A Geographical and Historical Account of the Island of Madagascar.
A Geographical and Historical Account of the Island of Madagascar.
Withthe exception of certain strips on the coast, the island of Madagascar is almost an unknown land; only here and there has a traveler been able to penetrate into the interior, and none have had an opportunity of studying the country at their leisure. So far as I am concerned, I have unfortunately not sufficient knowledge to describe the country in a scientific way. The most I can do is to give a simple but truthful account of what I have seen; beyond this my powers do not extend. It would, perhaps, be not uninteresting to my readers, therefore, if, before I relate my own experiences in Madagascar, I give an historical and geographical summary, compiled from the various works that have appeared concerning this island.
Madagascar is said to have been known to the ancients. In the thirteenth century Marco Polo makes mention of the island. The Portuguese visited it in 1506, and the first European nation that attempted to form settlements thereon were the French, in the year 1642.
Madagascar lies to the northeast of Africa, from which it is separated by the Mozambique Channel, seventy-five miles in breadth. It stretches from latitude 12° to 25° south, and from 40° to 48° east longitude. After Borneo, it is the largest island in the world. Its area is about 10,000 geographical square miles. Estimates of its population differ greatly, some writers giving from a million and a half to two millions, others raising the numbers to six millions.
The island contains woods of immense extent, far-stretching plains and valleys, many rivers and lakes, and great chains of mountains, whose summits rise to a height of from ten to twelve thousand feet, and even higher. The vegetation is exceedingly luxuriant, the climate very hot. The coasts, where there are many swamps, are very unhealthy for Europeans, but the interior of the island is more salubrious. The chief productions are some peculiar balsams and gums, sugar, tobacco, silk, maize, indigo, and spices. The forests yield the handsomest kinds of wood for buildings and furniture, and trees bearing almost every fruit of the torrid zone. Among the various descriptions of palms, the beautiful water-palm is frequently found. In the animal kingdom Madagascar also possesses some peculiar species; for instance, the maquis, or half ape, and the black parrot, besides much horned cattle, many goats, sheep, and beautiful birds. The woods and savannas swarm with wild cattle and pigs, wild dogs and cats; but there are no dangerous animals beyond these. The snakes are innocuous; and there are very few reptiles, none of them being poisonous except the centipede, and the little black spider which lives underground, and whose sting is said to be deadly; but this spider is seldom met with. In metallic substances, too, this island is said to be very wealthy, especially in iron and coal; but its mineral treasures have as yet been very little explored.
The population consists of four distinct races. On the south side dwell the Kaffirs, on the west the negroes, while the Arab race predominates on the east, and the Malay family in the interior. These chief races are subdivided into various tribes, among whom the Hovas, who belong to the Malay race, are the most numerous and most civilized in the whole island. The Hovas occupy the greater part of the interior; and as far back as the period of the first discovery of Madagascar, they formed a powerful empire, of which the capital was Tananariva, situated in an elevatedplain in the district of Emir, and consisting of a union of many villages. Least known, or, to speak accurately, quite unknown, is the southwest coast, where the inhabitants are considered the most inhospitable of all, and the most inveterate foes of Europeans.
Like most nations in their infancy, all these various races and tribes are very indolent, superstitious, inquisitive, and unprincipled. As I have stated, the French have been endeavoring, since the year 1642, to establish themselves in Madagascar. They conquered certain strips of land, and erectedcomptoirsand little forts here and there, but could never maintain their position. All their efforts failed, partly in consequence of the unhealthy climate, partly through the harshness and cruelty with which they treated the natives, and partly because they were never assisted with money and troops from home, when these were required.
Neither the French government nor the “Société de l’Orient” could ever come to a decision respecting this island. At one time they wanted to conquer it entirely, at another to abandon it altogether. Troops and ships were several times dispatched, and then left to their fate, and nothing was accomplished. The last of these undertakings occurred in the year 1733, under the command of the Polish Count Benjowsky, who received beforehand the title of Governor of Madagascar. Count Benjowsky seems to have been a very capable and resolute man, and as he had a larger force under his command than had been engaged in any previous expedition, he would perhaps have succeeded in annexing Madagascar definitely to France, or at least in founding a permanent and important colony on the island, had he not been treated as badly as, or even worse than, his predecessors; for not only did the promised succors fail to arrive, but the Governor of Bourbon, who was to have assisted him, proved a most dangerous enemy. Instead of sending him money and troops, he tried in everyway, from jealousy, to weaken the power of his new rival; and so it happened that, in spite of his first successes, Count Benjowsky was soon scarcely able to hold a few unimportant forts and factories. After his death even these were lost, and in the year 1786 the French left Madagascar altogether. Of all their conquests they only retained the little island of St. Maria.
