yams of several sorts, are also found, indigenous to the soil. Rice, of which there are eleven species, is the chief article oř culture, and the principal food of the inhabitants. It is grown on the low lands, in the damp woods, and on the banks of rivers. After rice, manioc and batatas are most commonly cultivated for food, the roots of the manioc often measuring fifteen feet in length and one foot in diameter; the vine, sugar-cane, pine-apples, bread-fruit, sweet potatoes, plantains, Indian corn, prickly yam; tobacco, of which there are eleven species indigenous to the island; the arrow root, called by the natives tharoole; the Urania speciosa, the leaves of which are made to supply the place of dishes; allspice; negro pepper of the Indies; the angola pea, on which silk-worms principally 7 feed; and the Sagus rufia, a species of pine, the fibrous part of the leaves of which are woven into garments, worn by the principal inhabitants. Indeed all the vegetables peculiar to tropical climates, and even those of Europe, have been here successfully cultivated.

The animals most abundant in Madagascar are horned cattle, which are very fine, and furnish inexhaustible wealth and food for the population. All these have bunches of flesh on their shoulders, those on bulls being exceedingly large. Hogsand poultry are bred, but less generally regarded. The elephant and lion are unknown, but an animal is found called the antaba, which appears to be a species of leopard; and another called farassa, somewhat resembling the jackal. Wild asses with very large ears, wild boars with horns, goats, sheep, a species of hedgehog proper for eating, and the bat, which is esteemed a delicacy, are also found in Madagascar. Alligators are numerous, and in some places their flesh is eaten, in others it is held in abhorrence. In the woods fowls are very numerous; the most useful are wood-pigeons, pheasants, geese, ducks, and parrots. Locusts sometimes darken the air, and are considered as excellent food by the inhabitants. The rivers swarm with fish; but they are infested with crocodiles, which often prove fatal to strangers.

With regard to the state of agriculture in Madagascar, we quote the following observations of a distinguished traveller who recently visited the island :—

“The island of Madagascar is very fertile, even to the highest point of land; but it is only slightly cultivated, owing to the slothful habits of the people, who raise barely sufficient crops for their own consumption, and who, untaught by frequent seasons of scarcity, never fail to indulge their idle and gluttonous propensities whenever opportunities for doing so occur; preferring a present gratification to the exercise of that wise forecast that would provide for the future. Agricultural labour is not here confined to the male sex; on the contrary, the greater proportion is performed by women. The only farming implement used is a spade weighing about five pounds, six inches wide and nine deep, with a handle from seven to ten feet in length of red wood. The rice-grounds are dug up into sods of about a foot square, and five inches thick. The soil is usually enriched with marl or common manure; and being then turned, is left exposed to the sun for eight or nine days, when water is thrown upon it, and it dissolves easily. Cattle are then driven over it, the rice sown, and the earth carefully levelled, the sowers all the while wading knee deep in mud. These men are by no means expert; but that is perhaps owing to the natural indolence and carelessness which pervades their general character. Rice is frequently half grown in low grounds, and afterwards transplanted to a more favourable situation; but it is not so good as that which has not been thus transplanted.”^[1. Holman, Voyage round the World, 1834. ]

The western coast of Madagascar was carefully expl° r ' ed during an expedition undertaken by command of the British government, and this will enable us to describe it pretty fully.^[2. Narrative of Voyages to explore the Shores of Africa, Arabia, and Madagascar, performed in his Majesty’s ships Leven and Barra· couta, under the direction of Captain W. F. W. Owen, R,. N. In two volumes. London, 1833. ] The first bay touched at by the expedition was St Augustine’s, which is situated about 150 miles from [7:13:667]Cape St Mary, the southern extremity of the island. It is large and spacious, and was formerly much resorted to by English vessels, principally engaged in the slave trade. Now, the intercourse of the people of St Augustine’s is chiefly confined to the whalers, and an occasional slaver that touches at it, either for refreshments or an addition to her cargo.

