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CHAPTER XVI. 
AN OUTLINE GRAMMAR AND VOCABULARY OF 
USEFUL WORDS AND TERMS. 
Though there is one language spoken throughout 
the whole of the provinces of Madagascar, yet of 
course, as in England, there are various local and 
tribal differences of accent and pronunciation, 
which are in some instances so marked as even to 
suggest to the unpractised listener an entirely 
new tongue altogether. The purity of the lan¬ 
guage is preserved by the Hovas, who have 
within the last half-century considerably ex¬ 
tended it, and brought it within the lines of true 
scientific and grammatical method. It is an 
easy tongue to acquire, and is, as has been 
already stated, a very beautiful and pathetic 
medium for the expression of ordinary ideas. It 
fails, however, when we endeavour to use it for 
the purpose of conveying philosophical or abstract 
truths, and in this direction it can only be en¬ 
riched by copious gleanings from the classic and 
