AN UNEXPECTED PROHIBITION 261 



village near Vangaindrano, another of the large Hova posts, 

 and about three hours' ride from the sea. But here we met 

 with a new and unexpected experience, for we were prevented 

 by the governor from going farther, and in fact, all our men 

 made prisoners and detained in the fort for a couple of days, 

 until we had agreed that we would not attempt to travel farther 

 southwards. He alleged that he was acting under orders from 

 the native government to allow no travelling south of the 

 Mananara river. Whether this was the truth or not, we never 

 clearly ascertained, nor any reason for such prohibition ; but 

 his whole action was in such striking contrast to the courtesy 

 with which we were received everywhere else that it was 

 difficult to believe he was not exceeding his instructions, 

 certainly in the harsh way in which they were carried out. We 

 had been repeatedly assured that there were no difficulties in 

 travelling along the coast and that the country was perfectly 

 tranquil, and that we could easily reach Fort Dauphine in a 

 week. However, there was no help for it ; we had to abandon 

 our hope of seeing the congregations and people, as well as the 

 country, to the south, and on llth July we turned northwards, 

 " homeward bound." On one of the nights when we were thus 

 stopped on our way, we saw what is not at all a common sight 

 namely, a very well-defined and distinct lunar rainbow. It 

 looked pale and watery, however, quite a ghost of the rainbow 

 produced by sunlight. During many years' residence in 

 Madagascar, I have only seen one on two other occasions. 



On the sides of the lagoons and marshes may be found the 

 curious pitcher-plant (Nepenthes). It is a shrub, about four 

 feet high, and its jug-shaped pitchers, four or five inches in 

 length, contain abundant water and numerous insects. The 

 pitcher with its cover are most remarkable modifications of the 

 petiole or leaf-stalk ; and this plant, with a number of others, 

 reverses the usual order of nature, and instead of forming food 

 for animals, secures animal life, in the shape of insects, for its 

 own nourishment. A French writer has, not inaptly, compared 

 the pitcher of Nepenthes to the bowl of a German meerschaum 

 pipe ; and Mr Scott Elliott says : "I found the pitchers to be 

 usually from a third to half full of the decomposing remains of 

 insects. In almost every pitcher there were live worms, 

 apparently living on the remains. Among the insects I found 



