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mian, Jurassic and Tertiary. This belt of low country is 

 narrow on the east side of the island but much broader 

 on the West, and on the South it occupies a wide con- 

 tinuous area. The river that runs down from the 

 Capital in a North Western direction, the Betsiboka, 

 is 300 miles long. It can be ascended by steamers of 

 light draught for nearly 100 miles ; boats can sail up 

 for 60 miles more ; and from the point where navi- 

 gation terminates the marchandize has to be carried 

 about 85 miles by road up steep slopes to Antana- 

 narivo. 



In some places, ranges of hills which run North 

 and South diversify the surface of this low country. 

 A belt of primeval forest runs all round the island ; 

 it comes down to the shore at the North East opposite 

 . the French island of Ste. Marie and Northward, and 

 here it fills up the whole space between the coast and 

 the mountain region, but generally it forms a belt 

 with an average breadth of 15 or 20 miles which does 

 not come down to the shore. On the east side of the 

 island this belt splits into two and its upper half runs 

 along the edge of the mountain ; on the west side of 

 the island the belt of forests runs through a level 

 country. This belt of primeval forest is substantially 

 continuous for a length of upwards of 2,000 miles and 

 the trees which compose it have as yet been only 

 explored botanically very imperfectly. These, then 

 are the main physical features of the island ; the great 

 central ridge of elevated grounds, the encircling tro- 