After the beginning of the nineteenth century the English attempted to found settlements in Madagascar, but they too were unsuccessful. They took possession of the harbors of Tamatavé and Foul Point, but only kept them a short time. Meanwhile the empire of the Hovas in the interior had increased considerably. Dianampoiene, the chief of Tananariva, carried on successful wars against the petty chiefs, and annexed their states to his own. He is reported to have been a very active and intelligent man, and to have given good laws to his people; under his rule the use of spirituous liquors and of tobacco was forbidden. Dianampoiene died in the year 1810, and left his kingdom, which had already become powerful, to his son Radama.
This potentate was only eighteen years old when he came to the throne. Like his father, he was intelligent, upright, and very ambitious. He loved the Europeans, and sought to increase his knowledge by consorting with them.
The English very cleverly made use of this disposition of the king’s, and managed to get into high favor with him. Radama was soon so prepossessed by them that he allowed them distinctions of every kind, and sometimes even wore an English uniform. He likewise made a treaty with England, by which he bound himself to give up the export slave-trade. As an indemnity he received money and presents to the amount of about £2000; and the English government farther undertook to send ten young men from Madagascar to England, and ten others to the Mauritius, to be instructed in various handicrafts and trades.
Radama kept the treaty strictly; but not so did the English General Hall, who succeeded Mr. Farquhar as Governor of the Mauritius. General Hall seems to have held the doctrine that savages are not men. He was not ashamed to declare openly that a contract made with a chief of savages was entirely invalid, and accordingly he constantly broke the treaty. A natural consequence of this manner of dealing was, that Radama again licensed the slave-trade, and began to favor the French at the expense of the English, giving his new friends a small strip of land in the Bay of Vanatobé.
The English strove for a long time to regain their influential position, but in vain. They had made themselves so hateful not only to Radama, but to the people, that every thing false and mendacious used to be called “English.” Nevertheless, they succeeded at last in getting the treaty renewed, and even obtained fresh privileges. They got permission to bring in missionaries, to build schools, and to teach the Bible. In consideration of a duty of five per cent. they were allowed to enter all the harbors, to carry on trade, to cultivate the ground, and to found industrial establishments.
Radama died in his thirty-sixth year, on the 27th of July, 1828.
Following out the ambitious projects of his father, he had succeeded in extending his rule over the greater part of the island, and had made himself King of Madagascar. Besides the country of the Hovas, the land of the Teklaves, on the northwest coast, with its capital, Bambetock; Mozangage, on the west coast, and the countries of the Antawares and of the Betimsaras, on the north, obeyed his sceptre; the southwest coast and the district of the Anossij, in the southeast, had alone maintained their independence.
Radama possessed great oratorical talents, and was very fond of exhibiting them. He was altogether very vain andexceedingly open to adulation: his people were obliged to worship him as if he had been a god, and the influence the missionaries obtained under his government they doubtless owed chiefly to the praise and flattery with which they continually plied him. They compared him to the First Napoleon, of whose great deeds the French had told him, and whom he appeared to have taken as his model. The parallel was not altogether inapplicable, however, and the title, Radama the Great, may be allotted to him when we consider how much he achieved during his short reign. The conquest of a great portion of the island, the abolition of capital punishment for many offenses, the prohibition of the export of slaves, the establishment of a tolerably well-disciplined army, the introduction of many European handicrafts—all this was his doing. He was the first to open a door to civilization in Madagascar; in his reign the first public schools were built, and the Roman letter taken as the character wherein the national language was to be written. Bent in every way upon improving the condition of his empire, he made an exception only in one particular—he set his face resolutely against every proposal to construct roads, declaring, like most rulers of half-savage tribes, that the bad roads were his best defense against the Europeans. During the last years of his life he unfortunately gave himself up to lamentable dissipation, which probably caused his early death; many, however, declare that he was poisoned.
At Radama’s death, not only the English, but all European influence ceased. His first wife, Ranavola, succeeded him on the throne, and added to her name the regal title “Manjaka.” This cruel, bloodthirsty woman began her rule by the execution of seven of the nearest relatives of the late king; indeed, according to the account given by a missionary, Mr. William Ellis, not only were all killed who belonged to Radama’s family, but those nobles also who stoodnear the throne, some of whom Ranavola feared might advance a claim to it.
The treaty which Radama had made with the English she abrogated at once. Her hatred for the British was very great, and extended to every thing that came from England, even to the cattle introduced from that country. All people of English descent were to be killed, or at least banished from her dominions; nor did the French find favor in her eyes. She set her face generally against civilization, and tried hard to stifle its every germ. She drove away the missionaries, prohibited Christianity, and made all communication with Europeans difficult. Her subjects, especially those who do not belong to the race of the Hovas, from which she came, she treated with great severity and cruelty: for the smallest offenses the most rigorous punishments were inflicted, and sentences of death were, and still are, executed daily.