Tullia Bay is formed by a long narrow reef, dry at low water, and having two channels, one communicating with St Augustine’s, and the other opening to the sea nine miles to the northward. In every part it affords safe and commodious anchorage for the largest ships. In the vicinity of the bay the country is low, but at a short distance inland it rises into a lofty range of hills. From St Augustine’s to Boyauna Bay the coast is almost an unvaried, low, marshy plain, irrigated by barred rivers, bounded by a line of sharp pointed coral masses, which are uncovered at low water. At a few places a complete archipelago of rocky islets is formed, which assume a variety of fantastical shapes, that of the cauliflower being most predominant. These coral islands are very numerous, but they seldom exceed one mile in circumference. To mariners unacquainted with them they are very dangerous, but to others they afford at all seasons a safe and commodious anchorage, the extensive group called the Barren Islands, in particular, forming excellent harbours; yet they are only worth resorting to for wood, being destitute of fresh water. The shore is thickly covered with trees of a stunted growth, above which, in the immediate vicinity of the sea, the elegant casuarina is occasionally observed. In the vicinity of the Bay of Boyauna the hills present a very luxuriant appearance. There are two rivers in this bay, each affording capacious harbours. Off the northern one, termed Makumba, lies an island of the same name, almost connected with the main land by sandy flats. It is of considerable size, but lofty, and presents in every direction a huge precipice, excepting in one small spot, where a deep rent in the rock admits of a dangerous pass to the summit, which is a perfect level; and on it are the ruins of two small buildings, supposed to be of Arabic construction.

The northern half of the west coast of Madagascar is indented by a series of bays, rivers, and harbours, so admirably adapted for commerce in every respect, that were the island inhabited by a civilized people, it would doubtless be resorted to by ships of all nations for purposes of traffic. With the exception of Bembatooka, these harbours are utterly neglected, except by an Arab dow that occasionally touches at them for the purpose of procuring sandal wood or jerked beef. The bay of Bembatooka is in reality the estuary of several rivers which fall into it from distant parts of the interior. It is seventeen miles in depth, and three and a half miles across at the entrance; but inside it widens to nearly eight, excepting about half way in, where the shores on each side approach and leave a narrow channel, through which the pent-up water rushes with so much violence as to have scooped out an ’abyss of sixty-three fathoms in depth. The shores are in general low, and clothed with mangroves; but in some places they rise into a lofty range of hills. The village which takes its name from the bay is inconsiderable; but Majunga, situated on the northern side of the bay, near the entrance, is a large straggling town, nearly a mile in extent, and containing a large population of Malegashes and Arabs. The Malegashes are described as a very fine race of men. The style of the buildings, like the inhabitants, is one half Arab and the other half Male-stash. The slave trade, and a traffic with the Arabs in bees’ wax, rice, and gums, formerly constituted the principal source whence Bembatooka derived its wealth; but these are either abandoned, or of little importance when compared with the extensive trade in bullocks now carried on with the Americans, who jerk the beef, preserve the tallow, and cure the hides on the spot. Notwithstanding the distance of the voyage, the Americans have found this a profitable speculation, and have established small shops, where are retailed a variety of assorted goods, which are exchanged for the minor articles brought for sale by the natives. They also have a large wooden building, with an enclosed space attached, in which they slaughter their bullocks.

The next place of importance in proceeding northwards is Majambo, which strikingly resembles Bembatooka, being of about the same dimensions and form, possessing a like chasm of deep water in the centre, and having, like it, several rivers at its head. This bay would appear to have been anciently inhabited by Arabs, as their tombs are still in existence on the summit of the small island of Manza, blackened by age, and fast mouldering to decay. Farther to the north is Nareenda Bay, the islands at the north entrance of which afford excellent harbours, and are approachable in almost every direction. Saucasse, the largest of them, is inhabited, and nearly covered with verdure; as is also that of Souhee, a stupendous rock upwards of two hundred feet in height. A group of lofty volcanic islands, together with two or three lesser islets, intervenes between Nareenda and Passandava, the broadest and deepest bay on the west coast of Madagascar, and possessing numerous fine harbours. The village· of Passandava, situated at the head of the bay, consists only of a few half ruinous huts. Near to it the mountains which surround a stupendous and inaccessible peak called Matowla take their rise. Numerous islands are situated in the vicinity of this chaotic mass of chasms and craggy steeps. Some of them abound in large masses of hardened earths of different colours, incorporated and stratified with quartz and basalt, or lava resembling it, whilst m others abrupt hills and lofty mountains enclose a pleasing variety of fertile valleys. Amongst the islands with which the western coast of Madagascar is profusely studded, may be mentioned the East and West Minnow groups; but they merely present an assemblage of perpendicular rocks or patches of coral. The islands next of importance are the Seychelles; but as they constitute a dependency of the island of Mauritius, they will be described in that article.

