CHAP. YII. 
MADAGASCAR FROM THE SEA. 
191 
cially while performing quarantine, gazed on the wooded 
shores of Madagascar, but they had never looked more beau¬ 
tiful than on this morning, as the sun rose from a cloudless 
horizon, burnishing with his beams range after range of the 
long flat-topped or oval-shaped mountains that stretched far 
away towards the interior. The summits and the ridges of 
these mountains reflected from their clearly defined outlines 
the rapidly increasing light, while the intervening valleys 
were filled with white clouds or mists, those nearest the shore 
occasionally exhibiting the sharp clear marking of the tops of 
the trees above the gradually dissipating vapours, while their 
lower portions were entirely concealed. 
It was long before I left my post of observation, but when 
at last I entered my cabin I found that a tolerably good ar¬ 
rangement of my luggage had been made. One or two bales 
of orchids > too large to be got into any box or basket, had 
been fixed under my bed for greater security, while boxes and 
baskets were piled all around, almost up to the ceiling, so as 
only to leave me room enough to get into my berth. I found 
my servant overwhelmed with as many cares as if he had 
been a collector for the Zoological Society, for he had brought 
on board a large monkey, a ring-tailed squirrel, a large parrot 
or cockatoo, with a parrot of smaller size, three or four par¬ 
tridges, a couple of the native guinea fowl, besides other 
curiosities for his friends at Mauritius. The cabin of the 
vessel was large, and would have been airy, but all except the 
Centre occupied by the table w T as filled with trusses of hay, 
over which we crept to our berths, and which served us for 
seats at our meals. This hay was part of the provender for 
the cattle, of which we had a hundred and thirty large fat 
animals on board, sixty-five in the hold, and the same number 
on deck. Our captain was obliging, the wind fair though 
light, and we reached Mauritius in the short space of seven 
days. 