One only among those related by ties of blood to the late King Radama had succeeded in saving his life by timely flight. This was Prince Ramanetak. This prince had just claims to the throne; and as Queen Ranavola soon made herself hated by the people for her cruel and bloodthirsty rule, he might well have succeeded, with French help, in effecting a revolution and taking possession of the throne. This would have been very advantageous to the French, for Prince Ramanetak was very favorably inclined toward that nation. But the government in France remained true to the policy pursued toward Madagascar for the last two centuries, and the magnificent aid they offered to the prince consisted of—sixty muskets and twenty kegs of powder.
As I have already stated, when describing my visit to Paris, the French were ultimately expelled by Queen Ranavola even from the strip of land given them by Radama in the Bay of Vanatobé. Whether France will demand satisfaction, and show the insolent rulers of Madagascar the might of a European people, or whether she will let the opportunity pass by as she has done on former occasions, I can not take upon myself to conjecture. Time will show.
Departure from the Mauritius.—The old Man-of-War.—Arrival in Madagascar.—Mademoiselle Julie.—Account of Tamatavé.—The Natives.—Comical Head-dresses.—First Visit in Antandroroko.—Malagasey Hospitality.—The Europeans at Tamatavé.—The Parisio-Malagasey.—Domestic Institutions.
Departure from the Mauritius.—The old Man-of-War.—Arrival in Madagascar.—Mademoiselle Julie.—Account of Tamatavé.—The Natives.—Comical Head-dresses.—First Visit in Antandroroko.—Malagasey Hospitality.—The Europeans at Tamatavé.—The Parisio-Malagasey.—Domestic Institutions.
Onthe 25th of April, 1857, I quitted the Mauritius. Thanks to the good offices of Mr. Gonnet, the owners of the “Triton” gave me a free passage to the harbor of Tamatavé, on the coast of Madagascar, distant 480 sea-miles. Our vessel was an old worn-out brig of war, which in her youthful days formed part of the British fleet at the great victory of Trafalgar in 1805. Deeply had she fallen from her former high estate; for now, in her old age, she was used for carrying oxen during the fine season of the year from Madagascar to the Mauritius. Accommodation for passengers there was none, all the space being divided into berths for the oxen; and as to the security of our vessel, the captain gave me the consolatory assurance that she was utterly unfit to do battle with any thing approaching to a storm.
My desire to leave the Mauritius behind me was nevertheless so great that nothing could dissuade me from going. I commended myself to Heaven, embarked with a light heart, and had no reason to repent my boldness. If the ship was bad, her captain, Mr. Benier, was a remarkably good one. Though not of high birth, for he was half Creole in color, he behaved with a courtesy and consideration which would have done honor to the most cultivated man. He at once gave up his cabin to me—the only place in the ship not monopolized by preparations for the four-footed passengers—and did all in his power to make the voyageas agreeable to me as possible. For the first three days our passage was rather a quick one. The wind was in our favor, blowing from the east, as it always does in these seas from April to the end of October. A quick-sailing ship would have made the voyage in three days; but not so our old war-craft, wending painfully on her way. We were still far distant from our goal, and, to our dismay, a strong contrary wind arose in the night between the third and fourth day of our voyage. Notwithstanding the consoling verdict of the captain with regard to the safety of the ship, I sat expectant every minute of some catastrophe. But the night and the following day passed away without accident, though the wind, still contrary, compelled us to cast anchor toward evening off the island of “Prunes.” On the fifth day we came to Tamatavé, but could not run in there; at length, on the sixth day, we came to anchor in the harbor.
Violent falls of rain, frequently of long duration, had contributed their share in rendering the voyage irksome; I had no books with me, and the good captain’s library consisted of a cookery-book and an English and French dictionary. But such minor inconveniences are easily forgotten, particularly when a long-sought goal is in view, as was now the case with me. The land I had ardently wished, during many years, to visit, now lay before my eyes.
I wished to quit the ship at once; but it appears that, in spite of her contempt for civilization and her dislike of European institutions, Queen Ranavola has adopted the two among them most obnoxious to travelers—police and custom-house. Just as though I had been in France or any other European country, I was compelled to wait till the inspecting officers had come on board, and looked very carefully at the ship and at me. As I had the queen’s royal permission to set foot in her kingdom, no farther difficulty was made, and I was free to land. Here certain custom-houseemployésof Madagascar at once took possession of me,and led me to the custom-house, where all my baggage was opened and searched. How they searched! not the smallest object escaped their eyes, not the tiniest paper packet was overlooked. The officials exhibited the keenness of bloodhounds, and could hold their own beside the sharpestdouaniersin France or Germany. Fortunately, nothing was stolen from me; and I looked complacently on a scene that so whimsically reminded me of my own country.
