MADAGASCAR.

Reigning Sovereign and Government.

Queen Ranavalona, or Ranavalo III., born about 1861; appointed successor by the late Queen Ranavalona II., succeeded to the throne on her death, July 13, 1883, shortly after married the Prime Minister, Rainilaiarivono, and was crowned November 22.

Madagascar began to be of commercial importance to Europe about the year 1810, when Radama I. succeeded in reducing the island to the sway of the dynasty of the Hovas, the most advanced though not most numerous of the various Malagasy races. His widow, Queen Ranavalona I., succeeded in 1829, and until her death in 1861 intercourse with foreigners was discouraged. She was succeeded by Radama II., and he by his wife Rasoherina, on whose death, in 1868, Ranavalona II. obtained the throne. The present queen is great-granddaughter of Rahety, sister of King Andrianampoinimèrina (1787-1810). At various periods, 1820, 1861, 1865, and 1868, treaties have been concluded with Great Britain, the United States, and France. Under one of these, said to have been made in 1841 with a Sakalava chief, France claims a protective right over the north of the island from 16 deg. S. lat., which she endeavoured to assert by force in 1883, until which time the French practically acknowledged the Hovas as dominant over the whole island. At present (January 1885) no settlement of the dispute has been arrived at.

The Government is an absolute monarchy, modified and tempered by customs and usages having the force of law; and during the last quarter of a century the power of the Sovereign has been gradually limited and controlled. The Sovereign is advised by her Prime Minister, who is the real source of all political power; he is assisted by a number of ministers who act as heads of departments— education, justice, the interior, foreign affairs, &c. These swear fidelity to the Prime Minister as well as to the Sovereign. The succession to the Crown is hereditary in the royal house, but not necessarily in direct succession; the reigning sovereign may designate his successor.

A large portion of the Hovas and of the people in the east and central districts have been Christianised, and Christianity is acknowledged and protected as the State religion. There are about 350,000 Protestants and about 35,000 Roman Catholics. Threefourths of the people are still Pagans. Schools have been established, and education is compulsory wherever the influence of the central government is effective. In Imerina, the chief province, are (1883) 1,167 schools, with 2,893 teachers and 150,906 pupils; of these two-thirds belong to the London Missionary Society and the

Friends' Mission; 191 schools with 14,960 pupils to the 'Roman Catholics, and the rest to the Church of England and the Norwegian Missions. Besides these there are many schools at a distance from the capital, with about 100,000 pupils.

Of the revenue and expenditure of the Government there are no statistics; the chief source of revenue is the customs, and a small poll tax is paid; but the personal service which every Malagasy has to render is the mainstay of the Government. Payment is generally taken in kind, though by new treaty arrangements the customs dues can be paid in money. The only fixed payments are those made to the Queen, the Prime Minister, and the Army. The standing army is estimated to consist of 20,000 men, two-thirds of whom are armed with modern rifles and the remainder with old Snider muskets. During the French invasion the number of men mobilized exceeded 50,000.

Population and Trade.

The area of the island, with its adjacent islands, is estimated at 228,500 square miles, and the population, according to the most trustworthy estimates, at 3,500,000; other estimates vary from 2,500,000 to 5,000,000. There is a considerable variety of tribes, the most powerful, intelligent, and enterprising being that of the Hovas, of Malay origin, whose Malay language is spread over the island and who have been dominant for the last fifty years. The only unsubdued territories are in the south and south-west, which are inhabited by wild independent tribes. The people are divided into a great many clans, who seldom intermarry. In the coast towns are many Arab traders, and there are besides many negroes from Africa introduced as slaves. The capital, Antanánarivo, in the interior, is estimated to have a population of 100,000. The principal port is Tamatave, on the east coast, with a population of 6,000. Mojanga, the chief port on the north-west coast, has about 14,000 inhabitants. Slavery exists in a patriarchal form. Of minerals, silver, copper, iron, coal, and salt have been found. Cattle breeding and agriculture are the chief occupations of the people; rice, sugar, cotton, and sweet potatoes being cultivated. The forests abound with many valuable woods, while tropical and subtropical products are plentiful. Silk and woollen weaving are carried on, and the manufacture of textures from palm fibre, and of metal-work. The chief exports are cattle, india-rubber, hides, horns, coffee, lard, sugar, vanilla, wax, gum, rice, and seeds. The chief imports are cotton goods, rum, and metal goods. The trade is chiefly with Mauritius, Réunion, Great Britain, and France; there has also been recently considerable trade with the United States. An official estimate values the total exports and imports at 800,000l. In 1883 the value of the exports to Great Britain was 87,8657. (4,300l. in

1878), and imports from Great Britain 38,4807. (21,6117. in 1878 and 49,610. in 1880). Of the exports the principal were caoutchouc 65,2867., and hides 8,7731.; of the imports, cottons 31,3031., and iron, wrought and unwrought, 1,1117. In the last six months of 1882 the imports from the United States at Tamatave were valued by the United States Consul at 41,4821., and exports to the United States at 51,4977.