The western coast of Madagascar having now been described, it is only necessary to remark, that nearly all the towns are situated on rocky promontories, where the air is salubrious, and water can be easily obtained. The principal tribes who inhabit the western coast of Madagascar are the Muques and the Seclaves, both warlike tribes, the former possessing the southern and the latter the northern parts of the island.

We now proceed to describe the east coast of Madagascar, which, along with the west, is divided into various provinces, ruled over by independent chiefs, and inhabited by various races of men. In proceeding southwards from Cape Ambre, the northern extremity of the island, the first place worthy of notice is Diego Suariez Bay, or British Sound, which is perhaps one of the finest harbours in the world. Few natives inhabit the shores of this bay, and these are miserably poor, and have only bullocks to give in exchange for fire-arms, which they are particularly anxious to obtain. On its eastern side, which is much exposed to storms, the trees are shrivelled, and so matted and interwoven together that they are quite impervious to man. The substratum of the surrounding hills is composed of sandstone and columns of madrepore, many of which latter form hollow cylindrical points; most of the others are apparently primitive rock of volcanic production, in heterogeneous masses, which seem to have been at some period [7:13:668]in a state of fusion. Antongil Bay, and the neighbouring country, next demand attention. A considerable part of the coast in this quarter presents a bold aspect. Those hills which, in coming from the southern extremity of the island, compose the most distant and highest range, here rest upon the sea, forming several stupendous rocky promontories. The general appearance of the country indicates fertility, every height being covered with stately and luxuriant forest trees, whilst streams of fresh water issue from the rich valleys wherever they open to the sea. In the vicinity of Antongil Bay is the river Maransectzy, the banks of which are low marshy swamps, but covered with a great variety of valuable trees, the largest of which is the gum-copal; mangoes and bananas are plentiful; as also the water-melon, which totally envelopes several lofty trees with its magnificent white flowers; whilst the modesta, with its beautiful pendant blossoms, and warra, are seen in every direction. English cottons, woollens, arms, and ammunition, meet with a ready and profitable market upon this coast; bullocks, gum-copal, and many other native productions, being obtained in exchange.

Isle Madame St Mary is thirty-one miles long northeast by north, and from two to three miles in breadth. Its surface presents a succession of hills, from two hundred to four hundred feet high, with deep and in general narrow vales, thickly covered with brushwood and underwood. Twice the French formed a settlement on this island: but the first time, the climate obliged them to abandon it; the second time, they were al] massacred by the natives. In 1821, they again took possession of it, but suffered severely from the climate. Isle Madame, a low coral islet, constitutes their citadel, to which they retire every night for safety. The harbour is small, but deep, sheltered from all winds, and has a good supply of fresh water. The natives are short, rather darker than mulattoes, with low foreheads, broad and flat countenances, large eyes, and capacious mouths. Their canoes are small, of the common form, and delicately made, yet they venture far from the land, and will attack whales, which they kill by means of drags to the harpoon line.

The fan-palm is very plentiful, and invaluable to the inhabitants: houses are entirely constructed of it, the stems serving as supporters, the leaves forming the sides and roof. There are several looms for weaving cloth, made of the fibres of the sago-palm leaf, which is extremely durable; the natives also traffic in shells, wax, and turmeric. Beasts and birds are neither numerous nor varied; but there is an abundance of fish and vegetables, which are the principal subsistence of the inhabitants. The soil is exceedingly fertile, and is capable of producing all the fruits of a tropical climate. The black population of St Mary’s is from twelve to thirteen hundred, a portion of whom are slaves to the rest. They pay no duties to the French, and are governed by their own laws.

The places next of importance in proceeding southwards are, Foul Point and Tamatave, two excellent bays or roads. The town of Tamatave is situated in latitude 18. 10. S., and longitude 49. 31. E. The entrance is between reefs, and ships are exposed to east winds; but the anchorage is good. The town contains about sixty good dwelling-houses, besides a number of native huts; they are large, divided into chambers, and well thatched with the leaf of the ravinale. The walls and floors are neatly matted, and the apartments are generally kept in good order. Each house is surrounded by a palisade, which secures both its privacy and safety. The climate is considered as very unhealthy, especially during the summer months, that is, from November till March. Fevers are very common, and they are generally preceded by violent fits of shivering. There is no exclusive right of landed property at Tamatave, which is considered as common to the whole chieftainship, and every person is at liberty to cultivate at his pleasure any unappropriated spot of ground, which is considered as the cultivator’s until the crop is gathered. There is no impost or tax of any description, either on land or its produce. The children inherit, without dispute, any thing of which the parent dies possessed; but a free gift to the king of the northern peninsula is expected from the heir, according to his circumstances. The chieftain may, in cobar or council, concede landed property to strangers. The French had an establishment for salting meat here during the war, and Mauritius and Bourbon were supplied with it from this place. Bananas and plantains are abundant; and, when dried in the smoke, they are excellent, and will keep for any length of time. Locusts of a very large species abound here, and they are greatly esteemed by the natives as food. These insects, however, often prove very destructive to the crops, devouring all vegetable matter with astonishing rapidity.^[3. Voyage round the World, by James Holman, vol. ii. p. 486, 1834. ]