At Tamatavé I was to meet Mr. Lambert, who intended not to return to the Mauritius after his visit to the eastern coast of Africa, which he had undertaken on behalf of the French government, but to proceed to Madagascar at once. Mr. Lambert had not yet arrived, but he had already told me in the Mauritius that, in the event of having to wait, I should put up at Mademoiselle Julie’s, and he would take care to inform her of his arrival.
My lady-readers will probably expect to be introduced, in the person of Mademoiselle Julie, to an unmarried European female, cast by some strange freak of fortune on this distant island. Unfortunately, I must disenchant them: Mademoiselle Julie is a true Malagasey woman, and, moreover, a widow, and the mother of several children. In Madagascar, the strange custom prevails of calling every member of the sex feminine “Mademoiselle,” even though she may have a dozen little olive-branches to show, or may have been married half a dozen times.
Mademoiselle Julie is, nevertheless, no ordinary personage, and decidedly one of the most interesting characters, not only in Tamatavé, but in the whole island. She was left a widow about eight months ago, but continued to carry on her husband’s business, and with a better result, it is rumored, than the deceased himself could attain. She is the possessor of sugar plantations and a rum distillery, and engages in commercial speculations of various kinds. Her penetration and industry would render her a remarkablewoman any where; and they are the more surprising in a country like Madagascar, where the women are generally completely ignorant, and have a very low place in the social scale.
Mademoiselle Julie received part of her education in Bourbon. She speaks and writes French perfectly. Unfortunately, she has retained some of the usages, or ratherab-usages, of her native land. Her greatest delight is to lie for hours extended on the ground, resting her head on the lap of a friend or a female slave, who is engaged in clearing mademoiselle’s head of certain little occupants which shall be nameless. This agreeable occupation, by the way, forms a favorite diversion of the women of Madagascar, who pay visits to each other in order to indulge in itcon amore. Mademoiselle Julie was also violently addicted to using her fingers at dinner instead of fork and spoon; but she only indulged her inclinations so far when she thought herself unobserved.
Mademoiselle Julie did not receive me in the most cordial way exactly. She surveyed me from top to toe, rose in a leisurely way, and led me to a neighboring little house, worse appointed than even the pavilions of the Mauritius. The one room contained no furniture except an empty bedstead. Mademoiselle Julie gruffly inquired where I had left my bedding. I replied that I had brought none with me, as Mr. Lambert had assured me I should find every thing necessary in her house. “I can give you none,” was her curt rejoinder; and although, as I afterward found, she had a store of bedding sufficient for the need, not of one, but of half a dozen travelers, she would have let me, old as I was, sleep on the bare bedstead. Fortunately, another woman, a Madame Jacquin, was present, who at once offered to supply me with bedding, and gave mademoiselle her opinion of her conduct in some rather strong expressions. Very grateful was I to good Madame Jacquin for her friendly offer, but for which I should have had to make shift as best I could till the arrival of Mr. Lambert with my cloak, and a pillow which I usually carry with me.
All other comforts were, of course, out of the question, and I had to provide every thing I wanted for myself. My stay at Tamatavé lasted for some weeks, for Mr. Lambert arrived much later than he had intended.
The harbor of Tamatavé is the best in the whole island; and in the fine season, from April to the end of October, many ships arrive here from the Mauritius and Bourbon, to take in cargoes of oxen, of which between ten and eleven thousand head are exported annually. About two thirds of the number go to the Mauritius, and only one third to Bourbon, although there is no great difference between these two islands, either in extent or in population. But there are many Englishmen in the Mauritius, who are more ardent admirers of roast-beef than the French.
It is a singular circumstance that Queen Ranavola does not allow the exportation of cows; she thinks, in her cunning wisdom, that if she allowed cows to be taken away, the recipients would soon breed cattle for themselves, and the demand for them from Madagascar would cease. Of course, she has no idea that the two islands derive far greater profits from their sugar plantations than the land would yield as mere pasture-ground for cattle. A fine ox, worth about £2 5s.in Madagascar, would cost four or five times that sum if reared in Bourbon or the Mauritius.
Besides the oxen, rice, rabanetas, and poultry are exported. Rabanetas are a kind of mats, on which the sugar is spread out to dry when it comes out of the last pan. They are also used as tapestry to cover the walls and floors of rooms, and the poorest classes even wear them as clothes.
