200 
HISTORY OF MADAGASCAR. 
CHAP. VIII. 
Facility with which the means of subsistence are obtained in Madagascar— 
Different kinds of food—Flesh of the ox, sheep, and goat, monkeys, and 
hedgehogs—Poultry—Fish—Eggs of the crocodile—Locusts and grass¬ 
hoppers—Silkworms in their chrysalis state—Vegetables and grain—Rice, 
maize, manioc, arrow-root, yams, sweet potatoes, &c.—Additions to the 
above by the introduction of European vegetables—Increasing use of the 
Irish potato—Fruits—Pineapples,grapes, oranges, peaches,citrons, lemons, 
&c.—Manufacture of bread—Methods of dressing their food—rice-boiling 
—Cooking of meat—Limitation of the number of meals in a day—Custom 
of washing the hands before meals—Manner of taking food—Beverage of 
the people—Distillation by foreigners—By natives—Uses of tobacco— 
Expedients used in preparing Malagasy snuff—General mode of taking 
snuff by the mouth —Intoxicating quality of the native hemp—Longevity 
of the natives—Number and nature of diseases—The Malagasy fever ; 
its symptoms, progress, European and native remedies—State of the 
healing art among the natives — Supposed origin of diseases — Cures 
attempted only by divination—Native medicines—Use of the vapour bath 
—Of cold bathing—Superstitious observances — The Malagasy god of 
medicine. 
The soil of Madagascar, though fertile, yields spontaneously 
but few roots that are suitable for food. Vegetation is luxu¬ 
riant and diversified; yet the shrubs and trees that grow 
without culture, include not the prolific bread-fruit of 
Polynesia, nor furnish the inhabitants with more than a very 
small portion of the means of subsistence. These, however, 
are obtained with comparative ease, in sufficient abundance 
to supply every want of the people; while the extent of the 
soil and resources of the country are fully adequate to 
sustain a population vastly greater than its present amount. 
The means of subsistence which the country affords, though 
they exhibit less variety than prevail in some countries of 