This part of the country is the most frequented by Europeans, who make large purchases of rice and cattle from the natives. It is or was termed the province of Bestimes-saras, and is governed by malates, or chiefs of white extraction, who tyrannize over the people. They are looked upon as the handsomest men in Madagascar, but dissembling, drunken, cowardly, and addicted to theft. Farther to the south we meet with the Betanimenes or Sicoas. This country is the finest and most fertile of all the provinces situated on the sea-coast, and the inhabitants are very mild and sociable. Betanimenes owes much of its fertility to the river Andevourante, which is named after the capital, a pretty large town, and capable of furnishing a considerable number of armed men. The province of Antaximes is the last which is situated on the eastern coast of the island. The soil is good, but the cultivation of it is much neglected by the inhabitants; indeed this is the case throughout the whole island. The bay of Port Dauphin is large, and the anchorage is good. The town, which is of the same name, is of considerable size, and is the residence of a native chief, Ramananoulouna, whose power is absolute in this part of the island. After the death of Radama, king of Ovah (an important province, afterwards to be described), the widow of the deceased espoused Ramananoulouna; but, in 1829, this capricious individual declared himself independent of the reigning queen, and established himself in this distant part of the country. He has a considerable military force, well accoutred, and furnished with muskets. The produce here is nearly the same as in other parts of Madagascar; the staple commodities being rice and bullocks, which are exchanged for manufactured cottons, old cloths, and the like articles, which are brought principally from Bourbon. The only manufactured goods are guard-chains, grass cloths, mats, and baskets. The huts of the inhabitants are composed of stakes driven into the ground, the sides and tops being covered with fern leaves and grass. There is no distinctive fashion in the dress of the sexes, nearly all wearing no more than a cloth tied round the waist. The higher classes, however, and those connected with the court, including the soldiers, are attired in a very showy manner.

By far the most important part of Madagascar is that part of it occupied by the Ovahs, a race who inhabit the interior. This people owe the superiority which they have obtained to Radama, the first chieftain belonging to die island who assumed the title of king. He was an interesting and extraordinary man, the Mehemmed Ali of his country[7:13:669]; but a more particular account of him will be introduced after the province has been described. It is alternately hilly, mountainous, or swampy and poor, though many places are rich in rice-grounds, pasturage, and the like, and much of the land is capable of extensive cultivation. As most of the animal and vegetable productions formerly mentioned as belonging to the island generally are found here, it is unnecessary to advert to these again. The ground is well watered by a number of streams, rivers, and lakes, but is in most parts destitute of fine timber, though there is much long grass and underwood. The fuel of the people is grass, moss, cow-dung, and in some places brushwood. Their food is rice, sweet potatoes, manioc, plantains, beef, wildfowls of the guinea species, which are everywhere in great plenty, fish, wild hogs, monkeys, and the like. In general they eat very little animal food, but live chiefly on vegetables.

The Ovahs are in height rather above the European standard, portly in their person, of shades of colour varying from deep black to copper (the latter colour, however, being most prevalent), with good-natured countenances. They are clothed only with an upper and lower garment, the saimbou and seddick; the former being a sort of robe, with which they partially envelope the body, wearing it in the manner of a scarf, the men throwing one end over the left shoulder, to give freedom to the right arm, whilst the women throw it over the right; the seddick, or under garment, is called also langouti. They generally carry in the right hand a zazaie, that is, a lance of about six feet in length, of polished wood, and very straight, terminated by a javelin blade, and shod with iron; and they are particularly fond of decorating their persons with silver and glass bracelets and rings, and with amulets or charms, especially the teeth of the cayman, a species of crocodile found in the rivers. Some wear plain, and others ornamental, headdresses. A few of the chieftains carry the adze or battleaxe, and some of them are provided with shields.