During the fine-weather season there is much bustle in Mademoiselle Julie’s house. There are sometimes four or five ships in the harbor at once. The captains are allfriends of my hostess, who gives them a general invitation to dinner, and may be said to keep free table. At the time of my visit, which, however, was quite at the commencement of the fine season, the concourse was certainly not so great. I never saw more than two ships in the harbor at once.
Tamatavé may one day become a very important place, when this fruitful island is thrown open to Europeans, and free trade allowed to all nations.
Now, the place looks like a poor but very large village. Its population, including that of the district immediately around, is reckoned at four or five thousand souls: among these are 800 soldiers, and about a dozen Europeans and Creoles from Bourbon. Except the few houses belonging to these latter, and to a few well-to-do Hovas and Malagaseys, one sees nothing but little huts, some scattered about without order or arrangement, others forming narrow streets. These huts rest on poles from six to ten feet in height, are built of wood or of bamboo, thatched with long grass or palm-leaves, and contain a single room, of which the fireplace occupies a large part, so that the family can scarcely find sleeping room. Windows there are none, but two doors, at opposite sides of the wall; the door on the windward or weather side is always kept closed.
The houses of the wealthier inhabitants are built of the same materials as the habitations of the poor, but they are larger and loftier. They contain only one room, which is, however, divided by low partitions into three or four portions; these houses of the wealthy have also windows, but they are not glazed.
The bazar is situate in the midst of the village, on an ugly, uneven plot of ground, and is remarkable alike for its poverty and its dirt. A supply of beef, some sugar-cane, rice, rabanetas, and a few fruits, are generally all that is to be found there; and the whole stock of one of the dealers,who squat about on the ground, is often not worth more than a quarter of a piastre. The oxen are slaughtered in the bazar itself, and the skins are not taken off, but sold in strips with the meat, being considered a great delicacy. Meat is not bought according to weight, but according to the size of each piece, measured by the eye. Whoever wants to buy or sell any thing in this country must provide himself with a small pair of money-scales, for there are no coins in Madagascar except the Spanish dollar; and it is only within the last two years, since Mr. Lambert came here for the first time and brought some five-franc pieces with him, that the last-mentioned coins have become current. In the absence of small change, the dollars and five-franc pieces are cut into greater and smaller portions, often into more than five hundred chips.
To my great surprise, I heard that, in spite of their ignorance and savagery, the natives knew so well how to counterfeit these dollars, that it requires some practice and a close inspection to detect the spurious coins.
The natives of Tamatavé are principally Malagaseys. They appeared to me more repulsive than the negroes and Malays, whose ugliest features are found united in their physiognomy. They have wide mouths, with thick lips, broad flat noses, protruding chins, and prominent cheek-bones. Their complexion varies through all shades of a muddy brown. As a sole redeeming point, some of them have regular teeth of a pearly whiteness; and sometimes a handsome pair of eyes may be seen. Their hair, on the other hand, is marked by peculiar hideousness; it is coal-black, but as woolly as the negro’s, and much coarser and longer, sometimes attaining a length of two feet. When this hair is worn in all its native luxuriance, it has a horribly disfiguring effect. The face seems quite lost in a virgin forest of thick frizzled hair, standing out in all directions. Fortunately, few wear it in this way. The men often havetheir hair cut off quite short at the back of the head, and leave only a length of six or eight inches in front, which looks comical enough, as the hair stands upright, and forms a woolly topknot; but it is not so bad as the virgin forest. The women, and some of the men too, who are exceedingly proud of their hirsute ornaments, and can not make up their minds to shorten them, plait them into a number of little tails. Some let these tails hang all about their heads, while others unite them into bands or bunches, so as to cover the whole head. This kind of head-dress takes a good deal of time in preparing, particularly in the cases of the richer Malagaseys, who have their hair plaited into an infinite number of these little tails. On the head of one of these native beauties I counted above sixty plaits. The good lady’s slaves must have had a good day’s work in bringing them to the right pitch of perfection. On the other hand, it may be urged that such a head-dress does not require renewing continually, but will remain in all its pristine loveliness for several days.
To leave the hair free in all its natural beauty is considered a token of mourning. The Malagaseys are generally above the middle height, and I saw many tall, powerful figures, especially among the men.
Their costume is that generally adopted by half-civilized nations who do not go quite naked; the only difference is in the name. The two chief articles of clothing used by the Malagaseys are calledsadikandsimbu. The first of these is as primitive as can well be imagined, consisting only of a strip of cloth worn round the loins. Many of the natives consider this garment as sufficient, and do not extend their wardrobe beyond it. The simbu is a piece of white stuff, about four yards long and three broad. The natives wrap themselves in their simbus like the Romans of old in their togas; and they really often wear them gracefully enough. Sometimes, to leave their movementsunimpeded, they roll up the simbu and wrap it round the upper part of their bodies.
