chap. hi. RETURN OF MR. CAMERON FROM TAMATAYE. 77 
ins 1 in their natural state amidst all the novel forms and rich 
and wild luxuriance of tropical vegetation, was to me a source 
of extreme delight; and my companion seemed scarcely less 
gratified than myself. 
The men who accompanied us had been so loaded on the 
higher parts of the mountain that they declined following us 
into the ravine; and we at first satisfied ourselves with no¬ 
ticing the spots where we found anything attractive, and 
promising ourselves a future visit; but, almost unconsciously, 
we kept accumulating choice bits, or bunches too precious to 
be left, and then tying them together with tough fibrous 
creepers, until we had each amassed more than we could pos¬ 
sibly carry through the interlaced thicket to the road, which, 
after repeatedly reducing our bundles, we at length found, 
and reached home late in the evening, fatigued, but refreshed 
and invigorated for accustomed duty by the pleasant day’s 
excursion, and highly gratified with the new wonders and 
beauties of the Creator’s works which we had beheld. 
As the month of November advanced the people of Mau¬ 
ritius became anxious for tidings from Madagascar, and on 
the 19th of this month the “Nimble” arrived, with Messrs. 
Cameron and Mangeot from Tamatave, where they had ac¬ 
complished the object of their visit, having paid the sum re¬ 
quired by the queen as compensation for the injury inflicted 
on the country, and secured the re-opening of the trade on 
the same footing as that on which it had been carried on 
before the attack of the French and English vessels. Traffic 
was now to be free to people of all nations; prices were to be 
fixed between buyer and seller; ten per cent, duty was to be 
levied on all exports and imports; and no natives of Mada¬ 
gascar were to be taken out of the country. 
After communicating with the authorities at Tamatave, 
Messrs. Cameron and Mangeot had addressed a letter to the 
secretary of the government at the capital, and also to the 
