354 
VISITS TO MADAGASCAR. 
CHAP. XIII. 
spectacles, which a friend in London had confided to my care 
for his acceptance. He expressed himself much gratified by 
this token of remembrance, and said he would write to the 
donor. The next morning early, the chief whom I had met at 
Tamatave came with his wife and a little boy, their son, to 
pay me a visit; bringing the acceptable present of a bottle of 
fresh milk, which they afterwards sent every morning as long 
as I remained at the capital. 
In the afternoon of the same day, a number of high 
officers from the palace were announced. I sent to bid them 
welcome, and immediately nine officers were introduced by 
the queen’s secretary. One of their number having been 
educated in England, spoke the English language well. Two 
or three were of the thirteenth honour, the rest of somewhat 
lower rank. They were dressed in uniform trowsers of blue 
cloth with gold lace up the sides, and wore over their shoulders 
the brown and purple silk lamba or scarf, with yellow borders. 
Some wore heavy gold chains round their necks, and large 
bracelets of the same material. One of them wore a short 
yellow coat with slashed sleeves. After inquiries respecting 
my health, accommodation, &c., they said they had been sent 
by the queen to inquire the object for which I had come to 
the capital. I replied that my visit was what I had stated it 
to be in my letter to the government when I asked permission 
to visit the capital, viz. a visit of friendship, not for purposes 
of commerce, but of friendship only, to her majesty and the 
government; to talk about things for the good of the kingdom ; 
and that I was the bearer of a message of friendship from 
England to the government of Madagascar ; that as there had 
been reports that the English were not friendly to the 
Malagasy, and that English ships would come to attack their 
country the Right Honourable the Earl of Clarendon, the 
chief minister of Queen Victoria for foreign affairs, when he 
heard that I was about to return to Madagascar, to visit the 