The dress of males and females is the same, except that the women have a little more drapery, and often wear, besides the sadik and simbu, a third garment—a short, very tight jacket, which they callkarrezu.
The simbu gives its wearers continual employment. It is always coming loose, and has to be adjusted every minute. It might almost be said that men and women here had only one hand to work with, the other being monopolized by the management of this refractory garment.
The food of the Malagaseys is as primitive as their clothing. Rice and anana are the staple of every meal. Anana is a kind of vegetable very much resembling spinach, and which would be very agreeable to the taste if they would not prepare it with rancid fat. The people who live on the banks of rivers or on the sea-coast sometimes eat fish, but very seldom, for they are far too indolent to carry on a systematic fishery: meat, too, and poultry, though they are to be had in great quantity, and at the cheapest prices, are only eaten on special occasions. The natives usually eat two meals, one in the morning, the other in the evening.
The usual drink isranugung, or rice-water, which is prepared in the following way. Rice is boiled in a vessel, and purposely burned, so that a crust forms at the bottom of the vessel. Water is then poured on, and allowed to boil. This water assumes the color of very pale coffee, and, like every thing else that is burnt, tastes abominably to a European palate. But the natives consider it delicious, and when they have drunk the rice-water, they eat the burnt crust with the greatest relish.
The Malagaseys keep many slaves, who are not considered very valuable here. A slave usually costs from thirty-six to forty-five shillings, and no difference is made with regard to age, though children of eight or ten years findreadier purchasers than adult slaves. They start on the principle, ordinarily correct enough, that children may be brought up as their owner likes, but that a grown-up person who has contracted bad habits can not often be made to mend his ways. Adult males are also rarely offered for sale, except men who, once free, have been condemned as a punishment for some crime to be sold by public auction, and those among the slaves who have behaved ill to their masters. Female slaves are generally higher in price than males; and a great value is set upon those who can weave silk. A slave who is expert at this work often fetches as much as £30.
The position of the slaves is here, as among all half-civilized nations, much better than that of their fellow-bondmen among Europeans and Creoles. They have but little work to do, are fed about as well as their masters, and are seldom punished, though the laws do not at all protect them. On the contrary, a master may beat his slave to death; but the stick he uses in administering the chastisement must not be tipped with iron; for if it be thus shod, the master is liable to fine or some other punishment.
In Tamatavé the thievish propensity is very much developed, and that not only among the slaves, but it is widely diffused among almost the whole inland population, not excepting officers and exalted personages; I had to learn this to my cost. In the little hut assigned to me by Mademoiselle Julie as a dwelling, there was no lock to the door; but as my quarters were in close proximity to her dwelling-house and other buildings, and Mademoiselle Julie had not informed me of the predilection entertained by her fellow-countrymen for the goods and chattels of others, I did not think of being suspicious about it. One day, on being summoned to table, I happened to leave my watch, a valuable keepsake from a lady friend at New York, on the table, and when I returned in the evening it had vanished.
I returned immediately to Mademoiselle Julie to inform her of this circumstance, and to ask what steps I should take to regain possession of my watch, declaring myself ready to give a reward of some dollars to whoever would restore it to me. Mademoiselle Julie replied with the most perfect coolness that there was nothing to be done; the watch had probably been stolen by one of the domestic slaves, for that here every body stole; and that another time when I left my hut I should do well to lock the door and close the window apertures. She did not even take the trouble to question any of her slaves; and the only result that accrued from my loss was, that three days afterward I managed, with much difficulty, to get a lock put to my door.
The country immediately surrounding Tamatavé consists of nothing but sand, vegetation not beginning to show itself for one or two miles inland. I could not undertake long walks, as it rained every day, and it behooves Europeans in this country neither to expose themselves to wet nor to go out immediately after rain, for the slightest dampness is likely to bring on fever.
By chance I learned from Mademoiselle Julie that she was the possessor of two estates, lying seven miles from the town, very near the woods, and that her sons resided there. I hoped to be able to take good walks there, and to gather treasures for my collection of insects, and accordingly begged Mademoiselle Julie to have me taken there. In this country journeys are made in a light kind of sedan-chair, calledtacon, suspended between two poles, and carried by four bearers. Even if one has to go only a few hundred steps, the sedan-chair is brought into requisition. No one goes on foot except the slaves and quite poor people. On long journeys eight or twelve bearers are taken instead of four, so that they can continually relieve each other.