Their dwelling-houses are generally small, that is, about five feet high to the wall-plate, fifteen feet long, and twelve feet wide. The frame-work is of round timber, easily selected for the purpose, and thatched with the zouzoura, which is the papyrus or paper-plant of the ancients, or with a reed called hayrana.

The villages are for the most part built on small eminences in the neighbourhood of good water, and contain from a small number to sixteen hundred houses. They are guarded against hostile invasions by having one, two, or three ditches surrounding them, as well as by being enclosed by a stockade fence. Each family occupies a separate building; and their household furniture consists of some baskets, a cushion on which to sit, a mat to lie down on, with a matted bolster for a pillow, cooking-vessels made of potter’s clay, which the soil produces, a felling-axc, wooden pestle and mortar for taking the husks off the rice, a winnower, and a loom for making cloth. Tha-naan-arive, the capital, is situated at an elevation of 4000 feet above the level of the sea, in latitude 18. 56. south, longitude about 47. east, and is 160 miles from the nearest coast.

The other tribes consider the Ovahs as a powerful and industrious people, and look up to them as superior, from the knowledge they possess of manufacturing silken and cotton saimbous and seddicks, the forging of iron, and applying it to different purposes, from the blade of the zazaie or lance down to a needle, and the making of silver and gold chains, balances, and other articles wherein great ingenuity is displayed.

The commerce of the capital is chiefly carried on by means of a very considerable river called Betsibooka, which, about fifteen miles from its mouth, expands over a wide extent of country, encircling small islands, and emptying itself into Bembatooka Bay, which, at its entrance, is free from rocks and sand banks. Boats are able to proceed 160 miles up the Betsibooka, to a place called Mahatsara, where two other rivers fall in, in latitude 17. 33. south; thence the trader has only a distance of about eighty-five miles to travel overland to the capital. One of the principal impediments to intercourse with the Ovah country arises from the want of beasts of burden, no use being yet made of cattle for this purpose. Were these employed, the different provinces of the island might be greatly improved. Not only might rice and corn be cultivated to a prodigious extent, but the treasures of the earth, such as iron-ore, potters’ clay, plumbago, and tin, might be easily obtained; and more attention might also be paid to the breeding of cattle. The Ovahs carry on a trade both by barter and with money; that by barter consisting chiefly of rice and cattle, which are exchanged for arms, clothes, and ammunition; that by money, of all sorts of other things, as scents, baubles, and the like. They are very superstitious, place the utmost confidence in divination, and their wise men exercise great influence over them.

It only remains to say a few words regarding Radama. This prince reduced to subjection the largest and finest part of the island. He held many cobars or public meetings, at which he required the attendance of all his conquered or submitting subjects, at which time they took the oath of allegiance or fidelity to him. On these occasions he proclaimed himself king of Madagascar, made known his laws (which he greatly reformed), and the terms on which he protected the subject, which were submission, and the payment of a tenth of their property. He abolished the slave trade, both in exportation and importation, and punished either with death. He greatly encouraged commerce, and through the medium of trade had, as early as 1817, obtained twenty thousand stand of arms, with which he equipped his troops; and he rendered his army still more formidable by adding to it a train of artillery. A number of young natives were sent by him to Paris and London to obtain instruction, and by the aid of the English missionaries he established a printing press. Numerous teachers were under his auspices trained and distributed throughout different parts of the kingdom. Unhappily this prince was, in the year 1828, poisoned by his wife, who raised a worthless paramour to the throne; the same individual who has already been mentioned as having established himself at Port Dauphin. The death of Radama has introduced great anarchy, inducing several subject states to shake off the yoke which he had imposed upon them, certainly for their own ultimate advantage; and there seems now every reason to fear that the career of improvement which was begun under such favourable auspices will be arrested. A native prince, with talents equal to those of Radama, rarely appears in a semi-barbarous country.

