(>0 M A D 
of a convenient cottage, furrounded by feveral final! ones: 
the mafter of the houfe dwells in the large ft, and his wo¬ 
men or (laves lodge in the fmalltr. Tliefe houfes are built 
of wood, covered with leaves of the palm-tree or draw. 
The lioui'es of the great men of the country are very fpa- 
cious ; each houfe is coropofed of two walls and four 
apartments: round about the principal houfe other fmaller 
habitations are built for the accommodation of the wo¬ 
men, and the whole family of the chief; but the (laves 
cannot pafs the night within them. Molt of the houfes 
inhabited by tbe Rohandrians are built with tafte and ad¬ 
mirable fymmetry.” 
This iiland and its dependencies were taken pofleffion 
of by the Britifh in February 1811 ; but, by tbe recent de¬ 
finitive treaty of peace (May 30, 1814), it was agreed to 
be reftored to the French. Upon this celiion, as connected 
with the fiave-trade, we find fome remarks in a London 
newfpaper, which we think worthy of the raader’s atten¬ 
tion. “ The importance of the poflefiion of Madagafcar, 
certainly efcaped the recoileftion of our mini Her, other- 
wife he would not have committed fo great an overfight. 
If our miniiter at the congrefs of Vienna has not intereft 
or influence (ufficient to prevent the colonization or for¬ 
tification of that ifland, which, from its commanding po- 
firion at the entrance of the Indian Ocean, is the key to 
the pafi'age and commerce of the Eaft Indies, it may en¬ 
danger our Eaft-Indian empire. If the iflands of Bour¬ 
bon and Mauritius, comparative rocks, were fo formidable 
to our ealtern commerce, what will Madagafcar become 
when fully colonized by the French ? From the extent 
of the ifland, and its uncommon fertility, there will in a 
few years be a population of Europeans (efficient to over¬ 
awe all our force in the Eaft Indies, exclufive of the in¬ 
jury our commerce will fuftain from their (hips of war. 
Let it be remembered, that Madagafcar is only one hun¬ 
dred miles from Africa, and that the Weft Indies are 
about five thoufand miles. Negroes may be bought on 
the eaftern coaft'at one-third the price they are fold at on 
the weftern ; it therefore follows, that the difference 
of the original coft, and the difference of freight, being 
only one-tenth of the freight from the Weft Indies, will 
enable the French to import into Madagafcar 1,200,000 
negroes at the fame expenfe as is paid for 200,000 negroes 
imported into the Weft Indies. The French will expe¬ 
rience few difficulties in the eflablifiiment of eftates in 
-the ifland, which abounds in all the neceflaries of life, at 
one-tenth the expenfe paid in the Weft Indies. The 
ifland is uncommonly fertile, and poffeffes a number of 
bays and places of anchorage for (hips of any burthen. 
It produces fine forefts of (hip-timber for the building or 
repairing of vefl'els; the foil and climate are fimiiar to the 
belt in the Weft Indies, and there is more fertile land in 
this ifland than all our Wind-ward Iflands contain toge¬ 
ther. From the advantage of its forefts, a 1 'ugar-eftate, 
with all the neceffary buildings, may be conttrufted at 
®rie-tenth the expenfe paid in the Weft Indies. The Iofs 
of Bourbon and Mauritius is trifling compared to the inl¬ 
ine nfe advantages which the planters and government of 
France will enjoy from the cultivation of Madagafcar ; 
and we might venture to predict, that, in the courfe of 
ten years, France will be in a capacity of furnifhing all 
Europe with Weft-India produce, cultivated at one-third 
the expenfe of the lands in the Weft Indies. In this 
jfland nature is in perpetual vegetation, and produces 
ipontaneoufly, both in the forefts and open grounds, cot¬ 
ton, indigo, hemp, honey, white pepper, (ago, bananas, 
palms, cocoa, orange-trees, gum-plants, and woods fit for 
every ufeful purpole. In fact, it inay be efteemed a pa- 
radife, except the fea-coafts, which are reputed to be un- 
wholefome, from morafles and fwamps, but which, brought 
under cultivation, become the richeft and moft fertile lands 
in the world, and, the ftagnant putrid waters being drained 
oft’, become healthy. What fhould prevent the French 
government, from their fuperabundant population, of 
fending a million of Frenchmen to cultivate the iiland of 
til A D 
Madagafcar ? Such an overwhelming population in the 
neighbourhood of our eaftern fettlements, will eventually 
render the tenure of our pofleffions inlecure. The colo¬ 
nization and fubfequent fortification of Madagafcar, i* 
pregnant with fo much evil and mifehief to the interefts 
of the Eaft-India Company, and to our empire in the 
eaft, as well as fatal to the welfare of the poor negroes, 
that all the good hitherto done by the Abolition Society, 
is in danger of being completely undone. It is therefore 
the bounden duty of our government to fpare no exer¬ 
tions to prevent the mifehief which may enfue from the 
negleft or overfight of our minifter. The French, no 
doubt, will make fome extraordinary exertions to fupply 
themlelves with negroes during the term preferibed ; hut 
what (hall prevent them from fupplying their wants after 
that period ? For, (hould the French government even 
pafs a law, ftriftly prohibiting any future importation of 
negroes, fuch a law to a certainty will become a dead let¬ 
ter; for who can or will force the obfervance of fuch a 
law, when it is equally the intereft of the French govern¬ 
ment, and all its fubjefts, to refill its operation >" Lat. 