I quitted Tamatavé betimes in the morning. The roadto Antandroroko, as one of the estates of my hostess was called, was very good, particularly when we got out of the domain of sand into that of vegetation. Where there were no hills the bearers ran along with me as if I had been no weight at all for them, and we accomplished the seven miles in an hour and a quarter.
At Antandroroko lived Mademoiselle Julie’s younger son, a young man of twenty-two, who had been partly educated at Bourbon. I should not have suspected this, for he differed in nothing from his fellow-countrymen save in his European garb and his knowledge of French, and had again become a thorough Malagasey.
A clean little room was allotted to me in his house, with mats on the floor, but no furniture. I seated myself on my carpet bag and waited patiently for breakfast. Mademoiselle Julie had allowed me to depart fasting, and thus my anxiety on the subject of the commissariat was natural enough. But hour after hour went by, and no one called me to table. I ascribed this delay in the appearance of breakfast to my arrival, and flattered myself that some special dish was being prepared on my account—perhaps even a fowl was being sacrificed, and thus the meal was naturally retarded; so I waited and waited, until at last a slave entered, and said a few Malagasey words which I could not understand. But I very well understood the signs he made, inviting me to follow him, and obeyed joyfully.
I was conducted into another room, unfurnished like my own, and with a mat spread out on the floor in the midst. On the mat lay a large leaf, surrounded by several smaller ones; the first representing the dish and the latter the plates for the entertainment. They had been obliging enough to put a real plate, with a veritable knife, fork, and spoon for me, and likewise a chair. As for my hosts, they crouched upon the ground. A slave appeared with a kettle of rice, and emptied the contents into the improviseddish. Then he brought boiled beans, and a great pot containing a dried fish boiled up in water, and smelling so badly that I could scarcely remain at table. The much-desired fowl never appeared. I thought with a gentle regret of the Dyaks of Borneo, who are considered so savage and cruel, and who, while they themselves ate rice, could always find a chicken for me; and here, in the house of a semi-European host, and in a country where poultry is so cheap and plentiful, I had to content myself with rice and beans.
The manner in which the natives ate was any thing but appetizing. Instead of a spoon, they make use of a piece of leaf, which they fold very dexterously, and wherewith they manage not only to eat rice and beans, but even to carry fluids safely to their mouths. This leaf-spoon being very large, they distend their mouths to the utmost extent, and then shovel the provisions in. This might pass without comment, for it will not do to be too particular on one’s travels; but the worst of it is that they all take their supplies with their own spoons from the common store in the dish.
Near the fish-kettle a slave is generally posted, whose duty consists in ladling the broth out of the kettle, and pouring it over the rice as the company take it up in their spoons. The fish is taken in the hand in pieces, and eaten like bread. I do not wonder that a Malagasey who has never left his own country, or seen any thing better than its usages, should be content to live in this way; but how the young man who had been educated among Europeans could so entirely readopt the customs of his countrymen, I can not understand. Not only in the manner of eating and drinking was this peculiarity shown, but in every thing else likewise. He could sit for hours in his arm-chair without reading or otherwise occupying himself. In fact, he did nothing all day long but rest, smoke tobacco, and talk to the highly intellectual slaves who continually surrounded him.
With true sorrow I had already noticed at Tamatavé that the few Christians who lived there—namely, a few Europeans and some Creoles from Bourbon—instead of setting a good example to the natives, and seeking to improve them by their own respectable lives and the purity of their behavior, seemed to have sunk to the level of the people among whom they dwelt, and adopted all their immoral habits. Thus, for instance, they contract no regular marriages, but, like the natives, change their wives at their pleasure, and sometimes even keep two at the same time, besides being attended on exclusively by female slaves.
Some of these people send their children to Bourbon, or even to France; but for what purpose? When the young man has really learned something—when he has contracted better habits and customs—he returns, and every thing is spoiled only too quickly by his father’s bad example. But what passes my wit to understand is the fact that a European who has earned money enough to live comfortably in his native land, can of his own free will remain in this country; and yet such a wonder did I most certainly behold in the person of a certain Mr. N——.
This man has made a considerable fortune by commerce, and went to his native France a few years ago with the intention of remaining there. But the intercourse with cultivated men and women seemed to him no equivalent for the idle, entirely animal life in Madagascar. So he soon returned to Tamatavé, to his slave-women, and there he will probably end his days. The European is truly a wonderful creature. In Europe he can scarcely find a girl to his taste, and his chosen one is expected to possess all the perfections under the sun; and here he is charmed by black, or muddy-brown coarse beauties, whom I really would almost as soon class among the genus Simia as among the human race! I pity men who can sink so low as to lose all taste for the noble and beautiful, and all recognition ofthe dignity of humanity; and evil indeed are the effects of their example upon the natives, and lamentably is the progress of civilization checked thereby.
