﻿MADAGASCAR. 



MADDALOML 



uUod. VfaseU drawing 15 fett water ata proceed to M*jungm and 

 15 tnilee ap the bay. FW>iii thia point to the mouth of the river 

 Batubooka, a dittanoe of 10 milea, there is an extensive lagoon, drap 

 •Dongh to be navigated by vesaels of considerable burden ; in apring- 

 tide* the water rises SO feet at the mouth of the river. From its 

 mouth to Thanaan.arive is a distance of 245 milce by the road. Boats 

 sail 160 miles op the Betsibooka,- from the point where the naviga- 

 tion terminates merohandiee is carried overiand to Thanaan-arive, a 

 distance of aboat 85 milea. Following the road from Majunga along 

 the river to the capital, the country is low and swampy for 60 

 milea, bat well adapted to the culture of rice : iO miles farther, the 

 land is mora elevated and the rafia-tree (5a<;iu ra/ia) abounds. Then 

 for TO milea a barren countiy intervenes, and the remaining distance 

 of 75 mile* to the capital is rather a level country, in which rice, 



auflu^oaaa, and ootton are ooltivated. 

 Tka m a a m-< 



naan-erive, whidi is described as a dose assemblage of numer- 

 oxis villsges, is situated in 18° 66' S. lat., about 47° E. long., at an 

 elevation of about 4000 feet above the sea-level, and has about 20,000 

 inhabitants. It contains some well-built houses, and a few in the 

 European fashion were erected in modem times, under the reign of 

 Badima. Tamatane, a sea-port on the eastern coast (18° 10' S. lat. 

 4S* 81' E. long.), has a good anchorage with a hard and sandy bottom. 

 The entnuoe to Tamatave however is between ree&, and ships are 

 •xpoaad to easteriy winds. It carries on some commerce, though it 

 was destroyed by the French in 1819. To the north of Tamatave is 

 Foul Point, where ships may anchor and procure provisions and 

 water. 



Sonth of Tamatave is the mouth of the river Mnnooroo, or Man- 

 garow. It traverses an extensive country, which is generally level 

 and of great fertility, and contains extensire pastures. The Man- 

 garow l e e m i to be the most important river which descends from 

 Um aaatem declivity of the interior mountain range. 



Antongil Bay, called Manghalees by the natives, is named from its 

 discoverer Antonio Oil, a Portuguese captain. At the bottom of the 

 bay are several small islands ; the largest of which is Marotto, in 

 15° 26' S. lat, about a mile long and the same distance from the 

 shore. Ships anchor to the north of the island, on which wood and 

 water may be obtained : provisions are got from the mainland. A 

 river, navigable for boats, enters the bead of the bay north-north- 

 west from the island. The anchorage of the river is called Port 

 Choiieul by the French ; near it is Fort Dauphin, named above. 



St. Mary s Island, called Nosd Ibrahim by the natives, lies between 

 Foul Point and Antongil Bay, and extends north-east by north from 

 17° 6° to 16° 33' S. lat. On the west side of it there is a bay, at 

 the entrance of which is Quails Island. The French occupied St 

 Mary's in 1740 and again in 1743. They abandoned it in 1761 but 

 we believe they have recently re-occupied it and several points along 

 the ooaat 



At another Fort Dauphin (25° 6' S. lat, 46° 36' E. long.) the French 

 carry on a considerable trade, bartering European articles for rice, 

 poultry, cattle, turtle, orangea,and other fruit, all of which are abundant, 

 and exported to the Mauritius and the Isle of Bourbon, The country 

 about Fort Dauphin is very populous, t^e natives living in fortiBed 

 villages built on eminences. Cattle and poultry are very abundant, 

 large quantities of rice are grown ; beautiful mats, cloth from native 

 cotton, and various stufis trom vegetable fibre are manufactured by 

 the natives. 



The climate of M a d agasca r is not so hot as mig^t be expected from 

 its geographical position. The elevated range in the interior, and 

 the wind constantly blowing from the sea, render the heat support- 

 able. The interior is very healthy, but the low swampy coast, which 

 contains numerous marshes and lakes, and in certain seasons large 

 shrcts of stagnant water, is destructive to the health of Europeans. 

 The year is divided between the dry and the wet seasons. 'The first 

 occurs when the son is in the northern hemisphere, and then the 

 ■outh-eost monsoons {nrevaiL During the north-west monsoons, which 

 blow when the snn is in the southern hemisphere, rains are abundant, 

 •ad M»Mtimes inoeaant for several days. 



