MYTHICAL CREATURES 201 



the small rocky islets which rise only a little above the water, 

 the crocodiles are seen snapping at each other to get space to 

 bask in the sun. In the small streams flowing into Alaotra they 

 are numerous at all times of the day, so that if there are only 

 a few canoes, people dare not cross for fear of being upset. 

 Tortoises are also plentiful on the shores and islets of the lake. 

 Two species of water-lily are found in the water, one being 

 identical with the lotus of the Nile ; besides these there are 

 numerous other water-plants, one being a twining plant, 

 called Tsihltafdtotra (" the root not seen "), which twines about 

 other plants in all possible directions, clinging to them by 

 numerous little disks ; and there are also two species of con- 

 volvulus (Ipomcea), with large red flowers. Besides the masses 

 of papyrus (zozdro) and herana sedge, growing in the marshes 

 and shallow parts of the lake, a gigantic and handsome grass, 

 called Bdrardta, growing from twelve to fifteen feet high, is very 

 abundant. It would be taken by ordinary people for a species 

 of bamboo, for its size and the thickness of its jointed stem ; its 

 sharp prickly leaf sheaths near the root make it very unpleasant 

 for the unshod feet of the natives. In and about the marshes 

 occur the Jaboddy, a species of wild cat, and also a kind of musk- 

 rat, both of strong scent. 



There are certain mythical creatures firmly believed by the 

 Sihanaka to exist in Lake Alaotra. One of these is a monster 

 having seven heads and known as Fandnimpitoloha. It is said 

 to be a sort of serpent, and when it lifts itself out of the water, 

 as it does occasionally, its head touches the sky ! There are 

 also Andrlambdvirdno (lit. "water-princesses"). These crea- 

 tures, though residing beneath the water, never get wet, as they 

 live in water-tight palaces. They are said to have hair reaching 

 down to the waist. Veritable water-nymphs these ! 



But to return to our journey, we landed at the foot of the hill 

 on which Ambohitsda, a village of about eighty houses, is built, 

 and mounted to the top by a steep pathway. Here a most 

 extensive and lovely view presented itself, I think the most 

 beautiful of its kind I had ever seen in Madagascar. The 

 lake lay before us, stretching far away to the southward in a 

 great rounded curve, and with its indented bays and island 

 fastness to the northward. The changing shades of purple and 

 blue of the water ; the green of the plain beyond ; and the 