The total number of vessels (including 8 men-of-war) which entered at Tamatave in the last six months of 1882 was 116, of 19,951 tons; of these 59 vessels were British and 40 French; 46 were coasters.

The only legal coin is the silver 5-franc piece, but the Italian 5-lire piece is also accepted. For smaller sums the coin is cut up into fractional parts and weighed as required.

Report by Vice-Consul Whitney on the trade of Tamatave, and ConsularAgent Stanwood on the trade of the S. W. Coast; in Reports of United States Consuls.' No. 31, 1883. Washington, 1883.

Report of Rear-Admiral W. Gore Jones, C.B., on a visit to the Queen of Madagascar. London, 1883.

Treaty concluded between France and Madagascar, Aug. 8, 1868. London, 1883.

Annual Statement of the Trade of the United Kingdom with Foreign Countries and British Possessions for the year 1883. London, 1884.

2. UNOFFICIAL.

Antananarivo Annual, 1875-82.

Barbié du Bocage. Madagascar Possession Française depuis 1642. Paris, 1869.
Beiträge zur Kenntniss Madagaskars. Berlin, 1883.
Ellis (Rev. W.), History of Madagascar,

vols. London, 1838. Three

Visits to Madagascar. London, 1858. Madagascar Revisited. London, 1867. Grandidier (M.), Histoire Physique Naturelle et Politique de Madagascar. Paris, 1876.

Leroy (L.), Les Français à Madagascar. Paris, 1883.

McLeod (J. L.), Madagascar and its People. London, 1865.

Mullens (Rev. Dr. J.), Twelve Months in Madagascar. London, 1875.

Oliver (S. P.), Madagascar and the Malagasy. London, 1866.

Pfeiffer (Ida), Visit to Madagascar. London, 1861.

Sibree (Rev. James), Madagascar and its People. London, 1870. The Great African Island. London, 1880.

Wilson (Capt. J. C.), Notes on the West Coast of Madagascar in Journal of Royal Geographical Society, vol. xxxvi. London, 1866.

MAURITIUS.

Constitution and Government.

THE government of the British colony of Mauritius, with its dependencies, the island of Rodrigues, of Diego Garcia, and the Seychelles Islands, is vested in a Governor, aided by an Executive Council, of which the Colonial Secretary, the Procureur-General, the Officer in Command of Her Majesty's Troops, the Colonial Treasurer, and Auditor-General, are ex-officio members. There is also a Legislative Council, consisting of nine official and nine non-official members. The official councillors comprise the five Executive members, the Collector of Customs, the Protector of Immigrants, and the Surveyor-General. The constitution was altered in 1884, by the introduction of an elective element into the Legislature. Under a moderate franchise six members are now elected, one for each of the following districts: Port Louis, Moka and Plaines Wilhems, Grand Port, Flacq, Savanne and Rivière Noire, Pamplemousses and Rivière du Rempart. The principle of local government has been so far conceded, that where six non-officials vote together on any question of finance or local concern the official vote is not to be counted.

Governor of Mauritius.—Sir John Pope Hennessy, K.C.M.G., born 1834; M.P. for King's County, Ireland, 1859-65; Governor of Labuan, 1868-71; Governor of the West African Settlement, 1872-73; Governor of the Bahamas, 1873–75; Governor of the Windward Islands, 1875–76; Governor of Hong Kong, 1876–82. Appointed Governor of Mauritius, December 1882.

The Governor has a salary of 6,000l., and the Colonial Secretary 1,350l. per annum.

Revenue and Expenditure.

The revenue and expenditure of the colony, in each of the ten years from 1874 to 1883, were as follows:

The total

The principal source of revenue is from the customs. debenture debt of the colony amounted to 759,6007. in 1883.

Area and Population.

The island of Mauritius, lying in the Indian Ocean, 500 miles east of Madagascar, comprises an area of 708 English square miles.

The island was discovered by the Portuguese in 1507, but the first who made any settlement in it were the Dutch in 1598, who named it Mauritius, in honour of their Prince Maurice. It was abandoned by them in 1710, and afterwards taken possession of by the French. The British Government captured it in 1810, and its possession was ratified by the Treaty of Paris, 1814. The French laws, customs, and religion were guaranteed.

The dependent islands of Rodrigues, Diego Garcia, and the Seychelles, under the administration of the Governor of Mauritius, are from 300 to 900 miles distant from Mauritius. They are small, with a population of 16,000.

The following were the numbers of the population of Mauritius, according to the census taken in 1881 :

Of the total population 247,625 are Indian, the remainder being mostly of the French race, including 20,000 whites. The permanent settled population of the European race is greater than in any other tropical colony. As regards religion, there are thirteen Roman Catholics to one Protestant, but the Indians are mostly Hindoos. On January 1st, 1884, the total population was 361,094, 114,416 general, and 246,678 Indians. At the census of 1871 the total population, including military and shipping, was 317,369, the resident population being 316,042.

The capital of the colony, Port Louis, had, with its suburbs, an estimated population of 70,000 in 1881.

Primary education is conducted partly in government, and partly in State-aided schools. The total government expenditure on education in 1882, including the Royal College, was 31,0917. In