M a d agas car contains a very large proportion of fertile soil, and 

 prodnces nearly even kind of grain. Rice is the principal object of 

 •P|»»1*"U*; it ia cultivated either on high or low ground, but with 

 UttU oan. Other producte are manioc, or caaaava root, maize, sweet 

 potirtoea, ootton, indigo, aUspioe, blaclc-pepper, ginger, cinnamon, 

 I_?"i ^i??**"' ■"P""<»n« (which is indigenous), grapes, and all 

 n<mu&iiit& Indigenous plante used as food are the prickly yam, 

 BMd|friiit> toaar varieties of pUntain, and arrow-root The Sagvt 

 r^f» ]• atmh coItivatMl on aooount of ite leaves, the fibres of which 

 m hiSmiimaly worao faito eloth, which is worn by the greater part 



"I ^ "^^ ^^?r" "^ *• »''«»>•«• <>1«— •" mSnufactilred 

 of silk or ootton. The sUk-worms of this Ulaod are of a lanra sise, 

 and suspend their oocoons bmu the branehea of trees. They feed on 

 the leave* of Cflittu Cajati, or Pigeon-PeN which is indinnous in 

 *f!!5'**V-. *f " '"f^ ^to the baA of the Vrania ^oio, a 

 glo^ioasjuioe is obtained which U very nourisbinR ; and the leaves 

 of this tree are nsad in building and thatol.inK houses. There are 

 eleven varirtiti of tobwwo iodigsoous in this island. Coffee has been 

 Jntrodnoed by th* FMoeb, sad ■oooeeds veir well. The ooeoMiut 

 tn* and the mugrvrt •bomid •hmg t^ shon*. Fmwta qotw a 



large part of the island; the timber trees are of great size and 

 excellent quality. • 



Cattle, sLeep, goats, fowls, ducks, and geese are kept Wild swine, 

 and in parte wild cattle, are numerous. The wild aaa, wild large-tailed 

 sheep, and zebras abound. The latge wild animala of the Afrioaa 

 continent are not met with, but macauoos, i^iman. and serpenti 

 abound. Birds of beautiful plumage exist in great variety ; the 

 pheasant and the wild-dnck, as elsewhere, are highly prized as food. 

 Fish in great numbers frequent the coaste and the rivers; whale* 

 also visit the shores during the rainy season ; shariu and crocodilea, or 

 rather perhaps alligators, infest the bays and riven. Beautiful shells 

 are common on the beach. 



In the absence of scientific examination little is known of the 

 mineral wealth of the island, except that lead, tin, iron, copper, 

 mercury, talc, rock-salt, saltpetre, rock-crystal, and precious stones 

 are stated to be found abundantly in the mountains. 



The population is estimated to amount to between four and five 

 millions. The inlubitanto seem to belong to different races, which 

 have mixed together, and speak only one language, which contains a 

 great number of Malay words. The inhabitante of the shores are 

 short, rather darker than mulattoes, with low foreheads, broad and 

 flat facee, and large eyes and mouths. Their hair is long but crisped. 

 The Ovahs, who inhabit the elevated plains in the interior (which are 

 remarkably fertile and populous), are in height rather above the 

 European standard, portly in their person, and of all shades of colour 

 from deep black to copper, and their hair is long and lank. The 

 Madsgasses have made considerable progress in the arts of civilisation, 

 which is evinced by the houses they buud in a climate which does not 

 require such substantial dwellings. In agriculture and the arts con- 

 nected with it they are perhaps not inferior to the inhabitante of 

 Java. The Ovahs are distinguished by their su[iorior skill in manu- 

 facturing silk and cotton dresses, in forging iron, which they apply to 

 various purposes, from the blade of a lance down to a needle, and in 

 the making of silver and gold chains, balances, aud other articles, in 

 which great ingenuity is displayed. Their language is written in the 

 Arabic character. Their religion is idolatry. Uuder the rei^-n of 

 Raddma Christianity was much favoured; schools were estebluhed 

 by English missionaries, who were protected by the king; but after his 

 murder in 182S, Ranavala Manjoka, who succeeded him on the throne, 

 restored the old system of Fetidsm ; and by a royal edict of 1835 the 

 public profession of Christianity was forbidden in the island. The 

 French missionaries nevertheless have still continued their endeavours 

 to introduce Christianity among the natives in the neighbourhood of 

 their establishments ou or near the coast 



Madagascar is said to be divided into 22 states, governed by 

 kings ; but in the present century most of them were subjected to 

 the sway of the Ovahs by King Uaddma, who died in 1828. This 

 extraordinary man, who ia energy of character resembled Peter the 

 Great, introduced into his country the arte and civilisation of Europe. 

 He established a communication with the English in the Island of 

 Mauritius. Ue received and protected missionaries, and promoted 

 the esteblishment of schools, the number of which at the time of his 

 death had increased to more than 100, in which nearly 6000 children 

 were instructed. Several young people were sent to the Maurititu 

 and even to England to receive instruction. European mechanics 

 were well received and employed by Raddma. He mtroduced into 

 his army the discipline and arms of the English. Besides the Ovahs, 

 the Sedavas have distinguished themaelves, but only as pirates. They 

 inhabit the north-western shores, whence they send fleete consist- 

 ing of several small vessels to the Comoro Islands and even to the 

 coast of Mozambique for the purpose of making slaves; but since 

 the abolition of the slave trade, which Radlima, their conqueror, 

 effected at the request of the English, their excursions have been 

 less numerous and destructive. Still however slavery existo in 

 Madagascar. 



The French alone have tried to esteblish colonies on this island. 

 The first attempt was made in 1665, aud several others were made 

 afterwards. These settlemente never prospered, partly on account of 

 the unhealthineas of the low western coast, where they wore formed, 

 and partly on account of the warlike character of the inhabitants. 

 Since the return of peace in Europe the French have again made some 

 attempte in two or throe places. In 1821 they settled ou Isle St Mary, 

 which is 31 miles long, and from 2 to 3 miles in breadth. This settle- 

 ment is improving, though the French at first suffered much from the 

 climate. There is another settlement at Foul Point Bay, but it is 

 inconsiderable. There are also small settlemente at S. Luce (24° 44' 

 S. lat), and on the tougvie of Ian* called Tholangar (25" 6' S. lat), 

 where the Kronch have built a small fortress, called Fort Dauphin. 

 In these establishmeuU the French cultivate sugar, coffee, and other 

 tropical productions, which are sent to the Island of Bourbon. The 

 English of the Mauritius feteh from the harl>our of Tamateve rice, 

 cattle, tortoise-shells, amber, and some minor articles. Some parte 

 of Madagascar keep up a commercial intercourse with the southern 

 coaste of Arabia. 



(Owen, Voyaga Ut tht Short) of Africa ; London Geoffraphical Jour- 

 nal, vol. V. ; Ellis, Sutoty of Maiagatcan Macgregor, Commercial 

 SUUiitict.) 

 MADDALOKL [Lavobo, Terra di.] 