12. 30. to 25. 30. S. Ion. 44, o. to 51. o. E. Rodion's Voy . 
to Madagafcar . De Pages' Travels, vol. iii. Independent Whir, 
Oft. 16, 1814, 
MA'DAGH, a town of Algiers, near the coaft: twenty- 
miles wefl-fouth-vveft of Oran. 
MA'DAH, a town of Perfia, in the province of Se- 
geftan : twenty-four miles fouth of Zareng. 
MADA'I, third fon of Japheth ; Gen. x. 2. It is com¬ 
monly thought he was the father of the Medes; but, be* 
(ides that Media is too diftant from the other countries 
peopled by Japheth, it cannot be comprehended under 
the name of the Ides of the Gentiles, which were the di- 
viiion of the fons of Japheth. Tliefe reafons have induced 
fome learned men to fuggeft that Madai was the father 
of the Macedonians. Macedonia was otherivife called 
iEmathia, as if from the Hebrew Ei, an ifland, and Madai j 
q. d. the Ifle of Madai ; or from the Greek A»a M aSois, 
the Land of Madai. Near this country is mentioned a 
people called Maedi, or Madi, by Ariftotle. The name 
Media given to the country beyond the Euphrates, feems 
not to be more ancient than Medea, or the voyage of 
Jafon to Colchis. Calmet’s Dictionary of the Bible. 
MA'DAIN. See Modain. 
MADALE'NA, a river of South America, which rifes 
about thirty miles eaft from Popayan and, after the junc¬ 
tion of numerous other rivers, and a northerly courfe of 
five hundred miles, runs into the Caribbean fea in lat. 
x 1. N. Ion. 74. 40. W. 
MADALE'NA, a fniall ifland in the Pacific Ocean, 
near the fouth coaft of Chiloe. Lat. 44. 15. S. 
MADALE'NA, a town of Canada, on the St. Lau¬ 
rence. Lat. 46. 25. N. Ion. 72, 25. W. 
MADALE'NA, a fmall ifland near the north coaft of 
Sardinia. Lat. 41.15. N. Ion. 9. 35. E.. 
MADALE'NA (Bay of), a bay on the weft coaft o£ 
California. Lat. 24. 53. N. Ion. 247. 56. E. 
MADALE'NA (St.), a town of New Navarre: 150 
miles louth-welt of Cala Grande. 
MADALE'NABERG, a town of Auftria: fix miles 
fouth of Efferding. 
MAD'AM, f. [ma dame, Fr. my dame.] The term of 
compliment uled in addrefs to ladies of every degree._■ 
Madam, once more you look and move a qbeen. Philips .—■ 
It was anciently (poken as in French, with the accent 
upon the laft fyllable.—Certes, madam', ye have great 
caufe of plaint. Spcnfer. 
MADAMAT', in Hindoo mythology, the fon of 
Krifiina and Rukmeni. Alfo a name o( Kama, the god 
of love ; lie having been incarnated in the perfon of Ma. 
damat, otherwife Madana, or Makadama. See the article 
Hindoostan, vol. x. p. 120. 
MADA'ME ISLE, forms the north-eaft fide of the gut 
of Canfo, as you enter from the fouth-eaft, and is oppo-* 
fite to the ealtern. extremity of Nova Scotia. The nortii 
' - .4 point 
