MADAGASCAR. 



ance began. Tradition has it that they used to meet 

 at first on the way to their respective churches, she 

 to teach in the Presbyterian, and he to superintend 

 the Methodist Sunday school. Similarity of tastes 

 led to an acquaintance that soon became a mutual 

 friendship, and before long the parents were induced 

 to consent to their early marriage. The home life 

 of President McKinley in its beauty and tenderness 

 is both charming and ideal. The discipline of mis- 

 fortune has developed the best in both these noble 

 characters. Two daughters were born to them 

 Katie on Christmas, 1871, and Ida in 1873 but 

 both were lost in early childhood. Mrs. McKinley's 

 health, not robust at any time, never has rallied 

 from the terrible blow of these two deaths in quick 

 succession. Since then, more ardently than ever, 

 her comfort, her wish, her happiness, under every 

 conceivable circumstance, has been her husband's 

 first thought and constant concern. At home no 

 hour passes that he does not see her ; and she re- 

 wards this homage with all the intensity of a proud, 

 ardent, unselfish affection. Though not strong, Mrs. 

 McKinley is a charming hostess, and has presided 

 over their happy home with all the delight of a bride. 



See " Speeches and Addresses of William Mc- 

 Kinley," compiled by Joseph P. Smith (New York, 

 1893), and the campaign " Life of Major McKinley," 

 by Robert P. Porter (Cleveland, 1896). For por- 

 trait, see frontispiece of this volume. 



MADAGASCAR, a kingdom occupying the is- 

 land of Madagascar, in the Indian Ocean. The 

 French, after three years of military operations, 

 concluded a treaty with the Queen of Madagascar 

 on Dec. 12, 1885, by which she acknowledged the 

 right of France to control the foreign policy of her 

 Government. The treaty recognized the right of 

 the Hova Queen to sovereignty over all the tribes of 

 the island, and permitted the French Government 

 to maintain a Resident General with a guard of 

 soldiers at Antananarivo, the capital. Great Britain 

 recognized the French protectorate by the Anglo- 

 French convention of Aug. 5, 1890. The Hova 

 Government still disputed the claim of France to 

 exercise protectorate rights. After a long contro- 

 versy the matter caine to a crisis in 1895, and in 

 May of that year a French expedition was landed 

 on the western shore of the island. The French 

 troops occupied the capital, and on Oct. 1 the 

 Queen signed a new treaty recognizing the protec- 

 torate with all its consequences. No.t only was the 

 French Government to represent Madagascar in all 

 its external relations, but the French Resident 

 General was to treat directly with the representa- 

 tives of foreign powers in Madagascar, decide all 

 questions affecting foreigners, and have control 

 over the internal administration of the island, 

 which would be permanently occupied by a French 

 military force. The Queen was interdicted from 

 contracting any loans without the previous authori- 

 zation of the French Government. Rainilairivony, 

 the Prime Minister and Prince Consort, was de- 

 posed and deported to Algiers. 



The Queen of Madagascar is Ranavalo Manjaka 

 III, born in 1861, who succeeded Ranavalona II on 

 July 13, 1883. The island has an estimated area of 

 228,500 square miles, and the population has been 

 estimated at 3,500,000. Antananarivo, which was 

 supposed to have over 100,000 inhabitants, was 

 found by a census taken in 1896 to contain only 

 43,000, and the entire population of Imerina, the 

 Hova kingdom in the center, to be only 600,000. 

 Of the Hovas, the dominant race, about 40 per cent, 

 have embraced Christianity, most of them follow- 

 ing the Protestant ritual introduced by representa- 

 tives of the London Missionary Society. The 

 Protestants on the island are estimated at 450,000, 

 the Roman Catholics at 50,000. In 1886 a loan of 



15,000,000 francs was raised in France, of which 

 10,000,000 francs went to the French Government as 

 a war indemnity. The revenue of the Malagasy Gov- 

 ernment is derived from customs duties, a poll tax, 

 and royalties paid by gold-miners. The imports are 

 cotton cloth from the United States, rum from 

 Mauritius, and hardware and crockery from Eng- 

 land and France. The exports are caoutchouc, 

 hides, cattle, horns, coffee, lard, sugar, vanilla, wax, 

 copal gum, rice, and seeds. The French 5-franc 

 piece and the corresponding coins of Italy, Belgium, 

 and Greece circulate as money. The chief port is 

 Tamatave, on the east coast, and all merchandise 

 is transported on the backs of native bearers, called 

 maromita, who also carry passengers through the 

 swamps and rivers and over the mountains to An- 

 tananarivo. Arab dhows carry on a trade with the 

 Sakalavas of the west coast, and have brought great 

 numbers of slaves to the island from Africa. There 

 is a telegraph line, built by a French company and 

 acquired by the Malagasy Government, running 

 from Tamatave to the capital, a distance of 180 

 miles. The natives make cloth from the rafia palm 

 fiber and from silk and cotton, and are expert in 

 metal work. Gold and copper are mined, and the 

 forests contain many valuable woods. 



French Annexation. On Jan. 18, 1896, the 

 Queen signed an agreement brought by M. Laroche, 

 the new Resident General. M. Hanotaux had de- 

 termined to modify the treaty prepared for the 

 Hova Queen because the resistance to the French 

 troops had been prolonged, but his telegram did 

 not reach Gen. Duchesne until after the treaty was 

 signed. That officer considered that the treaty 

 could not honorably be modified by a one-sided ar- 

 rangement, but the new Minister of Foreign Affairs, 

 M. Her! helot, influenced by the annexationists, who 

 feared that American, German, and English mer- 

 chants would obtain the benefit of French sacrifices 

 unless the commercial treaties were abolished and a 

 protective tariff established, sent M. Laroche with 

 the new treaty securing the advantages of annexa- 

 tion in respect to foreign relations and the regula- 

 tion of tariff duties, but at the same time exempting 

 France from the responsibilities of annexation in 

 respect to the preservation of internal order. The 

 Queen is maintained in her prerogatives and honors 

 as a medium between the French Government and 

 the natives, and all the elements and machinery of 

 the native Government continue in operation, sub- 

 ject to the control of the French and any modifica- 

 tions that they may introduce. 



As a natural consequence of the occupation of 

 Madagascar the colonies of Diego Suarez, Nossi Be, 

 and Ste. Marie were placed under the authority of 

 the French Resident. The powers were on Feb. 11 

 notified that France had taken possession of Mada- 

 gascar de facto. The Resident was made subject to 

 the directions of the French Ministry of the Col- 

 onies. The unilateral act signed by the Queen was 

 as follows: 



" Her Majesty the Queen of Madagascar, after 

 taking cognizance of the declaration of assumption 

 of possession of the island of Madagascar by the 

 Government of the French Republic, declares that 

 she accepts the following conditions : 



' ; 1. The Government of the French Republic 

 shall be represented with her Majesty the Queen of 

 Madagascar by a resident general. 



" 2. The Government of the French Republic shall 

 represent Madagascar in all its foreign relations. 

 The resident general shall have charge of the rela- 

 tions with the agents of foreign powers. Questions 

 affecting foreigners in Madagascar shall be treated 

 through him. The diplomatic agents and consuls 

 of France in foreign countries shall have charge of 

 the protection of Malagasy subjects and interests. 



