HISTORY OF MADAGASCAR. 
469 
After every youth above thirteen, and many scarcely 
more than twelve years of age, had, in the close of 1832, 
been taken from the schools to the army, orders were 
issued by the government, that the schools should be fur¬ 
nished with fresh pupils, to the amount of half the number 
originally under instruction. 
The extreme unwillingness of the people to transfer their 
children to the government, as they seemed to have been 
doing by sending them to the schools established by order 
of the sovereign, occasioned the loss of many months before 
these schools were again in operation ; and three thousand 
scholars were never afterwards collected, in what had been 
considered the national schools. 
The Missionaries had from the first regretted that the 
greater part of the scholars under their care attended the 
schools not simply from any desire of their own, or of their 
parents, after instruction, but because they were ordered to 
do so by the sovereign. They had reason to believe that 
Radama, in using his influence to induce the people to send 
their children to school, was chiefly desirous to introduce 
the knowledge of letters among them, and hoped that the 
arts of reading and writing would be prized, and voluntarily 
cultivated, especially as those who had made the greatest 
proficiency were rewarded by marks of special favour, 
being raised to offices of honour and emolument. 
The subsequent conduct of the government in taking in 
almost the entire number of scholars from the schools direct 
to the army, or the service of the government, had increased 
the aversion of the people to these schools: and although 
the instruction given, had, by the Divine blessing, been the 
means of spiritual benefit to many, the attendance ordered 
by the government undoubtedly proved a very serious im¬ 
pediment to the advancement of education among the 
