44 
HISTORY OF MADAGASCAR. 
The fable brings forward in a similar manner the kituki- 
tukia, a thin bird, the size of a pigeon; the goaika, a kind 
of crow, striped black and white; the takatra, (that eats 
frogs,) a small bird, the size of a blackbird, objected to on 
account of the proverb, “ The takatra on the side of a 
rice-plat sleeps not, but disturbs his spirit with watchings, 
and because of his ugly voice, { mitakatakatra.’” Then came 
the fihiaka; but he steals chickens. The vanobe (a large 
stork,) but they laughed at his long neck, and objected to 
his eating their food, frogs. The vorompotsy, (white bird) 
about the size of a crow, quite white; and of the stork 
species. The vorombato, (rockbird) size of a crow, of many 
colours. The fodilahimena, a bird the size of a sparrow, 
perfectly red. He was admired as beautiful, but objected 
to, as too small. The next is asikirity, a bird as large as 
a wild pigeon; as likewise the next, asintima, then the 
lorohitra. According to the fable, many others, whose names 
are not specified, passed in review, until the akanga, (guinea- 
fowl) came. Him they chose, and appointed sovereign, and 
in the evening all were sworn to allegiance, and denounced 
if not attending on the following day. The appointment 
of a king was, however, rendered void by the hail, for 
a shower happening to fall, the vulture professed to think 
that God was judging or condemning them for appointing 
so inefficient a king, when one by one they all forswore 
their allegiance, and departed, each to his home, leaving the 
weak, as before—a prey to the strong. 
The word vorona signifies bird, and is prefixed to the 
name of many birds, as the following :— 
Voromahazo, voromailala—tame pigeon: Vorombaazaha, 
(literally)—white people’s birds, i.e. duck : vorombe, goose: 
vorombango, vorombola, vorombozaka—a bird much ab¬ 
horred by the people, and thence called bozaka, grass, fuel: 