The observations which follow apply to Madagascar in general, not to Ovah in particular. The form of government throughout the island is democratic; consequently all matters of public importance are settled in the council or cobar, which is composed of all the male persons who choose to claim a seat there. The cobar is also their court of justice, and the only one in the chieftainship; its decisions in criminal cases arc final, but not always in cases that respect the rights of property, these being frequently referred to some neighbouring chief, whose opinion is thought impartial, and his decision is always conclusive. All crimes, except that of murder, are punished by fine, which, if not paid by property, must be liquidated by personal labour, the criminal being constituted the slave of the accuser. Murder is punished by inflicting upon the culprit the same death that he perpetrated upon his victim[7:13:670]. Inflicting an intentional injury upon a person is punishable in the same manner. Circumcision is universally practised; but it is not confined to any particular age, although it generally takes place when the child is about ten months old, and seems only dependent on the pleasure of the parents, or upon contingent circumstances. The adornment of the person about to be circumcised is one of the most indispensable parts of the ceremonial; but there are many others which are whimsical and amusing enough, as feasting, dancing, and singing. The ceremony of marriage is very simple; amongst the slaves there is none at all beyond the master’s consent and the mutual promises of the parties themselves; neither is the tie considered as binding. The offspring are bond or free according to the condition of the mother. Amongst the higher classes, the consent of the parents is considered as an essential point; and the marriage is effected at a family meeting, when the elder people give advice to, and express good wishes for, the young couple, frequently accompanied with more substantial proofs of their esteem. Polygamy is allowed, and extensively practised. Separations are not unfrequent, being lawfully permitted; after which the parties are allowed to marry again; otherwise, adultery is punishable, but not with death, except where a member of the royal family is concerned, particularly the wife or mother of the king. The succession to the crown is hereditary; yet, by an ancient law, it is only permitted to be so in the female line, that is, the king’s sister’s eldest son. Slaves are very numerous in the country. Criminals of sundry descriptions are liable, with their wives and children, to be sold into bondage. Their lot, however, is not very severe, as they are employed entirely in ordinary and domestic occupations; and are, in reality, mere menial servants and labourers, eating and living with their owners whilst they conduct themselves well; when they do otherwise, they are sold as a punishment. Thirty or forty dollars are the common prices for good men slaves. With regard to religion, little that is satisfactory can be said. An attempt has lately been made to introduce Christianity, but, we fear, with small success. Radama encouraged the missionaries and patronized their schools, which at one time were numerously attended, and bade fair for the extension of civilization ;but they have met with opposition and persecution from his worthless successor. In some places Mahommedanism prevails, but for the most part the people are under the bondage of Ompamousavous (sorcerers, or wise men), who celebrate certain heathenish rites, which it is unnecessary to describe. Although there is a mixture of Arabs and Moors, if not Jews, amongst the inhabitants of Madagascar, yet the great majority of the inhabitants have either a tawny complexion and the smooth hair of the Indians, or a black skin and the frizzled hair of the Caffres, which leads us to infer that the island was anciently peopled by emigrations both from Caftraria and Malabar. The name of Malegashes, assumed by the ancient inhabitants,, and still in use, that of Mai-Dives, of Mal-Bar, and others, point out this descent, which, as far as regards the Asiatic emigration, is still more completely demonstrated by the composition of the prevailing language of the country. With regard to the Madecasse language, Malte-Brun observes, that “the language affords some Arabic words, and others more nearly resembling the idioms of the Caffres; but its principal roots may be traced in the Malay, or in the dialects derived from that language, and spoken at Java, at Timor, in the Philippines, in the Marian Isles, and in all the archipelagos of North and South Polynesia. Many of the most remarkable natural objects, and the days of the week, have the same names in the two languages. There is the same want of declensions and flexions, the same mode of uniting words, the same abundance of vowels. Notwithstanding what has been advanced by the learned continuator of the German Mithridates, we can affirm that the Madecasse appears intimately connected with the Malay language, and particularly with the Javanese and Timorian.” ’

It does not appear that Madagascar was known to the ancients. Some indeed have supposed that it is obscurely indicated in the book De Mundo, ascribed to Aristotle under the name of Phanbalou, and in the Periplus of the Erythrean Sea, under that of Menouthesias. It is supposed to be described by the Arabian geographers under the title of the Island of the Moon. During the middle ages it seems to have fallen, along with all the eastern coast of Africa, under the dominion of that people, whose posterity still form a leading class amongst the inhabitants. In 1506 it was visited by Tristan d’Acunha, but being found destitute of the precious metals, and without spices, it attracted little attention. A fine field of commerce is opening on the island for British enterprise, if conducted with honesty and good faith. The Malegashes have in general a great aversion to the French, who have repeatedly attempted, by force or fraud, to form settlements on their island, and who have often enticed them on board to trade (they being very fond of commerce), set their canoes adrift, and taken the owners of them into slavery. An instance of this kind occurred so recently as 1825. Nothing certain can be said as to the number of inhabitants; the most probable conjecture is, that they amount to about 2,000,000. By some travellers, however, the population is estimated at 5,000,000.