THE GEEAT NOETH-EAST. 
185 
dread of being upset by these huge and hideous 
brutes. One of the bearers used to tell a curious 
tale of a fight between a wild boar and one of 
these horrible monsters. The boar was approach¬ 
ing some shallow water, and the crocodile drew 
near to seize him. The boar saw the crocodile, 
and accepted the battle, which soon waxed fast 
and furious. The boar ripped up the stomach 
of the crocodile with his terrible snout, but the 
reptile succeeded in dragging the boar into deep 
water and drowning him. The dead bodies of 
both came to the surface, and w r ere secured by 
the natives, who preserved their heads. There 
is a bird of the cormorant type which always 
attends upon the sleeping crocodile, and is often 
seen perched upon his head or back in perfect 
security. At the approach of danger, the bird 
utters a peculiar cry, which acts as a signal to 
the startled beast, who immediately glides off 
the rock into the water, and sinks below the 
surface. 
The burial customs of the Sihanaka differ con¬ 
siderably from those which prevail in other parts 
of the island. When any one falls ill amongst 
them, the relatives immediately convey the 
sufferer with the greatest privacy into some 
secret place in the forest, where no one is allowed 
to see him except one or two persons who are 
appointed to nurse him. If he dies, the corpse 
