314 
HISTORY OF MADAGASCAR. 
the officers of the king, by thus placing himself on board 
the ship; and he desired that the sentiments he expressed 
might be conveyed by Captain Moorsom to his sovereign. 
He left the ship with a look that plainly expressed, 
“ How glad I am it is over !” and on reaching the shore, 
where the delight of his people was expressed in the usual 
manner by dancing and singing, accompanied by the loudest 
vociferations of welcome, he no sooner touched the land, 
than he bent one knee to the ground, exclaiming, that his 
mother (the earth) had permitted him to leave her for a 
while, and now, as a dutiful son, he saluted her on his 
return. 
For a few days subsequent to this visit to the ship, Ra~ 
dama was prevented attending to any public business by an 
attack of illness; but as soon as he was sufficiently reco¬ 
vered, Captain Moorsom paid him a visit, in company with 
Mr. Hastie, and took the occasion of his late indisposition 
to congratulate him on his recovery, in a manner which 
tended to bring to his consideration the responsibility he 
owed to the Almighty Being who thus prolonged his life, 
and who assigned to every man his place in the creation. 
Captain Moorsom then laid before him two Bibles, one 
English and the other French, and said that, by the king’s 
permission, he desired to present to him a book which gave 
the history of a man whose life was spent in doing good, 
and which contained an account of the religion of the 
English people—of that which taught them it was their 
duty to do good to all men, and to try to do good to Mada¬ 
gascar; adding, that the covering of the book was not 
splendid, but the inside was valuable. 
The king replied, if the books contained what was 
straight, and not crooked, (his metaphor for truth,) he 
should be glad to have them; and with regard to the out- 