But to return to my amiable host. The splendid breakfast was over, and my hopes had been shattered; still, I firmly bade defiance to despair, and built my trust upon the principal meal, which is always taken in the evening. With the greatest impatience I awaited the hour—alas! of new disappointment; the same dishes appeared that had decked the morning meal; not one less, and not one more. It was too much for human endurance. Fortunately, however, the elder brother of my host had come over from the second estate. He was a young man who had not only been in Bourbon, but had lived for nine years in Paris. Although, like his brother, he ate his supper in true Malagasey fashion, by means of the leaf-spoon, I felt more confidence toward him, and invited myself without ceremony to breakfast with him next morning, certain that I could not be worse entertained than I was here.
In the evening a very good bed was made up for me on the floor of my room; but, unfortunately, the musquito-net was forgotten. The consequence was that I could not close my eyes all night. Before retiring to rest I had begged my host to send me up a cup of coffee, with milk, to my room in the morning. But what was the result of my request? They brought me a washing-basin of milk and some sugar, but neither coffee-cup nor spoon. The sight of the basin was of course quite sufficient to take away my appetite, though the milk looked refreshing enough. I modestly hinted at coffee, and heard that they were going to look for some, and that it would then be roasted and ground. I therefore declined to wait, took leave of my obliging host, and again set out on my journey breakfastless.
A boat took me up the pretty river Foondro, which falls into the sea half a mile from this place, to the dwelling ofthe Parisian Malagasey. He lived in a handsome house; came out some distance to me, and—oh happy hour!—led me at once to the dining-room, where, to my great jubilation, I found the table covered in European fashion, and a good, plentiful repast spread out upon it.
This young man in many respects presented a favorable contrast to those of his countrymen who had been, like himself, in Bourbon or in Europe. He is, I think, the only one who does not endeavor to forget every thing he has learned in Europe as quickly as possible. I asked him if he did not miss Paris, and if he did not feel a desire to live there. He replied that he should certainly like to dwell in a civilized land, but that, on the other hand, Madagascar was his native country—that his whole family lived here, and he could not make up his mind to leave them, altogether.
His manner showed that these were not mere words—that hefeltwhat he said. It greatly astonished me, for in general there is nothing more ridiculous than to hear a Malagasey speak of his family and of domestic ties. I have never met with a more immoral people than the inhabitants of Madagascar; and where there is such demoralization, family ties must be of the loosest. I dare not trust my pen to chronicle the many immoral customs which prevail, not only among the people generally, but in the highest families in the island, and appear quite natural to the people here. I can only say that female virtue is looked upon as quite valueless, and that the laws regarding marriage and progeny are of a stranger kind than any where else in the world. Thus, for instance, a man may divorce his wife and take another as often as he chooses. The woman may live with another man, though she may not marry again; but all the children born to her after she has been separated from her husband are looked upon as belonging to him; the second husband has not the slightest claim to them, and the mother is compelled to deliver them up to her first husband immediately upon his claiming them. When a man dies, too, any children his widow may afterward have are looked upon as his; and it is in consequence of this law that Prince Rakoto, son of Queen Ranavola, though he was born long after King Radama’s death, is looked upon as the son of that monarch.
It likewise frequently happens that men who have no children by their own wives marry girls who expect to become mothers, so that they may be able to call the child that is about to be born their own. This craving for progeny is caused by an existing law, which declares the property of any man who dies childless forfeit to the state.
To speak of domestic ties in such a state of society would sound like mockery; and if I had not noticed in my host, on several occasions, a rare amount of real feeling, I should have attached little credence to his words.
I had a good deal of conversation with him, and asked him farther if he did not feel any craving for intellectual companionship—for the agreeable domestic relations found in Europe; if it did not seem hard to him to live continually among coarse, uncultivated men? He acknowledged that the total want of cultivation among his countrymen rendered their society any thing but agreeable to him, but that he sought relaxation in books and study. He mentioned to me several very good works which he had brought with him from France.
I felt truly sorry for this young man. I will not assert that he showed any extraordinary amount of quickness or depth of intellect, but he has an adequate amount of talent, and so much real sensibility and feeling that he could not fail to gain friends in any country in the world. I pity him; for, amid this complete dearth of congenial society, it will be wonderful indeed if he does not become a true Malagasey at last.
I remained with Mr. Ferdinand Diche—for so my hostwas called—for a whole day. The weather continued so bad that I could neither walk out nor occupy myself in hunting for insects. On the following day I returned to Tamatavé.