314 
HISTORY OF MADAGASCAR. 
employed in the fabrication of implements of war, more 
dangerous and fatal than the assagai or spear which for¬ 
merly constituted their chief weapons. Great numbers of 
swords and bayonets have been made by the native smiths, 
in obedience to the orders of the government; and a short 
time before the Missionaries and the artisans left the 
island* the queen entered into arrangements with some 
natives of France to establish a manufactory of muskets in 
the vicinity of the capital. 
The native goldsmiths and silversmiths exhibit con¬ 
siderable ingenuity in the manufacture of rings, chains, 
and various ornaments of the precious metals, which are 
obtained from foreign traders. Silver dishes, mugs, and 
other drinking vessels, and spoons, for the use of the 
sovereign and others, are wrought by them in a manner 
highly creditable to their skill and perseverance. Bowls, 
dishes, and plates of tin and lead, in imitation of those 
taken from Europe, are manufactured to a small extent 
among them. The wire for their chains, both gold and 
silver, which are exceedingly fine, is made by first melting 
the metal, beating it into long thin rods, and drawing it 
through holes in a plate of iron, by a process similar to 
that employed in drawing wire of brass or iron. 
